Alright, I'll give that explanation a try, Blake. Which, by the way, Blake, props to you. :) I think you might be one of the only one checking some of these. lol Thanks for the comments :)

It might be hard to explain, though, because I'm having some sort of difficulty explaining it to myself.

Romans 5. I think what caught my eye the most was the beginning portion.

1Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God. 3And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; 4and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; 5and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. 6For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. 8But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Everyone knows the oh, so quotable verse 8. I memorized that verse for Sunday School, multiple years, Awanas, school. It became ingrained. Not that that's a bad thing. I like the verse. I just think we skip over the rest of it.

It's like a logical plan of how to use bad times to gain hope. Not just hope, but a hope that will not disappoint. It reinforces the idea that God is there, sent Christ to die for us for no other reason than the fact that He loved us. Undeserving humans. Therefore, we exult in God, who gave us peace and an introduction to this faith through His grace.

Following that, it seems more like a logical progression in explaining how our lives as sinners came about, including the newly supplied grace.

Somehow, it seems a disappointing lead up to a magnificent end. You know, something like those movies who have such dark story lines, or disappointing (I can't really think of the right word to use for it, but I hope you understand what I mean.), then you realize in the end that the story line til then was so dark to reinforce the absolute wonderfulness of the ending! If the story line had been light all along, then the ending wouldn't have such a great impact.

Does that make sense?

All that to say, chapter 5 started wonderful, then reinforced the sinfulness of Adam bringing death on the world to lead up to the last 3 or so verses (19-21):

19For as through the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous. 20The Law came in so that the transgression would increase; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, 21so that, as sin reigned in death, even so grace would reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

It stresses that our sin came about; therefore, grace was supplied all the more. I don't really know how to explain why that struck me so. I had been going through stressful times, and then I read that passage. It really was a comfort to me. Hope and peace were what I was searching for, and bam, there it was.

I hope that explanation is acceptable. I tried, lol. :)

Wow, checking up on these, and I realize it's been forever since I've posted anything. I'm still not quite sure what to post. But I guess I'll just share what I've been remembering here lately.

Flip through my notes here recently, in almost any class, and you'll see several times that I've written Philippians 4:4-8 in the topmost margin.

biblegateway.com:

Philippians 4:4-8 (New American Standard Bible)

4Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! 5Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. 6Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 8Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.

Though you'll only see the reference, picturing me zoning out and quoting the complete Scripture in my head. (Not that I advocate zoning out in class...) But seriously, this Scripture has meant alot to me. It's one of the best comforts I've had throughout this summer and the beginning of the semester. It seems like I've shot myself in the foot so many times. There's been so much going on in my life, in the way of joys, disappointments, upsets, and simply just hurt. Then I flip to that passage. Paul says rejoice in the Lord, always. Don't be anxious about anything. Give it to God, and you'll receive that wonderful peace. Dwell only on the upright and good.

I'll be honest. I was after that peace. It seems like so much turmoil has come up, whether it's my own, or others, or just in my head. Then you might notice that the rest of the Scripture is a lot of common sense. Think. If you dwell only on the upright, you'll be happy, or maybe more content is a better word... and peaceful. If you know that, whatever you're doing, yes, it might hurt then, but in the long run, it's for the best, you'll be content.

The best part is knowing that, even if you feel the whole world is down on you, and, if you're like me you want to run away, God is always there, providing for you and protecting you. For instance:

1 Peter 5:6-7

6Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, 7casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.

To be honest, I was really sad when I thought Garrett was going to skip over that particular verse when preaching on it this summer. But he didn't, and I was happy for the reminder. It came at a great time. I always focus on verse 7, cast all your cares upon Him. It puts me in mind of the Psalty song, which used to be pretty much my favorite song ever:

I cast all my cares upon You.
I lay all of my burdens down at Your feet.
And anytime I don't know what to do,
I cast all my cares upon You.

That particular passage and song is a great reminder for me to rely on God. He cares for me! How much more could I ask for? Why should I then be upset? I have all I need right there.

There's more I could write, as I was once asked why I liked Romans 5 so much. Which I never got to explain.... But, it's getting late, and I'm curious as to whether these are even checked anymore.

So, I had inspiration and wanted to journal. I hope what I see is a comfort for someone else in hard times. Remember, God is always there! So, BE HAPPY! Rejoice in Him! Give Him everything and He'll guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus!

So, I didn't get to go meet with Donna til last week, but we did finally meet. Ideas are now being processed and turned into actual events. This weekend there is the marathon, and in two weeks there will hopefully be another event on the 19th. There were also ideas which we might put into action over the summer. That will take a bit of thought, organization, and people interested in these ideas.

