Start of Something Beautiful

Well I am about to start bouncing off the walls because I AM SO EXCITED!! Today was such a great day in ministry!

Each morning before we go out we pray in a group. This morning I just prayed that this would be an incredible day and we would see God move in a mighty way. And that is exactly what happened. At first I was discouraged because Anna and I went out to get lunch and sat with 2 girls. They did NOT want to talk to us. They were very friendly and answered our questions but they left to study after they ate. Anna and I had a great conversation and got to know each other better. It's so great to have such encouraging girls on my team that are willing to open up about what their pasts and their struggles. So that was cool.

Then we went and passed out surveys for an event the Christian organization at Uppsala University (called Agape) is putting on this Friday. Students fill out surveys about what they believe and if they're interested in talking to someone about God or getting more information about Agape. This Friday at the party we will pick one of the surveys out and the person gets up on stage and gets asked the question "Goat or iPod?" They get to choose if they want to send 2 goats to a needy family in Mozambique or have an iPod for themselves.

And now I'm blasting praise music and singing at the top of my lungs! I can't blast my music or sing to God any louder!! I'm just SO excited and want to praise God for letting us have such a deep and great conversation with the Swedes!!

SO cool. I'm so excited to see how God works even more while we're here.

Well I just got back from a run around the beautiful city of Uppsala. I ran around with "Sweetest Thing" by U2 blasting in my ears (also some Footloose...GREAT pump up song for running). This place is like a fairy tale. I felt like U2 knew exactly the right words to say while I looked around at the gorgeous city. It really is like the sweetest thing. No joke. There are so many restaurants where you can sit outside and coffee shops with delicious desserts. The more we explore and find out about this city the more we fall in love.

To give you a little glimpse into our ministry it works like this... we go out each day for lunch to the nations. Most students are apart of a nation (kind of like a sorority or fraternity) and they get to go to parties at their nation and get cheaper meals in their cafeterias. We went to a party at one of the nations, which was extremely fun. It's a great way for us to hang out with people we meet because we can go to the nations with them and have fun. And the faculties are in the educational buildings. We get lunch and then try to find someone or a group of people to sit with. We go in pairs and sit at a table. It can be awkward at first, but once we introduce ourselves, a lot of the time we play the "dumb American" card and ask many questions about Sweden and Uppsala. Swedes are very proud of their country and love to talk about it so that can strike up a great conversation at first. During the conversation we try to bring up something spiritual like we might ask what Swedes think about God or if Swedes go to church. Also, when we ask the Swedes about what they do and what they're involved in, this is a great way for us to talk about how God impacts our lives and how we're involved with Campus Crusade. Sometimes I feel like we're "tricking" them or trying to maneuver the conversation so they talk about God, but the thing is He really is the focus of our lives. So if we're talking about ourselves and our lives then we should talk about God because He is our life. Then if our conversation goes well and the people seem interested then we get their numbers and ask if they want to get Fika. Fika is what they call just a chill hang out time, usually at a coffee shop.

The most exciting thing so far for me has been that I am going to hang out with a girl named Kat soon. Nancy and I have met a few girls that we're going to try to catch up with this week. But I'm excited because I met Kat at a bike wash outreach we did last week. She and I had a really great conversation and it wasn't something that had to be forced. I feel like she is going to be one of my closest friends that is a Swede.

But along the lines of friendship... it's only been a week and I feel very close to everyone on my team. We had a night of swing dancing and shagging (the dance) tonight and everyone was laughing and having a great time. The guys got to show off their dance moves which was fun to watch. Being vulnerable is hard to do when you've only known people a few days, but the girls are having no problem opening up, which is great. I am finally getting a glimpse of what a true Christian community is supposed to look like. Everyone is encouraging, vulnerable, and truly running after God and trying to do everything they can to live their lives glorifying God.

I am already seeing a great turn around in my own life. This past semester at school has been VERY exhausting physically, emotionally, and especially spiritually. Coming here I thought that I would be overwhelmed and stressed, but it's been exactly the opposite. I feel revived spiritually and I'm so in love with God. I desire to talk to Him and read my Bible. It's so great. The biggest change I've seen so far in myself is how I've become quieter. In 1 Peter it says that women are to have gentle and quiet spirits. I'm usually very obnoxious and try to have the focus be on me. Even when I act like I'm "listening" to my friends' problems I really am trying to turn the conversation back around on myself or get something out of the friendship. Already God is teaching me it's ok to talk quieter, let others have the attention, and most of all He's teaching me how to truly love others in a genuine way. We can't genuinely love others on our own. I've tried it many many times but really we can only pour out love when we're being poured into by God.

