i'm FAR from normal

well i never thought this would happen, but here i am less than a week and i'm posting again. heart attack, i know. hope you all are able to catch your breath. :)

just got in from "the spring" (Newspring) in greenville and really amazed at how the Father works. like, really. i am in awe of how He has worked in my life and in the lives of others around me. Perry shared four words (rhyming words too) that relate to when the "brook is dry" (1Kings 17:1-8).

1-Invitation: the last thing the Father calls us to be is normal. [i smiled when Perry said this because I KNOW i'm FAR from normal :)] follow Him and He will show you things that are not ordinary, and you will experience things that are not ordinary.

2-Desperation: when "the brook is dry". after you follow His will for you and you come to a dry place, pretty much everyone will call out in desperation to the Father. "why is this happening when you told me to go here?" "where are you now?"

3-Revelation: it always seems to be during the hard times in life when we hear the Father speaking to us. in those times of desperation we cry out to Him, desperate for His touch. even though we were doing what He said, sometimes He will cause the brook to dry up to get our attention. again, we listen to Him and hear what He has to say.

4-Celebration: when you realize the brook is dry, when you finally call out to the Father in desperate need of Him, when you listen to Him, there is cause for celebration. yes, the time may be tough and difficult but..."when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy".

Perry shared the vision of Newspring and what would be happening at the greenville campus. long story short, they are moving from a permanent location to a portable location in greenville but they are not weary. they believe the Father will pour out more blessing on the fact that the greenville campus will be able to hold more people!

as we drove back from greenville i couldn't help but be super pumped about what the Father was doing at Newspring. yes, my heart broke a little knowing i will not be able to be a part of most of it considering that in two weeks i will be in rock hill and then at the end of the summer i will depart for China. however i know the Father has great things in store for Newspring and for me, even if that means i won't be able to attend on a weekly basis.

i also thought about the story in 1 Kings about Elijah and the brook and how it related so well to my life right now. i talked about it in my last post about walking through this "birthing place". well, the brook is dry right now. i am in a new phase (chapter) in life where things are kind of just at a standstill. for the next three weeks i have not a darn thing planned. no job, nothing. and while i had such a hard time adjusting to that fact until a couple days ago, i now know and believe the Father had it planned this way since the day i was born. the two months i will spend in rock hill as a camp director will be another learning and growing experience that i will hold dear to my heart. then in three months, the Father is leading me to China where i believe i will see so many things happen to me and the lives around me that are definitely NOT ordinary. all for the Glory of the Father. tonight my excitement for China kicked up not only a few notches, but A LOT. as well as being in spartanburg for three weeks and then rock hill for two months. big things are about to happen, i can feel it.

"My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts," says the Lord. "And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:8-9