look in your heart and you’ll find

Monday was our first gospel choir rehearsal. Over the summer and into the beginning of the school year I have had some worries about United Voices of Praise (UVP). Our choir is currently going through a period of transition: our director, Dr. Thomas, is on sabbatical this year…our performance coordinator, Eunice Hager, no longer holds that position and they have yet to find someone to take over those responsibilities…our student director from last year, Margaret McKay, graduated…our piano players are no longer at Messiah…etc. etc. Needless to say I have had some fears about gospel choir this year. Despite these worries about the year, I believe it is going to be a great one and we will truly be blessed this year.

This Monday’s rehearsal was definitely a huge blessing in itself. Not only did we have a large number of returning members, but a bunch of new members showed up to audition as well. Even though we only sang a few songs together, but I could feel God’s presence with us and felt as if this rehearsal was only the beginning of great things to come. Back in my home church’s youth choir, Voices of Grace, we had a little saying, “It will all work out on Sunday.” This provided all of us with a bit of encouragement even when we felt that we weren’t prepared for singing at Sunday morning’s service. All of us truly believed in this and every Sunday we sang, it would all work out! We did amazing things and we all felt especially blessed after every service. Despite any troubles we may experience as a choir throughout this year, I believe UVP will follow this same principle and it truly will all work out on Sunday!

Today is the first day of classes at Messiah College and I have successfully made it through two classes including square dance and Bible. It is so hard to believe that summer is already over and that all of campus is back and ready for fall semester. I’ve been here for only two days but it all just seems so normal and as if I have been here forever already. It is great to come back and meet up with friends again, go to chapel as one big community again, and just get reacquainted with the atmosphere of Messiah. So while I dreaded coming back and having to start class and be away from the comforts of home, now that I am here there are no problems. I am glad to be back and get back to my life at Messiah (despite still missing summer).

This summer was absolutely amazing! Looking back at everything that happened this summer I really just want to live it all again (don’t we all wish that at times haha). This summer was largely defined by work and friends. At home I work at a daycare and I absolutely love it! I also spent a lot of time helping out with children’s ministries at my church this summer. I taught the 2 and 3 year old Sunday School class and spent a majority of Sundays helping out with children’s worship during the two services as well. I miss my all of my little kids so much now that I am gone. Being with them is definitely affirming what I am being called to do, work with children. Everyone always says how you should love your job and I truly do. It is funny to me at times, that I am actually working and getting paid for what I am doing since I do love it soooooo much.

Since my friends and I are getting older it is getting harder and harder to get our entire friend group (there are 12 of us) together. There were so many of my friends traveling the world or taking summer classes at their campuses this summer that there were really only a few of us left. Those of us who did stay behind in Indiana had a great time together though. We saw so many movies, had a number of bonfires, went out to eat or get coffee numerous times, and we also went to a Jason Mraz concert (August 11th, Jump the Line passes leading to front center standing spots, the best day ever!) Altogether it was just a great summer! I miss everyone terribly now that summer is over. It was so hard to say bye to everyone especially being the last to leave, but being back at Messiah is always good too.

It is the last Monday of the year. Granted we have finals next Monday still, but it is our last Monday of actual classes. The beginning of February, when we started Spring Semester, seems like yesterday and it also feels like years ago when looking back at it. It is sort of crazy to think about it all. Today is one of the gloomiest Monday’s ever too. Walking outside into the pouring rain first thing in the morning is never a good feeling. That feeling is even worse when it is Monday morning though. After a weekend of partying for my roommate, Danielle’s, birthday and doing a little bit of work, it was hard to get out of bed and actual go to class today. The rain outside made that feeling even worse. It is extremely nice to know though that after turning in two major papers today, I will only have one day of classes, 3 tests, and a presentation left until the semester officially comes to a close.

This weekend, as stated above, was as pretty good mix of work and fun. Since Danielle’s birthday was yesterday, we sort of had a weekend of celebration and had a good time going out and having fun. Friday we went to Panera for dinner and then went to see Ghosts of Girlfriends Past with Matthew McConaughey. Saturday, we basically just hung out and watched movies as well as got a little bit of work done. Sunday, after doing work in the afternoon we went out to Red Robin for dinner and then came back for cake. It was an overall really good weekend. It was especially nice to get everyone together for one of the last weekends of Sophomore year.

This has been a very eventful week. Not only has there been the business of classes and the end of the semester occuring, but there were a number of special events which have gone on as well.

