Music Mix-Up Mondays #32

    Hello Everyone... Well, I wanted to start blogging more back in January, but life has a way of getting in the way. :) So, I'm starting now. And I'm going to be making a few changes around here, hopefully. I'm moving the Music-Mix Up posts to Monday (not that you could tell that there actually WAS an assigned day for it), to help jump-start your week with some awesome music.
   Right now is when I would usually start talking about whatever song I was going to be sharing, and why I like it. But I'm not actually doing a song today. Yesterday at church, they showed this amazing video, and I thought I'd share it with all of you. It's called "That's My King" by Dr. S.M. Lockridge.


   This video was so challenging to me, as it reminded me once again, just how great and amazing the God I serve is. Sometimes I feel like that gets lost in the day-to-day humdrum activities of life. I keep on rolling down my path, and the days go by, and sometimes it is easy to forget just how great and powerful my King truly is.
   I debated about sharing this video with you today, or posting it a different day, but it goes so well with the first one, that I've decided to add it. This video is called "The Gospel" put out by Eric Ludy and the Ellerslie Mission Society. And as Easter was yesterday, the timing seemed fitting.



   I hope you all have a wonderful Monday, and may these videos encourage you as they have encouraged me, to keep on keeping on.
   In His Love,
      Christy

A Summation of Ellerslie... maybe.

I have vacillated back and forth about doing a blog post about a summary of my time at Ellerslie... I've been hesitant, mostly because I've been having a hard time trying to describe it. The whole thing was amazing... painful... healing... stretching... stirring... and yet... unless you've been there and gone through it, it might not make sense to you... I've been asked to try and sum up the whole thing in one sentence, or to name the one thing that stands out the most...
   Most of my life I've been thought of as "the good girl," the one who serves and lives at home and does whatever is asked of her, "the strong Christian," etc., etc... but while at Ellerslie, I realized how little I actually knew; I had such a small view of my God, and I kept Him inside the parameters of my views. I read my Bible because that's what "good Christians do," not so I could learn more, not so I could see my Savior living and breathing on every page.  I was content to stay where I was, instead of reaching higher for the standards that are mapped out in the Bible. Oh, I looked good on the outside, but I struggled so hard with various things, especially in the past few years.  And I don't wonder if things would have been different if I had known my Savior better.
   So, in summation, all I can say is this, my eyes have been opened to how much more there is.  My tent stakes have been pulled up.  I'm marching into the unknown, following in the footsteps of those who have gone before.  The "great cloud of witnesses" have beckoned me "further up and further in" and I'm "running with endurance the race that is set before" me. (Heb. 12:1)
   Teach me Your way, O Lord, and lead me in a smooth path, because of my enemies. Do not deliver me to the will of my adversaries; for false witnesses have risen against me, and such as breathe out violence. I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord! ~ Ps. 27:11-14
Chazaq Amats!

   In His Love,
      Christy

Bucket List Revisions... (Ellerslie Post 9)

Hey everyone... This blog post is something that I have been contemplating for a bit, and I really feel like God is leading me to write this.

  On my birthday earlier this year, I put up a blog post with a list of 27 things that I wanted to do this year - things I wanted to experience, if you will.  However, while being here at Ellerslie, the Lord has really been pricking on my heart about a couple of things - one thing in particular actually.
    #9 ~ Going on a date.

  My whole life I have championed not dating - living a life of complete devotion to whomever I would marry in the future.  Proverbs 31:12 says, "She does him good and not evil ALL the days of her life." Not just after I've met him, or after I've been married.  And yet, on my list of things to do this year is to go on a date.
 
  I realize that I've been struggling with trusting God in all things - I'd gotten tired of waiting, so to speak, and thought that I'd "help" God along. "Just because I go on a date doesn't mean that I'm giving my heart away," was how I justified it to myself.  Even though I wrote that it didn't have to be a guy, I really wanted it to be a guy... It just sounded better if I didn't admit it. And I didn't want to admit it even to myself that I was struggling with being discontent and not trusting God. I'm the "good girl" so to speak - I'm not really supposed to struggle with things like that. I felt like I was supposed to have it all together, but I didn't. I still don't, in a way.  But I'm learning how to fully be surrendered to God and yield my life as a living offering to Jesus Christ on a daily basis.  My life is not my own - I have been bought with a price, and everything I do should bring God glory.

