Highlights from the Year Part 2: Spring Semester

The spring semester always seems to go by more quickly than the fall. Perhaps that's because it seems so FULL. Here are a few favorite high lights from this past semester:

RUF Sk80's

This tradition started before I was an intern at TU and is a lot of fun: students put on their best "80's" attire and joined us for roller skating at Skate Land. The students really got into it! Lauren, pictured above on the right, won best 80's hair-do. We also had a prize for the best 80's outfit and for the group that tried to match their outfits. I loved this event a lot! 

Pictures with "Goldie!"

TU got a new "ambassador" this year and her name is "Goldie." I see her around campus frequently and she puts a smile on everyone's faces. Kiersten, a sophomore music major, and I were happy to get a picture with the infamous Golden Retriever! :-)

 Gungor concert

In February I got to go to a Gungor concert with a couple freshmen girls, Spandana and Meg. I love going to concerts and really like this band, so it was fun to get to share the experience with a couple TU students! 

Ice Skating

Jade, a student from China (on the right) is one of the first students I met when I came to TU. I've had a lot of fun getting to know her and spend time with her. We went ice skating one afternoon and paused to take this "selfie." 

Spring break trip to Peru

In March we took 16 students to Peru where we partnered with a ministry called Scripture Union that has started homes for abandoned boys. We got to do a work project for a home in Urubamba, which included sanding, lacquering, puttying, and varnishing all of their dressers, tables, and chairs (which were salvaged from a flood in 2010). In our free time we got to hang out with the boys. I really enjoyed spending time with them and seeing how joyful they are because of the ways God has blessed their lives. It was such a special trip I hope to always remember. 

Last RUF Large Group

Our last RUF Large group of the year was April 29th. It was a special evening because it was my last with RUF. My campus minister and the students took some time to show their appreciation for my service as their intern. I was very humbled by their hugs, letters, and kind words. I got to share some words of my own and thanked them for the wonderful two years I've had at TU. It's hard to believe how quickly they went! I'm definitely very grateful for this group and all the fun times we've had together. I will miss TU a ton! 

It doesn't quite feel like "good-bye" though because I'm staying in Tulsa! I'm happy to say I got a job with a nonprofit called Reading Partners, a tutoring program that helps struggling kids strengthen their reading skills. I will be a site coordinator at one of the elementary schools and will get to work closely with the kids and volunteer tutors. I'm so grateful and excited for this opportunity! 

I'm also excited to get to go to Florida soon for our RUF summer conference! We're taking about 17 students with us and it will be fun to hang out on the beach with each other before my internship officially ends. I'll try to post some pictures from that trip once we're back! 

Highlights from the Year

I'm terribly sorry for not keeping up with this blog... I had every intention of posting throughout the year. As I write this, there is only one week left til students are done with finals. So my apologies for not updating more regularly.

Since it is nearing the end of the year, and the end of my internship with RUF, I thought I would do some reflecting and highlight a few favorite moments from the past year. Here are a few Fall high lights (I'll make a separate post for Spring high lights):

Welcome back cookout at the Corbins'

To welcome students back from the summer, and to get to know new freshmen, my campus minister and his wife hosted a cookout at their home at the beginning of the fall semester. It was great to catch up with students after the summer break and meet new students, too! 

RUF Fall Conference : Moore, OK

In September we took a group to Moore, OK for a conference with several other RUF groups. We spent a day working with Sheds of Hope to build sheds for people who had lost their homes to tornadoes last spring. People can use these sheds to store their belongings while they rebuild. Seeing the damage and debris was surreal. I'm glad we were able to spend some time offering support to those in the recovery process. The trip was a reminder of how temporal things are and allowed us to "get outside of ourselves" and focus on serving others. 

RUF Bluegrass, BBQ, and Bonfire

In October we had our annual bonfire complete with bluegrass music, dancing, pumpkin-carving, and BBQ. Fall bonfires are one of my favorite things because they bring people together. Community is an important part of RUF, and the bonfire is a fun way to bring people together and foster relationships in our community. This was definitely one of my favorite events from the fall semester and I hope it's a tradition that will continue! 

RUF Christmas Party

Another favorite tradition is the RUF Christmas party/tacky sweater exchange. Everyone came to the party wearing a tacky Christmas sweater and left wearing a different one. We also had a dessert competition, which was a lot of tasty fun! The party was a great way to close out the fall semester and enjoy the Christmas season together before parting for winter break. 

RUFTulsa Kick-off and upcoming events!

We've got some fun things happening soon! Here's what's going on:

Saturday August 24th - "Light Up The Night" 

Snow cones, glow sticks, games, and music by the TU fountains from 7-9:30p.m. Come hang out with us and have some fun before classes start! 

Tuesday August 27th - First RUF Large Group of the Fall Semester! 

Want to know what RUF is all about? Then come to Tyrell hall next Tuesday night at 7:30 to meet some people, eat pizza, and hear what's going on in RUF and how you can get involved! (Tyrell is located next to Sharp Chapel, near the center of campus). 

Friday August 30th - Cookout at the Corbin's

Celebrate the end of your first week of classes by coming out to Brent and Sarah Corbin's for food and fellowship from 6-10p.m. We'll have more details at RUF Large Group and will arrange rides. Hope you can join us! 

Students, stay tuned for more RUF happenings! Hope to see you soon! 

Welcome Class of 2017!

New TU freshmen moved in this week!! I got to help a handful of female students move in to their dorm Monday before Orientation kick-off. This whole week freshmen attended various events to get to know each other and the campus better. I had the privilege of hanging out with them as an Orientation Mentor. I was paired with a group of about 13 freshmen and had a great time going to activities and sharing meals with them. Orientation events included some small group time, a trip to Dry Gulch for camp, and a campus scavenger hunt. They also took a class picture (see the time lapse below), which I got to be a part of! (My friend Vanessa and I are wearing red shirts and can be spotted near the bottom of the "T").

