The Importance of Remembering...

I don't know about you, but I sometimes fail to remember. I know this is something I have written about before, but I am human and need reminders every now and again. This week I remembered and again, I end the week AMAZED at the work of God.

Circa 1997?: Sparkie Jennica with my awesome Sparks leaders
and Cubbie Jori Anne. 

On Wednesday evening, we had an Awana Leaders Meeting. Towards the end of the evening our commander was talking about how you never know what kids you are influencing. The future Moms, Dads, Business owner, youth pastors, construction workers, etc are surrounding us. We never know what God will do with each of these little lives...only God does. But, for a few hours each week, WE get to influence them. We get to play, have fun, share Jesus with them and love these precious angels. Our Commander showed this picture. This is me probably 16 or so years ago. Back then I was simply a kid, playing hard and learning Bible verses but NO idea I would ever be influencing so many young lives for the rest of my life.

Flash forward to 2013. A fresh graduate and the one overseeing the Awana program at our church. Only God knew what He would be doing with my life. I had no idea, my parents had no idea and my Sparks leaders had no idea they were leading a future Elementary Ministries Director. Thank goodness only God knew that! There is so much comfort knowing that I simply OBEYED what God was calling me to do and he lead me to today. I wasn't an outstanding child, I disobeyed my parents, I got in trouble and thought that I knew what was best. But God used that. Today, I am twenty three years old, single and absolutely LOVING doing ministry full time. I get to influence so many children and the leaders that love them. I get to share Jesus with hundreds of students. I get to experience the joy of a child on a regular basis and I am reminded again why I do what I do.

2013: I get to spend my life loving students and sharing Jesus with
them!? Can this even be happening to me!?

This week I remembered that I did nothing but simply OBEY. It is my prayer that this is how I live my life...everyday. Simply obeying where God is calling me to go, what God is calling me to do and who God is calling me to be. It has always been my dream to someday be a mom so I can spend my days loving little children and that is EXACTLY what I am doing. My heart is so full of joy right now and I am so amazed at how God moves. So for you, dear reader, what is God reminding you of? What has He walked you through? What has He shown his faithfulness in your life?

Tonight, I am remembering what God has done, is doing and look forward with much anticipation to what He will be doing as I continue this rocky journey called life. Thanks for walking with me as I daily fall more in love with my Faithful Heavenly Father.

September 1st Already!?

Well, the whirlwind of summer camps and craziness is slowing down and we are about to launch into fall. It is here, this week we got the rain, football is kicking off and our fall schedule is finally here. It is hard to believe that 3 full months at Highlands are done. That is a quarter of the year - completed...and not only that...THRIVING! God has been SO good and that is what my summer has been. Stories of God's goodness have been sprinkled all over my summer and I am BEYOND blessed and thankful for all God has given me.

I can't believe all God has done this summer and all the stories I have from this summer. I should have started school again this week and I can hardly believe that I have graduated college. I still don't feel old enough to be done with school! It has now been a week since I have been in my new house and slowly, my little house is becoming a home. Because I am finally getting settled in, I thought it was time for a blog update and pictures!




After the craziest summer of my life, I am ready for routine. I am ready for a set schedule. I am ready to see what God wants to do with the rest of the year. I am so blessed to be serving at Highlands and a part of an awesome family. As I sit in my home I remember back to 4 months ago and am AMAZED at God's goodness and how much has changed since then. I was in my last few weeks of college and NO clue what God would do in the coming weeks. I can hardly imagine what God will continue to do with my life as I daily seek to follow HIM and be ALL he has called me to be.

Thank you, dear friends for praying so faithfully for me this summer as I have navigated a whole new adventure. Please continue to pray for me. For trust in God's ultimate plan and that I choose to be joyful even on the hard days (more on that in my next post).

You are NEVER alone

The LOVELY ladies I spent a week at JH
Camp with! 

This summer is FLYING by and I can't believe we are just a few weeks away from September and my first fall kick off! A few weeks ago I got to spend a week at junior high camp with some awesome young ladies. They were FULL of energy and our cabin was NEVER boring. I had a blast spending time in the sun, playing games, swimming, being 'Monique' in the 'Voice' competition and laughing till I cried. After coming home exhausted but thrilled by the work God did, I toured and said YES to a cute little duplex just half a mile from the church. Another AWESOME gift from the Lord and another 'God is ALWAYS Faithful' story.

Last night I came home from High School camp where I spent another week pouring into the lives of students. We played hard and slept hard and hand an awesome time making memories that I KNOW will last forever. The theme for the week was 'Never Beyond Repair' talking about how no matter what we go through in life, no matter what our past looks like, we are never beyond repair in God's eyes, and we are always welcome to come to him. 

Spent an afternoon in the sun at Lincoln City
during HS camp. I am SO beyond blessed
to be doing full time ministry like I am! 

