(7) Jeremiah 7

Hello!
I hope you are doing well and enjoying your summer!
My weeks have been flying by so I apologize for not being as active on here as I imagined myself being. A big part of it is that I learn something new each day, so to actually gather all of my new thoughts and put them into words is really a large task. But tonight I feel that I need to. I'm just going to jump right into some of the things that have been sorting out in my mind ever since I got here.

In Mark 4:35-41 Jesus calms a massive storm that has overcome the disciples boat. The disciples say, "Jesus, don't you care if we drown?" Jesus answers them, "Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?" It's as if he is saying, "After all we have been through together, and all of the miracles I have performed before your eyes, you still are worried at the sight of a storm while in my presence?" Do you ever feel like God is saying that exact thing to you when you cry out to Him during your troubles? This passage is a clear metaphor of us crying out and asking "Do you even care?" when we are in the midst of our anguish. He rebukes our question with another question, "My child, do you still have no faith?" Granted this may not mean he will instantly calm the storm like he does for the disciples, but He will give you peace in any situation if you have the faith he longs for you to have.

I realized that I need to ask myself that question more often, "Why are you so afraid?" I often worry too much about my future and tend to forget about what God has already done in my past. The Lord has delivered me from many things and continues to provide for me even when I don't even know what I need. ( Don't you just love when He does that!) So how could I possibly be worried about my future? God already knows how it will unravel, and it will happen exactly how it should. If I stay on the straight and narrow It will be filled with blessings and overflowing with joy. Now that's something to look forward to.

In Luke 16:19-31 Jesus tells the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus. The rich man dines "sumptuously" and it is assumed that he doesn't care too much for the poor. Lazarus is a poor man stricken with a disease ( which in his day dubbed him as "unclean" and therefore unworthy of God ) Yet somehow both of these men die and go to two very different places. Lazarus is said to have gone into the "bosom of Abraham" and on the other side of a large "chasm" lies the rich young man in fiery place. He is parched and cries to Abraham to let Lazarus get him something to drink. Abraham denies his request so he asks if Lazarus could at least return to Earth to tell his 5 brothers about his eternal damnation, so that they might escape it before they die.

Why would this rich man go to what is seemingly "hell" and Lazarus go to "heaven"? My first question was, did Lazarus even believe in God? What did he actually do other than being poor to deserve this great place when he died? And what exactly did the rich man do to deserve hell? This made another question arise; Do the poor go to heaven simply by default? and if so, when is poor, poor enough?
After analyzing the scripture and keeping in mind that Jesus only tells parables when he is trying to get a point across, I came to some conclusions through the insight of one of our wonderful small group leaders.
I believe one of the main points of Jesus telling this parable that many may not think of right away is actually the Chasm. Jesus is using a story to tell the people that their way of thinking was wrong. He was stomping on their "purity codes." A rich man will not always go to heaven, and to top it off, a sickly poor man actually does have a chance at heaven! It must have blown their minds.
The "chasm" needs to be broken!
Look around you and hear the silent laws, the invisible divides which is our present day chasm. The divide between the rich and the poor, the black and the white, the Hispanic and Asian. We are Gods body, not bodies. We are one and He wants so desperately for us to be united. You can take this point and bring it into the churches as well. Why is the church body so against one another? How can people who worship the same God talk poorly of another house of worship? How can we frown upon each other and judge one another? Only God can judge us, what right does any Christian have to talk down upon another church?
We are all Gods children, and he accepts every form of praise. If there were no churches with small tightly woven congregations filled with diversity, the more reserved may not ever fellowship. And just so, if it were not for the "mega-churches" and the fancy decor, the suburbanites might never have been drawn into the building!
We as Christians need both areas of the spectrum. Whether it be the outspoken evangelist and the gentle man living in community making relationships, or the one who sells of his belongings to be with the poor and the one who makes 7 figures so he can tithe graciously - we are all in this together. God calls us to live for him in our own individual ways. As long as our hearts are right before God, there is no wrong way to live for Him.

