Update...

Many of you have been asking me for updates regarding my hopeful return to China. The update on that is I am waiting. I have sent my resume and letters of recommendation to Bethel. They have confirmed that they have received them and beyond that I have no other feedback. The wonderful thing is that this time of waiting is truly with patience and peace. Most of you who know me, know that patience is not always strength of mine! However, I am being carried by a Father who knows me best and is sending constant confirmations that for this time I am exactly where He would like me to be.

A few of the things I am focused on right now (in no particular order):

* Friends. Over the past year or maybe longer, I had become quite withdrawn in some ways and distanced myself from many of the people I care most about. I was not my usual social self. It is still not clear to me why I was that way, but what is clear is that I am back!!! :) I have filled my schedule with time with friends old and new and I am just enjoying the love of friendship. This season has included many laughs and tears with friends and it is just quite simply brilliant!

Amanda and Eric came to one of Jordan's football games... it was so fun to reunite with them!

* Health. I joined the gym so I would not be running around downtown in the dark this fall and winter. My organic cooking and regular exercise continues and I am feeling great!

* “Green Living”- Ha ha. I enjoy that phrase. But really, I have been trying to recycle as much as possible. I have also been trying to think of ways that I can reuse, such as using the same sandwich bag for my pecans every day. It may sound silly, and we all know that I am no environmentalist but I think it is wise not to be wasteful and I am kind of taking that to a new level by being more aware of what I am wasting and how I can reduce that.

* Making my bed. I know this sounds silly, but I find that it is so easy to be in a hurry in the morning and take off without making the bed. Since I moved into my apartment in early September, I have made my bed every single morning before leaving the house. I find that it sets a tone for the day; being intentional about completing something. And I come home to a neat and tidy apartment in the evening. It’s really the small things sometimes.

* Journaling. I have kept a journal since 1st grade. I have a whole box of journals I have kept over the years. My experience recently is that it can be difficult to force myself to write when I am not feeling “inspired” but there is something therapeutic for me about taking a bit to write no matter how long or short. So I have made a new goal to journal daily-one sentence. This is a brand new goal, but I like it so far. We will see how it goes. :)

* Healing. Before I left China the Lord spoke to me and told me that upon returning to the States, I would be in a season of healing. Well, folks, He kept His promise beyond what I expected imagined, or was aware that I needed! He didn’t just drag me through some painful things, but He carried me through. He has taken me through every pain and hurt and mended my heart completely. It is so humbling to have a heavenly Father that cares so much for my wholeness. I want every single person I know and love to experience the fullness of His perfect love, and the freedom of His healing touch!!!

* Family. We all know I love them! I have been making it a true priority to make it to each of my brothers’ football games, to spend quality time with my parents and serving with Christopher. There is something so rich about relationships in the family rather than just being related. I find that with Jason and Jordan I have to work a little harder or differently to be close with them. Since our ages are so far apart I cannot be close to them by just talking on the phone. They need to see me and be supported by me physically. I have been to each of Jordan’s football games and really enjoying hanging out with him afterwards as usual. And I have made it to most of Jason’s games. Also, my office is just blocks from Jason’s school, so I have been going down there weekly and hanging out with him during his lunch. That has been so much fun and it makes him feel special and loved! And Christopher and I remain as close as ever. Serving at church with him has been awesome, and our relationship is just deep. We tell each other most everything and pray over each other and encourage each other and challenge each other. We truly have a blessed relationship. Same with my mom and dad and I. Mom and I still talk on the phone several times a day, go shopping together and just hang out. We have been learning a lot about each other as adult women and our relationship grows stronger daily. And my dad is just great. He is such a strong man who is faithful in his work ethic and making sure his family is cared for. He also loves his girl (me)! We have a great time joking around together and talking seriously. I think he is proud of me right now and that is important to me. I love my family. My cup overflows.

Speaking of family, I should also add that my Uncle Al visisted last week and took Chris and I out to dinner. He always makes a point to invite us out when he is in town on business. We were so blessed by our visit with him and we are so proud of the man he is. We are hoping to have a reunion next year with the Thornton family. That would be great, because I really miss Jayslee and wish we could be closer. She is amazing and I am so proud of her! I miss my sisser.

I have also been making more of an effort to call Grandma Betty. She is the last grandparent left and even though I haven't known her my whole life, it feels like I have, and we have the BEST time talking on the phone! She is just so funny. Phone dates with her are absolutely delightful!

* Serving. I have started to attend Sunday Night @ 6 services regularly and I love it! I have found my place it seems… I have been going to pre-service prayer and set-up and I hope to continue serving in that way. The pastors there-who now include my brother, Chris, are awesome, and so is everyone else I have met there! It feels like a great group of people who love Jesus and love each other. Pretty good deal if you ask me!

I think that pretty much sums things up! I am richly blessed.

P.S. I have stayed in touch with my friends in China. We email and chat regularly. I miss them terribly some days. They bless me so much.

Thursday Night 9/17

 Those of us who went to China in August will be sharing testimonies about the trip. Click the link for details! China Night

I Am Full...

Over a year ago I received an email from a friend I had grown up with from middle school through college. One line at the end of the email read, "May God bless you today and fill you with His perfect love." I got that email in April of 2008. The reason I randomly mention it today is that since then almost daily I have pondered the word's, "filled with God's perfect love." I have just wondered exactly what that meant, and even more, what it feels like! Today, I can say I know what it means.

