I am going to Thailand in about 6 hours! I don't know if I would believe it was true if it wasn't for the giant gear bag full of stuff sitting in my living room right now.
The last week has been crazy! I finished up working at APU, Graduated with my M.Ed. in College Student Affairs and moved out of my apartment! Needless to say that I didn't start packing until this morning...at least I got it done!
I am excited for the adventure that is waiting for me in Thailand! I am going with a team of college students...which should be a blast! Other than the basic details of the trip I have no idea what is going to happen over the next 3 weeks, but my new more spontaneous self is completely fine with that!
I would ask for your prayers...we got word late last week that two villagers died in an accident on the dirt road that leads to the village (and 5 others were injured, but have returned to their homes). This road is the same one we have to take into the village (and is the same one I have traveled many many times). So first, please be in prayer for the families of those who died. This is a totally different ministry opportunity for our team, so we are praying that we can just be of comfort to the families. Second, this accident has caused a lot of concern and worry from friends and family of the team; which is totally understandable. So please pray that we have safe travels and that the drivers know what is too dangerous and what is doable.
So thanks again!! I will update this as much as possible while I am gone! Love you all!!
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Some Exciting News!
I am DONE with my Masters Degree!!!! (Well almost!!) I am done with homework at least!
So here is the link to the website I created as my Capstone Project for my degree...
http://erinlindcapstone.synthasite.com/
Enjoy, comment, & critique...but be nice...I am so worn out I literally can't think anymore =)
So here is the link to the website I created as my Capstone Project for my degree...
http://erinlindcapstone.synthasite.com/
Enjoy, comment, & critique...but be nice...I am so worn out I literally can't think anymore =)
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
I always write blogs when I should be doing something else...
Blogging when I busy beyond words is my stress reliever. I find some of my most creative thoughts come about at 1 in the morning when I am so tired I want to curl up and not wake up for the next 12 hours, yet have so much to do that I can't fall asleep because my head is to full of stuff; it is in these moments that inspiration comes (or what I consider inspiration) and I have to get it down on paper. So forgive me if this is a little discombobulated, incoherent, or maybe even an idea that a much wiser person has already thought of...but tonight it hit me...
Our lives are like jokes. (wait for it, wait for it...) hmmm yeah, I didn't like equating my life to a joke either, but here is where my thought process was going. Jokes have punch lines, and if you don't say the punch line at just the right time...well the joke just isn't funny. True?
Well a lot of times I find that I live my life doing what I think I should be doing, going about my merry way -let's say going to grad school for example-and then I get to the part where the punch line is suppossed to come in- like an amazing high paying job after graduation- and well...I am left hanging...no punch line. My first response...God, where ar You? Why didn't you deliver the punch line? Ummm hello, life isn't good without the punchline...right?
Wrong! See the problem is too often we are too busy writing our own jokes (aka lives) and our punchlines (aka outcomes, blessings, dreams, the stuff that happens in movies, you know...the good stuff) and when it doesn't happen we look to God and say...what happen? Why didn't you show up? I told you exactly what to give me! Why aren't you giving it to me? (insert the most annoying little whiny kid you can think of here begging for an ice cream cone on a hot day!)
First of all...God doesn't play on our timing! He plays on His own timing. So we may write the joke and wait for the punchline...but it's not going to come....yet or maybe not at all. God's punchline to our jokes is:
always on time...His time
always good...He never does anything wrong
and always better than the one we wrote ourselves!
So all that to say...right now I am coming to the end of this joke (this part of my life...grad school)...and I had thought I had a pretty good idea what the punchline was (ummm a great job doing exactly what I wanted to do at the exact university I wanted to work at)...but well...I am pretty sure that punchline is not going to be my reality. Instead...I am waiting (not necessarily because I want to but because I need too) for God's punchline.
What does God's punchline look like...well that, I don't know; but, I do know three things...
It will be on time! It will be good! AND it will be better than anything I could have ever imagined or dreamed on my own!
Yep...so that is my creative side (and heart) at 1 in the morning.
Our lives are like jokes. (wait for it, wait for it...) hmmm yeah, I didn't like equating my life to a joke either, but here is where my thought process was going. Jokes have punch lines, and if you don't say the punch line at just the right time...well the joke just isn't funny. True?
