Portland, Powell's and People.

Dear Friends,
Today has been a complete God story in itself. Our rental cars were upgraded and our housing situation exceeded our expectation! We took the MAX (light rail transit) from Beaverton into downtown Portland to get our bearings of the city before we met our contact at Habibis for supper. In this time of transit we were challenged to step out of our comfort zone and start up conversations. I have to say I found this difficult,but I could be a prayer partner for those engaging. We made our way to Powell's books since we had time to kill and I was just as fascinated by the store the second time I went into it as the first. Among the rows,rooms and levels of books my partner Michelle and I had a brief conversation with a guy looking through C.S. Lewis books for his girlfriends Christmas present. Overall the conversation established that he was a believer and is plugged into a church.
We met our contact Matt and his girlfriend at a Lebanese restaurant Habibi. Through the course of dinner and a trip to a local chocolate shop we began to hear their heart for Portland and the ministry we would be working with.
It is great to be back in Oregon again and I can not wait for tomorrow! Please be praying for us as we start to help Flavel Street Baptist reach the people around their community!

Twas the night before Portland

Dear Friends,
We are finally here to the night before my departure for Portland, Oregon. I have to say the journey up to now has been bumpy,but a huge blessing.
Earlier this week I was talking to a good friend of mine at a local coffee shop (Beans and Franks) about our upcoming trips ;she is preparing to go to London.As we talked through how God provided money for our trips, I made the assessment that God had been so good about providing just what I needed. With less than $50 exceeding the total $800 for my trip I was impressed. Not only financially, but He is allowing me to be apart of the trip. However, the next morning after our talk He blew my mind. Not only did He provide,but He abundantly provided by another donation! I no doubt do not credit God enough for His abundant blessings and fully expect Him to continue through the trip.
I can not thank you ,my friends and family, enough for being apart of the journey thus far through prayer and financial support!
The hours are closing in on my 4:45am alarm to head to the airport so I should sleep at some point tonight! Next time I post, it will be from Portland,Oregon!

Vagabond (vagəˌbänd): A person who wanders from place to place having no home.

Dear Friends,

            Welcome to my blog! Although there are going to many grammatical errors in this beautiful mess I do hope that you find some kind inspiration or just pure entertainment out of this. The question you may be asking is why a blog? Well, the answer is simple: to keep you guys updated on my journey to graduation from Tarleton State University and then beyond. As soon as I found out a mere three weeks ago about my impending graduation next December, I began to worry about what the future holds beyond that little piece of paper. What do I do when there are no plans? I wander. I become a Christian Vagabond

            A vagabond is someone who wanders from place to place having no home. However, this looks differently for those who are following Christ. The word vagabond leaves a negative impression in many people’s minds, but as a Christ follower we are asked to follow and this is positive!

(Matthew 4:18-20, Matthew 9:9, John 1:43, Luke 14:27, John 10:27)

The one thing about following Christ is being open to the idea of not having a “5 year plan” or even a job lined up before college ends. (DISCLAIMER: I am just writing about my experience thus far and it does not apply to everyone.) I am become more okay with the idea of not having an idea for the future as God continues to work on and through me. Much like the title states, I do feel as though I am wandering with no home. However, I know that as long as I follow Christ and keep my focus upon Him I know that my home is wherever He leads me. I also must recognize that I am never truly home until I reach heaven. As for now I am following Christ back to Oregon!

            As many of you know, at the beginning of 2013 I went with the Tarleton BSM (Baptist Student Ministry) to work on the campus of The University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon. The land, the people and the ministries absolutely enthralled me as we set out on our 10 day trip. In the short 10 days there I decided I was to visit this place again and hoped it was a longing God would grant soon. To my surprise not even a full year later here I am. I am completely in awe of the opportunity to go back to Oregon, and this time to Portland! December 13^th through December 23^rd 2013, our team of 8 will be in Portland serving a church plant reaching the city. I am really excited to have this opportunity, but I ask that you guys could be praying for us as we prepare for the trip spiritually. Please be praying about finances too.  We are on the countdown to the ever approaching December 1^st deadline of $800 due. I have been blessed this far to have almost half of the trip paid for through donation and I cannot be more thankful for those individuals! If you have any questions please do not hesitate to shoot me a message, text or email! Until next time

 “Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle” – Plato