One week with a bunch of seminary students

Ok, so I've survived my first week living in Washington Hall - the student apartment building here. Here are just a few quick things I've learned so far:

1. Seminary students are not the stereotypical nerdy kids who have deep theological conversations all the time. Actually, I have yet to hear a single deep theological discussion. I have heard discussions about boys, coffee shops, movies, college days, shoes, culture, etc. Basically, seminary students are just normal people. They just happen to love Jesus and want to serve in ministry.

2. Ukraine is big here. Already, I know a few people who are pretty much obsessed with Ukraine. I guess going on mission trips to Ukraine will do that to you. It's just interesting to find Americans who've been to Ukraine more times than I have. It kind of messes with my mind.

3. The American Christian culture is WAY different than the Slavic Christian culture. So many things that I was taught to consider as "sin" growing up are just part of culture here. DTS has a no-alcohol policy so that's not what I'm referring to. But, things like secular music, movies and dancing are totally ok here. Dating is also big. Apparently, there's lots of that going on. (Not that I think dating is a sin. It's just not as common in the Slavic Christian culture that I grew up in). American Christians are just more chill, and not so uptight about debatable or questionable things. Don't get me wrong. I'm not taking a side here, but just making an observation.

4. Southerners are really awesome people.  Seriously, the girls I've met here are just the sweetest. Everyone is really nice, hospitable and friendly. One afternoon I was leaving the apartment only to find a candy bar and note by the door for me. It was from a really sweet girl (also a DTS student) that I met at the Village Church on Sunday. How precious is that?!

The adventure has begun

Oh were do I even start? The past week has been a crazy blur of activities and of course emotions! After almost 4 full days of driving, my dad and I finally made it to Dallas. I still can't believe this is real.

My dad and I made this trip from Sacramento to Dallas into a fun  little big roadtrip, driving through Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon. The last Daddy-Inna roadtrip happened when I was 9 or 10 and it's probably one of the fondest childhood memories I have with my dad. This roadtrip is a close second. More on the roadtrip (and more photos!) in a later post. Back to my reality in Dallas.

Just a preview of the majesty of God's creation - the Grand Canyon!

Just in case you're wondering, I'm writing this from my bed in my new apartment in Washington Hall. And, it's past 3 a.m. One of the wonderful couples here at DTS, who used to live in Sacramento, invited me over for dinner at their apartment and we stayed up past midnight playing this board game called Settlers of Catan which apparently is the new rage among college students. Anyway, I had a great time at Anna and Yuriy's house just enjoying a yummy meal together, chatting, playing with their sweet little baby Gracie, and of course losing at this Settlers of Catan game. Go Anna! Did I mention I drank two large mugs of tea? THAT is why I am still up at this hour. Coffee? Nah. I can drink a whole cupful and doze off no problem. Tea? I'm wide awake, even 3 hours later. Note to self: don't drink tea. Ever. 

Other than not being able to fall asleep tonight, I've been adjusting to life here in Dallas very well. Granted, this is only Day 3. And, it's only my first day on my own. I dropped off my dad at the airport earlier today. By the way, my dad loved Dallas - all except the hot, humid weather. I'm no fan either, but you can't have it all, can you?

Dallas skyline
(from the 12th story of the Crowne Plaza Hotel)

I moved in all of my stuff and still have a bunch of cabinet space in the bathroom to spare! I guess I didn't bring that much stuff after all! My closet is a bit tight but still very comfortable and spacious. The Native American rug that I bought at a rest area in New Mexico turned out perfect for the closet! The floor of my apartment and room is buffed concrete so rugs are a must. Everything else is coming together fine too. All except for my bed, which I'm still waiting to be delivered (hopefully tomorrow!) So, right now, my bed is just a mattress on the floor. It's not ideal, but in a way, I kind of like it. It gives my room a modern edge. I'll post pictures of my space when it's finally all complete. Right now, there are still boxes in the corner and lots of blank walls and empty space. Boring, if you ask me. 

How's my roommate apartment-mate? She's awesome! Kristina has a very fun and bubbly personality, speaks with a slight Southern twang and is passionate about the Lord. She also walks dogs for a living and hates slimy food (like mushrooms). She has been nothing but welcoming, helpful, and sweet! I feel like we'll be great friends in no time!

As far as my emotions go, everything is still new, exciting, and fun. I haven't felt a bit lonely or homesick. Yet. I have a feeling it's all going to come at once in about a week or two. Pray for me! In my world, when it rains, it pours! But of course, God is with me even in the downpour, so I'll be alright. 

So, I guess this is it - as far as an update goes. More details to follow! Stay tuned.

Dallas, here's to the beginning of many adventures!

