Summertime!!! =)

Hey everyone! Well, I'm all finished with my first year of college; crazy huh? I think so too =)
Finals week was absolute madness! I usually get around 5-6 hours of sleep on an average night, but that wasn't happening for finals. Lol! Thank the Lord, His strength is always sufficient & all of my finals went really well. The hardest thing was saying goodbye to all of my friends! Although knowing that most of them would return for the fall semester makes it a little bit more bearable, it is always hard parting ways.

 Friday night, a group of us grabbed a guitar & went out to the soccer field onto one of the shelter's roofs & did some stargazing, sang songs, gave testimonies about what God had done in our lives this year, & prayed for God's blessing over the summer. It was incredible! One of the guys, Joel, had just gotten saved 2 weeks before, & it was so amazing to hear his testimony about how God had pursued him through everything. God is so good!! Saturday was graduation & also one of the hardest days I've had in awhile. I had to say goodbye to my best friend & I don't know when I'll see her again. Ashlee has been such a huge blessing in my life; the Lord definitely knew that I would need her as a friend during some of the more difficult times over the past year.

She always has a smile & is always pointing me back towards the Cross in every situation! It was always great to just get together & pray, or chat, or just encourage each other in the Lord. Well....now I have a reason to take a road trip to California! Haha! Actually...well, I can't let you all in on that yet ;) That possibility is still pretty far in the future, & I'm still workin' out the details. Lol!

I am very excited about this summer though! I have a little bit of a break this week, but the craziness will begin this weekend. I'll be in the pool for about 12 hours of training over this weekend & then 12 more hours the following weekend. Yeah, my workout routine at school was successful in keeping the dreaded "Freshmen Fifteen" away, but not so successful in keeping me in lifeguarding shape. Lol! So I have to get back into that. Then on Monday I will be going down to the Wisconsin Dells to watch my niece for a week. My sister & her husband are opening a new Culvers, so they will be super busy! I am soooo excited to spend time with my beautiful niece!! I haven't really been able to see her since I've been at school, so this coming week should be great . Hopefully my sister will be able to get some time away so we can catch up too =)
The rest of the summer I would appreciate your prayers; I will be teaching swimming lessons & lifeguarding pretty much full-time, tutoring Muslim women (pray for witnessing opportunities!!), & I am also hoping to start a Bible study with the girls in my youth group. The Lord has opened many doors this summer & I am so excited to see what He is going to accomplish for His glory! I hope that I will be able to keep you all updated & also find time to share some of what the Lord is teaching me. I know I've been saying that forever, but I think I will finally be able to carve out some blogging time. Haha! I hope that you all have a great week & an even better summer. Don't waste your "free" time; look for ways to serve  our Savior!

"Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.Do all things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me." Philippians 2:12-18