My Thursday Afternoons!

I started mentoring five sweet girls every Thursday afternoon last week.
Soooo..we have met twice so far and man...GOD SHOWED UP!!
What a blessing they are to me!!
I bring my HUGE picnic blanket and sit on the quad and we just talk about life. eat cookies too! haha!
COMMUNITY AT ITS FINEST
We talk about how they are REALLY doing, there families and friends, and of course how they are doing with God.
AHHH, it is beyond refreshing.
Just what I need towards the end of the week.
I love investing in lives and just plain loving on these girls.
I truly believe God is going to do great and mighty things this year through these girls.
Please be praying that we will truly bond as Sisters in Christ!
Being open and transparent.
Taking Risks.
Seeking Prayer.
I can't wait to see what He does through this sweet time!
Be praying :)

The Past 3 Weeks

Do you ever just feel like you are drowning?

You have multiple To-Do-Lists. Tests. And a Crazy Life.

I feel like I have been running around campus like a crazy woman.

And do you ever feel like your heart is just so heavy?

This has been me for the past 3 weeks. Maybe longer.

I kept having thoughts of, "Lindsay, you're not good enough. You are failing at school. You are failing at life. No one cares about you. No one loves you." 

Do you know who these were coming from?

Satan.

I was letting him tell me who I was.

NOT OKAY.

The Lord said, "Lindsay, My sweet daughter, I love you. I understand. I am with you. No need to fear or worry. I got you right in the palm of my hand."

For weeks on end I could not figure out why I felt this way, but it was because I was letting the devil get into my head.

I had a break down almost everyday because I couldn't take it anymore. I was sick of feeling this way.

I finally sat down on the quad one evening after a hard day and started talking/yelling at God. 

I said, "MAKE IT STOP! Lord get these thoughts out of my head. I am LOVED. I am SMART. I am CARED FOR. I am a GEM. Satan get out of here. You are not wanted. Leave me now!"

I was bold with the Lord. 

I looked back on these past few weeks and yeah a TON of bad things happened, but that doesn't define who I am in Christ. He loves me just the way I am. He loves me even if school is hard for me. He loves me even when I lose focus on Him. 

He loves me ALWAYS.

I had to remind myself that My timing isn't His timing. 

I wanted SO badly for my mommy to get better from being sick and hurting immediately, but that wasn't His plan. It was going to take a few weeks.

I wanted to ACE my quiz in physiology last week. I studied for what it seemed like forever. Did I ace it? nope.

I feel like I am trying incredibly hard, but the Lord isn't helping. 

BUT you know what, He still loves me. 

I may not understand what the Lord is doing in my life right now, BUT good golly I am going to trust in His Mighty Plan!

One of those precious moments...

This past month has been a whirlwind of crazy.

I started back at Samford for my sophomore year, recruitment practices, studying for tests, and so on.

Safe to say...I was pretty busy.

I felt like a crazy woman running around campus trying to get everything done.

Things kept happening in my life that were unexpected and crazy and finally I just broke down.

It was the night of Bid Day.

We had our party and I headed back to my dorm for a nice long sleep.

BUT, I sat down on my bed and my heart felt heavy.

I needed someone to talk to, someone to cry with, someone to listen to me.

I called my BIG.

She was studying of course, but dropped everything to come and talk with me.

We met infront of the library at 10:30pm, and on those steps I started to tell her everything that was going on in my life.

I was struggling with school. I missed my mom and dad. I was still unsure about my future and what God wants for my life. 

And then I said one last phrase, "My joy is gone. I don't feel like a light anymore."

After that...I lost it.

Just laying on my BIG crying with tears streaming down my face.

I didn't feel like myself for some reason.

My BIG held me and stroked my hair and rubbed my back.

Then when I put myself somewhat together, she took my shoulders and looked me right in the eye and said, "LITTLE, YOU ARE A JOY TO BE AROUND AND A LIGHT IN THIS WORLD. YOU ARE PRECIOUS. YOU ARE A DAUGHTER OF THE KING AND A CHILD OF GOD."

And I cried some more...of course.

Sometimes you need someone to just shake you, look you in the eye, and tell you how wonderful you truly are in the sight of God and others around you.

I had forgotten who I was.

I asked her, Well how do I get back to being my old self?

She said, "Do what the old Lindsay would do. Go sit on the quad, read your Bible, journal, blog, read a good book, pray to your Father for a while, and rest."

What great advice that was! 

After this, we went on to talk about life and other things.

I went on to tell her how blessed I was to call her my Sister in Christ and AOII. 

