happy hump day!

last week was officially the craziest yet, but is about to be beat out. i love it. my job is awesome. after working hard all the way through i got to go home for a surprise visit on saturday night. highlights: chill sibling time, movies, ben & jerrys, great sleep in my own bed, surprises, fun road trip with the mersons, visiting my awesome church family, & coming back to the ranch! it was short lived, but perfectly timed. i put in a hard days work monday to earn back a vaca day from the OK trip. while it would've been nice to have the day off, it was a great day of work. the entire staff power cleaned before the arrival of this week's first retreat group. then i got to help out with the new zipline exit a few times, hang out with super cool middle school girls, & do some more work in the cornmaze. the best moment of the day was, by far, talking politics with greg & chad in the tunnel.
tuesday-- after a bright & early breakfast i headed off to the zipline to help run the entrance. the new one (aka trip zip) is awesome. like you should really understand the filling of awe it provides... after clipping in a long line of brave 6th grade girls & successfully coaching a very nervous one i got to ride it for my very first time. again let's add this to the list of new exciting things! then i got to teach the other interns the process of running the entrance twice which meant 2 more rides. each ride (1700 ft.) is about 1/3 mile, so i got to fly about a mile through the RVR air... ahh! the beauty of this camp is becoming even more amazing as the colors are changing. i will try to get some pictures up as soon as i figure that process out... had an exciting night out to wherly's with lisa & then a Bible study at chad's. we've been watching 'the truth project' with great discussions to follow... challenged to seek out the truth of God & resist/strip away the lies of the world.
today we had some classes. horse class with jason, biz & morgan. operations/driving class with kevin (aka kev dawg). highlights from the day: learning horse anatomy with a sweet game of simon says, riding blizzard--my noble steed (oh how he loves me), trail ride through the acres, acing the driving test in 'beastie' the van, remix singing/interpretive dancing party everywhere, & a sweet night with the girls. loved an opportunity to spend time with them rather than homework. french toast + non-camp coffee = mmm dinner.
have i mentioned how much i love my job? it is so neat to realize over & over that the exact place & moment is right where i'm meant to be. my Lord is faithfully leading me throughout each day & it feels so great.
next up: new retreat group in tomorrow, then kicking off maize fest this weekend. check it out & please come =)

r r r random!

if anyone cares, sorry it's been so long. went right from busyness last week to OK trip for abby & chase's wedding right into this super crazy week. love the get-away & chance to see awesome friends. i'm looking forward to more sweet adventures to come.

(left out from last post)-working 1st retreat- it was an awesome weekend. i was put in charge of the workers for the weekend... a soft spot in my heart. chelsea helped train me on the ways of the kitchen & dining hall. the boys worked hard on the nasty dishes. they all kept me laughing nonstop & we had a great time serving our guests & the rest of the staff. though it was very tiring going right into this after a long week and then having no break before the retreat i loved it & learned so much about the joy of serving behind the scenes... still learning!
some things i love:
-busyness & hard work-- retreat season is in full swing, up & coming maize fest, awesome katie quote, "man i'm learning that anything fun requires so much hard work, but that makes it more fun!"
-time with other staff- i appreciate so much the time & effort they put forth to teach & work right alongside with us. my love & respect for them just keeps growing. i have the funnest job ever. classes with john zig (aka j.z. j.ziggy) have been so good. this man's got a wealth of wisdom & just relates with us so well. i love learning about the history & philosophy of this ministry.
-conquering firsts- belaying 5th graders on the climbing tower, giant swing, trust fall, legal purple, support hosting, wheel barrowing & mulching steep rocky paths, building & lighting bonfire... coming soon--paintball!

all of this just reminded me of a convo i had with a great friend at graduation last year
-lori "so what does this mean? i'm not really ready to grow up & move on..."
-me "i think i'll commit my life to random-- if it's random i'll do it"
well here i am... embracing the random day after day & i love it =)

