Turkey Day!!!

Oh what a wonderful day this was! I know some of you are celebrating it right now, have fun! So being an American cook here on base it was fun to cook thanksgiving dinner. Given that some people are from Canada and Europe so Canadians celebrate in October and Europeans don't celebrate it at all. It was fun to share this experience with different nations. They don't have turkey here so we had chicken breasts. Stuffing (my grandma's recipe) was a hit! Mashed potatoes with fresh chives and pepper, gravy and homemade rosemary bread. To top it all off, homemade pumpkin pie from scratch. Now, I know what you're thinking, pumpkin pie from scratch, but it's not what you're thinking.... Since they don't have canned pumpkin here I had to boil the pumpkin and make my own. Guess what, it tasted better than any other pumpkin pie I'd ever had! So it was a very successful thanksgiving day! Everyone was willing to help out which was like home. It doesn't feel weird being away from home for the holidays, granted this is my second time gone. I guess this just really feels like home to me which is amazing. everyone here are my brothers and sisters. I was blessed that having this family time last night and the meal made everyone so happy and thankful. I was blessed! God is so good and I have a lot to be thankful for. God bless you on this amazing day!
ps. Don't eat too much!!!! :)

Freedom

I was told yesterday that it is a blessing to have me in the kitchen. I told this person what about last year? They said well no, you are part of the family. Meaning I have been through this place as a student last year and now the returning staff are here and I know all of them. It really made me think and then I got that happy feeling inside saying YES! I belong here! I love that feeling of joy when this is a home and a safe environment to share things. Sure we are not a perfect family but that is fine.

I felt challenged by the speaker this week Mark Parker. He said can you think of one day where everything ran smoothly? Can you think of more than one day? How about a week? He said life is not about being perfect or having things run smoothly, it's about working through the challenges and the difficulty. I was like oh, ya that's right. As brothers and sisters walking beside each other we want to challenge and help one another grow deeper in our relationship with God. Dude that is awesome! It's like when I have students and staff come in the kitchen and "unload" I realized that since I have the influence of freedom and boldness they feel they have that safe environment to share or pray or sit and stare at the wall. He also asked us what God is refining right now in us and what influence we bring. It was such a good time of realizing things that we need to be reminded of. I always enjoy this week, the students are always so vulnerable and open to what God has for them. In worship last night we had all the boys in a circle doing what boys do, making noise and praising. Then we had the girls on the other side of the room, it was interesting it started out with us all making noise then we got quiet, then we all split and started yelling out FREEDOM real braveheart style. It felt so good! It was a good time for the girls to let loose and be real with God. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it!!!

On another note, it's THANKSGIVING!!!! I love this holiday, I feel it really starts the fall for me. Although right now it's spring-summer. I was up at 4:30 this morning making musli, stuffing and pumpkin pie. I couldn't really sleep so why not go bake a pie. It's my 2nd thanksgiving I'm missing, I do miss family and all americans that understand the holiday instead of these people that don't understand what canned pumpkin is! I mean really?! It will be a great family feast tonight! We have to have chicken because they don't have turkey here, mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy, fresh bread. For dessert: Pumpkin Pie!!! yum yum! So to all that are celebrating this glorious holiday tomorrow, I hope you have a fun filled day enjoying one another, food, football (wussy sport compared to rugby), and a day full of giving thanks! 

For now, have a good day! I'll be in the kitchen if anyone needs me......

Courage

So courage is a funny thing. What does it mean to have courage? In my opinion courage is when you do something you don't want to do. When there is something you fear and you go through it anyway. Like God gives us the strength to get through anything and everything right?! This is a true statement. We can do anything through him. Last year on my DTS I did not want to go to Thailand for outreach. It took me a few hours to decide in my head that this was ok. But in my heart I knew I was going there the whole time. God gave me the courage to get through outreach because it was packed full of things that I needed to learn/deal with. I'm glad I went but truthfully I was scared of a 3rd world country since I didn't know what to expect. It was fun and exciting and I would totally do it again! I have learned this past week to never doubt God for what he does or is going to do. It has really been a roller coaster this week, I think that since all the students from the snowboarders left two weeks ago and now the staff are starting to leave I'm in that grieving stage all over again. It's not as bad as when they left the first time. People come and go and I like to think they take a piece of me with them. Or at least I hope they do! 

