Week Five: All for One

So my regular blog has transitioned into a video blog.... Enjoy!

Intro

Weekly Overview

Weeks 1 & 2

Weeks 3&4

Week One: Setting the Pace

So I have realized something: keeping up with publishing a blog is a lot like balancing my checkbook - the longer I go without doing it, the more daunting the task is. But, nevertheless, here I am trying to cram a week's worth of blogging into one post. So please forgive me for the length of this post! My plan is to post a picture, and then a brief description of what that day entailed! Here we go!

Day 7: Even though it was cloudy, we all thought a beach day was in order. The number of free days were quickly dwindling down, so we knew we had to make it count! It is such an amazing (and distracting) experience living 3 blocks away from the beach. Today was also my first discipleship meeting with my staff member, Nicole. These are one-on-one times to really get insight on things we're interested in and to have a personalized time for growth.

Day 8: 

Today we had our first ACTION group meeting. Our ACTION group consists of our roommates and our discipler or staff person. It's essentially just like a small group bible study. It's amazing to see how much God had a hand in picking roommates for this trip. My roommates and I have so much in common that the conversation is never ceasing. 

Day 9: Today was the HOTTEST day so far on project. The high: 101 degrees. The humidity: 90%. Uff Da. My idea to escape this? Drive to Philly to pick up another student from the airport! AC in the car = heavenly. Once we got home, the craziness ensued. A short time after dinner, we all began to hear rolls of thunder off to the west. So, we decided it would be fun to head to the beach to watch the storm come in! (Looking back on it, probably not the brightest decision we've ever made, but it is a night I will never forget.) In a matter of 45 minutes, the lightning and thunder went from being far off in the west to completely surrounding us. When we realized we weren't that far off from the bolts of lightning, we decided it was time to head home. Just as we got to the boardwalk, the downpour began. All of us were drenched in a matter of 30 seconds. At that point, we were all thinking "Eh, what the heck" and decided to just play around in the rain. Walking home, the streets were absolutely flooded - to the point where boys were attempting to float down the road on boogie boards. What a night.

Day 10: Today was my last free day. Hard to believe. Like most days, it started out with a run on the beach and some yoga (another benefit of living on the coast!). I was able to skype with a few close friends which was amazing! And, in case you were wondering, the boy pictured above is the cutest  boy on project, Trey! Alison, Janae, and I got the lovely chance to babysit him while his parents (Lori and Nate - a staff couple) got to enjoy a date night. What a stud! ;)

Day 11: Incredibly lame picture - I know. But exciting news, this is my place of employment! Yay! I am happy to say that I am working at the Henna Shop on the Boardwalk. It is basically a "cutesy" little store for preteen girls - so we sell jewelry, accessories, hairwraps, and of course Henna! It will definitely be an interesting experience! More to come about this...

Day 12: Sundays are always great. We start the day off with Sunday School and Church - and then move on to an IMPACT group lunch. This Sunday was extra special though. Our partner church here (Ocean City Baptist Church) has a program for the summer called "Adopt a Crusader". Basically, families in the church choose to "adopt" some students from project. Their minimum commitment is to pray for their students - but extra benefits include free dinners and family trips. I am proud to say that myself, along with three other California kids, got adopted by the Pastor! He is very enthusiastic about his students, so it will be exciting to see what my family here will provide for us! After the adoption dinner, a group of us ended up playing Frisbee on the beach - so much fun!

Well, that's all for now! Next blog post I am hoping to highlight some of my favorite talks from the speakers so far!

"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore, I will boast in my weaknesses so that Christ's power may rest on me. 

2 Corinthians 12:9

It's Photo Time!!!

Day 0: The ridiculous amount of stuff that I packed!!

Day 1: Sunset from the walk home from the church. It feels so nice not to have to rely on a car!

Day 2: Fireworks on the Boardwalk for the Amusement Park's  anniversary. Such a fun night!

Day 3: Part of my IMPACT group (our girl's bible study plus a boy's bible study) on our way to dinner!

Day 4: Our "Date for Eight" group! Our choice for dinner: leftovers!!

Day 5: First day on the beach! Yay! 

Day 6: Us looking like fools trying to spell out "OCSP" with our shadows.

We finally made it!!!!!

Well after a long day of travel, we finally made it to Ocean City, NJ last night. Sorry for the delay on the blog post - but along with several other items - I misplaced my computer charger.


