What is Normal?

I can't believe it has been so long since I have updated this blog. I remember thinking I would right after I went out to Frontier Ranch this summer, and then again after our family trip to Belize, but it has instead taken me getting back to school and "back to the norm" to find time to sit down and write.

I'm not going to lie, this summer was hard, really hard. I laugh and think about how my expectations and plans for this summer were just so different than what the Lord had planned for me. As one of my friend's moms explained to me, "sometimes the Lord just needs to prune you, to snip off the bad branches, so that you can grow  into something stronger and more beautiful", and that is exactly what He did. It hurt, a whole lot, but I love the Lord's promise to be always by our side and to never leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).

I'll start with Frontier Ranch. I think I have decided that I either need to marry someone on Young Life staff or be on staff myself so that I can go back to camp year after year. Seeing the Lord work in high school kids lives, bringing them to the realization that they need Him more than they need parties, popularity, or good grades is an amazing thing to be a part of. I feel blessed every time I leave a Young Life camp, and to be a leader this past summer, taking our Atlanta kids out there, was wonderful. I'll admit that I almost didn't go because I was so discouraged by the slow healing of my leg, but after some encouragement from family and friends, and an incredible peace from the Lord, I knew I was supposed to go.

our Cabin with the Program Team

Hoe-down night

Almost all the NW Atlanta group

Again, I just have to laugh at how the Lord's plans are so different from mine, but His are SO much better. He broke me of several things while I was out there including patience, (my leg was taking a longggg time to heal and I still couldn't walk very well), flexibility, (I couldn't do any activities with our kids because of my leg, but instead was asked to be picture taker for our group and therefore got to meet all of our Atlanta kids), and being still. I have continued to find that I love to go, go, go but the Lord calls us to be still and know that He is God (Psalm 46:10), and I sure got to do that with the little mobility I had with my leg. I also got the chance to see our kids be impacted by Christ. I'm pretty sure that by the end of the week, over 100 kids at camp (out of 400!!!) accepted Christ, including several of ours! I am not much of a crier, but I was so overwhelmed with the greatness of God, that tears were a flowin'. 

After Frontier, I spent more time at home in physical therapy. I promise you, I was a joy to no one. I was not happy to be in PT 2 days a week and then hobbling around the other 5 days. I did get to see friends while I was home though, and that was such a joy. I even got to have my wonderful freshman roommate to Atlanta, her first trip ever! But before I knew it, I was packing a suitcase yet again to prepare for a 10 day trip to Belize with the family. I'll gladly admit it, family trips are an obsession of mine. My dad always does the most incredible job planning them, and now that everyone is getting a leeeettle more mature, we can all have a really fun time on them. We spent 4 days in the jungle of Belize hiking and relaxing... 

on the top of Caracol, the Mayan "ruin"

Then we spent another 5 days on the beach diving and fishing...

Cha Cha 60 feet under

Truer words have never been spoken...

It is a gorgeous part of the world full of so much to do, but my favorite part by far was being with my family. I realized once we got down there that I hadn't spent time with just my family since last summer, and it was awesome. The personalities that make up my family could not be more wonderful or hilarious. Again, the Lord knew what He was doing when He put us all together and I feel so incredibly blessed by them each and every day. 

The time did come for me to head back up to Wake though. Some things I have learned since coming back to school: 1-It's still hard to say goodbye to your parents. 2-It is too much fun living with some of your closest friends. 3-Time management is a skill that got be forgotten (and re-learned). While I will admit, I wasn't the most excited to come back to Wake, the Lord has been faithful in all of His promises (Psalm 145:13) and He has reaffirmed me in countless ways that I am supposed to be here right now. I have met the most amazing new freshman class, on fire for the Lord and excited to be here. I have reconnected with old friends and stayed in touch with friends and family at home. I am very thankful for technology when it comes to keeping up with people, that is for sure. 

Throughout the summer, I kept catching myself saying, "I can't wait to get back to the normal", yet it didn't matter where I was when I was saying it: South Africa, Colorado, Belize, even Atlanta. What is normal though? Is being at home with your family normal? Is traveling the world experiencing everything you can in a short amount of time normal? Is being back at school normal? I think normal is being exactly where God wants you at that time, and living fully in the moment. (James 4:13-15)