That's it for now!!

We got here!

Hello from Sverige (Sweden)!

We got here Monday at about 7:30 in the morning (local time). We are 6 hours ahead so we got here at 1:30 am (eastern time). So basically it was like we were starting the day over when we should be in bed. It was a looong day and we were all exhausted but it was a fun day of exploring the city of Uppsala. My group went to a Thai buffet restaurant and were the loudest people in there. Apparently Swedes talk in almost a whisper at all times. It's something we're getting used to. Anyways, then we did a scavenger hunt around Uppsala for about 5 hours trying to get acquainted with the city. This place is GORGEOUS! There's a river flowing down the middle of it and there's cobblestone streets. The thing that surprised me is how similar Uppsala is to America. The only way I can tell we're in a different country is the fact we hear the locals speaking a different language and there's signs in Swedish. And they were playing Adele's "Rolling in the Deep" in a man's Swedish voice in Ikea. Odd. haha. We had to ask directions a few times during the scavenger hunt and the Swedes we talked to spoke perfect English and were so helpful and kind. So that helped my nerves about starting conversations with strangers.

After 10 hours of sleep, we woke up and ate breakfast in our hostel. Oh by the way, about our hostel, we are staying in a nice place where everything is really clean and they have great breakfasts. But there are 6 girls crammed in my room into a space where about 3 people could fit. There are bunk beds and very little floor space to put our luggage. And there's awkward 2 inch slits in the wall where we have to slide our luggage into vertically. Also, the bathrooms are co-ed. Awkward. Besides that, those are the only negatives! Everyone on my team is INCREDIBLE. We all have so much fun together and everyone is so nice and encouraging.

Back to my day today. My group walked across the city (about a 20 minute walk) to the psychology and arts building. We went to the cafeteria to eat lunch and my friend Nancy and I sat with two Swedish girls. At first they thought it was weird we sat down at their table and kept talking to each other in Swedish. But then Nancy said, "Excuse me. We are new here and we want to know more about Uppsala. Can you help us?" We introduced ourselves and this led into a discussion that lasted about 2 hours. We did talk about church and their belief in God for a few minutes, but we talked a lot about them and their lives. We talked about everything from where they're from to what they do in Uppsala to why they're studying Psychology. They also had a lot of questions about America. The one girl visited Oregon and California about 10 years ago. One of the things that's different here is students usually wait a while after high school to start college. The girl who visited America is about 30 years old and still has 2 years of college left. At the end of the conversation we got their phone numbers and we're going to meet with them again, probably next week. We might go clubbing with them or just get coffee. Either way, Swedes are very willing to talk to us and they are so nice! They want to hang out and get to know us so that makes our "job" a lot easier.

All in all this is a beautiful place. The weather is perfect. The people I'm with are amazing and we're having a blast. Tomorrow we have our first full day of ministry so be praying for more girls that Nancy and I talk to.

Thanks for reading and thanks for your prayers!!

Well looks like I'm goin...

Hey friends!
Guess how much of my support came in?? ALL OF IT!! I definitely had some doubts but God has proven that He can provide and He wants me on this trip. No doubts.
I am SO excited! God is already blowing my mind before we even step on the plane.

Exactly 1 week until I board the plane and have a long day of flying. At least we get fed dinner on the plane! I've never had a real meal on a plane before; I hope it's yummy!

Where I'm at right now... I actually texted the girl I'm going from UNCW with, Becca, yesterday about what I'm feeling right now. I am excited to see what God is going to do, but I haven't been focusing on that alot. I have been praying, but more I've been focusing on all the details of the trip.. letters, getting all of my support in, packing, etc. I just have this long to-do list running through my head of what all I need to do before next Monday.

I finished all of my exams today though so I'M DONE WITH SOPHOMORE YEAR! Anyways... I can actually relax now and focus on preparing myself mentally, physically, and spiritually for the trip.

Keep checking back because I'm going to use my internet time over there to update this blog!

Next time you'll hear from me I'll be in Uppsala, Sweden! :)