Number 7: Letters from friends.

I love writing letters, but it is even better to receive them! I have always liked to write letters. Thank yous are  fun to write and I have been writing them for ages. I am not sure why I like to write...maybe it has something to do with my love for paper and stationary, but who can say?

I have a few close friends that I like to write to. Some of them are awesome at writing back super fast, others take their time. Either way, I love to get the letters they write.

Letters are more important than text messages and e-mails. Letters take more thought, more planning, more consideration. Letters offer the reader a bit of the real feelings of the reader. Letters offer more honesty. Actually writing the words offers the writer the opportunity to take time out of the busyness of life and to put down in words what the writers thoughts are at that point in time. Letters are lovely.

Some letters I got this summer were full of good news which buoyed up my spirits. Others where written with heavy hearts - these challenged me to help as best I could. Some of the letters were encouraging and some were just newsy. No matter what the letter said on the page they all told me that letter writing is not a lost art.

Oh! And I cannot forget about the letters from Jake! I was really bad at writing regularly to Jake while he was at bootcamp, but he wrote faithfully to his family with whom I was staying. Jake's letters where awesome! They were full of all kinds of news. Like what physical challenges he had completed and was looking forward to doing. He wrote about his friends he was making and the things they had in common. He wrote about his walk with Christ and his desire to be baptized once he got home. His letters encouraged those it was written to and was read with tears in the eyes of the reader more than once.

Letters are lovely.

Number four: Watching others grow

This one might seem funny, but it is true. One of the best parts of the summer was watching other people grow in many different ways. One friend became pregnant over the summer and it seemed like she grew on a daily basis. Other people grew in other ways. Some grew in faith. Others in physical strength. Some  grew in knowledge. Some in kindness. Some people grew in leadership.

No matter how they grew, watching was fun and meaningful. Watching others make realizations or learning new things is always wonderful. Change is good and when we see it in others - we look back at our own lives and look for ways that we can grow too.

That is one of the coolest things to see. Person A is experiencing change and is growing in so many ways is being watched by Person B. Person B admires Person A and strives to grow too. This is what I enjoy watching!

Number three - Church and My Relationship with Jesus!

Oh rejoice! Rejoice rejoice rejoice! My heart cannot hold it all in. Life is wonderful and good and sweet!

So at the beginning of the summer, I was going to church with my aunt and her family. Not that it was horrible or anything, but it just was not for me. Worship was hard and the message was hard to relate to. Plus the service started at 8:30 in the morning!

One Sunday Katie and I decided to go to a later service and after that we were kinda laughing about church hopping. Then Katie suggested that we go to her old church in Lansing.

We made our plans and told her parents. The next Sunday we found ourselves at South! I have not been in a church that is so alive, so in love with Christ since Spring Arbor! It was amazing! Worship was wonderful and the messages spoke to my very soul! The best thing was that it really filled my spirit and helped me get through the stresses of the week.

Katie and I would be practically sobbing while we sang praises to Jesus. It was wonderful!

Meanwhile, furring the week, I was stressed beyond belief. The shop owner was out sick and I was doing my best to keep the shop together. My classes were challenging (I should probably say I was having issues with MY instructor, but I don't want to name names). I was having more trouble than I thought I should have been having writing my thesis. I missed home. I was not getting as much jewelry made as I had planned. I did not have a job for after my internship. I just felt like I was failing at life!

Crazy thought for a 24 year old right? But let me tell you, we feel them just the same. Like I told Katie, life is harder than they tell you.

So there I was, loving church, but not really growing closer to Jesus. That is when the pastor did a sermon on hesitant Christians. And I was like yeah! That is me!

That week, almost every night. I cried while I talked to Jesus. I needed to know why I was not trusting him with everything...I discovered that I was afraid of what he would do with me...as if his perfect will would be bad for me! Crazy, I know.

So that is when I decided that even if he wants me to go to some crazy bug infested, wild place with no flush toilets, that I would go. Do you know why? Well it is because I know that he will take care of me wherever he sends me. I finally trusted him with everything. I gave it all to him, I cannot and I do not want to be in charge of all the things in my life. There is too much for one person to deal with!

Why do we do this to ourselves? Why do we think that we can do better with our lives than Jesus can? Why do we worry when he is right next to us asking if he can help?

I don't really know why we do these things, but I do know that he will take anything we give him and he will do a better job than we can by ourselves.

Thank you Lord Jesus!! Master of all!! Praise your name forever!!! Amen!

Something New

Three short weeks ago, I was a nobody, a nothing. I did not have anything really happening in my life that I was excited about. Sure, I have a great family and wonderful friends, yes, I have an Etsy shop and love beading, your right I am an MBA student…but life was a bit boring.

Then something happened. It seemed small and unimportant at first. You know, the kind of thing you think could be big, but normally nothing ever happens?

This time, something happened.