I met with Maloa and Beth to do the first of my interviews. I really enjoyed doing both. It was really interesting to see what they had to say.

I chose Maloa because I was curious as to how she viewed the FOCUS organization, being from such a different background, and I was also curious as to what she was thinking and preparing for when she changes schools. I think it's important to plan for moving on, and that's what she has to do. I, therefore, wanted ideas as to how to prepare for that. Different things to be thinking and planning for in terms of how to carry on ministry after school life.

I chose Beth because I was interested in seeing how another campus organization was run. We discussed some of the differences between our two groups and how we choose our leader teams. They're currently going through some changes in how they select their leader team, and we discussed different aspects of that.

Talking to Beth was just a great reminder of the little things that must be done to continue in successful ministry. She's been a part of the BSM staff for 14 years, which I find amazing. I asked her what she found most important in ministry. Her response was one on one meetings, building those relationships were the most important thing. She also reminded me that there were all the administrative details that had to go on behind the scenes. Those forgotten things are very important for ministries such as ours to function correctly.

I also asked her about her goals. I thought her response was quite interesting. In personal goals, her first response, right off, was health. To maintain spiritual, emotional, and physical health. That was one I didn't think about, but really, doing her job, meeting with, providing counsel to, leading, etc., other people drains you, in all capacities. And, at the same time, she finds someone to provide the same things for her that she gives to others. Only in this way could she feel that she could be the kind of Christian leader that she needed to be.

I appreciated her drawing attention to the little things. Somehow those seem to be skipped over in everyone's thoughts. I asked her what she'd learned and these are the answers I received:

1) To listen and ask good questions: to draw out what really needs to be discussed --- important thing to learn, I think

2) How/when to say no --- to remember that there is only so much you can do, and after you reach that point, you're really no longer being helpful anyways, more than likely

3) Make sure you take care of yourself --- if you don't maintain that, how can you help others to maintain it

4) Success is measured differently in the realm of ministry --- the real reward is fruitfulness. If you make a difference in one person's life, it's completely worth whatever hardship or other thing you had to go through.

I thought those were great things to draw attention back to.

This post gets longer, but I haven't really mentioned my talk with Maloa....

Maloa gave alot of similar guidance. She pointed out that making, maintaining, and building on relationships is oh, so important to have any sort of impact on lives.

I also asked her about how she was planning on moving on from FOCUS, and what her ministry life would look like once she'd left. I think she's right, many times people lose sight of the fact that there is more out there than college. We won't be at UTD, or in FOCUS, or attending Northeast forever, more than likely. She views this as training for life, thinking "globally", as she said many times. We have to be able to step out, think for ourselves and make decisions, but also remember to carry on our ministry, in whatever form that might take.

Side note: She made a comment that the best bonding she's done was bonding under obligation. I thought that was interesting to think about. You wouldn't think about things that way, like, she grew up in a boarding school, and you'd think those you were around most and couldn't get away from would be the ones you might just want to strangle. But, that's wrong. If you notice, you may want to strangle someone, but no one else is allowed to even mention something bad about that particular person. You defend them. I thought that was an interesting thing to point out. The best example I could think of was family, siblings specifically.

Anyhow, I think that's enough for now. Just, I really enjoyed talking to both of them, and I have lots to mull over.

Enjoy :)

I have emailed the New Beginnings Center. I'm going to try and meet up with them to see if there are any ways we can help. Hopefully they'll respond. I have also tried to get in touch with some interviewees... but they have not gotten back with me... At least I'm trying....

No, Melissa, I haven't met with her yet, but I'm working on it...lol :) Thanks for checking up on me.

Edit: The Center has emailed me back, and we will be getting in touch next week. Yippee!

So, I talked to her, and I've gotten information. We've started a change jar for donations, planning on using the money to buy towels, hair driers, makeup, socks, etc. for the women's shelter, in case any one's interested and has random change lying around. You'd be surprised how much you can find lying around on the ground, too. That's alot of what I do. I plan on calling/emailing/talking to someone in charge, after this next week, which is my mid-term week.... and I'll be going insane just getting life done, literally. In fact, that's what I should be working on right now. But I figured I better catch up really quick. Another girl gave me another place to look up. So, I'll be checking in on that... again, after next week.

As to interviews. I'd also like to get with Beth Smith. She has alot to do around campus with ministry things, and I think it'd be great to get her perspective and ideas about things. I've talked to her some, and she seems to know her stuff, or know more than some. I'd also like to talk to my pastor back home. He used to be regional something something leading Youth Alive in Oklahoma. I thought that was neat, and seems like it would be very involved. As to questions, I'm still considering. But I'm working on it.

