you're gonna miss this...

I keep denying the inevitable...that the number 27 is looming over my head. Yes folks...that is the age that I will be turning in just over a week. YIKES! Why does 27 seem so old to me?? Maybe its because it's closer to 30 then 26 was. Maybe its because its another reminder that time flies because it seems like just yesterday I was turning 26. I'm not quite sure what it is...

Have you heard the song "You're Gonna Miss This" by Trace Adkins? You must need to listen to it if you have not heard it..:) I was listening to this song the other day, and realized how true it really was. It shows us how fast we wish life by and how fast it really goes...one day you are 5 and it seems like the next day you are turning 50 and you sit there and wonder where all those years went...

You're gonna miss this

You're gonna want this back

You're gonna wish these days

Hadn't gone by so fast

These are some good times

So take a good look around

You may not know it now

But you're gonna miss this

Yes, 27 seems so old to me...but if I really think about it, its just the beginning of my life. I have so much ahead of me and so much to look forward to in the coming years. I need to cherish each day that I'm given and realize how important it is to hold on to each memory that is made.

I'm going to embrace 27...and hope that I can live this year proud of my accomplishments thus far...and excited to experience what God has in store for me in the coming years.

Bring it on 27...bring it on!  :)

india simulation training weekend...

Okay...fears put aside, this past weekend was simulation training weekend for India. & I had a blast! The team that I will be traveling with couldn't be a greater team to experience this journey with. Not only do we seem to all click, we all get each other...even with our fears. :) & I am so encouraged to get to experience this with each and every one of them. They all have strong hearts for God and I'm so excited to be able to grow and learn with them while sharing God's word. 


To prepare ourselves for what we will experience when we get there, we had a training simulation to go through over the weekend. It started out on Friday night...where we had to sleep on the floor. :) This was decently simple to me, as I have had to sleep on the floor for camping trips, etc. However...it wasn't simple in the fact that my NICE, warm, COMFY bed was right next to me calling my name to climb in and cozy up.  :) However, I survived the night, but oh.so.sore and exhausted when I woke up the next morning. :)


On Saturday, we all met at the church at 8:00am and took 2 vans on a road trip to Chicago. We went to Little India and also were able to visit the South Asian Friendship Center where we got to talk with Cicero and Saneeta. They were able to share stories of SAFC and also share their testimonies to the team. It was a great experience to hear these stories and I could just tell that their hearts were strong for God. After that, we were able to walk through Little India and visit many, many shops. Shops that were something I have never experienced before...from sari shops, Indian jewelry shops, fresh produce shops, and even an Indian sweets shop.  :) It was definitely an amazing experience. Next, we went to lunch at an Indian buffet. What.an.experience. Basically, we filled our plates with rice, chicken curry, vegetables, and all kinds of mushy icky things.  :) & THEN...we had to mush it all together with our hands on our plate...and eat.with.our.hands. ICK! Well, to tell you the truth, it was kinda fun...but extremely hard to eat soupy type food...with your fingers.  :) The taste wasn't amazing...so, food is going to be a struggle for me.  :) After a long day in Chicago, we came home and once again...had to sleep on the floor. OUCH...who ever knew floors could be so unforgiving! :)


Sunday, we all met at church at 9:30am and went to church together as a team. The service was amazing. It was another excellent bonding experience for our team. After church, we left and headed to Feed The Children. This is where we packed all of our team bags full of childrens books and Crocs to hand out to all the children and adults over in India. That was such a great team building experience. Then we headed back to church for our luggage training.  :) This was tough. :)  We did many training exercises with not only our own luggage, but also the team bags that we will be having to carry once we get to India. This means, all my workout sessions, will help greatly.  :) Hehe. Here is a picture of about half of what our luggage looks like.  :) 

All in all, it was an amazing weekend. Yes, things became very real for me...and put things into perspective. But I know that God is with me all the time...and knows that I can do this. He wouldn't have put me in this place if He didn't think I could do it. I just continue to pray for peace and strength. :)

when life gives you thunderstorms...

...we gotta learn how to dance in the rain. I've heard this told to me quite a few times in the past couple weeks. Many obstacles come into our lives that drain us of the ability to feel like we can walk in the rain...let alone dance in the rain.

