love covers

"The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen."

1 Peter 4:7-11

Wow, I don’t even know where to start! I honestly can’t remember what I did at the end of last week. It’s been that crazy. A group of eight of us left for Prague last Thursday evening and came back late Sunday night, Harry Potter train ride style again. The city was incredibly beautiful, but no doubt the most tourist-y place I have ever been. We probably walked about 15 miles (at least). We saw everything Europe’s largest ancient castle to the stunning countryside of the Czeck Republic to a public viewing of a Germany soccer game in the old town square with hundreds of our closest drunk soccer fans. Ya know, it’s always been one of my life dreams to have beer poured on me every time we scored a goal.. four sticky, smelly goals. We stayed in a hostel that was a lot like the one I stayed in London last year. The other girl in our group of eight, Heather, and I, stayed in one hostel and the boys in another because we booked ours late. But it turns out ours was nicer. :) For those of you who don’t know what a hostel really is, it’s basically public living mixed with a hotel. Heather and I were in an 8-person co-ed room with bunk beds (always interesting). In the rooms were lockers for us to keep our stuff. There were hall showers and bathrooms, similar to a freshman dorm at Tech. The most adventurous part of the weekend was easily at 10:30pm Thursday night when Heather and I were trying to find the hostel from the train station... Mom, for the sake of your sanity as you read this, let’s just say the directions we had were a little vague, Prague is a little more like Amsterdam at night, and I’m really grateful Heather speaks some Russian and that God kept us safe. I’ve learned a valuable lesson for sure. :) Best part of the trip? I GOT MEXICAN FOOD!

Here’s some photos from the weekend! There are soooooooo many more on Facebook.

Main shopping drag:

 St. Charles Bridge and Prague Castle (up on the hill):

 From the castle:

 St. Charles Bridge:

 From the monastery:

 KGB Museum... don't I look like a Russian spy?

Back in Deutschland, we went to Kahla, a massive porcelain company yesterday (Monday). I have a new found love affair with dishes. I’m not kidding. And we went to a chocolate store that was the size of a supermarket... the chocolate was cheap and they had a bazillion free samples. Needless to say, I think I know what trying ecstacy is like now. Also we hiked up to Leuchtenburg, a small castle. The view from the top was incredible.

CHOCOLATE!

 Charlotte and I at the castle. She's the best!

 From the castle:

Spiritually, I’ve got a whole lot going on. I’ll try to keep it short.

1. There’s something along the lines of the black plague going around our group, and I’ve gotten a hold of it. Thank goodness the only part I got was a cough, but it’s not doing so well. With all the things I’m doing to help it, it’s only a matter of time and rest until I get better. But what I’m learning from it (I was taught mostly by my wonderful dad to take note of what you learn from every situation- hi dad :) ) is that it shouldn’t affect my attitude. I’ve mentioned before that I seriously need to be a light to the people around me here, and I can’t get cranky like I normally do when I’m sick. Serving and loving and pouring and giving and abandoning yourself doesn’t have a footnote in the Bible that says, “**only when you feel like it.”
2. For the first time in months, I had the urge to randomly talk to someone about Jesus the other day. And for the first time ever, I acted on it. By “randomly,” I mean it didn’t come up in conversation. I mean I tapped the person on the shoulder and asked. I still don’t know the outcome or if anything happened through it, but I am trusting that God is using it to His glory. He always does. And what’s crazier is that even though I didn’t see an outcome, it made me want to do it more. "And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should." Ephesians 6:18-20
3. My biggest struggle right now is coping with the abundance of sin I have been seeing. There is so much brokenness- way more than we think or notice. I always thought there were tons of nonbelievers back home, but then I stepped out of the Bible belt for longer than a couple of days. Prague has the highest concentration of atheists and consumes the most alcohol per capita in the world. Last summer I was plenty exposed to the complete lack of love of Jesus in much of the world, but here I feel even less surrounded by it. That’s probably because I’ve grown to become more aware of sin. I want to run from it. What’s scary is that I can even see satan try to pull me towards it constantly. In a way, that makes me happy, because I know that I’m more of a threat, and I know that the Holy Spirit is in me to make me hate satan. But at the same time, it completely breaks my heart to see SO MANY people falling short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) and not accepting and worshipping a Savior to save their souls from it (Romans 6:23). There are some moments where I want to look up and ask God why He’s letting so many people suffer, whether from misfortune or from their own stupidity and greed. I don’t get it. On the bright side, I’ve been reading my Bible a ton and have been oh so blessed to have Charlotte and a couple others here to talk through my confusion with me. Scripture has been reminding me over and over to keep loving and keep pushing, no matter how disheartened I become. Praise God for the Spirit, and praise God for Jesus, because it is not by works that we are saved, but ONLY because God chooses who follows Him (Ephesians 2:8-9).
4. Prayer requests: Ephesians 6:18-20 and continued diligence in prayer and the Word.

