Thursday, October 28, 2010

What you learn in college...

What you learn in college cannot be found in a book.

Things like...

-Quarters are priceless treasures that are to be saved and used only for laundry.
-Said laundry may or may not be done once in a three-week period.
-Minutes are actually 120 seconds long on Fridays.
-Friday nights contain little or no brain power.
-A student will have at least one class each semester that he or she cannot stand.
-A student will have at least one class each semester that he or she cannot understand.
-Graduation day is the end of the world and the foreseeable future.
-A trip to Wal-Mart is the highlight of your week.
-Going to lunch or dinner in the cafeteria with a significant other would constitute a date.
-Dating couples can be spotted across campus.
-Lengths of dating relationships can be predicted down to the day.
-Coffee can be used as a bribe for many different things.
-Students would pay extra to have coffee run through the campus drinking fountains.
-Caffeine is considered a food group.
-Ice Cream is a reasonable option for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
-Dorm life is an experience that one will never forget.
-Dorm life is an experience that one wishes they would forget.
-Anything without a name on it is up for grabs.
-Anything with a name on it is up for grabs.
-No matter how many times you see a person fall up the steps with an armful of books, it will still be funny.
-Hilarious, actually.
-If you are brave enough to root for a rival team while on campus, you are brave enough to withstand the consequential swirly.
-Morning people are more annoying at 8am classes than they are at 9am classes.
-Time in the shower and/or in front of the mirror is rationed.
-So is toilet paper.
-The Library is a place of necessity, not of want.
-So is the cafeteria.
-Professors possess many things like Master’s degrees, Doctorates, and your entire college career and unforeseeable future.
-Package slips in your mailbox are to be removed and promptly bragged about to whoever is in the mailroom trying to get their box open.
-That is, if you can get YOUR box open.
-Learning comes in many shapes and sizes. Sometimes they look like the letters “A,” “B,” or “See you next semester!”

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

I'm Back! (And YOU Thought You Got Rid of Me!)

Woah! Sorry to leave ya hangin' there...

Well...welcome to Junior year! Crazy to think that I am half-way done with college! When did that happen?

Okay well...the good news is I am staying out of trouble...the bad news is I don't really have time to think! I am taking 16 credits and I'm working 2 jobs, AND I'm on the Student Leadership Council. So - it's a pretty busy semester, but so far so good.

In other news, I'm again working in the Communications & Marketing Department writing news stories for BBC's website. I don't write all of them, but I do a lot of the research. It's fun!

The Underground Cafe is also a favorite place of mine...Although I don't drink coffee (they might want to rethink hiring non-coffee drinkers at a Coffeehouse), I can make some pretty darn good coffee. Dare I say it is growing on me? I mean, not that I'm actually growing coffee beans on my arms (that could get awkward)...rather, I'm starting to enjoy select coffee-flavored drinks. However, there is a difference between "drinking coffee" and liking coffee flavored drinks...

So, I've already been at school for a little over a month, but it really feels like I've been here forever. The summer was way too fun, and I'm still grieving its passing. This generally takes the form of daily phone calls home, which are pretty much my favorite part of the day...Hm, I don't know if that's good or bad! This much I know: My MOM doesn't mind! :)

I've already been involved in a lot of random things this semester. Last week, I participated in Scranton's "Race for the Cure" where over 5000 people gathered to raise money for Breast Cancer research (Susan G. Komen Centers) through running and/or walking a 5K course. I've never been part of anything like that before, and it was amazing to see so many people come out for a cause that has affected so many lives. My roommate lost her mom to breast cancer, so I wore a sign on my back that said "I race in memory of Robyn Leonard." It was humbling to be a part of something so much bigger than myself or even just the tiny school of Baptist Bible College. It was moving to see so many people gathered for a common cause. That was only 5000 people...Imagine what Heaven will be like! Amazing!

On a side note, I'm adopted!

No, I'm NOT saying that my parents waited almost 21 years to tell me I was adopted - that might start some rumors. What I MEAN to say is that I've been "adopted" by a couple in the church that I go to here - Summit Baptist Bible Church. They are starting an "adopt a college kid" program (which is a FANTASTIC idea) and some of the empty nesters are taking on some college kids to keep an eye out for us. I'm pretty excited about it. The people who have "adopted" me actually work right here on BBC campus, so I get to see them fairly often. I'm pretty excited. It's going to be fun. I'm so thankful for such godly men and women who take time to build into my life. God is so good to me!

Well that's about it right now...just trying to stay on top of everything. This weekend is Rob Laing's wedding in Lancaster, PA, which is only about 2 hours away from here, so I'm really looking forward to being there and seeing everyone! And after that, Bible Conference is only in 2 weeks, which gives us at least 4 days off of classes, and my parents are coming out for a visit then! So I'm super excited about that. The semester is going by fast...and it's already the first day of fall! What?!?

