A picture is worth a thousand words

Grandma <3

Tower Bridge

The Tower of London

Le Louvre

The second floor of the Eiffel Tower

La Tour Eiffel ave ma mere

Le Arc de Triomphe

In front of the Palace

Changing of the Guards

The guards in their winter coats

Delicious noodles (gluten free!)

Narwhal's do Exist

The London Eye

Big Ben

We had so much fun together


More pictures are on facebook!

A Humbling Spring Break

*Warning this blog may be very long!*

Well, well, well, where to begin. A lot has happened and I have a lot I want to say and express but I am not quite sure where to begin. I have been meaning to write this blog for a while, though of starting it various different times and different ways, but I never had the proper amount of time.
But, alas here I am alone in Hull feeling really homesick and ready to get out everything I need to say so here it goes...I'll start from the beginning.

So last Saturday Barry and I waited together at the airport for my mom and grandma, delaying goodbye as long as possible. I really hate saying goodbye more than anything, the mere thought of it gets me teary eyed. Anyway, my mom and grandma were the last people to come through the gate due to delayed luggage, so I said hello to them and goodbye to Barry and didn't have much time to be sad about it. As I was walking with my mom and grandma to the train station my mom told me that she would be leaving about 4 days earlier then expected...completely changing our spring break plans once again.

Now before I go on, I want to stop here. At this moment, and various moments throughout our trip God humbled me. Since before I even came to England I had been talking to people about my spring break. I had been so excited that my mom and grandma were coming and all the places we were going to travel together, it was going to be incredible. I realized two things through this; one: It says in the Bible not to boast about tomorrow because you don't know what will happen. Well that is the humbling part of the lesson. I never really thought that I was bragging about my spring break, but it is quite possible that I was. God just showed me, hey before you get too carried away remember who is charge here. The second part: That there are things more important in life then travels and the places you get to see in life. This overlaps with the being humbled part because I felt so selfish for being sad that our plans had changed. My dad thank God, is going to have heart surgery so he doesn't get even more sick, and die and I am upset about a change of plans...how selfish. I quickly realized how selfish that was and immediately felt so humbled. Sure it is cool to say you've been to London, Paris, Greece, Morocco wherever but ultimately that doesn't matter.
On judgment day when I sit before my Father he isn't going to say, "Well done good and faithful traveler, you saw the world!" He is going to say (hopefully), "Well done good and faithful servant!" With that in mind I embraced the rest of the week as an opportunity to serve him as best as I could.

Okay so on with the story. From the airport we took two trains to get to London and then three trains from there just to get to our hotel, lugging around a backpack, a duffel bag, three purses, and three suitcases. By the time we got to our hotel we were exhausted, especially since none of us had slept in about a day.

Once we were settled in the hotel we were able to plan out the rest of the break, we had decided to just spend the week in London and take a day trip to Paris. We ended up finding a tour that would take us there and tour us around the city and see all the main sites for a fairly cheap price. We booked it and I was already feeling better, and just grateful to be with my mom and grandma since they almost didn't come at all.

Since we spent the majority of the week in London we were able to see all the sits that we wanted to see at a more leisurely and enjoyable pace because we were not packing everything into two or three days. I had so much fun with my mom and grandma and was just grateful to see them, hug them, and talk to them.
Our day trip to Paris was a lot of fun, we definitely did not have enough time to do everything and we all wish we could have spent a couple of days there but we still saw a lot and more then we had ever seen before.

Yesterday I had to say goodbye, which was a lot harder then I was expecting it to be. I of course cried and was so tempted to just get on the plane and go with them home but I am just too stubborn to do that. My mom and grandma boarded the plane at 9:45 and my train didn't leave to go back to Hull until 11:05. I sat in a cafe and ate breakfast trying to occupy my mind but it wasn't quite working. I started to leave and go to the train station and my duffel bag ripped, thankfully the top ripped so my stuff didn't fall out and I could still carry it.
I started reading my book while waiting for the train and the time went by pretty quickly, I had to change trains twice, which I didn't mind because it makes the time go faster.
I was pretty occupied with my book, my music and my journal. On the second train I decided to get out my card that my grandma had given me before she left. I read it and the tears started all over again. Grandma's know how to say things just the right way to make you cry, it was sweet though, but I hate crying in public so I quickly and quietly stopped crying before anyone could notice.

