Words are NOT Just Words

"My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry" James 1:19 

So, I have had a blog started for probably a month now -- obviously unable to actually post one. Words are important. They aren't so easy to take back, once they're out there that's it, one either built someone up or tore someone down or informed with correct info or bad info and the list goes on. 


The verse above was given to me by my mentor about a year or so ago. It has been a constant reminder for me. I am a fixer and sometimes people just need an ear. I am the same way sometimes. There are no words needed just a warm heart. I feel like that is what most people I come in contact daily need. 


Here at BFH, we have been busy with Fall Festival, families, programs (GED, computer, etc). It was been a blast! Busy...but fun. Fall Fest is one of my favorites. The community comes together and its one big party with old faces and new faces---family faces. This community is home. 


It not about words it's about action and knowing when to just listen.

Refusal

So, I know I haven't updated in a while.....anyone surprised???? I've had several things on my mind that I would say o blog that....of course it's like at midnight when my brain is sifting through all the day's happenings. One theme continued shout at me. It is best summed up in the following quote that a former professor had posted on her door:

"Refuse to fall down. If you cannot refuse to fall down, refuse to stay down, lift your heart toward heaven like a hungry beggar, and ask that it be filled and it will be filled. You may be pushed down. You may be kept from rising. But not one can keep you from lifting your heart toward heaven-only you. It is in the middle of misery that so much becomes clear. The one who says nothing good came from this is not yet listening." (Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estes from her book, The Hungry Gardner) 

This quote is a reminder to not that people keep you down. So many of our girls, families, people we meet in general have been told that they can't for so long they believe it and so they don't. They don't believe in them selves, they don't believe they can finish high school let alone go to college, and they don't believe that the God who created them had big, no HUGE, plans for them. This is true for so many. It may also be true for many others. I, too, struggle with people telling me that I can't do something. I have since I was a kid. It took God and His constant reminder that He didn't call me because I was talented...or I was popular......I was and am neither. He reminds me that He loves me because I am His creation and wants to use me for His purpose. It is a relief when there isn't an expectation added to God's plan other than follow it. I want to share this with those I meet. I want to share with the girls and women that we serve that God says you can! You  can go to college, you can reach for your dreams because God put more than likely them there---Refuse to stay down. -|-

Peaceful Chaos

So  the title doesn't make sense at all, however, it does at the same time. New Orleans is still recovering from the effects of Hurricanes Katrina and other recent storms. It is also a place of constant turmoil. Families deal with violence in and around their lives, poverty in excess, no one knowing where to get help or who to trust. Then there are those that know where to look. Life is hard but worth fighting for. We know that God has a plan and can see anyone through any situation. But the humanity of myself struggles to find the right words to provide comfort. Knowing that God has equipped me, and my co-workers/friends/BFH family to provide such comfort, allows me to feel a peace and at home with those I meet.
Living with 15 other people and working with 30+ girls this summer, I don't feel as though I live with strangers. It's odd. I just met new people in the past few weeks and it feels like we all belong here together. I'm sure that is a strange concept for people but for me, it's home. I don't know how else to explain it. It can get chaotic, but not in a bad way....for me it's a 'normal way.' There are times it gets too crazy and I need to breath air not in the building, but I always come back and feel at....home. There are no other words to describe it. We encourage each other and are a family.
We went down to Grand Isle this past Saturday. The water was strangely quiet. We saw the oil floating, not as bad as one would think, the workers are doing a great job of cleaning it up.....it was just calm. A thing that has destroyed the lively-hood of so many caused a great calm over the waters. There wasn't much wildlife. What we did see practiced caution in and around the water. There world is chaotic, though one would never know unless we really looked hard. I guess our lives are very similar...........

Life.......It Happens and It CAN Be Fun!

So, as we are finishing up week 2 of Up2HOPE, I realize this week has been an emotional roller coaster. Some of the girls have decided that they love us, or at least like us and some have decided that they can trust us. We have been apart of some of these girls lives for almost a few years now. Even the new ones have caught on that we care about them and want to see them do great things because we know they can. We get the awesome privilege of watching the girls grow up and experience life. It can be so much fun. The girls have also decided that my office is the fun office.....probably because of the couch and the dry erase board. It gives me so much joy hanging with them and talking with them in small groups. It doesn't bother that 15 people can cram in there. My office has been dubbed the "party office." I love it! (in case you couldn't tell). My hope is that by the end of the summer, the girls will have a positive view of themselves because God made them for a specific purpose. I want them to have dreams and realize they can reach those dreams. The summer missionaries, and the rest of the BFH staff have the same hope and we are so blessed to be a part of each of the lives we touch everyday. Please continue to pray for us as we continue to enrich the lives of such awesome young ladies. -|-

Opening Statements........

Well, let me first say that I am really bad about updating...many who will read this will nod their head in agreement. However, I had started this before and then back out but I am not going to try my best to keep people updated this way as best I can. So....Summer is in full force at Baptist Friendship House. We have 7 summer missionaries and plenty of girls to share them with. We are starting week 2 of our summer program, Up2HOPE. It is a preventative program for girls 9 and up. We hope to see them grow and avoid getting trapped in destructive lifestyles. We want to see them go to college and reach for their dreams as God has designed them to do. This is the program's 4th year post Hurricane Katrina. It has been a blast being apart of these girls' lives and watching them go from little girls to beautiful teenagers inside and out. Please pray for the girls that come, the staff and summer missionaries.