.the five senses.

and may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is. may you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.
ephesians 3:18-19 (nlt)

this past week i have experienced God's love with (almost) all five senses He has blessed me with. i am so excited to tell you about how i tasted delicious indian and italian food, how i listened to the beautiful new york philharmonic play in prospect park, how i've never felt so close to God than i did at the prayer meeting on tuesday night , how i saw an amazing shakespeare play performed in the delacorte theater in central park, and how i smelled the...well, maybe we won't talk about smells :)

.monday, july 12, 2010.

i was able to make a new friend in such a unique way, it was definitely from God! my good friend, joe vercellino's dad, dave, sent me a message telling me about a girl from their church that had just moved to new york city for an internship. i decided to see if she would want to meet for coffee sometime...and she did! so monday, we met up in soho and had a lovely time. it was so cool to be able to impart some new-comer wisdom on someone just moving to the city (like i'm a pro now...lol). since meeting up, carol has been coming to the brooklyn tabernacle and really loved the service. God is so great at setting people up in the body of Christ that need a good friend. :)

.the strand.
one of my favorite stores in new york city is the famous, strand book store. the strand is located in union square on 12th street and broadway. what makes it unique is that packed inside what looks like a small bookstore, is 18 miles of books! think...over half of what we have at our park library at central michigan! needless to say, this bookstore is pretty sweet. so the entire time i've been in new york, i've been looking for a small bible. i have been wanting to replace the small one i gave away a few months ago on a trip in detroit. so in my mind, i've had a picture of the perfect little bible. it would be pink and brown on the front...plain. small and light, and the nlt translation. just right. every book store i would go in, i would look in the bible section and would see plenty of small bibles, but something was always "off" when i held it. it wasn't right. and i knew when i found "my bible", i would just know. well, carol and i are at the strand...not a Christian book store by any means, and i stumble across two small shelves with bibles on them. and there it was. my bible. it was pink and brown, small and light. when i held it, it was almost calling out to me (hehe) telling me it was the one. it was so cool!! i was so excited that after months, i had found just what i was looking for...and it was on this dusty old shelf at the strand...just waiting for me too. :)

.tuesday, july 13, 2010.

.prayer meeting!!!

so despite how wonderful things have been since coming to new york, for some reason the past couple of days had been somewhat difficult and for whatever reason, i was ready to throw in the towel on tuesday. i was so unbelievably ready to come home, be back at his house, see my friends, and get the heck out of new york. until God met me at the prayer meeting. here's the story...

sunday, at the 9 am worship service, pastor cymbala interrupted the worship leader and informed the church that we needed to pray. he knows a pastor that started a church in pakistan and had been informed by him that a group of 10,000 angry muslim's were out yelling in the city, "kill all the Christians...death to the Christians!". when he called pastor (9 am our time, 4 am in his country), his family was hiding from this angry mob up on their rooftop, with the mob threatening to burn their house down and kill them. pastor informed us of this and the entire church body began crying out to God in prayer for the pastor and his family. it was such a powerful time of prayer. we all believed that God can use us praying in brooklyn to reach our brothers and sisters in pakistan. with that, we resumed worship and were told we would receive an update at the prayer meeting on tuesday.

so i am sitting right up front at the prayer meeting and pastor cymbala comes up to give us the update. just as we were praying on sunday, a strong wind moved in on the city and brought rain and scattered the entire mob in the city!! and not only did God save this pastor and his church that day, but because our God is a God who will do immeasurably more than we can ask or imagine (ephesians 3:20!), the government got the leaders of the muslim mob and the pastors of the church together and they agreed to sign a peace treaty to end all violence between any religious groups! PRAISE GOD!! as pastor is telling us this, everyone in the church exploded into praise. my eyes flooded with tears of thanksgiving and faith and in that moment, i have never felt so close to God in my entire life. His presence was so thick and heavy, it truly overwhelmed me in the most beautiful way possible. for what could have gone on forever (and thankfully will someday!) we praised God anyway we possibly could. it was really one of the most influential moments of my life.

and this is just the beginning of the prayer meeting!! so here i am praising God and weeping at this prayer meeting and pastor cymbala begins to give the message for the night. he directs us to 1 kings 15:9-22 and 2 chronicles 16:1-10 where it talks about king asa's rule. he tells us about the first 36 out of 41 years of king asa's rule was different. he was a good king that turned around a lot of the terrible things that had been happening before he began his rule. there was victory and wonderful things were happening. but then the king stopped trusting God and things started to go south. by the end of his reign, things were worse off than when he began! all going to say that we must finish well. it just hit me! i was going into cruise mode, just wanting to cruise through the next few weeks wishing i was back at home. when God says, "no! you need to keep trusting Me until the end. it's not over yet, so don't treat it like it is just because you miss your friends or things are getting tough. I still have things to teach you and haven't I helped you all along? why would I leave you now?" isn't it so true that we need to be renewed by God each day. i felt as though pastor cymbala was speaking right to my heart that night. i needed to finish my time in new york strong. that wanting to throw in the towel early was not an option for me. that God was not finished with me yet.

.wednesday, july 14, 2010.

katie's birthday! i woke up with a renewed sense of being in new york. i sipped my morning coffee from my special coffee mug that reminds me that God is new every morning. that He is refreshing and unchanging.

one thing that i really enjoy about new york is that despite the fact that it is bursting with the latest trends and new ipads and whatever else, it is still such an old world and nostalgic city. on my way to the subway, i stopped by the pastry shop to buy katie a piece of birthday cake. you can get old fashioned gelato and people still go to the bakery and pastry shops to buy their bread. people mosey about town with their carts of groceries and fresh bread and old ladies sit on their stoops and porch steps watching the sun go down and chattering about the days comings and goings. everyone uses little window air conditioners to cool down their apartments from the sweltering heat (which if you haven't heard, there has only been 5 days in july below 90 degrees!...it has been a hooooooooot summer!). all to say, it is really cool to be a part of this nostalgic yet booming city of new york :)

katie and i celebrated her birthday and truly had a lovely time enjoying each others company. it is really a blessing from the Lord that we are both in new york at the same time. He is so good.

.thursday, july 15, 2010.

a day to catch up on laundry and life. :) sometimes it is just so nice to catch my breath, read, journal, and simply praise God for what He is doing here. these are the days that i can still hardly believe i am living in new york. really living. doing laundry, getting groceries at the market, saying hello to maria, the sweet italian lady next door...life things! i am sure most of the big things won't sink in until we are in the car on the way home and it's all going to hit me...i actually did it. God did it. we did it together. :)

.friday, july 16, 2010.