Step into my shoes (and my kitchen)

Summer is like that one popular (but obnoxious) relative we all have. When she arrives, she makes a grand entrance and steals the show, but then makes everyone go into hiding due to her overbearing and rude personality. Ok, maybe I'm exaggerating a bit, but this summer kind of feels like that. It's been in triple digits for the past week here in Sacramento. Stepping outside feels like stepping into a blazing furnace. Let's just say, I thank God every day for the person who was brilliant enough to invent air conditioning.

Anyway... I just want to share a few things from this week...

My goal this month is to cook more and go out less. Partly, this is to prepare myself for independent life in Dallas, and partly because my mom (who normally feeds me) is on vacation and so I'm forced to cook. I consider it a win-win. Something you should know about me is that I actually like to cook. I'm not talking about the kind of cooking that requires following a recipe. I'm talking about the check-whats-in-the-fridge, pinch-of-this-and-pinch-of-that kind of cooking that's creative (and kind of risky). So, this week, I cooked almost every day. Sometimes this cooking was nothing more than making a sandwich or salad, but for all intensive purposes, I call this cooking too!

Here's the story behind each one of my meals:

1. I'm a chicken kind of person. I mean, red meat is good but I try not to eat it very often, let alone cook it. But, I wanted to face my fear of red meat and try cooking it for the first time. After spending at least 15 minutes at the Safeway meat section, I finally settled on buying some premium cut beef (whatever that means). It was already thinly sliced so it was perfect for tacos! I skillet fried the meat, added some spicy taco seasoning, and wrapped it up in warm tortillas with fresh avocado, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, cilantro and canned corn! The meat was just a bit too tough but it was still delicious. I made enough for dinner and still had enough left over to bring in to work for my coworkers. Cha-ching!

2. My asiago cheese bagel with turkey, lettuce, avocado, cream cheese and pesto was a simple yet super filling meal. I really love pesto, especially on sandwiches. Making my own pesto is on my cooking bucket list. Anyone have a good recipe?

3. When I went grocery shopping at the beginning of the week (which was super fun!), I bought these great spicy buffalo chicken strips. Tossed in an iceberg lettuce and spinach salad with bell peppers and shredded fermano cheese, the chicken added a great kick. Ranch dressing cooled it down. It was a good combo. I ended up making this salad twice because it was so good!

4. Thanks to the wonderful blog of my friend Olviya (http://servingsisters.com/), I got exposed to this great way of eating grapefruit! Broiled! The recipe (which can be found here) is very simple and quick but the results are amazing. Who knew that sprinkling sugar and cinnamon on a half-cut grapefruit and broiling it would make it so delicious?! The picture above is from the first attempt of the recipe at my friend Lilly and Vlad's house... We all loved it! I made this again at my own house and shared a grapefruit with my grandma (who loves grapefruit) and it was a great late-night snack for the both of us. We drizzled honey on the sugar/cinnamon encrusted grapefruit and scooped it out with a spoon. Yum.

5. Stuffed mushrooms are kind of my favorite. I usually just make mine stuffed with cheese, chopped mushroom stems, and salt and pepper, but this time I had spinach and bell peppers in the fridge so I made spinach/bell pepper/cheese stuffed mushrooms. The key is in the cream cheese that binds all the ingredients together. They turned out yummy, although I thought the bell peppers took away from the spinach too much. Next time, I'll pass on the peppers. I brought extras in to work and my coworker loved them so much, she asked for a recipe... Umm, I didn't use a recipe! 

6. I work with this older gentleman named Mike, who is quite the ladies man. He always brings fruit, candy and his homemade food for all the ladies in the office. He loves to make people happy and is genuinely kindhearted and sweet. It was his birthday the other day and we wanted to return the kindness. So, we secretly planned a little potluck and invited him into the meeting room for a "meeting." He was definitely surprised and really appreciated all the attention! It was a success! Of course, the night before the potluck, I came home around midnight without a clue of what I would be bringing. After looking through the cupboards and the fridge, I settled on making a pasta. My grandma had some pretty yellow squash and zucchini in the fridge so I decided to make a yellow squash/zucchini and chicken angel hair pasta. I sliced up the squash and zucchini and fried them in olive oil. After a while, I tasted the veggies. The squash was perfect, but the zucchini skin was too tough. I probably should have peeled it. I ended up picking out all the zucchini and tossing it out. The zucchini idea was a fail, but I still wanted to salvage the dish so I cooked up some more squash, tossed it in with chicken, fresh tomatoes, and marinara sauce and voila! I had a pasta dish ready to go! Granted, it was at 1 a.m., but I did it. I made way too much pasta (I always overdo it on pasta portions!) so I had enough for the potluck and for people to take some home for their families. I think cooking for people is always way more fun than cooking for myself. Even at 1 a.m., feeling incredibly tired, I had fun cooking everything up, experimenting, and improvising. Is it just me, or does cooking give off an adrenaline rush?