God is good!!!

Stay classy, my friends.

-The one, the only, Emily :)

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Sweet sweet summertime

Why does summer always seem to blow by so fast? I feel like I just got home and now I'm already thinking about what I need to be getting ready for school! Ugh. That's the ONLY bad thing about summer!

This summer has been fantastic, though. I have a job working with teenagers! How much better does it get! I "babysit" a 12 and 14 year old each afternoon. While they are old enough to take care of themselves, their parents just want someone around to watch them in the pool, take them places and hang out with them. It's a real tough job...but hey, somebody's gotta do it!

Seriously, this is the best job I think I've ever had! Hanging out with teens! I love it! The best part is, God just kind of dropped this job into my lap. I had been looking all over for a job and had applied to a ton of places, and then one day I got a call about this job, and it was perfect! I'm loving it. God is so good to me!!

I'm also really loving time with my youth group. It's really fun and I love having relationships with the teenagers. I'm also writing some study guides to be used with mentoring students, and I'm really enjoying that as well.

Mix a couple of fun vacations in with that, and I'd say this summer has definitely been a good one. I head back to school in about a month, which I'm not too excited about at the moment, but oh well. Enjoying the time home as much as I can!

Hmmm...I love summer. :)

Friday, June 25, 2010

Theology = Love


Theologians.  What pops into your head when you hear that word? 
Bible-thumpers? Intellectuals? Professors? Crazy people?

The truth of the matter is, we are all theologians.  Everyone has their own set of theological beliefs. Even athiests do!  Athiests believe there is no god, and that, in and of itself is a theology.  Catholics have their own theology; Mormons have their own theology; Jehovah's Witnesses have their own theology, and the list goes on and on...
Our theological beliefs determine how we view, worship, and serve God.  The problem is, while everyone believes some kind of theology, that theology may or may not be biblically correct.  And in order to fully love God, we must believe the truth about him. 

John Piper says this about "right thinking about God," or, a biblically correct Theology:

"Thinking is for the sake of something greater.  And that greater thing is loving God.  So the act of loving God will always need right thinking about God.  If our means of loving is restricted, then our love for God weakens.   Our head and heart must be united for Christ to produce God honoring action and long lasting satisfaction."

Piper states that right thinking about God (a biblically correct theology) must precede love for God.  If we don't KNOW God, how can we LOVE Him?  Worship Him?  Serve Him?  Live for Him?

The thought then follows that we must be teaching theology in our churches.  If theology produces love, and love inevitably produces worship, service, and outbursts of that love towards others (evangelism), then right thinking about God is what we must first be teaching before jumping right towards the "How-To" of the Christian life.  If we know God, we will love Him, and if we love God, the rest will fall in line.  Our worship, service and evangelism is simply an outworking of love...they come naturally!  

I'm at a Bible College with students just like me, who have grown up in church all their lives and have never heard of "systematic theology" - Theology, Christology, Bibliology etc...  Even the "church kids" don't know biblically correct theology!  Our churches are dropping the ball.  If my generation knows little to nothing about theology, what makes you think everybody else does?  Yes, we do need to be teaching theology in our youth groups, but we also need to be teaching theology in our adult ministries as well.  A whole generation has gone by with little training in theology, and now we are trying to treat the symptoms instead of the problem.  We must start teaching Theology BEFORE we teach the "How-To's" of the Christian life.

"So the act of loving God will always need right thinking about God."

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

How to Be Depressed...the Right Way - Psalm 13

Psalm 13
For the director of music. A psalm of David.
 1 How long, O LORD ? Will you forget me forever?
       How long will you hide your face from me?

 2 How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
       and every day have sorrow in my heart?
       How long will my enemy triumph over me?
 3 Look on me and answer, O LORD my God.
       Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death;
 4 my enemy will say, "I have overcome him,"
       and my foes will rejoice when I fall.
 5 But I trust in your unfailing love;
       my heart rejoices in your salvation.
 6 I will sing to the LORD,
       for he has been good to me.

I love this Psalm.  It is painfully honest and vulnerable.  David has juxtaposed two very familiar scenes of life:  God's seeming silence in the face of adversity and His everlasting love and faithfulness.

How many times have we found ourselves in the same state of weariness:  "How long, O LORD?... How long...everyday sorrow in my heart?  How long will my enemy triumph?"  Our laments sound more like "Why is this happening to me?  Why me, LORD?  When are you going to show up and save the day?  Any time, LORD...right about now would be great!  Will you forget me forEVER?" 

While we are probably not running out in the woods from a king who is out for our blood like David was, we often find ourselves between a rock and a hard place, throwing prayers much like this up to God. Laments like these litter the Psalms, teaching vulnerability and an honest heart before God.

