Second Night in England

So I got off the plane yesterday and went straight to the train, it was an interesting first experience. The train tickets are very unuseful as far as what time the train actually leaves and what gate it leaves from. Thankfully, the people who I asked were very helpful. Long story short, I got from the airport onto the correct train into the correct town. It was definatly an interesting, but good experience. Then a bus from the school picked all the incoming international students that day up. Of course, me being the american i am forgot the door is on the opposite side of then car then i am used to walked around to the "wrong" side and tried to figure out where the heck the door handle is lol but i quickly realized that that was wrong and went around. Then today i learned what a DUVET is..lol its basically a pillow case for a blanket lol I was really confused haha All in all everyone has been really nice and helpful.
Now im just waiting for my permanent flat to be finished from renovations....which would mean i could unpack and not live out of my suitcase

till next time....


Brianne

Summer '09

WOW, so as I sit here I cant believe its already the end of July, meaning I have one month till I leave for England for 9 months. Looking back on the last couple months, I can't help but think that this is not what I had in mind for my summer but I guess as the saying goes, If you wanna make God laugh tell Him your plans.

England update:
Leave September 5th,2009 from Kansas City, come back June 7th,2010
Visa status: In Progress
Then I have a few other things I have to figure out; phone situation, laptop cord, adapters, etc

Keep visiting for updates throughout my trip!


(Well I will try to keep this updated but I cant promise anything!!)

Sorry for the lack of posting...

So a lot has definatly happened since my last post....

1.Freshmen girls lifegroup has been going really great. Before spring break we finished the book of Ruth and we are now going through the book of Esther. Its been really amazing to be able to get to know these girls. We have started having "family dinners" once a week in the dining hall so that has been really great to get to hang out with them outside of lifegroup and BSU....they're my little driplets. hehe

2.I turned in my application for study abroad.....FINALLY :-) Now I just have to wait a monthish or so till i hear back from them..... :-(

3.God has been teaching me so many lessons......lessons that I dont even understand....I guess thats what happens when I am being stubborn but he'll break me......

Well I think thats about it......

Till next time...

-:-Brianne-:-

Two posts in one day...haha

Two posts in one day. Crazy. I know right?
Anyways here are the lyrics to a song by Francesca Battistelli that I hear on the radio all the time. Something I can relate to recently.

At twenty years of age
I'm still looking for a dream
A war's already waged for my destiny
But You've already won the battle
And You've got great plans for me
Though I can’t always see

(Chorus)
‘Cause I got a couple dents in my fender
Got a couple rips in my jeans
Try to fit the pieces together
But perfection is my enemy
On my own I'm so clumsy
But on Your shoulders I can see
I'm free to be me

When I was just a girl I thought I had it figured out
My life would turn out right, and I'd make it here somehow
But things don't always come that easy
And sometimes I would doubt

(Chorus)

And you’re free to be you
Sometimes I believe that I can do anything
Yet other times I think I've got nothing good to bring
But You look at my heart and You tell me
That I've got all You seek
And it’s easy to believe
Even though

(Chorus)


...anyways, thats just a song i have been relating to lately and thought I would share.

Icky I hate being sick..

So, here I am. Sick. Day number 3. Luckily its not pukey sick but head cold, which may be equally worse (if not just as bad). So im going to apologize if this doesnt make sense haha my sentences and thoughts tend to run together when my head is stuffed up.

I'm at home. :-) And Its nice to be back. But as I was driving I got to thinking (as I usually do, gotta pass the 2.5 hours some how!) Any ways, I got to thinking about how torn I feel at times. It seems like when i'm at school I always crack jokes about being from a small town and talk about how im glad to be out of there, etc but I always love coming home. Its like no matter how much I cant wait to leave (marionville) there comes a time when I cant wait to come back. I guess its one of those things, Im struggling with. Figuring out what I want in life and what God has in store.

I feel like Im caught in two different worlds and I have to choose.The only problem is, I feel like sometimes Im the only one in the middle, that there arent any people right there in the middle with me, someone who knows about me and where i come from and also where i'm going. Dont get me wrong, I know there are wonderful people on both sides who know me and care for me I guess thats something I have to deal with. I knew that was a consequence of going to school where no one knew me.