   So today, God went after #9 on my list.  And I really feel like He is calling me to apologize to all of you readers.  I was wrong in not trusting Him and for lowering my standard.  I ask for your forgiveness and patience as I continue to seek out how God wants me to live. I pray that my list didn't cause any of you to stumble, and if it did I am very sorry.

Please pray for me as I continue to seek out His will for my life...

   In His Love,
       Christy

Music Mix-up Post 30 (Ellerslie Post 8)

    One of the things that has been really fun that we've done here is a reading aloud of "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe."  They have never done it before, and it was a HUGE hit!  I didn't want it to end, but C.S. Lewis didn't read my mind. :)
    Anyway, I loved this song from the second movie: "Prince Caspian," so I thought I'd share that this week.  So, may I present, "The Call," by Regina Spektor.





I hope you all enjoy this song, and next time, hopefully, I'll play some Christmas music! :)  I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

   In His Love,
       Christy

The Cross (Ellerslie Post 7)

This is a poem that I wrote a couple of weeks ago, after Martyr's Night at the church here at Ellerslie...
I hesitated to share it at first, because I didn't feel like it was finished, but I'm not sure what else to change to fix it, so I'm just going to leave it the way that it is.
    

The Cross

A bloody cross stands on a hill and gently calls my name.

It beckons me to come, to leave behind my worldliness and fame.

"I cannot!" I cry, though my heart softens deep within.

A bloody cross stands on a hill and gently calls my name.

It beckons me to come, and leave behind my life of sin and shame.

"I've tried!" I cry, as my heart starts breaking from within.

A bloody cross stands on a hill and softly calls my name.

I see my Savior bleeding there, covered in my guilt and shame.

"Oh, Savior, what a price You paid!" I cry,falling down before my King.

A bloody cross stands on a hill and softly calls my name.

He gave His all to save me, and what can I do but offer Him the same?

I will follow Him most gladly, no matter what the future may bring.

   In His Love,

       Christy

Operation: Colorado Big Build! (Ellerslie Post 6)

             Saturday, November 12^th, dawned bright and clear.  A hum of expectation and excitement hung about the campus.  The day for our Two Hands Big Build had arrived, a day I had been looking forward to for weeks.  Two Hands is an organization designed to assist families in adopting children through sponsorship of a church or school in their work on widows’ homes. This concept is based off of James 1:27: “This is pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father, to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” (NASV)  This was the first time that Two Hands had ever worked with a school before. Ellerslie students had a huge envelope stuffing party several weeks before as we asked our friends and families to support us in this venture.  All of the money raised goes straight to helping orphans.

                We were all there - almost one hundred of us - at seven in the morning, packed into the Everett Center, munching on donuts and fruit for breakfast - yummy! - while listening to Ben announce the different groups we would be in and their various locations. Several students went to work at different widows’ homes, and most of us, including me, went to the local retirement/nursing home center where we frequently have community outreaches.  As we piled into cars, we were eager to be warriors for the Lord by serving in our community and supporting adoption.

                Upon arriving at the retirement home, we were directed by Mr. Dan, the overseer for this project, to our various tasks. These included raking leaves, re-painting the fence and gazebo, cleaning out, washing, and painting gutters, and visiting with the residents. Some of the guys climbed up into trees and chopped down dead limbs.  One branch that was particularly stubborn took four guys and many spectators to tackle the job, but they prevailed!  Spirits were high as we laughed, worked, and sang the day away.  Lunch was a festive affair, complete with pizza and Oreos- more good food.  After raking a huge pile of leaves, a bunch of us took turns jumping into the pile before we bagged it up.  For some of the students, it was their first time jumping in a pile of leaves! The race began to see who could fill their bag up the most. We definitely enjoyed our work!

