A day at the beach...

        
What was supposed to be the hottest day of the year, quickly turned into a sandstorm with chilly winds and rain!  But that didn't stop me!!! :)  The ocean was calling my name and it was my first trip to the North Sea.  As soon as Angella, the kids and I arrived at the beach, I took a few pictures and headed for the water with Gracie.  She tolerated the waves for awhile but soon wanted to run back to the shore and play in the sand so I happily splashed through the water and spent the next hour and a half diving through the waves.  
 

We were in a really cute town called Bleckenburg I think, and I couldn't get over the strange realization that I was in a very familiar feeling beach town but was surrounded by European architecture!  It was crazy.

I'm not sure if I can really put how I felt into words but I felt exhilarated in the water and free. I felt like myself which was nice because it's been hard to 'feel like myself' in a place that is NOT like myself.  I felt independent and intelligent, in a strange way!  You see, I've grown up near the beach and to reconnect with the tide, to know how to avoid being crushed, to understand how the undertoe pulls was important to me.  I know how to swim and feel completely at ease despite the fact that I'm being tossed by rough and intense waves.  I haven't felt like that since I arrived in Europe, partly because everything is new to me here.  I don't know how to speak the language, don't know how to drive my stick shift car, don't know my way around, don't understand the processes going on around me and certainly feel lost most of the time.  While I was in the waves, I didn't feel any of those things and it was nice for a short time.  Anyway, enough of my deep and yet insignificant ramblings! :)  It was a great experience for me and I can't wait to go back!!!

Happy and busy!

I know, I know!  It's been a couple of weeks since I've updated my blog.  What can I say?  Life is full and busy! :)  So let me catch you up!

My first event at SHAPE was the "Sweet Farewell" to the summer interns.  Both Sarah and Kristina were awesome assets to Club and as a way of saying thank you and farewell, we had a fun and STICKY goodbye!  Our theme was ice cream and toppings so...

 1. A game of 'topping twister.'  Each color on the board was a different topping (ie: chocolate syrup, strawberry syrup) and it led to a hysterical mess!  

2. "Affirmation smash!" Each student that wanted to encourage or affirm one of the interns would make a fun and disgusting pie out of whipped cream and toppings.  After they said their words of affirmation, they would smash the pie into the interns face.  Sounds affirming eh? :)   If the affirmation was especially awesome, we added some fun/secret ingredients such as sardines, split pea soup or tuna.  It made for a very smelly and disgusting treat in the face!

 

                    

3.  We created a large 6 foot sundae and the students finished off the event by eating from the 'trough' with no silverware!  

Although the event was smelly, sticky and messy, it was a great time and a sweet way to say farewell to our incredible interns!

Before Kristina and Sarah left, the girls had a chance to take me to downtown Mons.  We had a great time exploring, eating amazing frites (French Fries- and did you know that French Fries were invented in Belgium?  Not France???), window shopping, talking and laughing.  We found this incredible park that overlooked the entire Grand Place of Mons.  It was a beautiful park and incredibly serene.   It was a fun day and made me really excited to do a little more exploring in the near future!!!

 

The next weekend we took 11 people to Germany for ECYC (European Catholic Youth Conference). It was incredible!  The worship band and speaker were amazing and the times spent with the students were precious.  We spent the weekend listening to amazing teaching, feeling the Holy Spirit's presence during our worship time and I personally learned a lot more about the Catholic faith through mass and the conversations I had with leaders and students.  The experience is something I will hold on to for a long time and I believe the students were challenged and changed as well.

    

   

Our prayer walk              The Arch Bishop of Military Services

                                          visited us (he's the one on the right)

                         

Well, I know this was a brief 'catch you up' but I wanted to make sure I got it done and sooner rather than later.  I promise more details to come!

Please keep praying that I'll get my ID soon so I can look for housing and officially purchase a car as well as for continual healing of my sciatic nerve.  It's felt a bit better the last couple of days!  Praise Jesus!!!

