Hello all. So I had a first yesterday. My first Thanksgiving with snow. It started snowing around 9 pm yesterday while Josh and I were walking home. It eventually stopped. Well after I got home I fell asleep on the couch. I woke up around 2 am and started up to my room. I looked out the window and it was snowing again. Now I've seen snow before. But I've never seen it snow so hard before. It was really beautiful to see it snow with the church across the street in the background. Most of it didn't stick, but about an inch and a half did. Thanksgiving with snow. Nice.
Speaking of Thanksgiving, it didn't really feel like Thanksgiving. We had class all day and then us Americans hung out. None of us realized that it was Thanksgiving until about 9:30. No dinner, no family, no Thanksgiving. I called Ginny and talked to her. She's at the beach. Thanks Gin. I'm stuck in the snow and you are rolling down sand dunes getting sand all over you. Way to be sympathetic. I also called the family. It was good to hear from them. I think they are what make the holidays for me. Ahh. Christmas is only a month away. So you hear that all my people? Only one more month for you to find my gift. Not you Ginny. You know what I want from you. (it's nothing bad) Early Merry Christmas everyone!! ( I have no idea why I wrote that.)
Well off to bed for me. My time here is rapidly winding down. I'll miss this place and the people that I met here, but I am SO ready to be home. Until I'm home, leave some love.
-Robert
Friday, November 25, 2005
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
blah...
Hello all. Another day, another dollar. Or is it pound here in Wales? Either way another day has come and gone. I've found that Tuesdays are the longest days for me here. With my accountability group, men's club, and then computer club it's a full day. I'm really sapped of energy right now. When I get tired I get homesick. So right now I just want to be home curled up watching a movie or Viva la Bam with Ginny. Maybe chillin at Struts eating a ribeye sandwich. Maybe Ginny and I would be grilling out with Val and Tj. I just want to be home right now. Sigh. My work here isn't done, so I'll be here a little while longer. This shall pass once I get some well earned sleep.
Things are actually wrapping up nicely here. I preached Sunday at church. It went really well. I had a lot of the members come up to me and tell me what a great job I did. I talked about how we've made duty and tradition the essence of what real Christianity should be. I talked about how we are commanded to be joyful and serve God with gladness. I thought I did a decent job. I gave myself a B-. The coolest part about it was I got paid!! I didn't know about the money before I spoke, so it was a neat surprise. £25!!!!
Josh has got me addicted to Soulcaliber 3. We go to the Virgin Megastore and play it. It's nice to have an activity that takes no brainpower. I know that Kevin would say that's why I'm good at it. While he may be right, I have a lot of fun playing.
Well, I hope that all of you have a great Thanksgiving holiday. I think that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. Well, now that I think about it Christmas and Thanksgiving are tied. I just love the food and the time spent with my family. We are doing Thanksgiving at Rob and Jenny's on Sunday afternoon. Think of us as you stuff your face and watch the Falcons beat the Lions. Leave some love!!
-Robert
Saturday, November 19, 2005
Stonehenge: the story
Ok. Here is the story of our wacky and wonderful day.
We were supposed to meet at the train station at 9. This turned into 9:10 for me, 9:30 for Josh and 10:15 for Jeff. I wasn't happy with the way this day started. Well, we caught the 10:30 train to Bristol. We got there at 11:30 and walked outside the train station and said "what now?" Well we decided to go to Bath, a town about 15 or so miles away. It's famous for the only warm springs in all of Britain. The Romans built public baths there that are still in use today. We decided to go check it out. After a 30 minute bus ride that I fell asleep on ( I fell asleep on the train ride also), we arrived in Bath. It's one of the most lovely and charming places I've ever been. I think that it would be a great place to spend a honeymoon. But I digress. We walked around and looked at the town. Did I mention that it was amazingly cold today? I can't understate how cold it was today. For those of you that went to Philly, it was colder than the day we walked around the University of Penn. Anyways, we saw the abbey in Bath. It was amazingly beautiful. It was massive!! It was closed for a memorial service, but they opened the doors afterwards and we got some pictures from the doors. Then we went to see how much it would cost to see the Roman Baths. It would have cost us £9. We all decided that was too much to pay for that attraction. We went into a tourism office and saw tours to Stonehenge. For the price that they were offering we couldn't pass up the opportunity of a lifetime.
It took us about an hour to get to Stonehenge. Did I mention that it was cold today??? We had an hour to walk around and do whatever you like. I determined that it's almost impossible to spend more than about an hour and 15 or 20 minutes at Stonehenge. As cool as it was they are just rocks. They don't move, you do. They way that the tour went was this. They took you there and dropped you off. We had to pay to see Stonehenge. It's like a national park. You walk around Stonehenge in a circle and listen to an audio tour. It's really interesting and I can tell you a lot about Stonehenge now.
After we got back to Bath we stopped in a pub and just chilled out. It was the first REAL pub that we have been to. All of the other ones we more like bars, but this one was like the pub that I always imagined. It had a fire and wooden floors and everything. We chilled there for over an hour. Then we went to eat.
Burger King was good and we chilled there for a while as well. The reason for all of the "chilling" was how freakin cold it was today. Then we got back on our bus and headed back to Bristol.
About 8 miles out of Bristol I thought that we were at out stop. So we got off and quickly realized that I was WAY wrong. The reason I thought that we were there were two shops that were right beside each other. They looked just like the two across from the train station. Well luckily we caught a bus to the train station and managed to get home.
The reason that I was so detailed about today was simple. 30 years from now when I tel my grandkids about this I want to have SOME memory of it.
I hope that everyone has a day like I did today. It was amazing and I can't tell you how much I needed today. I'll see you guys in 3 weeks!! Leave some love!!
-Robert
We were supposed to meet at the train station at 9. This turned into 9:10 for me, 9:30 for Josh and 10:15 for Jeff. I wasn't happy with the way this day started. Well, we caught the 10:30 train to Bristol. We got there at 11:30 and walked outside the train station and said "what now?" Well we decided to go to Bath, a town about 15 or so miles away. It's famous for the only warm springs in all of Britain. The Romans built public baths there that are still in use today. We decided to go check it out. After a 30 minute bus ride that I fell asleep on ( I fell asleep on the train ride also), we arrived in Bath. It's one of the most lovely and charming places I've ever been. I think that it would be a great place to spend a honeymoon. But I digress. We walked around and looked at the town. Did I mention that it was amazingly cold today? I can't understate how cold it was today. For those of you that went to Philly, it was colder than the day we walked around the University of Penn. Anyways, we saw the abbey in Bath. It was amazingly beautiful. It was massive!! It was closed for a memorial service, but they opened the doors afterwards and we got some pictures from the doors. Then we went to see how much it would cost to see the Roman Baths. It would have cost us £9. We all decided that was too much to pay for that attraction. We went into a tourism office and saw tours to Stonehenge. For the price that they were offering we couldn't pass up the opportunity of a lifetime.
It took us about an hour to get to Stonehenge. Did I mention that it was cold today??? We had an hour to walk around and do whatever you like. I determined that it's almost impossible to spend more than about an hour and 15 or 20 minutes at Stonehenge. As cool as it was they are just rocks. They don't move, you do. They way that the tour went was this. They took you there and dropped you off. We had to pay to see Stonehenge. It's like a national park. You walk around Stonehenge in a circle and listen to an audio tour. It's really interesting and I can tell you a lot about Stonehenge now.
After we got back to Bath we stopped in a pub and just chilled out. It was the first REAL pub that we have been to. All of the other ones we more like bars, but this one was like the pub that I always imagined. It had a fire and wooden floors and everything. We chilled there for over an hour. Then we went to eat.
Burger King was good and we chilled there for a while as well. The reason for all of the "chilling" was how freakin cold it was today. Then we got back on our bus and headed back to Bristol.
About 8 miles out of Bristol I thought that we were at out stop. So we got off and quickly realized that I was WAY wrong. The reason I thought that we were there were two shops that were right beside each other. They looked just like the two across from the train station. Well luckily we caught a bus to the train station and managed to get home.
The reason that I was so detailed about today was simple. 30 years from now when I tel my grandkids about this I want to have SOME memory of it.
I hope that everyone has a day like I did today. It was amazing and I can't tell you how much I needed today. I'll see you guys in 3 weeks!! Leave some love!!
-Robert
STONEHENGE!!!!!!!!
Hello all. Just had one of the best days of my life. LOng story short some of our plans changed and we ended up going to Stonehenge. It was great. I'm posting pics right now so check them out. I'll blog more about to day later, I'm beat. Leave some love!!
-Robert
-Robert
Sunday, November 13, 2005
Georgia on my mind....
Hello all. It has been a cool and boring weekend. Friday night Stella and I went to the Wales v. Fiji rugby match at the Millennium Stadium. Usually national rugby matches are sold out months in advance but for some reason this one wasn't. We got really good tickets for only £10!! There are about 20 pictures from our night together on my photobucket account. Check them out!! I think it's a real shame that the USA doesn't have a national sport. The passion and loyalty that the Welsh people have for their national rugby team is really neat. 73,000 people were at this match!! Don't get me wrong, I love cheering for UGA. But it seems like every week I root against one of my friends. Tech, Auburn, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, I have good friends that root for all of these teams. I'd be really nice if we could all root for one team. That's all with my sports philosophy.
I have a flat tire. Ginny went to drive my car yesterday and found I have a flat. Great. I haven't worked in 3 months and I have to pay for a new tire. Fun. But it will be ok because I'll be back in the States.
Well only 3 more Sundays here in Wales. This time has really flown by, but at the same time it's been such a long period. I'm in a very reflective mood right now. I can't really go into all of it right now, but maybe later.
Off to eat lunch. I really miss you guys and can't wait to see you all again. Thanks to all of you who email and comment regularly. Leave some love!!
Robert
I have a flat tire. Ginny went to drive my car yesterday and found I have a flat. Great. I haven't worked in 3 months and I have to pay for a new tire. Fun. But it will be ok because I'll be back in the States.
Well only 3 more Sundays here in Wales. This time has really flown by, but at the same time it's been such a long period. I'm in a very reflective mood right now. I can't really go into all of it right now, but maybe later.
Off to eat lunch. I really miss you guys and can't wait to see you all again. Thanks to all of you who email and comment regularly. Leave some love!!
