time is flying!

I am amazed at how fast this summer is going!

This was a really long week. I feel like a lot happened.

As the days pass, camp becomes a little bit more difficult. We have had some really good days and we have had some really bad days. My heart just breaks for these kids. The way they treat each other is so sad. The way they feel about themselves is just as sad. I will say that it's been great to see a good amount of kids learning and growing. It brings me so much joy to hear them asking questions about God. Even watching them sing our silly camp songs is so great. It is a blessing to be here and teach these children about Jesus!

As long and hard as this week has been...it has also been really great. I interviewed for a job on tuesday and got a phone call that night! After I listened to the voicemail I screamed to the others that I got it. We all celebrated and I cried. The only thing i could do was cry. I had just been offered a job doing what I love(taking care of babies) The job is full time with benefits. A perfect match! At that moment it was clear that God was providing for me what I need to make his calling on this season in my life happen. I prayed for a healthy confidence and the right words for the interviews and God sure did give that to me. I will be starting that after this internship ends.

It's good to be here. It is so different but I am thankful. I am most thankful that I am forming healthy relationships. I am meeting new people and getting out of my comfort zone. I have never felt so free to be who God has created me to be. This is a season of newness and I am ready to embrace it.

I can't wait th live in Hartford after the summer. I can't wait to spend free time meeting neighbors, playing with the kids on the block, and working with HCM as much as possible.

Everyday God teaches me a little bit more about who he is. All I NEED IS JESUS! That is so refreshing!

Please be praying:

I still need to raise about 600 dollars in a month and a half. so you could be praying for that. I also could use prayers for continued confidence in the Lord's plan for this season! I would really apprecicate prayers that I am able to love with the love that Jesus has given me. That through my love people would know Him. Pray for contunued safety and peace in the house. Pray for the peacc of God to rest in my heart! Pray for my team and all of the children at camp!

I'm falling asleep as I type...update later

Whatever's in front of me Help me to sing hallelujah

Week 1 of camp is done and tomorrow we start week 2. Camp is going great...but it is really challenging. It's so evident that these children need Jesus. Our mission is to show them who Jesus really is. We are here to love and care for them. We are here to teach them what it means to live a life that represents Christ. I love the curriculum that we are using because I feel like it doesn't sugar coat the gospel but it reveals it in a true way that children will understand. Maybe it's not the curriculum but Amy( my director) who explains things so well. I love working with her.

I have the youngest group of children. I have all of the 6 and 7 year olds. Let me tell you they are precious. It's not an easy task though to keep 9 of them under control. A few of them just break my heart with how upset they get with things. I feel like God has blessed me with a compassionate heart towards these children. And I really only know compassion because Jesus had compassion on me. Some of the interns have groups that are pretty difficult. Cara and Brittany have the older kids. Their groups have children who are really angry and unhappy. Pray for them please. It's really hard to watch the kids get so angry. It's really hard to see the beginnings of violent outbursts in them.

Aside from camp, things here are really good. I am getting to know the other interns and other people involved with HCM. We have dinner every Tuesday at a new home every week. This is one way we are getting to know the people on a deeper level who have been involved. Each week has been a blessing. To share a meal with people who are just as passionate for this ministry always makes for good conversation.

I am starting the job search and have already had some postitive feedback. Cara, Brittany, and I really want to remain in Hartford. There are a few options to where we could live. The idea of settling in here is growning a little more exciting but a little more scary as well. And as homesick as I get sometimes God just works a little bit more and reminds me of the new relationships and the new opportunities He has made for me here.

This week I was reminded of what it means for me to be deeply in love with Jesus. With every devotion and bible study it seemed like a reoccuring theme. The idea of coming back to Jesus and making sure that He is our identity was the focus of the sermon at church today. At thursday night bible study we talked about intamacy and had an extended time of personal time with God. It was so needed. It's so easy to get wrapped up in ministry and group studies and devotions and not take enough time with just us and God.

It has been great talking and catching up with some friends in San Diego a little bit this week. Being able to talk to Shawn today was great. I will say that some parts I had to laugh through my tears. Although we all have unity in Jesus...distance is hard. But i feel like I'm doing better with this part of my life :)

I know this is long but I have a few prayer requests.

• Please pray for camp. That these kids just come to know Christ. Pray that we will be obedient to God's purpose for us here.
• Pray for our saftey- last night we all woke up to the sound of gunshots. They sounded pretty close and a few of us were pretty frightened. I was unable to sleep well the rest of the night.
  