.new york philharmonic.
probably since middle school i have known about the new york philharmonic. they are among the top orchestras in the world. when i was in high school and preparing to be studying music in college, i had the opportunity to meet the principle flute player of the new york philharmonic. i attended a workshop she was teaching and learned that at the young age of 16, jeanne backstresser attended the julliard school. she had been playing as the principle flute for 25 years. needless to say, many of these musicians are the very best or one of the best players on their instrument in the world. it is a new york tradition that the philharmonic plays free concerts in the parks in all five boroughs for one week in the summer.

this was something i had been looking forward way before i made the move to new york and the day was finally here! my friend anna and i met in prospect park in brooklyn hours before the concert would begin to set our blankets down in the very front section. we had a lovely afternoon of socializing and welcoming our friends as they all trickled in one by one to our prime spot. they came with food, bubbly, games, and smiles. as we all ate and enjoyed each otters company, the concert came in no time. the philharmonic blessed us with tchaikovsky's polonaise from eugene onegin, bernstin's symphonic dances from west side story (!!!), and prokofiev's selections from romeo and juliet. the sounds that erupted from that stage was some of the most beautiful music my ears has ever heard. it was almost like a dream. the perfect evening ended with a firework display over the stage. it was the perfect orchestra with the perfect friends and a perfect night.

.saturday, july 17, 2010.

.shakespeare in the park.

just like the traditional new york philharmonic concerts in the park, shakespeare plays at the delacorte theater in central park are one of new york's summer iconic events. some of the most passionate and diverse group of playgoers sit in line in the morning to obtain (free!) tickets to the evenings performance. i was so blessed to be invited to come along by my new friend carol (from monday!). similar to the night before, this was one of the coolest things i have done in new york. looking out over the heart of the greatest city on earth, with belvadere's castle right behind the stage, we participated in one of the best theater performances i have witnessed. and praise God for the gentle breeze He brought in to cool us off from the heat! with the live music, lights, costumes, song, and passion, it was truly an amazing experience to be a part of the public theater's production of the winter's tale and made for a beautiful saturday night!

.sunday, july 18, 2010.

if i have ever experienced contrasting churches in the same day, this was the day. we had an amazing service at the brooklyn tab where the choir sang just as beautiful as ever, God moved through each person involved, and pastor cymbala brought the Word just as boldly as ever. we are working through the book of philippians and this week was on philippians 2:15-16. the message was clear, simple, and convicting. don't complain. do everything without complaining, murmuring, or grousing...because Jesus never murmured. boy, did i have to look back to the day before where i murmured the whole time i was on the subway going slow, and repent!! katie and i decided this means we can no longer slander the mta (subway) via text messaging or at all period :)

after hearing and being to moved to tears by an amazing gospel artist, alvin slaughter, at the later service at the tab, i traveled from downtown brooklyn to the upper east side of manhattan to attend redeemer prespaterian church. there was such a contrast from my earlier experience. though different in style, both are good and are reaching people for Christ. redeemer was much more conservative, and people kept to themselves. there was a few people on stage playing light jazz music for the offering and played a few hymns to enter in to worship. the room was packed, but for me, it was hard to feel like a family like we do at the tab. i had heard of redeemer from attending the leadership summit last year where their senior pastor, tim keller, captivated my attention with his intellectual interpretation of the story of the prodigal son (luke 15:11-32). it is really unique to experience such different styles of how people are connecting to God...in the same day...in the same city.

my day ended with some deeeeelicious indian food in astoria, my neighborhood! the one thing i have really loved about being in new york is all the different ethnic places to eat...surprise, surprise! :) getting any kind of food, any variety, ethnicity, will be something i will truly miss when i move back to michigan.

this week was filled with some of the most wonderful and memorable sights, tastes, sounds, and feelings of my entire time in new york city. and although they are not directly associated with God firsthand, i have found God in each of these things. He is the creator of all and His love can be found in things, if only we recognize it! i praise Him for all He has done and is doing and is still going to do!

.holy holy holy is the Lord God Almighty.

what comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us...worship is pure or base as the worshiper entertains high or low thoughts about God. for this reason the gravest question before the church is always God Himself, and the most portentous fact about any man is not what he at a given time may say or do, but what he in his deep heart conceives God to be like.

-a.w. tozer; quoted from 'crazy love' by francis chan

.i am learning a lot about God. and when i say a lot, it is a crummy two words to describe the multitude God is teaching me about Himself. growing up, i guess i never had any idea how much God loves me. and along with that, my deep heart did not always conceive God to be that of love. but that is changing now more that it ever has before.

with that, i have chosen to forgo my normal formatting of day by day activities and lessons learned, but to let God lead me in attempting to convey what He is teaching me. so, this is what has come into my mind when i think about God as the most important thing about me and my time in new york city...

.a new revelation of my salvation. learned on tuesday, june 29, 2010.

.we were given beauty for ashes.
i was getting ready for the day, and i was listening to a song by cory asbury. this line of the song (we were given beauty for ashes) stuck out to me, and i began to ponder the meaning. the thing is, before Jesus, ashes was our destiny. scripture says, for the wages of sin is death (romans 6:23). however, when you continue to read, the verse finishes by saying, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. therefore, death has no sting, and what was once ashes, is now our gift to freely enjoy. we were given beauty for ashes. with this in my mind, i went about my day and headed to the brooklyn tabernacle.

i spent my day volunteering to help pack suitcases for the missions team leaving to serve in the philippines. but it wasn't until the prayer meeting that night that God brought the truth i experience earlier full circle. within the first few minutes of worship, onajae, the worship leader started speaking about this scripture he read earlier that day. it was from isaiah chapter 61...

the spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in zion - to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. they will be called oaks of righteousness a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.

i can't tell you how many times my eyes have seen these verses, and i have never picked up on that particular phrase in the verse. but you better believe tears filled my eyes, as onajae read and my ears were in tune to the Spirit. it was like God was confirming that i heard right that morning. and also, how cool is it that we are called oaks of righteousness! :)

as amazing as it was to learn this, the days to follow were increasingly difficult for me. as i think back now, after the last four days learning lessons that changed (or are changing, rather) my life, it is hard for me to even say things were difficult. however, i will attempt to explain what i think God is doing with me. :)

on .wednesday, june 30, 2010. i was hitting a low point in my nyc adventure.

i can't really explain why, or how, or even what was going on with me. i just wanted to come home to michigan and that was that. my friend, erica wylie was flying in to visit the next day and i couldn't be more excited to have someone from his house to spend some quality time with. the best explanation i can think of is the hard truth that i really was not understanding the love of God. i was dwelling on a combination or being homesick and becoming lackadaisical. since i have so much free time, i was really soaking up the sleeping in thing and taking as long as i wanted to get ready. i was not truly living out my purpose for being in new york. this is not easy to admit. but seriously, when do we ever have it all together? if this is about real life, then i must be honest.

that night, i headed to the park in astoria (where i live) and lingered around the fair that was taking place. as i watched the sun go down on the skyline and listened to the smooth rhythms of the swing jazz band, i wished just for that night i had a friend to share it with. i believe that was why i just so darn excited to have erica come visit. so i had a friend to share all the cool things of new york with all day, every day. what i didn't realize was that i have the most wonderful best friend and love to share everything with and the best part is He is always with me. if only i really realized the true love of my living, and all powerful God, i would never be lonely, but content soaking up these moments in His presence.

from .thursday, july 1 to wednesday, july 7, 2010. erica wylie came to visit.

while erica was visiting we were busy traveling around the city since erica was experiencing new york for the first time. we were able to cross many things off my bucket list too!...

