Orientation with Hurricane Irene

It's another big Sunday night. Another one of those Sunday nights where I wonder if this is all reality- last week it was leaving for Stony Point, and tomorrow I'm flying to London and then Bahrain.

I arrived in Stony Point this past Sunday for YAV Orientation. All the YAVs (there's about 70 of us) are staying at a conference center up in the mountains of New York. It's been a great week. It's been a rich time together spending time with all of the other YAVs and making lots of new friends. This week was all about preparation and relationships-sharing with one another our fears & anxieties, learning, praying for one another.

We spent all week hearing from different facilitators on topics such as cultural competency, personality types & interactions (I'm ENFP in case you Meyers-Brigss fans are wondering), conflict resolution, and cultural sensitivity. We've discussed living in community, self-care while abroad, gender & race issues, and globalization, as well as a lot more. It's been a very full week-lots of information to process. I have been challenged by lots of what I've heard this week which was hard at first but I think that's a good thing. We also spend much time hearing the stories of former YAVs. In small groups, we reflected and shared how the week was going for us. We've spent some time in the Word through Bible study and in worship, where I got to help out by playing violin & singing, which was a treat because I thought I'd said goodbye to the violin for awhile.

But along with all of the sessions, we've also had some serious fun. :) Lots of games, late nights, talking, worship music-it's been enjoyable.

What crazy weather we had this week! Some of us felt the earthquake on Monday during our Cultural Competency training, and then before we knew it Hurrican Irene was headed our way! We spend time yesterday preparing for the storm-putting out sandbags, putting away outdoor furniture. The rain began yesterday-TONS of rain for hours! During the night, there was flooding in the conference center rooms and in the rooms where we're staying.  Water leaked in through the ceiling in my room, and later down the walls. My poor roommate woke up sputtering and coughing from rainwater in her face-how awful! We moved her into a different room during the night, but I never got wet. We're all okay-lots of flights delayed and cancelled, though. We were all supposed to leave tomorrow for our various sites but some of us aren't leaving until Tuesday or Wednesday.

As of right now, our flights for today still seem to be set. So in a few hours after lots of goodbyes, we'll head for JFK airport where we'll fly overnight to London, and then to Bahrain, then to Cochin, India.

I'll keep you all posted during the travel. Please be praying for His travelling mercies, especially as things at the airports are crazy right now! We're leaving for the airport 6 hours before our flight! Pray also for the YAVs stuck here waiting for flights-though, honestly, we're all having so much fun together that no one is minding being delayed at all. :) It's amazing how much of a community we've become in just a few days.

So-leaving tomorrow. Ready or not, here we come! Will post on the way or once we've arrived!

Blessings & peace,
Claudia

Being Filled Up & Sent Out: NWMC & Preparations

So much has happened since I last posted- I can't believe how incredibly busy this summer has been.

When I last posted, I wrote while at Crestfield Camp & Conference Center where I was visiting for a couple of days. I am also writing this from a conference center, but from a different one now-Stony Point Conference Center in Stony Point, New York, where I have been for the past week for YAV Orientation. I'll get to that but first I want to share a bit about the time up until now.

After a couple days at Crestfield, I went straight to the New Wilmington Mission Conference where I served as high school staff. On Saturday I attended a friend's wedding in Poland, Ohio, and then came back to Westminster where I met the ten amazing girls that would comprise my small group for the week.

It was a really intense week. The first night there, at our first group devotions, I was astonished at all of the issues and tough circumstances my group of girls were facing-all situations out of their control. All ten of them were facing something monumental. When our devotions together ended that night, I was so overcome by the enormity of the things they were facing that I wept. "How are you going to redeem all of this, God?" I asked Him to take all of their situations and to work powerfully in their lives that week, but in reality I was so discouraged by the things they were facing that I just had no idea what kind of a week they were going to have.

