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| I have to say that planning for this retreat was so ridiculously stressful at first I really wanted to quit. Seeing the kids go in and out of retreats the past couple years has been pretty disheartening because I never saw them develop a heart for God. I felt as if I might be wasting my time because at this point, who knows the youth group is willing to open their eyes, ears, and hearts to Him.
After a period of adolescent drama, things started to go very smoothly. Then it snowed. Dang snow. Stupid, stupid snow. I ended up having to do almost everything. I got a lot of help with ideas, and the assembly of the booklets, but other than that I worked my butt off. This was by no means MY retreat though. I just wanted to bless the kids with something substantial for their lives. I was so very tired by the end of it, but the time spent at the retreat made it all worth it.
It was a lot of small things that made me so proud of these kids. They all stayed awake for one thing, which is a blessing itself. As we did Bible study, almost all of them took really good notes. The people were very interested and eager to learn. It was awesome to see them try so hard. Watching it all unfold let me know that all my efforts were absolutely worth it and I don't regret a single thing, period.
This retreat has shown me its fruit after the retreat more than it did during the retreat. The kids tell me that the retreat has really benefited them and that they felt like the time was really well spent. I know that they were really wary at first to spend so much time with their Bible and in Bible Study, but they turned around so quickly and they seemed to appreciate the time spent doing it. One even told me that she is going to start taking notes during sermons because it has helped her. Praise the Lord.
Seeing them grow the way they did in this last retreat has been a blessing to me because it has proven to me that if we choose to invest in this group, they can do great things. To be honest, it's the first time in a long time that I have had faith in this youth group. Faith that lets me know that God will become a part of this youth and guide them.
Only one youth group member knows that I contemplated leaving Zion in the past. Now everyone can know because that is in the past. This is my church, only God loves these kids more than me, and I will sacrifice myself to serve them. | | |
| This has nothing to do with Costco itself, but the event occurred in the Costco parking lot.
So Grace and I were driving around looking for somewhere to park when we see a car's lights turn on. We stop and wait patiently with our blinker on for this car to leave....waiting...waiting. While we're waiting, the old lady that owns the car next to it has been putting her groceries away ever so slowly. I felt kind of bad because I didn't want her thinking that we were waiting for her. Right when I vocalize that to my partner-in-crime, the old lady's cart starts to roll towards my idle vehicle. I put my car in park, get out and tackle (redirect) the cart back towards the old lady. I walk it up to her and she was totally confused on where her cart disappeared to. I offer my help to put her groceries in her trunk and she accepts. As I'm helping her we have a short conversation about Costco, essentially nothing. When I was putting away a syrup/wine shaped bottle I just think aloud that I should put it in a spot where it can't break. She asks me if I've ever had Goji juice and how her friends love it. It was cute. I think she felt bad that I was helping her and she started to talk about how it gets more and more difficult to make Costco runs as time goes on. "I'm not doing to bad for 88!" She exclaims. Holy crap! I thought this lady was 75 at most! "Absolutely!" I respond. At this point we're done putting away her stuff and I return her cart for her. She's in her car and now driving away. This is one single-serving friend that I'll kind of miss.
This lady was so endearing. She was one of the few old ladies that didn't make me fear old age. She was very cute and lovable. Who knows if she's crazy or whatnot in the rest of her life, but she gets an A+ in my book. | | |
| So Grace bought an orange juice today in the Rotunda because she needed the label for her OChem project. She pointed out how nasty it looked on the bottom and I just brushed it off thinking she was being cynical about the quality. She then points out the date on the bottle: AUG1108. I suggest that maybe it means August of 2011? The more we think about it, the weirder the juice looks. So I decide to call Coke and ask what's going on. Apparently that juice did expire almost 4 months ago in the vending machine. The nice lady on the phone then asked for my information on the phone and now a coupon for a free 2 liter Coke product is on the way.
Too bad we paid $1.50 for the 450mL juice when 2L sodas are usually $0.99
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| So the day of my birth has come to an end. I realized that very very few of the people I grew up with and held dear in the past even said anything to me. Not that it's a big deal, but it's just sad to think about how my relationship with them is relatively non-existent.
Excluding school, it was a nice day!
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| I log onto Xanga to see that a group page has been updated and I found an interesting entry. It's one I definitely something I can relate to, especially in the past. I even commented on the page so you guys can check it out. It's cool because you can see people comment with their different points of view, and perhaps develop your own. Here's the link
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