#11. drink frozen hot chocolate at the serendipity cafe.

yes, just like they did in the movie. and yes, it was worth the wait. and yeah, these frozen concoctions were delicious and verrrrry chocolate-y!

#12. alter my physical appearance in some way.

technically this took place after erica left. but, long story short, i found out about salon's needing people to come in as models and get sweet deals on haircuts! so, this would work as altering my appearance and also was so cool to overlook 5th avenue, sipping on a glass of wine and this ritzy salon, getting pampered. (!!)

#25. drink bubble tea.

since we were already in bay ridge (a very concentrated asian area of brooklyn...also where katie is living for the summer!) we had dinner at a scrumptious vietnamese restaurant and purchased some bubble tea for our subway trek. interesting texture these "bubbles" were...think jelly-like, large tapioca balls, but the tea part was delicious! chalk this one up to a good experience and to say we did it. ;)

#26. hail a cab.

there was no way i could come back to mount pleasant after living in new york for two months without saying i hailed a cab. let me set the stage. 95 degrees, stuck down on 14th street and 11 ave, no subways near what-so-ever...and we need to get to 34th street. .fourth of july madness about to ensue. while we thought we could see the fireworks from 14th, we were wrong and thus needed to go about 20 blocks to the north to get a good spot. the only solution was to hail a cab. so with all the courage i could muster, i walked out to west st (along the hudson river!), put myself out there, stuck out my hand, and within a minute or so, i had hailed us a cab. not bad for my first try, i must say!

having erica here to visit was wonderful and a blessing, but as the week moved on, my hunger to be alone with the Lord only grew deeper. i knew that He was calling me to teach me something that was going to provide a turning point in my life.

i can't even remember the series of events that led me to where i am now, but all i know is this. earlier in my time here, i surrendered everything to God. now this seems pretty basic, but what i mean by this is letting the Holy Spirit have access to every facet of my being. i think so many times we say we are "sold out" to God, when really we are hanging on to some things that we just don't want to give up (or maybe this is just me, i don't know). so through this surrender, as a love offering to God, my desire is to be obedient to everything i sense the Holy Spirit leading me to do. even things as small (or as big depending on how you view it) as what chapter to read in my Bible, to dropping everything to pray, to encouraging people with words. let me tell you, when you start becoming submissive to God's leading, you realize how insignificant you are and just how big He is.

i've been reading a lot since i moved to new york. the subway rides can get kind of long and with no cell phone service underground, there is not much else to do. let's just say this has been a great thing. i just finished a book by carol cymbala (pastor cymbala's wife and director of the grammy award winning choir) called, He's been faithful. through a combination of reading and finishing this book alongside the Word, meeting with the director of women's ministry on thursday, and attending the brooklyn tabernacle women's conference on friday night, God revealed Himself to me. but i gained this knowledge: God is so much bigger than we will ever know on this earth. we only have a mere 66 books of the Bible for God to reveal Himself to us! francis chan says in his book, crazy love (which i began friday), "but many facets of God expand beyond our comprehension." we will only understand the fullness of God and all that He is when we get to heaven.

so i am immersed in all these things all at once, learning about how big this God is that we serve, and how He is holy, eternal, all-knowing, all-powerful, and fair and just. and i realize that i am seriously falling in love with God all over again. and there is nothing greater than knowing Jesus.

i am reading the words of francis chan and he writes in crazy love, that both in revelation 4 and isaiah 6, we have a picture or a glimpse of the heavenly throne room. and it is so powerful to read these chapters in scripture and try to imagine what the throne room of God looks like, and then to be reminded what our response to God should be.

and i'm sitting at this women's conference listening to maria durso speak. she's telling us all about sheep and lanolin (the ointment they produce through their wool). i'm thinking, how in the world is this even relevant? but after she shared her amazing testimony of finding God after a life of abuse and drugs that brought me to tears, i trusted she was going to bring it full circle. and she did. think about all the times God refers to Himself as the shepherd and us as the sheep. (this intrigued me so much i went in my Bible when i got home and highlighted every example of this in scripture). and now, go and research all you can about sheep and think about it as it relates to us and God. prepare to be blown away. then after you've read all you can about sheep, and shepherds, and lanolin (!!), read 1 john 2:27. .wow.

so, i don't know if this made any sense. i know i think and talk in circles, but that's how God made me, and so that's what you get. all i know, is God is doing something big...like He never has before in me. and i guess it's hard for me to articulate all that it is into words, but trust that the Holy Spirit is at work and that's cool because that's actually GOD working in us (philippians 2:12-13!). which is cool because as i'm learning all this...pastor cymbabla preached on those exact verses at the brooklyn tabernacle yesterday morning. .love.

day and night they never stop saying: holy holy holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.

revelation 4:8

.a love offering.

therefore as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. forgive as the Lord forgave you, and over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. and be thankful. let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. and whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

colossians 3:12-17

"life has seemed to slow down in the fast paced city leaving me wanting to hold on to every moment, every word spoken, each sight, sound, and taste. i would love to share every detail with you but some things will leave my mind, others will be between just me and God, and others will met your eyes on this computer screen. i pray God gives me the right stories to share. that one of you may be touched by something special God is doing here in new york. He is so in love with each of us! how blessed are we that God loves us so much he gave everything for us in order that we may come to know Him? obedience to God is easy when its done out of love. if we see our "yes" to god as a love offering rather than an obligation, it is simply delightful and so fulfilling to obey Him. He is good! Hallelujah!"

...i wrote this in my journal on friday and wanted to share it with you too. with that, here is what God's been doing with my love offering this past week...

.monday, june 21, 2010.

