Video Update!

Here's a brief update of the week from my friend Rachel and me!!! :)

Please keep us all in your prayers as we continue to surf the waves that God provides for us!!

-Rosa :)

The Floridian Midway

Three weeks! That's how long it's been since I've updated you all. My schedule here has been so jam packed! My usual day consists of waking up at 9 and having either our bible study, prayer & share, women's time, ministry team or planning meetings until about 12. After the CRU part of the day, my carpool heads out to work until about 9! After work we usually stay up until about 2 or so in the morning just hanging out and talking with all the students here on project! With all these things to do, it gets kind of hard to find time to blog, but I will be trying harder! :)

So as the title of this post implies, we are now at the midway point of the Walt Disney World Summer Project 2011! This means that we have been here for over a month now!! It not only signifies that we're getting closer to the end, but that it is now time for the Staff Team to leave us. The Directors and other staff members packed up all their belongings this morning and headed back to their hometowns. We as a project now have to step up and become the leaders of this movement. Luckily for us, the Staff Team hand picked the students who would be taking their places. I have been selected to be co-leading the Evangelism Team with my good friend Luke VandenLangenberg! (Yes, that really is his last name!!) I'm a little nervous to be leading, but I'm just going to have to trust that God will do all the work and that I will merely be the vessel through which He carries out his plan for this project!

Evangelism Team!

Because the staff is leaving, we had a Mid-Project Dinner for them! At this dinner we enjoyed some yummy food and got to spend one more evening with the staff. We presented each of them a picture of the students and a cup full of little notes from us thanking them for the impact they had on us this summer. The person who had the greatest impact on me these last few weeks was my discipler Alicia! She is such an awesome woman of God. She took the time to get to know me even when I don't know who I am. She was so genuine and real with me each time we met and pushed me to do the same. She saw past the mask that I too often put on and helped me realize that I don't have to perform in order to get others' approval. I often find myself doing good works because that's what is expected of a "good Christian." I also feel the pressure to keep up the facade that everything is alright, when it most definitely is not. Alicia has helped me realize how this crosses over to my relationship with God. I tend to do good works not only for others' approval, but also to earn God's acceptance. My good works will never compare to those of His, but this shouldn't discourage me because God gives us his love freely. It is a gift. We don't have to earn it. We simply have to be willing to accept it. With the whole keeping up the facade of a "perfect life", God is showing me that it's better to be real with people and let them know that I don't have it all together. Alicia definitely helped me to see this. At first I was reluctant to be vulnerable with her because she seemed to have it all together, which made me feel as though I was inadequate because I don't have it all together. But as Alicia opened up to me and shared her difficulties with me, I was able to see that everyone struggles and that these struggles don't keep us from being used by God. God has definitely done some amazing things through this woman, and I know that He wants to do great things through me and my struggles as well! I thank Him for placing Alicia in my life, even if it was only for a short few weeks. What she allowed God to do through her will forever be a significant part of my life :)



The Wonderful Alicia Christie!



I'll try to keep my updates more frequent, but I can't make any promises! What I can do is give you the link to the blog that the students have been working on as a whole to let others know of what God is doing. If you'd like to check that out as well the link is wdwsp11.tumblr.com 

I would also like to ask you all to pray for me and the other students who will be taking over as leaders of this project. I know a lot of us are nervous to have such a great responsiblity and we would all appreciate a little bit of extra prayer :)

-Rosa :)