What an incredible work God did in each of their lives that week!!! They were encouraged, heartened, and inspired by everything by all the speakers. They were able to surrender their situations to the Lord, to lay these things down, and thusly were open to all of the blessings God had for them that week at conference. And I got to see my conference family- to soak it all it, to learn, to laugh, to just absolutely fill up spiritually. I spent every lunch and dinner that week with a friend and a great conversation. I met and conversed with missionaries from Pakistan, India, and many other places. As it always does, the week felt like it was about a month. I leave every year thinking that conference can't possibly get any better the next year, and I'm always wrong. The things I witnessed that week, the way God worked so powerfully in my group of girls, and in my own heart, were awesome. One of my girls, upon leaving, handed me an 8-PAGE letter that she'd spent all week writing. She said that this week had been the most eye-opening and biggest life-changing experience of her life. The letter detailed all of the ways that Christ had worked in her heart, what she'd learned this week, and lots of thank-yous. I was just floored on receiving this, and I reread it all the time. It really just blows me away each year what all the Lord does at and through conference. I couldn't have been more encouraged.

The day I came home, deliriously tired because no one goes to bed the last night of conference, I was commissioned at my home church at all 4 weekend services, the Saturday night and the three on Sunday morning.  I was able to share both about my week at conference and a little bit about what I'll be doing in India. What an awesome time to be commissioned and sent out. I was so ready to go then!

But I still had all of my preparations to do and lots of family & friends to see! My sister Jocelyn was in town from Houston for ten days and we took a brief family vacation to Nemacolin Woodlands Spa & Resort together where we majorly relaxed, slept, enjoyed excellent food and spa treatments. It was a pampering but fun time for us. We also had a chance to visit Fallingwater while there. Once we got home, I had my last day of work at Memorial Park, wrapped up lessons with my private students, and had family photos taken with my mom and Joce, something we hadn't done before.

On Friday the 12th, my parents hosted a going-away party for me at The Cider House-what a wonderful evening it was. There was lots of food, fellowship, and music. How beautiful it was to see friends from so many different areas of my life all mingling together-college friends, church friends, family-a foretaste of heaven. I was so touched by everyone's kindness & by the many people that showed up (way more people than I was expecting!) I am very grateful for all of the support and will miss seeing you all.

I then had one week to get everything reading for India. Note to self for future reference-next time I do this I need to stop work earlier! I had a TON to get done in a very short amount of time, along with helping with worship on the weekends or leading, and singing at a wedding, teaching lessons, visiting with family, etc. etc. I was able to do all my shopping and packing, finishing just in time. It's just been a huge whirlwind of meals with friends, doctors appointments, and continual trips to Target. Additionally, I got to visit with my aunt who was up from Nashville and we had a big family cookout. My cousin Mark from DC even came up to Pittsburgh as a surprise to see me before I left-although I accidentally ruined the surprise!

And all of a sudden it was Sunday night and I was leaving the next morning. Where has the time gone? Was I even around for this summer? I have hardly been able to keep up. It's all felt like a huge, wonderful dream. I have been showered with notes and hugs, encouraging words, gifts, to the point of being overwhelmed. God has provided so abundantly. It's been a glorious, rich, and very fulfilling summer.

Sigh.

Site Placement! EXCITED!

"The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance." Psalm 16:6


How true, how true! God has prepared a place for me and now I've found out about it! :) Can't WAIT to share with you! 


I received word last Saturday morning that I will be living and working at CMS College in Kottayam, Kerala!!! I will be living on campus in campus housing. CMS is in Kottayam, one of the larger cities in Kerala. CMS was founded in 1817 by the Church Missionary Society and (according to my admission letter-yes, I am actually enrolled in a college in India-how crazy/cool is that?!) is the oldest college in India!


Here's some thoughts/reasons why I'm so excited:


1) I am looking forward to being in a city. I was worried about ending up in a remote place with not much to do-if you know anything about me, you know that I need to have a lot going on! I greatly prefer a city to a rural setting-lots to do, lots of people to meet! 