#21. volunteer my time for someone/something.

pastor todd crews is the man i have to thank for the majority of my involvement at the brooklyn tabernacle. it was all God how i got connected to him, and he has been blessing me with opportunities and behind the scenes stuff at the brooklyn tab since i have been here. on monday, i took some time to visit him and his wife, nicole in their office at the church building. we were able to visit for a while, and i offered to help them with anything that was weighing them down. i ended up making some spreadsheets on the computer to help them get organized! if any of you know me, i like to have my ministry stuff as organized as possible (even if the intern office doesn't always look that way...it's organized to me!) so this was a huge blessing to help them out with this. even though it was making spreadsheets on excel, it was worship. i sat there smiling and i knew God was too. it is so fulfilling to do something to help another person, no matter how big or small the task is. on top of that, it was really cool to work up in the offices of the brooklyn tab with some of their staff ;)

after a pit stop at atlantic ave/pacific st to grab a bite with katie, i was off to bryant park for the famous movies in the park night! when i arrived, my friends had front row lawn seats staked out with snacks and fellowship flowing out of them! we sat in the park in the midst of hundreds of others, snacked, talked, and laughed together. as large as the city is, there are events like this that brings a sense of community and connection between people and it was evident when everyone got up and started dancing when the "special song" came on, cheered as they played a classic loony tunes cartoon (!), and clapped and whistled when the feature flick appeared...(the classic 007 movie, goldfinger!). as i laid under the stars and gigantic 5th ave. buildings, i whispered a word of praise to God for indescribable moments such as this. you don't have to be in a church building or singing a worship song to feel God's presence. it is always all around us and if we allow ourselves to be open to it, we find ourselves praising Him for the beauty of all things. :)

.tuesday, june 22, 2010.

as i was walking to the subway in the mid-afternoon, texted a distressed friend, "rejoice in the Lord always". she was going through a difficult time, and little did i know that i, too, would need to hear rejoice in the Lord always later this day. i met katie in brooklyn for the prayer meeting at the brooklyn tab and just before doing so, i received an unfortunate phone call. the salon that i work for informed me that the previous receptionist (that i replaced) wanted her job back and thus no longer needed me to work there. as the words came through over the phone, i digested them slowly making sure i heard everything correctly. just as soon as this job came to me, boom...it was gone. i knew it was for a reason, and instantly the enemy wanted me to believe that i was not good enough or i was unwanted...not true!!! so many thoughts flooded my mind, but now i think of the david crowder song that i loooove...

and i will worship, you Lord, only you Lord

and i will bow down before you

take my friends take my fears, all i have and leave them here

be all my hopes, be all my dreams

you're my delight, sweet, my everything

and it's just You and me here now, only You and me...

and that's the heart of it all. it's just me and God here in new york city, and if He wants to take away this job, then i will worship Him, and only Him. He is all my hopes and my dreams and I am living them right now. i need to praise God for taking things away so i have more time to dedicate to Him and bringing glory to His name. so as much as i enjoyed my job at the salon, i am ever so grateful that i have more time now to give to God while i am in new york city.

.prayer meeting.

so as i have a wealth of emotions flowing through me, katie and i get to the prayer meeting just in time and the first worship song begins. they sing...

rejoice in the Lord always, and again i say rejoice!

well how about that! just as i sent those words to my sister earlier, God gave them to me, and i knew it was from Him saying, no matter what emotions you are feeling...rejoice in Me!

pastor cymbala gave an awesome word from 1 kings 3:4-15. he discussed how after solomon (son of david) was made king, the Lord appeared to him in a dream saying, "ask for whatever you want me to give you". solomon gave the Lord words of praise, and then asked for the Lord to give him a discerning heart to govern the people. the Lord was so pleased that solomon asked not for something selfish such as wealth or a long life, but for discernment in administering justice that would glorify God more. so with that, God gave him not only what solomon asked, moreover what he did not ask, riches and honor! we see throughout scripture that solomon had just that, and he was the wisest man to live until Jesus came to earth. how pleased is God when we are unselfish in our prayers. it was such a challenging and awe-inspiring message to hear! every week at these prayer meetings, God so beautifully reveals Himself and shows me something i can grow in.

on my way home from the prayer meeting, i was thinking about how i take the subway to get everywhere...or walk. but i was thinking the subway is like God in some ways :) like God, the subway carries us through our path in life. similar to the Lord, it stops and meets us where we are at. and as we stand there and wait on the platform (like when we wait on the Lord), it opens its doors to let us in, we simply have to say yes, step in, and let it carry us.

.wednesday, june 23, 2010.

after a morning/afternoon of not feeling the best (maybe the new york germs were finally hitting me?!) i pulled myself together to adventure into the city. i decided to ride the subway to the last stop in lower manhattan and ride across the river on the staton island ferry. it was a beautiful, warm and breezy day, perfect for a boat ride. i found a spot on the outer part of the ferry and hung our the side letting the wind blow my hair. going further away from manhattan, the beautiful skyline becomes more visible and and the statue of liberty is greener than ever up close! i closed my eyes as the breeze blew past and the sun (or Son!) shone down i hummed,

consuming fire, fan into flame

a passion for your name

spirit of God fall in this place

Lord have your way, have your way in me

come like a rushing wind...

this was my prayer as i embarked on a new journey. a journey that now i was more dependant on God than ever for how to spend my time and days. it can be easy to become complacent without a packed schedule all the time, but God has called me to operate on His schedule and His timing, which is anything but complacent and boring!

.choir practice.

as i sat at choir practice once again to observe (thanks Tood!) i listened to carol cymbala (pastors wife and the lovely choir director) read colossians 3:12-17. "we can never limit God", she said, "we must clothe ourselves and walk in love. real faith is where the rubber meets the road. it's hard, but God can help us to be stronger". from her mouth, those words are so powerful. carol was once a quiet, shy girl who was terrified to speak in public and be in front of large groups of people. she has never been musically trained and cannot read a not of music. yet, today only by God, she leads the 285 member choir, has won 6 grammy's (and has made acceptance speeches at the awards!!) and has performed in places like radio city music hall and madison square gardens. we must believe that God has the power to equip us with all we need to achieve His plan and purpose for our lives. it may not look normal to the world, but that's when our faith in God is visible to others...when things don't make sense or are not rational. the choir sounded just as beautiful as ever, and as i watched carol direct her amazing singers, i praised God for how she has let Him work in her life and for her continuing faithfulness in the Lord.

.thursday, june 24, 2010.

after an afternoon of pages and books at the new york public library (i found the one you can rent books from...across the street from the museum-type one!) and barnes and noble, i met kadie in greenwich village for a night at the neighborhood church. this group of young adults and college students (mainly from nyu) come together to share a meal, pray, worship, and hear the word of God. kadie and i have met some great people at this church. personally, it has been awesome to see how another campus ministry shares Christ on campus. many of the students that come have similar hearts to students at his house and are so eager to share the love of God with people at nyu. the message was from acts 4 and being bold in your witness for Christ. how important it is to remember the necessity of boldness and that the power of boldness comes from the Holy Spirit (acts 4:8, 13, 29-31). the night ended as kadie and i walked through the park to the subway and stumbled upon a trombone player! he was joyfully playing music for all that cared to listen. there are so many creative people in the city wanting to share their gifts with whomever is willing to take it in. we smiled as this man's music gave us a smile and skip in our step.