I told her my pref story, which had her in it. 

She was the sole reason I decided to go AOII.

We cried together thanking God for His wonderful plan for us to be friends.

I have always had a hard time calling someone my Best Friend since high school because I have been hurt many a time by someone who called me there Best Friend, but tonight was different.

I looked my BIG in the eyes and said, "I just want to tell you that you are one of my Best Friends."

And again...we cried together.

After this, she looked up at me and said, "Can I pray over you, Little?" YES!

And let me tell you. This girl is a Prayer Warrior. 

She prayed passionately and fervently. Such Joy and Zeal in her words. 

To have someone pray over you is something so special.

My BIG is one precious woman. I am blessed by her heart for the Lord and care for others.

What a beautiful picture of community and love! 

I am ever so thankful for Christina Lynn Rickman. 

What a blessing her friendship is to me.

She reminded me who I was in Christ. Told me that I mattered. Told me that she loved me. And just held me in her arms. 

Sisters Forever and always.

I love you Christina.

Dare to be Different

I'm going to be honest with you.

Camp life is much different than normal day to day life.

But should it?

I am going to answer this later.

So, I came home from camp on a Sunday afternoon. I greeted my wonderful parents and hugged and laughed and smiled with them. I sat them down and told them everything God did this summer. What a wonderful night it was!

Then Monday rolled around, and I was up at 6am getting ready for the day ahead of me.

I'm sorry! WHAT?! 6 AM???

Yep!

I was headed to chemistry class.

Lucky me, right?

NOPE!

For Nursing School, I needed to take this class, so not even 24hours home, and I was back to crackin those books trying desperately to understand this nonsense they call chemistry. (I'm going to ask the Lord when I'm in Heaven how He came up with all this crazy talk my teacher tried to teach me! HAHA)

Well, a good 4 weeks later I was done.

BUT, where was I?

Did I grow in my faith that month? not much.

I was so focused on this class that I put aside learning anything else but Chemistry.

Did I live my life differently like I wanted to.. not really.

This utterly scares me. to death.

What am I gonna be like at school when I'm taking 4 classes and a lab?!?!

A light bulb went off tonight in my head.

Here we go!

Sure camp life was incredible. I learned an extreme amount in a short period. BUT ya know what. The Lord is still working in and through me here in Texas and soon to be Alabama back at school. 

Your mindset must be continually searching after the Lord. Seeking Him fully with everything you have.

So, if I go a day without thinking about the Lord and loving Him. What use was that day? 

The Lord is constantly yelling at me, "Lindsay, Come Back My Child. I Miss You. Run Back To Me." 

And when you do, like I am tonight, His arms are open SO wide with a smile on His BIG Face.

Let Him hold you in His arms. Let Him cradle you when you are worried and scared or even when you just need Him.

Take camp life back with you. Or in another person's case, take your summer to school with you. Teach others what you've learned, BUT remember every person needs to still be filled up with Him.

This is a mistake I make a whole lot in my life.

I love to teach people what I learn about God, as you all know from my past blogs. But, I give and give and give until there's nothing left to give away. Don't do this. Give and receive from the Lord. Fill yourself up with His Word and Prayer. 

My life at camp was crazy. I was LOUD, while doing insane cheers, I was CRAZY with my cabin, I was EMPATHETIC towards my girls and there hard situations, I was DIFFERENT. 

BUT that life, should be the same here at home or at school or at church and everywhere.

Why just be a servant at camp?

Why just pore into girls' lives at camp?

Why be crazy only at camp?

WHY NOT BE ON FIRE FOR GOD ALL THE TIME?!?

So, let's do it!

Together.

Go back to school or back home or wherever you are in life, and start jumping for Jesus. 

Seek Him in everything. 

Let's go!

God Bless!!!

Never Stop Jumping

First, I want to start and say that I am sorry I haven't been blogging lately. I got back from my session at Pine Cove a few weeks ago and have been taking some time to reflect and think about everything I have gone through and learned in the last 6 weeks away at camp. Let me tell you it was a whole lot. 

Now I could tell you stories all day and write a 20 page blog post of everything God did this Summer, but I pretty much just want to tell you the BIG things. So here we go.

Did you know that our God is fun-loving?

Yeah, He likes to smile. 

He likes to laugh. 

He likes to dance. 

He likes to jump for joy.

And so on.

For all my life, I have always said "God is so powerful and mighty and perfect." 

And YES He is, but He is so much more than just that. 

Our Heavenly Father is fun and a joy to talk to and hangout with.