FOCUS

whoo a lot has gone down since my last post. so many good times...
-training on adventure stuff- experiential learning is, in my opinion, oh so effective--for college grads, children & adults. it's been so great how the Lord has blessed me with experience after experience to overcome my fears & show His power through these elements.
-service all over the place- the ranch would not function without it. it's so awesome to work under & with the leadership of the staff here. they set the bar high in their example of humble, joyful service. it is very humbling to be served & even have your feet washed by a leader which i have such a great respect for. the display of the body within this ministry is so beautiful.
-stretching (mental, physical, emotional, spiritual, social, total!)- i could've never expected the ways in which God would be stretching me through times of brokenness & times of blessing. i'm so thankful for these times & even just looking back on how the Lord has been so obviously orchestrating it all as my only source of guidance, providence, comfort, leading, protection & the list goes on...
-working 1st retreat-
-staff retreat- the word i chose to sum up the past few days is focus. the Lord has been placing this word in my life so much lately. again i kept hearing this word revealed through our discussions, worship, prayer time & stillness. it was so awesome to take this break after coming off of the summer & as we head into the busy off season. i find myself just loving the busyness & opportunities to serve... what is my focus & purpose in this? as we took this time away, rather than trying to solely plan & program we spent time seeking the Lord first. we just had some amazing reflection & refreshing of our focus being upon the Lord's working through us.
Psalm 127:1-2 "Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman keeps awake in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, to retire late, to eat the bread of painful labors; For He gives to His beloved even in His sleep." i surrender it all to Him to lead & guide me through both service & rest perfectly appointed by Him and for the purpose of His glory above all.
here's a bit from an awesome song:
You're the God of this city
You're the King of these people
You're Lord Of this nation
You are
You're hope for the hopeless
You're light in the darkness
You're peace to the restless
You are
there is no one like our God
he greater things have yet to come
the greater things are still to be done in this city
-prep for outdoor ed group #1 done. ready for more new experiences & more opportunities to follow in the service He prepares, provides & blesses.

amen

i'm so thankful for the gift of music. this song has been coming to mind a lot lately. hope these lyrics can encourage you wherever you're at... that you may experience the nearness of the Lord's power

My heart is restless in me
My wings are all worn out
I'm walking in the wilderness
And I cannot get out
I need You, Oh, I need You
Blessed Savior come
I need You, Oh, I need You
Fill the every longing of my soul

Oh, how I need You, Lord
I need Your perfect Word
With tearful eyes to see
The sin that I afford
I need to weep and pray
For all the thousand ways
That I have failed You just today

My bed is soaked with sadness
My sadness has no end
A downward spiral of despair
And I keep falling in
I need You, Oh, I need You
To You my soul shall fly
I need You, Oh, I need You
Yahweh, how I love You more than life

Oh, how I need You, Lord
I need Your perfect Word
With tearful eyes to see
The sin that I afford
I need to weep and pray
For all the thousand ways
That I have failed You just today

Your silence is like death to me
So won't You hear my desperate plea

Today my soul is soaring
Way over mountains high
Though I can see the valleys,
They're all just passing by
It's not that I am stronger
Look at my feeble wings
But I've been lifted higher
Yahweh's lifted me in His own strength

Oh, how I love You, Lord
I love Your perfect Word
With tearful eyes to see
The God who always will endure
Now I will celebrate
For all the thousand ways
That You have shown me grace
And made my heart in grace to stay
You've made my heart in grace to stay
You've made my heart in grace to stay