Over halfway home! :)

I can't wait to eat fried chicken.

I think it’s appropriate to write a blog post as I watch my roommate Charlotte use a champagne glass as a measuring cup for making brownies while we both sing to Zac Brown and Lady A. And this was after gathering a dozen of our group’s empty beer bottles from last night’s craziness to go turn them in and get free apple juice for recycling. Weimar has been awesome. Oh, and last night I wrote computer code to manipulate a picture.

I think my favorite favorite part is living with 24 other people in the same house. The bed and breakfast is awesome! It’s a huge, old house that we have all to ourselves. After the first week, Charlotte and I got to move into a bigger room and now we don’t have to share a shower with 6 other people, and our room is pink. It’s kind of a little haven for me, because I can shut the door and there’s a huge window that makes it a great room for reading and just having the alone time I require every day. We even have a little kitchen and mini fridge in our hallway. Unfortunately though, I think some people are starting to get tired of each other. It’s to be expected when we all spend almost every second of every day together. Not to mention the noise... but it’s all good. I’m personally learning a lot about how to put other people before myself, especially in conversation. People let pride slip into conversation far more than they realize, myself included. There’s a part of everyone that wants to be the center of attention and to be applauded. But that’s not the job of a Christian, period. Christians’ lives are also supposed to look drastically different than the lives of those who don’t love Jesus, and it’s difficult to figure out how to not be polluted by the world, but not make the world feel judged. There is so much brokenness here. I’ve heard some of my group’s opinions on God and it breaks my heart. But I don’t know how to tell them about Who He really is without being afraid of messing it up- most people who aren’t in the church have been hurt by it. I’ve come to the conclusion that my best ministry here is going to be showing people Christ, not just talking about Him. Charlotte and I have been talking about this a lot, and I’ve been so blessed to have her and a couple of believers here.

I’ve decided that 1 Peter 4 is my anthem for this trip:

Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because whoever suffers in the body is done with sin. As a result, they do not live the rest of their earthly lives for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do—living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. They are surprised that you do not join them in their reckless, wild living, and they heap abuse on you. But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. For this is the reason the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they might be judged according to human standards in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the spirit.

The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.

Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler. However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name. For it is time for judgment to begin with God’s household; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God? And,

“If it is hard for the righteous to be saved,
    what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?”

So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.

As for what we have been doing.. where to begin?!

Where I get to go on runs. There's a huge, beautiful park across the street from our house.

The Bauhaus University where we have class.

Hedwig-Pfeiffer Haus where we live.

Day trip to Naumburg! Naumburg Cathedral and fancy schmancy wine tasting at Bad Soulza.

Day trip to Erfurt and St. Mary's Cathedral.

Day trip to Eisenach- Schloss Wartburg (castle), Bach's house, and car museum. Martin Luthor translated the New Testament in this castle, and the picture of the desk is where he sat.

Day trip to Leipzig- visit to the American Consulate, a DDR/ Berlin Wall museum, and a classical music concert.

