He's Faithful to the End

I am now in the 4^th week of project. I have been here exactly one month today. That just seems crazy to me. But life is great here in Hew Hampshire. I can’t help falling in love with the area and the people. I miss you all back home, but let me just tell you, New England is one special place. Home (good ol’ Virginia) will always be first in my heart, but New England, specifically New Hampshire is a close second. I kind of don’t want to leave—so I’m glad I still have about 6 weeks left. And I know that God will be faithful until the end of this project.

My job at the Hampton House Hotel, as I have mentioned before, is wonderful. My co-workers make me smile, and honestly, the hotel has enough character to create a hit sitcom.  The Russian kids that work there are hilarious (I say kids, but most of them are older than me). I have been learning a little bit of Russian here and there, and whenever I come in to work and have a new phrase to say, they all laugh and smile. I’m hoping to be fluent by the end of the summer…  But working with them has ignited an interest once again in my heart of other countries and languages. God definitely knew what He was doing when he placed me at this job. Am I am so thankful. It reminds me a lot of my job back at the YMCA in Staunton, with the old cash register and a lot of things done with pen and paper and not the computer. It is very old fashioned, and I love it that way. I spend my days answering the phone, checking guests into the hotel, and taking reservations as well as keeping up with the housekeepers to make sure all the rooms that need to be cleaned are, in fact, clean.

Time is something that I have been struggling with over the past couple weeks, which is why I have not posted more often. The project just keeps getting more and more busy. I honestly have not had time to sit down and write. I was struggling to just write letters back to friends, which takes like 5 to 15 minutes, but even then those few minutes were no where to be found. It is intense. My schedule has never been so full, and it will only be filling up more as the summer continues. This week especially, I will be going to bed and will think to myself, “I can’t wait to sleep in!” but then realize that I will not be sleeping in pat 8:30am until I am home on August 10. Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday are work days, so I wake up at 5:45 and am at work by 6:55. Sunday and Tuesday I get to sleep in until 8ish because I don’t have to be ready for the day until nine. But still, having activities go until 10 or 10:30 every night does not leave time for much rest. That has been a struggle. Then, on top of work and planned activities finding time to dwell in the peace of the Lord. Do I wake up earlier? Stay up later? Both of those options are kind of impossible and would end up killing me. But if I do not have a time set aside to spend with the Lord, I feel as though I would die spiritually, which is much worse. So I have found some time between getting off work at 3 and starting the evening activities around 5:30 to try and be still and know that He is God. With his spirit leading me and giving me strength daily, I will be able to keep on keeping on.

Here is the entire group.

The weekly meeting team!

The lovely ladies with whom I share a kitchen.

Here is something neat that happened within our group recently:

One of the guys on project, Santei, was walking on the beach during the first or second week we were here. He was trying to meet people and get immersed into the community, so he walked up to this one girl who was reading a journal. He began small talk by asking her if she keeps a journal regularly and what types of things she writes about. He soon discovered that the journal was not hers, and that she had found it and that it has some suicidal thoughts written within its pages. As the conversation ended, she headed toward the trash to throw the journal out. Santei chased after her and then took it from her and said he would try to return it to the owner. And he did just that. Before he shipped it off to this girl, he asked all of the students to sign a card and write an encouraging note to this girl, Annie. So all 24 students in the house wrote something, letting Annie know that people in this world do care about her and her well-being, even though we had no idea who she was. A couple days later, Santei heard from her mother. She was touched beyond words and wanted to meet with us to say thank-you. So Saturday night, we all went outside on the porch as this girl Annie, her mother Jill, and friend Emily came to the front of the house. Annie was very nervous and would not make eye contact with anyone. She looks frightened and there just seemed to be darkness around her. So one by one, each of the students walked up to her, and introduced themselves. This is a moment that I will never forget. I could feel the love pouring out of everyone, and then came the tears. Annie had tears streaming down her face, and her friend and mother stood by her side for support. Her mother was very touched as well. Because having 24 college kids introduce themselves to a 13 year-old can be somewhat overwhelming, a couple girls and myself took Annie inside and talked with her for a good while. Here she began to open up, and let her personality shine through. She was funny, spirited and just lovely. One of the strangest things was to see not only this emotional transformation, but the physical transformation. I cannot explain in words exactly what she looked like walking down the street to meet us, but after I had been sitting and talking with her for some time, I realized that she looked nothing like the girl who had reluctantly traveled down G Street. Remarkable. While some of us were talking to Annie and her friend inside, another girl was talking to Jill, her mother, outside on the porch. I do not know all of the details, but one important fact I do know.

 Jill came to know Jesus Christ on that porch.

Yesterday Jill went to jail. I am not sure for what crime or for how long, but at least a few years. She did tell the girl who was talking with her that she had been scared about going to jail, but then when Annie received that letter and encouragement from us, she wanted to talk to us. How magnificent, He is. Jill now has hope. While she still has to serve her sentence, she will no longer be alone.

I Corinthians 3:17 says, “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom”…

..and my prayer for Jill is that she will not feel imprisoned while in prison, but feel the liberty that comes through Christ Jesus.

Thank you all for prayers and support. Toady I received a check for $50 dollars, which means I have raised all of the support for my trip!!!

PRAISE THE LORD!

It is so encouraging. It amazes me. I had really thought that no more support would come in, but of course, God is faithful and proved me wrong. I received one check from a family who had already supported me earlier in my support raising, and then the check came today. So I have received the exact amount I need. 

So again, I cannot express my thanks enough. You all are such a blessing, and I am so very thankful for you all.