I had my first training session today for India...as well as traveling to India is less then 2 weeks away. The reality of the situation is coming onto me full force. The reality that I'm about to experience one of the toughest yet most rewarding experiences in my life. I'm afraid I'm not going to have the strength to make it through this trip the way God wants me to. I'm afraid I'm going to let Him down. & I'm afraid that I'm not going to be able to calm these nerves that are so intensely taking over my body. I'm not saying that I think I made the wrong decision in going...I'm just afraid that I won't have the strength & peace to allow me to experience this trip the way that God wants me to. I need to learn to have peace that God wouldn't have put me in this place if he didn't think I had the strength for it. I need to calm my nerves and focus on what is most important right now...preparing myself for the journey, and allowing myself to enjoy this opportunity that God has provided me with.

Give me strength as I endure not only preparing for India, but also healing my heart that has been affected by certain circumstances that have made my thoughts not on the things that God wants me to focus on. Help me to deal with and heal these things that make my heart ache.

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will direct your paths." Proverbs 3:5-6

i'm going to india!!!!

Well, you probably all knew that I was planning on going...but I finally found out that it has been confirmed! I needed to raise support of $3,000 in order to go, and with the help of amazing friends and family, I have raised my support. :) God is so good, and has brought these special people into my life to help me out in this exciting time of my life. I have so much to be thankful for.

Now I need to focus on packing, trainings, and last minute preparations before I head on out. It's crazy how fast this has come up, and I'm starting to get a little nervous, but I know this is where God wants me. He has put me in this position for a reason, and I'm excited to be able to go over and do work for Him.

I leave on March 5th (2 weeks away, eek!) and will be back on March 14th. Any prayers during this time away will be greatly appreciated. I pray that I can be the person God needs me to be during this time, so that I can do HIS work for Him. I'm grateful that I get to be a part of this.

I will keep you updated with my travels. Upon my return, I will share lots of pictures and blogs describing my trip and the opportunities I will experience over there.

I appreciate any support and prayers that you have given and will give! Thank you!!!!

3's

My BFF from my hometown sent me this neat idea to blog about. She is trying to get me well aquainted with how this whole blog world works, and so is helping me out a little. (Must be she thinks my blogs are boring...jk! I know she loves me...:)) Anyways, here you go!

The 3's about me you may not know...

3 names I go by:
{lizzie}
{rinalyn}
{schwabs}

3 jobs I have had in my life:
{hostess @ russ' restaurant}
{receptionist @ pediatricians office}
{human resources}

3 places I have lived:
{kalamazoo, MI}
{mishawaka, IN}
{edwardsburg, MI --soon to be}

3 TV shows I watch:
{grey's anatomy}
{private practice}
{american idol}

3 places I have been:
{cayman islands}
{aruba}
{mexico}

3 people who email me regularly:
{chadley}
{heather}
{work people}

3 of my favorite foods:
{chipotle}
{pasta}
{fruit}

things that make me happy

Enough said...mmmkay?!

tired.

Yep...that's me. Tired. Very. Like, not just meh, I just don't feel like doing anything today. More like, I may collapse to the ground because I am so exhausted from having so much in my brain and things to do. For reals. (okay, so maybe that was a little drastic...but ya gotta feel my pain...:)) Reasons being...

*Work totally sucks right now. I'm SUPER thankful I have a job, but COME ON! I swear I'm never gonna do another upgrade to any of my projects from here on out. Upgrades not only fix things...they cause ISSUES. Issues with people who a)don't like change and b)who are so computer illiterate that it's not even funny. I should NOT be telling someone how to move their mouse across the computer screen. It's the 21st century people!

*India...24 days and counting. Think I'm prepared? Nope. :) I still need to make a list of what I need...which I have hardly any clue of what I'll need to bring, and I just feel out of the loop. I need to get my head in the game and starting making progress down the field! Otherwise I'm going to get smashed to pieces...er...be totally unprepared for my trip. And...I only have 2 weeks to finish raising $500 for my trip. Am I gonna make it? I hate being such a obsessive planner...:(

*Moving out...in May. Yes, I know what you're thinking. That's so far off! Why would you be so concerned about it now? Well, my friends, I'm a planner. And I like to always be on top of things. However, right now, I have India consuming my brain...which leaves no room for other things. So, until I get back from India, I won't be able to focus on this...which will then leave me 2 1/2 MONTHS to get ready! EEK! Where am I going to put all my stuff? When am I going to have time to scrub and clean?

