Navigators at the 116 Clique Concert

ALL SAVED ALL SERIOUS.

God has brought some new and amazing people to our Navigators group this year, both at Mizzou and CMU (Central Methodist University). Pictured above are Stephanie, Roscoe, Cote, James, and Sean. I'm excited for what the Lord is doing in their lives and the beautiful fellowship that continues to blossom within the group.

How to not cook a yucca

My boyfriend is trying his best to cook a yucca, yet he is unsuccessful in his attempt. I feel kind of bad for him in that regards, as he's taken quite a bit of time peeling off the thick skin, chopping it up, boiling it, adding a touch of salt, etc.

Who am I kidding right now? All Dan had to do for real was boil the sucker and he messed up. Epic fail, yucca style.

This yucca story loosely parallels 1 Peter (a stretch, but stay with me), which is what Dan and I are studying together. 1 Peter 1: 13-16 gives us a series of commands, which include:

1. Setting your hope on the grace of Jesus Christ

2. Not conforming to evil desires

3. Being holy

Seriously, we have a set of instructions that shouldn't be that hard to do. Similarly, Dan had a simple set of cooking directions that should not have been that difficult. However, add our sinful nature and we run into difficulties. Suddenly, "Be holy" becomes quite the hurdle because of our fleshly desires. We want to be holy, but we also want to give in to our struggles, or compromise just a little bit. Or, we'll even try making a step by step approach to how we can "be holy," which includes a long list of dos and don'ts that we can't possibly adhere to. We put a yoke on ourselves that the Lord never intended for us to have!

Dan thought he was following the directions, and technically he was "on the right path" but he ended up overcooking the yucca. He tried adding butter, pepper, and garlic for flavor, but to no avail. It was mushy and he wasn't even able to fry it like he intended. Sometimes I think that I "overcook" or try too hard being obedient to the Lord. I'm too hard on myself and put all sorts of red tape on my relationship with God that shouldn't have to be there. I should strive to follow the recipe in its simplicity. 1 Peter 1: 14, "As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance." We don't need to add any extra ingredients. Keep it simply. The Lord says, "Be holy for I am holy."

Birthday Cake...err, Birthday Concert

So, my desire for my birthday was to have it be completely low key. I definitely wanted my focus to be on God and His sovereignty. However, God in all his sovereignty totally blessed me with the best birthday ever.

All day long I was getting phone calls and texts from family and friends. It was a delight getting to catch up with some, and I got a good laugh from some of my voicemail messages of people singing, "Happy Birrrrthhhday to you!" Korryn bought me breakfast which kick-started a great time of fundraising and ministry work. Afterwards, I met with some friends to drive down to KC for the 116 Clique Unashamed tour. I was literally bouncing up and down in my seat in anticipation. Ever since my friend Megan called me to tell me she got me a ticket for my birthday and that they would be rapping in KC on the day of my birthday...you best believe I was stoked.

To me, God has used Christian rap to really show me how God is the Ultimate Redeemer. He scoops us up in His hands, despite the fact that each of us are a mess, and He transforms us. The struggle with sin is there in the songs, but the highlight isn't the sin, but the fact that Christ saved us from that sin. He took us and clothed us in His righteousness, not because we were deserving by any means, but because He wanted to save us. I feel like I could print out the lyrics to so many songs by the 116 Clique rappers and have a Bible study because it goes so deep into the Word of God.

My friend Angela made us t-shirts that said, "I rove Jesus," with a Hello Kitty decal as the letter "o." For those of you unfamiliar with the fact that I hardcore embrace Asian stereotypes, we were making fun of Asian accents. Angela is Korean. We go to the same church and I have had somebody get us mixed up before. It was great. The shirts were a brilliant idea and a hilarious way to get the concert party started.

I was blessed by the fact that fellow Navigators came to the concert. James Biswell, who I feel like is my partner in "crime" at times (with all the skits and presentations we have done together), ended up driving a car full of Navers. I got to meet one of the new CMU Nav gentlemen, Rosco, one of our freshman ladies named Stephanie accompanied us, and my new friend Cote (who was possibly as excited as I was about the concert) drove out with us. My friends Scott and Angela from church went, as of course did my besties Lis and Megan. One of Megan's Christian fraternity brothers Derrik also came and his company was delightful. My friend Shelbi also drove up from Peculiar. We have been friends since middle school and used to play flute together in band back in the day.

The concert was amazing. They rapped songs that Megan and I used to listen to over and over when we were struggling with certain issues, songs that inspired us to keep running after the Lord and to flee from temptation. They reminded the crowd that it wasn't about the hype, but about giving glory to our Creator. We were all screaming, singing along to the lyrics, and dancing for the Lord and I couldn't help but think, "I will become even more UNDIGNIFIED than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes." (2 Samuel 6:22) The concert blessed and encouraged me, and I pray that it blessed and encouraged the hundreds of people who were also in attendance. I pray that the Believers walked away desiring more of God and to live their lives for His glory!

