Meeting Topped with Drama Practice.

  Yesterday things became real.  When I say "they became real," I mean, yesterday was the day when the fact that the senior class is going to Romania!
   The meeting began with a totaling of all our monies, then an overall description of the trip.  Mr. Vogel then continued on with his speech and told us what we needed to bring while throwing in his humor here and there. 
   After the hour and a half long meeting, the drama team journeyed to the field house and performed each skit.  Then Who's the Master? skit practice began.  We started off slow, but near the end, we got a lot accomplished. 

I am beyond excited for the rest of the preparations for this trip.  Thank you God, for puling me in this direction.  It has helped me become closer to God in so many ways! Please, if you ever get the chance to partake on a mission trip, don't turn it down!

 

Colossians 4:5 Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. 

Galatians 6:10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers

Keep on Fighting

  There may come a point in your life when you stop and ask "what is the purpose of all this?" I know I have enough times.  Sometimes It can be hard to continue "fight(ing) the good fight," but God reassures us that He is waiting for us in Heaven; suffering will surely end.

  Suffering may be apart of your life right now.  Only in the past five months, since I began senior year, there has been a lot of instances where people in my life could have left the sight of the Lord.  But even as they underwent these tough times, they remembered the purpose of suffering, and their faith in the Lord only became stronger through the outcomes.  Job 36:15 states "But by means of their suffering, he rescues those who suffer.  For he gets their attention through adversity."  Not only can He get the person's attention who is actually being involved in the suffering, but also those related or observing the particular means of suffrage.
  Jesus suffered BIG TIME on the cross; the purpose of this suffering was to enable us to have a relationship with Him and be able to spend eternity with Him, although we are sinners.   Many may ask, "Why would a loving God allow suffering, hatred, and bad things in this world?"  We must remember that he has given free will to humans because of how much he loves us; is it TRUE love when you are forced? NO.  And remember, if it wasn't for suffering, Jesus would not have died on the cross; his death shows true love as well as a genuine choice for God shows our true love for Him.  Without free will, non of this is possible - love is only possible through free will.
  
It's hard to find a purpose on your own.  I have been searching for my future's purpose/career for a long while now; I have a few ideas, but nothing for sure. With the pushing of my father and the uncertainty of my decisions, the road has been kind of bumpy; but that's the cool things about God, He is good, and all things are good because he is in control.  When you look back on the road, you will realize those bumps made a perfect piece of art: you.

God never want you to give up.  He is the voice in you head that is constantly telling you to keep going.  He is the motivation that fuels ambition.  He is the power source of a seemingly weak man's struggle; He makes you strong. In some aspects, He can be explained; in others, one must have a relationship to understand.  No one fully understands Him, but He fully understands us.  And one day we will all be able to look at the world as He does; we will meet face to face and fully understand the purpose of all this, to include the bad things.

I know I have changed much so far since the beginning of senior year.  I pray Romania will help open my eyes to my purpose and what I must do, according to God, for and in my future.  I am so glad I said "yes"" to this trip; it has changed my life.  
I have experienced joyful change, and I cannot wait to share it with others to where they will want to change also.  
Change must occur to save people from death: spiritual death.

Bake Sale One and Done.

  My bake sale which my friend and I hosted turned out to be a success.  Through this bake sale I learned: any money goal is reachable, I enjoy to cook. . . sometimes, AND I am NOT good at making cookies.  Let Elizabeth make anything (to include: cupcakes, cakes, cake pops, candy) but once you give her the cookie mix, be prepared for oatmeal balls instead of oatmeal cookies.  Other than a little mishap during cookie making, and my sister, the chef genius, coming to my rescue, the bake sale was very successful!
 
  After two failures at making cookies, the non-burnt and non-oatmeal ball formed cookies were put toward the customers, where as the ugly ducklings were given to my mom.  Happy four month early birthday, Mom!

Master of Adam and Eve

  Here is a sneak peak of part of our new Who's The Master skit.  
This skit is comprised of many new moves, many of which look complicated, but are nothing more than fun to do.  The Class of 2013 Mission Trip Drama Team was excited to start their skits; and after they completed learning the first skits, they observed harder ones.  This is only the beginning, but the outcome looks promising.

Starting with prayer and ending with "Drama Pants"; our work in between.

  
   December 6, 2012 - After a hardcore two hour practice, leaving with red marks on knees, but thankfully no broken bones, the team learned there will be a need of knee pads and gloves.  This skit is legit, and we mean business.

With You, there is nothing I cannot do.

This song sings what my heart has been burning to say for a while now. I feel exactly what she sings, and hope I can become all he has created me to be.  Sometimes I feel as if he does not listen to me constantly, sometimes I feel lost as if he has left me on my path by myself; but my sister wrote me a saying and I have it taped to my mirror in my room.  It states, "God is with you when you need him most, even when you don't think he is."

Bake_Chef!