Sometimes I feel like the goal of following Jesus has become an obsession with living exactly how he lived in His day. The "Revolution" is within your own heart. Your way may not be the same as your neighbor's. God needs every type of obedience, and can use us all in amazing ways as long as we have our eyes fixed on Him. What that looks like? I can't tell you, and I believe no one can. We can only examine what it looks like in our own lives through how Jesus works in each of us individually.



Those are just a few of the many thoughts I have gathered in these past weeks and I am determined to learn and understand more. My eyes are open, and my mind is eager for more knowledge. Discernment is what I am praying for these days, and thankfully I feel God has given me an abundance of it lately.

Thanks for reading! I'll leave you with a passage that I have recently grown to love:

"Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because it it prospers, you too will prosper."

Jeremiah 7

In Christ,
Cheryl

(6) The Sunset

The sunset rolls in like a gentle flowing stream
Streaks of pink and blue fill the sky
creating a sense of peace and safety in this rough terrain
love seems to be pouring from the streets
Groups of people gather in community
Funny how a sunset can make you forget a harsh reality
I'm often jealous of their community
their front porches and sidewalks
and mostly the simplicity of the origin of their happiness.
They seem to be content
Something I feel I'm often running after.

I chase after something that is so easily found
It all depends on if you allow yourself to find it
You have to embrace it and broaden your mind
which we fall so short in doing.

I try to capture the beauty of the city in a photo
but I realize it's more of an emotion
and it does it no justice
no photo can capture the feeling you get when you are
welcomed home by a group of kids
eager to give you hugs and say hello
Nothing can capture this magical night as the kids
send their fireworks high into the sky
as they wrestle and roll around in the dew covered grass
and then give you a big wet hug

Every day I fall more in love with this place
the streets, the small intersections
the invisible stop signs
the snow cone vendors
the repetitive ice cream truck song
The yelling, the honking
the kids playing
watching strangers talk to each other
the faces peering over the side of their top story window
the churches on every block.

There is so much still to learn
so much still to experience
I will never fully understand what it means to live here
what it means to be one of them
But I can cross the barrier and turn"them" into friends.
How willing am I to turn myself from a spectator
into a participant?

Fun Friday field trip to Elizabeth Park with my group

(5) Let the little children come..

Hello!

Although I meant for the photos to be after the writing, the computer wouldnt allow it. So here are my photos from the last 2 weeks :) The Interns before Cirque Du Soleil

Dinner with the Youth Pastor of First Church


Day at Rocky Neck Beach with the gang

"The Book Barn" in Niantic

Elizabeth Park during Rose Weekend for Kelseys birthday

Kelseys Birthday Dinner!

Matching Intern Bracelets :)

The kids.....

Cara talking to Rekaya on stage

Dinner at the Wilhites

Taking my "tough guys" out for ice cream :)

Today we completed our second full week of Camp Noah!

I can't get over how fast the time is flying. To keep my rambling to a minimum I've listed off the main highlights of the past two weeks:

• Completed planning and preparation for Camp
• Started and completed the first two weeks of Camp Noah!
• Received free tickets to see the premier of Cirque Du Soleil!
• Kelsey turned 21!
• Rocky Neck Beach with the interns and our housemates
• The Book Barn in Niantic - (highly recommended!)
• Kyle and I cooked community dinner - Chicken Parmesan for 10 -My first time cooking!
• Received my first prophetic words at Wellspring Church
• Fell in love with 40 kids

It's been birthday madness over here lately, with celebrating Harmony's birthday and then having a weekend long celebration for Kelsey turning 21. Needless to say, some serious bonding has taken place between the interns and our other housemates Josh, Harmony and Rex. Who would have thought that a group of people would get along so well, so fast. We have all enjoyed watching our "alternate egos" come out during Camp as we take on leadership and disciplinary roles while acting like complete fools to keep the kids interest.

Our day starts at 9 with devotions. We then break up and work on our specific roles for Camp. We meet the kids at a playground in Keney Park at 1:00 and walk over to Glory Chapel where Hartford City Mission has rented a large room. We start the kids off with some songs and free dance time to get some energy out ( you'd be surprised how good a 6 year old can break dance..) Then we jump into a short Bible lesson. The kids then go around to different stations such as Crafts, Snack, Games and Music. We have about 40 kids, which is a great blessing. We've split them into 4 teams with an Intern leading each team. We have each been assigned a "Street Leader" to our groups to help keep the kids under control. The Street Leaders are High Schoolers from the North End who attend the christian youth ministry called Young Life.

