Roadblock

So... shortly after I (finally) said YES to God, there was mention of an opportunity to go to East Asia for two weeks in the near future. I was PUMPED!! I just KNEW this was the trip God had in mind for me! I have had no doubt at ALL!

Until recently, that is. I know I'm meant to go to East Asia. I KNOW it. And I wish I could describe how sure I am that I'm meant to go with this group! But there's one little detail that is holding me back--a stinking, silly, little plane ticket. In order to go with this group, I have to get on the same flight, and thus far, we have NOT scored that ticket.

I KNOW that if this is God's will, He will provide a ticket, and the funds to pay for it. But I'm worn out from waiting.

God, restore my patience and give me assurance. I've stepped up and said YES to You, now please, help me stand firm in faith. Help me to be okay without this control. And most of all, God, mold, teach, and prepare me for this grand adventure I'm so certain I'm going to have.

Mabry on a Mission

God has been doing some AMAZING things in this life of mine. And the cool part is, I KNOW He's not done yet!

This is the verse I've been confronted with SEVERAL times since January:
"Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" ~Matthew 28:19

I know the Great Comission. And I consider myself someone who makes disciples. But there here's what has been happening in life lately. One little word has been sticking out to me:

GO! Go? Go where God? I've been going! I go to school, I go to work, I go to church, I go to camp, I go to CHICAGO! --where else do you want me to make disciples? (btw, don't ask that question unless you're willing to get the answer!) You know what, God, I'll go. As long it isn't China or something, I'll go wherever you want me to go. ...China? Really, God? I can't do that. So...um... no.

"If you love me, you will keep my commands." I do love you, God. But CHINA?! I can't go to China! I don't have money for China!
"GO"
But God, I don't even have a heart for China.
"GO"
But...
"GO"

So, I'm going to China. I'm not sure when, where, how, or with whom, but I'm going to China. And the most amazing thing of all is that I'm actually REALLY excited about it! What an AWESOME God we serve!

A time to THINK

So, I got some of my laundry stolen from the laundromat yesterday. Lost my favorite pair of jeans, my favorite Michael Buble t-shirt and an embroidered towel that I got for graduation. I guess someone was in need of new clothes, but I did get really upset. REALLY upset.

But then God reminded me that I have been asking for spiritual humility lately. He sure has a way of answering prayers. I know that I don't really NEED those clothes (although they were some of my favorites to wear), and I do have other clothes to wear. So, I guess someone needed those jeans more than I did. :)

Another thing that's happened, I met with my mentor this week and she is a lovely woman. She's former teacher and now a stay at home mom with three kids. I really would love to be a stay at home mom, but my mentor pointed out that there's really no such thing as a part-time teacher. You either work, or you don't. So I got to thinking about that. THEN, in my "intro to special ed" class (as I like to call it), we talked about speech pathology. Speech pathologists can work with regularly developing children, children with disabilities, AND when the time comes to be a stay at home mom, I can do that, too! AND there are only 5 speech-schools in Mississippi, and one of them is in Columbus, just 20 minutes away (and where my best friend, Alyssa goes to school :))

So I have a lot to contemplate. But I'm relying solely on Jesus to lead my way! Lord, show me YOUR desire for my life send me some neon lights so I know I'm on the right path!

dunno

I'm sitting here at work, bored, tired, stressed, excited, and... well, blah. that's about the only way I can describe it. It has been raining here for 4 days, and it's only going to rain more, they tell me. I think the lack of sunshine is really starting to get to me. It doesn't help that I still have a cough from the last football game, almost 3 weeks ago.

I didn't go to bed until after 2 last night. I just couldn't sleep. And then, I started crying. For NO GOOD REASON! So I prayed that whatever was keeping me up at night, and cranky during the day, that God would take it and make it His. It was interesting.

I have 4 tests in the next 3 days, and I'm a little stressed. I took a geography test last night and am anxious for the results. Then I have Social Foundations, Psychology of Exceptional Children, Teaching Grammar, and Statistics. I'm not sure how prepared I am for any of these tests, but I'm doing my best to study for them.

