I have been gone the past week at Royal Family Kids Camp. It is a camp for kids in the foster system. I was tired by the end of the week, but it was worth every bit of tiredness. My campers were precious and I know that this camp makes a difference in their lives. Making sure the kids are having fun and are in a safe environment is the top priority. This was the second time I was a counselor and it just reaffirmed that Royal Family Kids Camp is such a blessing for these children. I encourage you if you ever have a chance to help support this ministry.
The goodbye at the end of the week is always hard because you don't know what kind of environment lays ahead for these children. There are many different levels and kinds of abuse and more often than not the counselor will never know what has happened to a child that they ended up in the system and we will never know what the future holds for them. We have to pray and trust God with their lives.
It is the same with our own lives and the lives of those people we care about. I was swimming at the gym the other day and I was thinking how crazy and unpredictable this world is. I really have no idea what is going to happen in the future. There is no knowing what this life has in store for us. My work with Convoy of Hope is going to take me around the world. The places I am going will not always be safe places. I may be asked to go places that hate Americans and hate Christians even more. I may be asked to go places in states of disaster and the surrounding chaos. If I were to sit here and think about all that without having God in the picture the unknown would terrify me. The fear of the unknown would be paralyzing and depressing. Thankfully I have God in the picture. Through God I can live in freedom and peace. God offers hope for the future. In an uncertain place he provides certainty. In the end I have to hold on and trust him for this wild ride called life.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
An Update
I got my statement from the AG World Missions board for May. Here is the breakdown:
The Monthly Support is now up to 66%. This means I need to raise $817.00 more in monthly support. This is really exciting. It is nice that the amount isn't as daunting as $2,000 or even $1,000 more.
The cash budget has been met, so all one time gifts now get broken down into monthly support.
I want to THANK everyone who has gotten me this far! You're the best.
Also the current update as far as moving to Springfield, MO and starting work with Convoy of Hope is August. I am planning on being with the fall intern team. I am excited about this move and hope and pray that everything will fall into place!
The Monthly Support is now up to 66%. This means I need to raise $817.00 more in monthly support. This is really exciting. It is nice that the amount isn't as daunting as $2,000 or even $1,000 more.
The cash budget has been met, so all one time gifts now get broken down into monthly support.
I want to THANK everyone who has gotten me this far! You're the best.
Also the current update as far as moving to Springfield, MO and starting work with Convoy of Hope is August. I am planning on being with the fall intern team. I am excited about this move and hope and pray that everything will fall into place!
Monday, June 9, 2008
Early Rising, Foot Injuries y Pie, and Sleeping under the Stars
Just wanted to touch in for the week. I am pretty tired. I am trying to become an early riser. It is really hard and I am always tired by 9:00pm. It may be a case of the grass is greener on the other side, but I am convinced that morning people get more done in the day. So, I am trying to convert myself =).
I am supposed to update you on a couple of things. One the foot "injury" from several blogs back and the other was the pie. The foot is still nagging me a little. For a girl who runs frequently this is annoying. I have started swimming laps and I enjoy that. The get well plan is continue to bike and swim and no high heels for another week or so. I know you all have been worried about the foot =). The pie got good reviews. Everyone ate it at least. Next time I will put a little more flour in the berries, so the juice is thicker. Grandma Wilson - Thanks for the recipe!
The "Sleep Under the Stars" event was fun. I posted some pictures from the breakfast in the morning. Some of the pictures didn't turn out, so I was kind of bummed. I added captions for your reading enjoyment. Also notice the fabulous decorations. I enjoyed the fellowship, smores, singing and of course the aching shoulders the next morning from sleeping outside.
I am still raising funds. I should have an update fairly soon as well as some other Claire Balch insights (for whatever they are worth). =)
"Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality." Romans 12:9-13
The Cooks =)
The Little Visitor
Cooking Action Shot
The Sleeping Arrangements
Pastor Ed
Elizabeth Balch
Heather and Jessika
I am supposed to update you on a couple of things. One the foot "injury" from several blogs back and the other was the pie. The foot is still nagging me a little. For a girl who runs frequently this is annoying. I have started swimming laps and I enjoy that. The get well plan is continue to bike and swim and no high heels for another week or so. I know you all have been worried about the foot =). The pie got good reviews. Everyone ate it at least. Next time I will put a little more flour in the berries, so the juice is thicker. Grandma Wilson - Thanks for the recipe!