Robert
Tuesday, November 08, 2005
30 days and counting
Salutations. I guess this is the part of the trip where I should be saying things like, "Man, where did the time go?" or "Man, I'm really going to miss this place when I leave." Sorry to disappoint, but that's not what I'm feeling.
To be really honest I can't wait to come home. I really want to use so much of what I've learned in the BCM and at Jacksonville 1st Baptist. I don't think that I will miss Wales as much as I will miss the people that are here. I can't wait to have a "normal" relationship with Ginny. One that doesn't involve the phone or the internet as our sole means of communicating. It will actually take some getting used to for both of us, but I can't wait. I can't wait to have some food that I really enjoy. It's not that Welsh food is bad. It's just very monotonous. The same stuff over and over again. Blah. I need variety. Cracker Barrel, here I come on December 9th.
I think that a HUGE reason that God brought me to Wales is to refine my character. It's something that has been happening for the last 6 months or so. This is the part of the refinement that couldn't take place unless I was away from everyone and everything that I've ever known. If you've never been on summer/semester missions you can't understand what I'm talking about. It's just neat to look back at how I've changed and where I still need to change. I think the thing that I've learned over the past 6 months is this. Either your moving forward or you are moving backwards. I've heard it like this. Life is like a bike. Either you move forwards or backwards. When you stop you fall over. That's what the spring was for me. I got all happy and content and fell over. Things in my life started to suffer and I'm still suffering the consequences for it. It's ok though. I'm a better person now. I know that you can never stop growing. Forwards or backwards. I choose forwards.
This is a post that has nothing to do with the things that I do while I'm here in Wales. It's just a brief summary of the last 6 months or so. I'm really excited about the last month that I have here. I know that it will be very productive for me personally and for the youth ministry here as well. I love you all and can't wait to see you again. Leave some love!!
Robert
To be really honest I can't wait to come home. I really want to use so much of what I've learned in the BCM and at Jacksonville 1st Baptist. I don't think that I will miss Wales as much as I will miss the people that are here. I can't wait to have a "normal" relationship with Ginny. One that doesn't involve the phone or the internet as our sole means of communicating. It will actually take some getting used to for both of us, but I can't wait. I can't wait to have some food that I really enjoy. It's not that Welsh food is bad. It's just very monotonous. The same stuff over and over again. Blah. I need variety. Cracker Barrel, here I come on December 9th.
I think that a HUGE reason that God brought me to Wales is to refine my character. It's something that has been happening for the last 6 months or so. This is the part of the refinement that couldn't take place unless I was away from everyone and everything that I've ever known. If you've never been on summer/semester missions you can't understand what I'm talking about. It's just neat to look back at how I've changed and where I still need to change. I think the thing that I've learned over the past 6 months is this. Either your moving forward or you are moving backwards. I've heard it like this. Life is like a bike. Either you move forwards or backwards. When you stop you fall over. That's what the spring was for me. I got all happy and content and fell over. Things in my life started to suffer and I'm still suffering the consequences for it. It's ok though. I'm a better person now. I know that you can never stop growing. Forwards or backwards. I choose forwards.
This is a post that has nothing to do with the things that I do while I'm here in Wales. It's just a brief summary of the last 6 months or so. I'm really excited about the last month that I have here. I know that it will be very productive for me personally and for the youth ministry here as well. I love you all and can't wait to see you again. Leave some love!!
Robert
Friday, November 04, 2005
To my Bran Bran...
Salutations. I've talked it over with Rob, and Stella and I are coming home on December 9th. All we have to do now is talk to Gary and change our tickets. This is a huge relief and honestly feels like the right thing to do. It will allow us to go the wedding and also we get to go to Smyrna. I can't wait!!
I really feel good now. Ginny and I are happy. Things are going well in every aspect of our ministry here. Life is good and so is God.
This is the time in my posts that I'm going to dedicate to one of my friends. Today I dedicate this post to my Bran Bran:
Brandi,
You really make me smile. Even writing this thinking about you I'm smiling. You just have this aura about you that just makes people happy. You have a great sense of humor, and you can always make me laugh. You are just one of those people in this world that I love to spend time with, and to try and put words to it would only cheapen it.
You are one of the most caring and nurturing people I know. I guess the quality I admire most about you is your loyalty. I know that if I ever need anything from you, you'll be there for me. I just honestly love you and appreciate you. You make me feel loved. I can't tell you how many times I've needed you to cheer me up while I've been gone. But I know that you've prayed for me the whole time I've been gone. That cheered me up!!
Brandi, I am honored that you consider me a friend. Please know that I love you and miss you. 35 days till DUCK hair is back!!
DUCK Hair
Leave some love!
-Robert
PS- Don't I have the cutest girlfriend ever????
ARRRRGGGHH!!
Tuesday, November 01, 2005
New Plans (maybe)
Salutations. This has been an interesting week. I know, it's only Tuesday but I feel like this week has been going for a month. (that sentence wasn't supposed to make sense.) I have some good news for all of you in the Roberto fan club. I'm coming home on Dec. 9th instead of Dec. 17th. Val and TJ's wedding is the 10th and I just don't feel right about missing it just so I can go to one more class. This is still tentative, but I think it's going to happen. I've already talked to Troy about it and he was very understanding. [Just a side note- Troy is the best supervisor/mentor I could have ever hoped for. We have MANY things in common and he is honestly one of the most genuine people I've ever met. He is really helping me better my character and become the man I want to be. We've been through many of the same trials and have the same outlook on most things. I wouldn't still be here in Wales if it weren't for him.]
I also want to go to Smyrna REALLY badly. This prospect has really interested Stella, so help me convince her to leave early as well. If everything works out all of these things will happen. I can't wait to get home to all of my friends and family. I had no idea the amount of emotional strain that being on the mission field puts on you.
This leads me to my next point. I know that Stella and I have said that we need your prayers. We've needed them the whole trip and we thank you for them. They are the only things that have kept us sane during this trip. Well that time has come again. Troy and I are starting some really intensive counseling sessions this week. They will continue for the 39 days that I have left here. I don't really want to go in to details about it on my journal. I just really need prayer and support from all of you guys right now. There are things in my life that need to change. I'm tired of dealing with these issues and now is the time for change. It's going to be grueling and tough, but worth every bit of the hard work and stress. Thanks in advance!
As Stella said in her blog things are going really well with our youth. Thank God for the change in their attitudes. Last Sunday really made all of the trials and stress worth it. Continue to pray for our efforts with these Youth. Here are their names. Delasi, Makafui, Louis, Aaron, Timbali (sp?). These are our regulars on Sunday nights for our bible study.
Sorry that some of this post wasn't more cheerful. This place can really sap you of your joy sometimes. It's starting to do that to me, but I've started to put a stop to it. I miss all of you and can't wait to see you again. Leave some love!!
-Robert
I also want to go to Smyrna REALLY badly. This prospect has really interested Stella, so help me convince her to leave early as well. If everything works out all of these things will happen. I can't wait to get home to all of my friends and family. I had no idea the amount of emotional strain that being on the mission field puts on you.
This leads me to my next point. I know that Stella and I have said that we need your prayers. We've needed them the whole trip and we thank you for them. They are the only things that have kept us sane during this trip. Well that time has come again. Troy and I are starting some really intensive counseling sessions this week. They will continue for the 39 days that I have left here. I don't really want to go in to details about it on my journal. I just really need prayer and support from all of you guys right now. There are things in my life that need to change. I'm tired of dealing with these issues and now is the time for change. It's going to be grueling and tough, but worth every bit of the hard work and stress. Thanks in advance!
As Stella said in her blog things are going really well with our youth. Thank God for the change in their attitudes. Last Sunday really made all of the trials and stress worth it. Continue to pray for our efforts with these Youth. Here are their names. Delasi, Makafui, Louis, Aaron, Timbali (sp?). These are our regulars on Sunday nights for our bible study.
Sorry that some of this post wasn't more cheerful. This place can really sap you of your joy sometimes. It's starting to do that to me, but I've started to put a stop to it. I miss all of you and can't wait to see you again. Leave some love!!
-Robert
Friday, October 28, 2005
7 down, 7 to go
Salutations. It's been a really boring week. Troy is out of town, and some of our normal things have been postponed until next week. It has kinda had the feel of the first week that I was here. That means I haven't had the best week, but it hasn't been the worst week since I've been here.
I hoped that this time wouldn't come, but it has. I'm starting to feel really lonely and detached from things at home. I know, I'm 5,000 miles away from home. I'm supposed to be detached from events and people that I love. I just feel like the people that I care about have continued on without me. (I know that the world doesn't revolve around me. I know everyone's lives didn't come to a screeching halt when my plane took off.) I feel like I'm on an island and no one cares to see how I am. I know, many of you ask Ginny how I am on a regular basis. But that doesn't always translate to me. She can't always remember who said what and when. So from now on if you want to ask how I am here's how you do it. rklitton@gmail.com I'd really love to hear from you guys on a more regular basis.
This week is the halfway point. 7 down and 7 to go. I think I've made up my mind that I'm coming home in December. This will make Ginny, TJ and my parents very happy. Unless God gives my burning bush I'll be home for Valentines Day!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(This will be a short summary of my "lost post" of the other day)
This being the halfway point, let's summarize what I've learned:
I have a TON of growing up to do. I have so many character flaws it's not even funny. I've learned so much about myself in just 7 weeks. I really feel like I'm a better person and Christian. The difference is now I see that I have a LONG way to go to be where I should be. Will I ever get there? Check back in 50 years or so.
Long distance relationships = HARD WORK. It's so hard having a relationship over the phone. It takes so much work for it to even come close to being fulfilling. In person, your body language says so much about what you are saying. There are times that one of us will be joking around with the other and someone ends up getting their feeling hurt. It's just hard to communicate feelings over the phone. But just like in life you have to learn and adapt. Ginny and I have really gotten better at this phone thing. She has really been there for me even though she HATES the phone. Thanks babe. You really are the best. Boy I can't wait until I can look into your eyes....
