When I applied for summer missions, the opportunity in North GA caught my eye. I’ve enjoyed visiting there before, or at least driving through on the way to bigger mountains, and it wouldn’t be too far from home. Of course I convinced myself that I should go somewhere more interesting, a little farther out of my comfort zone, and perhaps somewhere that would sound more impressive when compared to places like Thailand, Hawaii, and Ghana. I wanted to encounter people who were from a different culture, share the Gospel with people who had never heard it, and try things I had never tried before. At interview weekend I was still unsure of where I wanted to go, so I asked God to send me wherever He wanted me, wherever there was a need He wanted to me fill. So He sent me to GA.
In spite of the looks from people pretending to be happy for me when I told them about my assignment, I went prepared to do my best and serve God with an open mind and a servant’s heart. I learned my first weekend on the field that I didn’t need to leave the state to find those experiences that I thought were only possible on other continents or in different regions of the U.S. The first person with whom I shared Christ was a 6-year-old girl named Hannah who had never heard the Gospel. Almost every time we did face painting on the street I talked to someone from another country. Every week of day camp brought children who were eager to learn who Jesus REALLY is and how, in the words of a 5-year-old boy, “He died, but after three days He lifed again!” Twelve of those children accepted Christ. I explained the EvangiCube to a boy while he had his face painted, unaware of the large crowd of people who were watching me from the sidewalk. I washed the windows of a tattoo shop after being called a beggar, hiked around waterfalls, and learned how to have Jonah swallowed and then spit out of a whale (made out of a balloon, of course). I learned that my failures are not much different from anyone else’s, and that God can use my past to help others deal with the present and possibly impact their future. Most importantly, I learned that God can and will use anyone, anywhere, in any way He wants, if we will only be willing to say “yes.”

no need to say goodbye...

The only thing I don't like about fun is that it makes time fly. It seems like yesterday I drove to orientation, today I headed back home, and maybe the whole summer was just a dream I had last night. I'm so glad it wasn't! I like to dream, but sometimes reality is better. God is real and He can use anybody, anywhere, in any way He wants to! It was hard to leave, but I am so thankful that God is not limited to summer breaks. I pray that He will continue to find ways to use me in other places, and that I will not forget how to be used by Him. And I sure hope He takes me back to North GA sometime, because I think I left a large portion of my heart in the mountains.

whoa!

wow... these past few weeks have been CRAZY!!!

• two summer missionaries went home early and then another had to leave, which leaves us with 4 instead of 7...
• last week we had 5 youth groups in town and we were split between Helen/Cleveland and the GA Mtn. Fair...
• Sunday afternoon a few of us went hiking at Duke's Creek, where I tripped over a rock and sprained my ankle/cut my knee. yay for first ever trip to the ER! of course I had a great time talking to all the people who worked there. am I really that friendly, or was I trying to forget how much it hurt? idk.

It's funny how God uses things to teach us. All summer I have been serving people and being intentionally open to every opportunity He has presented, and now I am forced to sit back and watch everyone else do the work and take care of me. It's very hard. But I guess it's just as important to learn to be served as it is to serve others. After all, in order for people to serve there has to be a need...

It rained on July 4th and some of the youth had some health problems, but the day was still good and we did a lot of ministry. We had carnival events in Helen, Hiawassee, and Blairsville (no public bathroom and I had to go behind a tree... haha). We had a group of pre-teens this week who were a lot of fun. They did everything except day camps, which we did while they did their ministry. We only had kids one day. So yeah, we haven't had a lot going on this week, but it's been nice. We are house-sitting for Mrs. Rhoda this week (who owns the cottage we're staying in) and she has a piano :) and we're sleeping in her house tonight so we all get a huge bed! yay!

this week's adventures:

• three day camp salvations!!! and having 10 kids show up at Unicoi day camp (which never happens)
• making popcorn for three hours and holding some guy's bird during the gas buy-down
• getting beer all over my arm while cleaning the river. yuck.
• yes, you guess it, window washing. always interesting conversations there.
• VBS at Friendship Baptist
• being painted into the cottage and having to jump over the porch to get out
• face painting and balloon animals at Vogel State Park. lots of good conversations.
• went to the post office and my car didn't die there!
• getting ready for God and Country this weekend, where we all get to dress up like characters from US History and talk about their faith (I'm part of an Oregon Trail wagon train)

"We're not beggers, sir. We want to wash your windows for free."

"This is a scam," he mumbled laughingly as he walked away. "Uh, so can we?" The man's disbelief was no obstacle to Kelsey, but only pushed the girls to make the tattoo parlor's windows extra shiny. Of course 10-year-old Ashley was more interested in exploring her options for tattoos and finding out the minimum legal age for pierced belly-buttons... But in spite of her distraction (and loose tongue) and Amy's tendency to block the doorway of the busy shop, two men came face to face with selfless servanthood, along with an older couple who saw that God's love can be shown to everyone, even those who don't think they want it. Not a bad way to end the week, eh?

waterfalls and weekends

VBS was good last week. I did crafts, Matt did recreation, and Tabie did missions. We spent a couple of afternoons working on drama for family evening programs to do this summer. The rest of the time we relaxed, ate ice cream, went on a picnic to Helton Creek Falls, and fed the ducks at the lake. Saturday night we did street ministry again. I didn't feel as bold as I was last time, but I still talked to a few people. Kelsey talked to a 9th grade girl who had never heard the Gospel before. Once again we see the GA needs Christ as much as any other place. Sunday I sang with my guitar at the Unicoi Springs church service. I'd still rather play the piano, but I'm starting to get used to having a guitar around my neck. Plus it makes my fingers look cool :)

make the most...