.friday, june 25, 2010.

#6. pray in the 24 hour prayer room at brooklyn tabernacle.

the prayer band is a integral part of the ministry at the brooklyn tabernacle. the prayer band is a group of people dedicated to praying over the thousands of prayer requests that flood in through hand written, emailed, or over the phone requests. i had the privilege of joining the prayer band and meeting one of the leaders, dorthea. dorthea was a woman just by her appearance showed she had great faith. her eyes were wide from all she has seen and her heart was big from all the stories and people it held. she spoke with grace and confidence. her gift and ministry is prayer and has been on staff at the brooklyn tab for 17 years! sometimes for 7 hours at a time she will be in the prayer band room interceding and fasting for people and requests. if someone comes to the church from the street needing prayer, dorthea is the one to go upstairs and pray over them. we had an opportunity to do this together and not done without action, she was firm and challenged the woman to step out in faith. she is a woman who truly knows who her God is. she told the woman all she needed to do is call on God and He is listening. what a simple truth we often forget. we look to all these other things and people for our help when we really only need to ask God first . when she spoke to God, she used the different names of God according to what we were asking for. it was such an intimate time to approach the throne of God together for people who needed it an might be able to even pray for themselves. it was such an honor when dorthea extended her hand and prayed over me. she let God speak to her about my needs and spoke directly to my heart. i am so blessed to be around people who are here to encourage me and love me in my journey.

my day concluded with lunch and reading at the brooklyn promenade, a nap on the park bench (i'm turning into a real new yorker now!!), and a girls movie night at anna's apartment.

.saturday, june 26 and sunday, june 27, 2010.

.a typical weekend in new york. i met up with katie in union square and we had adventures in the city and a sleepover at my apartment! sunday we woke up earrrrrly, had delicious astoria bagel shop bagel's and worshiped at the brooklyn tabernacle. i was blessed to have brunch with my girlfriends and we laughed so hard we were crying at the drama put on in the afternoon at the brooklyn tabernacle. this church does nothing short of excellent and the drama presented a hilarious but convicting message from 1 peter 3:15,

"but in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. but do this with gentleness and respect..."

it is so important to keep this in mind, remembering always to set apart Christ as Lord. it was challenging to ask myself, "do i know why i believe what i believe?" it was a great reminder to always be ready to share our faith!

it has been revolutionary in my life to put my "yes" on the table and to submit to whatever God calls me to do. i pray that if God is calling you to do something, no matter how big or small it may be, say yes to His leading and walk in love!

.besos y abrazos. .camine en amor.

.set out for a purpose.

as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: it will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what i desire and achieve the purpose for which i sent it.

isaiah 55:10-11

as much as i would love to avoid admitting this, i must be truthful in saying that this past week was not the easiest. my fluffy cloud 9 i was floating on in weeks 1 and 2 slowly deflated (behind my back!) and i unknowingly was down to earth in a matter of a few days. upon reflection of my week, i am glad that my reality check happened, and i know now that this is where the rubber his the road and real growth is going to start. with that, here are my reflections of week 3...

tuesday, june 15, 2010.

prayer summit. prayer meeting. house of prayer.
pastor cymbala (of the brooklyn tabernacle) continually reminds us of the scripture in isaiah 56 that reads, "for my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations" (v.7). with that, our tuesday night prayer meetings are the most important service of the week to this church. this tuesday, however, was an extra special one.

prayer summit.

every few months, pastors and leaders from around the metropolitan area gather together for one day to have these prayer summits with the organization, convoy of hope (convoyofhope.org). this was one of those days. and the brooklyn tabernacle was hosting. and i was invited. and it was good. real good. they prayed for 5 hours straight, without ceasing. talk about living out 1 thessalonians 5:17, pray continually. :) i sat in for about 2 hours to pray and seek God with these pastors and leaders. what a powerful experience it was. the way these men pray, is so bold and confident. just being around people that have that passion grows my passion for God too. for a time we were able to open ourselves to pray for whatever God laid on our hearts, which had to have been my favorite part. it's so cool to pray for situations and people without them even having a hint of an idea and then see God work in their life. God's plan is so much more intricate than we can even imagine and He uses us in situations without us even knowing.

prayer meeting.

so in light of the special day we had with the prayer summit, pastor wanted to make this prayer meeting special too. he instructed us the week before that if you were born in a different country, to bring an item (flag, map, picture, etc.) to represent that country to the prayer meeting and set it on the steps leading up to the stage. when i arrived at the church, all four huge steps were covered. there must have been at least 1/4 of the world represented by the people in our church. the prayer meeting was divided up into praying for different areas of the world and those prayers were led by native people. a woman prayed in spanish for the south and central american countries. francis chan prayed for the asian countries (he just happened to be visiting from california!). and my eyes filled with tears of love when half the church declared they were from the pacific islands (haiti, jamaica, cayman islands, etc.). the diversity we have here is just a small glimpse of what heaven will look like with every nation, tribe, people, and language, standing before the throne and in front of the lamb (revelation 7:9).

wednesday, june 16, 2010.

#8. see a live concert in the park.

with the day off of work, i decided to head into the city and cross something off my list! after a small (who am i kidding?) shopping spree (i am in new york after all!) i headed off to madison square park (23rd st./broadway/5th ave.). the cool thing about living in new york over the summer is all of the cool concerts, movies, plays, and other artsy things that take place in the cities many, glorious parks. madison square park is a smaller sized park and is also home to the delightful shake shack which boasts some of the best burgers and fries in new york city...if you feel so compelled to stand in the looooooooong line! maybe next time :) i enjoyed the warm breeze blowing around me as i read my book, ate some creamy tiramisu, and watched as so many people strolled by my park bench. the concert began and many people brought blankets and picnic baskets with cool beverages and snacks to share. the artist was a blues-y/gospel singer and she brought some music and soul to the city that's for sure! i have been consciously trying to use all five senses to take in each moment of my time in the city and this was a moment i could really drink in deep.

thursday, july 17, 2010.

tonight was the big night! ever since i began working at gemini 14 salon, i have heard about the big grand opening party sin dig that was taking place. red carpet, photographers, ho rs devours, champagne, dancing, and a whole lot more. i was nervous to go alone at first, but then after a conversation with a dear friend, i knew there was no reason to let this city or party intimidate me! i knew if i did not enjoy myself, i could just get on the subway and go back home. there was nothing keeping me there, but i knew i had to at least check it out and see for myself! so i slipped on my fancy new, red dress and pointy toed heels, and with every strand of hair curled and pinned just right, i went to the party! i surprisingly had a good time and even got to have some good conversations with people. all in all, there was nothing i needed to stress about...if you tell the world you are fierce, then you're fierce...especially when you wear a red dress ;) check this website out to see some other people that joined us at the party...you may even recognize some! (http://www.gettyimages.com/Search/Search.aspx?contractUrl=2&language=en-US&family=editorial&assetType=image&p=Gemini+14+Salon)

friday, june 18, 2010.

