community and tears

It's 2:01am and of course I am blogging even though I have class tomorrow at 8:30.  This week we started a new section called 'Dynamic Teams' and the people from Chickle-fa or more commonly known as Chick-fil-A are coming to do some team building activities.  I know it sounds fun and all but hear me out....they aren't even bringing food!  How can you expect me to live out in the boonies and not be upset when my favorite restaurant is coming to me!  I mean so cruel.  My time with Chick-fil-A is limited before  I won't be able to eat it for 2 years....now that is sad.

  (so today ended up being so much fun and the people were pretty cool so naturally i had to forgive them for not bringing food. maybe i'll get chick-fil-a soon. maybe.)

I'm pretty sure I have cried more this week than I have in a very long time.  It's okay to be emotional every once in awhile right?  A couple of things of significant sadness were happening and then sometimes  I just have to have a good cry for no good reason.  I really had to wrestle with God last week because several of my friends family were done with training and leaving me!  Now I realize that I did a whole section on Transitions and learning how to effectively handle transitions but not yet, not this soon!  I thought that was information for when I leave to go on the field.  I didn't realize I was going to have to be dealing with that right now.  So, God and I had a talk....'Why did you bring me here to training and form such close knit relationships only for them to be taken away so soon?'

Because he was teaching me transitions AND love AND his faithfulness AND a lot of other things.

If anything this experience has showed me how in a mere 7 weeks true community can be formed.  LOVE can be shown.  My heart can open up to people and develop deep bonds and family.  

So last weekend I had to say some of my first goodbyes.  Thankfully God is always good.  Even if I came here just for this community I would do it again in a heartbeat.  I learned so much from people's histories, stories, this community, moms and dads parenting their kids, families, and life.  God was so faithful to give me relationships that I never dreamed I would have made.  There is something so unique and special about living and fellowshipping with other believers who share your same passion and heart.  To share with those who have the same desire to follow Christ and be obedient to His commands is amazing. 

and who wouldn't BAWL their eyes out if they got this note with pictures of all the things we did together...

tears are streaming.

from this little cutie...

me and abbie.

and you were leaving these little precious moment eyes, who always comes to your apartment and asks "can I have a snack," like I am going to say no?  are you kidding?  I do not have that much self-control.

my little levi.

and to continue my crying...some of the girls and I drove down to Charlotte at 5am (eeek!) to run (if anyone knows me they know i don't ever run unless its to catch the ice cream man or something) walk in a 5k.  Our director here at CIT lost his daughter several years ago to cancer and this race was named in memory of her.  Afterwards, him and his lovely wife took us to the grave site of their daughter.  Tears begin flowing again.  For them to bring us there and share together with us about the life of their daughter meant the world to me.  After 7 short weeks to open up and be that vulnerable held a lot of meaning.  I felt special.  I felt loved to be sharing in that moment with them.  and all they could do was continue to praise the Lord for his FAITHFULNESS.  It was well with their soul. 

so I've come to the conclusion that it's okay that i cry.  it's good practice for me before I leave.  God is just preparing my little heart.

that is all...

CIT

The past few weeks at CIT have gone by so fast!  This week is the last week of our first class, Equipping for Cross Culture Training, and next week will start, Second Language Acquisition.  I have been staying very busy going to class, doing homework, and writing a 15 pg. research paper.  But we have still managed to have some fun in the mean time.  Everyday the Lord is growing and stretching me in my faith.  I am so blessed by my time here and all the new relationships the Lord has given me.

here's a little of what's going on...


Our team leader in Thailand is back in the States on leave and came to visit us.  It was so good to get to talk with him and find out more about what we will be doing.

team Thailand.
Kristen, Ronnie (team leader), Walker, me

The classroom that I sit in for hours upon hours a day.  We like to keep things fun and interesting by having skits.  Who doesn't love a good 80s workout skit?

CIT classroom.

class.

80s workout. yes, please!

and since we are out in the middle of nowhere we have to make our own fun. hence, slip-n-slide...

so fun.

my little friend, benny. 

levi and madeline.

yay, slip-n-slides.

 and we have already had several birthdays to celebrate...so I got to make cupcakes!

cuppy cakes.

 

levi and me.

training - week one

Last Monday I arrived in the thriving metropolis very small town of Union Mills, NC to CIT (Center for Intercultural Training). CIT will be my home for the next 9 weeks until mid-Nov! This week has been full of learning, meeting new people, gushing emotions, and so much fun. First highlight of the week was that I got to meet my partner going with me to Thailand, Kristen Foster! We've been talking on the phone for a couple months so it was exciting to finally meet my roomie for the next 2 years.

One of the best things about CIT is the other amazing people here. Everyone stays on the grounds in an apartment so it is like living in a little community and I absolutely love it. Kristin and I share an apt. that leads out to a patio where everyone congregates and hangs out. The community aspect of CIT is so special. I have never felt at home with so many people I don't know. We make up 7 countries and 4 continents, praise the Lord! It is so exciting knowing that Christ's love will be spread literally all over the world because of these people. It has been the biggest blessing getting to share and open up with people who have been on the same road as you and have the same heart as you. I have learned and grown more in my spiritual walk in this past week than I have in some years of my life and this is just week one. I know the Lord is going to do more amazing things throughout the weeks to come.

This week in class we took both a personality and mind style test and evaluated the way we were and how we think. It was really interesting to really understand the way I am and the way I process thoughts in comparison to my team. It has been a blessing to understand where I am strong and to see the areas in which I am weak and need growth, and also the importance of understanding how I operate and where I would work best in a team setting.

On the weekends we don't have class so we were able to head out of town and do some exploring nearby. Our first stop was a county fair which brought back sweet memories of the SE Texas State Fair. I got great joy out of drinking a cup of fresh-squeezed lemonade and eating funnel cake - my staple fair foods. Saturday we went to Pisgah Forest to the Sliding Rocks. Basically it is a small slide-type waterfall which you can slide down into a pool of water below. Little did I know that it would be the coldest water I would ever feel in my life! It was bone-chilling. The slide was super fun but then you plunged completely into the water below and.....wow, it was freezing. It took me awhile to catch my breath once I came up for air. On Sunday we were encouraged to try out a church that was different then what we were used to in order to prepare us for what was to come in our culture. To our excitement, right down the road was an African Methodist Episcopal church. It was an extremely small church and you could definitely spot the visitors but nonetheless it was a great experience. It was really interesting to get out of my normal routine and see how others worship. I loved it!

So far week 1 has been amazing and I can't wait for week 2. I feel so blessed by the Lord for bringing me to this place and I am confident that this is exactly where he wants me.

snapshots of the week, enjoy....

my partner Kristin and me.

county fair.

part of the training group.

sliding rocks.

yes, i'm screaming because i'm about to experience the coldest water ever.

this guy got really creative.

amy & kristen.

waterfall.

union hill africa methodist episcopal zion church.