Update letter and Email information...

Just wanted to let everyone know that I am sending out my first update letter this week. I also wanted to ask everyone to confirm their email address with me. In addition to keeping this blog and sending the monthly update letters, I will hopefully be able to send videos over email.  I want to share in my adventures with all of you and email is a great way to do that. 

You can email me at amanda.arias@uscm.org from your preferred email. Thanks so much for reading and I am so excited to share everything with you. 

Here is one of my favorite videos from my trip to South Africa in the summer of 2007. These beautiful little girls spend a lot of their time at Beam Africa, and our team has the privilege of spending time with them when we go. 

A Stellar Sound

Enjoy!

Thank you for all of your love and support!

So my last posting was about the time our team spent together in Copper Mountain at Briefing, and this posting is kind of piggy backing off of some things brought up during the week in Copper Mountain.  Here are some thoughts on what I've had a hard time processing through in the past 2 weeks. 

 

I think being at briefing, spending time with the team, and working through details of the trip over our seven days together left me processing through a lot. I left briefing extremely excited for my STINT year in South Africa, but was really overwhelmed with the thought of leaving in only 4 months. After a lot of praying and several good conversations, I realize that I have spent a lot of time holding onto my life here in Colorado. It is difficult for me to imagine a life outside of the one the Lord has built for me here. I love my life here in Denver and it is completely terrifying to think about starting over in South Africa. 

 

When I think about leaving my family, friends, and church my heart feels so heavy, and often I am clouded by my emotion in the situation. Its no surprise that I struggle with how to process all of my emotion, so sorting through my thoughts and emotion in this has been really overwhelming for me. This entire process of preparing to move to South Africa has been about trusting not only that the Lord has a plan for my life, but also that his plan is GOOD! The other day I was reading through Matthew 13, The Parables of the Hidden Treasure and the Pearl, and realized something that has changed my perspective.

 

Matt 13:44-46

 

“The Kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.

         Again, the Kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.”

 

While reading this I found myself stuck on the phrase “in his joy went…”. I am not pursuing South Africa in joy. I am already missing what I am going to have to leave and forgetting all of the amazing things God is sending me into to. The week I was at briefing I realized that it was a little over a year ago that I felt God pushing me to STINT in South Africa. I was on summer project in South Africa, and experienced the treasure that South Africa is. I guess what I realized was that South Africa is like my pearl, and my desire is to leave in my JOY because what God has for me next year in South Africa is worth more than I could ever dream up for my life hear in Denver.

I think this will be something I will struggle with as our leave date approaches, but I have hope that the Lord will continue to teach me and prepare me for my STINT year.

Thanks for reading through this and processing with me.  

I just got back from spending a week in Copper Mountain at Campus Crusades STINT Briefing conference. It was great time with the Lord, the South Africa STINT team, and other Crusade staff members who are dedicating a year of their lives to serve the Lord in countries around the world. It was amazing to talk with teams who are moving to Spain, Mexico city, New Zealand, Italy, and so many other places, all with the same purpose. This week I was once again reminded that my heart is so small. It was incredible to experience briefly a piece of God's beautiful heart for the nations.

One of the most exciting things about this week was that our team had some great time to get to know each other. The Lord truly blessed our time together. We shared our stories and why we felt called to South Africa. In hearing from each person I was moved at how creative our God is. Everyone's story was different, yet we have all been called to serve as a team next year. Each team member has unique gifts and I am so excited to see how they will be used.

To the right is a picture of the team on our last night in Copper. Running right to left is Rylan, Dan, Ali, Kendra, Stacey, Me, James, and Ryan. 

There were a lot of meetings and a lot of details for the trip were discussed. I was hoping to work through a lot of questions I had about the STINT this week, instead I found peace in being flexible. I am definitely a details person as well as someone who loves to start up new things. I am learning pretty fast that these two desires clash.  I have mentioned that we are the first STINT team to move to South Africa in our region. So this is new and exciting, but it also requires me to be really flexible. Details for the trip are clearing up, but we have all agreed as a team to remain open and adaptable with the months to come.

