spring retreat

A couple of weeks ago we went on our YAV spring retreat. We packed up the mini-van and ventured out into the middle of nowhere Mississippi for a weekend of discerning, relaxing, playing, and of course eating.

I had a blast hanging out with my fellow YAVs--boating, hiking, biking, swimming, pool, and lots of laughing!

The discernment part of the weekend was really helpful. I didn't have any huge revelations about life and I certainly didn't come to any clear conclusions about what to do next. I did learn a lot about my work preferences and skills and how those correlate with my personality type.

Janet, a career counselor/spiritual director from Nashville joined us for our weekend. She offered a lot of valuable resources to us. On of the tests we took was the Strong Interest Inventory. My top five interests (according to the test) are: education, helping and counseling, religion and spirituality, politics and public speaking, and medicine. I would say it was pretty much spot on! According to the test I am not called to be an accountant. I already knew that.

It was a great weekend and I was reminded, once again, how great our God is!

discernment

Back in March, I was visiting a teenage boy in the hospital and I asked him if he had been watching the basketball tournament on tv. He responded, "Next time someone asks me that question, I am going to shove a basketball in their face." Apparently he is not a basketball fan. I laughed (on the inside) and changed the subject.

These days I can relate to my teenage friend. The question everyone asks is, "what is next for you?" The problem with this question is that I don't know the answer and thinking about it stresses me out!

Psalm 119 says "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path." Earlier this year I -prayed that this light would be a little brighter--that my path would be illumined and I would be able to discern God's will for my life. What was I thinking?!? God has certainly illumined my path--with a flood light.

I have a lot of exciting possibilities for next year. They all include seminary in some capacity and they all have pros and cons. I am certain that no matter what I choose I will be following God's call. I suppose having too many options is better than having no options...but I still feel overwhelmed when I think about "what is next?"

Sorry to my devoted readers (aka my mom) for my leave of absence. I have not been too busy to blog--just unmotivated. To make up for it I am going to blog about my feelings...a rare occurrence =)

The past few weeks have been full of things worthy of a blog: lent, holy week, Easter, a trip to the beach, acceptance letters to schools, job interviews, food adventures, running woes, a visit from from my parents, work! So many wonderful, joyful things in my life--but I have not felt very joyful. I have been feeling tired. Tired of being broke, tired of discerning, tired of living in community, tired of everything! I know God was present, even in this time, but I wasn't feeling or experiencing God.

Yesterday afternoon I went for a run. After the run I felt energized. Today I still feel that energy and I am confident it will be with me in the morning (after my coffee). I am feeling God's presence and experiencing joy in God.

We all have storms and deserts in our lives. We often look back on them, learn from them and can see how God was working in our lives. But sometimes there seems to be no explanations, no lessons to be learned.

At the end of a Maundy Thursday service the Christ candle is often extinguished and then lit again because we know that the Crucifixion is not the end of the story. We know that Easter is coming. It is this same story, this same hope that allows us to get through these difficult times! We know our stories don't end in those storms and deserts because we have faith and hope in Christ.