calabacera=squash

I got an update this week that all of my support came in for the internship! I am fully funded. Praise God! Thank you all so much for your prayers and support! I am so blessed to have such loving people supporting me. It’s overwhelming! My words cannot describe how thankful I am.

I got a package from my Grandma T last week! Kelsey (my roommate) told me she signed a package for me that was pretty heavy when we were in History class. I wanted to leave right then to see who it was from and what it was. I opened it right after lunch. It was filled with candy and gum and popcorn and hot chocolate and little snacks and my favorite granola bar and 2 books!!! I was overwhelmed and surprised! I felt so so very loved! I loved it so much and am so thankful for my grandma!
I also got a package from Carrie today! It had a cute little journal, travel bag, rolling pin and stickers to remind me of my love of baking, flashcards for teaching, a sucker and my favorite candy..Reese’s eggs..yum! I was so surprised and feel so loved! I am so blessed to have her in my life and the friendship we have!
God just keeps pouring blessing after blessing into my life. I don't know why and I'm not going to try to figure it out. All I can do is praise Him and thank Him!

Last week, I saw Carmen, Lucia, and Cristobal when I was in the park running. I stopped to say hello and she said Lucia would be my only student for the day because the other boys were in the Sierra Navadas. I asked Lucia if she wanted to go to the grocery store to learn food words since she would be my only student when I got to there house, and she said yes and ran to ask her mom. I was afraid her mom might say no. I didn't know if she trusted me enough to let me take her 7 year-old outside the house, but she said yes and how lucky Lucia was. Lucia was beaming and so excited. It was a lot of fun!! She is the sweetest thing. We picked out a yogurt and chocolate crunch treat when we were done and went to her house. I had brought a bag of Starburst jelly beans that my grandma had sent me to give to their family. The boys were home and everyone loved them! I told them sometimes my friends and I try to guess what color we eat, and they liked that game. It was fun watching them play. They didn't have a formal dinner because the boys weren't hungry. Carmen invited me to stay and watch the soccer game and practice my Spanish with them. It was a lot of fun. Carmen asked me a lot of questions and really seems interested in who I am. I loved being able to talk with her and experience more of their regular lifestyle. I already love them and have a soft spot in my heart for Lucia, Carmen, and Manuel. I'm excited to grow closer to them and see what God has in store for this summer. I'm praying that God uses me in their lives.

Here’s a little blurb about my incredible weekend that was filled with fun and laughter in Paris:
We got to our hostel on Thursday night and that was all we did. It took quite awhile to get there. It was not that great of a place, but not awful either. We couldn't help but laugh at it. I’m thankful that Heather booked it for us though. So nice to have a place to stay!

Friday we went to the tourist office in the morning to get maps and information. We circled the places we wanted to see and bought out 3 day transportation passes for the weekend. First stop..Eiffel Tower. I took a digger and fell flat on my face in front of it. I was taking a picture and ran to catch up and tripped on a rock in the process..haha. I wish it were on tape so I could see how silly I looked. Anywho, it was really incredible. It seemed so surreal. It hasn't really hit me that I went there. We climbed the stairs to the top and had an incredible view of the city. Wow! Then we got lunch and headed to the Arc de Triomph which was really cool and much bigger than I realized. We walked down the busy shopping street and saw the Grand Palace and National Army Museum. There were really cool looking trees there that seemed to be begging to be played in. I continued my kid day and ran by them : ) We walked back towards the Eiffel Tower and bought ice cream for dinner and watched the light show on the Eiffel Tower and sat there for 2 hours or so. Then we went home to our lovely hostel.

Saturday we made French toast for breakfast! I loved it!!!! More cooking : ) Then we went to Notre Dame and the Louvre which was cool to see Mona Lisa but I'm just not that interested in art. I feel bad that I don't have a deeper appreciation for it, but I just get bored. We walked around and then went to the grocery store and bought stuff to make dinner. It was a lot of fun! I loved picking out the groceries and cooking it. I love to cook! I hope that joy continues when I have to do it all the time. Then we headed out to the Arc de Triomph to go up it at night to see the city lit up. It was raining but still cool to see it. We walked around on the busy street again and bought fries and ice cream from McDonald's to have 'French' fries...haha.

