I'm on a mission..

Have you ever heard of this fancy phrase for a trip known as a "missions trip"? Well I most certainly have. I remember watching countless videos on people's missions trips and thinking good for them and how cool would that be. I never thought that it was something I was going to do. One- I didn't have money like that and 2- my church didn't do those trips. That has changed over the last few years, because we do have trips now. Oh yeah, the money thing hasn't really changed.

So my first trip was my jr. year of high school. Like I said earlier, I liked the videos and thought they were cool but never imagined I'd get to go. But the more the deadlines kept coming in and the more I heard about what was going on during this trip, I wanted to go anyway! I don't even remember how I start telling people I wanted to go. It was going to be an impossiblity to miss school for a week (especially when block scheduling counts each day as 2) and I didn't have the money.

Being interested so late in the game was crazy. I started praying really hard for this to happen so that I could go. I mean, this trip was the real deal, the dream missions trip (to me anyway). I was going to be going to another country, the Dominican Republic, and helping to build a school in a poorer village, do Vacation Bible School for the local kids, and visit local CMA(Christian & Missionary Alliance) churches.

I kid you not, on one of the days that the offering at church was taken for the trip, I was told that I was going on this trip. Someone had anonymously paid the fee for me to go. I still to this day do not know who did this for me, but how awesome is that? As for school, I told them it was a trip with my church and it worked out ok. God answered my prayers and I was able to go, even at the last minute. This trip was awesome, one of the best weeks of my life. I had just a taste of what being on a mission was about.


So I'm going on my second trip this summer. But it's been four years since my last out of the country experience. I don't tell people that I'm going on missions trip like before, but this trip does have a mission. I'm going to Cyprus, an island south of Turkey in the Mediterranean Sea! The north and the south of the island aren't at peace with each other. There is no known church is Cyprus. We are bringing the church with us, since the church is the people, and we are going to be praying hard core for this country, as well as for everyone at home. This trip is already deeply rooted in prayer, since we meet together as a team each week to pray, and the prayer of our family and friends here will be sending us there. I'm joining a team who has been there for the last 2 summers. I'll be going on this trip from June 30th-July 22nd.

Similar to my first trip, I do not have all the money. The trip I went on before was a great week of my life. This trip, and the planning and praying for it has been taking place for months. Come to think of it, God has been planning for me to take this trip for years! This trip is preparing me to be more like Christ, to pray more for others, and to do my part for the kindgom of God. That's why this blog is about answering the call, which is to follow Christ!

I'm asking for your prayers friends, and let me know how I can be praying for you! If you want more info, since a blog doesn't do this trip justice, then let me know. Much love

Why do I love movies?

There is so much to be said about movies.. I love them and by love I mean I will quote them constantly! Some would even say this is a great talent. Even when I sit down to choose a movie, it will be one that I've seen over and over again! The amazing, yet scary, thing about movies is that I can put one on and not think about anything else at that time. My mind gets so wrapped up in the movie that I tend to memorize it. I replay in my mind every detail of the scene, the music in the background, what people are wearing, and the words that they say. Forget why I love the movies..it's sounds like I'm "in-love" with movies!

Wouldn't it be amazing if I could harness that kind of love into something that really mattered? What if I could pay the same kind of attention to something or someone instead?I mean, how many times can you quote the same lines before people realize that you never have funny things of your own to say and that you just borrow the quotes of others? Why is it that some of the most sarcastic and mean things that you hear in movies makes for so much laughter? I really don't get it and I do this all of the time!!

What if I spent countless hours (like I do with movies) with friends and building relationships that matter. Then people could be quoting what I've said or vice versa and there would be so much more meaning to the words.

I love movies but I also love the characters that are represented in movies. So many of the people I see in movies remind me of people I know. So I guess movies aren't altogether bad. I wonder if I remind anyone of someone they've seen in the movies... Maybe I'll stop blogging, and go be a movie star like I wanted to when I was a kid. Maybe not.

Then again, these are just some thoughts. If it wasn't about movies and why I love them, it could be about people, or books, or music. More thoughts on probably all of those is yet to come...

Keep waiting

A Call to Pray

This call to pray isn't exactly a new call, but I've started to see it in a new way. If you haven't heard about the 50 days of prayer going on in Lynchburg, check out 50daysunbroken.com. This is by far one of the coolest movements of prayer I've had the privilege to be a part of. And what's great is that my generation is answering this call!! I remember when my church was having "prayer meetings". I always figured that all the older people from church would be there, and everyone would have to pray out loud in front of each other. Maybe they used to be similar to that, but the call to pray in a prayer room is something completely different!