Well a lot of times I find that I live my life doing what I think I should be doing, going about my merry way -let's say going to grad school for example-and then I get to the part where the punch line is suppossed to come in- like an amazing high paying job after graduation- and well...I am left hanging...no punch line. My first response...God, where ar You? Why didn't you deliver the punch line? Ummm hello, life isn't good without the punchline...right?
Wrong! See the problem is too often we are too busy writing our own jokes (aka lives) and our punchlines (aka outcomes, blessings, dreams, the stuff that happens in movies, you know...the good stuff) and when it doesn't happen we look to God and say...what happen? Why didn't you show up? I told you exactly what to give me! Why aren't you giving it to me? (insert the most annoying little whiny kid you can think of here begging for an ice cream cone on a hot day!)
First of all...God doesn't play on our timing! He plays on His own timing. So we may write the joke and wait for the punchline...but it's not going to come....yet or maybe not at all. God's punchline to our jokes is:
always on time...His time
always good...He never does anything wrong
and always better than the one we wrote ourselves!
So all that to say...right now I am coming to the end of this joke (this part of my life...grad school)...and I had thought I had a pretty good idea what the punchline was (ummm a great job doing exactly what I wanted to do at the exact university I wanted to work at)...but well...I am pretty sure that punchline is not going to be my reality. Instead...I am waiting (not necessarily because I want to but because I need too) for God's punchline.
What does God's punchline look like...well that, I don't know; but, I do know three things...
It will be on time! It will be good! AND it will be better than anything I could have ever imagined or dreamed on my own!
Yep...so that is my creative side (and heart) at 1 in the morning.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
It's after 1 in the morning & I am so excited that I can't sleep!!
So, it seriously 1 AM right now and I am so excited...though I am not going to share with you why I am so excited (don't hold your breath because I am really not going to tell you the details because nothing is 100% yet but just know that it is really cool and amazing and I am so excited that I cried about it earlier today...it is that great!!) Anyway, I wanted to share what I wrote in my journal last night. I usually don't do this, but I really just feel the need to share and hope that someone enjoys it and it resonates with someone's heart...so here it is...
Zephaniah 3:17 - The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.
The phrase that sticks out the most is "he will quiet you with his love" -God I am so busy and always talking and always thinking...I need to be quieted by your love; I need to be quiet in your love; I need to experience the power of your love that has the ability to calm my mind, my heart and my spirit.
God you take great delight in me? I find this hard to believe a lot of the time because I do so many sinful things. How could you delight in me? How do you delight in me when others can't even delight over me - and they are my equal and not the God of the universe! But you do delight in me, as a parent delights in their child and as a artist delights in their creation and as a composer delights in his song - so you delight in me.
You take so much delight in me, that you "rejoice over me with singing." What a voice You must have! What a song You must be singing! Which one is it? What does it sound like? I know I have heard it before! In the quiet moments of the sunsets on the dock at the Delta, in the thunder and pounding rain of the storms in Northern Thailand, in the laughter of the rowdy teenage girls at winter camp who just won't go to sleep, in the waves that crash on the shore, or the sound of my feet hitting the pavement when I go for a run - all of them are percussion and harmony and sound effects to the joyous song You are singing over me!
Thank you for taking delight in me, quieting me, and rejoicing over me! Thank you also for being might to save - thank you for loving me enough to save me from myself!
Zephaniah 3:17 - The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.
The phrase that sticks out the most is "he will quiet you with his love" -God I am so busy and always talking and always thinking...I need to be quieted by your love; I need to be quiet in your love; I need to experience the power of your love that has the ability to calm my mind, my heart and my spirit.
God you take great delight in me? I find this hard to believe a lot of the time because I do so many sinful things. How could you delight in me? How do you delight in me when others can't even delight over me - and they are my equal and not the God of the universe! But you do delight in me, as a parent delights in their child and as a artist delights in their creation and as a composer delights in his song - so you delight in me.
You take so much delight in me, that you "rejoice over me with singing." What a voice You must have! What a song You must be singing! Which one is it? What does it sound like? I know I have heard it before! In the quiet moments of the sunsets on the dock at the Delta, in the thunder and pounding rain of the storms in Northern Thailand, in the laughter of the rowdy teenage girls at winter camp who just won't go to sleep, in the waves that crash on the shore, or the sound of my feet hitting the pavement when I go for a run - all of them are percussion and harmony and sound effects to the joyous song You are singing over me!