When I was on the bus back to my house I was feeling really sad thinking that I would be all alone and would spend too much time thinking and being homesick...thankfully God knows me so well and provided for me.
When I got home both of my roommates were there, and we talked for a while. Ida and I ended up making a late lunch/early dinner together and then later on Amandine and I had tea together and Ida came down and joined us in conversation. It was a great way for me to adjust to coming back home.

This morning however, was a different story. Though both of my roommates are here, they are shut up in their rooms. I have had my door open since I woke up hoping they would stop by to talk for a little but that hasn't worked too well. I had a quiet time with my Abba that was much needed. I have to remind myself I am not alone and that he has called me here, but a lack of physical presence is really hard especially since I haven't been alone for two weeks.
This morning as really been hard for me, I am at the half way point. I have been here for two months and I only have two months left. Part of me is like, okay I have lived here a while, I have traveled it's time to go home, and the other part of me. The part that knows I am done here is constantly reminding myself that God is not done with me yet, I still have some purpose here, even though I am not quite sure what it is, I am not done yet.
Deep down I know that is true, but it hard for me to see when I spend so much time alone, my thoughts get carried away and I turn into a worrying mess.
I again talked to Lulu this morning and she just encouraged me by telling me to remind myself why I am here, and to not focus on being homesick because it will just get overwhelming and I will get carried away. She is completely right. Plus God has provided for me in ways that still amaze me so I know he will continue to do so for this next half.

Thank God for caring about me enough to call me here, and to provide and take care of me on this journey!

Also if you could continue to join me in prayer for my Father that would be wonderful!