So, I admit it, I'm a bit behind. But, in the meantime, I'm trying to help out around here, doing things for those who are sick, when I can, and try not to join them once more. I need to call Brittany and get things going there, and there's a few other people I need to talk to, but I have to catch up first. And this weekend I'm hoping I can make some progress in researching things. Always a good idea....

That's my plan so far. Don't you hate it when the internet messes up on you. I'm pretty sure I said more in my "other" post... but the internet went and deleted it for me, so I hope this one works...

So, I admit it, I'm a bit behind. But, in the meantime, I'm trying to help out around here, doing things for those who are sick, when I can, and try not to join them once more. I need to call Brittany and get things going there, and there's a few other people I need to talk to, but I have to catch up first. And this weekend I'm hoping I can make some progress in researching things. Always a good idea....

That's my plan so far. Don't you hate it when the internet messes up on you. I'm pretty sure I said more in my "other" post... but the internet went and deleted it for me, so I hope this one works...

More Ministry Opportunities...

Well, I just wanted to let y'all all know what a blessing, an opportunity, or heck, once you get right down to it, just a wonderful idea it is to discuss your ideas with the people around you, especially the people in your core. You can glean some wonderful ideas for ministry, as well as get them to work with you on them, bounce ideas off them, and more. It's wonderful.

Well, as you can guess, I've had a few conversations with the girls in my core, and man, I knew I had to come make a list right now, or I'd forget. The only problem now is, this list will be on my computer rather than in my hands at any one point, but maybe I can remedy that later, as I'm being too lazy to write right now.

Well, I had a conversation with a girl in my core today, and I was talking to her about the groups she's involved in, what they did in the community and on campus, etc., as well as what we're planning on doing in FOCUS this year. She loved alot of our ideas, btw. But she had great ideas to contribute as well, at least for what I'm planning. And I'd love some feedback, if anyone's interested in helping us with these ideas.

Nothing's settled yet, as I'm just bouncing ideas around, but here goes:

She a part of the BSA, and something like 3 times a year they get together and do Wal-Mart runs for those people in their organization who don't have cars. They get together and give them rides. Well, since we were doing, or trying to do, something similar last semester with the Indian students involved in our ministry, I thought maybe we could join teams and try to help more people on campus. They also go and visit nursing homes and such, she said, so I want to go with them on that, see where all they go and what they do, maybe try to get some more inter-organizational work with them. She's going to keep me updated with what's going on.

She also works at a women's abuse shelter, which is right next door to a homeless shelter. There's also a teen pregnancy home. She said they are all the time needing donations, hair driers, curling irons, toys for children, clothes, you name it, they need it. They won't turn anything away. I'm sure that's true of the homeless shelter, as well. And I think that the homeless shelter might need volunteer work as well. So, I was thinking maybe taking donations, or going to help, something. I haven't worked all that out yet. Just bouncing ideas around. She said she was going to check on some of that for me, and I'll follow up, if I can.

I think these are great ideas, at least for me to help around with, if I can. I think that, as a whole, at least from what I've seen, the church is doing a great job ministering and reaching out to people overseas. Well, at least they are giving a valiant effort. Because of this focus, it seems to me like the people right next door, so to speak, are being neglected. That's a shame, and I would like to see that change. That's why my focus in these ministry opportunities lie where they do. Changing one life, right around here, if that's all I could do, then life's worthwhile.

As has been a common theme running around here for a bit, what else did Jesus go around doing?? Loving people. That's my goal for this semester. Let me know if you find any similar opportunities around, or if you are interested in joining me, or know of people who are interested. I'm going to do my best to get some of this done this semester. Sorry for the long-windedness.....

Thanks, guys!

Outreach and Service Roles.....

Well, for service roles within the ministry, I think my spots already been chosen for me, and it's one I enjoy. I love to sing with the band. That's one of my favorite things to do.

As for outreach and service projects in general, like Stef, I think we should give back, but I also think we should give back more to the community around us. I love doing Shoes for Orphaned Souls, and things like that, but I think too often we forget about those in need around us. I would, and Brandon kind of stole my idea, but I can't help it, I've been thinking about this for a while..., like to take people to visit nursing homes, hospitals if they'll let us, and such like that. There's also the Salvation Army, though I've heard they're rarely lacking for help. Another idea that I've heard of was, and this would probably involve mainly girls, but guys are welcome to join in, is making afghans and quilts and such. There are places who will give them away to teenage girls with babies, or there are women's shelters, or even sending them overseas to our troops in care packages. These can be knit, crocheted, sewed, whatever your passion is. And they are very welcomed. For that it's just a matter of finding who takes donations and such.

Those are my ideas. Feel free to add input or give me info if you know about such places.