Even though they speak English, the Welsh people speak a whole different language. There are alot of things that are taboo here that aren't in the States and visa versa. It took Stella and I over a month to figure out what they were and change our behavior (or behaviour in the UK.) I wasn't prepared at all for the culture shock that was waiting on us. I'll know for next time I travel abroad. (hopefully in July ;)
That the simpler life is, the better it is. I'm learning to do less things better. This can be applied to pretty much any facet of your life. Have fewer good friends and be more intimate with them. Spend a little less time with your "partner" but make it more quality time. Stop trying to win the whole world for Jesus and focus on your sphere of influence. My life will be WAY different when I get back. But not that many of you will see a change. It will be something internal that I have to apply to my life back home.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'm glad I was open enough to come here. I really am different and I like who I am becoming. I jsu really miss you guys right now. Haloween is the first "holiday" that I've missed and Thanksgiving isn't that far behind. Say a little prayer for Stella and I. She won't tell you, but the separation is taking its toll on her too. If nothing else this trip has really made us appreciate all of you back home. Thanks to all of you who I call friends. You really make life special.
To all of my youth and staff at Jacksonville FBC: I miss you guys more and more each day. I can't wait to get back and start seeing you guys again. Derrick, you know what I think of you. It's not all bad. Apart from being a cotton headed ninny muggins, you are the best mentor and friend I could ever ask for. Kevin, your emails and comments cheer me up the most. I think it's because of the grammar and spelling, or the lack there of. Thanks man, I really appreciate them.
I think I'm going to start ending each post with an uplifting note to one of my friends. I'll have to make a list and post more, but it will be worth it. Next time: Brandi Grey. Until then, leave some love.
-Robert
I hoped that this time wouldn't come, but it has. I'm starting to feel really lonely and detached from things at home. I know, I'm 5,000 miles away from home. I'm supposed to be detached from events and people that I love. I just feel like the people that I care about have continued on without me. (I know that the world doesn't revolve around me. I know everyone's lives didn't come to a screeching halt when my plane took off.) I feel like I'm on an island and no one cares to see how I am. I know, many of you ask Ginny how I am on a regular basis. But that doesn't always translate to me. She can't always remember who said what and when. So from now on if you want to ask how I am here's how you do it. rklitton@gmail.com I'd really love to hear from you guys on a more regular basis.
This week is the halfway point. 7 down and 7 to go. I think I've made up my mind that I'm coming home in December. This will make Ginny, TJ and my parents very happy. Unless God gives my burning bush I'll be home for Valentines Day!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(This will be a short summary of my "lost post" of the other day)
This being the halfway point, let's summarize what I've learned:
I have a TON of growing up to do. I have so many character flaws it's not even funny. I've learned so much about myself in just 7 weeks. I really feel like I'm a better person and Christian. The difference is now I see that I have a LONG way to go to be where I should be. Will I ever get there? Check back in 50 years or so.
Long distance relationships = HARD WORK. It's so hard having a relationship over the phone. It takes so much work for it to even come close to being fulfilling. In person, your body language says so much about what you are saying. There are times that one of us will be joking around with the other and someone ends up getting their feeling hurt. It's just hard to communicate feelings over the phone. But just like in life you have to learn and adapt. Ginny and I have really gotten better at this phone thing. She has really been there for me even though she HATES the phone. Thanks babe. You really are the best. Boy I can't wait until I can look into your eyes....
Even though they speak English, the Welsh people speak a whole different language. There are alot of things that are taboo here that aren't in the States and visa versa. It took Stella and I over a month to figure out what they were and change our behavior (or behaviour in the UK.) I wasn't prepared at all for the culture shock that was waiting on us. I'll know for next time I travel abroad. (hopefully in July ;)
That the simpler life is, the better it is. I'm learning to do less things better. This can be applied to pretty much any facet of your life. Have fewer good friends and be more intimate with them. Spend a little less time with your "partner" but make it more quality time. Stop trying to win the whole world for Jesus and focus on your sphere of influence. My life will be WAY different when I get back. But not that many of you will see a change. It will be something internal that I have to apply to my life back home.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'm glad I was open enough to come here. I really am different and I like who I am becoming. I jsu really miss you guys right now. Haloween is the first "holiday" that I've missed and Thanksgiving isn't that far behind. Say a little prayer for Stella and I. She won't tell you, but the separation is taking its toll on her too. If nothing else this trip has really made us appreciate all of you back home. Thanks to all of you who I call friends. You really make life special.
To all of my youth and staff at Jacksonville FBC: I miss you guys more and more each day. I can't wait to get back and start seeing you guys again. Derrick, you know what I think of you. It's not all bad. Apart from being a cotton headed ninny muggins, you are the best mentor and friend I could ever ask for. Kevin, your emails and comments cheer me up the most. I think it's because of the grammar and spelling, or the lack there of. Thanks man, I really appreciate them.
I think I'm going to start ending each post with an uplifting note to one of my friends. I'll have to make a list and post more, but it will be worth it. Next time: Brandi Grey. Until then, leave some love.
-Robert
Sunday, October 23, 2005
AHHHH
I just spent on hour on a really great blog. It just vanished. I hate technology sometimes. I'll post later.
-Robert
-Robert
Saturday, October 15, 2005
The 15 the of October?!?!?
Salutations. What a weird and fun night. Instead of going to the pub, we all went to Jeff's church to shoot pool and hang out. Stella and I didn't get there until 8:30 ish. It kinda turned out to be a waste of time since only 5 of us were there. Well we came home and caught the last bus back to Grangetown. It let us off about 5 minutes away from where we usually get off, so we had to walk. It turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Stella and I got the chance to talk and just vent over the past week. We started walking back at around 11:30 and I didn't get home until 2am!! We talked about some really deep and meaningful stuff and I am so glad we did. The reason for the title is very funny. While we were talking all of these fireworks started to go off. They were loud and bright and they kinda scared the both of us. We were wondering if Wales had some kind of independence day we didn't know about. We were like, "October 15th. Who knew?" That story might not be funny, but it will be soon. While they were shooting them off they had a misfire. We just saw a blue flash of light and heard a big boom sound and the fireworks stopped. We laughed our heads off. It was great!!
I haven't been to the doctor, but Monday that should be sorted out. Don't worry, I feel WAY better than I did a couple of days ago. I get these ear infections all the time, so I'm used to them. Whenever the temperature changes from hot to cold rapidly I get them. I'm ok, but thanks for all of the concern.
Last but not least I need some prayer. I can't really go in to what it's all about here, but just pray for one of my relationships that I have here in Wales. It's pretty important to me and it's not doing so well right now. I just need some prayer from you guys. Thanks!! ;-)
Off to get ready for bed and get some well deserved sleep. Leave some love!!!!
-Robert
PS- More pics to come this week!!
I haven't been to the doctor, but Monday that should be sorted out. Don't worry, I feel WAY better than I did a couple of days ago. I get these ear infections all the time, so I'm used to them. Whenever the temperature changes from hot to cold rapidly I get them. I'm ok, but thanks for all of the concern.
Last but not least I need some prayer. I can't really go in to what it's all about here, but just pray for one of my relationships that I have here in Wales. It's pretty important to me and it's not doing so well right now. I just need some prayer from you guys. Thanks!! ;-)
Off to get ready for bed and get some well deserved sleep. Leave some love!!!!
-Robert
PS- More pics to come this week!!
Friday, October 14, 2005
Hoops and Hoops and Hoops
Salutations. I've had to jump through hoops and hoops to get to the doctor. I haven't gone yet because of insurance. It's a long story but things are going to get solved.
On a different note, here are my random thoughts. I'm not keen on being the guinea pig for this CONNECT thing. I know that someone has to do it, but it's just hard being the one to do it. There are a lot of things that would be easier for us had we not been the pioneers.
That's all for now. I'll update later.
-Robert
On a different note, here are my random thoughts. I'm not keen on being the guinea pig for this CONNECT thing. I know that someone has to do it, but it's just hard being the one to do it. There are a lot of things that would be easier for us had we not been the pioneers.
That's all for now. I'll update later.
-Robert
Tuesday, October 11, 2005
AHHHH!!
Hello all.
I HATE EAR INFECTIONS!!!
There, with that being said I feel better.
If you want to talk to me on the phone for free do the following. 1) Go buy a computer headphones with a microphone on it. 2) Go to www.Skype.com and download their free internet phone program 3) Create an account name. Mine is Robertoantony (don't ask, you don't want to know) The quality of the phone call is BETTER than cell phone conversation. It's free and SO easy to use. It's gonna save me a ton of money in talking with Ginny. I'd love some of you to get on board with it.
I feel like poo. I actually feel like the "c" word, but that word is naughty here. I have 1 possibly 2 ear infections. I won't go in to all of the details, but it's making my throat sore and stealing my appetite. I have to go to the doctor, but I can't do that until tomorrow afternoon. The pic is me with a beard. Why? Why not. Leave some love.
-Robert
Sunday, October 09, 2005
All kinds of foods....
Hello all. This has been an interesting week so far. I've had Indian, Persian, and Chinese food. The Persian food was unlike anything else I've ever tasted. It was SO strong. But not the strong you'd think. It was chicken stew flavored with pomegranate and walnut oil. They let this stew simmer for like 6 hours before they serve it. It's called "sweet meat". It's good and it's sweet. It is however REALLY stinkin strong. I'll have to go back to this place. The owner was really nice and the atmosphere was great. I like eating all of these different kinds of foods. I don't necessarily like all of the foods, but I like the opportunity to eat them.
I'm sitting here "watching" the Braves game on ESPN.com. We need to actually WIN a playoff series soon. I hate that feeling of watching them lose in the first round every year. I won't actually watch them this year, but you know what I mean. On a different note, HOW BOUT THEM DAWGS!!! I "hate" Tennessee. All that orange. Actually, I don't like any team that has orange in it. Tennessee, Auburn and Florida all seem very obnoxious
to me. It seems to me that Georgia and Alabama could very likely play for the SEC title in Atlanta this year. I'm not saying this to be mean, but pray to God you don't see us this year Alabama. We are stocked and deep and going to be tough to beat this year. It will be fun to "watch" though.
As you can tell, things are much better here. I'm settled in and am actually making some progress with the boys. School is actually interesting and Josh and I are really bonding. Things are going well here.
Ginny and I are doing really well. I'm really excited with the direction we are going in. She's been absolutely wonderful through all of this. Love ya Ginny!!