• To go with the request above please pray for the safety of the people in this community. Pray for peace and restoration in the hearts of those in the community.
• Pray for my job search and the prep needed for life after summer.

Thanks for reading. May you seek Jesus with joy this week!

Hebrews 12:1-3
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

The shadow proves the sunshine

This has been such a great weekend. Saturday we woke up early and went on a kayaking adventure. The weather was supposed to be pretty bad but ended up super nice. We were out on the lake for about 4 hours. It was so beautiful. I was reminded once again to how much God loves us by being in His creation! I wish I could describe to you how pretty it was out there. For the last hour on the lake we just hung out without paddling and talked. It was great. We went to Karl's house (Brittany's boyfriend) for dinner. It was such a good time of fellowship. We listened to David Crowder on the way home. Car worship is great! :) On the way to the lake we went to Goshen and Canaan and of course we all had fun with that! These are all details that you guys probably don't really care about but this blog is also for me to remember things haha :)

This morning we did our cleaning and grocrey shopping for the week. Trader Joes :) A little taste of San Diego I have missed! We went to church at Glory Chapel today. The service was at 3pm. Not that weird considering the old 9pm Flood service. Once again, I don't think this is the church for me. Finding a church is never easy but it sure is interesting to check out new ones. Me and Cara left with a headache. It was very loud. The preacher yelled into the microphone the whole time. I don't think I have heard anyone say "amen" that much in my life haha! His message was on Job. He said some really good things. I really like how he emphasized that no matter what we already have victory (through Christ) That because of the cross we already have victory over death and the devil. It was nice to walk to church. It was also pretty cool being at a church where we fit in. It is probably one of the most multicultural churches in the North end. I feel like everyone was there to worship the living God...that it wasn't just routine. For the most part I felt pretty comfortable aside from some differing views and practices.

The evening was great. Cara and I spent most of the evening on the porch with some kids and younglifers! It was great to relax and talk. I really like Cara. I am glad we are roommates:) When we went inside we continued to hang out and talk and share more of our lives with each other. We eventually got super silly and it was a lot of fun. And natural feeling. I am really settling in here and I love it! Speaking of that...Brittany, Cara, and I really desire to stay here in the house or somewhere close after the summer. God is really showing us a lot through this community. Please be praying for this:)

Camp starts tomorrow...technically today haha. I get the little ones again this year! We are the Open Ocean Explorers! Please be praying for us and the children. We really want to show them who Jesus is this summer.

I have one more prayer request. I have been having a hard time with missing home. I am mostly missing my friends. I have had a few conversations with some friends this week that have been pretty difficult. I am going to be honest and say that I thought I would be talking to some of you more. I am sad we don't...but it's okay. We are all busy. I know it's harder to be involved in your lives and that was one of my biggest fears. I was afraid that as strong as our friendships are that they may slowly fade. It kills me to think that. So just please pray for my heart in that. That I would find pure joy in the place God has me and with the people he has placed in my life. Please pray that I would find comfort in His embrace when I feel lonely and afraid.

If I can be praying for you guys in any way...let me know! love you friends!

I need to get to bed...

Julie

Today is a new day...

It was one of those mornings where you stay in bed as long as possible. It was cold and raining and a little gloomy. The alarm went off several times and I ignored it. I got out of bed and laughed when I looked in the mirror. I went to bed with wet hair...not a good idea. It was one of those mornings where you don't care what you look like. I walked to the kitchen. Coffee or Breakfast? The choice was easy. It was one of those mornings where you only need caffeine to function.

We read Habbakuk and discussed God's sovereignty. It's so freeing to be reminded of God's plan and provision for our lives. The reminder to wait patiently for His will to be done is a humbling moment. To also be reminded that He is the one who makes us strong is a very sweet conviction!

We got a lot done today. I feel pretty productive. We are making progress on camp stuff for next week. We have more kids signed up than we thought we would. I really feel like this summer is going to be great. Please pray that we can show Jesus to the children this summer. The life of Jesus is our focus in this summers curriculum.

I am still praying that God would provide the rest of my support. I ask that you please pray for that for me...also that I would remain patient and trusting.

I am so happy to be here :)

Habbakuk 3:18-19
yet I will rejoice in the Lord!
I will be joyful in the God of my salvation!
The Sovereign Lord is my strength!
He makes me as surefooted as a deer,
able to tread upon the heights.

