Lunch in the park (beginning of February)
Torre de Oro
The view from the bridge I walk across everyday
Plaza de España
Monday, February 22, 2010
Friday, February 5, 2010
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Comfort is Overrated...
“No one can follow God and be comfortable for long. Admit it. Too much comfort too long bores a God-fashioned soul”
–Beth Moore
I like this quote; I read it in my Bible study about a week ago. I think in life it is really easy to use comfort as a default, to let routine take over, to use comfort as an excuse to act or to not act. I’m learning that living life with God is anything but comfortable. He asks me to forgive people who have hurt me, He asks me to love those who are hard to love, He asks me to wait on Him, He asks me to trust Him with the unknown, He asks me to do things that I don’t always want to do, that I could not do without His help. But that’s just it; God does not ask me/us to do these things on my own strength, but in Him, through His strength.
[Philippians 2:13 – For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose]
One of God’s greatest promises is that He is always with us..!
Psalm 73:23-24
“Yet I am always with you, you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory.”
Praise the Lord for his continual presence! When you have a rough day, when everything around you seems to be changing, when you are placed in situations that are completely foreign to you, when you feel alone or miss someone that you love, when everything seems to be falling apart -- praise the Lord (!), for He is unchanging and walking with you every step of the way!
Life has definitely been uncomfortable, especially living in another country, but God is faithful and in Him I find everything I need.
Being a foreigner, but not necessarily a tourist is an interesting concept…I get to see the beauty of Spain and Spanish culture, but in a more in-depth way, where I live and participate in the culture…it’s really neat & such a great opportunity! I am excited to share that some Spaniards I met at church said that I looked Sevillan. One friend said I could pass as someone from Barcelona..haha, now if only I could speak with the fluency, speed, and accent of the Spaniards! However, it is true that I am a “guiri” (gringa/foreigner) and this is especially evident when I go jogging around the city in broad daylight (in bright colored clothing) – the Spanish women here are very concerned about their appearance, and it is very uncommon to see women running around the streets or working out in public places. I would have to say that Sevilla is a runner’s paradise and to all my running friends back home, I wish you were here to take this all in with me!
A few comical tidbits....
- Food here is quite different, I like it for the most part, but sometimes we get served really random combinations of food. For instance, today at lunch my señora gave me a fried egg, french fries, and these little sausages that look like mini hotdogs…haha I thought it was interesting.
-The Spaniards fry a lot of food and claim that it is healthy, they do use olive oil, which I know is better for you, but I have a hard time believing anything is healthy when it is fried ;)
-My grammar professor likes to try to pronounce words in English sometimes, so the other day he tried to say “cheeseburger” and it ended up coming out as “cheese-boooger” – hahaha
-The other day it was a nice sunny/warm afternoon, so my friend and I decided to go for a walk in shorts & t-shirts. On our walk we passed some older women wearing fur coats…I heard a couple people say “Mira mira” (look, look)..I guess it is winter here after all, but I don’t mind embracing my guiri-ness if it means wearing shorts in February :]
--->I will try to post some pictures soon, either on here or facebook (I need to take some)
Sunday, January 31, 2010
A Day in the Life...
A typical day for me…/schedule during the week
7:15 – wake up/get ready/read if I have time
8 – coffee & toast
8:20 - walk to school
9 -11:30 – 3 classes
11:30-12:30 – break
12:40-1:30 – finish last class
1:30-3 = depending on the day --walking around Sevilla, going to a cafetería to get coffee, homework, acción solidaria mtgs, hanging out with friends, etc
3 – lunch
3:30-5 – Siesta! (reading, running, sometimes napping)
5-9 – depending on the day – homework, playing frisbee in the park, exploring, gelato, teaching English to kids, walks, using the internet, “encuentro” (wed. night worship/message in english with students from my school), playing Bingo with cute old men at the Veteran’s home, etc.
9:30 – dinner (I know, it’s late!)
10-12ish – homework, walking around the city/exploring (no worries it’s normal to be out this late)
…Sleep :)
7:15 – wake up/get ready/read if I have time
8 – coffee & toast
8:20 - walk to school
9 -11:30 – 3 classes
11:30-12:30 – break
12:40-1:30 – finish last class
1:30-3 = depending on the day --walking around Sevilla, going to a cafetería to get coffee, homework, acción solidaria mtgs, hanging out with friends, etc
3 – lunch
3:30-5 – Siesta! (reading, running, sometimes napping)
5-9 – depending on the day – homework, playing frisbee in the park, exploring, gelato, teaching English to kids, walks, using the internet, “encuentro” (wed. night worship/message in english with students from my school), playing Bingo with cute old men at the Veteran’s home, etc.
