Fearless but not Perfect

This blog should have been posted back in June when I wrote up. But it never happened.

So here it is, the unedited version straight from my journal.


"Why be afraid that you cannot carry this cross without weakness? On the road to Calvary Jesus fell three times"- Saint Therese's to her sister Celine.

Be fearless but not perfect. Leave the perfect part to our heavenly father. During this year as a missionary I've tried to live fearlessly. Often, if not daily, I fail. My own insecurities get in the way. My own weakness gets in the way and my pride tries to cove up those weaknesses. But even Jesus is weak, and even he wept.

Reading that quote from Saint Therese gives me a glimmer of hope that I can keep going. No matter how many times I fall weak and have to pick up my cross, Jesus will help. The road to salvation isn't easy or pretty. In fact, it's often times an uphill battle with some blood, sweat and tears. But it's totally worth every minute of the climb.

God Wins

Summer camp 2013 is done. Boy was it one for the record books! I’ve been involved with summer camp since 2010. I’ve served as a summer staffer and in the kitchen at Covecrest. I was camp photographer at Camp Tepeyac, and this year I was Prayer Coordinator and Summer Staff Mentor at Camp Hiawassee. Each year provided me with new ways to serve the teens and pushed me to lean harder on the Lord.

I knew from the first day of summer camp in 2010 that I wanted my parents to experience what the Lord was doing in the lives of the teens. So when I got home, I started sharing the stories, singing the songs, and showing them videos and pictures. That continued for the next three summers. Every so often I would drop a hint, “Hey, maybe you can come visit one week. Arizona is really pretty.” And finally after asking and asking, asking Jesus to stir in their hearts a desire to say YES, my parents came to Camp Hiawassee during the last week of camp this summer!

Holy cow did the Spirit move! My parents were laughing, playing around, helping on high ropes, eating ice cream, and more with the teens and missionaries at camp that week. The big glory moment, though, was after my parents went to Mass: my dad said it was the best Mass he’d been to in a long time! PRAISE THE LORD!

My parents coming and experiencing summer camp was one of the many ways the Lord was faithful this summer. I can go on and on about the ways the Lord moved in my life this summer, and each moment He showed me His faithfulness was such a blessing. The moment the desire was placed on my heart for my parents to experience summer camp, I had to PRAY BIG and EXPECT MIRACLES. As I head out to Atlanta in just a few weeks, I continue to PRAY BIG and EXPECT MIRACLES realizing at each moment that GOD WINS

Summer Camp Wrap Up!

It's been weeks since I left Camp Hiawassee and I think I've finally gotten the last bit of camp stench off my clothes. My hair doesn't smell like mud, bacon or sweat anymore...THANK YOU JESUS!

This little gem right here is the perfect photo to explain the blessed CHAOS of summer camp. While teens are being covered in mud, doused with water they are draped in the GRACES and the LOVE of the Lord. 

My missionary brothers, Woody and Chris, praise the Lord for their love and support this summer.

Every session we welcome the teens in. It reminds them that they are important and that they matter. 

Just a Tuesday Night Dance party! 

Every morning and every night we gather and pray as a community. 

Here's a snip of an opening skit we did for the youth during the last week of camp. I'm playing the role of a protective Mama and my daughter hasn't eaten very much that day. Take a look at what happens next!

Oceans

There's this super popular song in the Catholic world called "Oceans" by Hillsong. On a recent day of silence I found myself singing along to the tune that is perpetually stuck in my head...oh the irony. As I prayed through the words I realized they were perfect for the situation I'm currently in.

I move to Atlanta GA in less than a month. We don't know where we are living. What car we will have to drive or what parish we will be working with.

But the line that gets me goes "Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders let me walk a upon the waters wherever you would call me". Throughout the summer I can recall may moment where we sang this one that I was standing, hands raised truly praying these words.

Now The Lord is calling me out into these deep waters. Where I don't really know what's going to happen next. But here I go, just like Peter, out into the deep waters. Keeping my eyes fixed on The Lord.

Listen
Pray
Enjoy

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dy9nwe9_xzw

You are Enough

I challenged a group of 35 Middle school girls to look themselves in the mirror everyday for the next year and say I AM ENOUGH.

Who is willing to rise up and take that challenge?

Oh you know just hanging out at SUMMER CAMP!

We are three days into the first week of session two! Gosh the summer is really FLYING by. We have sent our  first session Summer Staff back home to be missionaries in their home's and at their schools. Here's a few pictures of the last week of camp!

The beautiful women I got to journey with during Session 1

I got to give the talk during a Women's Session and here we are praying over the men of our community. 

I'm working in the main room, and suddenly I have some duck friends join me! 

One of my many roles is talking about our Haiti 365 Board! 

This is just a typical Thursday night at summer camp. 

It rains...A LOT! 

Thirty minutes before breakfast started we realized we didn't have enough eggs. We bought 25 dozen eggs! 

Session Two Summer Staff watching Fireworks! 

Best.Camp. Ever. Part 3

Well I've clearly failed at this "weekly" update thing! But so many exciting things are happening at camp and I'm in a CANT STOP, WONT STOP mode right now.

A few glory stories and a few pictures...COMING AT YOU!

Week 1 of camp there was a little girl named Lily that stole my heart on the very first night. I was eating dinner with her, her sister and some friends. She sat right next to me (practically in my lap) and started eating food off my plate. I was a little taken back at first, but she was going into 6th grade and super cute so I figured I would share. She started telling me joke, and the five of us continued to eat every meal together for the rest of the week. The really glory comes on Thursday of that week during high ropes. I was blessed to be up in the air with the girls and Lily was especially nervous. There were a lot of tears...A LOT! But she climbed up the cargo net and over to the first element and then she froze. So I walked towards her and helped her the entire way till the tight rope walk portion of high ropes course. There she was crying so much she couldn't even see. It was heart breaking. I knew she was scared, but I knew she could do it. She wanted to get down, so we had to rescue retrieve her down. The night at dinner we talked a bit about why she was so scared, and all she kept saying was "you saved my life". It was so cute, and I knew all I had done was held her hand when she was scared, and let her eat off my plate. But even deeper than that Lily taught me how to love.

Week 2 was a bit of a hectic week. I brought one teen to the hospital because he dislocated his knee. Through the chaos I was able to relay the message to the summer missionaries to gather all the teens and pray a rosary. As we were traveling the 30 minutes to the hospital (his mother being very happy I'm a New York driver) his knee suddenly popped back into place. Miraculously when we got to the hospital it was all fixed, and he just has to wear a brace for a week. POWER OF PRAYER!

We are half way through Week 3 and Jesus is rocking it. We had a 7th grader tell the entire room he was going to be a priest, and an 8th grade girl asked to be baptized and welcomed into the Catholic Church as her only Christmas present this year. My favorite quote of the week so far as been from Father Michael, this is in reference to the Sacrament of Reconciliation he said "When a priest is wearing purple you know it's butt kicking time. Jesus is just going to come in and KICK that sin in the face"

GOD IS SO ALIVE!
Our church is ALIVE
And the middle schoolers of our faith are ALIVE!

Just a few hours before the first campers arrive putting the final touches to our set.

That "tree" is made out of garbage cans, and cardboard boxes..WE WORK WITH WHAT WE HAVE! 

Ropes Crew! 

This is Konan, he's our pet bear. Don't worry though, black bears don't eat meat! 

HAPPY CAMP!