Love always,

Megan

Week one in Belgium

The Cole Family's Home

Today I decided to explore my surroundings a little bit and took off for a walk around the town of Neufville's which is where the Cole family lives.  As I walked, I listened to some new songs I recently downloaded at Tim's suggestion.  It was surreal and for some reason absolutely enthralling as lame as that sounds.  Here I am, in a totally new place, listening to new music and breathing in new smells.  It was a sensory overload as I took in all the new sights- the buildings, the roads, the houses, the fences, the cow pastures, they all look so new and different to me.  The flowers are different, the trees look different and the fresh smell after the rain passes is intoxicating.  

As I walked I spent a little time with my Abba Father expressing my thanks and gratitude to Him and as if to answer, the heavens opened up and poured down on me washing me clean and cooling me down.  I looked up and laughed as I continued my walk in the rain which quickly tapered off and gave way to an absolutely beautiful sunny afternoon.  

 

Towards the end of the walk, I looked down and saw a beautiful orange flower that seemed to stand out among the greenery and I picked it up.  It reminded me of a sunrise, a new day, and I took it home with me to remind me that despite the uphill battles I may face, this is a new day, a new journey and God has many amazing things in store for me.  I will stand firm on the positives despite a few disappointments.

Let's start with the good things from this week.  As I mentioned before, I have a great office and I love the location of it on base.  Tim and I had a good time talking about the calendar for the next 6 months and we have found that we are eerily similar in odd ways.  Have you ever met anyone else that wishes that the world were one big musical??!?!?!  I thought I was alone in that...but NOPE!  Tim and I discovered that we both have thought up the same idea, we have similar tastes in music and we are both big pranksters.  I have a feeling we are in for an interesting (and awesome!) year! :)

I had a great time with a couple girls on Thursday night and really began to connect with them.  I found out later that one of them made a comment to Tim saying "she's perfect!  Just what we needed."  I cannot wait to get to know these teenagers better and I look forward to building relationships with them.   I feel like a perfect fit here (a God ordained fit) and that's an incredible feeling.  I KNOW that I'm where I'm supposed to be and that fills me with a sense of peace.  I had many good conversations with Tim and Angella this week and have enjoyed having a family to live with.  I'm incredibly blessed.  

 

(Above right: Andrew, Above left: Cole Family (Angella, Gracie, Andrew and Tim)

Rough stuff for the week- well, I still don't have my id's which basically puts me on hold to do anything else.  I can't really buy a car, find a place to live, visit the commissary, check my mail to see if my boxes have arrived or get into any of the facilities on base without those id's.  Patience is definitely something I'm learning!  

But for me, the hardest part is that I'm in pain and it's constant and at times excruciating.  For a long time I thought I just had 'restless leg syndrome' or something stupid like that because the tops of my thighs would hurt after a long day of sitting.  It only got worse through the process or packing and lifting heavy things during my move and it took on a whole new world of pain after sitting on the plane for 8 hours and then in a car for 13 hours.  It's gone from annoyingly painful to searing pain when I sit for almost any length of time.  I talked to a professional masseuse (wasn't actually treated by her, just spoke to her) who asked a few questions and concluded that my sciatic nerve is most likely pinched and thus the reason my neck, hip and right leg hurt.  I've been taking ibuprofen and similar medicines but they've done nothing for the pain which makes sense since those are for muscle injuries, not nerve issues.  I cannot see a chiropractor on base or get a referral until I get my military id's.  See my problem???  So, bottom line is that I hurt and am feeling antsy to become settled into a new routine but I can't yet so I just need to be still and know that HE is God.  Prayers though would be appreciated!

Oh yes, so let's do prayer requests :)

*For the pain I'm experiencing- just pray that it would go away and NOT hinder my ministry or the next week in anyway!

*Tomorrow I'm going to Catholic Mass and the Protestant Service to be introduced to the chapel.  Please pray for a good introduction and fast relationships!

*I have decided that my first choice is to live on base.  It would give me incredible access to students and I would love to be able to walk to most of the places I need to go.  Please pray that there are housing spots available and that I would be able to quickly get affordable housing.