It was a Johnny Cash listening week this week for sure! You know that music you can listen to anytime all the time. Well for me that would be good ole Johnny boy. Some people know me well enough on base here that when they hear it on in the kitchen they know it's an interesting day. I really play it when I need to not think of anything or when I'm missing home. 5 of us went to Sumner beach today which is south of Christchurch. It is rainy today but it was a fun hang time with some people I don't know very well. It ended up that all staff went. We sat at a coffee shop for a bit then went to get some fish and chips. Good stuff that is! I never liked fish until I came here to New Zealand. It isn't fishy tasting at all which is totally me! I don't like that fishy taste. In a way it's kinda perplexing because you would think it tastes like fish but when you chow down on it, you have to think then.... BAM!! It blows your mind and you're like wait is this fish I'm eating? I know what you're thinking, this kid is crazy. But I promise I'm not! I just know what I like.... 

BOLDNESS..... This has as well been on my heart this past week. Just the aspect of it and how I can be more bold in a loving way towards people. I'm not afraid to talk to people and generally I get along with everyone. But being bold for God is something I want to be challenged in while I'm here. Whether that be public speaking, or whatever else is up his sleeve. Who knows.... I guess to be more specific it would be boldness in blessing others. I want to bless people in the true way their hearts desire or the way they need to be blessed. As the chef/cook/smiley person I like to watch people from behind the counter (not like a creeper but sometimes maybe). I like to watch how they interact with one another and look or catch a glimpse of what their hearts are like. Seeing them in the way God sees them. Everyone here inspires me to be something more and to thrive in the environment I'm in. Everyone has something to offer and they have the potential to be something amazing. 

I'm praying that when I get home although it will be hard switching to living with 3 people rather than 30 that I can bring that inspiration with me and rub off on the people in the church and the people I meet on the way home. I'm excited to come home and see how things have changed and what people are up to. I know I've changed in the way I think and do things now. You could call it maturity but I think it's from living in a different country and starting from scratch, building a life. I was thinking about this the other day that when I came here I only knew a handful of people. Sure I know people all over the world but here in this little town only a handful. Black or White call it what you want but the bottom line is that........................ God knows what we need when we need it on his timing not our own! I think that's pretty hard for me because as in the western world we want everything now otherwise we think we won't get it! Most of the time we regret our decision. Sometimes not but mostly yes. A year ago I had a business and a good job. I was set but now that I look back on it, I am so blessed to be where I am and doing what I love. 

The future is a gift, if you have to ask, it's not a gift then.....

"Courage"

Take all my vicious words 

And turn them into something good 

Take all my preconceptions 

And let the truth be understood 

Take all my prized possessions 

Leave only what I need 

Take all my pieces of doubt 

And let me be what's underneath 

Courage is when you're afraid, 

But you keep on moving anyway 

Courage is when you're in pain, 

But you keep on living anyway 

We all have excuses why 

Living in fear something in us dies 

Like a bird with broken wings 

It's not how high he flies, 

But the song he sings 

Courage is when you're afraid, 

But you keep on moving anyway 

Courage is when you're in pain, 

But you keep on living anyway 

It's not how many times you've been 

knocked down 

It's how many times you get back up 

Courage is when you've lost your way, 

But you find your strength anyway 

Courage is when you're afraid 

Courage is when it all seems grey 

Courage is when you make a change, 

And you keep on living anyway 

You keep on moving anyway 

You keep on giving anyway 

You keep on loving anyway 

Obsession

What can I do with my obsession

With the things I cannot see

Is there madness in my being

Is it the wind that moves the trees?

Sometimes You're further than the moon

Sometimes You're closer than my skin

And You surround me like a winter fog

You've come and burned me with a kiss

And my heart burns for You

And my heart burns...for You

And I'm so filthy with my sin

I carry pride like a disease

You know I'm stubborn, Lord, and I'm longing to be close

You burn me deeper than I know

And I feel lonely without hope

And I feel desperate without vision

You wrap around me like a winter coat

You come and free me like a bird

my love burns for You

and my heart feels for You

my life good for You 

all I have burns for you you

burns, burns, oh la la la la la la

my love burns for You

and my heart burns for You

you for you for you

and my heart burns for You

my love burns

my heart feel

my life good

all I have for you 

my love burns

my heart feel

my life good

all I have for you

We sang this song in worship last night and it really struck me as one of those songs that God can really speak to you in. I could really relate to what this song says because I know he loves me and I love him very much. I know I"m stubborn and have things I have to work on but he loves me and frees me like a bird. He lets me be free to make mistakes as well to work for the glory of his kingdom...

Graduation

Jon, Nate, Me and Sam

How they usually are...