7. Wait, there was a #7?! Yeah, (un)fortunately, I don't have a picture of this one. That's because it was gross. I made tilapia fish in a clam chowder sauce and it tasted nasty. Whatever you do, don't add canned clam chowder to perfectly good tilapia fish and try to bake it. It doesn't taste very good. Lesson learned.

Overall, it was a rather successful week staying true to my more-cooking-less-going-out goal. I only went out once - to sushi with my wonderful friend Amanda. I couldn't resist sushi (or hanging out with this beautiful soul sister!)

The name tag is from visiting
Bridegway Church's young adults Tuesday
night service (...which I loved).

In other news, my friend Natalie (who blogs with Olviya on http://servingsisters.com/) had her baby girl Fiona this week. Isn't she just precious? I can't wait to meet her, and squeeze her little dimpled cheeks! 

Congratulations on your
bundle of joy, Roman and Natalie!

Jehovah Jireh

Two years ago, I remember standing at kids camp with armed stretched out and tears rolling down my face as I cried out to God, "Lord, be my Provider." I had recently graduated from college, quit my dead-end job and for the first time since age 16, I was broke and unemployed. It was a difficult season in my life and I was desperate for God. I was doing everything I possibly could to find a new job but I wasn't going anywhere. I needed God to step in.

A rendering of the hospital my company in building in midtown.

Three (long) months after that day, I was sitting behind a computer desk at my current job. Not only did God come through as my Provider, but He exceeded all my expectations. God supplied me with all the things I ever wanted in a job... Being able to write creatively? Check. Work independently? Check. Good pay? Check. Vacation and benefits? Check. All-expense-paid travel? Check. What about a Christian boss? Yep, that's a check too! It was almost too good to be true. And yet, it was true; but only because this job was given to me directly by the Lord. And I knew it. There's no way my interview skills were that stellar, or my background and education that phenomenal. This was all God. There's no shadow of a doubt about it.

View of downtown Sacramento from the hospital rooftop

Because I love what I do and the company that I work for, you can imagine how sad I felt about leaving my job to move to Dallas (in 51 days - but who's counting?). So, before I made the bold step of telling my company that I'm leaving, I made an even bolder step. I asked my boss if I could stay with the company, but work part-time and remotely from Dallas. It was a wild proposition. I doubted they'd take the bite, but, I was willing to risk it. And so I did. Breaking the news to the boss went well (or so I thought), and for the next three weeks I didn't hear back anything. I was simply told that management was considering my proposition.

Again, I looked to my Jehovah Jireh, and asked him to be my Provider. He was faithful to His name before and I knew He would be faithful again. Just as God provided the ram for the sacrifice in place of Isaac for Abraham, I rested on the promise that He would provide for me. He was, in fact, Jehovah Jireh.

"And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovah-Jireh. As it is said to this day, In the mount of Jehovah it shall be provided." (Genesis 22:14)

Yesterday, I came in to work to find the red light of my answering machine blinking. It was wonderful news! The company had OKed my proposition, and they were even giving me an intern to help me do my job well remotely. I was ecstatic! Immediately, the verse in Matthew 6:33 came to mind, "But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." Over and over, God continues to show me His faithfulness and His provision. Praise the Lord!

This whole experience also brings to mind a beautiful old hymn, Great is Thy Faithfulness. Enjoy the music here, and be encouraged by the lyrics:

"Great is Thy faithfulness,” O God my Father,
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not
As Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be.

“Great is Thy faithfulness!” “Great is Thy faithfulness!“

Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided—

“Great is Thy faithfulness,” Lord, unto me!

Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above,
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth,
Thy own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

Passion is coming!

“The really wonderful moments of joy in this world are not the moments of self-satisfaction, but self-forgetfulness. Standing on the edge of the Grand Canyon and contemplating your own greatness is pathological. At such moments we are made for a magnificent joy that comes from outside ourselves.” ― John Piper, Don't Waste Your Life

I remember feeling completely overwhelmed. Completely in awe of God. I thought to myself, "This must be what heaven feels like." I was standing in a giant stadium surrounded by thousands upon thousands of college students all singing "Our God is greater!" united together in one voice. I was at Passion Conference in Atlanta, GA and I felt small. I felt insignificant. And, God was stupendously magnificent!

My first time at Passion was in 2010. A group of my girlfriends heard about the conference, bought tickets almost a year in advance, and then, all together, we traveled all the way across the country to attend this life-changing event. We didn't know what to expect. We were just ready for an adventure.

Our Passion 2010 crew! 

My Passion 2010 family group - Alan (now serving as a missionary in NY), Ashley and Julie (both now married)

22,000 college student gathered together to make Jesus famous!