So the day started early at 4:30am CA time. Our flight to Salt Lake City left Sacramento at 6:20 - how I did this with no coffee is beyond me. It was great to get to the airport and see my friends from Chico - but goodbyes were terrible too. Luckily I had a week to spend at home to see my family  - I had a great day in San Francisco with my mom, a beautiful hike with my dad in Livermore, a hilarious day in Santa Cruz with my friend Allison, and an amazing family BBQ! But back to the flight. We had a speedy connection in Salt Lake and then we were finally on our way to Philly! Once we got off the plane, us California kids just about choked on the humidity and were shocked that it was 95 degrees outside - because wanting to be comfortable, we all traveled in sweats!


Once there, God gave us His first assignment for the summer: Working on our patience. Our plane got in around 4pm and got picked up by the staff around 8pm. One might ask what we did for those four hours. Well, Janae and I searched for food - which ended up being a complete failure because everything was past the security checkpoint; thank goodness for free wifi since that took up a good majority of the wait; and we finally met up with fellow OC'ers waiting for the shuttle!


The first night was full of jet lag, meeting roommates, and organizing the rooms. My roommates are great - from all over the place! Alyssa goes to Illinois State, Lauren is from Miami University in Ohio, and Rachel goes to the U of Minnesota! However, there was one glitch in our room - no working lights... - but luckily, that was quickly resolved!


Fast forward to today - the second day. It was mainly the cleaning day, so our impact group (my roommates and another boy's room) were in charge of cleaning the "Large Intestine". Now, I understand that that sounds disgusting, but trust me, there's a reason for it's name. It's the part of the basement where anything and everything get dumps. For example, we found beach toys, drywall, a toilet, games, decorations, the list goes on and on. Fortunately after a day of work, we were able to relax and go to the Boardwalk - located 3 blocks away from the house! It was the main amusement park's "birthday" - so rides were only $1 each and best of all, there were fireworks!!! It was so great to be able to walk around and make connections with the people I am going to be spending the rest of my summer with!


I know this is going to sound cheesy, but it's true: I feel like I have already been here for a month. I know a majority of everyone's names, and have really made connections with some amazing people. I for some reason keep thinking about the last day of project that is so far away, but realizing how sad I will be, even though I've known these people for 48 hours. It's amazing how close you can get to 101 other college students in 2 days when you see them every waking second!!


That's it for now - hope you enjoyed it!!


PS, pictures will be coming soon!!!!

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

Colossians 3:12-17

Back in the Bay

Hello everyone! 


So after a crazy week of finals and wrapping up my time in Chico, I am finally back home in Pleasanton for a week before I leave for Ocean City! It feels great to say that I am now a Junior in college; but it is bittersweet knowing that I am halfway through my time in Chico. But regardless, I need to focus on the present, and that is the fact that by this time next week, I will be sitting in the Philadelphia Airport waiting to be shuttled to Ocean City. 


Let me tell you, packing has been a humbling experience. I know we all like to think that we have everything in order and that every little detail is planned - but as my roommate Amber can testify - that was not the case this week. I tried to be as organized as possible - but I still found myself yesterday making to do lists and packing at the last minute. I swear, I must have a dozen different lists going! It is amazing to recognize how much stuff I use on a daily basis and knowing that I have to pack all of that for a time span of ten weeks. 


Since last night was essentially my last night in Chico for a while, a celebration was in order. My friend Nate had a great group of people over to his house to enjoy a bonfire, S'mores, card games, and an unforeseen thundershower! It was great to see my friends Kyle, Denny, and Michelle who are all O.C. veterans. I feel so blessed to have their insight! They had no problem reminiscing and sharing with me things that are a "must do" while I am there. I will definitely be posting about them as I check them off of my list!


I'm pretty sure I have posted it before, but I will go ahead and put my address for the Summer on here again! I am planning on letters and skype being my main form of communication with everyone! 

Katelyn Phillips

1301 Central Ave

Ocean City, NJ 08226

If you would like my skype username, go ahead an shoot me an email at katelyncaroline91@gmail.com and I'll give it to you that way!

I can't wait to update the blog from the airport in one week!!

And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for Him who died for them and was raised again.

2 Corinthians 5:15

Great news!

Hello everyone! I have some amazing news to share with you all: I am fully supported for this summer! It has been amazing to see the Lord continually provide for this adventure. To date, I have raised $3205! This means that I have covered the cost of the project itself ($3150) - and now I'm just working on paying off my plane ticket there! I am also happy to report that, thanks to Rick Brown's mom, Rick, Janae, and I have our flights all booked!! We're leaving May 31st early early in the morning from Sacramento - and after a layover in Utah, we will arrive in Philadelphia in the evening! 

It's amazing to think that in a little more than two weeks, I will be on the East Coast!! I can't wait to meet my future roommates and everyone who I know will have a huge impact on my life in the next 3 months. 