I learned this from my new friend and role model, Reagan. 

Her favorite thing to do when she is at home is to go to the park and hangout with God on the swing-set and monkey bars.

HOLD UP!

You mean I can go swing with God?

YESSSS!!! 

How cool is that?!

Our God wants us to take time and have fun with Him. So, why not go and talk to Him while your swinging or jumping around the Jungle Gym?

I learned that God listens to us, intently.

There were times when I felt I could not walk another step, catch another frisbee, or jump another time, BUT the Lord always listened to my prayers of help. He would take my feet and put His feet in my place. There were times I felt the Lord jumping in club (worship) with me. The Lord cheered me on. 

There was this one time at Club where I was just physically exhausted from the week and I prayed that the Lord would send me my Senior Counselor, TomTom, to come and jump with me and my girls and stay energized. I KIDD YOU NOT, 5 seconds later, guess who showed up? TomTom. 

The Lord listens to us.

BUT, here's the catch. 

The Lord will always listen, but sometimes He might have different plans in mind for you.

Picture this: 

It was week four in the middle of the week, and I was thinking about what I was going to get to be next week. I knew in my heart that I wanted to stay at the Ranch instead of base camps, because I feel the Lord has called me to 6th and 7th graders (I know I'm crazy, but I don't care. 6th and 7th graders have my heart). 

So, I asked TomTom if it was selfish of me to want to stay at the Ranch another week with a cabin. She replied, "No, it's not selfish at all. God gave this passion for a reason. So go to Him and pray about it deeply."

So I did.

Let me tell you, I prayed passionately all week. over and over and over again.

It got to be time for cabin assignments. My name wasn't called for Clementine. Not for Cheyenne. Not for Work Crew. And then they started reading off Base Camps. 

My name was the first girl called.

WHAT?!?

But I prayed passionately!

The Lord said, "LeapFrog, I have bigger things in store for you at Base Camp. You are not needed at the Ranch this week. The Ranch will be fine without you. Now pack your bag and go serve."

So, I packed my bag and headed to Houston.

I found out I had a cabin of 6 sweet 1st grade girls. My Mooloolaba nuggets as I call them. (Mooloolaba is a cabin name btw)

They melted my heart.

One camper, Little Emma, would tug on my shirt almost everyday and say, "LeapFrog! LeapFrog! I have a secret to tell you." She would motion for me to come closer. And she would whisper ever so quietly in my ear, "I love you very very much, Leapfrog!"

MY HEART IMMEDIATELY MELTED.

My little girls were precious, but a handful.

I thought to myself, What can a tiny 1st grader understand?

So, the Lord told me to tell them about His love for each of them.

I went around the circle to each girl telling them that the Lord is CRAZY about them and SINGS and DANCES over them. 

The girl's faces lit up. They had no idea that their Father loved them that much.

Such an easy lesson, but rich with truth. 

Even a 1st grader can understand a few things.

So, remember the Lord listens intently, but His plan for your life is far greater than you could ever imagine.

Next, I learned what it looks like to have a pure heart.

It says in Matthew 5: 8, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God."

At first, I was like...what does that mean?

Does it mean to try and be more kind to people?

Does it mean to love people more?

Does it mean to try and be a better person?

NO.

It means to make your life look more like Christ's.

How do I do that?

Prayer. And reading about who Jesus was on Earth.

So, I dove in.

I love reading about who my Father is. 

And let me tell you, I learned a lot.

I encourage you to read the Gospels because the Lord is so present and we can learn a whole lot from how He lived His life while on Earth. 

 He spent time with people, but also alone. He knew He needed time in fellowship, but also just Him and His Father.

Sometimes the least amount of words is the most needed in a situation. The Lord only speaks when necessary. His words are simple sometimes. We do not always have to speak to people so eloquently. He also showed us through His actions how to love deeply. Take a look at how He lived His life because it is worth your time.

So, remember to be praying for a pure heart.

I learned what it means to be a servant.

This is something I did not know I struggled with.

A servant is someone who takes the initiative. 

I remember walking to class with another counselor and as we were walking she was picking up trash along the road. 

I would have never thought to do this.

It just wasn't my mindset.

BUT it should be.

To serve with a happy heart.

Doing things without being asked to.

Did I put that trash on the ground? NO. BUT should I pick it up anyways? YES, because the Lord calls us to be servants.

I learned that prayer is powerful.

I had a camper who was honestly going through much more than an average 6th grader should be going through at her age or at any age for that matter. 

I read her camper profile and started tearing up.