                After the work was done, a bunch of the men played an intense game of football in the side yard.  Teams were decided upon, plans were hatched, and the game began- hilarious to watch.  When it was time to return to Ellerslie, we were tired, but joyful in knowing that God had given us this opportunity to serve both our community and orphans.

                That night, we all gathered in the chapel to celebrate the day and honor various students for their endeavors - the messiest painter, the best encourager, and the hardest worker, among others.  It was a time of fellowship and laughter as we recounted the different ways God had worked throughout the day.  It was a joy and privilege to fulfill one of Christ’s commands, and we are eager and expectant to see Him glorified through the seeds that were planted!   “And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” (Matt. 25:40)

Here is the video that shows a snapshot of everything!

Big Build Project from Ellerslie Student Life on Vimeo.

Epic Ellerslie Games!! (Ellerslie Post 5)

Just under two weeks ago, we had the Epic Ellerslie Games.  Now, if you really know me, you know that I'm not really into sports or anything, but I decided that I was just going to suck it up and play.  Not that I really had a choice. :)  Ben assigned everyone to teams.  But it ended up being one of the funnest things I've done yet.  And I'm excited to show you the "Ellerslie Epic Games - Fall 2011" video!!



Ellerslie Epic Games - Fall 2011 from Ellerslie Student Life on Vimeo.

My team was the purple team, and we WON!!!! I was so EXCITED!!!!

In His Love,
    Christy

Music Mix-up Post 29 (Ellerslie Post 4)

I did a lot of vacillating over what song to post - I know that it hasn't been very regular since I've been gone, but I simply decided that that's okay. :)  Anyway, this post's Music Mix-up is *drum roll* "Jesus, I am Resting."



This is a song that I've had running through my head a lot lately.  I've never heard it before I got here, but it has rapidly become one of my favorite songs of all.

I hope you all have a good week, and that this song encourages you as much as it has encouraged me. :)

    In His Love,
         Christy

Ellerslie Post 3

    SNOW!!!!! 
       Last night it started raining, and this morning we woke up to at least six inches of wet, white fluffy stuff on the ground.  Needless to say, there was a lot of excitement in the air.  A lot of people here had never really seen snow before (shocking, isn't it?!?!) and were therefore very excited about it. 
So far, we've had a couple of snowball fights, a snowman built, and my roommate (who's from Puerto Rico) and I made snow angels.  Angela (my roommate) has never made a snow angel before.  I went first, so she would know what to do.  After I demonstrated (pictures coming soon!), she stood in the snow, and was like, "I don't want to fall!" so I gave her a bit of a nudge to help her along. :)  After she was done, she admitted that it was quite fun. :)  So, she got to experience making a snow angel for the first time, and I got to knock one more item off of my to-do list!
    I would love to write more, but I have to run & go write the drama for Kiddo Night next week - we are doing the story of Noah, as well as Cain & Abel.  :)  Pray for me!
    In His Love,
        Christy

Ellerslie Post 2

Okay, so I've been here at Ellerslie for about two and a half weeks, and I've only put up one blog post...
    Life here has been really busy, but I'm enjoying it immensely.  Last Saturday we had our Epic Ellerslie Games!  They were so much fun!! And, our team won!! I wasn't really planning on us winning - none of us are very athletic, but we had a ton of fun.  Some took pictures, so I'll post them soon. 

   The view here is absolutely beautiful!

This is one of my favorite pictures.  The sun is setting behind the hills, and reflecting off of the lake that is here... You will see a LOT of pictures of this area - I've fallen completely in love.

  I am learning a lot - more than I could possible try and convey in a simple blog post, but I will have to try and put one up soon.  I would love to write more, but I've gotta run - dinner is in just a few minutes, and then there is Kiddo Night tonight.  I'm working with the drama team, and it has been a blast!  Tonight's skit includes a huge sword, which I was carrying around campus.  Talk about big - I think the sword might be almost as tall as I am! :)

In His Love,
    Christy

Ellerslie Post 1

Today is officially my second day at Ellerslie, even though I've been here since Saturday...