However, by the end of the Psalm, after David has painted a bleak picture of his life and situation, proclaims, "But I trust in Your unfailing love;  my heart rejoices in Your salvation.  I will sing to the LORD, for He has been good to me."  He hasn't forgotten God's goodness and faithfulness to him in past days.  He doesn't dwell on his uncertain circumstances but instead chooses to remember God's unfailing love, His perfect salvation, His goodness and grace.  

Perhaps, through our tears, heart-wrenching sobs and cries of desperation that we lay at the foot of our Lord, Jehovah, we are to finish our prayers just as David has shown us:  "for He has been good to me."



Saturday, May 15, 2010

May this be my heart's desire...

"My dear Jesus, my Savior, is so deeply written in my heart, that I feel confident, that if my heart were to be cut open and chopped to pieces, the name of Jesus would be found written on every piece."  Ignatius, a student under John, martyred in Rome, 111 AD.

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Pretty is as Pretty does

I Peter 3:3-4 says:

"Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight."

Monday, May 10, 2010

2 years down, 2 to go...wait, what?!

Phew!!!
There it went...my sophomore year!
Crazy!
So now I'm home, back in good ol' Michigan! I'm not sure what to do with myself yet - I don't have any homework, reading, or papers to write, and I don't have anywhere to be. Something must be wrong! Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining...Just gotta get used to being home!
This last semester has been awesome. God is so good. I have made some pretty amazing friends, which I am so very thankful for. The classes - well, most of the classes - were really good. I have really learned so much this year at BBC and I cannot believe how blessed I am to be able to be studying God's Word at BBC under such godly men and women.

The friends I have made this year have been some of the most fun, interesting, and encouraging people I know. I am so blessed! My group of friends is quite diverse and I would have never picked all of us out to be friends, but that's what I love about it. We're so different but I wouldn't trade them for the world. I miss them!

God is so good, and I constantly stand in amazement of His love and grace. A favorite song of mine says, "If His grace is an ocean, we're all sinking!"

So there's a little de-briefing for you. Currently, I'm looking for a job, and a car, so if you have any leads on either of those, well, you know where to find me! :) Looking forward to being home with the family for the summer, and working with our teenagers in our youth group - can't wait!

Thanks for reading!

Learning and Serving Him,
Emily

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

In like a Lion and out like a...Lion??

Holy smokes! Only 21 school days left? Why, why, that's just insane! Simply nonsense! Crazy talk!?!?!?

Well, the rumors are true, folks. Today IS actually the last day of March and we now move into April...phew! The first 3 months of 2010 have BLOWN by! I can hardly believe summer is this close.

Although, you wouldn't be able to tell that by the weather we've had in Northeastern PA recently! We had a great week last week with sun and birds and all the fixins for Spring.
And then Old Man Winter came back for a visit...he just couldn't leave us alone, he loves us that much! We got about 2 INCHES of SNOW. Well, it started as rain and then turned into sleet/hail....and then these huge snowflakes. It was beautiful, but somehow the silently falling ginormous snowflakes lose some of their magic when it's MARCH 30. I guess this year it was in like a Lion AND out like a Lion!

But alas, Old Man Winter decided it was time to go, and today the sun conquered victorious in the mountains of Pennsylvania...Spring is getting ready to spring!

God is so good, and I am so blessed!
Only by His grace have I gotten this far in my 19-credits 2 jobs semester...Thank you, Lord!

Next semester won't be so bad. I just got my schedule today. I6 credits, 6 classes. Not so hard to swallow. And, of course, the profs are amazing! It's going to be great.

But -- I don't really want to think about next fall right now...I've got my sights set on summer! Yay, summer! It's just around the corner and I can feel it now!!

I'm currently looking for a summer job. I've applied to 2 places (at home) and haven't heard back from either of them yet, but hopefully I will hear something soon! If you know of any place that is hiring for the summer, please let me know!
Also, if you find yourself befuddled as to what to do with that extra car sitting in the driveway (or the back yard, if you live in the country...) I would be more than happy to help take that off your hands... ;)

In other news, I think it's about time for me to stop procrastinating and get back to work...slacker!

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Home Sweet Home!

Ahhhh Spring Break!! Music to a college kid's ears!!

It is a much needed break for sure. I can't believe the semester is more than half way over, and I'm almost half way through college! That's just crazy talk. There's only 6 weeks of school left after spring break. I hope they will go as fast as the first 9 have gone!! I think they will.

It's so good to be home. But at the same time, it's weird, because all my stuff is still at school, so I feel like I don't know where anything is. Oh well. I'm not too anxious to get back to school quite yet.

This semester has gone well. It is flying by, but perhaps that has something to do with how busy I am. Phew! 18 credits and 2 jobs....won't be doing that again! Learned that one the hard way I guess. Classes are going well, and I love all of them (it's the work that I'm not a fan of).
But it's good. I'm not complaining, I'm pretty much loving mostly every minute of it. I'm so blessed to be at Baptist Bible College! Cool!