For people who know me well, they know that I love packing. For example, when I went to Minnesota this past fall for Thanksgiving, I was packing a good three weeks in advance. However, due to the craziness of finals and wrapping up this semester - I have yet to even start thinking about packing!! I have never packed for a two and a half month trip, so I am definitely going in blind! Hopefully once my finals are done on Thursday, I will be able to - first of all have a bonfire and discard all of my notes - and also start the packing list; prayers are appreciated for this!! 

This is a verse that I know I will be turning to in wake of three finals next week - so encouraging!

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Hebrews 12:1-3

More about Summer Project!!

Hello All!

I thought I would take this time to let you know how well everything is going! I has been exactly three weeks since I sent out a bulk of my letters, and so far, (drum roll please...) I have received $2605 in financial support!! That's well over half of what I'll need to make this trip a reality! Something I have mentioned in my thank-you letters is how amazing it has been to see the Lord so easily break down the barriers I built up in my head about this adventure. By "barriers", I mean the fact that I convinced myself that this trip wouldn't become a reality because my family and friends wouldn't understand why I'm doing this - let alone want to support me! But the Lord has His hand in this, and showed me His undeniable grace through others. I can't tell you how amazing it feels to have everyones support! Anyways, I am very happy to share this information with you :)

Now, I'd like to share with everyone a little more about what pulled me to go on this project, and what the process was like applying to it! As I mentioned in the first post, at the beginning of this academic year in the fall, I did not want to go on a Summer Project. I was completely apprehensive about giving up my entire summer, leaving my job that I love so much in Chico, and being away from my family for that long. Another thing, that I didn't want to admit for a while, was the fact that I didn't want to get stuck in the "track" that other CRU students take: Go on a state-side project, then go international, then apply to Intern. But now, looking back on it, the Lord will have His way with me. There is no where I can run from Him. This week at CRU, Josh Payne (one of the Staff), went through the first chapter of Jonah with us at the weekly meeting. In these verses, Jonah flees from the Lord when He calls him to a foreign land. He literally flees in the opposite direction of where he is called. But, something that can be learned from this, is that you can't run from God. He is everywhere, and every move we make is part of His will. Anyways, now that I'm done with that tangent, back to how I applied. So after talking to a few people in CRU who I look up to and who I admire, I decided to apply and just see what happened. I could not believe the application - it was seven pages long! Most of my college applications weren't that long! I felt like it asked me about everything - but it was amazing to see the Lord give me a sense of peace while completing it. From then until now, a lot has wavered. I have definitely wondered if Ocean City is where I'm meant to be this summer, if I would be able to raise the funds, and most importantly (and scary), if my family and friends would support me. Like I said earlier, the Lord has showed me how silly I was to have doubts about all of these; and now I realize that if I'm meant to be there this summer, God will make it possible!! Next time, I am looking forward to explaining a bit more about what will be going on this summer - hopefully more in depth than what I was able to convey in my letter!

Here's a picture from this week at CRU! April is our "Boys vs. Girls" month - in order to keep the momentum going strong as we near the stagnant time of the year! This week we had to dress up as a celebrity... Take a look at my roommates and I :)

Me (as Sarah Palin), Amber  (as Katy Perry), Kayla (as Russel from "UP"), Janae (as Justin Bieber)

The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you. "I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you...and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you."

Some logistical things support wise...

If you feel uncomfortable sending a check directly to Campus Crusade for Christ, please know that you can address your gift to my parents (Steven or Caroline Phillips) and we'll handle it from there!! If you would like their address - or if you have any other questions - please feel free to email me at katelyncaroline91@gmail.com.


It's been so great to hear from a few of you so far :) It's amazing to see how trust in the Lord is ultimately the most fulfilling aspect of Faith. I feel so blessed that Ocean City is looking more like a reality every day - and that fellow students that I will be going with are having a similar experience!

"I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted" Job 42:1-2

Letters are sent!!

Finally! The letters are off!! I have letters going to six different states and even a different country!! So dear United States Postal Service: please be nice to me and get them there safely! I am so happy to be done with this part of the adventure, but I know that there is still so much more to come! I know that this is an extremely short post - but that's just some exciting news I thought I would share :)

I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which

God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:14

A little bit (or a lot) about me...

Hello all! So I thought that I would take this time to share with you a little bit about what has been going on since I got to Chico...mainly what has lead me to where I am today: my testimony.