Fundraising

Hey friends!

So I woke up this morning and as I woke up God spoke to me. He said "Trust me more"
It's hard to explain that exact moment but it was really good. I was excited and ready.

Later tonight I got a fundraising update. My mom's friend who was going to give a pretty significant amount (about as much as I need to finish) can no longer do so. God works quickly and called me to trust Him.

I trust that God will provide. If you feel like you want to help support me in anyway I would really appreciate it. Prayer is most important. That is what I need the most.
I also need about 600 dollars to finish this fundraising. If you feel led to support me financially you can send a check with my name in the memo line to:

Hartford City Mission
P.O. Box 320397
Hartford, CT 06132

Daily God is showing me things. And I am so grateful for His provision and love.

End of the first week

Week one in Hartford is over.

This update is going to be a little bit less detailed than others.

Thursday we met with Chris from the Catholic Worker (an organization kinda like ours) It was a really good meeting . It was difficult to listen to though. He gave us a lot of History about the city and he also gave us some current statistics:

• connecticut is the richest state.
• hartford is the 6th poorest city, not because it’s doing better, but because others are doing worse.
• more girls have babies here than kids who graduate high school
• the north end has a median annual income of $6000, that’s half of the national poverty level
• home ownership rates are the lowest they’ve ever been, <10%
• 1/2 of the population can read at the first grade level
• every child knows someone who has been shot/murdered
• unemployment rate is high, and very few are gainfully employed
• 1/3 african american, 1/3 caribbean, 1/3 puerto rican. <>

We then took a tour of the city and those statistics became very real during the tour.
We worked with the after school program on Thursday and Friday. It was great. I am so excited to work with the kids this summer. I am so excited to see how God is going to work in their lives.

Thursday we met with Butch, a resident of Hartford who helped start the Connecticut chapter of the Black Panthers. He gave us a history lesson about Hartford in the 60's and 7o's. It was so interesting to hear it from his perspective.

Friday we had our first YoungLife. It was a lot of fun and I can't wait to get to know the students even more. I got to see some of the street leaders I worked with last summer and that was great. I am so excited to reconnect and be in their lives!

We get weekends off this summer so we were finally able to slow down and rest. We went up a really cool mountain yesterday(probably the equivalent to Cowles in SD only much prettier) It was beautiful! It is considered Connecticut's most scenic hike and view at the top. Today I officially started the church searching process. We all went to this baptist church in Bloomfield. From first impression I don't think it's the church for me but I wouldn't be opposed to checking it out again. We then went to Enders forest and hiked along this great trail in a foresty and rocky waterfall area. It was beautiful. All I could do was reflect on the beauty of God!

God is working in me. I was struggling this morning. I don't really know why but I woke up feeling really weird. Hard to explain but as I was walking into church I was convicted to change. I prayed for a while during worship. I find comfort in His presence. He has been revealing to me that sometimes I am more of the problem(whatever it may be conflict fear ect) than I think I am. Not to get down on myself or anything but I have more responsibility for my feelings than I think I do sometimes. I'm not sure if that makes sense. It's kinda hard to explain. This is all so good though. I am thankful that He is active. I am thankful that I am building healthy relationships with new people.

Prayer requests: I am feeling homesick. well friendsick I guess. I really miss everyone a lot. Although it's a lot easier than I expected it to be, I am still really missing you my friends back in San Diego. Hearing about exciting things make me really happy for you guys but bummed out that I can't be there to celebrate with you!!! So you could just pray that God works in my heart to make me content with this situation...that change is not easy but it is good. Pray that the new friends I am making will become a great community. Please pray for unity in the house. There are not really any problems in this area but it's always a good thing to pray for. Pray for God to continue to reveal truth!

I should be getting to bed now. I'll check in later this week!

Intern Getaway

Let me just start this off by saying everything is going great here. God is working in our house and preparing it for the summer!

These past few days we went to a Camp Wonpaset which is about an hour away in Litchfield. The camp is in the renovation process. It went bankrupt in 97 and has really fallen apart since then. So we went there as a team to bond and to serve by helping in those renovations. It was a really beautiful place. There was so many trees and a huge lake. I could have done without the mosquitoes and other random bugs but it's okay. This camp for a lot of us was out of our comfort zone. Just because it was cold and the cabins we were in were pretty gross( cob webs everywhere and bunk beds that were falling apart and super dusty) The only running water was for the toilets. Needless to say, none of us showered. Although it was not what we were used to, the beauty of the nature around us was so worth it.