...But I am looking forward to being home for the summer...I mean, who isn't?

My jobs are going well -- I love working at the Underground Cafe. It's pretty fun, and I'm getting to know a lot of people. Plus I know how to make reeeeeeaaaally good coffee (not that I would even know, I don't drink it! ha!)! My communications job is going well - I'm learning so much about writing/journalism etc. I write most of the news stories on the school website ( www.bbc.edu ). Even though my name is not on it, you can just have the satisfaction of knowing that you know who wrote it. :)

Other than that, I don't really have much to say. Nothing much to report!

My apologies for being somewhat sporadic with this blogging thing...yeah I don't know if you caught the 18 credits and 2 jobs thing...that probably has something to do with it. I'll try my best to keep you more up to date the next six weeks (and then...summer!)

OH I'll have to post some pictures of "Narnia Summit." We had a good 2 feet of snow a couple weeks ago that aided in giving us a 4 day weekend...it was great. And so beautiful!

Ok -- until the next unforeseen time at which I post...
later!


-me :)

Saturday, February 13, 2010

SNOW MUCH FUN!

I LOVE SNOW!

...more to come. :)

Friday, January 29, 2010

Ah, Friday...

Well, it's another Friday night and I can feel it already...it's going to be a long semester. But a good one, nonetheless.

The weeks go by fast, but I have a lot of work. a lot. And when I say a lot, I mean a lot. As in, I probably should get off the computer and start working. But what's the fun in that? Exactly.

So far, the semester is going really well. It's only week three, and I'm ready to go home. Yep, it's going to be a long semester. But I think it will go by fast. That doesn't really make any sense, but that's okay. I mean, it's like this: The week goes by fast when you're not waiting for it to go by. But, when you feel like it will never end, then it goes by really slow. It's all in your head!!!

Okay, enough rambling.

Naps are a college kid's best friend. And Fridays. We like Fridays too.
Oh, and packages in the mail. we REALLY like packages in the mail!!!
........................
ME Box 269
Baptist Bible College
538 Venard Rd
Clarks Summit, PA 18411
................................

In other news, you'll want to visit the website and read my latest news story. You won't find my name on it, but you will just have the satisfaction in knowing that you know the author. It's nothing much - I just write what they tell me to. But I like it. And you can keep updated on the happenings at BBC! To visit BBC's website, click here!
(And don't forget to become a fan of BBC's facebook fan page!)

And, I think that's all I've got. I'm pretty much drawing a blank ...it's Friday, what can I say?

God is good. His grace is sufficient, and His blessings are bountiful. Life is good!!

Saturday, January 16, 2010

TEN

Welcome to 2010!! "Twenty-Ten," "Two-Thousand Ten," "Oh-Ten" (ha)...what will YOU say??
I simply cannot believe it is already 2010. I remember when we celebrated "Y2K" - TEN YEARS ago! Man I feel old. I remember waking up on 1/1/2000 saying, "Woah, the 1900's was yesterday." Weird!! It's weird, but cool at the same time - this is the first decade that I can fully remember. I was born in 1989 - so the first half of the 90's passed me by pretty quickly. But these past years I remember very vividly...which is cool!!

ANYWAYS. Enough reminiscing.

I'm back at school, good ol' Baptist Bible College here in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania. Christmas break was far too short...but alas, here I am once again, starting in on my 2nd semester here at BBC. First semester went by fast! And I have a feeling 2nd semester is going to go by just as fast - if not faster. And at this point....from my little corner in dorm room, I'm thinking that it wouldn't be such a bad thing if it went by fast. :) But, always remember to enjoy it. :)

The semester has started, and I survived my first week of it. Whew! I am taking 18 credits (Don't know what I was thinking when i signed up for THAT) and I love each (okay, most) of my classes. It's going to be a good semester. However, I also am handling a couple part-time jobs on campus. I'm working at our campus coffeehouse, "The Underground Cafe" a few hours a week as a "barista" which I love. I'm also writing for the communications/marketing dept. I'm writing news stories for the website. So if you get a chance, stop by www.bbc.edu for the news...even though my name isn't on it, you can have the satisfaction of knowing that you know who wrote it! I'm learning SO much in this job, and sometimes feel rather ...slightly less than smart, but that's ok, I love it! God surely provides!

Well -- I have gotten off to a little bit of a rocky start this semester, just trying to get my schedule and workload in perspective, but that's ok. It's going to be a great semester and I'm excited. It's going to be one heck of a ride, that's for sure!

I will keep you updated as I go on this adventure known as 2nd semester of Sophomore year...or at least TRY to keep you updated!! Thanks for reading!! See you soon!

Emily :)