that is a pharse that repeatedly keeps going through my head as im home for this break. ive now been home for almost three weeks & i go back to africa a week  from monday. my time home has been really good, ive got to rest & catch up w/ my family. its also been kinda tough for me because coming home i knew i would have choices to make. i have spent the past three months in africa falling so in love with my lord. i have learned, and i have experienced so many amazing things. i have been taught so much. in my past, for the most part, i have had friends that havent helped me grow & havent helped me in my walk with the lord. im not saying all of my friends, because that would be a lie... but i havent went looking for friends who would lift me up. instead, i havent been interested in pursuing a relationship w/ god. my friends have been my priority. during my time in africa i have realized what is important in my life & what isnt. obviously god is at the center of my life. he hasnt always been and it feels so great to have him there and to be learning so much. my time at home has been a time of "being still and knowing that he is god". i have had to make choices in what i do with my time, who i see, and where i go. i was really scared coming home for that reason. it hasnt been easy not hanging out w/ friends. believe me, its been really tough. but im learning so much. maybe im a loser, im probably the only person in the world that spent there new years eve at home... not only at home, but reading her bible. yes, i know... im weird. but ive just had to make a lot of choices. its been really tough but i know that its the right thing to do and that it will pay off. i have to be obedient to god.

i knew that coming home i would also have to have a good idea of what i wanted to do next fall, if not completely of figured it out. and i had no idea at all what i wanted to do. what college i wanted to go to, i decided i would transfer from anderson, but i didnt know where i wanted to go. i came home and it fell into place. im pretty sure i will be going to ipfw in the fall. and im pretty sure i will be majoing in journalism & maybe photography along with that. i love to write, and i love to travel. i dont think i could have an ordinary 8-5 job. and  i need a job that lets me travel. im not someone who is content very long, and i thrive on change. if i end up doing journalism, expect to see my name in time magazine someday with a report from around the world. :) im pretty sure i know what im doing this summer too. i dont want to write about it yet, because its not a definite but i think it will all fall into place too.

please, please pray for the people of kenya. im sure you have heard by now about the huge political uproar going on.Mwai Kibaki was reelected for president and the other party says that the voting process was a "sham" and they want a reelection. the riots are out of control there. at least three hundred people have died and a hundred thousand people have been displaced. adventures in missions has a fym team that goes to kenya. they were set to leave for kenya on january 14 but they are now not allowed to go into kenya, because it is just too dangerous. the people on this team are people that i am close w/, they're my friends... so please pray for the team. pray for peace about the situation in their hearts. but most of all please pray for the people of kenya and for peace.

my support is coming along... i still have about a grand that i would like to raise. please pray about that and if you feel like it is something your family can do, you can do it here on my blog. on the left hand side there is a link that says support me. follow that link and it will tell you what to do. if you arent able to support me, i ask that you please pray for me and my team everyday. prayer is vital.

also, if you have pledged to support me monthly... please do that. i am counting on that support & i completely understand if you cant afford it, if thats the case... please let me know so i can try to raise more. i just want to send a friendly reminder that i am counting on that, its a huge part of my support money as i push to finish my support raising. so please, please, get that in. if you are unable to, like i said, let me know. thanks. :)

i just finished reading a book, its called "the irresistable revolution", and its by shane claiborne. its an amazing book. one of the best i have ever read. if you like to read i suggest you read it. below are a few things from it that really stuck out to me...

"we cannot say we love god and pass by our hungry neighbor. no one has seen god, but as we love one another, god lives in us."

"popular culture has taught us that charity is a virtue. but for christians, it is only what is expected."

"there is a kind of conversion that happens to people not because of how we talk but because of how we live."

"even if there were no heaven and no hell, would you still follow jesus? would you follow him for the life, joy, and fulfillment he gives you right now?" -tony campolo

"what we do may seem insignificant, but it is most important that we do it." -ghandi