Sunday we went to this old church that I forget the name of, which was really beautiful. Then Cole and I split to meet Diddy. We had lunch with him and his wife, Heidi at their apartment. It was really great. They were so good to us. Diddy has a good sense of humor and Heidi is the sweetest thing. They showed us around their neighborhood after lunch. I got to talk to Heidi about ministry and she asked if I could see myself coming back. She studied abroad in France in college so we had some things in common. I really liked talking to her. Then Cole and I had an hour or so before we had to meet the girls. We walked around and just stumbled across some neat sites and a market. We met the girls and went to get crepes at a little restaurant, which was really cute and had good food too : ) Then we went to get food for dinner and had pasta in the hostel. We went back out at night towards the Eiffel Tower. Cole and I wanted to spend some time together and the girls went to get dessert. Cole and I sat in front of the Eiffel Tower and watched the light show again that happens every hour. It was really great! It still all seems so surreal to me. The 4 of us had fun on the metro to the Tower and on the way home too. It was a great last night in Paris.

We made it home around 2:25 on Monday and Kate and I raced home to get our school stuff and grab a sandwich before rushing to class at 3:00.
I’m still in disbelief that I was really there. I feel so incredibly blessed. God keeps pouring out blessing after blessing. Praise Him!

At Encuentro we sang a song called ‘Our Savior Lives’ by New Life Worship. I can’t stop listening to it! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZWQBdcQSQ8&feature=related

I had the start of midterms this week. It was pretty overwhelming after not studying the weekend before because of Paris, but God got me through and now I’m looking forward to welcoming my parents to Sevilla!

I'm so excited to see my parents today and can hardly focus on anything! Carmen, the mother of the family I teach for, invited me and my parents to have lunch with them today at 3. I was so excited to have that opportunity! It was be such a good experience for my parents to have a real Spanish meal and see what my life with them is like and know who will be my family for 10 days this summer. It's not working out though. My parents were supposed to arrive in Madrid at 7:45, then it got delayed to 9:15, and then to 10:00am. I was hoping they'd still make the 12:00 train, but there weren't any open trains until 7:00 tonight so they won't be here until 9:35pm. It stinks that it doesn't work out for lunch, but everything happens for a reason. I'm praying that it still works out for them to meet the family and also Concha and Nacho. Carmen's family is going to their country home, Nacho is leaving tomorrow and Concha said she might not be home so I hope it all still comes together somehow. I’m so thankful that my parents are coming! What a blessing to be able to have time with them and show them my life here! We’ll be in Sevilla until Monday and then flight to Italy until Friday. They’ll fly out of Madrid on Saturday morning, and I’m going to stay with Carmen for a day or so.

torpe = clumsy

Tuesday night before I went to visit Carmen two weekends ago, Kelsey (my roommate) and I made cookies! It was a lot of fun. I bought some cookies and put peanut butter in the middle and then dipped them in chocolate to bring them as a gift for Carmen’s family. Carmen said her brothers friends usually bring food, and this was my best idea without having to use the oven. I loved baking and it was fun with Kelsey. Praise God for the joy I get from baking and fun time with my roommate.

It was such a blessing to visit Carmen and so good to see her. I skipped 2 classes on Thursday to make sure I was at the train station on time. I had never taken the bus in Sevilla before and was thankful I had been to the train station before because I was able to recognize buildings around it and know when I needed to get off. I read my devotional on the bus, and it was right on. It was “The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” John 14:26 and about how we’re never alone and the Spirit is always with us, guiding us.