Class of 2017 time-lapse photo from utulsa on Vimeo.

The Class of 2017 seems like a pretty great bunch and I'm looking forward to getting to know many of them better this year!

Some pics from camp!

Thoughts from RUF Training

Last week I had the privilege of gathering together with RUF interns, campus ministers, and staff at our annual summer training in Atlanta, GA. This week was by far my favorite out of the four times I've been to Atlanta for training meetings. I enjoyed the week as much as I did for several reasons:

Time with interns - I know many of the other interns better now and have developed deep friendships with a number of them. It's awesome to share stories with each other, pray together, and encourage one another. We only see each other a few times a year, but they are some of the best times. I'm so thankful for the other interns!

Prayer Groups - One afternoon of the week is committed entirely to time with our prayer groups (which were established at Orientation last summer). Each time I go to Atlanta for training, I get to meet with the same group of girls. I really look forward to this time of catching up with each other and praying for one another. It's uplifting to hear about how God is at work in their lives and through their ministries. I cherish these young women very much and hope our friendships last well beyond our time as interns.

Worship night - In the middle of training week we all gather together for a time of worship. The music was led by interns and a campus minister gave us a message from the Word. After the message we took communion together. It's so awesome to spend time worshipping and taking communion together not just as co-workers, but as a body of believers. This is one reason why I love my job so much!

Seminars - Our seminars were very relevant and much-needed reminders of what our job is all about and why we need the Gospel just as much as our students. We were told that our number one job as an intern is to stay connected to Christ. This is so important, because everything we do in our ministry should flow out of a heart that is centered on the Lord. We were reminded to care for our souls and "abide in Christ" (John 15:1-11) because our ministry is impossible without God.

I'm so thankful for the time I had in Atlanta and am glad to be back in Tulsa now. It's nice to settle back into life here and prepare for a new year of ministry with RUF. I can't wait to see what's in store!

Support Update: 

I'm pleased to let you all know that my account is currently sitting at 79%. I'm awaiting several gifts to come in that will put my account at 90%! I'm so grateful for all the support I've received and expect to receive. I have about $2,860 left to raise to be fully-funded for year two! Praise God!

"I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing." - John 15:5

Traveling, Training, and back to Tulsa again!

Hello!

I got back to Omaha Thursday evening and have enjoyed spending some time with my family before my brother's big move to Portland! He will be working for a custom t-shirt company out there and doing some freelance graphic design work. I'm very proud of him and excited for his new opportunity! My brother, parents, and the dog all hit the road early this morning and left me behind in Omaha. It's been lonely and quiet in the house, but I was able to visit a few friends this evening and it was good to catch up with them.

Family photo before Nate's move. It might be awhile before we are all together again.

Tomorrow I'll be flying off to Atlanta for a week for RUF training. I'm really looking forward to being with all of the other interns so we can share stories, worship together, and pray for one another.

I'll get back to Omaha next Friday evening, just in time for a friend's wedding the next day. After that I'll drive back to Tulsa and will have less than a month before classes start!! I'm so thankful for all of the opportunities I've had to travel and visit with family and friends this summer. It will be nice, though, to finally be back in Tulsa so I can get more plugged-in to my church and community and prepare for the new school year. I can't wait to meet all of the new freshmen!

Support update: 

With all of the new pledges and gifts I've received or expect to receive soon, I anticipate needing about $5,000 more! I'm getting much closer to 100% and am so thankful for all who have been able to help. As always, thank you for praying, too! Praise God for what He has provided and pray that He would graciously and faithfully provide the rest.

"The Notion of Divine Control"

This year I've been reading through the devotional "My Utmost For His Highest" by Oswald Chambers. I found today's devo particularly relevant and stirring, especially in the midst of raising support, though it is necessary for every Christian to remember every day. I've typed a few of Chambers' thoughts below:

"How much more shall your Father who is in heaven give good things to them that ask Him?" - Matthew 7:11

Jesus is laying down rules of conduct for those who have His Spirit. By the simple argument of these verses He urges us to keep our minds filled with the notion of God's control behind everything, which means that the disciple must maintain an attitude of perfect trust and an eagerness to ask and to seek.

Notion your mind with the idea that God is there....then when you are in difficulties it is as easy as breathing to remember - Why, my Father knows all about it! 

....Jesus is laying down the rules of conduct for those who have His Spirit, and it works on this principle - God is my Father, He loves me, I shall never think of anything He will forget, why should I worry?

....Keep the notion of the mind of God behind all things strong and growing. Nothing happens in any particular unless God's will is behind it, therefore you can rest in perfect confidence in Him. Prayer is not only asking, but an attitude of mind which produces the atmosphere in which asking is perfectly natural. "Ask, and it shall be given you." 


God is in control. God loves me. I can trust Him. I can eagerly ask Him for what I need, though He already knows it. He is there, with me, always. He will provide. Why should I worry?

I find myself having difficulty in raising support (or when I'm in need of anything!) when I fail to come before God and ask Him to meet my needs. I often feel I must be in control and that whether my needs are met rests totally upon my own competence or effort. But this isn't true. Nothing happens unless God wills it to happen. He is in control of my support and when/how I get it. I believe I'm walking and living within His will, and therefore I can have confidence in Him that He will provide. He does, however, desire that I ask Him. There must be a display of faith on my part in His sovereignty, but also a willingness to ask Him, in confidence, that He meet my needs.

I hope this is an encouraging reminder to you, whatever your needs may be, that God is with you, He loves you, He is in control, and He is there for you. Don't be afraid to go to Him and ask Him for whatever you need.

"Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need." - Hebrews 4:16