Learning to Square Dance

            As much as I love Autumn, I also have a very special place in my heart for Summer. And my love of vitamin D and flip flop tans is not always easily relinquished to the deliciousness of apple cider and pumpkin pie. Usually though, the transition is made acceptable by the fact that it generally takes up to a month to slowly move from 80 degree days to long jeans and sweaters.  Not in Pennsylvania though. In Pennsylvania, you're sitting out by the pool enjoying sweet tea, when some guy dressed up as a jack-o-lantern comes along and smacks you across the face and by the time you come to the leaves are red and the apples are jumping off the trees and pneumonia is quickly creeping in. All this is to say that aside from the particularly chilly evenings this past week, living here has been swell. I'm within a 7 mile radius of at least 3 incredible farms which i pay a visit to every week at the downtown farmers market. And I've made enough apple butter to last me at least through the next 6 months. Which, considering my love for all things apple, is really saying something. 

           

             The past few weeks have been incredibly rewarding both on and off campus. I've begun regularly meeting with 4 freshman girls and may be adding another this week. Every other week I also meet with 5 junior girls who are student leaders in the Navs. Getting to know the girls has been simultaneously awesome and uniquely challenging. Thus far I have been very blessed to get to meet with girls who I essentially clicked with instantaneously. However, I always live in a little bit of fear that I'm going to either forget something crucial that they've told me, or mix it up with something someone else said. So far so good though, in that area. I've been praying that somehow something I stumble over in our times together will be useful to them in some way. I have an urgent desire to know them and to help them take leaps in their faith, without being incredibly pushy. Some might call this patience. I call it trying to look normal while constantly holding my hand over my mouth to keep from spilling a gut-load of "advice-speak" all over them. Thus far, no one has mistaken me for an escapee from a psych-ward. Mostly, I've just been practicing building relationships. 

          

            And now comes the required paragraph explaining my blog title. This past Saturday, the PSU navs held one of their most entertaining and most memorable fall events. It also takes the cake for the "most like a hoe down" event that I have ever attended. Essentially, what we had was a fall festival, entirely contained in a beautifully finished old tobacco barn on a gorgeous piece of farm land in the middle of No Where, Pennsylvania. This event was complete with carnival games, a chili cook-off, hay bale toss, and finished with two hours of square dancing. Yes, real square dancing, with a caller and everything. I've never had so much fun standing geometrically in my life. Here's a picture of myself and some of the other PSU student attendees, in case my description of the whole thing wasn't enough proof that it actually happened: 

Clearly, themed attire was a major part of the night (as it should be pretty much always). We estimate that there were about 200 in attendance, and from the initial polls, every one of 'em seemed to enjoy themselves. Success. 

          

            Coming up? More themed parties and events, (I believe there's a bilbo baggins birthday bash in the works...) our annual Fall retreat, and a whole slew of college student shenanigans. Shout outs to all those who came to visit in the past few weeks. Seeing you has been incredibly refreshing for me on a number of levels. And for those of you who haven't made your way up here yet... you are missing out on some seriously good apple butter.  

     

 God bless ya'll real good!

Funding, Moving, and Meeting the Team

"Impossible." From the Latin "impossibilis." Meaning: "unable to be done, performed." As in: an impossible task. As in... fund-raising. Or so I thought. There should be another word in the dictionary right after this one. Something that means "impossible... unless God is your boss...in which case, consider it totally do-able and really not an issue." I'm not sure there's any vocabulary that exists to explain this phenomenon, but since Philippians 4:13 covers the issue, maybe Webster should just plug that reference in there. In any case, I have discovered that getting $25,000 dollars in 7 weeks or less is actually not impossible. Or at least, God made it happen for me. In all honesty, I had very little to do with it. Although I probably ate more lunch this summer than I have since I was 6, on account of having noon-time funding meetings with people. For those who are wondering, Panera and Salsa's are tied for most popular lunch spots in St. Marys. All this is to say that God seriously provided in some wicked cool ways in the last few months, and I hit my 75% funding requirement 3 hours before I was scheduled to move to PA. I always have been a procrastinator. But just watching the funds pour in was an incredible experience. And I wouldn't trade the last minute success for an easier experience even if I had the choice.  

In other news, living in PA has thus far been suh-weeeet. I've been blessed with a free living space that came in the form of a basement room/bathroom/kitchen that is 2 miles from campus and perfect for entertaining college students. It is spacious, cool, and recently full of as much stuff as I could carry with me from MD. There's something uniquely satisfying about knowing that all the things I need to live fit entirely in my car. Hello easy mobility. Although (downside) I absolutely could not cram my guitar in there. Major disappointment. ATTN anyone visiting this semester: got room in your trunk for a 6-string? Also, if you're reading this blog and you're not planning on visiting me... what the heck? I live across the street from a park, 5 miles from a mountain top overlook, 45 minutes from Amish country, and in a town that is affectionately known as "Happy Valley." Can life get better? I submit that it cannot. (No, I still have no idea why they call it that. Don't ask).