I thought to myself, What words am I going to say to her? Nothing I say can take away the pain and struggle in her life. 

So, I went to my good friend, Jackie or Cookie, for some good ol prayer time.

I told her my situation and she said, "Leapfrog, let's go pray together about it."

So, we sat down for a good 20-30 minutes and prayed passionately over my camper. 

It was a time I would never forget, just praying over my little camper, her family, and her heart.

The Lord blessed me with time to talk with her, and He allowed her to be transparent with me. 

I will never forget this moment I had with her. Sweet time of healing and love.

Lastly, I learned that you need to let the Lord use you and speak through you.

I learned quickly that the words from my mouth were not my own. BUT God's words.

There were times I left Bible study not knowing exactly what I said, because the Lord was just using me as His vessel. Those times were sweet. 

It's a cool experience to go through because your Heavenly Father who is crazy powerful and mighty used you, a little sinful person, to shake the kingdom and bring glory to His name.

HOW COOL?!

I hope you have experienced this or will in the near future.

I had a talk with one of my campers Week Four and she was a little a.d.d. So she could never look me in the eye when she talked to me because she got distracted so easily. BUT we were sitting on a picnic table and all of a sudden she looked me right in the eye and said, "Leapfrog, I need to tell you something. Kids at my school make fun of me. They tell me my laugh is funny. They all laugh at me and poke fun." Tears started streaming down her face. 

WHAT?!

Now to me someone making fun of my laugh is not a big deal to me. Who cares?! It's a laugh. 

BUT to a 6th grader it is a big deal. Image is a big deal.

I looked her right in the eyes and I said, "Did you know that the ONLY reason you laugh is because God laughs. If He didn't laugh, then we wouldn't laugh. right? We are made in His image. In His likeness. So, we smile because He smiles. We sing because He sings. We are joyful because He is joyful. Your laugh is perfect because He created it."

HOLD UP! EXCUSE ME!

But, I had never even thought about that before when I was telling her this. 

The Holy Spirit intervened and spoke through me. little me.

How awesome is our God?!

It was exactly what she needed to hear too. A light bulb just turned on in her head.

It was bliss.

So, let the Lord use you for His glory. When you allow this to happen, amazing things will occur. 

So, safe to say, GET READY!

Those were a few things that I learned while working at the Pine Cove Ranch.

Now that I'm home it is another ball game.

I don't have 8 girls to keep track or having a day to day schedule or a specific time to get in the word or anything.

It is weird.

BUT something to remember is that the Lord can still use me, even at home or at college. Not just at camp. 

One thing I will remember is Mary Floppins told me is to remember the same God at camp is the same God at home. He is always with you. Don't leave Him at camp.

So True.

I am beyond excited to go back to school and tell others what I learned at camp, but also to live my life differently. 

Take what I learned and apply it. 

And to also.... 

KEEP LEARNING.

KEEP LEANING INTO THE LORD. 

KEEP ASKING THE LORD FOR JOY AND ENERGY. 

KEEP PRAYING TO HIM. 

KEEP READING HIS WORD.

Our journey doesn't end at camp. 

So, I am going to never stop jumping for Jesus!

P.S. I want to thank all of the precious counselors who taught me SO much this summer. God bless you all. OH!Opanga, Labradorable, Pinny, Pia, Chinny, Peaches, TomTom, Apples, Sweet Apple, OmniPrincess, Lucy, Cookie, NopeySopey, Floppins, Meeko, Penguins, Howie, Professor M, BB, and many more! LOVE YOU ALL! The Lord used you in incredible ways. God Bless!

My First Cabin, Clementine Five!

This is a little late, but here we go.

I had my first cabin Week Two at Pine Cove Ranch!

I was blessed to have some great 6th grade girls in Clementine Five.

They were incredibly precious!

So, of course I was nervous about my first cabin, but the Lord calmed my heart. 

I was put in a cluster with such great friends to lean on all week. So precious.

So, I'm jumping in the gauntlet (a huge welcoming for the campers) and my name finally gets called to go back to my cabin and meet my girls for the first time.

I run back to clementine where I meet my Senior Counselor, Apples, who gives me encouragement before I go ahead and meet my cabin. So Sweet!

I walk in and meet their parents and the girls. Just answering questions and having small talk. 

After the parents left, we had our first cabin meeting going over rules and the schedule and such.

Once we were done we headed to flag and dinner. 

At this point, it hit me "Ohh hey, I'm a counselor." CRAZY!!!

I can't tell you enough how much I LOVED my girls. 