Carmen and Pedro, her boyfriend, were at the train station waiting for me. I was greeted with a hug and kiss from Carmen and immediate Spanish. I was a little lost in conversation with her and Pedro because they talked so fast, but I got most of it. We took the train to Tres Cantos, a smaller town outside of Madrid where they live. We dropped Pedro off, and I got a tour of the house and met her family. Then we were off to mass. After mass, they had a service where you could pray and confess your sins to the priest. I didn’t understand much during mass because it was difficult to understand the priest with the microphone and different acoustics, but Carmen was able to explain it to me. It was nice to be able to spend time praying.

Friday morning we woke up early and went to the center of Madrid. Carmen showed me different monuments, buildings, and good places to shop. We had fun walking around and seeing all the different things. It was rainy and a little cold but not too bad. We came home and had lunch with her parents. Carmen’s dad is learning English and practiced with me while we waited for lunch. He’s pretty good and liked to ask me questions about different words too. His phrase is “little by little, step by step, slowly but surely.” It’s a good reminder for me because sometimes I can get frustrated with my Spanish. Praise God for reminders like that.

That afternoon, we went to Corte Ingles to get Carmen's computer and walked around for awhile. The store is huge! You can buy everything from groceries to shoes to wedding dresses. It's crazy. We bought Ben and Jerry's cookie dough ice cream on the way home. Pedro came over and we shared it; what a treat! Then us 3 sat in her room talking and looking at pictures and youtube. Her mom made torrijas and made Pedro and I eat one. She said I was going back to Sevilla 4kg heavier and I probably did. We went out to dinner with her friends at Wagaboo in Madrid. It was a unique place and pretty modern. I didn't understand much of the conversation because there were 8 of them and all talking at once, or so it seemed. I got frustrated but then just stopped trying for a bit and looked around and thought about how many people probably don't know God. It made me sad to think about that, but it was a good reminder. We left the restaurant around 1am and just went home because the it was raining and cold.

Saturday, we walked around Tres Cantos and Carmen showed me where she went to school and stuff. We talked in Spanish all morning and that was so great! We went to pick up her brother from Decathlon where he works, it's a big sporting goods store like Dick's or Scheels. I really liked doing that and felt very much at home. It reminded me of something I would do with my family. We went shopping in the afternoon, and I found exactly what I wanted for souvenirs! I wanted spoons like they use here for dessert and found some with ice cream on top. They're great! I'm waiting to buy more until later. If I open my own bakery/cafe, then I will definitely want to have more. We went bowling with 5 of her friends and I loved it! I could actually talk with them and have conversation and did well too. They were so nice! We got little sandwiches after for dinner, and that was fun too.

Sunday morning we went back into Madrid to do more site seeing. It was nice to be able to walk around and talk. In the afternoon, we baked a banana and chocolate chip dessert! It was so great! I wish I were joking when I say that I want to have my own bakery/cafe because I sound kind of crazy, but I'm not kidding. I'm really praying about it. Her mom taught us how to bake torrijas and that was really fun too. I loved it! Her mom is so great. We went to mass and then stayed for this thing with other people her age in the church and her priest. We read a text and the priest explained it and then they all commented on it. After that, Carmen’s priest played the guitar and sang a song for us in English about the prodigal son. It was really neat.

On our walk back home, Carmen shared about her priest and things with the church. We got into a really good conversation that carried on until we went to bed about our relationships with God and different beliefs. We both shared what God was doing in our lives and I was able to ask her about her Catholic faith. Pray that God would provide good Christian friends for Carmen. Praise God that for such good conversation and encouragement.

On Monday, I went with her to school because she had one class she had to go to. I sat in the library and had a quiet time so it worked out well. We walked around in the afternoon and took had fun in the park. I'm so glad that God brought us closer together and opened doors. I feel like we've been good friends for a while and we both agreed it felt like no time had passed. I am so thankful God provided such an incredible weekend! I felt so spoiled in her home and loved getting to know her better and her family and friends too. I learned more language skills and my need to practice more and more about their culture. Her family is much more like the typical Spanish family I was told about before coming here. I'm so thankful God has blessed me with a friendship with her. She's so great. Praise God for an amazing weekend!