Friday night we did street ministry in Helen - free face painting, balloon animals, and bottled water. I'm learning the importance of "making the most of every opportunity," regardless of whether or not a person has ever heard the Gospel. I was talking to a little boy at the face painting booth who said his friend at Sunday School had an EvangiCube (something we use a lot, kids love it), but he wasn't sure how it worked. I showed him how to use it and what the pictures meant, making sure I explained it thoroughly, and at the end I looked up to see that about 10 people in the balloon animal line were watching and listening. The same thing happened at the BBQ Showdown that weekend. I was talking to Hannah about Christ, but a boy named Andrew was watching and I ended up having a great conversation with him about sharing his faith. You just never know who is watching you and what they might need to hear. Everyone needs to hear the Gospel, even those who already believe it, so... this week I'm doing VBS missions, crafts, and recreation with Tabie and Matt!

church, day camp, youth week

wow, what a week! Sunday we were at a church "over the mountain" and I made my guitar playing world debut... haha Brittany and I sang Indescribable and In Christ Alone, and I've been told we did a pretty good job! We did day camps every morning at Mountain Lakes and Unicoi Springs. We had 2-4 kids at Mountain Lakes and around 12 (I think?) at Unicoi Springs. It went very well and the kids loved hearing about Jesus and his miracles, death, and resurrection. Still amazed at how many kids don't know the stories. Mon.-Wed. nights we worked at youth In-Sanity Week at a church in Cleveland. We led small group discussions on Salvation and Baptism, and several of the youth accepted Christ. I'm finding that since I started my English classes it seems easier for me to explain things. I guess the BPC English program and the Holy Spirit make a pretty good team :) Yesterday we cleaned up the river where people go tubing. It was pretty gross and we saw 4 snakes, after which I quickly found a way out of the water. This weekend is some kind of hot air balloon event, so I think we're going to make balloon animals or something.

well, what had happened was...

We just wanted to go to the post office. We had 30 minutes to wait on our supervisor, so we went to the post office and a gift shop/cafe nextdoor. Then Violet got sick because her battery died. Thankfully there are people around who know how to take care of issues like that, so we went and washed windows all afternoon and went to church. Thank you, Matt, for changing my car battery in the rain, and thank you to all the random people at the post office who offered my help and rides and lunch money! haha next adventure: Lifeway, Hobby Lobby, and Mall of GA!

Horsin' Around BBQ Showdown!

We spent this weekend up around Young Harris at Brasstown Valley Resort working the kids' fun area at the BBQ Showdown. Friday night was slow, Saturday was AWESOME and we shared Christ with a ton of kids!! I talked to a little girl named Hannah who is 6 years old and said she had never heard the story about Jesus before. It was surprising to see how many people at a resort in GA had never heard the Gospel before. Sunday we talked to a lot of the same people and mostly just hung out since hardly anybody was there at that point. Boy Scouts gave us lots of free ice cream and cobbler. mmmmm... So that was our weekend! fun stuff. Time to go swimming.

oh yeah...

My team is GREAT! We all get along really well and had a good time at Orientation. We're at our "Cottage" now, where the girls are staying (4 of us plus Stephanie, the assistant director), getting ready to grill out for our first night here. Tomorrow we will meet to talk about some guidelines for the summer and what we will be doing. Friday we will go to another town to work the kids' fun area at a festival all weekend, so we'll be staying in a church there. We're all excited about getting started and can't wait to see how things work out as we start working together!

here I go...

Leaving tomorrow! A little anxious, ready to meet my partners, think I overpacked, but I really didn't pack that much. This is so new to me. I got some new music and I washed my car today, so I'm ready to pack a sandwich and a fresca and hit the open road!

one more weekend

Three days! I leave in three days! It sounds like I'm going somewhere far away and strange... actually, I'm staying in GA - the Georgia mountains, to be exact. I've never been away from home for two straight months, so this will be a new adventure for me. If I can just make it up there without getting lost, that will be a pretty good start. Ok, enough talking about nothing. I'll post any interesting stories from the summer as I have time. In the meantime, just pray that my team and I will be available and bold witnesses this summer. Also pray that we will get along, not that I don't think we will, but you know what I mean. I guess maybe "work together in unity" sounds better. Whatever.

I was reading My Utmost for His Highest one day (April 18), and the topic was "Readiness," from Exodus 3:4-5. God called to Moses, Moses listened. God told Moses to take off his shoes, Moses did it. God told Moses to serve Him, Moses did it (only after some discussion, but he did). It seemed funny to me that God gave Moses instructions when he was barefoot and listening. So until next time, I'm walking with bare feet, listening for instructions and ready for wherever God takes me!