Incomparable.

It is a feeling so deeply set into my heart that, if I tried to rip it out, it would take some of me with it.

It is a love so strangely connected with my subconscious that I don’t know if I could think clearly without it affecting me.

It is a lifestyle so incomparable to any other way of living that, if I tried to live without it, I wouldn’t be able to make one foot go in front of the other.

It is a desire so embedded into my prayers that it drives me to act, live, think, and move without any additional thought.

It is a conviction so strongly felt I can’t help but share it with those around me.

It is my relationship with Jesus Christ, Lord of all heaven and earth, Savior of sinners, Healer of souls, Forgiver of sins, Lover of even the worst of us. And it is His free gift of salvation “that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” Romans 10:9-10

This relationship with Christ is the impetus that drives me to do the thing that I do. It is the force that beckons me to be completely submitted to His loving care. It is standard of life that I choose to live by…simply because I have experienced His grace, through faith, and I know that I am saved from a life of slavery to the sin that I do not want to do.

Oh, how great a God we serve!

 

 

He has done, is doing, and will do great things in this country. My time is slowing (and oh-so-rapidly!) coming to an end. I am so humbled that the Lord would use me here…so blessed that the Lord would reveal Himself to me here…so in awe at the Lord’s heart for the people here.

I’m in love with the city of Glasgow and I don’t care who knows it.*

(*I would like to state that this love comes only and purely through the LOVE I was given by a Savior who embodies love…I love Him because He first loved me and I have love for this city because of His love for me.)

Let Glasgow Flourish…

This is the motto of Glasgow, as you can see in the photo I took above (these are on many of the bus stops, etc. around town). But, as I learned this week, the true and full motto is this: “Let Glasgow flourish through the preaching of Thy Word and the praise of Thy Name.” What a beautiful reminder to the believers here in Glasgow!! (**keep this in mind as you scroll through the rest of the blog. especially when you see the pictures of an art exhibit i found).

The believers here are being nourished and are growing in the Lord. They are truly desiring the Lord to go forth in this city and I can see the Lord working through them. The CU strongly steps forth in evangelism and getting the Lord’s name out and also very strongly encourages each person that is involved to also be involved in their home church as well. The beautiful thing is the way they are a family. I see them serving together and serving each other and I am so encouraged by the amount of churches represented in the CU that come together under one banner to preach ONE Jesus and ONE Gospel every week.

 

My time in Glasgow has come to a stop and I am now starting a new week in a town called Motherwell just about 20 minutes out of Glasgow. I hope to help out with one more Toasty Bar (thats a really odd name for us americans that just means a place where they hand out free grilled cheese sandwiches) and enjoy the fellowship of so many awesome brothers a sisters one last time.

 

This is a banner that the Lord prompted Amy to put up one day to promote a thing called “Alpha Course” that the CU is putting on. It is basically a study of the basics of Christianity that begins with asking people what they think the meaning of life is. We definitely got some “worldly” answers…as well as some guys who thought they were funny…but in the end, it prompted some really awesome conversations about the True Meaning of life…Jesus Christ!

I was blessed to be able to go to a museum in Glasgow called Kelvin Grove (I think). It was beautiful and the organ you can see in this picture was in the main hall. The Lord orchestrated it so brilliantly that I was there when a gentleman did a small concert on it…what an amazing noise it was!!!

Walking into the oldest Cathedral in Scotland, there was a beautiful stand with a rather large bible on it. What a reminder that He exists not in buildings but in our hearts. This building (below) was beautiful but lifeless and the Lord knew I needed that reminder of Who our Great Shepherd is.

This is the front of Toasty Bar. You can see to the left and in the center the white t-shirts we all wear in order to keep a safe and prayerful eye out for each other. This is the “queue” to the right that was always pretty full from 11pm until we run out of toasties.

My favorite lunch so far…it was from a place called MYO: Make Your Own where you can make your own jacket (baked potato), toasty (grilled sando), salad, sandwich, or pizza. Also, FYI: if you want a drip coffee here, you ask for a FILTERED coffee, and apparently…drinking sparkling water is just as weird in Scotland as it is in America. And here I thought I would fit it…

Below are three pictures from an exhibit in the Gallery of Modern Arts. This museum (all museums in Glasgow are free, by the way) is in the center of Glasgow and has exhibits of very influential artists. These three pictures are from one exhibit that was a response to another, more popular, exhibit downstairs. The one downstairs is a depiction of today’s youth and very clearly struck my heart. To see the video camera scan so deliberately across a line of youth and watch their reaction to each other, the camera, and to life around them in general truly struck a chord in my heart. The Lord allowed me a glimpse into the emptiness that life is without Him and my heart broke for these kids of “tomorrow” (as the exhibit was called). Below are some responses done by Glaswegian pre-teens and teenagers.

 

Please keep Glasgow in your prayers. Pray specifically for the youth and Uni students and for salvation from the trapped and lost world they are in.