Catch Up

Well its been a while since I have updated everyone so lets catch up.
Sunday was Mother's Day and also the day that Barry came into town! I went to church all alone because Bernice and Kate were out of town for the weekend, but I had a lot of fun. Our pastor gave a sermon about the Proverbs 31 woman in honor of Mother's Day, which was amazing and at the end of the service all the little kids ran out and gave a bouquet of tulips to all the women! It was so sweet and precious, but honestly all I could think about was how excited I was that Barry was coming in less then an hour.
I walked around downtown just filling my time waiting for 1:50pm to roll around, I bought some Mother's Day cards since I figured they would be hard to find come May, and finally after an hour or so of distracting myself I walked over to the train station to find Barry standing there waiting for me!
I must admit it was a very surreal feeling, I couldn't quite grasp the fact that he was standing there in England, it felt like a scene from a movie or a dream and any minute I would wake up to realized it was all just a dream. Thankfully, it was not a dream!
Sunday I made us lunch and then let Barry take a nap for a while, he was pretty exhausted from all the traveling. We took it pretty easy Sunday night and went out for dinner and then watched a movie.
On Monday we went downtown and I showed him all the historic sights and we went to the maritime museum where there was proof that Narwhals exist! (Pictures will be posted!) Then we went to my 4:15 class where we talked about the movie Pulp Fiction, so it really wasn't too boring, and Barry said it was actually fun. We went to Kate and Bernice's house afterward so that we could get all of our Greece stuff booked which is nice to have that all taken care of!
Tuesday was another relaxed day, I had two classes that Barry came to with me. In between the classes we went down to all the little shops and I just showed him around the University area it happened to be a very beautiful day so it was nice to get out and walk.
Tuesday night we went to the pub quiz on campus which was really fun even though our team did really horrible.
Wednesday we went to York, and it was great since I had already been there, I could give a tour of the city first hand and just enjoy the city. We got to York around 1:45pm and had lunch, walked around and I showed him the Minster, Abbey, the Shambles and the other historic parts of the city that I saw on my first visit. After a lot of walking we decided to head home around 6:00pm. We arrived back in Hull around 7:45 which gave us enough time to get a little dressed up and go on a date. We ate at this really yummy restaurant called Ruby's. I have eaten there before and I was so excited to eat there again, it is a very relaxed atmosphere with delicious food. Afterwords we made my delicious gluten-free brownies with ice cream and watched a movie!
Yesterday was the best day by far, we went to London which was incredible! We arrived in London around 12:30pm and wandered around until we found a restaurant called Wagamama's.
Patty had recommended this restaurant to me and it was absolutely delicious Japanese food. After we headed over to Buckingham Palace, along the way we stumbled upon Trafalgar Square which was such an incredible thing to see. It's this square with a huge fountain and statues and everyone is just sitting outside talking, eating and enjoying the beautiful weather. We walked through St. James Park to the Palace which was a beautiful park, plenty of green grass and flowers to surround you. The park was filled with people walking, running, sitting, hanging out soaking in it all in. It was so beautiful, we sat in this little patch of flowers and ate ice cream and just enjoyed the nature in the middle of this big city. As we arrived at the Palace, I got a phone call from my mom. I knew something was wrong immediately because she was in tears when I answered the phone. My dad has been really sick for a while and Wednesday he went to the hospital. This was a good thing because they were finally able to figure out what was wrong with him, it turns out he has an infection in one of his valves in his heart. My dad will need heart surgery, everything should be okay but the details at the time were very vague which was stressing my mom out. She told me that my dad would need surgery and that she might not be able to come for spring break anymore.
After we hung up, I looked at Barry and we went and sat on the steps in front of the palace and prayed for my dad. At that time we gave the entire situation up to the Father and knew that he would provide and everything would work out according to his plan.
I tried really hard the rest of the day not to worry about my dad and to remind myself that God was taking care of him, thankfully Barry was there to remind me of that a lot, because my thoughts tend to take a hold of me and cause all sorts of unnecessary worry and emotion.
After the palace we walked back through the park and went over to the West Minister. The church itself was closed but it was beautiful to look at from the outside, we walked around the area for a while took pictures of Big Ben and then decided to head over the the London Eye. The London Eye was really neat, it is a 30 minute Ferris wheel and you can see all of London from it. It was truly breathtaking and a nice way to relax after a day of walking.
After the eye we ate at this delicious restaurant called Giraffe, the food was really good, fairly cheap, and the environment was really fun and trendy.
After our meal we decided to head on back home, when we got home I received a phone call from my mom.
They are going to do the surgery on my dad but they are going to wait a few weeks, so after my mom gets back from England. My mom and grandma are still coming and they seem really calm about the surgery, it is important but it doesn't sound life or death. I really see God's hand in this situation and think that he will be healing my dad before my my mom even returns.

Barry and I are hanging out the rest of the day and then we leave tonight for Manchester. I am sad to say goodbye but excited to see my mom and grandma!
Prayers for my dad and family are much appreciated thank you!

I've Got the Joy ...Where?

I have got the joy of the Lord and the peace that passes understanding in my heart!

It may sound cheesy but I have been filled with so much joy and peace these past week that I can't contain it, which is ironic because I thought that this week was going to be horrible.
Bernice's boyfriend came in to town on Tuesday and Kelsey found out Monday night that her parents were coming in Tuesday as well. This being said I thought that I was going to be all alone the whole week since the core people I hang out with were going to be traveling and hanging out with their loved ones... God had other plans!
Tuesday, Bernice and I still had our Bible and Study and it was absolutely amazing. We read the passage in Mark where Jesus casts out the Legion of demons in a man (Side Note: a legion can be up to 3,000-6,000 people or in this case demons...CRAZY!!) and where he heals the bleeding woman.
It was great to read about the power of Jesus and how he provides and heals but the best part of our bible study was the discussion afterwords. Bernice and I ended up talking about absolute truth, and how we know what he believe is the truth and that God is real.
It was so wonderful to just be completely on the same page, and to have confidence that OUR God reigns and is the true and living God!

This all sounds so vague, and crazy but I can't explain it, I was completely filled with the joy of the Lord, and I still am!