I have decided to stay for a little bit longer this summer. Here is a little bit of the process…
This past Tuesday, Carmen, the woman I work for, told me that I can for sure stay with them in between the internship and being with Carmen in Santander. It was such an answer to prayer. It’s cool to look back on my prayer journal and see God answer my prayers. Here are parts of two entries…
February 1: “Thank you that Carmen is so willing to share her life with me. What a blessing! If it be in your will Lord, please provide a way for me to be able to stay with her in July. Please provide the funds and housing to make it possible.”
February 8: “Thank you for the opportunity to stay with Carmen in July and be in Spain longer. Please help me know what to do. Provide a place for me to stay between the internship and Santander and the money to stay longer.”
What an incredible God we serve! Thank Him for always hearing our prayers and answering them.

This past Wednesday, I really felt that God was leading me to stay, but I was afraid. There are still so many uncertainties with everything. However, Kate and I went to Encuentro, the worship service with Trinity, and it was really great. A man from a church in Sevilla talked. He's originally from Mexico but grew up in Los Angeles and is a missionary in Sevilla. It was so cool to hear about how God has used him and his ministry now. He djs where kids botellon and then preaches the gospel! He brings the gospel to people in ways that fit them. He was on fire for Jesus. He told us the history of Spain and how historians think a spiritual rival is coming in the next few years. My eyes were opened again to how dead this country really is. A lot of the songs were about following God's will and not being of ourselves. It confirmed my thoughts with staying this summer and I got teary eyed. I was afraid to commit to stay, but I really feel it is God's will for me. I really felt God leading me to stay here and at that point I decided to stay. I was still uncertain about many things, including a job for the month of August when I return. However, today Ken and Lynne confirmed that I could work for them again. What an answer to prayer! I got teary eyed as I thought about how everything is working out so perfectly and seeing God put things together. I’m overwhelmed by His love. He continues to blow me away!

So I'm done with the internship July 7 and then will go to live with the family I'm working for. They have 7 different houses so I'm not sure where I'll be but probably somewhere in Andalucia, maybe Sevilla, maybe not. I will meet up with Carmen around July 17 or 19 or close to that in Madrid and head to Santander until July 26 or so. Nothing is really set in stone yet as it's a pretty recent decision. Praise God for leading me to make the decision. I’m excited to see what God has in store! Pray that God would be preparing me for the longer duration and bless it.
This past Tuesday night, Cole had skyped me and said he wanted to see me for 5 minutes and would come over. I didn't know why but I said of course. I went downstairs to meet him after talking to my mom on skype. He gave me an encouraging note, a little cookies n' cream ice cream cup, a cooking magazine with all the corners of the pages with desserts folded for me for inspiration in my future bakery, and fake flowers because he knows I don't like real flowers. It was so sweet of him and such a surprise! I’m not sure how I’m so blessed to have such a great boyfriend that makes me feel so special, but I thank God for the blessing he is in my life. Friday night, I went out with Kelsey (my roommate) and met her friend Maddy from NYU who's studying in London but on spring break in Spain. Maddy had 4 guy friends with her. We went with them while they ate dinner and hung out after. 2 of the guys were a lot of fun to hang out with. Kelsey and I laughed for probably 5 minutes straight at one point when we were dancing. The one guy was so fun to watch dance because he just had the perfect body type for the funk music to be hilarious. We walked by the river and joked around for awhile before heading home. I enjoyed meeting new people and laughing with them. Isn’t laughter wonderful?

Friday, we went to Ronda with the CEA group. We had a 3 hour time and then free time to have lunch and explore a bit. Ronda was not my favorite city but walking down to this one point was pretty neat, and I got some pictures that I really like.