9:30 – dinner (I know, it’s late!)
10-12ish – homework, walking around the city/exploring (no worries it’s normal to be out this late)
…Sleep :)
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
¡Saludos de España!
Hello, Hello!!
Thanks for checking this out, whoever you are :) My hope is that this blog would more so than anything, be an encouragement to you, and that God would use the things He has done in my life to spur you on in faith! I first want to say a big THANKS for all of the prayers and love you have extended to me, I greatly appreciate it; God has blessed me immensely with wonderful people in my life.
God is good and His faithfulness continues to amaze me time and time again as I am experiencing this wild adventure in Spain. It’s only my 5th day here in Sevilla and God has already blessed me with great friends, a loving host family and roommate, the comprehension to understand my professors, and many opportunities to serve Him and the community in Sevilla! Wow! As hard as the transition is at times, and will be at times throughout the semester, our God is sovereign and I just know that His hands have been preparing this particular trip/journey, way in advance.
I have had many opportunities these past few days to explore the city of Sevilla. It’s quite beautiful and there is so much to see and do! Everyone walks everywhere here, or takes public transportation, and I have to admit that it’s a nice change to be outside walking around in the 50/60 degree weather as opposed to driving around in the frigid winters of the Midwest (my sympathies go out to you).
We started classes yesterday, and how it works is that we take the same 4 classes everyday Mon-Thurs, and I think Fridays are reserved for office hours/no school, but I’m not sure yet. The program I’m in is through the Acento de Trinity school; a private university that is solely American students (there are about 40 of us) who take classes all in Spanish with native Spanish professors. We are only allowed to speak in Spanish in the school which is good, but it’s weird to be writing this blog in english then turn to my friend and switch to talking in Spanish ;). I am enjoying my classes thus far and surprisingly can understand almost everything my professors are saying! The classes I am taking are: Historia (Spanish history), arte español (Spanish art), cuentos espanoles (Spanish short stories), y gramática advanzada (advanced grammar). I am also participating in a service-learning class, where we get involved at a particular organization or ministry in Sevilla and serve there for the semester. I will find out my placement at the end of the week, but will probably be teaching english to kids, which I am super excited about :).
I will write more soon and will try to inform you more about fun little cultural differences – there are a lot! Thanks again for all your prayers and love, feel free to comment or email me with prayer requests or other things that are going on in your lives!
Much love from Sevilla y Hasta luego!
Thanks for checking this out, whoever you are :) My hope is that this blog would more so than anything, be an encouragement to you, and that God would use the things He has done in my life to spur you on in faith! I first want to say a big THANKS for all of the prayers and love you have extended to me, I greatly appreciate it; God has blessed me immensely with wonderful people in my life.
God is good and His faithfulness continues to amaze me time and time again as I am experiencing this wild adventure in Spain. It’s only my 5th day here in Sevilla and God has already blessed me with great friends, a loving host family and roommate, the comprehension to understand my professors, and many opportunities to serve Him and the community in Sevilla! Wow! As hard as the transition is at times, and will be at times throughout the semester, our God is sovereign and I just know that His hands have been preparing this particular trip/journey, way in advance.
I have had many opportunities these past few days to explore the city of Sevilla. It’s quite beautiful and there is so much to see and do! Everyone walks everywhere here, or takes public transportation, and I have to admit that it’s a nice change to be outside walking around in the 50/60 degree weather as opposed to driving around in the frigid winters of the Midwest (my sympathies go out to you).
We started classes yesterday, and how it works is that we take the same 4 classes everyday Mon-Thurs, and I think Fridays are reserved for office hours/no school, but I’m not sure yet. The program I’m in is through the Acento de Trinity school; a private university that is solely American students (there are about 40 of us) who take classes all in Spanish with native Spanish professors. We are only allowed to speak in Spanish in the school which is good, but it’s weird to be writing this blog in english then turn to my friend and switch to talking in Spanish ;). I am enjoying my classes thus far and surprisingly can understand almost everything my professors are saying! The classes I am taking are: Historia (Spanish history), arte español (Spanish art), cuentos espanoles (Spanish short stories), y gramática advanzada (advanced grammar). I am also participating in a service-learning class, where we get involved at a particular organization or ministry in Sevilla and serve there for the semester. I will find out my placement at the end of the week, but will probably be teaching english to kids, which I am super excited about :).
I will write more soon and will try to inform you more about fun little cultural differences – there are a lot! Thanks again for all your prayers and love, feel free to comment or email me with prayer requests or other things that are going on in your lives!
Much love from Sevilla y Hasta luego!
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