ok. i'm really back now...

wow! so mexico was AWESOME!!!
i'm dying to go back.

we got to help start and run a few vbs's at different churches, we did a street ministry outreach, we helped serve food that mr. jody (and lizzy) cooked, we went to a church service at movimiento de fe church and did a drama there, we also got to pray with people who needed healing from physical diseases and with people who needed prayer because they were just hurting. we made relationships with kids- kids that just want to be loved by someone. we all had our own little buddies while we were there and leaving them was one of the hardest things in the world. we all miss them and i know that each of us are praying that those kids grow to know Jesus and that they have a personal realtionship with Him. we want them to be strong Christians who stand up, stand out, and change the world. they are our baby brothers and sisters. we love them so much. i pray that even though they didn't understand our spoken language, that they understood our actions and our love. i pray that they experienced Jesus love through us.

you know, i didn't witness any miracles while i was there and i didn't have any moment where God just gave me goosebumps and caused me to pass out, but i did experience something even more important. i was given the privilege to show Jesus' love to little kids and to babies and even to adults and to older people. i didn't actually see anything in them change, but i know that i was planting seeds in those people by serving them. God uses us even when we don't realize it. you may never know whose life you touch just by handing them a plate of food or by smiling at them, but God does. that's why it's soooo important that we live our life- every aspect of it, every tiny detail, all of the mundane and boring parts, and of course all of the big parts- for God, as if He's sitting right there staring us in the face- because He is. and we affect people around us- even though sometimes we're unaware of it.

i was talking with one of my favorite people in the whole world- mr. danny musso. and he shared a really cool story with me about how God directed him in making a certain decision in his life. and he said something that really spoke to me- i guess it's kind of the root of this blog... he said that even if you feel like God's not using you, or if you feel like what you're doing isn't big enough, it's not true. God uses the little things. you may reach a million people in your lifetime, but it might not be from a pulpit in a church reaching all of those people at the same time- you may reach them one by one as you encounter them in everyday life.

that really really spoke to me. see, God used mr. danny to speak to me- and he didn't know that. he just shared what God had done in his life- just because it was so awesome- he wasn't trying to teach me a lesson or trying to minister to me through his story- but he did. God used him in a small way and i was affected by it.

how amazing!! God's like so cool. everything fits together with Him. all of the pieces that don't seem to make sense- all of a sudden come together when you're trusting Him.

so yeah, mexico was awesome. it definitely revived my passion for missions. i'm ready for the next trip.

hey, thanks for all of your prayers and support. we really couldn't have done it without you.
by the way- i know you guys were prayin cause it took us like five minutes to get across the border the first time- and we didn't even have to get out of the van on the way back. so that was a total God thing. all my peeps were praying!!! thank you Jesus.
and we stayed safe the whole time. no one got seriously sick- a few colds and sore throats (i'm guessing from all of the dirt blowing around in the air).
oh and i had a cough before the trip and i prayed that it would go away and of course it did. thanks you, Jesus!
i also prayed about a bunch of little things while i was in mexico- and God just answered me. like i lost a contact on the floor of the bathroom, searched and searched to find it, then i stopped and prayed that God would help me find it- two seconds later, there's the contact.
really cool stuff.
i guess God just likes to do stuff like that sometimes- just to remind of how real and of how big He is.
i love Him sooo much!


okay, now adjusting to home was pretty hard for me. you know, my four brothers are kind of crazy and it's hard to be patient with them. so my first few days home were kind of rough- don't get me wrong, i missed my family. i just had trouble getting used to all of the craziness again, but it's better now. i'm trying really hard to set a good example for them- like i said, you affect people more than you think.

now, tonight was the united concert!! it was SO INCREDIBLE!!!! i sweat more than i ever have before. it was crazy.
the music was great, and it was nice to have some rejuvination from the past couple of days.
i also met one of the coolest girls ever yesterday. her name is leanna pooley. and i got to hang with her at the concert. she's awesome- homeschools, skateboards, (she's actually from florida- her dad is a pastor there). but yeah, my dad and i got to go to pf changs with their family last night and i got to know leanna. really cool person- very down to earth, very real, very tall. lol.
but i'm sad cause she's leaving tomorrow morning and she's gonna miss refuge. :-(
maybe next time.

ummmm... what else do i want to say....

i guess i'm gonna say that at the concert i just got reminded of what it's all about. this generation is "united" as one to change the world. doesn't matter where we're from, what we've done, how bad we've acted, what we look like, where we go to church, etc... none of it matters. all that matters is that we keep our eyes focused on our God- that we keep our eyes set on Heaven, and that we share His love with others. and when we fall...

we get back up. hence "STAND UP, stand out, and change the world",

ok. i don't know about you, but i'm pumped. let's do this!!!