Thank you for taking delight in me, quieting me, and rejoicing over me! Thank you also for being might to save - thank you for loving me enough to save me from myself!
Thursday, January 22, 2009
The Countdown has begun!!!
15 weeks until graduation! (May 9th)
9 weeks of class left (or 1 quarter from February 2 - April 1)
2 classes left
1 Gigantic Project & Presentation (sometime in mid April)
Wow...I can't believe grad school will be over in just a few weeks! Now I have to figure out what I am going to do with my life- maybe go back to school and get a Ph.D.? The thought has crossed my mind...but I think I would like a break!
9 weeks of class left (or 1 quarter from February 2 - April 1)
2 classes left
1 Gigantic Project & Presentation (sometime in mid April)
Wow...I can't believe grad school will be over in just a few weeks! Now I have to figure out what I am going to do with my life- maybe go back to school and get a Ph.D.? The thought has crossed my mind...but I think I would like a break!
Thursday, January 8, 2009
I am a legend in a small village in Thailand
A couple of nights ago I was talking to one the girls who went on a Thailand trip with me a few years ago. She went back to Thailand two Mays ago (or 1 year after I went for 3 months). Anyway, we were talking about Thailand memories and she tells me this story...
She was sitting in her host families hut talking with her host family (through a translator) and they are telling them stories about different things that have happened in the village. I guess the topic got onto when Brad, Shannon and I were living in the village because the host mom starts telling this story about "the tall American girl who fell through the porch of her sister's house into a big pile of mud while the whole village was watching" and another women in the room utters "Erin" (in a Karen accent I am sure). My friend said she almost lost it, because her she is sitting in the middle of nowhere hearing a story (an embarrassing one at that) about someone she knows.
Anyway, I couldn't stop laughing as she told me the story! Of all the stories the villagers tell people I was sort of hoping the one about me falling off a porch into a giant pile of mud (need I mention that I hurt myself really really badly) would be the one they wouldn't tell. Oh well, at least they remember me right?
She was sitting in her host families hut talking with her host family (through a translator) and they are telling them stories about different things that have happened in the village. I guess the topic got onto when Brad, Shannon and I were living in the village because the host mom starts telling this story about "the tall American girl who fell through the porch of her sister's house into a big pile of mud while the whole village was watching" and another women in the room utters "Erin" (in a Karen accent I am sure). My friend said she almost lost it, because her she is sitting in the middle of nowhere hearing a story (an embarrassing one at that) about someone she knows.
Anyway, I couldn't stop laughing as she told me the story! Of all the stories the villagers tell people I was sort of hoping the one about me falling off a porch into a giant pile of mud (need I mention that I hurt myself really really badly) would be the one they wouldn't tell. Oh well, at least they remember me right?
Friday, January 2, 2009
The Top Eight of 2008
I love lists (once again another reason I am weird I know!) so I thought I would make one about the best things that happened in 2008. (It also seemed like a good idea to reflect on 2008 as I head into 2009) So in no particular order here they are...the highlights of my life for the last year!
1. I ran a half marathon...that's 13.1 miles! (For all of you who run marathons I don't want to here about how that is not all that far...I was proud of myself and really sore for a few days after). The day was blustery to say the least...wind, rain and cold...but it was pretty cool. I will be running the 1/2 marathon again in about 28 days. My goal is to beat my time from last year, which should be interesting since I haven't been able to train much lately because I sprained my ankle (a funny story I will save for another day!)
2. I finished my first year of graduate school! (and as of this writing have about 13 total weeks of class left!!) It is going by so fast, but almost not fast enough now! Please don't ask what I want to do when I finish...I still don't know (but that seems to be the story of my life!). The options (or hopeful options) are...working at APU, working at a non-profit missions organizations, or moving overseas to do something crazy (like live in th jungle).
3. Bangladesh...pretty sure I will not go back, but it was an amazing adventure! From missing flights, hanging out in Hong Kong, incredible heat and humidity (this place beats Thailand any day!), speed boat rides across huge rivers, hanging out with college students, building 10 homes for cyclone vicitms, and hanging out with my boss as she puked her guts out...it was an adventure all the way!
