Arrival

So Ben, Cole, and I have officially been here for our first day now, and we are all absolutely loving it! We arrived at Ben and I's host families' house around midnight thirty last night (Sunday morning) not knowing what the family or home would be like. We had heard that the part of town we would be living in was the "ghetto" of Denver, but quickly learned that it was not. The home we are staying in is wonderful and the family has been incredible thus far.

Today, we learned more about our host family (the Ribbles) and they learned about us as we talked and were shown the neighborhood. We learned about previous occupants and some of their stories, as well as the Ribble family and their day to day lives. We also learned how to really say things, such as "You guys," instead of "Y'all," and also that Colorado is pronounced colorAdo instead of colORado.

Tonight, we went to the Wallace house (the Wallace's are two full time Dry Bones employees) and met and ate with not only the other interns, but also the rest of the staff of Dry Bones. As Ben and I talked it over, we both came to the conclusion that they are alright. And of course by alright, I mean that they are as equally awesome as the Ribbles, the home we are staying in, and Colorado in general.

However, what we have been unable to comprehend so far is how incredibly beautiful the natural features are here. We keep coming back to this in our conversations. Whenever we take a turn driving and can see the mountains rise above everything else in the skyline, we are immediately awed by it. It seems almost kind of silly or humorous to me that we have been doing this all day, but at the same time it is extremely pleasant to be repeatedly awed by God's creation. It certainly has been refreshing for us to remember that God formed the land and by his hands all things were created.

Allow yourself to be filled with wonder at God's creation. It is filling Ben and I, and we could not want anything more at this point.

Preparations

So for the past few days, Ben Wiese and I have been trying to figure out some things that we will need to buy and bring with us to Colorado this summer. We have talked about things to buy, things to remember, and things to think about to better prepare ourselves mentally for what we will be doing. Basically we have been doing what we can to get ready to go. As our journey is only a few days away from beginning, our preparations are only getting us more excited to leave and get started.

While both of us are extremely anxious to get going, there is of course the part of me that can't help but think negatively about what might happen. Those who know me well know that when it comes to something about myself, I almost always tend towards the pessimistic side. This feeling isn't anywhere as large as it could be, but it is still there. Mainly I wonder about what I will do in difficult situations and hope that I don't do anything terribly stupid. I know that I want to do good things for others and will do some for some people there, but there is of course the chance that something will happen for the worst.

Despite the preparations that have been made, there is always the chance something bad and unexpected can happen. But for once, I think that I will look ahead with optimism. Despite the preparations that have been made, there is always the chance something good and unexpected can happen.

Sometimes, no, scratch that, almost always I think that God works in ways that are unexpected. Someone comes to us that we never would guess could help us or need our help, or a situation comes up that seems like it never would have happened without God at the helm. And so while there is the chance that I will mess up a conversation or two or twenty, there is the chance that I will get one right and a beautiful relationship will blossom between another and I, or another and God, or even myself and God. And this unexpected relationship is almost always certain to be more beautiful and meaningful than any that can come from hours of preparations.

So here's the moral: this summer, I will try to look optimistically at every encounter, hoping and knowing that something unexpected can happen at any moment. The preparations that have been made aren't bad or wrong, but knowing that God's plans are most certainly better than my own makes me excited about seeing his plan and preparations unravel.

And so, I expect to be pleasantly surprised by the unexpected nature of God. And I expect to learn from the unexpected people with whom I will cross paths.

Waiting

Waiting. It seems like everytime something that is super exciting is coming up, there is always a period (a long period) of waiting before it can happen. It almost seems like this should be archaic nowadays when everything is so instantaneous. But here I sit, waiting. Waiting to go to Colorado to start an internship at Dry Bones, to meet some pretty awesome people who will change my life, and to live radically for other people for God's glory.

And its not just me either. (Waiting, that is, but probably not on the internship.) People are waiting on the newest technology to come out so they can buy it, or for a few years to pass so that they can get a decent job or maybe their dream job, or for this or that. John Mayer is 'Waiting on the World to Change.' Everybody seems to be waiting and hoping for something better than what is right now.

Maybe there is a reason for our waiting. Maybe it isn't just what we have to go through before we get to the cool stuff. Maybe the waiting is a part of whatever we are waiting for. Maybe that helps make what we waited for worth it.

A lot of expectations come out of a time of waiting, too. Expectations of yourself or of whatever you are waiting on, that you will be a better person or changed or that it will be the best experience of your life, that you will never forget it.

I don't really know what to expect from Colorado this summer or even entirely what is expected of me. But I am expecting one thing: that it will be meaningful for myself, and hopefully a few others along the way. I can only hope to love God and love others better than I do now at the end of the summer.

And so here I am. Still waiting. But expectant. Expectant of a growing heart for others and for God.