The kids are all absolutely amazing. I have such love for each and every one of them. I worked with a few of the kids during this past year at an after school program through the same ministry, so it has been such a pleasure seeing familiar faces and feeling like I have already gained respect and love from them. I realize now why the Lord brought me to the after school program before I became an Intern. In this past year I have learned how to be patient and gentle, and as a summer camp Intern, if you dont have those two charecteristics you are doomed. I have learned how to pick and choose my battles, which is very important. It is impossible to battle the kids all the time. You will lose. It is best just to love them and give in to their attention seeking cries.

I have discovered what I enjoy the most about working with these children. I have a wonderful group of 9 and 10 year olds. I specifically wanted to work with this group because a few of the boys have the hardest shells to crack. They are mostly reserved and often angry. They sulk and hit, and rarely want to participate. I got a chance to work with some of these kids this past year when I taught them art. During that time I realized that when they began to draw or paint they would relax, and took their work very seriously. I knew they had gentle souls deep down and just need the right love to bring it out.

I am so happy to say that in the past two weeks I feel like their shells have cracked and they feel a new comfort with me. When I look over while we are singing a song and I see one of those boys following along with the hand motions my heart smiles. When the person up front asks a question about the bible lesson and I see them raise their hands into air I beam with gladness. When I see their serious faces working hard on a craft, or earning their 10 fake dollars for memorizing the weekly bible verse I melt. It is in these times that I see them actually acting like the children they are. Smiling and laughing like a child would. In that moment, everything is how it should be. That is my favorite part.

I am learning so much here, soaking it all in. Seeking God in new ways, and seeing His face in the eyes of children. Sometimes I feel as If the summer camp is really for the Interns, and the kids are our leaders. They are far better teachers than we could ever be.

In Christ,

Cheryl

A more spiritual update coming soon...

(4) John 18:36

"A not so typical Sunday."

We visited Glory Chapel for worship this past Sunday. I didn't know what to expect but I was excited for the experience. And an experience it was. I have never felt so genuinely welcomed by people I didn't know. They were truly happy we were there - well, that and the fact that they simply were just truly happy people. The diversity in that chapel was amazing. So many races under one roof praising the same God.. it would give anyone chills. The worship began and I was in awe. I felt like a spectator at a show, except these people weren't acting. They sang, they danced, they clapped, they shouted. I could feel the trembling under my feet as the building shook from people praising the Lord. The sound was massive. Kids running around, people trying to converse as they strolled in. The choir fanning themselves with their worship bulletins. An abundance of grace had truly been poured out upon this building and its congregation. The people of Glory Chapel knew what it meant to be saved. They have been given a second chance and were literally running and dancing with it. No one could take it away from them now. ( The church was founded be a former drug addict who became saved. The majority of the men and woman that attend have had previous drug addictions and are now working to help community.) As we sang the men waved their white handkerchiefs and the woman swung about their scarves. People all over had brought their own tambourines and were clanging along. Time meant nothing to them as they worshiped, in fact one of the elders came up to the podium to do the announcements and ended up expressing how much he loved the previous song, so he called on the choir and pianist to start it up again so we could worship some more. A woman in the front started dancing all around, and as the choir came to the end of the song she dropped to the floor and began to shout. "I thank you!" she cried to the Lord. "I am your servant! I thank you for being a forgiving father," she screamed as she lay on the floor. It was quite a moving moment.

You know how you sometimes applaud after singing a song at church? Well, I suppose I always thought it was for the band or the worship leader. At Glory Chapel I learned of a whole new way to applaud. They weren't clapping for the amazing choir, or the drummer or the talented pianist. They were clapping for Jesus. At one point we started applauding and just didn't stop. It just went on and on, like a never ending applause. This applause was like no other. Faces were turned up to heaven, eyes shut tight, speaking loudly to God and thanking Him. That was one of my favorite moments that day, applauding as if a band had just finished the last song of a concert and we were waiting for an encore. That's what experiencing grace is.

Here's some photos of my past days, enjoy!

In Christ,
Cheryl