Some Light!

I'm sorry about my last blog. I was at a difficult place and starting to lose hope. But I have no reason to lose hope... because I belong to Christ, and he reigns victorious! The Lord was faithful to pull me up from the pit and set my feet on solid ground.

This past week has been full of joy, hope, and new things. Praise God! Last Saturday we had our SP Quarter Close ceremony. We spent some time reflecting on the first 3 months of our internship here in South LA and the many ways in which God proved faithful. One of our teammates, Kyle, spoke about how important it is to reflect on the many ways in the past that the Lord has been faithful and powerful so that we can remember these examples in times of trial and hopelessness. Just like in the story of David getting ready to fight Goliath. 'And David said, “The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and the LORD be with you!”' (I Sam 17:37) Even though this season has been difficult, the Lord has been incredibly faithful to provide for my daily needs and encourage me with a community of friends and prayer partners. And I look to the future with hope, knowing that God is growing my character and faith in this uncertain time. It's in seasons of difficulty that we can more fully rely on God and experience tremendous growth. Excited to see what the next quarter will bring. :)

And since remembering the Lord's faithfulness and repenting of my unbelief, God has provided some very tangible nuggets of encouragement. On Saturday I enjoyed an afternoon in Venice - exploring the canals and watching the sunset on the beach. On Monday I received a call from a tutoring company interested in bringing me on under the No Child Left Behind program. I will attend orientation over the next couple of weeks and possibly start tutoring kids in January! On Tuesday some teammates and I had the pleasure of meeting Dr. John M. Perkins and hear him reflect on the American church and the hope that lies in the coming "post-racism" generation - that is, if we can get outside of ourselves and become truly passionate about the injustices of our day. On Wednesday I had a fruitful prayer time with one of my teammates and enjoyed a delicious burger and beer with one of my brother's childhood best friends. It was fun to catch up and be around some family-ish people. On Thursday it finally worked out for me to volunteer with a cool after-school outreach program in the skid row (homeless) community. It was their last day of the semester and their Christmas celebration, so things were pretty crazy and the kids quite rambunctious, but I was so encouraged to have the opportunity to use some of my free time to bless this ministry and identify more with the skid row community. And finally, last night, we got to know our new neighbors and their friends a little better as we watched them film a music video behind our building. (They're rap artists and have produced a CD or two.) It was fun to get a little bit of a glimpse into their world... and who knows - maybe we'll see the video on TV some day!

So, thanks for your prayers! Praise God for his faithfulness! He always seems to provide exactly what I need when I need it. Please continue to pray for encouragement in the next few weeks. I'll be staying around LA for Christmas to save some money and immerse myself more in the community. But it will be the first time EVER that I will be away from my parents on Christmas, so please pray for me and for them, that we would be surrounded by our family in Christ and filled with gratitude this Christmas!

Enjoy some pictures from my week!