This week since Kelsey and Bernice have been doing things with their loved ones, I have been able to spend a lot of time with my roommates, which has been really nice. I was feeling a little guilty about never hanging out with my roommates and not really getting to know them and this week I have been able to talk to both of them separately for a few hours. Ida and have sat outside and soaked in the sun while eating lunch and just talking to each other, and sharing things about our cultures and lives. The other night Amandine and I made dinner together and talked for quite a long time, and it was so much fun!
It is so great to be able to hang out with my roommates and talk to them, especially since we are all from different places, we get to share new things with each other.
I am so thankful that God provided this opportunity and that I have really made a connection with my roommates because it is so important to have a welcoming, and fun living situation, and I had been feeling really out of the loop the last few weeks.

I feel that my blogs are so repetitive but he continues to show me daily that HE is GOOD and HE PROVIDES!

Today I am finishing up my homework and having a reading and relaxing day.
Tomorrow Kate and I are going to Sheffield for the day and then having a girls night.
Sunday I am going to church and then meeting Barry at the train station. =)

This week I have absolutely loved being here, and have actually been a little sad when I realized that I am returning home fairly soon!

No matter what, God is good and he has great plans for me no matter where I am !

Peace

"Find rest my soul
In Christ alone
Know His power
In quietness and trust

When the oceans rise and thunders roar
I will soar with You above the storm
Father You are king over the flood
I will be still and know You are God"

We sang this song in church yesterday and it really spoke to me. I spend way to much of my time worrying and freaking out and I just need to find rest in Christ. He is the all powerful all mighty God, who am I to question his authority?
I need to put my trust in him, in him alone and continue to seek him in everything I do. He has great things planned for me and if I spend all my time worrying about everything else, I am going to miss out on the incredible plans and opportunities he has provided me with. With this thought I have been able to remain calm all weekend, I haven't freaked out about anything and I have just been able to enjoy myself and have a great time.

On Saturday Bernice and I went to a women's breakfast at Vineyard church. It was so great, really healthy delicious food, and we got to meet a lot of great Christian women. Afterwords Kelsey, Bernice and I went to the city center and went shopping. I have never done so much shopping in my life, I suppose that is a big part of experiencing the culture. The great thing about shopping is that you get a taste of style and culture and not buy anything. I did however buy one shirt it was really cute and only 3 pounds so I thought that was a great deal. After we went shopping we grabbed some dinner at a pub and then went back to Bernice's house to make rice krispie's and watch Friends. I really enjoy hanging out with those girls they are a lot of fun and are really comfortable with doing anything which is nice, because sometimes its fun to just chill out and not do anything.
Sunday Bernice and I went to church, the sermon was really great, and I just felt filled with God's peace in my life. I am really sad that I can't get more involved with this church. They have some cool events coming up but they are over spring break and I will be out of town.
After church we went to the library to do some homework. I thankfully got everything I needed to get done this weekend and even started my essay that is due on the 17th. After starting the essay I feel so much peace about it, it is really easy and not at all as hard as I thought it would be and I started a week and a half in advance which is a new thing for me.
We started planning our last week of spring break, we are going to Ireland and Scotland which will be a lot of fun. I can't believe that spring break is coming so quickly. It some senses I feel like I just got here and in others I feel as if I have been here for 3 months.

I am so thankful that God has brought me on this journey, I am even more thankful that I am starting to find peace and just enjoy it for what it's worth. I can see God teaching me and using me in so many ways, but I feel there is so much more to it then what I can see. I think that once I leave here and I have time to take in everything that has happened this semester I will truly realize all the things that God has done in my life.

Praise God for Peace!