Watching more Braves. It looks like we are about to give the game away. sigh. Leave some love.
Wednesday, October 05, 2005
Oh those pixels...
Hello all. My title was a reference to something that Josh said at our meeting on Monday. It's been an uneventful week so far. A little miscommunication with the host parents caused some drama, but it's all good now.
I had real Indian food yesterday. It was ok. The combination of sweet and hot was a little odd. Josh said that the place we went wasn't that great, so I haven't given up on Indian just yet. I went and saw "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" today. It's my second favorite musical behind Phantom. Let's just say that I was underwhelmed. The cast wasn't impressive and the sound system was sketchy at best. But a mediocre musical is better than none at all.
Things are settling back down. I feel that I've made some breakthroughs with the kids lately. Just pray for their hearts and minds to be open.
The Braves start their playoff run today and Georgia plays tennessee this weekend. I really miss being able to watch sports this time of year. I'm just sayin.
Keep on sending the emails and comments. They are really appreciated. Leave the love!!
-Robert
I had real Indian food yesterday. It was ok. The combination of sweet and hot was a little odd. Josh said that the place we went wasn't that great, so I haven't given up on Indian just yet. I went and saw "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" today. It's my second favorite musical behind Phantom. Let's just say that I was underwhelmed. The cast wasn't impressive and the sound system was sketchy at best. But a mediocre musical is better than none at all.
Things are settling back down. I feel that I've made some breakthroughs with the kids lately. Just pray for their hearts and minds to be open.
The Braves start their playoff run today and Georgia plays tennessee this weekend. I really miss being able to watch sports this time of year. I'm just sayin.
Keep on sending the emails and comments. They are really appreciated. Leave the love!!
-Robert
Saturday, October 01, 2005
No, it's October!!
Hello all. So it's now October. October is my favorite month of the year. Playoff baseball, college football, and marching band come to mind. If you've known me for more than 10 minutes you know that these are some of my favorite things. Also, the weather is perfect in the Southeast. 70 degrees with a slight breeze. Ahhh. I'm convinced that heaven will be much like this. The leaves turning colors and the smell of the crisp autumn air. These are all things that I'll miss this fall. It's cold here and it's starting to mist or rain every day now. The weather man says that this week might just be the last "good one" of the year. I'm writing this not because I'm depressed, but because I want you to go outside and spend some quality time outdoors before it gets cold. This is the time of year to go on a picnic with that special someone. If you don't have that special someone, go outside and read your bible under a big shade tree. Do it just once for me.
I'm doing much better now. Note: Things aren't getting any better.) Some things have happened since my last blog that are just as bad as what prompted me to panic. It's just that now I have the right perspective on things. I'm here for a reason and nothing short of God will stop me from completing my task.
I'm doing much better now. Note: Things aren't getting any better.) Some things have happened since my last blog that are just as bad as what prompted me to panic. It's just that now I have the right perspective on things. I'm here for a reason and nothing short of God will stop me from completing my task.
My task must be something pretty special for me to come under such a fierce attack. I've been strengthened by my support group here. I've also been uplifted by people from home. You'll never know how much I needed you and how much you've helped me. To all my friends and family that have been thinking and praying for me: thank you. I'm better now and I'm more focused and together in my emotions. Gin, you are the best. You are a constant source of encouragement and support. I now know what you went through this summer and it helps me to understand you and your actions better. I love you and can't wait to be able to love you better. You were right to say that it's going to be great to put the things we are learning in to practice. I can't wait!!
Well, I have to go home and call my lovely girlfriend and go to sleep. To all you Alabama fans out there: ROLL TIDE ROLL!! I love it when anyone beats Florida. Leave some love!
-Robert
Thursday, September 29, 2005
Is it December yet?
Hello all. To be really honest this has been one of the hardest weeks of my life. I don't think that I understood what I was stepping in to before I got here. Not the physical part of this, or even the emotional part. I've learned that I'm on the frontline of spiritual warfare. It's become clear to me that I've been under attack this past week, or really since I've been here. Tuesday night I learned that my first cousin was in a head on collision with an SUV. They airlifted him to Grady Hospital. If any of you know Atlanta, you know that Grady is where they take the really bad trauma cases. To be honest I panicked. I called all of the people in my immediate support group. I wanted to come home. Real bad. Have I conveyed how badly I wanted to come home? Well long story short my cousin will be fine. He will be soon or has already been released from the hospital. It's seriously by God's hand that he is alive. It's a big relief to me and my family. Thank you so much to all of my friends who prayed for him during all of this. I'm convinced that's a part of why he's still alive.
One of the hardest parts of this is how I've handled the stress of all of this. I've allowed all of the joy that I had about this trip to be taken from me. I'm so emotionally spent right now. I don't have much to offer anyone right now, much less the ability to minister to someone. To top it all off, I've been a HUGE jerk to Ginny. She has had to put up with so much of my crap this past week or so. I've been unfair and I've made our relationship pretty miserable during this time. Ginny, I'm truly sorry for how I've treated you. You haven't deserved it, in fact you deserve so much better than what I've given you. I know you've said that you forgive me. I just wanted to let everyone know about it, where they can keep me accountable in the coming weeks. I love you and I'm very thankful for you. Please allow my actions to realign with my heart. Be patient with me. I know you will, that's why I love you. Thanks Gin.
All of this makes me know that I'm supposed to be here. Why else would I have been attacked so relentlessly? I'm going to post part of an email that Troy sent me. I hope you don't mind Troy. It really surmises what is going on here:
As I was thinking about your situation, the thought occurred to me, "why is this happening?" The answer that came back in light of what I know about you, was that this is the first of many trials for Robert. You see you have a call to work in international missions on your life. This comes with many sacrifices. You will miss the birth, death, marriages of many that are close to you. Remember our reading in Luke 14:25-27. I like it especially in the Message.
One day when large groups of people were walking along with him, Jesus turned and told them, "Anyone who comes to me but refuses to let go of father, mother, spouse, children, brothers, sister--yes, even one's own self!--can't be my disciple. Anyone who won't shoulder his own cross and follow behind me can't be my disciple.
You may find that being away from Ginny, this accident with your cousin, your grandmother's health are all tests of your commitment to follow the call on your life. They all come, and you cannot serve God overseas and be with 'the family' at every crisis and celebration. I too, am the one looked to for stability in my family. I felt a great weight of responsibility when all hell seemed to break loose on my family after I left. They kept calling wanting me to sort it out. In the end I had to say,"no." They needed to be away from me as much as I needed to be away from them. You see when I was taken out of the picture, they had to depend more on God and each other to get through the crisis. I needed to be released from the pressure and I needed to release them to God. Some heavy but necessary lessons that I see potential for if you are willing for God to teach you.
I really think that last line is what He is doing here. As much as He worked on my character this summer He is back at it again. It took losing Ginny to realize that changes needed to be made. I think that this week has been another wake up call. A call to radical character molding. There are many areas that need reshaping in my life. I think that this trip will serve to be the catalyst and hopefully the beginning of the process. I just ask a couple things of you people out there that read my blog:
1. Please pray for me and my team. We are under attack and we need to be blanketed with prayer.
2. Pray specifically for the areas in my character that I'll be letting go of. The big one right now is forgiveness. I'll update as more surface.
3. Pray that I'll be more Christ-like in my important relationships. Ginny, family, and friends. So pretty much ALL my relationships.
4. Pray that this will become fun again. Until this week started I was having the time of my life here. I need that feeling to return.
5. Be patient with me.
Thanks so very much for supporting me through all of this. I need you guys to lift me up right now because I'm really down. I know that this will work out for the best. It's just hard to see that right now. Well, it's bed time here. Homework day tomorrow and off to the pub after that. I'll post as much as I need to, so look for updates soon. Leave some love.
-Robert
One of the hardest parts of this is how I've handled the stress of all of this. I've allowed all of the joy that I had about this trip to be taken from me. I'm so emotionally spent right now. I don't have much to offer anyone right now, much less the ability to minister to someone. To top it all off, I've been a HUGE jerk to Ginny. She has had to put up with so much of my crap this past week or so. I've been unfair and I've made our relationship pretty miserable during this time. Ginny, I'm truly sorry for how I've treated you. You haven't deserved it, in fact you deserve so much better than what I've given you. I know you've said that you forgive me. I just wanted to let everyone know about it, where they can keep me accountable in the coming weeks. I love you and I'm very thankful for you. Please allow my actions to realign with my heart. Be patient with me. I know you will, that's why I love you. Thanks Gin.
All of this makes me know that I'm supposed to be here. Why else would I have been attacked so relentlessly? I'm going to post part of an email that Troy sent me. I hope you don't mind Troy. It really surmises what is going on here:
As I was thinking about your situation, the thought occurred to me, "why is this happening?" The answer that came back in light of what I know about you, was that this is the first of many trials for Robert. You see you have a call to work in international missions on your life. This comes with many sacrifices. You will miss the birth, death, marriages of many that are close to you. Remember our reading in Luke 14:25-27. I like it especially in the Message.
One day when large groups of people were walking along with him, Jesus turned and told them, "Anyone who comes to me but refuses to let go of father, mother, spouse, children, brothers, sister--yes, even one's own self!--can't be my disciple. Anyone who won't shoulder his own cross and follow behind me can't be my disciple.
You may find that being away from Ginny, this accident with your cousin, your grandmother's health are all tests of your commitment to follow the call on your life. They all come, and you cannot serve God overseas and be with 'the family' at every crisis and celebration. I too, am the one looked to for stability in my family. I felt a great weight of responsibility when all hell seemed to break loose on my family after I left. They kept calling wanting me to sort it out. In the end I had to say,"no." They needed to be away from me as much as I needed to be away from them. You see when I was taken out of the picture, they had to depend more on God and each other to get through the crisis. I needed to be released from the pressure and I needed to release them to God. Some heavy but necessary lessons that I see potential for if you are willing for God to teach you.
I really think that last line is what He is doing here. As much as He worked on my character this summer He is back at it again. It took losing Ginny to realize that changes needed to be made. I think that this week has been another wake up call. A call to radical character molding. There are many areas that need reshaping in my life. I think that this trip will serve to be the catalyst and hopefully the beginning of the process. I just ask a couple things of you people out there that read my blog:
1. Please pray for me and my team. We are under attack and we need to be blanketed with prayer.
2. Pray specifically for the areas in my character that I'll be letting go of. The big one right now is forgiveness. I'll update as more surface.