Going into the week, I had no idea just how much God was wanting to teach me. As we are moving through summer, the reality of not going back to Multnomah in the fall is really sinking in. My community of friends is in Portland and not in Renton, yet, that is where God is calling me to be. I am serving with every ounce of my being but will be filled up less as I begin to establish my own community. This week at camp was a reminder that even though my friends may not be around all the time, I am EXACTLY where God has called me to be and for that, I am filled with so much peace, beyond my imagination. Jesus loves me so much and has designed this season of my life for a specific purpose and He will never leave me.

Thank you for your continued prayers as I journey through life following where my God is calling me to be. Continue to pray with me as there are a lot of details to take care of before our big Fall Kick Off. And expect a new blog in the coming days showing off my new home...I move THIS WEEK! :)

The Faithfulness of God

When I sit and think about what I feel my life has been, I could easily call it a whirlwind. From graduation, to interviews, to being hired, to working for a month, then a mission trip to Canada. Wow...a LOT has happened in my life and I can honestly say that it has been so much fun to see God work!

The last few weeks I got to spend time with my Vancouver youth group on a mission trip to Canada. It was one of the most memorable trips I have ever been on...not necessarily for events that happened but for the life change I got to see. The last few weeks were a God-send because I was reminded again just how much ministry is important and why God has called me to be doing what I am doing. This last week I got to see my students grow in so many ways...I saw the boys become men and the girls became ladies who love the Lord so much. I felt like a proud mom and was reminded again why I do what I do.

As I reflected back, I remembered nights when I doubted my investment in the teenagers, I wondered if anything I said ever actually got through. I got to spend my last day traveling with my small group girls and our driver, Tyler, and we all talked. I thanked them for the memories I had and noted how I saw God working in each of them. When we were giving our final tear-filled goodbyes, I realized just how much those 'little' things meant. Sometimes in ministry we get wrapped up in the details, the events, the trips, the retreats and we so quickly forget the little things that make the life change. Sunday I leave for a week at junior high camp, in a cabin with a group of middle school girls. As I head in to this week, I think of all that will happen and I am so excited to see what God is going to do!

So, as we move through the summer, I am learning so much about how when we are faithful to God, he is faithful to us and he gives us exactly what we need when we don't even realize we need it! Just as the sun sets every night God is faithful to his children! We serve an AMAZING God and I am so blessed to be serving him with all my life. Thank you for continuing to pray for energy and strength to get through this busy camp season!

Beginning of week Four

As I continue to walk this road I am finding it harder and harder to share with everyone about what God is doing in my mind, heart and ministry so I figured it was time to do a blog post.

Yesterday marked the beginning of 4 weeks of work. I am now days away from being done with my first month of working and I am DAILY amazed by God's goodness. As each day passes I find myself more and more at peace about what God is doing, I find the doubt and fear slowly creeping back, I am gaining more and more confidence in what God is doing in my life and how excited I am to see what HE is going to do.

My days are quickly filling up with meetings, appointments and phone calls to make. I have a lot of emails to send and I have a lot of paperwork to do and details to take care of. In the midst of all these lists I find myself most excited to have relationships with people. The more I am jumping into ministry,

the more I am finding the value in relationship over routines and daily tasks. This Sunday I got to sneak a picture with some of the kids from my new ministry. I have a newsletter article coming out in a few weeks and they wanted a picture with me involved with the kids. It was great to see them and it is my daily reminder of WHY I am doing what I am doing. I am not simply finding teachers to fill classes, I am not sitting in meetings to sit in meetings. I am doing all of this because of the kids and the families that I get to invest in. There is so much more to ministry than simply doing a job and I am SO beyond blessed to have God choosing me to serve him in this capacity.

This weekend (29 & 30) I will be introduced, commissioned and prayed for during each of the weekend services. I am inviting you, my friends and family, to join us. Saturday at 6:00pm is the first one and afterwards some of us will be headed to Round Table in Renton to have dinner afterwards. If you need directions or more information, let me know. I am very much looking forward to this weekend.

I have spent a lot of time in the car and a lot of time listening to music. The song 'Strong Enough' by Matthew West came on the radio yesterday morning and it is on my mind all the time now. May it encourage you like it has me!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knuHDPbE5es

In the meantime, please be praying for me as I continue to commute from University Place. Pray that God would continue to grant me safety in my travels. Also be praying that God brings an apartment my way, in His timing and a safe place to live as a single woman. And of course, pray that God would continue to teach me as I keep filling my days with ministry and people!

Surviving the First Week!

Well, my first week of work is over and as I sit on the couch watching my cat play with his toy with the Mariners game on in the background, the mere exhaustion is rushing over me. This has been a week of meeting people, asking questions, trying hard to take in what feels like 'a fire hose' of information, and LOTS of time in the car stuck in traffic. This is life now. This is my new reality.

