Make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue!!

Dear friends and family,

I see it's been some time since I've updated you on the journey... I must first tell you how much I continue to appreciate your prayers and thoughts, though the communication is at the min. I still feel your love and affection for me from a distance.

Since getting back from Christmas break, Jan 9th is when we started back up the internship with immediately taking on a project for the 23rd of January's Youth event/rally. We created from the beginning, a human video - that's a first for me! The focus and theme of the rally was "Influence", we were praying the students would really grasp that they are either influencing others or being influenced for the good or bad. The human video were posters, with hand written words of different situations people have been influenced by, negatively. Then it switches (still on posters being held up by 5 of us on stage, taking turns to put up our story of posters). The picture was 5 friends, that made small decisions that turned into consequences for their choices. Ending with a car accident, with alcohol and deceit involved. But one friend lived, with making the decision to be let out of the car of ignorance with friends not listening to her. It was very impactful for the students watching, you can view it on www.genignite.com if it interests you :)

Classes started back up the first week of February. Quick update on the 5 classes:

1. Writing and Research 2/art and theatre focus - working on a paper due next week, it's called "Close reading" of a phrase/word in a play, been reading Everyman and Hamlet - not my strongest trait, so please pray that the words and understanding will flow :)
2. Kingdom of God - This week talked about the 4 things concerning the Kingdom Of God on the earth - the preface, the problem, the promise and the prophecy. Excellent stuff - I've not been SO interested in hearing more of how we can be advancing the kingdom, while here only a short while longer!!! Eternity is forever, I'm encouraged to sow deeply into the time, money and relationships available, now for the New heaven and earth to come.
3. Leadership Practicum - Gave a presentation on Tuesday, called "Taxi Cab" - leaders count the cost before getting into the cab. Plan to plan, ahead of time!
4. Psychology of leadership - this is helping transform my thoughts on what leadership looks like, how I can transfer what i learn to others!! Just started reading "7 habits of highly effective people" by Steven Covey. Have you heard of it?
5. Personal reflection/Guatemala mission trip meetings - getting excited for this trip on March 19th-26th. Today, we went over possible expectations you might have and agendas need to be dropped, prepare to serve every moment of the day with everyone we come in to contact with!!

Last week was the church's mission expansion event. Called: Reach out celebration
Manna Church has partners all over the place, Sri Lanka, Brazil, Guyana, New Orleans, Virginia, Venezuala... They came in for this event, I was able to meet a few of the ministry partners and hear their testimony's of joy, hardship and courage through the many years of service to God. I got to help put on the children's VBS on Friday evening, they put me as the Games Station leader. Wahh!! Such a blast, but intimidating at first, due to not knowing the outcome. But God came through and gave me the boldness to delegate responsibilities with volunteers help, thank goodness! The children ages, 4-11 had so much fun. The theme was "God is real" taken from Jeremiah 10:10 :) We played 2 games, with a message behind how they relate to God being real and special and absolutely in love with them!!

Prayer points:
1. Paper due next week - diligence and perseverence to give it my best efforts and time!
2. Guatemala fundraising, open doors for that!
3. Devotion to God, and keeping my eyes on Him in this last stretch of the internship!
4. Vision/plan after the internship. On the radar is continue to live here in Fayetteville, working part time and being in ministry with the youth still and/or going to Guyana or Columbia to help in need of workers at an orphanage for 2-3 months.

God bless you and again, I continue to be amazed at the depth of God's love for me through YOU, your prayers, support and encouragement through e-mails, letters and texts=)!!!