Happy Birthday, Granddaddy!!

I thought I would give a shout out to my sweet granddad on his birthday! He is 76 today!! :)
I absolutely adore this man. He is such a godly man and I just love him. I have his eyes.
We celebrated his birthday the other night with a fish fry--and yes, we caught the fish!! I caught 5 catfish for this occasion! I may be a girlie-girl, but there is still a little bit of country in me too!

Granddaddy, I hope your birthday is extra special--because you are one heck of a man and you deserve the best! You are dearly loved!

PS--Just a support update...67%. We are creeping closer!! :)

OCT. 9

Well, I am currently at 65% of my support goal. This is great, but I am also so ready to be on a plane. The new deadline is OCT.9! Please be praying for my goal to be met and that I can fly out soon after. Today has been a battle. I hear Satan's lies everywhere, "you're not going to make it", "God isn't going to meet your needs", etc. I was reminded of this verse today and I absolutely LOVE IT....

"But I trust in you, O LORD; I say, 'You are my God.' My times are in your hands."
Psalm 138:8

There is nothing too big, too overwhelming, too anything for our God to do. I am excited (yet, still a bit nervous) to what HE is going to do these next two weeks! I can't wait to begin updating you on life in Uppsala. :) Our lives are set in his hands no matter what happens--he will glorify himself and make himself known through every situation. I can rest in the fact that although I don't know what the future holds; I know who holds the future...

My Girls

I leave my heart scattered among the various places I grow close to around the world. There are pieces in my hometown, Camden, and a huge chunk is hidden somewhere in Sweden, and an even bigger piece remains in Rocky top. If you can't tell, I am missing Knoxville like crazy today.

It isn't really the city that I miss the most, but rather the people. I think if I were to catch a glimpse of that big golden sunsphere-- I might shed a tear though. I miss those darling little kids that I babysit and their parents, who grew to become family. My best friend, Diana. I miss being six inches away from her in 219. My bible study girls. I am really missing them today.

I am blessed to have friends scattered all over the world. My dearest friends are following the Lord on some the coolest adventures! Rebecca is interning with Cru in Wilmington, NC. My childhood dream-town, thanks to Dawson's Creek! Kristen, who was in the bible study Rebecca and I led, is in EGYPT! (She is in the third picture of the two of us.) I talked to her briefly this morning and I am so proud of her. I am really blessed to be a part of the lives of these wonderful women of God. Becca and I had 10 girls who were in our bible study that met every Wed. night. They are entering their Senior Year of COLLEGE! I posted our picture taken at our "YA-YA" night. They truly are dear sisters of mine whom I miss laughing and crying with! Let your light shine brightly girls...

I was also blessed to be a part of Beth's bible study. These women really taught me what it meant to vulnerable in front of one another, but especially in front of the Lord. So much of my growth with my walk with Jesus occurred through what he taught me from these women. They are beginning to start new lives all over the country. Laura is in Texas, Amy-Chattanooga, Frankie-DC! Rachel is engaged! I am so excited to see what the Lord has in store for them, but I am sad that I can't meet them somewhere between campus and Kingston pike for coffee and a chat whenever I want!

My dear friend Katie is a NANNY for sweet children in South Carolina! She has put her self out there and is showing so much courage! She has completely immursed herself into a new town, a new life, church, etc and I believe she has rich expierences in store! You can follow her blog too...http://ktsnannyadventures.blogspot.com

I thought I would share just a bit about some of the most well-loved, beautiful, and amazing women of the Lord that I have the blessing of knowing. I pray that you find those people who walk through life with you and bring great joy to your heart! They are an absolute treasure.

Active Belief

Well. I am still here in Camden and still working on support. I am praying that God finishes this support soon and that I will be Sweden bound in a few weeks. I am actively believing that God is going to raise the last 40% of my support by packing my bags and getting excited about the big move to Scandinavia! :)

I am terrible at regularly updating this blog, but I am going to try to try harder! I spent a week in Colorado in August getting to know my new teammates and spending sweet time worshiping the Lord! Copper Mountain, Colorado is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. The elevation is 12,ooo feet. My rolling hills of west tn lungs were not quiet used to that kind of elevation! It was such a fun experience to meet fellow believers who are dedicating a year of their life in one 0f 27 different countries! I just love to brag on my new team members! I have spent quite a bit of time worrying that they would either be weird or that I just flat out wouldn't like them. WRONG! They are wonderful and I am so excited to spend the coming months living and serving alongside them. Summer and Christa are the other two girls on the team and I don't think I have ever laughed so hard as I did with them in CO. I literally laughed so hard it hurt, granted the elevation didn't help. I looked up at one point and Summer was laughing and lying on the concrete outside the resort. These girls bring absolute joy and encouragement to my life! The guys are wonderful as well. Aaron and Tyler are very wise, yet are the life of the party! I am excited to see how God uses our team to bring glory to himself in Sweden!