The "Sleep Under the Stars" event was fun. I posted some pictures from the breakfast in the morning. Some of the pictures didn't turn out, so I was kind of bummed. I added captions for your reading enjoyment. Also notice the fabulous decorations. I enjoyed the fellowship, smores, singing and of course the aching shoulders the next morning from sleeping outside.
I am still raising funds. I should have an update fairly soon as well as some other Claire Balch insights (for whatever they are worth). =)
"Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality." Romans 12:9-13
The Cooks =)
The Little Visitor
Cooking Action Shot
The Sleeping Arrangements
Pastor Ed
Elizabeth Balch
Heather and Jessika
Monday, June 2, 2008
Some Rambling...
I just made a pie. It's a blackberry pie. They were out of rasberries. I prefer to mix them. It's only the second pie I have made and the first one that is gluten. My other pie was gluten free. Half of my family can't eat gluten. Gluten is found in wheat, rye and barley. My gluten free pie was pretty successful, so I am hoping that it translates to a gluten pie. Except I forgot to put butter on the berries, so it might lack a little in flavor. At least it will be healthier =). My life group will be the gluten pie guinea pigs. I will bring backup desert just in case something goes amiss. I will definetly let you know how it all turns out and if you're lucky I might remember to take a picture of the pie.
The Giants won tonight. Actually they swept the game from the very begining. I love it when they win. I wish they would do it a little more often though =).
The young adults at CLC are all sleeping outside at my house Saturday night. Then Sunday morning we are going to the church serve day. If you are a young adult in Santa Cruz you should come. It will be cool. Bonfire, smores, popcorn, camp songs, sleeping outside, at the Balch's. Seriously can it get any better????
CLC is having a serve day on Sunday. The Sunday service is canceled, so we can apply this last series together as a church. The last series was called outflow and it focused on outward living. If I could summarize it in a sentence or two it would be "letting God's love change your life, so then you can then go out and manifest His love to the community around you". This is one of the most important things a Christ follower can do. As Christians we should focus on representing Christ in our daily chores and activities. Now after a series that focused on missional living CLC is finishing it off with application by going out and serving in our community.
So, now that I have rambled for four paragraphs...I am still in Santa Cruz and still raising money to get to Convoy of Hope. I just sent out my first official newsletter, so those of you who are on my mailing list will recieve that soon. I should be receiving my next statement in the next couple weeks, so I will have an update on that soon. I believe I will be around the fifty percent range.
I just wanted to check in with my multitude of readers =) AKA my Dad, and a sprinkling of others. I am going to bed I have to be at work at 7:00am tomorrow.
Until Next Time!
The Giants won tonight. Actually they swept the game from the very begining. I love it when they win. I wish they would do it a little more often though =).
The young adults at CLC are all sleeping outside at my house Saturday night. Then Sunday morning we are going to the church serve day. If you are a young adult in Santa Cruz you should come. It will be cool. Bonfire, smores, popcorn, camp songs, sleeping outside, at the Balch's. Seriously can it get any better????
CLC is having a serve day on Sunday. The Sunday service is canceled, so we can apply this last series together as a church. The last series was called outflow and it focused on outward living. If I could summarize it in a sentence or two it would be "letting God's love change your life, so then you can then go out and manifest His love to the community around you". This is one of the most important things a Christ follower can do. As Christians we should focus on representing Christ in our daily chores and activities. Now after a series that focused on missional living CLC is finishing it off with application by going out and serving in our community.
So, now that I have rambled for four paragraphs...I am still in Santa Cruz and still raising money to get to Convoy of Hope. I just sent out my first official newsletter, so those of you who are on my mailing list will recieve that soon. I should be receiving my next statement in the next couple weeks, so I will have an update on that soon. I believe I will be around the fifty percent range.
I just wanted to check in with my multitude of readers =) AKA my Dad, and a sprinkling of others. I am going to bed I have to be at work at 7:00am tomorrow.
Until Next Time!
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