Although by Monday my patience was running thin.

I remember on monday during F.O.B. (flat on back, aka time to rest in the cabin for an hour), Apples came by to check on me. She said, "Leap Frog, how are you doing?" My answer, "I'm good....(then tears start flowing). Don't get me wrong I loved my girls, but my patience with them was getting low. Apples looked at me and said, "It's okay to cry. I know it can be overwhelming, but you are capable."

That moment I learned I could not do this on my own. I have to rely on the Lord for everything. 

When my girls were asking me constant questions like, "Hey Leap Frog, when's dinner? What time is it? What's my next activity? Can I wear sandals? What's the theme night tonight? What are we doing next?" But, finally I just told my girls to stop asking about the future and to live in the present and enjoy it because you won't get it again. After that little talk, no more questions. Bliss!

Then it came time for Bible Study, and I was nervous. BUT, I prayed before for the Lord to speak through me, and He totally did!!

I got SO excited each day for Bible Study and my girls LOVED it! They asked great questions and understood what I was saying. It was bliss!

Then from activity to activity class and from meal to meal and so on, I was praying over my girls for them to understand how much the Lord LOVED them and cared for them. I have never prayed so much and long for a group of people before.

Then came my hang-times (one on ones with each camper). I was talking with this one girl and at the end of our conversation I felt lead to speak wisdom into her and pray over her. Then after I said Amen, I looked up at her and she was crying. I said, "what's wrong, are you okay?" And she preceded to tell me, "Leap Frog, no one's ever told me how much God loves me or cares for me, or told me I'm a leader or that I'm precious." My heart bursted I'm pretty sure. The Lord spoke through me in such a beautiful way. This moment will always be with me.

So as my week progressed, my girls kept asking more questions and more questions about Jesus. 

At one point they asked me if we could take our one hour of F.O.B. to just read the gospel. UHMM... YES OF COURSE WE CAN!!!

They yearned for growth and maturity. 

Now, these girls were not always perfect, but they sure did warm my little heart. 

Throughout this week a few things I learned:

-Ask the Lord for more patience.

-Rely FULLY on the Lord for everything.

-Love on my girls even when I feel I don't have anything left to give.

-Ask the Lord for Joy each morning.

-I can't do anything on my own.

-Let the Lord use me.

I could go on, but this is the big things.

I am BEYOND thankful for getting this job at Pine Cove Ranch. 

I love investing in girls and loving on them and growing in my faith. 

I will always remember my first cabin and what a blessing they were to me!! 

The Lord sure is taking me to higher places.

Beautiful Bliss :)

Take me Higher

I am now done with Orientation for Pine Cove Christian Camps!
For all that don't know I am going to be a counselor for first half at the Ranch.
My camp name is "Leap Frog."(mail me if you feel lead!)
Okay, so the first few days last week, it was a little overwhelming, but I am now feeling so much better about it all. It took some getting out of my shell, but I'm good now.
So, the Lord is of course teaching me so much. Shocker right?! NOPE!
I know that I will have days where I just feel exhausted and achy and sick, but the Lord pulls us through and carries me.
I think that those days to come the Lord will be carrying me every step throughout my day constantly saying, "Lindsay, my daughter, let me carry you, let me take over, and come and find rest in me."
One counselor asked me this week, "What are you most excited about?"
Well, my answer is a little odd. BUT, here we go.
I am excited to struggle.
SAY WHAT?!?
YES, I am excited to struggle.
I learn so much from the Lord while struggling.
To lean on the Lord for everything instead of myself.
Whenever I go through a hard time, the Lord is always trying to teach me something.
I yearn to GROW!!
Before I left for camp, I had coffee with one of my friends from my new church, Mosaic Birmingham. After talking a while, she looked at me and said, "Lindsay, I sense that the Lord is going to take you to higher places this summer." Like straight up just randomly said this to me. CRAZY RIGHT?!?
I am BEYOND excited for the Lord is take me higher and higher.
To stretch me to my core.
To use me for His will.
To teach me hard lessons.
To MAKE me rely on Him.
To understand His everlasting love.
Tomorrow marks my first day of "actual" camp.
I will be on Work Crew (a team of about 18ish people helping cook and clean all week) the first week. It will be a great week to serve the Lord and also, finish everything I need to for my first round of campers next week! I am so blessed!
Send me lots of prayers when you think about it and write me some mail :)
And I encourage you all this summer, to let God also take you higher. Submit to Him. Love Him intimately. And take time to dig deeper in His word.
Love to all!!