Anyways enough about that, now on to something else. I have been thinking about my schedule lately, and how busy i always seem to be...But God never fails to remind me to stop and take a breath and enjoy the beauties he has made. As I got out of my car tonight for some reason I looked up at the sky. Now I live in the country so there arent any city lights, so you can imagine what i saw. Yup,thats right. Nothing but a beautiful night sky filled with a sea of stars. Which got me thinking, the last time I remember stopping and just enjoying such a simple beauty was this past summer at baptist hill when i would lay on the concrete tables outside and just stare at the sky for hours. Something about doing that is absolutly amazing. Even the thought of it is just so relaxing and nice. So if you ever get a chance, i definatly recommend taking some time out of (what im sure is) your busy schedule to stop and smell the wild flowers, watch the sun rise(or set), lay beneath the stars, anything that is so simple to do that we dont even think twice about.

I know I definatly will remember that God created all of these things just for us to enjoy :-) How great is He?

Balancing Friendships

So, I know I said once a week...I'm trying :-)

Ok so, Im really excited about hanging out with the freshmen girls, and getting to know them!
This past week I had coffee with a girl I met last semester but never really talked to, and she spilt her life story without me asking anything...it was cool. She said "I dont know why but I felt like I should tell you...." And now, everytime we see eachother, shes like "Hey best friend" :-) I love it.

But I guess I keep thinking about my other friendships. I have made SO many wonderful truly genuine friends. Not only here in Warrensburg but also the ones from back home.

But how can I keep those balanced with the relationships I want to build with the freshmen girls? Like every relationship, we have to invest time and effort into them. So why do I feel like I have to pick a select few. Every one of them offers something different, something I click with.

I dont know I guess I feel like I'm bored with some of them but I dont want to "break up" with them so to say. I feel like I go through friends like most girls go through boys. Once I get bored I want to toss them...(except I can't because I dont want to...)

AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH.........................

I dont know what to do...any advice?

Hello 2009

First off,
I just want to thank you for checking out my blog. You will have to hang in there, I forget to update this, so just keep checking back and hopefully I will get around to updating at least once a week (maybe twice a month is a little more like it :-) hehe)

So lets see, where to start...
Over break, a lot happened, within a 3 day span, my suitemate last year and neighbor this year was in a fatal car wreck and 2 days later a girl from high school (who was a year younger then me) was also in a fatal car wreck. I found myself not really wanting to deal with it but eventually had to. Only felt torn, I felt like no one understood what was going on, when I knew there were a million people I could call and they would drop everything so we could chat.But I didnt. It was really hard, but I sorted things out with God, and realized all these things were happening for a reason (and it sounds so cheesy and I always hear it but I felt it.) I dont want any sympathy, because I wasnt really close with either of the girls, but I learned something from each of them. I will never forget what was told to me by one of the girls' moms. She said, "She looked up to you. She really did. Never loose that Godly woman character of yours." Yeah, I cried...whats new haha.

Anyways, this semester I am applying for a semester missionary position. Which is basically a fancy name for what I already do. Hanging out with others, having a ministry,etc. Last semester I sort of started this idea of a womens ministry. I really didnt want it to look a certain way, other then encouraging other women of the BSU to step up and start that leadership. I have learned recently that it doesnt matter our age, we can be an influence to any women of any age, both younger and older, even if we know it or not. I am really excited to see the work God is doing in this field, I recently learned that there are a few girls who are steping up and talking about doing a girls night/informal bible study sort of thing. I can't wait to see what God does with that and the authentic community that gets built.

I on the other hand am co-leading a Sunday night freshmen girls bible study. I pray every night that I am able to connect to the girls. Looking back at last semester I realize I didnt exactly do what I was excited about doing. So this semester I know that will be different. :-)

Well, thats about all I have.......

Thank you so much for stopping by and reading about my life...I promise to try and keep this updated with any thoughts that pop into my head....