All about Beginnings, Cows, Day-to-Day, and Engouragement

First day of travel: we were all laughing because
Matt, the guy on the right, had just fallen in the aisle
while trying to get in the picture.

Hi all!

Last I wrote, our team was getting ready to roll out for Greenville, Texas. Since then, we have completed the REFUEL conference in Greenville and a Summit conference in Van Buren, Arkansas. Currently, I am sitting on the bus as we head toward Rocky Mount, North Carolina.

So, Greenville:

This beautiful home is where the 8 of us
stayed. The family was so welcoming
and were calling us their kids by
the 3rd day we were there. It was
sad to leave them!

I hear people say "everything is bigger in Texas" and it's crazy hot all the time. Growing up a Georgian, the heat didn't scare me, but it didn't matter anyway because it was rainy and "cool" most of our time there. It didn't really seem like anything was "bigger" either, except maybe the crickets. There were a lot of those.

Another team member and I got to stay with a woman named Kelli who is the Children's Minister of that church and is actually around my age so we basically felt like we were roomies. It was fun, but it was alos just good for my sou.. We would sit around and chat about whatever: hard things some of her students were going through, hard things from our pasts, silly things...it was just good.

The church members
provide vehicles for us
and we wash them before
giving them back. We only
had 2 water fights...

On the 2nd Sunday of each conference, our speaker usually talks about assurance of salvation. He tells people that some of the team members are in the prayer room if anyone wants to pray with them. I got to speak to two women who were seeking God's work in their marriages and boy, did I feel unqualified (you know, me not being married and all) but I honestly felt God guiding my words, which is pretty incredible. I don't know where their hearts are now but I have hope that they are continually seeking God's will in these hard times and that I was able to give them some encouragement.

Emily and I stayed together in Greenville.
When the team went to Top Golf, we
went and got visors so we could look the part.

Van Buren:
Van Buren was a different experience. Not as many people were coming to services as we had hoped, a lot of technical issues with equipment and a couple situations that led to a sense of discouragement for a lot of us...just a few hard days as the team worked extra hours to iron out the issues. In the end, though, I think God was able to work more through our struggles than through our ease. Maybe we were just so dependent on Him and crying out to Him more that we were easier able to see what He was doing around us. 

After lunch, we sometimes
play Uno Dare. Jared's dare card
made him hold a funny expression
until his next turn. Our guys are
big goofs. I love it.

2nd Sunday in Van Buren, I had the opportunity to pray with a teenage girl who came in the prayer room and said, "I'm lost, I'm broken, I want to be saved. I want Jesus back." It was such a beautiful thing to see her hunger to be made right with God. What made it even more amazing was that her parents and sister had also come to the prayer room and I believe God is doing a mighty work in their lives. I look forward to the changes that they will see as they put renewed trust in God: even if I, myself, never see or hear about those changes, I know God is calling and they are listening.

I did have a "blind moment" in Van Buren that I thought y'all would appreciate. 8 of us were staying together in a safe neighborhood, so we would go on walks most mornings. The first morning, we passed a field of cows and would call out, 'hey cows" to see how many would look our way. Silly, but fun.

Well, the next day we were driving back from church and I saw the cows out my window so I called "hey cows!" Tara, one of the girls staying at the house, started laughing:

"Anna, those aren't cows. They're bears, and they're not alive."

Sure enough, there were cows in a field on the other side of the van and I had just yelled at some lawn ornaments.

I still laugh about it whenever I think of it, and so does one of the boys I teach. He thought it was hilarious when I told him. I'm so glad God has given me joy and laughter in something many would see as a burden.

Teaching is going well. I sincerely love it. It's not all unicorns and rainbows, but I wouldn't expect it to be. Math is hard and reading takes a while and life doesn't go as planned, but God is always faithful and I am growing closer to Him as I see more and more of my need.

So yes, it is good.

A group of us played
Sardines at one of the
churches. Jalen was the
first one to hide and sent
us this pic. We never
found him.

Prayer Requests:
1. For our team as we begin this Summit in Rocky Mount. It's a bigger church so it's going to be all hands on deck. We are going to be worn out by the time it's over, but that doesn't mean we should shy away from the challenge; it just means we will have to rely on God's strength instead of our own. God has called us to it and we will go! Also, pray for us as we get used to how things work. There are 15 "newbies" this year and our way of life can be pretty overwhelming.
2. Pray for the congregation at Englewood Baptist in Rocky Mount. I don't know what their needs are, but I know God is taking us there for a reason. Pray that God will be able to use us -issues and all- to point these people to refreshment in His love, grace, forgiveness and purpose.

I love traveling and just
looking uut the window.
We see lots of strange things
and lots of beautiful lthings.

3. Pray for me. I'm learning to be a morning person. I've been naturally waking up between 5:00 and 6:30 and this is definitely new for me! I'm still figuring out how to manage my time with the extra hours. I'm exercising more and having more time for prayer and devotions, but I often don't plan well and feel like I have wasted time; then I mentally beat myself up about it for the rest of the day. I need wisdom and determination to do as God leads each morning and not get caught up in a list of "works" to feel like I'm loved by Him.

As always, I am so grateful for your prayers and texts and comments and...everything.

Love,
Anna