“The Lord bless you and keep you;…

the LORD make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.” Numbers 6:24-26

I have been blessed to have so many people praying for me while here in Glasgow. Even more blessed to know that the Spirit is showing them specific things to pray for and then actually doing them through me and the team at Strathclyde University. The verse above is one that was shared with me at least five different times this week. What a reminder that it is the Lord doing all this in me.

If I sit here long enough, I will have quite an essay or book written so instead, I will continue as I did from my last post with sharing a prayer with you and asking you to be lifting this work up as He shows you. (*pictures below)

Dear Heavenly Father,

What beautiful work you are doing through these students. God, I look around and into each set of eyes I have been serving with and I see passion. I see conviction, light, joy, peace…I see these young students on fire for the Lord and not willing to step down or be quiet about the Truth that they know to be Real and Awesome. You.

You, LORD, are the reason that each student is out here this week and You, LORD, are not just the impetus but the Life that is propelling them forth to share your ageless gospel of redemption.

My God, I thank you for the ways you have chosen to use me. Thank you, too, for keeping me humble and keeping me out of the spotlight. Even in those times that I have thought that I had anything to do with what happened, you remind me that I “have been crucified in Christ. It is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me.” (Galatians 2:20). You keep me out of the way and, for that, I am thankful.

Lord, I want to lift up those that I spoke with last night at Toasty Bar:

• Chris: I pray that he would come back, as he said he would. I pray, Lord, that the preconceptions of church and God that he has would be blasted out of the way as You show him who You want to be in his life.
• Jenn: I pray, Lord, that as she starts her first year here at Uni that she would be active in finding a church. I pray that You would impress it upon her heart to come to “church search” on Sunday and find a place where she will hear of Your gospel weekly. Lord, You know if she is saved or not. I pray that You would do the work in her to bring fruit out of her life.
• Aidan: Lord, I am so confident that You desire him to know you. Last night, he agreed with a prayer that, if You were real, You would make yourself known to him. I believe 110% that You are trying to get his attention and, if he were to truly seek after Truth, he would find You. Lord, open his eyes to Your Truth and give him ears to hear your calling for him.
• For the many other people who heard truth and the Gospel of Jesus Christ last night. You tell us that we are without excuse and that all of creation proclaims Your Name. They heard Your Name last night, Father, and I pray that as those seeds are looking for fertile soil, God, that it would be found and that You would allow them to sprout and grow.

and, with that, Lord, I want to thank You. I want to praise You. I want to continue to share You with those that I meet here and ask that You would continue to give me strength and wisdom to know when to talk and when to stay quiet.

Father, please be preparing the other speakers and event coordinators this week as well. May Your Spirit compel them to speak only truth—and boldly.

I pray, too, for preparation for what You would have for me in Motherwell starting Saturday.

In Your amazing and awesome name,

AMEN!

My first view of Scotland…but when I saw it, it was at night with an epically gothic yellow glow to it. I knew I had arrived…=)

 

My ride…haha, kidding!!

Setting up for a day of outreach near the Student Union

This long queue is for getting into the student union on Tuesday nights…its called “Twelve Hour Tuesday” when the (4 or more?) bars withIN the student union (I didn’t type that wrong) give drinks for really cheap. The CU sets up their free toastie bar just to the left of this picture from 10pm-2am every week.

I could get used to seeing buildings like this every day…=)

Oh, how beautiful are the feet of His saints!!

Lord, you are so good to me. I praise You for the loving and warm reminder of the things you are doing all around the world. From my friends in South Africa…

And all that the Lord is doing with them there to those here in Edinburgh. From those that the Lord has sent to spread the gospel from here to {Sierra Leone, Liberia, Papua New Guinea} and from {Japan, Korea, Germany, America} to here. Your Gospel is going forth. How truly beautiful are the feet of those who are preaching Good News as it says in Romans 10.

Father, I am reminded of a simple song that the kids in Africa used to sing: “all over the world, the Lord is moving. He met a blind man, and He sent him free (and He set him free). I remember today, the Lord was moving…” And, my sweet and precious Jesus, You moved and are moving here today. I praise You for giving me eyes to see your work going forth all over this beautiful country and beyond!

And, today, of all days, Father, You were here, meeting me. You took me on a beautiful date today—our day together—and let Your Spirit guide me all over. You even blessed me with some familiar faces and places…because You know just what will make me smile.

And, most importantly, Lord, You were here. You were with me, among my thoughts, words, and sights. You were guiding me and showing me just how great a God I serve.

Thank you for this beautiful day here in Edinburgh. I look forward to what You have in store for me in Glasgow. Praise You forever, Jesus. I love you,

Amen.

Refreshing

Arrived in London on Thursday at 11:15am. Tobi picked me up from the airport and all I told her was “just don’t let me fall asleep until after 9pm” and, she didn’t! What a beautifully refreshing time with Tobi. We walked, took the tube, rode on buses…and all the while were able to talk and spend time catching up…being refreshed by the Spirit in each other.