It is hard for me to imagine that just one moth ago I was getting ready to walk across the stage and officially be handed the piece of paper that would let me be done with school forever, fully prepared for a summer of rest and a continued journey trying to find where God wanted me to be. Little did I know that within 5 days, I would be first getting word of what my new reality was going to be.

Now that the first week is over, I find myself wanting to be like Jonah (yes, I know I am going back to the good ol' BSM days but it all makes sense)...run FLEEING from what I know God has called me to do. "But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went on board, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord." Jonah 1:3...sounds easier right?! Exactly.

Satan wants us to see that easy way out. He wants us to run from what God has specifically called us to do, not allowing ourselves to be all that God has called us to be. And, I am not going to lie, that does sound pretty attractive. Just saying, 'I give up now' sounds so easy. Instead, I am CHOOSING to be like Jonah in chapter 3...after God sent him to be swallowed by the big fish...'Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, 'Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it the message that I tell you.' So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord.' (Jonah 3:1-2)

I do have hope that things will get easier. I will eventually be done learning people's names. The questions will still be asked and the doubts will still creep in, but for now, I am rejoicing that I KNOW this is what God has called me to. This is for sure a 'God-sized task' that he is calling me to and I am SO grateful for the opportunity to even more understand what it means to rest and rely on HIM for all my needs.

THANK YOU to those who have been praying for me through this whole process and I ask that you please continue to do so. Pray that I would have renewed energy for Sunday as I continue to meet new people. Pray that I get good rest when I do and pray I can continue to be patient as I learn new things. Thank you for walking this journey with me and for helping point me to Jesus. I am so so blessed.

"The Lord is My Shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He heads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uoXWIK1lfyo

When God moves...HE MOVES!!

It is always a fun adventure when you say to God, 'Your will be done!' This is a brief way to sum up the last month! Tomorrow will be three weeks since Graduation. Graduation week was filled with friends, play, rest and last minute adventures as our days of being Multnomah students came to a close. In the end, we walked across the stage, received our diplomas and then took LOTS of pictures afterwards! Our famous quotation to go along with this picture: 'A BA and a BS but no MRS. It can be done folks!' :) 

I moved home and had plans to rest and play and enjoy time with my family and recover from the last three years. Well, when we decide that we have plans, God tends to laugh and surprise us...constantly reminding us that HE is in control and his plans are WAY better than what we can ever dream up. 

So, May 15th (just five days after grad) I got a phone call from my dear friends Sabrina and Aj. They had a Pastor email them asking if they knew of anyone from MU who was interested in Children's Ministries. They called me, told me about it and asked if they could pass on my name and phone number. I, of course, said yes, but did not really expect anything. Well, not more than 30 minutes later, I got a call from the Pastor telling me about the Church, the ministry and what the position would look like and he asked if I was interested in applying. He asked me to send in my resume and cover letter that night. So, a few hours later (I was babysitting at the time he called me) I sent everything in and could not believe it. He emailed me right back asking if I had a Philosophy of Ministry written up...again, thanks to Roy and our CPD class, I had somewhat of a start on this...I tweaked all the parts that had Roy's famous red marks, and hit send again. The next day I got another phone call and by the end, I had an interview booked and great confidence that God was on the move. In less then 24 hours I went from having no clue this church was around and having an interview lined up and ready to go! AMAZING! 

I interviewed the following Monday. It was a long interview but it was a great time of talking about how God has shaped me, grown me and used all my experiences to bring me to this point now. The interview was intense but it was so cool to see the church, meet some staff and talk about if this could be where God was calling me to serve. The following day I got another phone call from the Pastor saying they really liked me and wanted me to continue on in the interview process. The second and third interviews were scheduled and I was still blown away. 

Sunday I had the second interview, being grilled by a whole team of people I would be serving with was, again, exhausting but exciting. The more people I met, the more questions I was asked, the more excited I was about the opportunity. Well, folks, today was my third and final interview. Another group of people asking the same questions...after meeting the Senior Pastor, I was officially offered the job and I said YES! 

I am pleased to announce that I am going to be the new Director of Elementary Ministries at Highlands Community Church in Renton. I will be overseeing the 1st-6th graders and helping to train and coach the team of leaders along the way. It is a HUGE job and I am so blown away by God's faithfulness in this whole process. A whole string of 'no's' to lead me to this amazing opportunity to serve Him and bring Glory to Him in AMAZING WAYS! Less than a month after graduating, I am starting a job in the field I majored in and I had no idea this even existed 16 days ago! When God wants to move, HE sure knows how and he opens and closes doors along the way! Praise the LORD he knows what we need more than what we want! 

http://www.highlandscc.org

Thank you for joining me in prayer through this process and for continuing to pray the Lord gives me strength, endurance, and a teachable heart as I begin this coming MONDAY. Also, I will be moving to Renton so please pray that God opens up the right doors for an apartment and everything I will need to have my own place! God is so so good!

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen!" Ephesians 3:20-21