         When you first arrive, you get Saturday to settle in, and then you have church on Sunday.  We also had a tour, just so you wouldn't get lost, and that way they could tell us important information about certain things in a group instead of multiple, multiple times. :)
    And then on Sunday night, there was the welcome banquet.   I had a wonderful time.  All the girls were to meet in the Lake House, and then walk over to the chapel individually.  When you first walk into the chapel, we were handed a stem of roses (which I now have sitting in a water bottle in my room since I don't have a vase. :D) and then escorted by a gentleman to your table - everyone had assigned seating.  The food was marvelous, and the company delightful.  All of the people at my table were attending the Basic Semester just like me.  And then after the dinner, Eric Ludy gave a talk about the Grandeur of the Irish Elk.  Very inspiring.
   
Monday was Orientation... Lots of it!  And then after orientation, there was the Student Handbook, which we went over in unmixed company, as we dealt with the nitty-gritty details of dress code, interaction with the opposite gender, ect... those conversations can be uncomfortable enough without mixed company.  But it wad good conversation, and we had a lot of fun.

 Tuesday was the first official day of Ellerslie - we got our handbooks (of which I will be posting pictures of soon - I just haven't taken any yet.)  We watched a video on the Gospel which made a profound impact on me.... I hadn't ever watched it before, but I'm sure I'll be watching it again.

  And now today is Wednesday..... I'm enjoying classes so far.  Eric Ludy is an engaging speaker, which is nice.  And he's very funny - sort of reminds me of Dick Van Dyke.  :)  I will post pictures of my room, my roommate, and the surrounding area - we are on a lake, with mountains in the distance... It is beautiful here. :)   But I have to run as I have to put my laptop back in my room and run to dinner in seven minutes! :)  They keep us on a tight schedule here. :)
   Stay tuned for pictures coming soon!!!


       In His Love,
           Christy

Music Mix-up Post 27

   This song is one that I've had on reserve for a while now, waiting for the right moment.... And tonight seems like the right night.  May I present, "Painting Pictures of Egypt," by Sara Groves.



  

     This week's song has been very encouraging to me...  So often I can find myself in the land of "if only" or "should have been" and I lose sight of the future and where I'm going.  Or I look to the future and wonder how in the world is it all going to work out... And the past feels safer... Past habits, past ways of dealing with life feel comfortable and I want to go back to them, but I realize I can't do that... It isn't who I am anymore, and the past doesn't fit. 
    In eight days I leave for Ellerslie... A part of me just simply cannot wait until I get there, and experience everything that I can, and learn everything that God has for me...   But there is also a small part of me that is terrified...  I don't know how this is going to change me... People ask me what I'm going to do with everything I learn there... Honestly, I'm not sure I know exactly...  I only know that I need to go.  So in faith, I'm stepping forward.  God has given the illumination for this step... I'll let Him show me the next step when it's His time...

   In His Love,
      Christy

I'M SO EXCITED!!!

Okay, I will try and refrain from using too many smiley faces and all capital letters, but I am just SO EXCITED!!!!
    I'M GOING TO ELLERSLIE!!!!!! 
     

  *puzzled looks descend*

I know, I know, you all are like, what in the world is Ellerslie? Well, in a nutshell, it's a school run by Eric & Leslie Ludy in Windsor, Colorado.  

*more puzzled looks*  

Well that was just about as clear as Mississippi mud....

Right, who are Eric & Leslie Ludy?  They are Christian writers/speakers/teachers/leaders/ect... They are married & live with their children (they have four) in Windsor (shocking, no?).  I had the privilege of hearing them speak at Summit Ministries years ago, and I'm looking forward to going to their school.  I will try to keep you all updated on everything that happens.  The session runs from October 8th through December 11th.

   If you think of me, please pray that my heart would be receptive to what God would do in my life, and that the changes that I make would be lasting ones.  I don't want to go there and try and "fix things" and then come home & in a month or so, everything is back to the way that it was.... 

  In His Love,

    Christy