Frustration, Stressation, Relaxation

I realize stressation is not a word but it flows so I went with it.
Anyway this week has been extremely crazy I can't even believe that tomorrow is Friday already.
Since I came home from Germany the internet here has been on the fritz...apparently over the weekend they switched internet servers and it is not cooperating very well with everyone's laptops.
I have been so frustrated all week not being able to have a reliable source of communication for everyone back home. Especially since my mom and I were trying to plan our spring break trip and it was extremely difficult since my internet was not working. For spring break we have decided to go to London and Paris, we cut out Italy due to expenses and its a lot of traveling to do in ten days for my grandma, plus we get to really enjoy and experience the cities!
The stressful part of the week? I have decided that I have a serious issue. This is probably the easiest semester I will ever have in college and yet I have been stressing and freaking out all week. Not only freaking out about school but every little thing I could think of, spring break, people, trips, readings, homework, pretty much anything you could think of it was on my mind and it was driving me crazy. I have also been thinking about going to India this summer on a missions trip but have been having second thoughts and wondering how I would afford to go and how it would all work.
After talking to Lulu this morning she really helped me calm down and she just said to me, "You are in England right now and you need to focus on that and just enjoy it and have fun. America and India will be there when you go back in June." She was completely right, I can't worry about the things that will happen when I go back home right now, if I do I will totally miss my opportunity here to have fun and really experience what God has in store for me.
After that conversation I went to get my internet fixed and actually got quite a bit accomplished on my to-do list. Kelsey, Bernice and I met up to go get some produce and then study at the cafe down the street.
As we were studying at the cafe, I again just started to freak out, and all my thoughts came rushing back. I tried to keep it in as much as possible but as Bernice and I were walking back to my house I just broke down.
I started crying and just told her how I was feeling and how frustrated I was for feeling so upset and stressed over things that don't matter. We talked for a while and she told me that she completely understood how I was feeling because she often feels the same way. I asked her to pray for me and after we prayed I felt so much better. My heart literally felt lighter and I felt a wave of peace come over me.
After praying Kelsey, Bernice, Kate and I had dinner together and then we went to an Islam lecture since it is Islam Awareness week (Bernice is taking an Islam class and has been going to these lectures all week to help her better understand the religion.) The talk was on why the women wear their veils and modesty and such it was interesting but Kelsey, Kate and I left early to go to Alpha.
Alpha was so good our discussion was on the Bible. Why we read the Bible, what we get out of the Bible, how we view the Bible etc etc. It seriously gave me an even greater amount of peace. Just talking about the living word of God and how God speaks to us through it, how it is a beautiful love letter to his daughter. How it is God true and perfect word and what I read can relate to my life and and use and trust. I am so thankful to have Christians here in my life that can bring me peace just by talking about God's word.
This is the relaxation part...giving it all to God and trusting in him and him alone.
Thank you Jesus for your everlasting peace!

Traveling Downs...and Ups

I have no clue what it is about traveling that turns me into an emotional wreck but it somehow does.
I had an amazing time in Germany. I got to spend time with one of my dear friends Lulu who I only get to see once a year if I am lucky. We had a slumber party which was fun, I ate German food, I got to see the beautiful countryside and experience a new culture, and overall it was very relaxed and a really great time.
However, the plane/train ride just made me so emotional. I wasn't crying or anything (though I deeply wanted to) I just had this heavy overwhelming feeling of emotions.

My heart literally was hurting and it felt so heavy in my chest. Full of sadness. Sadness because I missed people and I was ready to go home. At the same time it felt light, I was so happy to be having this amazing experience and to discover God on deeper and new levels. How one's heart can feel both of this extreme emotions is beyond me but it does.
I honestly thought that once it hit the first month mark everything would be easy and I would get the "I never want to go home" feeling but it was just the opposite.

Last night I talked to Barry on the phone and he was able to really encourage me and help me see through my emotions and this morning I spent time with my Father and he allowed me to see everything clearly.

This morning as I poured my heart out to God and asked him to take all these emotions and burdens and fill me with his joy and peace my sadness was washed away. I immediately started to feel better, and of course I walked outside to go to class to find sunshine and warm weather.
I wore flip flops today if that shows how beautiful the weather was today!

Again, the theme of this semester is that GOD PROVIDES.
He really does, for the small things and the big things HE PROVIDES. That is what he does, as our Father, Protector, Provider, Creator our everything...he provides!

God thank you that you love me enough to provide and take care of me! From the smallest and silliest things to the biggest and scariest of things! Thank you daddy for loving me and wrapping me in your arms when things get hard and I want to give up, thank you for loving me!