2) I love colleges! I want to go to school my whole life! I love the university setting. Though I do greatly enjoy working with children, I prefer working with older students. (When I was student teaching, the older the kids were the more I enjoyed working with them by far!) I'm really looking forward to being with university students. I think this is an age range and setting which will be a great fit.


3) One of the big things I've really been praying about is for God to provide opportunities to use my music, and while I can't know just yet what I'll find once I get there, I feel like there will probably be a lot more musical opportunities for me in the city than there would be elsewhere. We'll see! :)


4) I'll have a variety of different things to do! 


Here are some of the things I'll be doing/may be doing:
·         Engaging a few classes on areas like developing communication skills, creative writing and media.
·         Involving in student activities including initiating and maintaining blogs which will enhance the skills of students.
·         Associating with College Chapel service, Bible study groups and college choir.
·         Initiating and developing a College Music Band.
·         Exploring and getting involved with possible activities at Lea Hostel
·         Visiting churches (if possible, Dalit churches) and associating with youth groups on week ends.
·         Visiting homes of students and staff and get a clear understanding of the community around.
·         Visiting different schools in Kottayam and engaging short sessions for the students.


...AAAND more! 
 Those of you that know me know that I have a really hard time doing repetitive tasks. I do well with a lot of variety of things to do-and where better to find this than a college? I am thrilled that instead of doing the same thing day after day, it sounds like I'll have many opportunities and groups with which to associate. Hooray!


It's really nice to finally have something to at least picture or imagine in my mind about where I'll be...up until this point I've had no image in my mind as to where I'll be-rural or urban, etc etc., but now I can at least begin to visualize it in some way and prepare. The more I think about my placement, the more I look forward to it! :) 


I'll be off in just a few hours now to the New Wilmington Mission Conference-the BEST WEEK OF THE YEAR! I'll be serving as high school staff again this year. Conference always is so powerful-I look forward to it as the highlight of my year every year! I am so excited to meet my girls that I'm be counseling and for all that God is going to do this week-He always shows up so mightily at NWMC! I look forward to sharing more with you about it later!


Blessings & peace,
Claudia 

God's Abundant Provision: A Million Thanks!!!!!

Dear friends,

Where can I begin to express my thankfulness to you all and my amazement at God's abundant provision in this time? Words just can't express it. But I'll try. :)

I sit writing this at Crestfield, where I served a year ago last summer as Worship Director. It's just astonishing how much has changed since then. I am in complete awe at all that God has done and is doing in my life and the lives of those around me-what a transformative time this has been in so many ways, but more than anything it's been a time of extreme abundance-rich in relationships, rich in encouragement, rich in growth and in responsibility and challenges-very rich indeed.

 I can't believe this-but all my funding is in. It was in before July even began! Let me state that first of all, I had not even sent letters to my close friends, nor to my conference family at New Wilmington, nor to HALF of my list of people I was going to send letters to.

Deep breaths-this makes me so emotional every time I think about it.

I received an email at the the end of June with an updated funding report that showed that I had met my goal. I double checked it, triple checked it, and then just started balling my eyes out. Thank you, thank you, I can't thank you enough. My church family has been extraordinarily generous in many ways. I can't tell you how it feels to have people I don 't even know give to my cause, or to receive a large anonymous gift... I can attribute it only the work of the Holy Spirit.

As soon as I found that out I thought, "I needed all of this support by NEXT July-it's not even July 2011 yet! Are you kidding me?!?!?!

Secondly, I had been preparing my big fundraising event, a benefit voice recital, since April!!! How crazy is it that I didn't even need to host my big fundraising event?! AND I haven't even gone to New Wilmington Mission Conference yet-a place abundant in mission support and rich friendships with a deep love of mission- I haven't even gone there yet!!!

So I thought, should I still give my recital? I decided to, and it was held on July 8th.

What an extraordinary difference it made to be able to give back to my church family in that way, not as a fund raising event, but just as a sharing, as a celebration! A big thanks to the @150 people who attended. I performed classical pieces in Italian, French, and German for the first half of the recital, and then spoke a bit about my upcoming time in India. The second half was a collection of American and English arias and I ended with four musical theatre pieces. It was such a wonderful evening in so many ways. I hardly even remember it, it just felt like a dream!