Afterwards, at about 1am, we all went to Dennys to eat dinner. We shared our testimonies, which was amazing seeing how God has truly transformed each of us, and enjoyed a time of fellowship. I loved getting to know everybody better and it was amazing how God could knit a bunch of rag-a-muffin hearts together and bless our time so richly. Our group was an eclectic mix of people- diverse in color, interests, style of clothing, etc. However, each of us had one thing in common: Jesus. Looking around the table I realized that our identities were truly not in our skin color, what music we liked to listen to, whether we grew up in a Christian home, whatever; but it was in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I am still not over the amazingness that is God, and how he uses people to inspire, encourage, and show me love.

I rolled into my apartment at about 3am. My boyfriend had sent me flowers for my birthday (which I didn't get a chance to see because I was gone all day). He sent a funny poem and a verse with them: Psalm 9:10, "Those who know your name trust in You, for You, LORD, have never forsaken those that seek You." It really was a sweet ending to a sweet day.

Although it was my birthday, it really was the Lord's day first and foremost, and I just revel in the fact that He loves me so much.

Excitement

I'm in eager anticipation.

For God's provision, for blossoming friendships, for exciting adventures! Tomorrow, I'm going to KC for the Lecrae concert with some great people. Next week, I fly out to Maryland to see my boyfriend.

Adventure is out there!

Wait, what? Navs is having a Dance Party?

www.midmissourinavs.com/mizzou/mizzouviewer.php?file=96

There is a time to dance, and Mizzou Navigators shall do just that on October 30th. I'm excited to check out everybody's dance moves, and even more excited to check out people's lack of dance moves. Honestly, I can't dance, but I do anyway because it's fun. Seeing people dance who can't dance is more fun than clouds made of cotton candy.

The above video link was edited by Clayton Kreisel, who is awesome. Korryn and I filmed the video at the local Goodwill. Oh yes, we are excited about a dance party.

Power of Testimony

Campus ministry with the Navigators continues to teach me so much about God, people, and myself. It's a challenging endeavor, and I'm thankful to be in an environment where I'm growing exponentially and coming into contact with beautiful individuals who come from various backgrounds. I'm learning that there is power in my testimony, and the transforming power of Christ is evident when it's shared.

The Lord continues to remind me of what He's brought me through, and it's such a beautiful thing to be able to look past some of the darkest times of my life and realize that God has gotten glory through it all. Back in 2007 I could barely see past the fact that I was in and out of psychiatric centers or the fact that I had to take seven medications a day to maintain my sanity. Being labeled "mentally ill," I equated it with brokenness, and was fixated on the hurt, pain, and confusion.

I just met with my friend Brittany, who has literally gone through the same struggle with mental illness. Meeting with her is so refreshing and Proverbs 27:17 (iron sharpening iron) is always in action as we discuss what God is doing in our lives, how treatment is going, and where we feel the Lord is leading us. I am constantly reminded that those dark hours did indeed happen, but God in His ultimate goodness redeemed me (and Brittany as well). I love talking to Brittany about it because I feel completely free to be open and honest to her about details and don't have to side-step any issues or "dumb down" discussion about doctor's visits, medication, the hospitalizations, or whatever. I know that we can share our experiences with each other without fear of judgment and our conversations point to God and how we can use these things to bring Him glory. We've been talking about how our testimony can speak to others who struggle with mental illnesses or how we can help family/friends of people struggling be more supportive and understanding.

Galatians 5:1, "It is for freedom that Christ has set you free. Stand firm then and do not let yourself be burdened again by the yoke of slavery."

As Christ freed me from bondage and captivity, I feel like my mental illness has been an illustration of God breaking my personal chains of captivity. In a lot of ways, my episodes have forced me to drop every single IDENTITY that was not of God and make my IDENTITY Christ. The manic-depressive episodes broke me and brought me to Christ.

When Brittany and I talk about these things, we are not just sharing a common experience, but we are thinking, dreaming, praying through how the Lord can use us for His glory. I pray that God uses both of our experiences to speak truth into the lives of others, and show those suffering that the Lord is sweeter, bigger, stronger than the pain.

He sets you free.

Psalm 91

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High

will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my

fortress, my God, in whom I trust."

Surely he will save you from the fowler's snare

and from the deadly pestilence.

He will cover you with his feathers,

and under his wings you will find refuge;

his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.

You will not fear the terror of the night,

nor the arrow that flies by day,

nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,

nor the plague that destroys at midday.

A thousand may fall at your side,

ten thousand at your right hand,

but it will not come near you.

You will only observe with your eyes

and see the punishment of the wicked.

If you make the Most High your dwelling-

even the LORD, who is my refuge-

then no harm will befall you,

no disaster will come near your tent.

For he will command his angels concerning you

to guard you in all your ways;

they will lift you up in their hands,

so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

You will treat upon the lion and the cobra;

you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

"Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him;

I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.

He will call upon me, and I will answer him;

I will be with him in troubke,

I will deliver him and honor him.

With long life will I satisfy him

and show him my salvation."