Lastly, by this point I've met and competed with (Connect-4 tournament) the rest of my staff team on multiple occasions. They are, like most other things in and around this town, wonderful, entertaining, and completely covered in blue (kidding, that last one only applies to the campus). I think getting to know them and depend on them this semester is going to be one of the best parts of the whole gig. Not to mention- they are great auction partners. Very practiced in their hand raise techniques. Also- they have some of the most adorable children I've ever seen. Never in my life have I wanted to babysit so badly.  

            If you want more updates on how you can be praying, or how you can financially support my ministry, shoot me an email. I'd be glad to have you on my team.  Also- if you do plan on coming to visit, I have an available couch, and very few weekends free. Book early!

Breathe In. Pray. Breathe Out. Repeat.

      As it turns out, fundraising is not the easiest thing I have ever done. In fact it is well past most of the tough things I have experienced that at the time seemed incredibly daunting. Its difficult not to scoff at my 2008-self for thinking that being a college freshman on a giant campus was terrifying. HA. False, self. That was nothing. Try accumulating an entire year's salary in 7 weeks or less. It sounds like a sick game show that would come on late at night when networks air things too scary for little kids.  Watch out little Timmy, she's making the cold calls! Say it isn't so!
 

      Alright. Perhaps I'm being a bit dramatic. But this is pretty blood curdling stuff. I would be lying though if I didn't say that God has already been very faithful to me, just in these beginning weeks. He has shown up in my funding (I'm sitting pretty at 12% funded. Only 58% more till I can move to PA!). He has also seen fit to provide me a place to live in the form of FREE housing with an awesome family in State College. Said family offered me a basement with a bed and free reign of their stove a few nights a week. I'll take it! They have a garden, a dog, and an awesome kid. Truly, I could not have picked a better spot if I had to.

           I'm still adjusting to the idea that I will be living somewhere other than Maryland (much less a place where I will have to buy real snow clothing... where do you even get that stuff?). But, the stellar housing, combined with the fact that I recently got to meet and hang out with my new EDGE teammate (who is fantastic) have gotten me pretty pumped for next year. This is good because it is sometimes nearly impossible for me to see the light at the end of the funding tunnel. I occasionally get swept up in the idea that I'm just going to be walking in dark un-fundedness forever till a panic train comes through and crushes me to death. Fortunately, there are few trains in Southern Maryland, so this will probably never physically happen. But I'm still liable to be crushed by the weight of my own feelings of either A) failure- feeling like I'm not doing this "right" or B) terror- that no one in their right mind would want to support my ministry. 

       Essentially what I have had to re-learn every day for the past 3 weeks (I'm terribly forgetful) is how desperately I need to remember that this is God's plan, not mine. Therefore, He will be supplying me with my funds, not me. Thank goodness. I've recently tripped over the discovery that I couldn't do this for myself if someone was holding a knife to my jugular. Hence my need for the God of the universe to do a little heart softening and find people who are super excited about what I'm doing. It has been really good to have to get on my knees every few hours to ask the Lord to supply me with my daily bread. I've never honestly been in a position before where I've had this little safety net under my plans. Its scary, yes. But also very good at taking me back to God again and again. 

     I leave you with this, a verse that I've written on almost every surrounding surface for the last two weeks:

"Such confidence we have through Christ before God.  Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God."-2 Cor 3:4-5-

God bless,

         Kaitlin

The Return

         Nine days in Colorado will really make a person forget about how humid the East coast can be. I think I preferred the altitude. In any case, I'm back in Maryland now and apparently totally equipped to see God bring in some thousands of dollars right before my eyes. If only I could just stand back and watch Him work His magic. Needless to say, I've got a lot to do in the next seven weeks.

         Step one is to buy a planner,because I  have never been great with keeping  days straight and that skill is evidently somewhat crucial to keeping all the parts of the fundraising process in the right order. Over the weekend I'll be printing off the first of my "Ask" letters, which will go out to people who I'll later be calling to set up face to face appointments. Then I'll start addressing the first of approx. 600 envelopes. That, my friends, is a flip ton of adhesive. I'm thinking about finding a temp agency to hire me some help. Any volunteers??

           In all seriousness, Colorado was incredible. Not that I ever had any doubt that it would be. I met 30 or so of my bosses/co-workers and got to know them particularly well through a series of events which included hiking, mini-golfing, nerf gun wars, and a few particularly informative seminars. I brushed up on several accents from US states far and near. And I was reminded just how awesome God is. While reading through a series of verses about why God can and should be trusted with our lives, I stumbled upon this gem: "Our God is in heaven, and does whatever He pleases." -Psalm 115:3- Yeah, that's right. The Lord does what He wants. Later on, He makes His own thoughts on the subject pretty flippin' clear: "I am He alone, and no one can take anything from My hand. I act, and who can reverse it?" -Isaiah 43:13-

           If EDGE is the Lords will for my life (I'm pretty confident about that at this point) then why should I worry about where the funds will come from? Does He not have power over all things? Will He who did not spare His own son not freely give me all I need to live? It's a pretty open and shut case, folks. I write this not only to share with you what He blatantly reminded me, but also because I know at some point in the next 49 days I will totally lose my confidence about all of this, and will at that point need some clear reminders. In the meantime, let the fundraising begin!