Saturday night, a big group of us went out for tapas and a movie. The bar we went to had really bad service, which isn’t unusual here, but the tapas were really good. Our group ended up getting split because we were going to be late for the movie so Kate, Heather, Leah, and Kelly left once they paid and said they'd buy us our tickets. Kelsey, Cole, and I had to wait to pay with Jenny and her boyfriend and his sister. We got there a little after the movie started and I got a text from Kate that said they couldn't buy out tickets. We decided to see Shutter Island instead. It was an interesting movie but glad I could understand the gist of it.

Yesterday, I got to meet Concha’s boyfriend and her mom. It was really neat. Her mom is so beautiful! Concha had a test today for her back. Pray that the doctors find what’s wrong. I haven’t seen Concha as much now that she’s back together with her boyfriend, which makes me kind of sad. However, I’m happy for her because she’s happy.

Kate and I had the opportunity to share some of our struggles and pray together yesterday. It’s such a blessing to have a sister in Christ here in Sevilla that I feel so comfortable sharing with. Praise God for friendship. She has been such a blessing to me. We’ve committed our time together to only Spanish this week until we head to Paris. Paris! I’m excited!

I’m thinking about changing my English minor to a TESOL minor. I’ve really enjoyed teaching the kids English. While I love to read and write, I don’t know that digging into the literature and history of it is something that I want to continue doing in my classes or in my own future classrooms. I love the opportunities another language provides for you and really like the idea of helping someone have access to those. Many of the people I’ve talked to here express the need for good English teachers. They start learning English so early in school but so few people retain anything. I would like to help people really grasp the language. I’ve contacted some advisors at La Crosse and am praying about the decision. Please pray that God gives me wisdom to make this decision. During my flamenco class today, I also thought about how it’d be cool to have my bakery/café during the day, and then hold little English classes at night in it. I like to daydream about my bakery/café : )

Thank you all for your continued support and prayers!

Anhelar = to long for

Sevilla

I had a big envelope on the table for me when I came home for lunch on Monday. It was from Steve and Kay Veldhorst. It was this little girl called Olivia like Flat Stanley. It's from a 2nd grader in West Allis, WI. It's sent around between people to learn more about the cultures and different areas. I have to write in the journal and include a post card or something to help the students learn about the city. It's a pretty cool idea. Then I just send it on to the next person and it ends up back to their classroom in May. I'm the 3rd person to get it. It was fun to get it in the mail.

Teaching on Tuesday was great! I got to talk to Antonio and Fernando for most of it. Antonio is definitely in the teenager stage and not very willing to talk. I got him talking about soccer for awhile so that was good. Fernando is a lot more open and got back from Ireland not long ago so is more confident with his English. I found out they have 7 different houses in Spain! I cannot believe that. It makes me kind of sick. Then I got to teach Lucia more numbers. She has a writing test soon with them. I really really like her. She comes running into the room with the biggest smile and is so eager to learn all the time. She sits by me at dinner too and asks her brothers how to say things in English and then asks me. She's the cutest thing! Praise God for children and smiles and my opportunity to spend time with them!

I came home from teaching on Tuesday and Nacho had ordered Chinese. I planned to meet Cole, and when I was leaving, I saw Nacho on the couch with his shirt pulled up to his chest with his belly sticking out. He said it really good and he was super full. He said I could have some now or later if I wanted. I couldn't stop laughing at him. He looked so funny with his belly like that!

On Wednesday morning, Kate and I went to Nadine’s house, the woman with Students For Christ. We made banana pancakes and bacon for breakfast. We had leftover mushed bananas on top and real maple syrup from Michigan that 2 girls had left her from last semester. It was so good to have a real breakfast! Kate and I were able to share our testimonies with her, and Nadine shared some of her wisdom and past experiences. I’m so thankful God blessed us with that opportunity to have a little taste of home and use Nadine’s wisdom.