3. Pray that I'll be more Christ-like in my important relationships. Ginny, family, and friends. So pretty much ALL my relationships.
4. Pray that this will become fun again. Until this week started I was having the time of my life here. I need that feeling to return.
5. Be patient with me.
Thanks so very much for supporting me through all of this. I need you guys to lift me up right now because I'm really down. I know that this will work out for the best. It's just hard to see that right now. Well, it's bed time here. Homework day tomorrow and off to the pub after that. I'll post as much as I need to, so look for updates soon. Leave some love.
-Robert
Sunday, September 25, 2005
Hooray for ME!!
Hello all. I think that I may have to post more often. Since Wednesday a lot of stuff has happened. I may have forgotten some of it, but I'll try my best to remember. Here we go....
School was really good on Thursday. I'm not learning a lot in the terms you'd think. Most of what we are doing now is stuff I already know. It's about how to build relationships with youth and why that is important . That's not hard for me. I know that relational ministry is where the heart of God is. I think that God is preparing me for the stuff we are going to do in the near future. I can't wait!
Here at the church things are going well. We got permission to tear up the youth room tonight from the deacons. We have a lot of work to do and I'm really looking forward to it. As I've grown older I've learned to appreciate working with my hands more and more. We have to chisel away part of a wall and tear off some wood paneling before we can start working. We start that Wednesday and I'm looking forward to it.
Friday all the guys met at Troy's for our accountability group. It's going to be really cool. I'm going to get to know the Scriptures so much better. Saturday we had an actual American breakfast at Troy's house. It takes about 45 minutes to get to Troy's and we met at 9:30 am. But to have real biscuits and gravy I'd get up at 4 or 5 am. We ate and babysat Troy'd 4 kids until 4 ish. It was cool to just be around kids and not think about anything for an extended period of time.
Tonight Stella and I had dinner at Brian's. Brian is my favorite Welshman. He has a story about EVERYTHING. He is a retired history teacher and can talk the night away. We sat around and had intellectual conversation for about 3 hours. He is a riot. I really hope we can do that again.
On a completely unrelated note, I think that we are beginning to bond as a class. We have been hanging out with the Brits that are in class with us. We meet up every Saturday night at a pub called Dewi's. It's in the Centre City and it's really neat. Christians here are allowed to go to the pubs, it's THE social gathering place here. It's cool to go to a pub and not feel like I'm being judged. Well enough of that. I took some pictures at the pub Saturday. We had a blast. We all got nick names. Mine's "Tea Leaf". I have no idea why or where Nick got it from, but I like it. Check the pics out.
On a very personal note, please pray for me and my family. I'm not going to go in to detail, but we need your prayers. It's not life or death but I'd appreciate you keeping us in your prayers. Also please pray for me and Ginny. We've had an emotional week. We've worked through a lot of issues together and we need a break from stress. Oh, and the fact that we've spent 9 days together in the past 4 months doesn't help.
Life is good right now. This is the happiest that I've ever been. God has been so very good to me. I have the best friends anyone could ever ask for. I have a wonderful girlfriend that supports and loves me so much. She brings so much joy and happiness in to my life. I have a healthy family. I have 2 churches that love and support me on a scale that I don't deserve. I'm living a dream right now. Thanks to all of you that make my life great. Keep posting your comments and emails. I really appreciate all of them. Leave some love!!
-Robert
School was really good on Thursday. I'm not learning a lot in the terms you'd think. Most of what we are doing now is stuff I already know. It's about how to build relationships with youth and why that is important . That's not hard for me. I know that relational ministry is where the heart of God is. I think that God is preparing me for the stuff we are going to do in the near future. I can't wait!
Here at the church things are going well. We got permission to tear up the youth room tonight from the deacons. We have a lot of work to do and I'm really looking forward to it. As I've grown older I've learned to appreciate working with my hands more and more. We have to chisel away part of a wall and tear off some wood paneling before we can start working. We start that Wednesday and I'm looking forward to it.
Friday all the guys met at Troy's for our accountability group. It's going to be really cool. I'm going to get to know the Scriptures so much better. Saturday we had an actual American breakfast at Troy's house. It takes about 45 minutes to get to Troy's and we met at 9:30 am. But to have real biscuits and gravy I'd get up at 4 or 5 am. We ate and babysat Troy'd 4 kids until 4 ish. It was cool to just be around kids and not think about anything for an extended period of time.
Tonight Stella and I had dinner at Brian's. Brian is my favorite Welshman. He has a story about EVERYTHING. He is a retired history teacher and can talk the night away. We sat around and had intellectual conversation for about 3 hours. He is a riot. I really hope we can do that again.
On a completely unrelated note, I think that we are beginning to bond as a class. We have been hanging out with the Brits that are in class with us. We meet up every Saturday night at a pub called Dewi's. It's in the Centre City and it's really neat. Christians here are allowed to go to the pubs, it's THE social gathering place here. It's cool to go to a pub and not feel like I'm being judged. Well enough of that. I took some pictures at the pub Saturday. We had a blast. We all got nick names. Mine's "Tea Leaf". I have no idea why or where Nick got it from, but I like it. Check the pics out.
On a very personal note, please pray for me and my family. I'm not going to go in to detail, but we need your prayers. It's not life or death but I'd appreciate you keeping us in your prayers. Also please pray for me and Ginny. We've had an emotional week. We've worked through a lot of issues together and we need a break from stress. Oh, and the fact that we've spent 9 days together in the past 4 months doesn't help.
Life is good right now. This is the happiest that I've ever been. God has been so very good to me. I have the best friends anyone could ever ask for. I have a wonderful girlfriend that supports and loves me so much. She brings so much joy and happiness in to my life. I have a healthy family. I have 2 churches that love and support me on a scale that I don't deserve. I'm living a dream right now. Thanks to all of you that make my life great. Keep posting your comments and emails. I really appreciate all of them. Leave some love!!
-Robert
Hooray for ME!!
Hello all. I think that I may have to post more often. Since Wednesday a lot of stuff has happened. I may have forgotten some of it, but I'll try my best to remember. Here we go....
School was really good on Thursday. I'm not learning a lot in the terms you'd think. Most of what we are doing now is stuff I already know. It's about how to build relationships with youth and why that is important . That's not hard for me. I know that relational ministry is where the heart of God is. I think that God is preparing me for the stuff we are going to do in the near future. I can't wait!
Here at the church things are going well. We got permission to tear up the youth room tonight from the deacons. We have a lot of work to do and I'm really looking forward to it. As I've grown older I've learned to appreciate working with my hands more and more. We have to chisel away part of a wall and tear off some wood paneling before we can start working. We start that Wednesday and I'm looking forward to it.
Friday all the guys met at Troy's for our accountability group. It's going to be really cool. I'm going to get to know the Scriptures so much better. Saturday we had an actual American breakfast at Troy's house. It takes about 45 minutes to get to Troy's and we met at 9:30 am. But to have real biscuits and gravy I'd get up at 4 or 5 am. We ate and babysat Troy'd 4 kids until 4 ish. It was cool to just be around kids and not think about anything for an extended period of time.
Tonight Stella and I had dinner at Brian's. Brian is my favorite Welshman. He has a story about EVERYTHING. He is a retired history teacher and can talk the night away. We sat around and had intellectual conversation for about 3 hours. He is a riot. I really hope we can do that again.
On a completely unrelated note, I think that we are beginning to bond as a class. We have been hanging out with the Brits that are in class with us. We meet up every Saturday night at a pub called Dewi's. It's in the Centre City and it's really neat. Christians here are allowed to go to the pubs, it's THE social gathering place here. It's cool to go to a pub and not feel like I'm being judged. Well enough of that. I took some pictures at the pub Saturday. We had a blast. We all got nick names. Mine's "Tea Leaf". I have no idea why or where Nick got it from, but I like it. Check the pics out.
On a very personal note, please pray for me and my family. I'm not going to go in to detail, but we need your prayers. It's not life or death but I'd appreciate you keeping us in your prayers. Also please pray for me and Ginny. We've had an emotional week. We've worked through a lot of issues together and we need a break from stress. Oh, and the fact that we've spent 9 days together in the past 4 months doesn't help.
Life is good right now. This is the happiest that I've ever been. God has been so very good to me. I have the best friends anyone could ever ask for. I have a wonderful girlfriend that supports and loves me so much. She brings so much joy and happiness in to my life. I have a healthy family. I have 2 churches that love and support me on a scale that I don't deserve. I'm living a dream right now. Thanks to all of you that make my life great. Keep posting your comments and emails. I really appreciate all of them. Leave some love!!
-Robert
School was really good on Thursday. I'm not learning a lot in the terms you'd think. Most of what we are doing now is stuff I already know. It's about how to build relationships with youth and why that is important . That's not hard for me. I know that relational ministry is where the heart of God is. I think that God is preparing me for the stuff we are going to do in the near future. I can't wait!
Here at the church things are going well. We got permission to tear up the youth room tonight from the deacons. We have a lot of work to do and I'm really looking forward to it. As I've grown older I've learned to appreciate working with my hands more and more. We have to chisel away part of a wall and tear off some wood paneling before we can start working. We start that Wednesday and I'm looking forward to it.
Friday all the guys met at Troy's for our accountability group. It's going to be really cool. I'm going to get to know the Scriptures so much better. Saturday we had an actual American breakfast at Troy's house. It takes about 45 minutes to get to Troy's and we met at 9:30 am. But to have real biscuits and gravy I'd get up at 4 or 5 am. We ate and babysat Troy'd 4 kids until 4 ish. It was cool to just be around kids and not think about anything for an extended period of time.
Tonight Stella and I had dinner at Brian's. Brian is my favorite Welshman. He has a story about EVERYTHING. He is a retired history teacher and can talk the night away. We sat around and had intellectual conversation for about 3 hours. He is a riot. I really hope we can do that again.