All the dessert lined up to go out

So Many!

Chocolate cheesecake, Vegan Brownie...

I am amazed that I still have the strength to stand after a week and night like this! The help that I had in the kitchen was top notch! Jon, Sam & Nate were so amazing and I love how I could be so honest with them when I was stressed or really excited, they took it very well! I really felt like they were my brothers in there it was so awesome! I am really going to miss them when they leave! So I have found that feeding these amazingly awesome people is a lot of work and I felt stretched in some ways but as well it felt good to use leadership skills that I haven’t used in a while. I was using the skills I learned at Subway, delegation and managing skills. But this time I was delivering my delegation techniques in a more loving way. It was so awesome though! Tonight at grad was just amazing the menu was: 

- Cheese & Crackers

- Fruit loaf

- Salad

- Pasta Salad

- Rosemary Wheat Bread

- Mussel Chowder

- Roasted Chicken

And the best part… Dessert…

- Chocolate Cheesecake topped with cream and chocolate sauce

- Vegan Brownie with a Strawberry top. 

I was impressed, mainly because 1. I have never made a chowder before 2. It was my first time making chocolate cheese 3. I was making it for 95 people. 

Can you say CRAZY!!! I guess I just like to live life on the edge and really see what I’m made of! Adventurous and humble, or at least that’s what I try to go for! I had the amazing help of my 3 boys this morning and this afternoon! We made all the cheesecake, steamed the mussels, prepped the salad, made the brownie, and made lunch. Such a good successful day! 

Tonight when they thanked me was so awesome. I was last to be thanked but all the snowboard students came up and handed me a flower each. Then surrounded me with a huge group hug, it was so awesome! I love how even though I don’t go on outreach I still feel part of it. In the sense of me pouring into these students lives then them taking it to all the different nations. Glorious! It’s like people from home pouring into me then me taking that into the countries that I’ve been to and currently live in! You have a piece of everyone that you’ve encountered in some way. God is just so stinkin’ amazing! How does he do this, how does he know just who to place in our lives. How ever he does it I will never know but what I do know is that I will carry out his will for my life. You Know?! 

Oh what a grand day of laughter with  my 3 boys to the 10 backpacker students I had help me serve. I really can honestly say that I feel stretched and I feel I have grown very much so in these past 6 months. This is the longest I’ve been in one country for about a year now. Well I guess we will see what’s next in store! For now, Peace….

My My My

Oh my goodness oh my goodness oh my goodness.... So this week like I said earlier, I have 3 boys in the kitchen working with me. I really only knew one of them fairly well. So I was a little nervous about managing three "men" if you will in a kitchen loaded with dangerous things. Just kidding, truth be told I have never laughed so hard for 2 days straight. They are awesome and so helpful, I am going to be so sad to see them go! People ask me hows the help, and when they ask they think that they are going to get a negative response. Honestly I shock them because I love working with boys because they laugh and they let things roll off them. I love that! It is definitely needed this week because with all the people on base it is so crazy! I really feel stretched in a leadership way. These three are different, but I think I have sussed it out to where I know which task to give each. They are amazing and I wouldn't trade them. So just a quick update, everything else is going so great I love seeing everyone and catching up with everyone!

Peace

The Topic of the Day:

"He made my mouth like a sharpened sword, in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me into a polished arrow and concealed me in his quiver." - Isaiah 49:2

So what does this mean? It means to me that either life or death can come out of your mouth. You can speak good of people or you can rip them to shreds. God refines us so that we do become a polished arrow or more of a "Straight Shooter" as I like to say. Which is pretty sweet when you think about it because, He loves us so much that he only wants to give us the desires of our hearts. When we fully submit to him and lay down everything to him everyday he will turn us into something beautiful. He will turn our anxiety and stress into worship for him! I'm super stoked to have finally found this out! God is our strength and he can get us through anything because he is bigger than any possible thing! 

So starting tomorrow, my amazing steezy snowboarder kids get back! I am so excited to have them back for a week! I also found out that people on this base really have a lot of faith and trust in me, meaning I have the "privilege" of having 3 men in the kitchen all next week. They needed a place for them to work so I guess the kitchen is always number one when it comes to boys. Haha... Just kidding I'm actually really excited I know 2 of them from last year snowboarders. It will be fun and much needed since there will be 80 mouths to feed! Oh when the Backpackers mix with the Snowboarders, there is just something about it because there is faith and love in it. I enjoy it, now that this year I know both schools it's going to be amazing! Super excited!!!!