jottings.

Random fact about me:

You can always tell what kind of day i'm having by how my room looks.

Typically, I'm what you might call a neat freak.

This week?

Let me put it this way:

I'm finally beginning to feel the stress of having 8 classes.

and practicum.

and a life.

But, I wouldn't change a thing.

Other news from my cozy corner of 928:

I got my student teaching placement!

Yes, student teaching is a GO.

1st grade, here I come!

and

If you see or hear a car drive by blasting

That's Not My Name

or

Marchin' On

It's probably me.

And if you need some Jesus in your day, listen to this:

meet casey.

I'd like to introduce my best friend, Casey Jeanne.

We met freshman year.

We became friends by sharing cereal in disney princess tupperware during class.

We failed microbiology together.

and anatomy & physiology lab.

She walked me to class everyday when I tore my meniscus.

and when I did it again, the next year.

and when I broke my foot, last semester.

She called an ambulance when I passed out in cline library,

and made me laugh while I was being poked and proded.

We've stayed up for days in a row to finish huge projects,

taken road trips just to try new churches,

and lost a tire off my car going 80 mph on the freeway.

We've laughed until we've cried,

and cried until we've laughed.

She even laughs when my jokes aren't funny. or appropriate.

She's literally seen me at my worst moments,

through boy break-ups, friend break-ups, blonde hair, brown hair...

She went with me to meet Charles Stanley

to get a book signed for my grandma

instead of going to see Ke$ha.

If that's not love, I'm not sure what is...

Bottom line:

she's one amazing girl.

She's radically in love with Jesus.

She's most definitely a wild one.

She's taught me how to trust.

She's taught me what it means to be loved unconditionally.

She's the friend I've been praying for God to give me, since junior high.

I couldn't ask for a better sister, friend, or roommate.

freedom.

I can't stop thinking about how wonderful my life has been, lately.

It is such an exciting thing to find out what you were made for, why you're on this earth.

There is something about being a senior that changes you.

It happened to me in high school, and it's happening again, now.

Suddenly, you don't care what others think of you.

You don't care so much about your reputation, or being liked.

This boldness and courage comes over you,

and you feel free to just be you.

I choose to be...authentic.

I'm sitting in my beautiful new apartment

looking out my window at the mountains peeking up behind the forest.

I keep burying my nose into the blanket I'm wrapped in

because of my new appreciation for the smell of clean laundry.

My desk is covered in pictures from Africa. and homework.

and peanut butter m&m's.

And all I can think about

is how much I miss Mozambique.

my friends. my babies. heidi & rolland. house #4.

even dirt & bug filled beans and fish fridays.

I am aching inside.

I want to see the power of God manifested in Flagstaff, Arizona

like I saw it in Pemba, Mozambique.

I want to see salvations, miracles, and deliverances.

I want to see people worship God in utter abandonment & complete freedom.

I want to see broken hearts healed.

I want my friends to see God's face and to hear His voice.

I want to see revival happen at Northern Arizona University.

At the same time, I cannot wait to be back in Africa.

I will gladly pee in a latrine

eat rice and beans everyday

have worms and fleas

shower in freezing cold water...maybe once a week

always have dirty feet..and dirty everything else

have electricity sometimes

have crazy, curly beach hair

hand"wash" my clothes

have terrible internet connection

no cell phone

and hundreds of bug bites

if it means I can tell villages full of people about
Jesus Christ

hug my little friends again

dance and worship for hours in church

watch salvation after salvation

and miracle after miracle

and...

eat bonbons and drink coke from a bottle at the chicken shack, of course.

open up your heart.

Yes, it's true:
I have created yet another new blog.
The fourth one in 2 years, actually.
You see, everytime I begin a new season or adventure in my life, I start a new journal.
Well, my blog has adopted the trend....

I'm going to try and stick with this one, though.

....mostly because it's getting more difficult to make up new URL's....

Moving on!...

Hello, SENIOR YEAR!!!!

You didn't come a moment too soon.

Actually, you're a bit late, but that's alright.

It's my last semester of classes, and I am one happy girl.

So, I decided to title this blog "living love,"

because LOVE is power. LOVE is what changes people & places.

So, I'm going to live a life of radical, laid-down love.

This summer changed my life.

It will never be even close to normal or ordinary, ever again.

And, I don't want it to be.

I have encountered the power and glory of God

in ways I never thought were possible,

and now I am living to see the Kingdom come on this earth

as it is in Heaven.

It's that simple.

Yes, I am really missing Mozambique.

I think about it most of the day, everyday.

I pray for my new friends,

I remember things that I learned,

I look at my pictures over & over & over,

I talk to everyone I can on skype,

I look up plane tickets & am already planning my trip to return,

and I remember the moments that changed my life forever.

BUT for this moment, I know I am supposed to be in Flagstaff, Arizona

loving God & loving others.

I have spent the last 3 months being stretched way beyond my limits,

having all my beliefs challenged,

finding true redemption and healing,

and falling madly in love with my Heavenly Father.

And, I'm so excited for that journey to continue.