Romans 1:11-12 says: “For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift, so that you may be established
that is, that I may be encouraged together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me.”  As we spent time doing so many amazing  things, i truly felt this mutual encouragement in our time together.

Here are a few pictures of our time:

Lunch!

My new best friend…

He wanted to be my new best friend, too, but I told him that was already a taken position.

Mom, I waited and waited for the Pope, but he apparently had other (more important?!?) things to be doing than waving at a bunch of crazies on the streets. I might have intentionally walked behind some news anchors videoing the ordeal though…didja see me on tv?? =)

All this hullabaloo (thats my new word) for the Pope.

OK!! I now officially understand why the Lord had me in cars with people who generally brake a LOT later than I do. Driving on a two decker bus, there were times when the car in front of us COMPLETELY disappeared and we still hadn’t completely stopped yet. I’m glad that (you know who you are) helped prepare me for that!!

 

My lovely and rather smashing personal London tour guide. I wanted to pay her, she was so good! (Yes, Tobi, I’m tooting your horn for you…).

***this update brought to you by a late train to Edinburgh that has free wi-fi. What else do you do when the DRIVER of the train is running late and you have to wait for him? I offered to take over but for some reason that didn’t fly well with anyone else…?"***

consider it done.

Legs shook.

Tears streamed.

Smile gleamed.

Bridge crossed.

I enjoyed my time of prep here at a Pastors/Leaders/Workers Conference as we went through the book/calling of Nehemiah. Have you ever studied this man’s calling before? I would encourage you to spend a few days/hours/or years with him. The Lord is meeting me at every step while I am here and I am so thankful.

I leave for Scotland in 1 day. I know I have said this before, but it seems surreal. I have waited over 7 years for this day. It is just around the corner.

And I wouldn’t have been able to get there without crossing some bridges along the way.

until next time,

e

Scotland 9/7

I’m almost there!

The Lord has blessed me with a place to stay. He has specifically chosen to not give me particulars on what I am to do while I am there but He has been gracious enough to give me a vague outline.

This in and of itself proves to me even more how much the Lord loves me…He chooses to bless us even when He doesn’t have to.

I know that I have told many of you that I am going to be updating my blog about my trip. Don’t worry, I intend to do that. I probably won’t be writing huge long expositions on my days in Scotland (do you really care about what I eat or how much coffee I drank that day??) but I would love to be able to share a few stories with you and, as the Lord permits, what He is showing me.

Also, as an aside, if you are reading this on Facebook, you can always go to my blog by clicking here to stay caught up…and leave me a comment every once in a while (ok ok…so I know that sounds just so silly, but it’s nice to know that I am actually writing to SOMEONE and not just the internet at large…) =)

So, with that being said…the countdown begins! I’ll try to blog one more pre-trip update before I leave on the 16th and then…it’s all fun and games until someone gets back from Scotland! =)

I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it…

I grew up with terms and phrases such as “worry wart", “stop worrying”, “don’t worry about it”, and “you don’t know if that’s going to happen” being a rather common part of my life.

I worried. I couldn’t go to sleep because I was too busy forming an escape route in case of a fire (ok, don’t laugh, I know I’m not the only one…). I constantly asked questions and was aware of my surroundings out of fear that something could go wrong.  Granted, I was (in a matter of speaking) a normal child, but I have always fretted and wondered about things I didn’t need to. From worrying if my friends were having fun to worrying if we were going to get somewhere in time…I definitely had the gold medal in worry!

Well, worry quickly translates to fear when it isn’t confronted or given over to the Lord. What keeps you up wondering at night begins to keep you from taking a step forward the next day…

Fast forward to the present, I told you in this post how the Lord confronted my fears last year. I spoke of the Lord teaching me a lot about fears of unknown territories, fears of uncontrollable circumstances, and fears of unforeseen changes.

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I am heading to a Pastor’s/Leader’s/Worker’s Conference next Monday. At that conference there are beautiful trails and paths to take that lead you through some of the most beautiful and glorious views of our Lord’s creation.

There is one path in particular that is forever engrained in my mind. This path cuts back and forth between creeks and paths, down into lush greenery and past a few summer camps. At one point, your eyes look down the path and fall upon one large suspension bridge.

Wooden boards line it, suspension coming out from all different angles form beautiful arches holding it in place over a deep ravine. It sways back and forth under the pressure of the feet that cross it—sometimes even slightly rocking as those same feet desire to “test its strength.’

To continue the trail, you have to cross it.To cross it, you have to step onto it. To step onto it, you have to propel your mind, body, and emotions to go forward.

You know, for me, it’s a lot harder than you think. Crossing bridges is akin to many peoples fear of spiders, snakes, heights, etc. Bridges and Erika have never really gotten along.

Last year, this bridge and Erika were not friends.

But, this year, I am going to cross that bridge when I get to it.

And then, as I am brought to the edge of a real or proverbial bridge in my future, I will cross that one too.

And I am going to continue this trail that the Lord has laid out for me by propelling my feet to step out onto these bridges towards the rest of the beautiful trail before me.

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9