Since I have been home from China, of course I have been spending time catching up with friends and family and telling them of my adventures. I can never find ways to put into words how my heart feels. I cannot find a way to express it other than, I am truly experiencing the Fullness of God's Perfect Love.

I am overflowing.

A few things I miss about China...

1. Girlfriends- in China females who are friends hold hands and sometimes put their arms around each other while walking down the street to show their affection. I LOVED IT! I am such a snuggly person that I welcomed interlocking hands with my new sisters. :)

2. The thrill of trying to cross the street! There is a saying about the traffic lights in China, "Green means go, red means run!" I would get tingles as I literally raced across the street trying to calculate how many inches I was from losing my life! It was great for my tendency to be a little dramatic. The photo below tells it all:

I was definitely nervous every time, but it was fun!

3. Darling children everywhere!! I think what I liked even more about the children there was, since there is not much diversity in China (none, really),most of the kids hadn't seen a black woman walking by on a regular basis-if ever, so they were fascinated by me. They would stare and smile when they saw me! It was as though they were as much in awe of me as I was in them. :) This precious babe below was blowing me kisses out of nowhere!

4. People outside enjoying each other's company. In Beijing people were always out enjoying each other at night. In parks everyone was playing whether they knew each other or not... people were dancing in the streets, roller skating together, and playing with Chinese-style hacky sacks, etc. I found it very refreshing!

5. Silly and different things like "work-out equipment" randomly placed on the sidewalk. Brilliant! I just love China!

瓷窃取了我的心脏

More about China...

Continued from my last post...

*the group after yummy lunch and cake!

After the lunch gathering to see Pastor Mark off and celebrate birthdays it was our last night at the hostel before heading off to the university to serve at TIP. I think our small training that night was when I began to feel ill. I will not add details about this, but let's just say that upon our arrival at TIP, I didn't see the light of day for at least 36 hours. I was horribly ill. I will share a few of the things I did while sick-just because it makes me laugh. Some of my friends from church took me to the Chinese pharmacy to translate for me so I could buy medication for my sick tummy. Now this was a complete act of faith and trust in those girls, because I, of all people would not typically take medication that is from another country, let alone with instructions in another language!!! :) But I did. So while sick in bed and sad that my team was at the Great Wall without me, I pulled out my Chinese-English dictionary and tried to match the characters on the medication box with symptoms I was having to try to decode the box. It was entertaining for a little while! Also, I had a bottle of strawberry gum tablets. Since eating was not an option I chewed those... I played some "games" to see how many I could chew at a time, how long before they lost flavor, etc. I know, I am so silly but it was all I could do not to lose my mind on that bunk bed!

Also, I had a chance to have a pretty amazing talk with one of the girls on the BFS team who arrived a week prior to myself. I also spent lots of time in the Word and making lists and praying for friends and family in the States and for the future. My sweet buddies, Katie, Skye, Youf and Scott ended up bringing me a pretty fan with the Great Wall on it when they returned. Also, Katie recorded footage of her doing a cartwheel on the GW since I had talked about it the week prior. They are so sweet!!!

When I "came back to life," I was able to attend church with our brothers and sisters from the first week and it was just great! I love how God has already provided me with a church family and an English service if I move to China!

*Skye, Sophia and me at church

Here are some of the other things we did on the trip:

visited Bethel one last time (for now):

*on our way to Bethel



*singing together at Bethel
Explored Beijing a little bit more...

*shopping at Silk Street (and random lady)

*Tianamen Square where Scott and I were famous for being foreign

The week at TIP was lots of fun and time with students was so anointed and full of blessings! Here are some of the things we did with them:

Projects: making posters and commercials with our classes.

*Youf and I with some students


*me with some of my favorite students
Katie and I led the Science Club, and one night we had them break into teams and make bridges out of chop sticks and compete to see who's was strongest. That was fun!


We also did dorm visits in the evenings. Dorm visits were the highlight of my TIP experience (along with teaching diction). The girls were always so delighted to see me, and I them. And I loved how humbled and surprised they were when I remembered their names and found them in their dorm rooms. There were some pretty special times there. I cannot really put them into words. I became very close with one young woman there, and I asked her to give me a Chinese name. She took this very seriously and she gave me her family name so we are Chinese sisters! It warms my heart every time I think of it. I giggled with delight when I emailed her yesterday and signed it with the special name she gave me! :) If you want to know the name you have to ask... there is a story behind it.

*Dorm visits :)- OK, I admit... the girls convinced me to sing Michael Jackson's "Heal the World," to them before bed. It was HILARIOUS!

I still cannot find the right words to "sum it up." I don't know that I ever will. Experiences such as those in the last two weeks are not meant to be described with words in my opinion. The way I can describe it is to take all that I learned from my Chinese brothers and sisters, my ministry team from BFS and my family and friends supporting me in resources and prayer and LIVE IT.

Live:
the grace
the commitment
the integrity
the truth
the faith
the friendship
the blessings
the humility

and the love that only our Heavenly Father Above can provide.

*the photo my Chinese sister asked to take to symbolize our commitment to one another as friends.