 (Real DDR surveillance- this stuff was really creepy)

Going to Prague next weekend! I'll post again after that!

The clay & the Potter

(I wrote this June 5.)

Right now I’m sitting on a five hour train ride headed to Weimar. And I can say with confidence that it is much harder to pee on a train than on a plane. But seriously, I feel like I’m in Harry Potter. Everything outside the windows is hilly with tons of trees and small towns and windmills and... castles. You know, no big deal. It’s even kind of cloudy like in the Harry Potter movies, and occasionally we go through long tunnels under mountains/hills. So beautiful. I’m pretty sure almost everyone is asleep... Dr. Cothran has a way of making sure we are always busy! That’s why I haven’t posted in a while. Sorry to my family. :/ Between classwork (two tests, two projects, six journals, reading a book, and daily workbook homework all in two weeks) and all of our tours and outings, it’s easy for time to fly by. I’m facing backwards from the direction we are going on the train, so I can see everything fade away in all the giant windows as we pass it. It actually kind of makes me think of how I don’t want to look at this trip. I keep wishing for time to go faster- I want to see my friends and family and eat Mexican food. But I can’t let the summer slip away. I’ve praised God for the blessing of comfort in being here that He has given me (as I asked last week) and don’t need to let go of it. God does not just provide a way through or a way out, but He is with me the whole time, holding the roof above my head, asking me to work while He does so that it’s not a waste. He doesn’t save us in order for us to just sit there. I think trials are better conquered than just endured, and the way to get all out of this life that God wants us to is not just to find happiness in all of the adventures and fun and learning curves, but to smile at God and rejoice when He refines us to look more like Him, even if that often doesn’t seem joyous at all. But joy can only, ONLY be found in the presence of God, and I think He’s usually the closest when He’s got His hands on us, molding us like clay. Good thing He’s doing that to me every day. :)

Yet you, Lord, are our Father. 

    We are the clay, you are the potter; 

    we are all the work of your hand.

Isaiah 64:8

He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the Lord will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness...

Malachi 3:3

This is the day the Lord has made;

    Let us rejoice and be glad in it.

Psalm 118:24

So for those of you wanting to know some prayer requests, I want God to fill me with His Holy Spirit so that I walk in the exact footsteps that would bring Him the most glory this summer. I hope He opens doors for me to reflect Him, that I see those doors, that I open them, and that my class sees more of Him and less of me.

Here’s what I’ve been doing this past week and a half!

Jazz festival saturday! Completely awesome. Amazing live music.

Me, Charlotte, and CT went to Dr. Cothran’s church last Sunday. It’s called the Neanderkirche and it’s in the Altstadt of Düsseldorf. It was Pentacost Sunday, which is a huge deal here. Monday is even a national holiday because of it. Afterwards we were served free beer as we walked out the door... haha. For a church holiday and the pastor’s birthday. Only in Germany.

We toured der Dom in Aachen (not the same as the one in Köln) on Monday. This church is Charlemagne central! Here’s a picture of his royal bust, which is an actual relic with his skull in it. There were several of those throughout the church. Also, these are the tallest stained glass windows in the world- 83 feet!

Wednesday I biked 5k, ran 2 miles alone the Rhine River, biked 5k back. Only in Deutschland can you see a city skyline, sheep and goats, and an old man running in white boxers all at once (he was intentionally left out of the photo).

Here’s my best attempt at a panorama and another photo of the media district of Düsseldorf. Super cool.

Saturday we went to Schloss Berg- a castle! The best part was getting there (as displayed by group Karate Kid photo). We definitely hiked a couple miles through the giant German trees, and took a ski lift up a mountain to get there. And the tour inside of the castle was awesome. I feel like I’m learning a ton of history on this trip.

Saturday night we went to the Japanischerfest. I got to watch Japanese men dance like frogs on a stage, and the world’s biggest fireworks show, all in one night!

Now we are finally in Weimar. I like it here. So much more to come. :)