4. Wakeboarded way better than last year! (I still stink but hey I only get to practice about 1 week a year and I was proud of myself!) I love being out on the water...even just being in the boat is good with me. Anyway...this makes my list because I love my time out on the water and it is always a highlight of my year to hang out at the Delta!
5. Went to New York, New York. Had so much fun! Ditched classes (I told my professors so I guess that really isn't ditching) and did all the fun stuff....saw Phantom of the Opera on Broadway, sat in the 3rd row at an amazing opera house and saw my first opera (I LOVED IT!), rode the subway too much (we need one in LA so bad!), went to the top of the Empire State Building, saw the Statue of Liberty, went to Ellis Island, went to Dean & Deluca (amazing!), hung out in Central Park for a little, and ohhh soo much more. All that to say...NYC is not my favorite place in the world...to hectic and materialistic...but fun to visit!
6. Went to Vermont (this was for school) in the fall....so beautiful! I highly recommend a visit. Sorry not too much to say...I was at a Legal Conference (it was a little boring, but I got out of a huge amount of class work for going...well worth the cost of the plane ticket!)
7. Several of my friends, from my original Thailand team, came out to visit! I got to be a tourist in So. Cal. which was fun! We hung out at the beach, played cards, saw Wicked, and did a whole bunch of relaxing. It was so great!
8. Moved into an amazing apartment with three amazing girls! They are definitely my saniety on nights when school is driving me crazy. I love my house and am sad that in just a few short months we all won't be living there anymore.
There are so many other great moments of 2008! Thanks for letting me share...I wonder what 2009 holds, but I guess we will find out soon enough!
1. I ran a half marathon...that's 13.1 miles! (For all of you who run marathons I don't want to here about how that is not all that far...I was proud of myself and really sore for a few days after). The day was blustery to say the least...wind, rain and cold...but it was pretty cool. I will be running the 1/2 marathon again in about 28 days. My goal is to beat my time from last year, which should be interesting since I haven't been able to train much lately because I sprained my ankle (a funny story I will save for another day!)
2. I finished my first year of graduate school! (and as of this writing have about 13 total weeks of class left!!) It is going by so fast, but almost not fast enough now! Please don't ask what I want to do when I finish...I still don't know (but that seems to be the story of my life!). The options (or hopeful options) are...working at APU, working at a non-profit missions organizations, or moving overseas to do something crazy (like live in th jungle).
3. Bangladesh...pretty sure I will not go back, but it was an amazing adventure! From missing flights, hanging out in Hong Kong, incredible heat and humidity (this place beats Thailand any day!), speed boat rides across huge rivers, hanging out with college students, building 10 homes for cyclone vicitms, and hanging out with my boss as she puked her guts out...it was an adventure all the way!
4. Wakeboarded way better than last year! (I still stink but hey I only get to practice about 1 week a year and I was proud of myself!) I love being out on the water...even just being in the boat is good with me. Anyway...this makes my list because I love my time out on the water and it is always a highlight of my year to hang out at the Delta!
5. Went to New York, New York. Had so much fun! Ditched classes (I told my professors so I guess that really isn't ditching) and did all the fun stuff....saw Phantom of the Opera on Broadway, sat in the 3rd row at an amazing opera house and saw my first opera (I LOVED IT!), rode the subway too much (we need one in LA so bad!), went to the top of the Empire State Building, saw the Statue of Liberty, went to Ellis Island, went to Dean & Deluca (amazing!), hung out in Central Park for a little, and ohhh soo much more. All that to say...NYC is not my favorite place in the world...to hectic and materialistic...but fun to visit!
6. Went to Vermont (this was for school) in the fall....so beautiful! I highly recommend a visit. Sorry not too much to say...I was at a Legal Conference (it was a little boring, but I got out of a huge amount of class work for going...well worth the cost of the plane ticket!)
7. Several of my friends, from my original Thailand team, came out to visit! I got to be a tourist in So. Cal. which was fun! We hung out at the beach, played cards, saw Wicked, and did a whole bunch of relaxing. It was so great!
8. Moved into an amazing apartment with three amazing girls! They are definitely my saniety on nights when school is driving me crazy. I love my house and am sad that in just a few short months we all won't be living there anymore.
There are so many other great moments of 2008! Thanks for letting me share...I wonder what 2009 holds, but I guess we will find out soon enough!
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