Here are a few photos from Colorado! I hope that each of you can experience the beauty of CO at some point in your lifetime. :)

Sweet Blessings.

Two of my friends were married last night--Congrats Maggie and Joe--and it was so fun to see sweet friends and rest with beautiful people who always bring a smile to my face. I really miss being in Knoxville, but I love to see the differnt routes that God is taking my friends on. I am always encouraged when I see someone I haven't seen in months pat my arm and say,"I'm praying for you." I really wish I would attempted to take some pictures so that I could place on here. Everyone was glowing and smiling and it really made for some fun,sweet memories.

I am raising support to go to Sweden. I am often incredibly frustrated and ready to just throw in the towel. Last night was just one of those nights. I couldn't sleep and I just lay awake thinking of all the "what ifs"--which are straight from satan--and I finally began to pray. I just prayed for God to take control and to let my stop worrying, et al. I blankly checked my email and there was a message with a LARGE contribution. Really? It amazes me how quick I am to think that God will not come through. But, he comes through again and again and in the most unexpected ways. I am so quick to just pack up my thoughts and desires in a little metaphoric suitcase and try to do it all on my own. I can't. We are made to fail so that the Lord can be glorified through our weakness. WOW.

Also, my second cousin died this weekend. It is always sad to see someone go, but the fellowship with family after a funeral is always a blessing. Living in a small town often drives me crazy, but I wouldn't trade where I've grown up for anything in the world. My mom has 29 cousins on my grandmothers side of the family! Holy cow! They are an absolute hoot! The respect for the mourning has almost been lost in this time. But, I am always so thankful to see a funeral procession in my town. EVERYONE pulls over to the side lane and stops until the line of cars has passed. How rare it is to see this anymore, yet it happens daily here in West Tennessee. I can't help but want to journey back a few decades for a few days and expierence life in its utmost simplicity. What a sweet time! (Note: If this were ever to happen, I would want to bring the A/C with me.)

The Nanny.

I am in Knoxville for the week with three of my favorite boys! They are the sweetest and keep me in stitches. Today we went to the grocery store and I discovered why every mom you ever see in a store with kids looks like they could use a special beverage. A store filled with candy and two little boys with a sweet tooth just do not mix. ha. Bryce was asleep on my purse in the buggy. All I have to say after two days is...Thanks Mom. This is a picture of Bryce. He fell asleep at the park right beside the swings where about thirty kids were running around. ha!

A sweet friend of mine got engaged last night. Congrats Lauren!! FYI: This makes 9 of my friends who are engaged right now.

Two Months from today I will (prayerfully) be boarding a plane for Colorado and the next week I will be leaving for beautiful Sweden! The fact that I will be living in a different country has not really hit home yet. If I close my eyes, I can almost smell the dark, European coffee and vaguely hear the techno music playing from the local venues. Man, I can't wait!!

Home.

Well. It has been a while since my last post. A LOT has happened! I am officially a graduate of the University of Tennessee! Woohoo!! (Pictures will come soon.) And, I am now moved into my childhood home in Camden again. It is so weird being back for a few months. I can't complain too much: no rent and they feed me for free here. But, I miss Knoxville. Support raising is underway and it is a rollercoaster ride for sure! Last week was really tough and I was so discouraged. But, this week has proved to be entirely different. Today I had the most encouraging chat with a godly lady and unexpected money arrived in the mail. How sweeter life is when we leave it in God's hands. I have completely tried to do everything in my own strength this past week and all it got me was pain, frustration, and ultimately nowhere.

My best friend, Diana, is engaged and getting married in December! I am so excited for her and her ring is absolutely beautiful!! There is no doubt in my mind that this marriage is meant to be. My best friend of 12 years, Tiara, has moved to Alabama for a job. I know that she has exciting things in store her, but I miss her a whole lot. We've always lived within five minutes of each other and now we are two hours apart. In a few months, the Atlantic ocean will separate us. Wow. Growing up is weird. However, Tiara and I haven't left all of our teen years behind. She texted me yesterday to let me know that the Jonas Brothers would be on Good Morning America on Friday. Hilarious. We may be adults, but the maturity is completely set in place. ha.

I am just enjoying life in my small town again. There isn't a whole lot going on here with me. I mean, I finished the Twilight series in two weeks if that tells you anything about my life here. I did go with my grandmother to the store to buy manure the first day that I was here. Yes. I live somewhere between Mayberry and Green Acres.