-Josh Bales-

day off #1 & off season kick-off

it was so nice to sleep in and just spend some catch up time. there's a funny tension between here & the outside world... i have been praying for a good balance of managing both-- not too absorbed here, but also not wrapped up outside of where i'm at. i love it here & enjoyed the quiet day to get things done & spend some time with the girls. then there was another awesome bonfire at the Brumgard's sweet lawn patio in honor of Rachel's birthday--the big 24! good good times. fantasy football has started up so the boys are all hyped & provided me with great entertainment during the first draft last night.
the official week 1 of the off season just kicked off with the return of all of the full timers. looking forward to our getaway retreat next week.
coming soon... pictures of the place & a report of adventure element training =)

quick synopsis:

looking back on my journaling from the past few days, here's a quick rundown:
-Wednesday- got here thanks to the help of my family and friends working with me when my car died. (rip Josie). this was just a great reminder of the support of awesome people who have helped me along the way up to this point and the fact that they are still there. ahh. immediately i loved the chance to be back at the ranch and also meet the newbies right away. first impressions: i am the shortest girl & poor ben is the only guy. we had a cookout back at chad & erin's. i just love chill time with chill people. after a quick lesson on the mower i took the kiddos for a ride on the sweet wagon hookup chad made. so basically we are bff's and i'm now cleared to mow any day mr. miller's off .
-Thursday- we covered a bunch of ground work: paperwork and tour of the property. i can't wait to see the ranch during the other 3 seasons! i got to enjoy a quick nap in the stage coach with cole mackers (aka coocoowaka). chad reviewed the program, purpose, and policies. it was so good for us all to get this orientation and start out on the same page. i'm looking forward to seeing the beauty of all of the servants uniting together in the ministry of the ranch. we had a nice dinner in the loft and just enjoyed a night of conversing around the table. i appreciate the humble transparency of these girls and just loved hearing of their journey's & the Lord's mighty work in their lives. it's really nice how we are all coming from different walks of life but all about at the same stage of life.
-Friday-Saturday- we got to sleep in a little bit and then started a 24 hr solo. though sitting still is a big challenge for me, it was a great time of detox, relaxation, & refocus time. God surrounded me with an overwhelming, indescribable sense of His power, control, peace & holiness--He alone is worthy of every bit of me. my prayer was that throughout this next year, amidst all of the busy hustle and bustle (which i love), everything i do would be focused on Him rather than people or task oriented. we all met up for a debrief & prayer time. i love my new family. after we showered it was lunch time. we helped out a bit and then headed out for a tour of town, basically tour de hanover. it's really nice to run into familiar people and just spend time catching up with them. i'm looking forward to the opportunity to continue relationships with the workers that come back for the retreats throughout the year. had a girls night at Hope's--coffee + movie = classic.
-Sunday- went to Lifepoint church with the Bonawitz family. it was not Apex, but it was sweet. the passion and joy of true worship was going down and it was great to hear about their ministry so in tune with the Holy Spirit. the message was basically a 45 minute snap shot of my semester of philosophy class. we then went to Codorus for the day & enjoyed a nice canoe ride after the picnic. the weather was awesome. after we got back Morgan took us for a trail ride. let me just say that Blizzard is a stud and our property is gorgeous. throughout the day and night we had good talks about our dreams as far as for the internship and next summer. God is definitely working out some really connections with my passions & past experiences... but it's still a mystery i'm just waiting to see how it all comes together.

what brought me here?

thought i would try to keep this up in hopes of keeping those interested posted on what i'm up to and what i'm learning....
coming into the beginning of the summer i sort of felt a strange sense of familiarity mixed with curiosity of what was coming up. it just felt so great to be back at the ranch about to dive into summer #2. i enjoyed the opportunity to build upon last summer's experience and already have some relationships to build upon. the comfort i felt with being here was paired with a longing to be here longer term. throughout the coming weeks i can try to sum it up like this: after talking with only God about these new feelings and dreams i began hearing about the internship and having some awesome people encouraging me with so much excitement and help. i knew i needed and wanted to finish school and, long story short, a great distance learning program through bbc & pilgrimage also offered a lot of help and encouragement. i found myself blown away by the flurry of everything coming together while time was flying by. so after some awesome times summer was drawing to a close and my plan was no longer one more semester at cedarville but a whole year at what feels like home for now...