After class on Wednesday, Kate and I went to Encuentro which is worship with Trinity. We focused on, “All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” 1 Peter 5:5-10. It was really great to be able to spend so much time focusing on just a few verses and allow it to become alive. Two parts that hit me were with clothing yourself to become humble and casting all anxiety on God. With the clothing part, I saw it’s relation to choosing what you wear. Most nights, I choose what I’m going to wear the next day and set it out so I don’t wake Kelsey up in the morning. In the same way, I can choose humility the night before, put in on the next day, and let others see the clothing of humility that I’ve chosen to wear. I was also reminded that God wants all my worries. I often fail and try to take care of the small stuff on my own. I forget that God wants the big things and the small things. I cannot do anything without Christ, and it was good to be reminded that God does care and wants it all.

I taught Miguel and Manuel on Thursday, but it was one on one this time. We reviewed the past simple tense, and I taught them different ways to say the time using quarter after, five to, midnight, etc. It went by pretty quickly. Then I had little snack dinners with Carmen, the mom. She said they always have that kind of dinner on Wednesdays. It was nice to be able to practice my Spanish with her. She said that I can stay with them this summer between the internship and Carmen's! At least I'm pretty sure she said that...haha. I hate that I don't know for sure. I think she said if I couldn't find something else to do, then I could live with them. I could practice my Spanish with her and English with the kids. She said Lucia really wants to learn more and Miguel was really glad to be working one on one with me. It was good to receive encouragement like that. Please continue to pray for me and my interaction with the family and with the decision of whether or not to stay longer in July.

On Thursday, I was able to meet up with a girl named Val who interned with World Team last summer in Italy. She was able to tell me a little about her experience and different things she did. She told me the one thing she could guarantee was that I would be meeting a lot of people. She’s a really sweet girl, and we hope to meet up again.

While I was having a quiet time in my room, Nacho came in and started talking to me. He asked me what I was doing, and I said I was reading the Bible. He asked what I was writing, and I said it was prayers and things that I learn. He said he started reading the Bible at one point, but it was too big. I told him it wasn’t meant to be read all at once. He asked me more questions about it, and I was able to share James 1:2-4 with him with my bilingual Bible. He was really stressed about his final exam, and things with his girlfriend weren’t going well. Praise God for opening the door with him! Pray that I would continue to be able to share with him and have the right words.
He passed his final exam on Friday and was extremely happy! Now, he’s done with college. I told him now he’s an adult now, and he just laughed. Concha has been doing a lot better lately. She no longer tells us about her headaches, and her backaches are getting better. She’s still very busy but much happier. Thank you for your prayers for her.

Thursday night, I was able to do a prayer walk with about 20 students. We split into 2 groups of Los Remedios and Triana. Since I live in Los Remedios, I went with that group. We walked and prayed at the river, the University, the busy intersection by a bridge, the church, and a park. Praise God for the freedom to do that and the fellowship too! I was able to talk to Rachel Jonker, who is from Brandon and knew Tom and Angi and now is here with the Trinity program. It was neat to be able to see another familiar face.

Friday before dinner, Kelsey and I went to a cafe together. It was really relaxing. We came home and had dinner just us because everyone else was gone. We got talking about her high school and what it was like. It sounded awful! We also got on the topic of the Catholic faith. It was really interesting to learn more about it and hear her views on it. I hope to continue to learn more as it is important to her and most people in Spain are Catholic too. Then around 12 we went out to meet her friend Lucia, who she knew when she lived in Turkey and now lives in Sevilla. We met up with Lucia's brother and his friends. It was way more fun to go out with them than the American students. It was nice to be able to use my Spanish too! It was 3:30 and we were going to another bar, but I said I couldn't. They tried really hard to convince me, but then luckily Kelsey didn't have her id so Lucia and her walked me home and got her id. The rest of the group ended up leaving and Kelsey came back home. We stayed up talking and thinking of games we could play like teacher, store, and airplane because we played office the other night and had a lot of fun…haha. So I last saw the clock at a little after 4:30 and got up at 7:00 for the next day. Oh boy! I thank God for a fun night, the opportunity to meet new people, and the chance to learn more about my roomie.