* Belgium is a VERY expensive place to live.  Please pray for me as I continue to figure out how to budget everything I need and please pray for that I will continually trust my finances to God.

* Pray that I find a reliable and relatively inexpensive car to drive as well as all the other things I need to purchase in the near future.

*Pray that my belongings arrive!  It's been 3 weeks since I mailed my boxes- pray they arrive soon and NOT in pieces! :)

* Pray for the ministry here as I begin to meet students, parents and chapel staff.  I just want to know how to love the people I encounter daily.

Thanks for your prayers and being a part of the great adventure!

Megs

Arrival in Europe

Yes!  I am alive and well! :)  I arrived in Germany but didn't have internet access for the past week therefore, I haven't been able to update my blog with my adventures; but I am here and am doing phenomenally!

I arrived on the 14th after probably the BEST flight ever!  That's right...it was a great flight!  I had an entire row to myself and actually slept for 3-4 hours.  I arrived in Frankfurt and drove to Heidelberg and experienced miracle #2.  NO JET LAG!!!  Somehow, my body caught up immediately and I didn't experience jet lag.  Pretty incredible!

I spent the first week in Germany at the MCYM-Club Beyond Welcome/Goodbye conference and it was wonderful.  I think above all else the coolest part was connecting with people that share the same passions as I do; a love for Jesus Christ and a passion for loving teenagers.  I met a lot of amazing people, laughed a ton and thoroughly enjoyed my first week in Europe.

Top 10:

1. Every evening I found someone new to hang out with and to connect with on some level.  Sometimes it was in long and deep talks about life and other times it was playing silly games while having a glass of wine.  Whatever I was doing, it was awesome!

2. Jessica Barlow organized a little surprise birthday celebration for me which was way special!

 3. I made some incredibly awesome new friends.

(left:Jessica and me 

Below and left: Me, Jess, Elizabeth and Stacie)

4. One afternoon we toured around a little German city called Calw and we sat at a really cute outdoor cafe and drank cappuccinos!  AND, I bought some really cute earrings.  A definite plus!

5.  During my "welcome" I felt extremely special and blessed to be part of the Club Beyond family.  Everyone was so encouraging about me 'finally' being in Europe and a part of the family.  I felt loved instantly!

6.  Pam Fulton's back rubs.  Enough said.

7. These amazing bread things that you roast over an open fire!!!

8. Leading worship with Ron.  For some reason, that was really special!

9.  Being in an incredibly beautiful part of Germany, the Black Forest!

10.  Seeing God's hands in EVERYTHING!  He has constantly surprised me and met my every need so far.  It was a very encouraging first week!

(Left: me and Dale- he's been an encouragement through this entire process!)

Last night we arrived in Belgium and today we began my in-processing.  I think it's safe to say it didn't go exactly as hoped...but that's okay! We hit a few logistical snags in getting my id's which are pretty much necessary for EVERYTHING!  But I got to hang out with Tim and get a feel for the area I'll be serving so let's focus on the good things!

Top 5 for the first day at SHAPE:

1. I got my first glance at my awesome new office!  It's so cute and has a great view and the summer interns decorated it to make me feel welcomed and special.  SO cool!  

2. I was surprised by one of the high school girls I met in February when she called and offered me two wireless phones, a wireless internet modem and some rugs for my future home!

3. I ran into 3 high school girls that I met back in Feb. and they seemed genuinely excited that I was coming on staff.  I cannot wait to connect more with the teenagers here!

4. I got my first international cell phone...and it's cute!!!  (Navy blue!)

5. Again, just the cool ways God provides and reveals Himself.  So special!

More as the journey unfolds.  Thanks for being a part of my story!

Megs

Night before...

It's the night before I leave for Europe and to be perfectly honest, I pretty much only feel excited!  Not anxious, not nervous, not scared, not too sad...just excited!  Tonight, my entire family came together for my birthday dinner (by entire, I mean me my sister, brother, mom and dad) and it was wonderful!  My mom made an amazing salmon, we took pictures, opened a few presents, laughed about old memories and that was pretty much it.  Simple, yet right.  