On a completely unrelated note, I think that we are beginning to bond as a class. We have been hanging out with the Brits that are in class with us. We meet up every Saturday night at a pub called Dewi's. It's in the Centre City and it's really neat. Christians here are allowed to go to the pubs, it's THE social gathering place here. It's cool to go to a pub and not feel like I'm being judged. Well enough of that. I took some pictures at the pub Saturday. We had a blast. We all got nick names. Mine's "Tea Leaf". I have no idea why or where Nick got it from, but I like it. Check the pics out.
On a very personal note, please pray for me and my family. I'm not going to go in to detail, but we need your prayers. It's not life or death but I'd appreciate you keeping us in your prayers. Also please pray for me and Ginny. We've had an emotional week. We've worked through a lot of issues together and we need a break from stress. Oh, and the fact that we've spent 9 days together in the past 4 months doesn't help.
Life is good right now. This is the happiest that I've ever been. God has been so very good to me. I have the best friends anyone could ever ask for. I have a wonderful girlfriend that supports and loves me so much. She brings so much joy and happiness in to my life. I have a healthy family. I have 2 churches that love and support me on a scale that I don't deserve. I'm living a dream right now. Thanks to all of you that make my life great. Keep posting your comments and emails. I really appreciate all of them. Leave some love!!
-Robert
Wednesday, September 21, 2005
Sorry Ginny, I'm taken
Hello all. Just sitting here in the computer lab with Jeff and Josh surfing the web. As Stella said in her blog we had prayer meeting this morning, followed by our Wednesday lunch at Yum-Yum's. We have to clean the youth room out at 4:30 today. I'm really tired already and it's only 2:45. This will be a long, but good day.
Sunday morning at church the funniest thing happened. A lady in the church couldn't remember Stella's name. Then she said, "Oh yes that's right, you're Robert's wife." Stella politely said that we were just friends that met each other at university. So apparently Stella and I are married. Sorry Ginny, I'm taken. I guess you can be my side dish. (j/k) Stella and I cracked up about that. I love Stella a whole bunch, but a relationship between us would end up in a funeral. Good times though.
We have "school" tomorrow. I love the fact that my bus stop is right outside my front door. I really like school. It takes a new and fresh angle at discipleship and evangelism. It's really great and has made me think outside the box. I love it.
Well I'm gonna go and take some pictures of the room before we start the clean-up process. I miss you all and can't wait to see you again. Leave some love!!
-Robert
Sunday morning at church the funniest thing happened. A lady in the church couldn't remember Stella's name. Then she said, "Oh yes that's right, you're Robert's wife." Stella politely said that we were just friends that met each other at university. So apparently Stella and I are married. Sorry Ginny, I'm taken. I guess you can be my side dish. (j/k) Stella and I cracked up about that. I love Stella a whole bunch, but a relationship between us would end up in a funeral. Good times though.
We have "school" tomorrow. I love the fact that my bus stop is right outside my front door. I really like school. It takes a new and fresh angle at discipleship and evangelism. It's really great and has made me think outside the box. I love it.
Well I'm gonna go and take some pictures of the room before we start the clean-up process. I miss you all and can't wait to see you again. Leave some love!!
-Robert
Monday, September 19, 2005
Home
Hello all. This will be a short post, as I'm short on time. I've had a good and restful weekend. Saturday was restful and quiet. Sunday was good again. Sunday morning I went with the kids to Sunday School. I love kids and hopefully these kids will love me.
Sunday night was a little more stressful. We had Youth Group and Lewis and Makafui were pressing my buttons all night. Even through all of that we had a great and productive meeting. The church is giving us a room for the Youth. Stella and I are letting them design how the room will look. They thought up a pretty neat design. Now it's not as nice as Jacksonville's, but it's pretty cool none the less. Wednesday we start the cleanup of the room. Let's hope all goes well.
Sunday night I moved in to my permanent host home. Staying with Pastor Fred and his family was great. They were kind and very hospitable to me. They really made me feel like a part of their family. I'm actually Uncle Robert to them!! I moved in with some senior adults. Their names are Alan and Elvira. They have a wonderful home and are also very kind and gracious to me. I actually watch ESPN Sunday Night Baseball last night. Granted it started at 1 am, but it was great. I'm going to post some pics of my room and their house.
I have to go. My first dinner with them. I don't want to be late. Yes Brandi, I was going to call you guys this week. Let me know a day and time that all of you girls will be together and I'll call. Leave some love!!
-Robert
Sunday night was a little more stressful. We had Youth Group and Lewis and Makafui were pressing my buttons all night. Even through all of that we had a great and productive meeting. The church is giving us a room for the Youth. Stella and I are letting them design how the room will look. They thought up a pretty neat design. Now it's not as nice as Jacksonville's, but it's pretty cool none the less. Wednesday we start the cleanup of the room. Let's hope all goes well.
Sunday night I moved in to my permanent host home. Staying with Pastor Fred and his family was great. They were kind and very hospitable to me. They really made me feel like a part of their family. I'm actually Uncle Robert to them!! I moved in with some senior adults. Their names are Alan and Elvira. They have a wonderful home and are also very kind and gracious to me. I actually watch ESPN Sunday Night Baseball last night. Granted it started at 1 am, but it was great. I'm going to post some pics of my room and their house.
I have to go. My first dinner with them. I don't want to be late. Yes Brandi, I was going to call you guys this week. Let me know a day and time that all of you girls will be together and I'll call. Leave some love!!
-Robert
Thursday, September 15, 2005
Back to school, back to school....
| Hello all. Well before I tell you about class, let me tell you about the trek to class. We were supposed to be there at 9. It takes about an hour to get to class from here. Stella didn't arrive here until 8:20. We got to the bus stop at 8:25 and Josh arrived shortly after. The bus was supposed to get there at 8:28. At 8:35 instead of the bus stopping at the stop it just kept on truckin'. The next bus wasn't due until 9. We walked to the next street over and caught another bus in to town. We got on the bus at 8:55. Well long story short we arrived at class at 9:40. Oh, did I mention that it was raining during all of this? The sad part is that Jeff was an hour late. His bus just didn't show up. So all of the Americans were late to class today. Bad Americans. We blended well with the Brit students. We will work well and become good friends with them. Good times. I really like "school" so far. They don't like us calling it school. It is the knowledge that they are giving us to support our ministry. Well anyways, it's really neat. I'll be getting a certificate (like a vocational school diploma) in Youth Sports. It will actually allow me to get paid for coaching and working with youth here in Britian. Maybe there is a job in the future for me if I were to move to Wales one day. Just a thought. I'm actually beginning to settle in here. Not to say that this is home yet, but it's becoming familiar. Friday is an off day and Saturday I may go for a boat ride in the bay with the Lewis, Mekafui and Delasi. Saturday night I might babysit for Troy. Who knows. Good day, but long. Off to call my lovely girlfriend and then it's sleepy bunny. (for Maggs) Leave some love!! -Robert |
Wednesday, September 14, 2005
Milk'em Dry!!!!
Hello all. Actually some school related stuff to report. We had orientation on Tuesday. It was from 9-4 and it was a blast. Here are the names of my team followed by our superiors and what they do. (so when I talk about these people you know who they are) Team- Stella (you know her I bet); Joshua-from Rochester,NY;Jeff-from Richmond via Atlanta; and Robert (me). Our superiors- Troy and Cheryl Blankenship (IMB missionaries and team leaders with 4 kids from OK); Rob and Jenny Burns (what irony--They are are CONNECT supervisors. Connect is our schooling while we are here. 4 kids as well.) Tom and Ann (don't remember their last names but he is from Trussville and she is from Oxford!) They are our team logistics coordinators. Kelley is a 26 year old journeyman from TX. There are also 6 British students as well. I'll get to that in a minute. In orientation we learned about Cardiff and the cultures we will be dealing with. Islam is the biggest culture and religion in the areas we will be working and living in. I never knew that learning about other cultures would be so interesting to me. It was great, and Josh and Amir are going to teach me some basic Arabic!! How cool!! We are also in a mentoring program. Troy is my mentor. Rob told us this about our relationships with our mentors, "milk'em dry!" As he said that Jeff said, "That's gonna be the next title of Robert's blog!" Good call Jeff, good call.
-Robert |
Monday, September 12, 2005
My mobile (cell) number
| I forgot to put this in the last post. My cell number is as follows. Dial it exactly like it's typed. 00144-7914-315-512. Call me anytime, just remember add 6 hours if you are in Alabama 5 in Georgia. You better not wake me up!! Leave the love. -Robert |
The last day of nothing
| Hello all. Let's work backwards, shall we? Sunday was good. We attended our first church service here at Grangetown Baptist. It went well, I went to Sunday school with the children. There are about 15 or so kids that are regulars. It was good to meet them and start to work with them. It will be our job to train some more kids and youth workers. I don't feel qualified to teach "adults" how to run Sunday school, but God will use me somehow. Sunday night was my first time with the youth. There are 4 or 5 regulars, and I foresee this to be our biggest challenge. The kids that are there are in the mindset that only good people go to church. That will make evangelism hard. Our first task will be to make the kids understand that EVERYONE needs a relationship with Christ, not just the good people. Pray for us, it's gonna be an uphill battle. Today I had lunch in the City Centre with Stella and some of the church members. It was good to be out of the house and the area. Nothing against Grangetown, but we haven't had anything to do since Friday. Today is the last day of nothing, tomorrow is orientation. Wednesday is induction and Thursday classes start. Back to the subject. After lunch we went shopping. We went to a place that Americans call a mall. Here in the UK it's called an arcade. It's really neat and beautiful. I'll have to take a picture and put it up later. They are the prettiest parts of the city to me. I bought 2 books at the Christian bookstore. I could have spent hundreds of dollars today, the shops are that great. Oh, for all of you 1st Baptist people I'm getting some new glasses next week. They are really cheap here. Around 35-40 quid for the eye exam, frames and lenses. (quid is a slang term for pounds; thanks Kevin, you really are my hero.) That equates to about 70-80 dollars for the whole package. As nice as my duct tape glasses are, I need some new ones. Please pray for the following: I'm leading worship Wednesday and Thursday at induction and the first day of class. I'm really nervous about it, so please pray for me. I'm worried about raising money if I do stay. Many of you will wonder how that can be. It will cost £2800 to stay the whole 10 months. 2800 times 1.84= $5152. (1.84 is the exchange rate) That's just the money for tuition and meals. I would have no spending money and no way of earning more. Just pray that first off I will hear God in all of this and two that I'll be obedient to whatever He wants. Also, pray for Ginny. I know she doesn't want me to put this up, but she needs it. Our separation for this long has been hard on us, and the prospect of adding 6 more months doesn't help. We both need your prayers. Thanks for all of the continued comments and prayers. They mean more to me than you will ever know. I miss all of you and can't wait to see you again. Whether I stay the 10 months or just 4 I have to come home for Christmas. One week down 14 to go!! Leave some love!! -Robert |
Saturday, September 10, 2005
Welcome to Wales!!
