Siempre Asombrada

      I got to spend a few days in the Tuscaloosa/ Northport area last week. There were many sweet things about my time there, but it is evident that the highlight was my time with the Navigators International Ministry. We had our first dinner of the semester, and a welcome party a couple days later. It was so good to have conversations with old and new friends. Throughout the past few years, I have had the opportunity to serve international students alongside an awesome team, which I will miss so much over the next few months while I am in Spain.  The students and team at the welcome party     One of my favorite things about my time with the Navigators has been the students. It has been such a blessing to meet international students from countries all over the world. I get to learn about their culture and learn about the exciting ins and outs of what they come to the university to study. These students are so smart, and even more passionate about their research and studies. I love to

    My favorite part of going to church has always been worship and praise. I love being able to praise the Lord for who he is through singing and enjoying the music.  Three songs come to mind when I think of what has been on my mind lately. The running theme throughout all of them is "I Am Yours"      I played these songs on guitar tonight and it was such a fun jam session/ worship session. I love playing music on guitar and singing... anyway, I had wanted to share my versions of the songs, but I haven't found a way to post them yet. So I've included the title and artist name, along with links to the songs on Youtube.      In the past few days, I've been amazed that the King of Kings loves his people despite their many flaws and mistakes. He loves no matter what happens. As it says in "I Am Yours" by NEEDTOBREATHE, "It seems like madness I'm invited to the table at [his] side." It truly does seem like madness. Craziness. Which leads to the

    M y family and I had a fun time together yesterday. We looked at pictures from the past years and retold stories. We celebrated what we call Auggie's "Gotcha Day." Seven years ago on August 6, my family went out to middle-of-nowhere-Alabama, also known as Luverne, Alabama, to welcome a puppy into our family. Inspired by a book I just started reading, here are some lessons learned from our Boston Terrier, Auggie.      The first is that you should learn to appreciate God's beautiful creation.  Auggie loves to lay out in the grass to savor the wonderful sunshine. I've always looked at Auggie being outside and thought that somehow, he knows that he loves being outside because of the One who created the environment... Okay, maybe not. I'm not sure... But either way, I've definitely learned to soak in the sunshine more.     It's okay to cry every now and then, but know that the nearest caring creature will want to comfort you and make sure you are okay.

     My brother, Luke, and I got to go to a concert in Huntsville this week! We stayed an extra day to explore the city a little bit. It was a really fun opportunity to explore Huntsville and to spend time with each other. The concert was a part of the Hope tour because of NF's latest album, so I was thinking a lot about hope. Throughout the trip, I was reminded of the importance of community.     We went to see NF perform, whose music is raw and vulnerable, allowing us to see that we actually aren't alone in our struggles, whatever they may be. I discovered NF's upbeat and authentic music when  I started running in the mornings during the summer of my senior year of high school. I shared one of my favorite songs, "Outcast", with Luke one time, but it wasn't until a few years later that he began listening to his music much more than I do. NF's music discusses what most people won't sing or rap about, let alone talk about. His lyrics are about his strug

 The past couple of weeks have been hard. But they have also been so good because of that. The ways in which they have been difficult have pointed me back to what keeps me anchored. The hope that I hold on to. The steady hope that we have in Jesus Christ when we believe in him as our Lord and Savior and choose to follow him.      "Sound of Freedom" (a movie out in theaters now that you should definitely go see that sheds light on the truth of human trafficking), The death of a friend and "Hearts on Fire" (stories of suffering from women who follow Jesus). What do these have in common? Well, they are all things that had me feeling down and just... sad for a while. I felt sad for a good bit, but it was always the perfect timing when I was reminded that "the worst thing is never the last thing," as Wade Langer says.      Jesus Christ suffered a brutal death on the cross, though he was innocent. Though many had thought his death would be the end, he had told p

     You may already know that I am planning to be in Spain this fall for a few months starting in September to teach English and Spanish classes with Youth With a Mission. If you didn't know about it, you can read about it in this post from a couple months ago: https://enasombro.blogspot.com/2023/05/una-nueva-aventura-en-espana.html     I'd like to update you all on my fundraising journey today! Some exciting news is that I have a place to live in Spain, and the rent lowers the expected budget by quite a lot! Wow! There is a family in Spain that is so kind to rent out their house to people on the YWAM team in Spain. Also, my plane ticket to Spain is covered and already purchased. I'll be leaving September 9. I'm also excited that my boyfriend, Josiah, will be coming with me for a week. He'll be able to help at the YWAM base, visit some friends, and explore the city with me!      It has been so cool to talk with new and old friends this summer about this opportunity