I didn't have any amazing, incredible, earth shattering moments while I was home in VA for the past 6 days, instead I would describe the trip as 'just right.'  I had great conversations with my family, played cards with my mom and dad, ran last minute errands and all in all I had what I would describe as great quality time.  I can leave VA now feeling like I have closure, like all is well and that's a great feeling. 

  

My bags are mostly packed and all I need to do is a few last minute things and then tomorrow at 2:33pm, I begin this next adventure!!!!  Crazy and oh'so'exciting!

Big life changes...

In exactly 5 days, I will board a plane with a one-way ticket in hand to Europe!  I land in Frankfurt, Germany on the 14th and after two days of 'in-processing' I will join up with many other "MCYM'ers" to kick off my new chapter with an event called Welcome/Goodbye.  The event is the start of another year; everyone says welcome to the newbies (me!) and goodbye to those returning to the states to pursue another avenue.  I can only imagine that it's an experience that evokes plenty of varying emotions and for me, it's no different.  

What am I doing?  Well, I'm moving to SHAPE, Belgium to be the Associate Director of a military youth ministry program called Club Beyond and my assignment will last at least 3 years.  That's right!  In the past few weeks, I've sold almost everything I owned, packed what I wanted to take with me in 13 boxes and shipped those to Belgium, sold my car, ended one job, packed my clothes into two suitcases, moved out of my apartment, helped settle my cat Riley into his foster-home, enjoyed several incredible going away parties, was commissioned by my church and then boarded a plane to visit VA and my family one last time before I headed overseas.  I have never been so exhausted in my entire life and yet I've also never felt so alive and at peace with a decision!  The next big adventure that awaits me is full of unknowns and excitement and I'm completely ready despite the myriad of emotions!  

Last week my best friend Joy and her hubby Andy flew to Denver to surprise me for my going away party.  I cannot tell you how elated I was to see them and words cannot possible expressed how blessed I am to have the most incredible friends in the world!  Friday night they organized a walk down memory lane to celebrate my life in Colorado. 

It started with an email that essentially told me that at 4:30pm I needed to be ready with a camera, phone, tissue and car keys in hand.  I would receive an email and I was supposed to decipher the clue and head to the destination it indicated.  I was ecstatic because these kinds of games are right up my alley!  The first location was Sweetwater Park, the place where many of my friends played UF together and the location I met Blakely at for the first time.  I arrived and found Sarah and Blake- they stood up and we chit-chatted for a minute, took a picture and they handed me another clue.

The next clue led us to Peaberry Coffee and we found Nick and Kara Moseley waiting for us.  It was then that I realized that this scavenger hunt created so that I would find  all my dearest friends at places that were meaningful to us.  Next, we found Sara Monroe at Ted's Montana Grill, then Bethany at that YFC office and finally Jon and Hannah at Grace Chapel!  Jon handed me the final clue which I deciphered to mean we were going to my favorite restaurant in Castle Rock, the Rock Yard.  On the drive there I thought to myself about how this picture didn't feel complete because Rock Yard was my restaurant and favorite haunt with Joy- oh how I wished she was there with me! 

As I sat (with my back to the window as 'slyly' instructed by my friends) and looked at the  menu, Joy and Andy walked into the restaurant!  I couldn't help it...I screeched!  I was so excited!!!! The night was amazing.  Joy and Andy were there for the entire weekend and I just spent time laughing and feeling special and it was the most incredible night I've had in a long time.  I felt so incredibly loved by my friends.  They had been working on the plan for 3+ months and everything had been planned to make me feel special and to see how loved I was.  

The next day was my going away party and friends stopped by and played Baggo, enjoyed a drink and ate good food.  Again, I felt so special and loved by my friends!  What a special weekend.

Now, it's July 8th and I'm spending my final few days in the US with my family.  Mom and I stayed up late last night talking and playing cards, dad and I went shopping today and it's been a great first day.  I can hardly believe that the past year, my journey, has come full circle and I'm getting ready for the next adventure.  Life in full time youth ministry...in BELGIUM!!!!

Sit back- the adventure is going to be exciting!