If you want to watch the videos from the recital, check them out on youtube: here's the link to the first one.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOOCx0xXgP0

Friends from all over were there-church family, actual family, college friends, camp friends, conference friends, people from the community...I was really surprised by the number of people (we'd prepared a reception for 50 people-whoops! :)

It was really just a wonderful evening of celebration. I was very nervous but eventually relaxed and was able to really enjoy sharing with you all and celebrating with you. Though I shared that I had met the minimum requirement for my funding for the year already, I was still given over $2000 just that evening.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Words really just can't express my thankfulness-the support in prayer, in finances, in encouragement, has just been flooding in. I feel deeply as though I am being filled up and sent out.

Thank you-thank you for being open to His call, for being led in generosity, and for just flooring me with your love. I can't believe I'm going off with it all raised-what a relief and what a testament to His faithfulness.

So thank you, thank you, I can't thank you enough. I'm just so amazed...and so very grateful.

Coming Up Higher

Let me start by saying this:

I have a ridiculously wonderful life.

I really do. I have to confess that I never thought this period of my life would be like this. I thought that I'd finish school in December and wait around, completely bored out of my mind, until August when I'd start service as a Young Adult Volunteer.

I was so wrong! God had a fantastic place for me: as soon as I finished school in December, I was hired by my home church, Memorial Park, a 2,000 member worshiping community in Allison Park, PA. I serve as the Worship & Arts Assistant, and I love my job! I help lead worship, both contemporary and traditional, help direct the ensembles, and get to perform frequently. I assist with the administration of the Sacred Arts department and do publicity work, teach private voice and violin lessons through the church, volunteer with the ESL ministry, and many other things. The resources at MPC are incredible-multiple choirs, brass, ensemble, handbells, flute choir, drama, dance, and more! My job has terrific variety. If you know me you know that I have a hard time doing anything repetitive-I love lots of variety and challenge! And this job suits me very well-I don't feel like I've done anything twice! I truly enjoy it and look forward to coming to work every day-how many people can say that? Furthermore, I feel that it is a job in which I really get to use many of my strengths. I can't imagine a friendlier or warmer environment-I always feel very appreciated and loved. I feel very blessed to be where I am.

So I have a terrific job. Additionally, post-college life has been surprisingly rich in many ways I didn't anticipate, and most of this comes down to relationships with wonderful people that God has put in my life. I have never known such a loving and supportive church family. I've made new friends of all ages and backgrounds. I've been deeply blessed by getting to know visiting missionaries and Korean friends through serving as an English tutor. My evenings are filled with wonderful rehearsals and small groups-all of which are highly enjoyable and enriching. I frequently get to help out with lots of terrific big events that MPC hosts, such as "A Night with the King," a recent open worship service for anointing, prayer, and healing. I've found myself right in the middle of some terrific opportunities that God dropped right into my lap, such as having the chance to volunteer backstage with the Pittsburgh Opera! I frequently get to perform for various weddings, concerts, and recitals, either in singing or playing violin or viola, a lot of the time with musicians who are much better than myself! In April I went to Honduras with a team of friends from Memorial Park where we designed a curriculum for a "Worship Camp" with the Honduran people and then hosted it! So many incredible experiences! I could go on forever with examples... there have been dozens of times since I've been out of school that I have just laughed out loud at where God's placed me and been completely surprised and thrilled!

And yet...I am leaving all this to go to India! You might ask (as some people have), "Why?" 

I had started applying to be a Young Adult Volunteer back in October. I'd heard about YAV about four years ago, maybe longer, at the New Wilmington Mission Conference, and the closer I got to finishing school the more it seemed to keep reappearing! I'd always thought it sounded like a terrific opportunity and kept it in the back of my mind. At the end of October I attended a conference called "Discerning Your Call to Mission" at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, where I had the immense blessing of meeting with former YAVs and those who work with the YAV program. What terrific answers, resources and encouragement I received! After that, I went ahead and finished my application to serve, and the phone conversations and interviews began!