God really provided energy for me for the next day as Cole and I were supposed to go on our day trip. We bought our tickets but missed the bus. The tickets said bus 1 so we thought it left from spot 1, but then 20 minutes after it was supposed to leave, we asked someone, and they said it left from 12 or 13. I was so confused! I asked how we're supposed to know, and he said we're supposed to ask when we buy the ticket. Wow! No way we would have known. So we switched our tickets to Sunday, and then walked around Sevilla and just relaxed and took pictures. It was really nice to be able to relax. In the afternoon, Kelsey, Cole, and I got ice cream from a place called Raya; it was so good! Praise God for a relaxing day in Sevilla.

Sunday morning, Cole and I made the bus to Aracena. I got a little motion sick on the way there, but I was alright after I got some fresh air when we got off. The bus drivers go so fast around the curves. It felt like my dad was driving again…haha, you know I love you Dad! We didn't have a map or anything at first and just wandered around. We eventually got one and saw lots of different things. The city has these nice little signs by their buildings that are important, and it’s super helpful. The customer service that we experienced there was great! People actually smiled and were happy to help us. I haven’t experienced that since I’ve been in Spain. We went to la Gruta de las Maravillas, a cave. I was amazed with God's creation. It was so beautiful. We weren’t allowed to take pictures, but I would highly recommend looking up pictures online. Then we went to the Ham Museum. We had to watch a video that wasn't even about pigs before we could look at stuff. It was comical. Then we went up this hill to an old church and castle ruins. It was so beautiful and the view was incredible! We sat on the wall overlooking the hills and had our packed bocadillos; it was great. We saw sheep on the side of the hill and a real shepherd too. It was really nice to see grass and trees and hills and just be in God's creation. I loved it! It was a really fun day together, and I'm so thankful God has blessed us with being here together. Praise God for a great day!

Kelsey and I had dinner alone again Sunday night and I found out she didn't know what cheese curds were. She never heard of them. She hadn't heard of the cold or the fried ones! I'm going to have to send her some when we get back to the states!

I’ve been reading the book Seizing Your Divine Moment by Erwin Raphael McManus and have been learning a lot of really neat things that I want to share. I’m going to share the quotes with you from the book that really hit me.
“You cannot follow God in neutral. God has created you to do something. It is not enough to stop the wrong and then by paralyzed when it comes to the right. God has created you to do good” (35).
This is from the author’s conversation with another man. “I asked him if he thought that Hitler and Stalin had been capable of thwarting the sovereignty of God. He said, ‘Of course not.’ I pointed out that if men and women who gave their lives for a purpose counter to the will of God could not stop God’s purpose in history, how could someone who longs to do God’s will and chooses to do something in line with God’s character? I told him I had too much respect for the sovereignty of God to think that he or I could mess it up” (42).
“What God makes clear is that when we’re committed to seizing His divine moments, He’ll make sure He gets us to the right place at the right time. What God can do through a person who’s willing to act is limitless” (43).
“Here’s where the dilemma lies: this can actually be paralyzing for a sincere follower of Jesus Christ. You don’t want to passionately do the wrong thing. You desperately want to do what’s on God’s heart, not just on your heart. Here’s the liberating reality: when you are passionate about God, you can trust your passions. God uses our passions as a compass to guide us” ( 47).
This last quote is probably the one that really spoke to me the most. I think I can often be too preoccupied with worrying about whether or not something is in God’s will, that I don’t even do anything. I was too fearful to go against God’s will, but what a reminder that when we walk with God, we can trust that He’s guiding us. Praise God for using other people like this author to speak truth into my life.

Today is El día de Andalucía so we don’t have class today. It’s sunny and beautiful so I hope to be outside after lunch. This week, I’m going to visit Carmen after class on Thursday and will be coming home after midnight on Monday. I’m really excited to see her and meet her family and friends!