So, there you go folks...the reason I'm crazy, obnoxious tired. These things, they are literally sucking the life out of me. So, if you see me acting strange, or in la-la land in the next couple weeks...don't blame it on me. I have excuses. :)

the calm before the storm

 

What is that you may ask?? Yes, folks...it's the sun. We don't get the luxury of seeing it too often here in the Northern States, so anytime it graces us with it's presence, I need to snap a picture! 

We've had the sun shining 3 days in a ROW! It very well could be a new record here in the gloomy state of Indiana. Makes me long for summertime...le sigh. 

However, in the coming days, drastic changes are going to take place. Cold, snow, wind, and grey skies. Lovely. 9-12 inches?? Bring it on...I guess I'll deal with you for a few more weeks.

best friend.

meet my best friend. wonderfully delicious, quite energizing, and lots of fun. :)

(Yes, I look like crap in this picture...I was at a water park, so I feel that I'm allowed to look crappy.  :) )

get to know me...

I Am...the biggest worry wart you will ever meet. :)

I Love...my family & friends...they are amazing. Oh, and of course warm, sunny days.

I Have...so many things to be thankful for. And things that I sometimes take for granted.

I Wish...i was not here in the cold & snow, but on the beach.

I Want...people to see me as a woman of God.

I Fear...that my dreams and desires will never come true.

I Hear...silence. One thing that I love about living on my own.  :)

I Search...for meaning in life. So that I can continue to strive to be a better person each & every day.

I Wonder...what my life will be like in 10 years.  :)

I Regret...not always taking chances...and not being strong enough to always take that leap of faith. I regret not trusting like I should.

I Always...try to strive to be a stronger and more loving woman.

I Usually...cry when things make me happy.

I Am Not...a procrastinator. I am usually ALWAYS on time, if not early. Even though I'm not a morning person...I am always early.

I Dance...only when no one is watching. & i dance crazy.

I Sing...in the car...at the top of my lungs...on a glorious sunny day.

I Never...thought I'd be where I'm at today. Even though its where God wants me...my plans were WAY different.

I Cry...when I'm happy, when I'm sad, when I'm lonely and when I'm hurting.

I Am Not Always...as strong as I like to think I am. I depend on family & friends more then ever.

I Need...to know that I'm going to be alright. That this time in my life is a learning lesson. & that this time will make me into the person God wants me to be.

There you go. A little bit to get to know who I am. A little something for you since I've been really busy and haven't been able to update my blog. I hope you all are having a great week! More updates coming soon!

thankful

For the past year I've wanted to get involved in my church. I just didn't know where my fit was. I wanted to do something not only that I enjoyed, but also something that would bring glory to God. I remembered when I was young how much I LOVED being a part of my youth group and all the missions that I was involved in. I knew that I wanted to help bring other students into that joy that I experienced, so I felt a calling to join in on our student ministry team. 

I decided to try it out and see how it went. I was just going to slowly get involved and start out small. But God had a different idea. After a couple times of going to GSM (granger student ministries), I knew that I wanted to continue to do this, and continue to grow more and more in this ministry. 

I was then contacted and asked if I wanted to be a leader of a small group. I wasn't sure if I was ready yet. I had a lot on my plate as it was, but I prayed and prayed and prayed about it. Just to make sure I was doing God's will and not following what I thought was my will. God showed me so clearly how this was the step that he wanted me to take...to be a leader of a small group of high school girls. 

This small group has completely changed me...it's made me a more fun, crazy and laid back person. I don't take life so seriously. These girls have even challenged me on my faith making me want to dig deeper and grow more. Their hearts are kind, compassionate, and are fully on fire for God. I hope I can be the leader that will want them to love God with all their heart and will help them dig deeper and grow each and every day.