In mid-March I attended the YAV Placement Event at Louisville Seminary in Kentucky. The days before this event were difficult. I loved my work but had only ever seen my job as a temporary position until I left as a YAV-I was feeling 100% sure about being a YAV, excited about my acceptance! Right before I left for Louisville, however, I was faced with a big decision-I was made aware that my job could be more than the initial 6-month commitment I'd thought it would be. I'd only ever thought of it as temporary, but I was given the option to stay! Suddenly I felt very confused. I was leaving for placement the next day!! Was this the right time to serve? I felt panicky-I needed His guidance!

So I found myself on the plane to Louisville the next day, having been 100% clear about things until the day before. Things just felt desperate. I prayed that God would make it VERY clear to me whether He wanted me to go through with this now or not. Ironically, when I arrived in Louisville, I saw one of my good friends from conference on the list of interviewees, and when I called her she told me that she was working at her church and loving it, just as I was, and God had spoken to her and told her that now was not the right time to serve as a YAV. Ahh! I prayed for God to slam doors shut if he wanted them shut, or to fling them open-but just to make it CLEAR!

He is faithful and He did-the placement event was fantastic and meaningful. I felt deeply surrounded by others like myself and felt the presence of the Holy Spirit. I felt the doors opening. After interviewing with the India and South Korea sites, three days later I found myself back on the plane chatting happily to strangers about my upcoming trip to India! Crazy!

It was a very difficult decision. But it wasn't my decision-He made it clear. And now I am doing the illogical-leaving somewhere where I am very loved and very comfortable and going 9000 miles away. No, it doesn't really make all that much sense if you look at it logically sometimes. But He's made it clear and I am going! I've heard His voice, calling me, calling out to me repeatedly.

I hear the voice, the voice of the one I love, 
He's calling my name.
I hear the voice, the voice of the one I love,
He's calling my name.
He's saying "Come up higher, and hear the angel sing.
Come up higher, my beloved.
Come up higher, and leave this world behind,
I find you to be beautiful."
-from "Running After You"

A Beginning

"For we are God's masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." Ephesians 2:10


Prepared in advance.


When I think about how God knew, in the very beginning, what all He had in store for my life, I'm just floored. 


And I begin to see the fuzzy outline of the grand mosaic of His story, of history, in which I am a small, gleaming stone, a miniscule but lovingly integrated fragment.


And I catch my breath and think, "Wow, God...this isn't really a beginning, then, is it?"


The fact is, that every moment of my life has led up to this moment. Our lives are not a string of unrelated events, like beads on a necklace, but a masterpiece, Christ's workmanship, He says. It's a brilliant, epic painting, on a grander scale than anything you or I could wrap our brains around. Like a thousand Sistine Chapels upon Sistine Chapels, and then some.


The truth is, this trip to India is a continuation, not the beginning of God's work in me. Something seems to be clearing up and I'm seeing, through the haze, a little bit more of His masterpiece being unveiled to me. There was so much leading up to this, and so much yet to come. I quiver with the excitement of it. 


I remember when I was in third grade and got glasses. If you have glasses, do you remember getting them? Do you remember how the second you put them on, you suddenly realized that you had had no idea what all you were missing? What you had thought was clear wasn't clear. It was never clear. And all of a sudden the world shown in a new light. Do you remember that feeling, the feeling of a newly discovered sight? 


That's how I'm feeling now. My individual experiences, joys, sorrows, and songs have led to this moment, this embarkment. That means that God has prepared me, has enabled me, has ordained me by the power of His holy spirit, and I'm not going it alone. 


For you and I are His masterpiece, created in Him to do good works which He prepared in advance for us to do. 


I'm so ready for the next leg of the journey, the adventure of following Him, of running after Him, the most thrilling thing I've yet to come to know.