   It's that time of year again; yes! It's Christmas time! With Christmas come baking, and BOY have I been obsessed with baking! My friend, Emily, and I traveled to different neighborhoods, going from door to door, to ask people if they would like to buy some inexpensive bake sale items; if they weren't interested, I proudly offered one of my best ideas yet: a raffle ticket for one dollar!
  Currently, it is time for the delivery part of the bake sale, which includes my personal favorite part: baking! My most recent addiction has been peppermint, which has found its way in my bake sale brochure, and in my baked goods.

  Yes, it is easier to just get the money handed to you by a large donation, which I have had many of so far, and I thank you; I would not be to this point without you! But I have enjoyed myself during this bake sale; at first I was anxious to get it over with, but it turned out wonderful, and Emily and I look forward to our next planned bake sale to raise money for Romania!

I look forward to the Romania trip where I can honestly say "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."
2 Timothy 4:7
Thank you for your constant prayers and contributions to my heart's desire.  I wish you a blessed holiday season! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Who is your master? Day One.

  Now that most of the dramas are down pat, a decision was made to start another one.  Those who could show up showed up, and our "Who is the Master" skit team has been made.  After watching the skit on youtube a couple dozen times before practice, the drama students were ready to begin this complicated task, but they took it with excitement.

  After completion of day one boot camp for "Who is the Master", many left and went home with sire necks and abs.  Many cracked jokes about having to work out for the Romania trip.  As practice wrapped up, everyone had a smile, excited for what the completed skit will look like.  
  And before practice could officially end, a prayer was prayed and a certain saying was yelled.
  "Drama Pants!"

King of Hearts.

Here is another fun skit.  Although watching it over and over is not always fun, performing it is a blast! Once again, I am thankful for drama because it is a GREAT means of bringing people together as a family of friends, God's children.

 

This, by far, is my favorite skit. The first time I ever watched it was when the 2012 Romania Drama Team performed it, and it made me cry.  It is an honor to be able to take part in this skit and do it so well.  This skit, as well as the others, have brought the 2013 Romania team close; and we hope to be even closer by the time February comes rolling around.

Enough of my blab!

Genesis 28:15 "I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you."

Joshua 1:9 ^"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go."

 

An Intermission.

Our cast of drama actors is not full of serious faces, and sad scared girls; we also have fun!  Here is a "behind the scenes" look at a few members of the Romania 2013 Drama Team!

The Chair Skit

On October 31, 2012, the scariest night of the year, a group of teenagers decided to show the Village Baptist community why, even on the scariest night, we do not have to be afraid!

This skit is an easy one, one that every actor can play with to make it as interesting or as boring as wanted.  But, this skit also has a very important factor trying to be taught: There is NO way someone can live a productive life without God; sin can hold the best of the best down, but without God, the best of the best will only be as good as a person can be, while being stuck to a chair.

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6

Drama Pants

Prepping for Romania is now underway! Teaching and learning the drama skits have been a blast.  Learning these skits will enabled us, the students, to communicate to the Romanian people better than just through a translator.  Also, learning skits together have helped the students bond and become closer, getting them ready for ten days of close togetherness.  For me, learning and preforming the dramas have made me even more excited for this mission trip.

Where does "Drama Pants" come from?
Rev. Kev and ten of his drama students tagged along with him to Second Baptist Church in downtown Fayetteville on a Saturday morning. Second Harvest Food Bank was parked in the church's parking lot and was giving out food for those who were in need; this was a perfect chance for the students to practice preforming their drama skits.  It was also the first time many of the Romania students were able to practice evangelism for the Mission Trip in February-March 2013. 
Before the drama team preformed their skits, the eleven of them huddled in a big circle and prayed for God to speak through their actions and help deliver the people watching from any suffering going on in their lives.  Of course, after any huddle, it is mandatory for a chant of some sort.  One of the boys put his hand in the middle of the huddle and said what would go down in Village Christian Academy class of 2013 's history: "Drama Pants on three!" On three, everyone whispered "Drama Pants," in order to be courteous of the line of people behind them.
Once the day of missions was over, and the van once again parking in the Village Christian Academy's parking lot, a closing prayer was said in the commons area of the church.  In the huddle, after the prayer, the chant was counted down, and the students finally got to yell their team name!

Donuts: Raising Money.

SINCE school started in August, Village Christian Academy seniors have been diligently raising money through fundraisers. A weekly fundraiser, which takes place every Friday morning before school, is Krispy Kreme Donut sales. Five students sign up for each Friday, and must report to Mr. Vogel, the head of the mission trip, around 7:15 AM.  Each box of donuts is only five dollars; a very delicious treat makes a delicious FUNdraiser!

Another fundraiser which took place on October 26 was a Spaghetti Dinner.  Each ticket was $6.50; if a student was able to sell 200 tickets, most of their trip would be paid for!  This was a very successful fundraiser as many parents and students came to help make the dinners and deliver.  Over 1,500 spaghetti dinners were sold!  

This shows just how excited each student is for their Senior Mission Trip!