Hello all. A lazy and restful day here in Cardiff. We had our coffee shop this morning. Rather uneventful, but a good time. Stella and I met with pastor Fred and the leaders of the church after coffee shop. It was good, and we now hove a gameplan. After the meeting I went on a little bike ride with Fred's two sons and their best friend. So Delasi, Mekafui, Lewis and I set of to ASDA. ASDA is their version of Wal-Mart. It's about 7-10 minutes away on a bike. It's good to know where it is. Well we went in and out of some of the shops in and around ASDA. We decided to go to Cardiff Bay. Well right as we were halfway there, it started raining. It was a heavy rain. So we waited part of it out under a walkway that wasn't solid. It was a metal mesh walkway that shielded us from some of the rain. As it was raining Delasi said, "Welcome to Wales, this is how it is here." So I think that today was my first taste of how wet it is here. We were SOAKED!! It was a good time. I'm sitting here tracking college football on ESPN.com. I really miss sitting down Saturday afternoon and watching college football all day long. I really hope the 'Dawgs put a hurtin on South Carolina. Well enough of the randomness. Check out the new pictures I have up. Some of them are quite funny. I miss you all and think of you often. Leave me some love!! -Robert |
Friday, September 09, 2005
Insert cute title here
| Hello all. This shall be a short post. It's 12:20 am here. I drank a glass of tea at 10:30 that's keeping me up. Here's what happened today: Woke up at 11:30 am. It was great. I think my body appreciated the extra sleep. Had lunch and watched American TV. Good times. Stella and Joshua met me here at 5 and we left for our hour long bus trip to Rob and Jenny's. Long story short I lead us to the wrong bus stop. There are about 12 on our street and they all go to the same place. The one we were supposed to go to arrived 15 minutes earlier than the one we eventually used. Somehow we arrived at the house only 5 minutes late. I really don't know how, the double Decker bus we rode in sounded like it wasn't going to make it up some of the hills. Well the cookout was great. We met Jeff our last team member. Morgan (see Stella's blog) was sent home after arriving here in the UK. Long, long, long story but she should be here within the month. Please pray for her and the situation. It was good to get to know our whole team better. There are 3 missionary couples- Troy and Cheryl, Rob and Jenny (my favorite for obvious reasons) and Tom and Ann. Tom is from Trussville and Ann is from Oxford. They told Stella and I we could come over for sweet tea any time we wanted. They are wonderful people to learn from and work with. I'm really starting to consider staying the full 10 months of the program. I'm not going to make a decision until November, but I need to consider it. I think I would be cheating myself out of a great opportunity if I didn't at least consider it. Money and Ginny are really the only things I worry about when I think of staying. I know money isn't an obstacle, but I'm a worrier. If I stay Ginny and I will have only spent about a month together during the year. She left in May and came back in August. I left in September and may not get back until July. Including the time I'll have for Christmas, we'll have only had a little over a month together. It's tougher than I thought it would be, and adding 6 or so more months doesn't help things. It may sound petty to some of you, but it weighs on my heart. Please pray for me. I genuinely want to make the right decision. I want my answer to be the same one that God wants. I had a great title for this blog, but it's a long story. Remind me and I'll tell you the story of how to turn a Brit in to an American and visa versa. I said this wouldn't be long, but I lied. Thanks to all of you that wrote me a little letter at the Welcome Back party. You have no idea how much I needed that today. Thank you. I'm going to bed. Coffee shop At 10:30 am and a meeting after that. I'll post more pics tomorrow or Sunday. Leave some love!! -Robert |
Thursday, September 08, 2005
I know who the Devil is!!
Hello all. Another good day here in the UK. It started at 9:30 with what was supposed to be a rather cheap and uneventful breakfast. Stella met me at my host home, which is next door to the church. We walked to Ikea, a furniture and home decorating store. I think that there are a few in the States. I digress. We had a lovely breakfast that only cost us £3. That's pretty cheap here in Wales. Well, we get done with breakfast and try to leave the store. The key word in that sentencee is try. To begin with, Ikea is bigger than a super Wal-Mart. Why this place has a cafe in it is beyond me. Secondly, you can't go out the store the same way you enter it. They make you walk the length of the store to the exit right by the cash registers. Rather brilliant if you ask me, but really inconvenient. Add to that there are no signs that tell you where the exits are and you make for a 15 minute adventure to start your day. As we were walking out of the store Stella made the quote of the day. She said, "The next time someone tells me Wal-Mart is the devil, I'll tell them they are wrong. Ikea is the devil, not Wal-Mart." So today I learned who the real devil is. After we played the role of the Jews lost in the wilderness, Troy met us at my home. He took us around where we live to get us familiar with the area. It was really great. My area of Cardiff, Grangetown, is very diverse. In Cardiff there are 47 first languages spoken. In a city that is smaller than Birmingham, it makes the city really diverse. I went in to many shops today. I think Stella and I have found our bakery that we will be frequenting. It's called "Yum Yum's" and we met Rob, who I think is the owner. We also went in a new Arabic restaurant. It smelled really good and I hope we get to go back. We also went in Pakistanini grocery store. IT was really interesting. I bought pomegranatete that will soon be devoured. I almost bought you one Ginny, but I don't want to see your face after you eat it. :) Then Josh and I went to a refugee center at Tredegarville Baptist church. Josh is a member of mine and Stella's team. They have rec time for refugees. They have pool, foosball, and ping-pong. Needless to say I played ping-pong. I beat poor Joshua pretty badly. Then another guy named Josh from Nigeria played me. He beat me 2 games to 1. I think I can beat him when I shake off all of my rust. But I've been told he's not the best one there. I'm excited to play these guys, they should be some stiff competition. The highlight of my day was talking to Joshua and Armin. Joshua is a converted Muslim whose name was Mohammed before he got baptized. He spoke pretty good English, good enough to help Armin and I have a 45 minute conversation. Joshua and Armin are from Iran. They've left Iran because they were tortured for not supporting the government. Armin showed me scars he has from plastic surgery. Apparently the government beat him badly enough to warrant plastic surgery. They asked me all about America and I asked them about Iran. It's amazing how the media portrays their people. Both guys told me how much the Iranian people love and admire the US. They also told me how desperate their people are for democracy. They are fed up with the government, and how they are treated. I was amazed at some of the stuff that they told me. It was an eye opening experience. Hopefully I can start going to the rec time every Tuesday. Armin isn't a Christian and hopefully I can start some dialogue with him about what Christianity is really about. Today was great but I still feel run down. I've been getting good sleep, but I just hit a wall at 5:30 or so. Please pray that this passes soon. Next week is when we start up with everything, and I want to be refreshed and ready for it. Thanks so much for all of the comments. It's good to hear from my friends and really encouraging to hear from all you guys at 1st Baptist. Leave some more love!! -Robert |
Wednesday, September 07, 2005
These are the people that Jesus threw out of the temple....
Hello all. I had another long and rewarding day here in Cardiff. It started out at 8:30am with Troy calling me (Troy and his wife Cheryl are the head missionaries here in Cardiff.) He wanted to know what Stella and I had told customs at Heathrow airport that allowed us to get in to the country so easily. I told him that our answer to customs was that we were doing volunteer work here in Cardiff. Apparently Morgan, one of our team members can't get a visa to stay the entire 10 months. So she needs to know what to tell customs when she arrives here in the UK. Morgan and Jeff arrive on Friday and we are having a barbecue with the entire Cardiff mission team. BRILLIANT!!, as they say here in Wales.
So today I had all of my money exchanged in to pounds or £. I traded $3600 in to £1845.11. The exchange rate was 1.95. That means that after my classes I'll have about £425 to run on for 3 1/2 months. That will be way more than I'll need. Once again, thanks to everyone who helped get me here. As we were exchanging my money Troy made the comment of the day. He leaned down to me (Troy is 6' 4") and said, "You know Robert, these are the people Jesus threw out of the temple." I just about lost control. It's good to know that I'll be working with people that have a great sense of humor. After that we went to lunch. We had Somalian food and it was amazing. All I could think about during the meal was how jealous Ginny was going to be when I told her about lunch. I will be back there MANY times.
Then we went to the church where our classes will be taught. It's a 50 minute bus ride. To be honest, I am not looking forward to getting up at 7:30 to be at a 9 o'clock class, but it's only on Thursdays. Tomorrow we are going to a refugee shelter to hang out with some of the guys and then we get our cell phones. I'll post the number when I get it. Thank you so much for the comments you guys leave. You have no idea how much I look forward to checking my blog. Thanks so much. Leave some more love!!
-Robert
Tuesday, September 06, 2005
Standing on the Shoulders of Giants
Hello all. It's been a good day of R&R. I went to bed at 9:30pm and got up at 9:30am. I'm still jet lagged, but I feel good. I had breakfast and it was great. My host parents oldest son, Delasi, cooked me a wonderful breakfast of bacon, sausage, eggs, and beans. Of course every meal is followed by tea. It's great and you people don't know what you are missing. At 11:30 I went to the computer lab and uploaded some pictures and did the email thing. We had lunch at 12:30. It's a community lunch that the church does every fortnight. (A fortnight is every other week) It was great. I got to meet a lot of the church members. We had a full meal. Asparagus soup, beef, carrots, potatoes, cauliflower, broccoli , peas and for dessert I had pineapple upside down cake. All of this for £2. (that's about $3.50) During the lunch on of the coolest guys I met, Bryan told me about an inscription that is on every 2£ coin. It reads "Standing on the shoulders of Giants" It's even on some of the 1£ coins. Sir Isaac Newton wrote it in letter to one of his friends. He was referring to his feelings about his success and fame. He said it to mean that he felt all of his success was due to the people that supported him and helped him. That's exactly how I feel. I wouldn't be here without all of your prayers and financial support.