One last thing about this week. Some exciting news for us, we might have another teammate by the end of this week. This person is considering joining our team, making it a total of 9 people to go. This is really exciting for us, and we hope it works out. Please be praying for peace in the decision making process.

I was spending some time with the Big Guy the other day and went through Psalm 73. It was really encouraging so I thought I would share. I am so thankful that we serve a God who provides for all of our needs! Thanks for reading. 

"When my heart was grieved

and my spirit embittered,

I was senseless and ignorant;

I was a brute beast before you.

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.

Whom have I in heaven but you?

and earth has nothing I desire besides you. 

My flesh and my heart may fail,

but God is the strength of my heart

and my portion forever. 

Those who are far from you will perish;

you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. 

But as for me, it is good to be near God. 

I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge;

I will tell of all your deeds."

Psalm 73:21-28 

When I was feeling a little discouraged God provided encouragement for me through his word. I am so thankful for a God who holds me by my right hand and leads me into His glory. I am so thankful that He reminds me that He is my portion forever. 

I wanted to post some specific things people can be praying for as our team is preparing to go to South Africa. So here are some things that come to mind.

• The students and faculty on the University of Pretoria campus. 
• Prayer for willing and open hearts among the students and families our team will come in contact with while on STINT in South Africa.
• Prayer for wisdom for our team, to help meet the needs of the people we desire to live life with. 
• Prayer for the 8 of us going in Jan. Each of us is responsible for raising all of our funds by that time in order to go. As a team we need prayer that God will prepare each of us to go for the year. 
  
• I specifically need prayer for a heart that is at peace with leaving the life God has built for me here in Colorado. I am deeply saddened that I have to leave a community I have grown so attached to.  I want peace in him.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR PRAYERS AND SUPPORT!!! IT MEANS SOOO MUCH!

Oh yeah, I'm sorry about the spelling errors in the blog. Thought I should let you know that when I sit down to write some stuff down, it is my pure and raw thoughts kind of spit up. I'm not doing my best about editing what goes down, so I apologize for any errors. If you have questions feel free to ask. Thanks for understanding. 

Some Video Links...

I wanted to post some videos about my experiences in South Africa in my two visits over the last year. Feel free to take a look. The first video is a picture slideshow of Summer Project in South Korea and South Africa in 2007. The second video was made by one of our staff member from the Vision Trip the team when on last December. 

Summer Project 2007 Video

I'm Learning...

In the past week or so I've had the opportunity to see and learn that this life is not about some end result. I feel like in the experiences I've had recently I am truly starting to lean that this life is about the process. Raising support can be very difficult, and I am starting to imagine how excited I am going to be the day God provides 100% of my funding to move to South Africa on STINT. I find myself thinking about it a lot actually. The other day I was praying with a friend and one of our STINT Team leaders, and I realized that I was focusing too much on the end result. She has said it several times before, but I think for the first time it really sank in that "it is about the process, not the result". I am starting to see what it looks like to walk through it with the Lord, instead of asking for a way out of it. 

I confess that I am someone who has struggled and continues to struggle with wanting to perform and meet some standard. It would be a shame for me to fall into some standard during this amazing but challenging process of raising support. The standards I've come to set for myself in the past have always limited the way I see God moving in my life and in the lives of those around me. My interactions this week have helped me see that there is so much to gain in the process of pursuing the Lord in this. It is not about making it to 100%, and its not about meeting some goal I came up with. This process is about finding God in every conversation, support appointment, and every new relationship built. I am learning that this life is about finding God in every step made during our days. 

It's been a privilege finding the Lord in every meeting. I have been so blessed to meet with people and have them share their hearts with me. In seeing and experiencing their passion to see God glorified, I've come to realize that I would never want to move to South Africa without taking all of these people with me. I am so thankful that God has used this process of raising support to teach me to look for him in all that I am doing, and that it is okay to depend on others to help me pursue His perfect will. 

Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to sit with me. I have learned so much in those times.