The cool thing about prayer is that it can be more than just closing your eyes, bowing your head, getting down on your knees, and running off a list of things to God. What if you could give God just one hour of your day? I'm not talking about the one hour of church on Sunday, but the first hour of your day, the last hour of your day, that hour when you can't sleep, your darkest hour, what feels like your final hour, your happiest hour. Interested yet? I'll go on...

Imagine being able to bring your talents before God. What if you wrote a song and you decide to play it just for him? What if you could paint the most beautiful painting in the world and give it as gift to God? After all, he's the one that gives us the sunrises, sunsets, rainbows, etc... What if you could talk with God, the most amazing listener, about your problems for one hour? What if it feels like the "noises" of life start to become so great that it's hard to hear God's voice? Imagine coming to a room that is so quiet, it might be easier to listen for him. What if it's hard to remember that their are other countries out there where people don't know about God, but you can look on map and be reminded of who to pray for.

I'm telling you, all of this and more can be found in the prayer room. But that could just be a starting place to be in God's presence. Once you experience this, one hour is not going to be enough to give to God and that's great because He wants so much more! I'm mean, He's got to want more since He's the one who created us and LOVES us! Why wouldn't He want to spend that precious time with us?

So God's calling me to pray pretty much all of the time, but the prayer room is definitely an awesome atmosphere and I'd personally recommend it. If you are reading this, friend, let me know how I can pray for you! Can you imagine "if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land." 2 Chronicles7:14

A call to be genuine

I was thinking today a lot about what it means to be genuine. A good definition of it is to be sincere in who you say you are. Maybe not a great definition, but that's what comes to mind for me. I'd like to point out that the definition involves speaking. That's just half the battle of being genuine. The rest of it is seen only through actions. I guess going home for one weekend, the place I called home for 18 years, then coming back to school, my new home of 3 years, gets you thinking about being genuine wherever you are. I never thought it was possible to be two different people. You'd have to be pretty talented to pull that kind of trick off, don't you think? Well, I'm not saying that I've achieved this, but sometimes I do struggle with it. The problem is, I don't want to be two different people. I just want to be me, which should be a simple thing, right? But there are parts of me that fit at home, and parts that fit at school.
This isn't crazy talk because I'm sure a lot of people know where I'm coming from. There's the part of me that when I'm home, I can be so very selfish. Well wait, I'm selfish in both places, so let me try that over again. I am genuinely comfortable being myself at home but have a hard time acting my age. I easily fall back into being the baby of the family (which is the best) and when I come back to school, it's not just about me anymore and I'm not the baby! At home, my opinion does matter but I still want my parents opinion and at school, I feel like I'm old enough to have opinions to share. I'm not sure if this is still about being genuine but I gotta search deeper for a minute.
What does it mean to be genuine for God? He sees me all the time! He doesn't want two versions of Melissa, He just wants the real, sincere, genuine me! And I'm sure He is looking for genuine conversations with Him, as well as actions to back up my words about who I am. To be genuinely who Christ wants me to be isn't easy all the time, but it's what I'm striving for. This is after all titled "a call" to be genuine. It's yet another call Jesus has on my life right now and figuring it out is the fun part.

Get out of the boat!

So today, Pastor Jenkins spoke in convocation about getting out of the boat. He was referring to Matthew 14:22-33 when Jesus walks on water. He calls Peter to "come". This is another example of answering the call. I love how one word that seems so simple takes so much to answer. Come! It's so easy to answer when your best friend says "Come!" but when it's Jesus calling, why do we hesitate? Why do I hesitate is the better question? What am I so afraid of? How amazing would it be to walk on water, you know? Of course that isn't humanly possible, but didn't God say that with Him all things are possible? I think this message was a great reminder. Of course we are afraid when the storms come, no matter what they may be. Whether it's a class that seems impossible to pass, someone in your family has cancer, the courage to admit you really like someone, or walking by faith when it's really hard to see what's in front of you. All of those things may be storms that start to rock your boat! I think I've been in the "comfortable" boat for so long that I am afraid to leave what's familiar. Jesus says "come" and he's gonna keep calling. It's time to make a move and get out of the boat! Maybe you are reading this for a reason, whoever you are, and you may hear that still small voice saying "Come." What are you waiting for? Let's close our eyes, hold our breath, jump out of the boat and let Jesus take care of the rest!

The call..

Hey everyone,

Get ready for this because I'm about to pour my heart out! "Answer the Call" is what God has been showing me so far this year. What is the call? It starts back with my parents, always telling me that God has set me apart and that I am called to serve Him. I've known about this for so long, but I've finally started to take action. I know I'm called to serve, but I am definitely called to a love relationship with the Lord. This is where my true love story begins. I've been reading my "love letter" from Jesus everyday and I cannot put it down! I'm learning so much and I'm so ready to answer every call He has on my life! There is much more to share, but since it's my first blog EVER, here is just a little taste of what's going on in my life right now :)