I'm super excited that mom came to town, and that Alyssa is coming to town tonight and that we're ALL going out to eat in Starkville! It's gonna super fun. I'm also excited because I'm going to take mom to Walmart and see if she needs to buy (me) anything. :) it's gonna be a blast. I'm also excited because MSU is playing LSU this Saturday at home, and I can't wait to watch!! Go DAWGS.

I guess I'm just a great big ball of emotions this week, and it gets confusing sometimes. But I'll figure it out soon enough!

dreaming

I've been dreaming a lot in the past few nights. and if a dream is a wish your heart makes... I wanna learn to play the guitar, write a new song, and get it heard on the radio. I wanna live in my own apartment with lots of hamburger helper, CapriSun, and a dog. I wanna ring my cowbell for 6 hours straight without getting a headache or having sore muscles. I really wanna see Alyssa. And apparently, I really want to be a fish.

who knew?

Problems...

I guess I got really used to wearing my glasses at MSU; I never really wore my glasses before this semester. Now, I've left my glasses at home and I've had a headache for 2 days and it's making me nauseated. It's not so fun, especially since no one can find my glasses anymore. :(
Please, Lord, place your healing hands on my head and help us to find those stinkin glasses!

You all remember a year ago, when I changed my major to Elementary Education because God told me to, right? Right. Well, I was going strong on that path, confident that that's what God wanted for my life. And I was so happy about it. Well, I'm still happy about it, but now I feel that God is leading me down a slightly different path: still children, just chrildren with "special" needs. Now, though, my confidence in Elem Ed is turning into pride, and I really don't want to get in the way of God's will. At the same time, though, I don't want to make an emotional decision to head down this "special" path when it's NOT God's will. Please, Lord! Give me some flashing NEON lights here! A sign that is unmistakably from YOU!!

HOLY COW!!!!!!

Who knew August would pass so quickly? I realize it's been four months since my last post, but you have to realize how busy things have been in the last four months. I had CATS, finals, graduation, 3 weeks of nomad/bum life (which was fun, btw. I learned how to use a laundromat and live off of hotdogs!), then 6 weeks of Camp Lakeside (which, btw, was AMAZING!), then 2 weeks to prepare to move to college, 1 week of getting settled at college, and 2 weeks of classes. It's been busy, people!

Now let me tell you how amazing God is. So I moved into MSU a week before classes actually began. My roommate (one of my amazing co-counselors at camp) had band camp from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. during that entire week, and all the girls on my floor were "rushing" and junk. Needless to say, I was lonely. REALLY lonely. But that next weekend the BSU had something called basic training, and I signed up for it. I have to say, I was not looking forward to it. I don't like big crowds of people and I felt like a kindergartener on my first day of school. It was not good. But I sucked it up, put on my big girl panties, and went. IT WAS A BLAST!!!! We played games, and visited other churches in the community and ate (a LOT), and just had such a great time!

The BSU divided all the incoming Freshmen and Transfer students into "family groups," and I absolutely ADORE mine! We've only known each other for 2 weeks now and I already feel like I have some best friends! God has been so good introducing me to these people. Last night we had our first Bible study together, and we're studying the book of Acts. It's gonna be great. Everyone laughs when we get together. Last night, I laughed so hard I almost couldn't breathe, and then, of course, in typical Mabry fashion, I accidentally snorted and the laughter started back up again! It's so much fun and I love those people.

God has really provided me financially as well. I have a job working in an office on campus, and it's great. I answer phones and do homework the whole time, so it really fits into my tight schedule. Also, I'm volunteering at Suddeth Elementary School, working with a kindergarten class for one hour per week. I'm really excited to work with those kids! They're just so cute :)

God has also provided me with some pretty easy classes. I think the hardest one I'm taking right now is Statistics, and it's not so bad. I made a 100 on my first test today! The other night, I was in my Geography class (which, I don't like), and I got so bored that I decided to write Pete a letter using my LEFT HAND. GOOD GRIEF! how bored do you have to be to write a letter to your brother with your left hand? it was ridiculous. but i found it funny that even with my left hand, my handwriting is better than his! :)

Anyway, that's all I have time for right now. Maybe I'll post some pics soon!