So to start things off, I was raised in the Catholic Church - baptized, confirmed, the whole bit. So I always knew about and believed in God, but I never pursued having a relationship with Him. It wasn't until my freshman year at Chico that I started to discover that aspect of my faith. The Sunday before classes started, my roommate in the dorms, Kayla, invited me to go to Church with her. First of all, I had only known this girl for about two and a half days and she knew very minimal information about my spiritual background  - so I can't imagine what a huge step of faith she had to take just to ask me! But anyways, boy am I glad she did! Together we went to Bidwell Presbyterian - an adorable brick church located right next to campus that held a college service in the evening. It was there that I met another good friend of mine, Colin. His older sister is an intern for Campus Crusade for Christ (CRU), and he invited me to the meeting on that Wednesday. Me, being a brand new freshman in college, thought "Oh! How nice! That will be a great way to meet new friends!" Looking back, I honestly don't even know if I recognized the fact that it was an religious organization. But after I went that first time and encountered the absolutely amazing community I found there - I knew there was something different about that place. Everyone was so welcoming - everyone wanted to know my name, wanted to know what I was all about. A few weeks into the semester, CRU holds its annual Fall Retreat in Lassen National Park. Now, if you would have told me a few months prior that in September I would be spending $100 to spend a weekend with complete strangers at a Christian Retreat - to be honest, I probably would have laughed at you. That is what I like to call and "God Thing"; something I never thought I would do - but God totally tuned my heart to His will. It was there that I really started what you would call my walk with God. I finally purchased a Bible and made a point to read it on a regular basis and find fellowship with others. Now, I'm not saying that after that weekend I was on the right track. I definitely fell back into the ways of "freshman dorm life" without a doubt. But unlike before, I realized that I didn't find that lifestyle fulfilling; I didn't enjoy staying out until all hours of the night doing nothing proactive, I didn't like having short, meaningless relationships with people. Simultaneously, I actively plugged myself into a freshman girls bible study put on through CRU. There I met my future roommates and some of the strongest most amazing women I know. Through being plugged in so much and having that community and fellowship - I slowly began to draw myself out of my dorm lifestyle. I found myself  - instead of going out on Friday nights - getting up early on Saturday to go on hikes in Bidwell Park with CRU people. Since last year, God has grown me a lot and shown me what I'm supposed to do. More about this next time...

I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord. Pslam 40:1-3

This was the verse that I first discovered at Fall Retreat 2009 - so perfect :)

I can't believe it... I'm a "blogger"

Well, I for one never thought that this day would come. I never thought I would have the patience or drive to keep a blog. But here I am! I created the blog mainly in order to have an efficient, simplified way to keep in touch with friends and family during this exciting time of my life. Just to get you up to speed....(and to explain what sparked this entry)... Quite simply - I will be going to Ocean City, New Jersey this Summer. Now, when I said quite simply, I really meant it. The timeline goes as follows:

• all of October 2010: Adamant about applying to Summer Project - figured it wasn't for me and that it wasn't the right timing
• November 1, 2010: Realized that God completely changed my heart - and started my Ocean City Summer Project application (7 pages long, mind you)
• November 13, 2010: Hit the "submit" button on the application - and so began the waiting game
• December 28, 2010 - January 1, 2011: San Diego Winter Conference! This is Campus Crusade for Christ's Conference for the Southwest Region. I got baptized in the Pacific Ocean on New Year's Eve here :) Pretty amazing. Being around Crusade College students, like myself, got me even more excited about the possibility of going on Project!
• January 25, 2011: Received an email from one of the directors on project, Kim, who informed me that I had been accepted to go on Project this Summer along with over one hundred other college students.
• January 28, 2011: Replied back to Kim letting her know that I accepted the invitation! In the days leading up this, I don't think I have ever prayed so much!

In the past month, not too much has happened. I have been focusing on staying on top of paperwork - and most importantly, initiating support raising! Speaking of support, today I am writing the first of my support letters. I am going to reference my blog in the letters I send out so that those who are interested can follow me through this process!

A few other things about this blog - 

I am hoping to update this blog about once a week. Now that there's less than 3 months before I leave, there is bound to be a lot more activity!

I will end every entry with a Bible verse. One that has either helped me or given me insight for something - or one that I a hoping will help me get through the next week :)

Please know that every time I compose an entry, I am not distracted. I swear I'm not sitting in front of the television or in class writing these. I will more likely than not be in Bidwell Perk - the coffee shop I work in :)

Coming up next.... 

In my next entry, I am hoping to share with everyone my testimony - basically dictating how I got where I am today in my faith. I think that it is a very personal thing to be typing out and sharing on the internet - so it might be a little weird. But at the same time, knowing my testimony is very important in understanding what drove me to want to go on Project this summer!

The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7