I was reading a textbook for a class and it said that in business today, we need to look at the competition as collaborators instead of as competition. “Huh,” I thought, “that’s interesting.” Etsy, and the world, for that matter, is full of jewelry makers and sellers. Competition right? Then again…an idea was beginning to form.

The next day I started working on another bit of homework. A little paper on some topics from the textbook. One of the questions I was supposed to address in the paper was what had I learned and how was I going to apply it tomorrow. At first, I did not know what to make of the question. I mean, come on. What do you usually do with new learning? File it away until you need it right? But the idea to look at others as collaborators and not competitors was a tad different than most new knowledge.

So, I did the paper and in it, I mentioned that I might try asking some of my Etsy friends if they would be interested in some sort of creative collaborative project. I was thinking like 5 of use getting together (over the interwebs, of course!) to work on a project. Naturally, my idea was a piece of jewelry that each person would work on. Then we could action the piece off and the proceeds would go to charity.

I posted my proposal on several different Etsy team forums on Friday night and waited. On Sunday, while I was at church, I could hardly stand it. I just felt so led by the Lord to do this thing. Like it was right. Like it was what I was supposed to be doing right now. I was so filled with excitement that I could barely stop myself from skipping around and shouting “Hurray!”

I got home and started looking at the threads to see if anyone had showed interest. Over  30 people in less than 48 hours had responded. I had Etsy convos (private messages) asking how shops could become involved. I was stunned! The next day, there were about 20 people in the conversation. We had ideas flying everywhere. A blanket, different charities, a scrapbook, a website, a virtual craft fair. All kinds of ideas and they were coming from several different teams. I realized that I had to get everyone together and on the same page.

I started a new team. We did not even have a name yet, but we had about 30 members. At this point, my idea had only been around for about a week.

The first week as a real team…I don’t even know what happened! I mean everyone was talking all at once. A group of 40 some Etsyians – from all over the world – were talking about how we could help others through our crafts. We picked a name – Etsy’s Helping Hands. One member volunteered to start and maintain a website. Another volunteered to do the same for a blog. Yet another started a virtual craft fair. We started a calendar, and three weeks after the idea took shape, we have the rest of the year planned out. We know who is planning the project for each month and we know what charity will gain the benefit.

Our first project is going to be sending our handmade items to a women’s shelter in Texas….and it was not even my idea! I did not come up with it at all. Trey did. And he volunteered to do everything for it. We just send him our items! I am so thrilled to be doing a group project with people who are passionate about the work of the team!

Now we have over 50 members! And we still grow daily. I am still in shock at how amazing this group of people is! I am thrilled with what the Lord is using me for and am so blessed by it all. I cannot wait to see how things go.

My dream for the team is that it will become self-sustaining. That each member can choose to or not to participate in each month’s project.  That we become large enough that we can have local chapters. That we can make a real difference in the world. That we can practice compassion in a tangible way. And that we can use our gifts to give others hope.

I would love to share more about this project with you guys! Let me know if you have any questions! 

Here are our links:

www.etsyshelpinghands.com/ 

virtualcrafts.weebly.com/virtual-craft-fair.html 

http://www.facebook.com/groups/259638884122016/ 

http://twitter.com/#!/EtsyHH

Let it BEGIN! Let it BEGIN!

Hey Guys! Well this is the first week of the MBA program!! I am so excited for it! I feel just like Rhino from Bolt!

Yes, I do know I am a ridicules nerd for being excited about school, but I can not help it! Here are a few pictures to mark this momentous occasion in my life...lol just kidding. We need not be so somber. This is going to be fun!

My acceptance letter!

Wohoo!! SAU!!!

Look at these great books! So excited!! Look at the boatload for accounting!! The four books on the right. Four! Oh and the quilt in the background is one my mom made for me. The bright colors are so me!

So far it does not seem like it will take too much of my time so I should be able to be crafty still. :D I started working on another sweater last night while I was watching the wonderful old Disney Peter Pan and 101 Dalmatians. I love those great old movies. I am not sure how much jewelry and knitting I will do in the near future though. You see, Lent is starting tomorrow...and...I have decided to reduce the number of movies I watch a week from between 7 and 11 to only 2! The problem must be obvious to you all. I make things while I watch movies. So If I am not watching movies I might not be making jewelry. Don't worry! I will do stuff, it just might not be as much as before. Anyway, I am giving up movies (inferior relaxation and recreation) in order to spend more time relying on God. He is the only true relaxation and peace. So, I'm going to do it! Hope you guys all have a great Fat Tuesday and a wonderful Lenten season filled with hope and renewal and peace! Get closer to God, guys!

SNOW!!!!

I am so very very happy with life right now!! It is so wonderful. I am just so happy and excited. :D I have been wanting snow for so long and now it is finally here! And just in time for the first day of December too.

Lord, thank You for the snow! Thank you for how lovely it is. Thank You for loving me so much that You sent me some snow! I love you Lord and pray that the snow will make everyone a little bit happier today and keep us all safe in the snow.