Those few days were really big for us as a team and individually. For me the biggest moment was probably the first day. Howard(the camp director) was telling us what our task for the next two days would be. Cleaning and painting a cabin, trash clean up and roofing a house. WHAT?! When I found out that I had to climb up a ladder and hang out on a roof for hours applying shingles...I was not excited. As unexcited as I was, I climbed up shaky and afraid. So there I was sitting paralyzed by fear waiting for more direction. I was thinking a lot and trying not to be fearful. Then it hit me like a bus! I thought to myself "I will not let this fear defeat me!" I took a deep breath and stood up. I walked over to get the shingles and a hammer and start the job that was given to us. It felt good to give up that fear. I knew, with the stregnth of God, I could be on that roof. What a freeing feeling!

The bonding parts of the weekend were also really great. We played some games and had our meals together. Last night we gave our life stories. That was so good! I see so much hope and beauty in the stories of this team. I am encouraged by the work God has done in all of our lives up to this point. I am confident that He will continue to work in and through us this summer. I was really pleased with the vulnerablity of the other interns. I too was able to share about things that up until a few weeks ago I was scared to admit to myself out loud. As we sat around the fire and shared about our lives, God was near. We prayed together after and during prayer I had such peace that this summer, this new adventure is right.

Today was our last day at the camp and we had another time of group prayer which was great. We prayed about everything to do with HCM basically. Amy told us that they( Rex, Amy, Russell and a few others) have been praying for months a few days a week. They have been praying for the ministry but they have also been praying for each of us as a team and individually. I just thought that was really humbling.

Tonight we went to Scott and Rebecca's house for dinner. They are extremely involved with HCM and Scott is on the board. It was such a good time of fellowship. I am blessed so much. I have been away from San Diego almost 2 weeks and it has flown by. And honestly it is a lot easier than I thought it would be. I do miss you all so much. There are times where I just want to be back at home with you guys but I know that's not what God wants for me right now. Maybe someday. My desire is to be obedient and faithful and I want to do that in Hartford :)

1 Peter 4:7-11
The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.

This is our key verse for the summer. I have been reflecting and praying about these things. As a prayer request you could be praying that I would really let this sink into my heart and live this way. I am so excited to serve and love this community. I can't wait to use the gifts that God has blessed me with. I do think It's interesting that this section is started with the direction to be self controlled and clear minded. So that would be my main prayer request and that is my main focus this next week. What does that look like? And how?

I love you all! Praying for you!

First day

I woke up this morning and drove to church. While driving and as I walked into the building I had a moment where I realized and thought "wow this is where I live, this is my new life" And though it was a really big moment, it felt right. The sermon this morning was pretty good. It was all about loving God and loving others. Fitting for this summer, fitting for life :)

I went out to lunch and had coffee with Patti. (One of last years interns) That was great. We connected really well. It was great to hear her thoughts and about her life.

I left straight from there to get to Hartford. Driving into the city was exciting! I walked in the door and was greeted with a friendly hug and smile from Amy. Amy is our boss and camp director. The other interns started showing up and joy filled the house. Cara, my roommate showed up first. She is great! I can tell I am really going to enjoy working with her. Steve and Brittany( from last summer) showed up next. That was exciting! Alyssa was next to show up. We got all settled in and I really feel like I was already able to bond with Cara!

HCM put a huge dinner on for us. We ate good food and got to know each other a bit better. It was good to see everyone from last summer again! Rex, a board member and one of the guys who lives upstairs, shared with us a passage in Hebrews 5 about Jesus' time on earth. That in His time here He learned obedience through suffering. Rex shared with us that we will do the same this summer. We may not directly endure suffering but we will no doubt witness and live within the suffering of the community.We will meet children this summer who have suffered and that will not be east. This summer will be challenging, but we will grow. Russell challenged us to seek to find Jesus in other people. Our mission is to be like Christ but to be able to see Christ in other people is huge.

Tomorrow we leave for a few days to work at a camp a few hours away. We will be doing some service projects and some intern bonding time. That will be great!

Please pray that God would give us the eyes to see Him in this community. That we would be able to serve each other. That we would love each other with the love described in 1 John! Please pray for unity.

God is so good! He is alive in working in all of us.