Last Saturday was United Voices of Praise’s Concert of Praise. Some of my family as well as my best friend from high school and her friend from school all came for the concert. It was great to visit with them. It was especially nice to go out to eat and then have everyone from home meet everyone from school. Saturday was also such a gorgeous day in general. It became so hot in the church that we decided to just wear our t-shirts for the entirety of the concert instead of robes the first half and t-shirts the second. It was different, but it was definitely nice to not have to die of heat in our robes.

I also went to see Gavin Degraw with three friends this week. The concert was amazing! It is surprising the Gavin Degraw would come to Harrisburg and do a performance at the Whitaker Center, but I am definitely glad that he did. Up until this year I had only ever been to one concert, and in the past seven months I have been to three. It makes me laugh to think that all of the sudden I have taken up concert going basically out of no where. Even though Jason Mraz’s concert was by far my favorite, all three of them have been amazing. The four of us even had fun just hanging out before and after this past concert as well.

Yesterday was one of the busiest days as well as relaxing though in the past week. Yesterday was Service Day at Messiah (the day where there are no classes and all offices are closed in order for students, faculty, and employees to go out and do some sort of service project during the day). I participated in Special Olympics. I did the same thing last year and both years have proven themselves to be amazing experiences. Special Olympics is the biggest service project that Messiah participates in because it is one campus and a number of people are needed either to be a buddy to a participant or to run an event. The past two years, I have worked at the high jump and have moved the bar to up and down as well as reset it after it fell down. Now at first this job might not seem very important or completely as a great act of service and rightly so.  Granted it needs to be done and without it the process would just take even longer than it already does, but there is also so much to it. Just standing there and watching the participants as they jump over the bar is life changing. They are always so incredibly proud of themselves and you can tell how much fun they are having. It is amazing to see how much life and enthusiasm these kids have. Even the littlest thing that you can do in order to help someone and make their day a little brighter, can truly make your life a little brighter as well.

Easter break has just ended and we have just under a month left here at Messiah. As previously mentioned in the past posts work is beginning to pile up as the semester comes to a close. Even though this time is such a busy time, it was nice to have a few days off and to go home last weekend.

Growing up I never particularly liked Easter. I somehow seemed to be sick every year on Easter, I was scared of the Easter bunny, and even though I got an Easter basket the presents just could not compare to Christmas. Now though I am old enough to really appreciate Easter for what it truly is. Even though I have always known the importance of Easter and Jesus’ resurrection on Easter morning, that was never the most important thing about Easter until I’ve gotten older. Now I still do love searching for eggs and getting an Easter basket, but the most important part has now become reflection on what Easter actually is. Seeing family and friends is also a main focus of Easter break since I get to see my friends from home whom I haven’t seen since Christmas. This break was a really good time, getting to visit with everyone and spending time not only with others but also with myself in times of reflection.

It is amazing how close we are to the end of the semester. With only a month left of classes and then only one additional week for finals, we do not have that much time left. Looking at my calendar of things that have to get done in the next month though was when this actually hit me. All of those papers and projects that we were told about the first day of class and then quickly forgotten about now have due dates which are slowly creeping up on me. This past weekend, even though I did have time to relax, I had a bunch of work to do as well. Today consisted of taking a test and handing in a paper. Tomorrow consists of a paper and a debate. Even though the rest of the week after tomorrow is pretty clear and begins Easter break, there is still much to do over break and as so as I get back.

Despite the stresses of classes wrapping up and work being piled on, it is nice to know that there is only one month left until I am half way through my college career. It all seems to have gone by so fast the past two years, but I also still have those two years left of my college years to cherish. Oh my.

P.S. Happy Birthday Jessica!

Break should be a time of relaxation and revitalization, but that never seems to be the case. This is especially true once it actually comes time to get back to work. This break was no different. My break began with the United Voices of Praise tour to Ohio which was amazing. We all had a blast worshiping and ministering to others as well as getting to know each other much better. After tour I went home expecting to have a fun relaxing rest of the week. Even though I did get the chance to sleep in and relax a little bit, I also felt as if I was continuously running here and there and I never seemed to actually catch up on any work or sleep which I desperately needed. I had so much fun running around meeting friends and getting a few other things accomplished despite the lack of rest though. My roommate, Danielle, also came to visit me at the end of the week which was a lot of fun. It was nice to finally get to show her the little town I call home and to have her meet a few of my friends.

Now that I’m back at school though it seems as if I have thrown right back into the thick of things. Work is beginning to pile up now that we have less than 6 weeks of school left. It is also that time of year to figure out rooming and classes for Fall semester which can be quite a hectic time on campus. It is not in this busyness that I am truly feeling my lack of rest of break. Tuesday night even I was so exhausted that I went to bed at 9:30! That is completely crazy! I don’t even know the last time I went to bed before 10:00. I think now that it is the end of the first week back though, I am back in the swing of things and back to the busyness of school.