God is so faithful when we call out to Him...amen?! i was over the hill with homesickness and even though i knew i would be okay, God placed people in my weekend that would cure any sadness that i may have felt.

i was able to spend the afternoon with my sweet friend, sarah cohen, and her mother, susan cohen, and boyfriend, chris kato. sarah and i have been friends since middle school and grew up going to camp together every summer. we remained friends throughout high school as well as our university life despite that sarah went to western michigan..hehe :) they traveled to nyc from her apartment in new hampshire and made time in their weekend to spend with me. it was such a lovely afternoon as we talked and reminisced and strolled about the south street seaport in lower manhattan. we laughed and talked some more as we all shared a meal tether and it really brought joy to my heart to be together.

to finish out my great night, our young adult and college ministry called, transitions, had their bi-weekly fellowship meeting and it was just wonderful to worship together, hear the word of God, fellowship, and laugh together. i really enjoy my new family at the brooklyn tabernacle and especially this special family at transitions!

saturday, july 19, 2010.
one of the blessings God has given me here in new york is my friend, katie bennett. about a month into planning my big adventure in new york, katie told me that she too was praying about spending 5 weeks in the city...at.the.same.time. wow God is good!! katie worked with a missions organization in the city a couple of summers ago and they hired her back for just a short term staff member this summer. so after much prayer between the both of us, God led us to the same city. together. and this was the day i would finally get to welcome her! katie, her dad, uncle jerry, and i had a fun evening of walking the brooklyn bridge, visiting a park at city hall, venturing around greenwich village and soho, and finishing out the night with cheesecake at the famous junior's (theeeeeeeee best!). i can't wait to see what God is going to do between the two of us the rest of the summer and how He is going to grow us as sisters in Christ and friends.

there have definitely been moments during this past week that i have wondered...what am i even doing here? or i am so lonely, i miss my friends so much...why am i here...can't i just go home? but going back to the scripture i started with...i know that each experience, whether good or bad, will grow me closer to God, if i let it. that i will achieve the purpose for which i was sent and what God desires. so with that, i have a choice to let this city and these experiences influence me or not. before i left, pastor matt told me that i was going to live in the most influential city in the world. wow. my choice is to be influenced. and i know the Holy Spirit with give me discernment on what to keep out because there are a lot of things i would not like to influence me, but i also know there are a lot of things my eyes can be opened up to. and that is what i am learning. there is a song i love, called hosanna, and part of it says,
heal my heart and make it clean
open up my eyes to the things unseen
show me how to love like You have loved me
break my heart for what breaks Yours
everything i am for Your kingdom's cause
i know that i am learning to truly live out the words in this song i love so much. i can't help but worship and sing,

.hosanna, hosanna, hosanna in the highest.

.a day at the grammy's is immeasurably more.

"now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! amen."
ephesians 3:20-21 (nlt)

if you can wrap your mind around it, it's not big enough for our God. the past few days i have truly felt the weight of these verses above, and i know and can feel His mighty power at work within me. this is what God has been doing and teaching me lately...

tuesday, june 8, 2010.

my morning began slightly earlier than the "typical" since being in new york. luckily, monday i had off so i used that day to regroup, refocus and relax from a crazy first week in the city. being at work earlier in the morning meant not as busy which led to salon social hour! the stylists there are all very sweet and are eager to get to know me. it's cute. my hope is to show them as much love as my heart can muster and eventually tell them that it is really the love of Jesus they are experiencing through me :)

3:00 pm.

i walked into the brooklyn tabernacle for my meeting with todd crews. todd is the director on staff of transitions (young adult and college ministry) and helped me in many ways in coming out to new york. todd led me up to his (what i think) swanky bt office. he has such an encouraging tone when he speaks, that just makes me content to be talking with him. and what an encouraging talk we had! i was able to tell todd all about lifegroups at his house and my involvement there. since small groups is something they are thinking of starting within transitions, it was great to discuss and share what i know and love. from there, we talked about things i will be involved in at the brooklyn tab this summer and i got to meet several staff members. stay tuned to read about several things i will be doing there this summer! i'll be blogging about them as they happen :)

those of you who went on the spring break mission to nyc, remember the brooklyn heights promenade...check out this pic...(http://newyorkpanorama.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2006/12/2006-12-south-manhattan-from-brooklyn-BW-500.jpg), and that is where God led me next. after my meeting with todd, i had some time to kill before prayer. it was absolutely breathtaking to sit overlooking the manhattan skyline, munching on my fruit tart, and letting God wreck my heart as i read crazy love by francis chan. it's moments like these i can only praise God for because they are better than i could ever imagine or dream of.

prayer bt style.

prayer at the brooklyn tabernacle was powerful and awe inspiring. the Holy Spirit met us there and led us in prayer and praise to God. it was wonderful to end the night with my new friend, kadie, as we walked around brooklyn and talked about life.

wednesday, june 9, 2010.

i sat on the subway on my way to work and to my surprise a street musician started playing worship music in my train car. i couldn't help but smile as i rode singing along, "open the eyes of my heart Lord" and really praying that over my day.

if i ever had the desire to go to the grammy's, it might as well be satisfied. at the end of my night, i shook my head almost in disbelief of my day.

after only a few short days of working at the salon, i found out that we are not the average new york salon, but one that caters to many socialites and celebrities around the area. **you can google the name of the salon and see different press releases about who makes appearances there! my first celebrity client i had the opportunity to meet was actress, julianne moore! it was really cool to see her in person and realize celebrities are just like you and i. they just so happen to have a career where people see them in public places.

choir practice.

my day at the grammy's did not end at the hair salon, but continued as i had the privilege to sit in on the brooklyn tabernacle's choir practice. if you didn't know, they are a 6-time grammy award winning choir composed of about 285 members. it is so powerful when that many people are all singing out to God and they are truly believing what they are singing. there were 285 of them and one of me just being melted by their words and the Holy Spirit! they sang,

i stand in awe of the exceeding greatness of your power...

and all of their excitement, passion, love, determination, and might hit me in my soul which made for an amazing powerful night which was far better than i could have wrapped my mind around.

thursday, june 10, 2010.