Passion is one of those events that blows your mind - not with it's enormity (even though 22,000 attendees is enormous! 60,000 in 2013!), not with it's organization (even though they managed to feed 22,000 hungry students in less than 30 minutes), not with it's music (even though you get to worship with people like Chris Tomlin, Christy Nockels, Matt Redman, David Crowder, etc), not with it's generosity (towels, towels, and more towels!) or even with it's creativity. Passion blows your mind because it's all about JESUS.

Jesus-centered messages.
Jesus-centered worship.
Jesus-centered prayer.
Jesus-centered community group conversations.
Jesus-centered giving.
Jesus, Jesus, and more Jesus.

And, what's even more amazing? Passion is coming to Houston in February 2014! Registration for the 2-day conference opens today! Since I'll be living in Dallas by then, Passion will only be a 3-hour drive for me! I couldn't be more excited!

If you've never experienced Passion and you're a college student (or 25 and under), this is your chance! Trust me. You will not regret it. It's worth every mile driven, every penny spent.

Register for Houston (Feb. 14-15) here: http://268generation.com/passion2014/hou/register/
Register for Atlanta (Jan 17-18) here: http://268generation.com/passion2014/atl/register/
For more details and info, visit: http://www.268generation.com/3.0/

See you at Passion 2014!

Let the decorating begin!

As of today, my move to Dallas is less than 2 months away! Oh how the time flies!I started a list of things I need to do before I leave and things are slowly getting checked off. (I love lists and checking things off is my favorite!) So, you can imagine how happy all of this makes me! The most recent "to-do" that got checked off is "Find a roommate and a place to live." Well, actually, I didn't "find" anything. It found me! A little over a week ago, a current DTS student contacted me about sharing an apartment on campus. Her previous roommate graduated so she was looking for someone to fill her place. Of course I said yes! Especially after I found out that we are 94% compatible on the DTS roommate-matching website (which I equate to match.com)! And, she's also a Christian Education major. And, she did full-time student ministry for 6 years. And, she's funny, outgoing, and super proactive about getting things done. Basically, (at least from what it seems) she's like the perfect apartment-mate for me. I say apartment-mate because I'll be getting my own room and bathroom and we'll just have to share a living room and kitchen. The other awesome thing is her living room and kitchen are already furnished! Score!

Which brings me to checklist item number 2: "Figure out how you're going to decorate your new room!" This one gets me super giddy! I love design, art, and decorating, but I haven't had an opportunity to decorate anything (besides my room 10 years ago). Here is where Pinterest becomes my best friend! I have an entire board of decorating ideas. I guess from all those pins, you can conclude that my style is kind of shabby chic with a modern twist. 

Here are the basics I'd like to incorporate:

1. Neutral (grey/cream) solids

2.. Bright/pastel accents

3. Lots of coordinating patterns (especially chevron)

4. Modern (maybe upholstered) bed frame

5. Vintage (more just thrift store) accent furniture

6. Old maps, globes, treasure chests, chalk boards, picture frames

It will be cool to see what I actually end up doing. Pinterest is one thing. Decorating on a grad student's budget is another. Stay tuned for the final result!

Here are some photos from my Pinterest board of inspiration:

Random Things I'm Learning:

First day of camp! (The new location is AMAZING!)

1. I should never pass up the opportunity to serve. MGC Kids Camp is this week and I feel like I'm really missing out. When I'm at camp, I feel like that's where I belong. I'm serious. If I could do anything and be anything, I would be a full-time camp counselor. Jesus, kids, and nature - it doesn't get much better!

2. I need to treasure the day-to-day moments spent with family. I found out this morning that the little 5-year-old nephew of one of my friends died last night in a tragic accident. My heart has been heavy all day as I'm praying for God to supply the family with transcending peace and comfort.

Late night tea with my silly boys! 

Grace + works. This has been on my heart lately.

3. Pretty much all DTS students are super cool. So far, I've been contacted by three girls who are looking for roommates for the Fall and all of them are so cool. I look through their Facebook profiles (I admit, I'm kind of a stalker) and I think, "Wow! I can totally be your friend! You're so cool!" Jesus pretty much radiates from all their photos, statuses, activities, etc.

4. God can do miracles in people we "write off." I saw this happen this weekend as one of my old friends from high school recommitted her life to the Lord. Praise God that His love never fails and never gives up, even if we do.

5. I need to live in the "now" and not live in expectancy of the next big thing. God operates even in our boring, ordinary lives. I must be faithful and trust Him. I need to "bloom where I'm planted!" (I love that part of my "homework" for my online DTS class is to read and respond to a devotional every day! If you're not doing this yet, check out My Utmost for His Highest. It's available as a free PDF.)

What is God teaching you? Do share!