Plans and Prayer Requests

I still can't believe it, but as of last Saturday, I am no longer a college student.  I graduated from Azusa Pacific University on Saturday, May 7th.  

 College was such a sweet, sweet season in my life, but now I am off to new adventures. 

Life takes off real fast from here on out.  In 4 days, I will start my journey to Ukraine!  I will meet up with my beautiful and quirky team on Friday night as we prepare for our big adventure.

We leave for the airport at 2am on Saturday (EARLY!).  I have been looking forward to this trip since October, and it's finally here.  I cannot wait to live life with these orphans and my team.  There are no weak links on the Ukraine Train and I have to admit that I'm a bit obsessed with them.  It was true love from the start and I am SO excited to see how God will work within this team of 10 crazies.  I pray that we will remain united and that our love for one another will transcend and overflow to the children, workers, and natives of Ukraine.  Choo Choo!

And then...the big move.  Mississippi.  I know that I usually live a pretty busy life and take on more than I should, but this is a bit extreme, even for me.  I land in the LAX airport at 1:40pm on June 8th to leave on another flight headed to Mississippi at 4:20.  I will arrive at Delta State University at about 3am, try to sleep for a few hours, and then partake in interviews all day in hopes of being hired by the perfect school.  I know that it's crazy, but it's not impossible.  I serve a God who is much bigger than delayed flights, emotional breakdowns, culture shock, and jet lag.  (But I would really appreciate prayers...especially for no delayed flights on June 8th!)  One of the things I'm most excited about with this move is the fact that I'm not doing it alone.  By the powerful grace of God, 3 of my friends from APU have also been accepted to Teach for America in the Mississippi Delta.

                                                    Rachel and Becca

                                                           Micah
It is incredible that the 4 of us get to journey together.  Please pray that we will be placed in schools that are close enough so that we are not separated.  The Mississippi Delta region is quite large, and we could possibly be placed 4 hours away from each other.  I love this group, and I am going to need them over these next 2 years. 

So now, I will stop procrastinating and continue to pack.  It is quite the overwhelming task because I'm packing for 2 very different adventures at the same time.  But I'm hopeful.  And if I work hard today, then I can play with my best friends tonight and maybe go karaoke-ing :)

Hoping to be productive,
Em

Tears

Apparently, the time of tears has arrived.  Graduation has not yet happened, but the floodgates have been opened.  I wish that I wasn't such a mess.  I wish that I were the type of person who could pull myself together well enough to be able to say really elegant goodbyes and last words.  But I'm not that person.  I'm the person who falls apart.  I cry.  All the time lately.  But the  more I think about it, the more I realize that my tears are not something to be ashamed of; they are a beautiful gift.

I think that tears are such a tangible way of showing people  how much they have meant to me and how greatly impacted I have been by the people who induce my tears.  My soul has been so deeply filled with the living water of Christ that has been poured into me by all of these friends, residents, mentors, and family members that I am preparing to leave behind.  It's like I don't know how to simply tell people that, so my tears are my way of showing people small glimpses of the fact that the living water in my soul has been because of them.  These tears would not be present if it were not for the waterfall moments inside my soul and for the well that has been continuously replenished to overflowing by all that has been these past 4 years. 

I pray that my uncontrollable tears really would be a testament to the impact that others have had on me.  I hope that as my tears fall, you would know that it is because you have meant so much to me and I will miss you very much.  There is no way for me to speak these intense emotions.  I don't know how to express it with words, hugs, gifts, or a big thank you sign in a way that would do it justice.  So I cry.  And I pray that my tears would speak louder than words and pictures and notes and long hugs.  My tears are the only appropriate response that I can find. 

So, to each of you who have invested in me, whether with small drops or entire lakes, I am eternally grateful for you.  I am sorry that i cannot find a way to say goodbye that is easier.  Tears are painful.  But I think that it would be much more painful to not have any tears.  I would much rather have an overflowing well that spills onto others instead of one that is isolated, dry and cracked.  Thank you for the living water that you have so graciously given me. 

Joyously and Tearfully looking forward to graduation tomorrow,
Emily