the neighborhood church in greenwich village was quite a contrast compared to our huge congregation at the brooklyn tab. this cute little house(like) church was nestled around amy's bread (best cupcakes ever!) and murray's cheese (best cheese ever!) on bleeker street in the village. one of the cool things about new york, in my opinion, is every area of the city has a different feel, vibe, and crowd. after a casual stroll around the fountain and the yummiest mango popsicles, anna, kadie, landon , and i were quickly accepted as family into the neighborhood church. we shared a meal together, had authentic prayer and worship, and Godly fellowship. it was really refreshing to be with a small community of people and do life together as the Bible teaches. i love being able to visit, encourage, and pray for (and with) other bodies of believers in new york...oh how He loves us!

friday, june 11, 2010.

girls night!

it makes me laugh how universally similar girls nights are, no matter where you are or who you are with. (guys are really reading now because i am about to reveal a huge girly secret..hehe) i felt so special and loved when i got invited to the sleepover at kadie's trendy, brooklyn apartment. we had a relaxing, giggle filled night of blueberry/peach cobbler (with ice cream!), chit chat (about boys of course..haha!) and ended with a viewing of a classic chick flick (pride and prejudice...in the end we all decided are waiting for our mr. darcy..and he's out there!). i just sit here praising God for bringing me sisters to share life with during my time here because they are all truly a blessing. we were all created for relationships, and i am so grateful that i have found some girls to fellowship, pray, and talk with. thank you Lord! :)

saturday, june 12, 2010.

remember the lifehouse song, everything? it came on my ipod while i was riding home on the train, and these lyrics really spoke to me...

how can i stand here with You, and not be moved by you?

would You tell me how could it be any better than this?

cause You're all i want, You're all i need, You're everything.

my prayer is that i will allow myself to be moved by God because He is always with me. that is a promise He gives us in the Word (deuteronomy 31:6). nothing, absolutely nothing, is better than being in the presence of God. if you have never experienced this joy, i challenge you to get alone and call on the Lord. worship Him and experience His glory. it will take your breath away.

sunday, june 13, 2010.

whenever i am at the brooklyn tabernacle, i am constantly reminded of why i am here. this church (meaning the people that worship in this so called building) is changing me and leaving such an imprint on my heart. pastor was telling us about next sunday, we will be going out and distributing food to people in need. there were 2,500 bags of groceries paid for and donated by a church. guess where the church is? .michigan. ha! even just the smallest things like that make me smile, and let me know that God is in this with me. the choir sang a song that said this...

God is able to do, just what He said He would do.

He's going to fulfil every promise He gives.

don't give up on God, because He won't give up on you.

He is able!

isn't that so true? these past two weeks, i have found that to be so true in my life. i know that this is just the beginning of what God wants to teach me here. i told my roommate, pamela, last night as we talked over chocolate cupcakes and the tony awards, that even if i went home tomorrow, i would be a different person...changed for the better.

#22. listen.

just when i thought my night was over, there was a quiet tapp, tappy, tap on my bedroom door. it was my roommate, wendy and i quickly invited her in. she proceeded to ask if she could share a prayer request with me. of course, i welcomed the conversation. i knew this item on my list would not be an easy one to cross off. i listen to people all the time, but this was different. i wanted to only cross it off if God had me really listening to someone, catching a glimpse of their heart. i also knew, that the Holy Spirit would tell me, "this is the one". and He did. and i did. and wendy shared, and cried, and we had a moment that stopped time for just a few minutes. a moment that will be lifted up to God in prayer, but will forever speak that we were placed in each others lives for a reason. for a special time such as this. to be an encouragement, a friend, a sister, an ear to listen. in the midst of her distress and trouble, i want to tell wendy, don't give up on God, because He won't give up on you. He is able! He is able to meet every need we have. He is able to fulfill the desires of our heart, if only we seek after His face. He is able to provide us with a love, joy, peace, and satisfaction beyond our understanding or what we can fathom.

.He is able.

.la primera semana.

.la primera semana. .the first week.

wow. praise God! it is hard to believe that my first week in new york city is behind me. every step of the way God has revealed Himself more and more. so many thoughts run through my mind. what is it going to be like? who am i going to meet? what will i do? where will i go? all i know is something is going to happen, and i believe God will be the One to do that something. i just get to be the instrument :) here's what's happened so far...

just so you know: i plan to post more often than once a week so my posts will not be a novel. so this is my attempt at covering the whole last week :)

also, a note: my bucket list for the summer is entitled, 30 things to do in NYC in 60 days. many posts in this blog will include stories of how i crossed each thing off my list. look for a bunch of them in this post :)

tuesday, june 1, 2010.

after a whole day of packing up, cleaning, and moving out of the green house on illinois street, derek collard, kyle kowalski, and i departed for my parent's house in cedar springs, michigan. tuesday morning came early and soon enough with our ke$ha c.d. and my bags, the boys and i were on the road in my trusty all terrain vehicle, new york city bound! after a whole day of driving, with minimal food and potty breaks, we arrived at my new home sweet home, a quaint little apartment on crescent street in the cute district of queens called astoria. even though it was late, my new roommates, wendy and pamela greeted me with hugs and excitement. since i had not seen any pictures of what it would look like, i didn't know what to expect of this new living situation. i was very happily surprised and quickly fell in love with my cute new artsy apartment and spacious bedroom! i am very content to rest my head here for two months :) when i walked into my bedroom, i was greeted by a message left on my mirror that are sweet words of life. read this:

Jesus lives in you.

& He loves you,

& He likes you.



He's cheering for you,

crying with you,

chuckling at you. (was this written for me or what?!)

He knows you

deeply, truly, and

better than anyone

else does or ever will.



Rest in these truths...

.beautiful. how wonderful it will be to be greeted each morning by that when i see my reflection in the mirror and how comforting it will be to rest in those truths each night when i sleep.


wednesday, june 2, 2010.

the sun shined through my window early. i will need to get used to living closer to the east coast. the sun comes up bright and early without fail. i didn't seem to mind on this day though, despite the little rest i had. it was hard to fall asleep like the last few nights as well because of all the excitement coursing through my body. i had to get ready and have my first job interview in the city. i was blessed to have the boys stay with me for the day so i did not have to face my first day in the city alone. armed with my resume, attitude, and patten leather, pointy towed heels, i was ready to score a job! ten minutes after i walked in to this salon to interview, i walked out with a second "try out" interview lined up for the next day. i had a good feeling about this one.

#14. go to coney island.

now that the interview was out of the way, the plan for the day was to do and see as much as possible before the boys departed for home in the morning. on our way to see the empire state building, we stumbled across a live concert with the american idol finalists in herald square. i need to get used to seeing things like this in NYC all the time, but this was cool! our day was quite the adventure as we traveled by foot and subway to herald square, the empire state building, madison square gardens, battery park, coney island, bay ridge (brooklyn) for awesome vietnamese food, and times square (let's not forget doing the cupid shuffle in the m & m's store!). the boys really did do and see as much as possible while they were here.

thursday, june 3, 2010.

while it was sad to say goodbye to the boys, excitement was stirring inside of me as they left. after hugs and a few tears (not the boys...just me) i waved goodbye and watched my car, sadie subaru, drive away for good. i walked upstairs to my apartment and it finally hit me. i was not on vacation. i live in new york city. pamela could see that i needed a hug and she brought me comfort in my state of shock :) i got ready for day 2 at the salon and was ready to take on the city of new york solo.



