Jonah Chapter Four

Its been an incredibly busy week!

Over the weekend we had another men's and women's weekend. It was awesome! We drove so far out into the middle of no where to escape everything. Our campground was way back in the mountains...it was so gorgeous! You could see the stars so clearly, and we were surrounded by mountains! Absolutely stunning!

We started the evening just by setting up some tents, getting firewood (Ferrell and I found a table instead of firewood), playing games, and just relaxing. Once everything was set up, we had some worship time. It was AWESOME! It was such an amazing envrionment, and everyone's heart was just so into it. At one point we were singing 'Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing' and a HUGE shooting star just flew across the sky. It just made our worship time even more beautiful.

After that we had two people share their testimonies. It was really nice to hear where they were coming from and how the Lord is working in their lives. Then they split us up into groups of two or three so we could all share our testimonies in that group. I loved it since I got to be with someone who I havent gotten to talk to all the much. It was really cool just hearing his story and being able to share mine.

We ended that night by discussing relationships and eating some mallows by the campfire. Going to bed was hilarious though. We crammed about six people in our tent, and it was SO cold. All of us were lining our sleeping bags with blankets and extra clothes. By that point I had on a t-shirt, a fleece, and a hoodie, and I was still freezing. We all had the giggles so it took us a little bit to fall asleep. Apparently, we also had a bear come on the campgrounds that night...

The next day was spent packing up and eating lunch. We had some women's time where we talked about things like our insecurities and what makes us unique. Then we wrote down something encouraging about every girl there. It was really nice to read the list people wrote about me and be able to read how I'm viewed by the women on this project. It was definitely what I needed to hear at the time.

After we finished camping we went ziplining! It was so incredible! We all got to go on six different zip lines. Each one got steeper, faster, and longer as went. It was a little nervewracking being strapped onto a cable and going over a canyon, but it was such a rush! I loved every minute of it, even though my back is covered in scrapes and bruises from some of the landings I did. Awful! But, it felt so much like flying and it was such a feeling of absolute freedom. I would do it again in a heartbeat if I could.

I finally finished Jonah, and it was all things marvelous. At first I was really upset with the ending. I wanted to know whether or not Jonah changed. I feel like the ending just leaves you hanging. Jonah is upset and God is trying to explain to him why he has no reason to be upset. And then it ends. However, Jonah did change. Jonah wrote the book, and he gave a very honest account of his shortcomings, successes, and failures throughout his walk with God. I feel like the Jonah at the beginning of the book would not have been so honest about his spiritual journey. So I really do feel as though Jonah changed since he was able to be so honest about the ups and downs of his faith.

Other than that, I've been working and spending some time with my friends here. I cannot believe that I'm only here for another two weeks, and then its back to lovely Ledyard!