At 7:30 we had computer club. It's where the church opens up the computer lab and lets the youth in the area use the lab. It only costs 50p and draws a lot of support from the church. There are a lot of youth here. It's kind of hectic and crazy, but I think it will be a big part of our ministry here. That is where I am now, in the computer lab. I just showed some of the youth my stretchy skin and they are going crazy.
Well, I'm off to my home for a night of relaxation and conversation. We are 6 hours ahead of you guys. So I'm writing this at 9:40pm. Leave some love!!
-Robert
Monday, September 05, 2005
I'm having a Wale of good time
Hello all. I've been in Wales about 8 1/2 hours now. I'm so very tired, but at the same I'm really excited about my work here. We've been touring Cardiff today. It's such an amazing mix of natural beauty and modern elegance. We went on a little nature walk and then went to Cardiff Bay. I really think I'll love it here, I already do. CHECK OUT THE NEW LINK TO MY PICTURES!! Here is my mailing address:
Robert Litton
129 Clive Street
Grangetown, Cardiff
CF11 7HP
I'm really tired, so I'm going to go be a bum. I'm not allowed to go to bed until 8pm, so I still have a couple hours of nothing until sleepy time. I miss all of you more than you know. Thanks for all that you mean to me. Leave some love people!
-Robert
Robert Litton
129 Clive Street
Grangetown, Cardiff
CF11 7HP
I'm really tired, so I'm going to go be a bum. I'm not allowed to go to bed until 8pm, so I still have a couple hours of nothing until sleepy time. I miss all of you more than you know. Thanks for all that you mean to me. Leave some love people!
-Robert
Wednesday, August 31, 2005
T-minus 4 days and counting
Hello all. This has been an amazing week and a half. I found out Monday that my entire trip plus a couple hundred more was paid for. On Sunday I thought that I needed $1500. Mrs. Joyce at the BCM and I had our wires crossed and our numbers jumbled. I only needed $1300 and that's what I asked for on Sunday morning in front of the congregation. Well as God typically does he showed off on Monday. Long story short, the last lady to come in the church office on Monday said that she prayed about how much to give to me. She said that God gave her a number and that's what she gave. Lo and behold, the amount she gave put the total for the day at $1500. He is just so amazing.
I got my passport in the mail today. So now all I have to so is pack and I'm ready to go to Wales!!
On a completely different note, Ginny and I are back together. God really used her trip to Peru to give her perspective. He taught me faith and obedience through it all. I'm not going to use this journal to talk about our relationship a lot. I just wanted to express how happy I am with her and how much I truly love her. She is so amazing and I am truly blessed to have her.
To all of my church family at Jacksonville and Lithia 1st Baptists: Your love and support have truly pointed me to the throne of our Lord. I am truly humbled by the unconditional outpouring of support, both financially and spiritually.
I grew up in Lithia Springs 1st Baptist. I wouldn't be the man I am without the upbringing that you guys provided. You provided the foundation of my faith that has allowed me to learn and grow in the Lord. Thank you so much for all you have and continue to do for me.
I got my passport in the mail today. So now all I have to so is pack and I'm ready to go to Wales!!
On a completely different note, Ginny and I are back together. God really used her trip to Peru to give her perspective. He taught me faith and obedience through it all. I'm not going to use this journal to talk about our relationship a lot. I just wanted to express how happy I am with her and how much I truly love her. She is so amazing and I am truly blessed to have her.
To all of my church family at Jacksonville and Lithia 1st Baptists: Your love and support have truly pointed me to the throne of our Lord. I am truly humbled by the unconditional outpouring of support, both financially and spiritually.
I grew up in Lithia Springs 1st Baptist. I wouldn't be the man I am without the upbringing that you guys provided. You provided the foundation of my faith that has allowed me to learn and grow in the Lord. Thank you so much for all you have and continue to do for me.
The Lord has brought me to Jacksonville 1st Baptist. I have met and gotten to know some of the finest people through the church. The feeling of belonging and the atmosphere of love has allowed me to grow more this summer than any other period of my life. To all of the staff at FBC J'ville: It has been my honor and privilege to learn from you and serve with you this summer. It is through your leadership and talents that God is glorified in our church. To all my youth and parents: You are the best part of my "job." It has been one of my greatest joys to serve you this summer. I will take a part of every one of you with me to my ministry in Wales. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for loving me and accepting me this summer.
Well, with all of that being said, I need to go to Wal-Mart with my lovely girlfriend. The next post will be my last from the States! Leave some love!!
-Robert
Wednesday, August 24, 2005
What a crazy couple days...
Hello all. Been a crazy couple days. I still don't have my passport, but it's not because of a lack of trying. I've jumped through so many hoops to get it and I'm almost done. I send it off tomorrow to the company that will expedite the process. I can't wait until I get it in my hands.
On a better and more productive note, I keep getting money left and right. I got 1,100 dollars total on Monday. WOW. I got $500 from the church and $600 from families in the church. Derrick told me tonight that there is a lot more coming this week. I can't believe that this is coming together so well. It's not that I don't have faith or don't think that God is capable of pulling all of this together. It's just that I don't feel worthy of any of the support that I've gotten. It's so humbling to have the support of a church that I've only been with for 3 months. Thanks so much to everyone who has or is going to support me in this endeavor. You will be with me in my ministry, and you will be blessed for sure.
Please begin to pray for this mission trip. I have all of these fears and insecurities and the closer it gets for me leaving, the harder they come at me. I need prayer so very much. Thanks everyone. Leave some love.
-Robert
On a better and more productive note, I keep getting money left and right. I got 1,100 dollars total on Monday. WOW. I got $500 from the church and $600 from families in the church. Derrick told me tonight that there is a lot more coming this week. I can't believe that this is coming together so well. It's not that I don't have faith or don't think that God is capable of pulling all of this together. It's just that I don't feel worthy of any of the support that I've gotten. It's so humbling to have the support of a church that I've only been with for 3 months. Thanks so much to everyone who has or is going to support me in this endeavor. You will be with me in my ministry, and you will be blessed for sure.
Please begin to pray for this mission trip. I have all of these fears and insecurities and the closer it gets for me leaving, the harder they come at me. I need prayer so very much. Thanks everyone. Leave some love.
-Robert
Sunday, August 21, 2005
Gettin there...
Hello all. I had another good day of rounding up money for ye old Wales trip. I visited 4 Sunday School classes today. The feedback was great and I feel like people are really getting behind me. I just found out that the missions committee is going to give me $500 and that some of the Sunday School classes I've been going to are going to start raising money for me. As of right now I need $2050 to go. So in a week and a half I've raised $1650. I can't tell you how humbling it is to have this much support behind me. I've only been at Jacksonville 1st since May. To hear people that I truly respect and admire tell me that they will do whatever they can for me is one of the most humbling experiences of my life. To anyone who is helping raise or giving me money, thank you from the bottom of my heart. God has been so real to me this summer. He is continuing to do so in all of my preparation for this trip. I've been rambling so I'll stop. My heart is so content right now. It's a peaceful feeling to know that you are right in the will of God. Thanks everyone. Leave the love.
-Robert
-Robert
Friday, August 19, 2005
Now there's two of us!!
Hi everyone, here's the scoop....
Now Stella is going with me to Wales!! That will make the trip over and all of the travel much more bearable. Now all we have to do is get the travel agent to pick up her phone and help us out and we'll be good!!
I have about 1,200 dollars raised so far, and I still need about 2,500. That's without any church support. When I say "church" support I mean a check from a church. 1st Baptist Jacksonville has been a tremendous help in my fundraising effort. I couldn't go with out their help.
So all in all this trip is coming together quite well. I've had my stressed out moments. I wouldn't be Robert if I didn't. But this is working out really well. I think it's just now hitting me that I'm going. Passing out popcicles to the Southerners has really hit me hard. I'm REALLY going to miss marching this fall. Everyone, including Mr. Bodiford has been so supportive of me and this trip. It's true what they say about being a Southerner. It's one BIG family. I'm going to miss all of you guys this fall.
Well that's all for this post. I'll let you know if anything big happens. Leave some love!!
-Robert
Now Stella is going with me to Wales!! That will make the trip over and all of the travel much more bearable. Now all we have to do is get the travel agent to pick up her phone and help us out and we'll be good!!
I have about 1,200 dollars raised so far, and I still need about 2,500. That's without any church support. When I say "church" support I mean a check from a church. 1st Baptist Jacksonville has been a tremendous help in my fundraising effort. I couldn't go with out their help.
So all in all this trip is coming together quite well. I've had my stressed out moments. I wouldn't be Robert if I didn't. But this is working out really well. I think it's just now hitting me that I'm going. Passing out popcicles to the Southerners has really hit me hard. I'm REALLY going to miss marching this fall. Everyone, including Mr. Bodiford has been so supportive of me and this trip. It's true what they say about being a Southerner. It's one BIG family. I'm going to miss all of you guys this fall.
Well that's all for this post. I'll let you know if anything big happens. Leave some love!!
-Robert
Wednesday, August 17, 2005
Well....
This will be my journal for my trip to Wales. I can't tell you how excited I am about going. This trip has really started to come together over the past few days. As excited as I am about going, I'm really apprehensive as well. I'm going to miss seeing my friends and loved ones while I'm gone. I know that in time those things will pass and that God will teach me something in the midst of all of it. If anything this blog will be an honest and real glimpse into my 3 1/2 months away from the States.
I leave September 4th and return December 10th. I'll miss TJ and Val's wedding, that really makes me sad. It is an honor to be asked to be in a wedding, and I want you to know that this is the only thing that I'd miss it for.
Well, that's about all for now. Still need about 2,000 dollars for the trip. If you feel led to help call the church office at (256) 435-7263. Leave some love!!
-Robert
I leave September 4th and return December 10th. I'll miss TJ and Val's wedding, that really makes me sad. It is an honor to be asked to be in a wedding, and I want you to know that this is the only thing that I'd miss it for.
Well, that's about all for now. Still need about 2,000 dollars for the trip. If you feel led to help call the church office at (256) 435-7263. Leave some love!!
-Robert
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