#13. get a job.

i was happy to be at the salon (check it out at: http://gemini14nyc.com/) for my "try out" and prayed for God to work through me during my time there. i caught on fast and in no time i was answering phones, checking in and out clients, and meeting all the stylists at the salon. five hours later i was informed that i was a great fit and that the job was mine! what a blessing. some of you may remember my job as a receptionist at ambiance salon and day spa in mount pleasant, that i did not particularly enjoy. i know now that it was necessary for me to work there in order to gain the experience i needed to get this job. it is really cool to see how in ALL things God has a plan and i am so grateful He used that experience for the good.

i ventured to whole foods market into union square and grabbed a bite to eat before heading back home after my day. i had so much to be thankful for so i just praised God for his provision and blessing! i walked into my apartment and happy to see my roommate, pamela, sitting at the kitchen table. God knew that i would need companionship and friendships while i am in new york and i am so grateful for pamela. we were able to sit for over two hours and talk about the Lord and the things we have been through in life. she is a remarkable woman and i was so encouraged by her story and faith.



friday, june 4, 2010.

my new morning routine started with my walk to the subway and conveniently stopping at the starbucks on the corner for my morning tall iced skinny vanilla latte before hopping on the train into the city. i was ready for day 2 on the job when all the sudden i was called and informed the air conditioning was broken at work and i should wait until saturday to start work. good thing i have a bucket list to cross off so that is just what i did with my day off. :)



#1. get lost.

since i was already on the subway i decided i wanted to try to find an area called park slope in brooklyn. all i needed to do was take the N train to atlantic ave./pacific st. station, transfer to the 2 train and ride to park slope. sounds simple, but with my great "i feel it" sense of direction, i was highly unsuccessful at finding the cute shops and restaurants park slope promised. instead i learned later i in fact went too far on the train and was in prospect heights (aka. kind of the hood!). good thing it was the middle of the day!!! i decided i knew my way around times square and ended up finding a good spot in the shade to journal and catch up.



#3. rent a book at the new york city public library.

fifth avenue and 42nd street is home to the beautiful new york city public library. this building is huge, so it must have plenty of books that would keep me busy looking around and reading for hours. not so much. contrary to my belief, i guess library in new york actually means museum because after getting lost in the actual building, i did not find a whole lot of books :) i also learned that you cannot check out many books at this library. if i would have known that, i wouldn't have put it on the list! now i know, and at least i can say that i have been there.

#16. make a new friend.

after my library experience, a quick stop at h&m, and witnessing a palestine protest marching down 42nd street (you really never know what you are going to see in NYC), i hopped on the subway and headed back to brooklyn. this time i was not about to get lost, i knew exactly where i was going. i spent a couple hours in the Word and reading and then walked to the brooklyn tabernacle for transitions. transitions is what they call their young adult/college group and every other friday night they have fellowship meetings. i walked in and was greeted by not just some amazing people, but also the Holy Spirit. it wasn't long until i met a girl named, adaeze and she invited me to sit next to her. it was evident the brooklyn tab was the reason i moved out to new york. the people there were so on fire for God as we worshiped together, heard a great sermon, and closed out in prayer together. i was so encouraged by God's people and that was just the beginning.

i met up with landon, (one of the leaders of transitions and someone i knew previous to coming out to new york) and he introduced me to some of his friends. God revealed Himself in a conversation i had with landon that night when landon told me i was refreshing (!!) to the body of Christ at transitions. he also told me that they are praying about starting small groups (!!!) within transitions and that i was invited to come to a prayer meeting for that purpose at his apartment the next night. God is moving and it's really amazing seeing things come together already in the first week.

#17. eat something i never have before.

in the mean time, after the fellowship meeting a group of us went to a restaurant called, lemongrass, for some delicious thai food. the fellowship continued and i was able to share my story of coming to new york with the people sitting around me as we dined over pad thai rice noodles (with veggies...yumm-o!). the food was great, but the people were better. i felt so blessed, edified, and encouraged by my new found brothers and sisters in Christ. as i walked down the streets of brooklyn to catch my subway home, i couldn't help but blissfully smile at being in the will of God.



saturday, june 5, 2010.

i was off to my first official day of work in the city and my iced skinny vanilla latte really needed to kick in hard after my exciting night out! luckily it did and i was able to really start to get the hang of things at my new job. everyone was so sweet in welcoming me to the workplace but i know it will be my biggest mission field while i am here. i am up for the challenge though and i am excited to see how God is going to use me to minister to my co-workers.



there is something wonderful about being caught off guard and totally surprised by someone or something. when dark hair/dark eyes, tattoos on wrists, kenneth walked into the salon for his haircut appointment, i would never have assumed he would leave with my phone number and plans to hang out later. but that's what is wonderful about the unexpected and left me smiling the rest of the day. new york is so different and in a matter of days everything can change! **disclaimer...many of you are assuming this means i have a date. not the case. the guy just got my number and has yet to call. i assume this is typical for new york guys, but is still fun to know someone made an effort to talk to me and to get my number! ;)

unfortunately for kenneth, i already had plans to go to landon and stewart's apartment for the fellowship/prayer/worship meeting. which is where i ran off to after my shift was over at the salon. during that time, i was able to show the group the new york dvd joe made of our team and our spring break mission back in march. it was really cool to see how encouraged everyone was by what our team had to say about the brooklyn tab and the city of new york. i loved that God used the dvd to touch the lives of my new friends.

sunday, june 6, 2010.
.worship. brooklyn tabernacle. amazing.
these people truly come to the house of the Lord truly desiring God! (psalm 63:1-2)
despite the crummy subways going local on weekends (meaning it stops at every stop where as on weekdays you can catch an express train that only stops at major ones which is much faster), making my commute to brooklyn almost an hour, being at the brooklyn tab for sunday worship was incredible. the Holy Spirit truly washes over you and every person involved in the service prays and speaks with boldness and authority. it is wonderfully refreshing! although, a little twinge of sadness overcame me knowing his house was still going on without me :)

my afternoon was wonderfully accompanied by adazae and we enjoyed some iced coffee after church and sat together for the choir concert later in the day.

.GOD IS AMAZING.

i am so blessed to be here in new york city and i can only wait on Him to see what the rest of the summer holds. please pray for me when you think of it. if you need prayer for anything, please let me know so i can lift you up! be blessed today and always!

xoxo...