Spring break is fast approaching and I cannot wait. Spending this past weekend writing a paper, I’m definitely ready for a break. Even though I have a little bit of work to do over break, it will be a nice time to do some relaxing and hanging out with friends. A number of my friends have already been home or are home now on break so I will not be able to see a number of my friends, but I am excited to be able to see those who will be home. Break also starts off with UVP’s tour to a couple churches and a Christian school in Ohio, which I am also really looking forward to. Danielle and Sarah are also coming home with my the second half of break to get a little taste of Indiana. I am even more excited for their stay in my little town. Overall I’m just ready for break. This semester has been a pretty draining one with the number of general education classes I’m taking compared to my major classes. Even though the gen eds are not exactly hard, they become harder considering the interest level is much lower. This week I simply continue to push forward to looking at what is coming up next week.

Last night United Voices of Praise went and performed at an African-American History month service at a church in Carlisle. I love going to American-American/ Baptist churches with gospel choir. The amount of spiritual excitement and energy present in the church is just so much more there than you would find at any other church. Their rich traditions are show throughout the entire service and I just love it. Last night was no exception. During the prayers, songs, dances, readings, etc. there were always a number of Hallelujahs and Praise the Lords being sung from the congregation. There was one family in particular that really caught my attention. While the congregation was filled with a number of older men and women, there was one family with five children ranging in age from around 2 to 15. All five of the children seemed to be completely filled with the spirit and loving the worship energy of the evening. One moment particularly touched me though. As in any service, there was an offering taken at last night’s service as well. Following the tradition of the church each member of the congregation came up one at a time and gave their offering. Standing up front singing the offertory, I saw the youngest girl of the family (around 2 years old) holding her sister’s hand coming up to give her offering. As she walked up to the front she stared wide eyed at the choir and the band taking it all in. I noticed however that in her hand she held a dollar bill. It was one of the cutest/touching things I had ever seen. This little girl of no more than two years old was coming up with her family and giving an offering to God which many Christians don’t typically think of until they get their first paycheck or even long after that. It was truly amazing to see that adorable little girl walk up to the front of the sanctuary with her offering and place her dollar in the basket.

English has never been my favorite subject. Actually it has always been my least favorite. I don’t like writing, I HATE analyzing books, and I have never truly understood all of the grammar and punctuation rules (which I apologize for if you reading my blog and I make any mistakes and/or my writing style drive you crazy in anyway). All throughout my schooling I never truly got any help with English, which drove my parents crazy. I had an IEP in school and that would always be one of the things discussed but it never really got played out or ended up helping me in the long run. All of my English/writing teachers sort of drove me crazy. Granted there were a number that I enjoyed as people, but as teachers…not really.

Last year however I had the best English Gen Ed experience I could have ever asked for in 20th Century Women’s Literature with Helen Walker. Despite my general hatred for English classes and writing I actually enjoyed her class. We read plays and analyzed them a little bit but the majority of class was all about our own ideas and expressing them in our own ways such as through writing and putting on our own plays. Despite not being a great writer, Helen always showed that she liked my writing and rarely criticized my writing like I had experienced in the past, but she encouraged me to take a good piece of writing and make it better instead.

Last March I also decided to apply for the New Zealand cross cultural for which Helen Walker just happened to be the faculty leader. After my application and interview I knew I hadn’t been accepted and I later found out for sure that I hadn’t been. Even though I was slightly upset, I was truly ok because I knew God had much bigger things planned for me (I’m still not sure what, but I know its coming). I could really tell that Helen felt bad for not having accepted me though. This was especially true at one meeting that I had with her about a paper. She asked me how I was doing and expressed her genuine concern.

It is almost a year later and still she is showing the same care and concern about me. I don’t have class with her this year and I probably wont have class with her again, but I have a feeling whenever I see her she will still remember me and ask me how I’m doing. When I was walking down to work today, we passed each other and had a brief conversation. She asked how I was doing and we talked about how her trip to New Zealand was last month. It was nice to see and talk to her even if it was only for a brief minute. I really appreciate all that she has done for me, which I’m sure is more than she realizes. She actually made me enjoy an English class and she showed me true concern which I would have never expected from a professor that I would only have contact with during one class. Even though I’m still not too keen on English or writing, I have a much better attitude towards it and in a way miss having my English class last spring.