Alone, and yet Not Alone

Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts. I sat not in the assembly of the mockers, nor rejoiced; I sat alone because of thy hand: for thou has filled me with indignation.   Jeremiah 15: 16-17

Ever have those moments (or days), that you feel so alone? Surrounded by people, and yet alone. I am so glad that I may be alone, yet I am never truly alone. For my God is my constant Companion. 

God created us to be social people. He said of Adam, "it is not good that the man should be alone;" We are a people who long for love and fellowship. I do not know a single person who really, truly wants to be unloved or unwanted. Personally, it makes me happy to know that people love me. Compliments make me smile. Friends wanting to spend time with me encourages my heart. 

And the opposite is true as well. A friend stops talking to me and I ask myself what I did wrong. Negative comments hurts my feelings. Having noone to spend time with is frustrating. And no one is exempt. Everyone likes being wanted and loved. 

That's why I'm glad I have something and Someone who remains constant in my life. I never have to worry if God loves me today or not. I never have to wonder if He is listening and speaking to me. If I feel He is far away, I am the one who has moved, not Him. I may have to remind myself of His love, but that does not change the fact His love is consistent and unchanging. 

So today I may be alone. And maybe again next week. But God is still with me. So really I am NOT alone. 

2015 Goals

Even though last year, I did not accomplish all I intended to in 2014, still going to set some goals for this new year. Goals are good; they give me something to work towards. Even if I don't exactly complete them, probably still do more while working at them than if I had no goals. 

So, drumroll..... 
my goals for 2015 include....

Spiritual goals - 
1. memorize more Scripture. Last year, my intention was to memorize the book of Philippians. That did not happen, but I really want to memorize more of God's Word this year. So, I'm committing to 5 verses a month. 
2. fast and pray more. Have some ideas for fasting; I think one month I'm going to take a break from facebook. One month I'll go without coffee (gasp). And we'll go from there. It is partly an exercise in self-control and partly a way to focus more on God. 
3. Read through the entire Bible. Actually, I would like to read through the Bible in 100 days. It'll take some commitment and time, but going to give it a try. 

Physical goals - 
I've been wanting to be in better shape physically for a while. Last week, I went to a Krav Maga class.... whew. and realized just how out of shape I am! So, again its time to buckle down and do the hard things. I'm debating on taking the Krav class weekly and plan on playing more tennis, skating and running. We'll see how it all plays out. 
Also, this year, going to make a point of eating more healthy. Next month, I am planning on doing a 3 day cleanse. 

Random other goals - 
1. The other day on fb, I saw some people were talking about doing random acts of kindness throughout this next year. They were asking for people to join in and commit to blessing five people at some time during 2015 with a random act of kindness. So, I'm going to set my own goal.... once a month, I will bless someone randomly. Maybe with a note or small gift. And not someone I am close to, could be a stranger or a casual acquaintance. 
2. Last year, I set the goal of visiting 3 new countries.... but only added one to my list. So, this year, I am shooting for two new countries and one US state. (Kentucky, you have eluded me too long)
3. One goal, I am really looking forward to completing is earning my BA! (finally) I may have to do a little extra work to get it all together, but prayerfully by December I will have my degree in hand. And then the world awaits..... 

Welcome 2015

Reflecting back over 2014, again, I am so amazed by my God. He is ever faithful and so good to me. He not only gives me my daily needs, but blesses far above what I deserve. God has given me so many amazing opportunities in this life. I am grateful. 

A year ago January, I was home in Alaska, working and debating on what was the next step in life. Before making any major decisions, decided to have some fun first. :) Went down to Anchorage for the weekend with so crazy awesome friends. Enjoyed a hockey game, Piano Guys concert, cruising around town with a Dodge Ram, a midnight trip to Seward and so much more. 

Road Trip! 

In March, I decided to go back to school and finish my Bachelors. Took one course during the spring semester and one during the summer months. Then hit the books hard in the Fall semester. There were a few days, when I questioned myself, wondering why I was going back to school. But I am close to being finished and I look forward to what God has next. 

Even with school, the days weren't all drudgery and hardwork. I had plenty of crazy, fun times.... like the night of the lunar eclipse.... or traveling in Illinois, which included a NHL game and breaking into my friend's house.... volunteering for the Arctic Winter Games held in Fairbanks this year....  trip to one of my favorite cities, Vancouver, BC for a wedding.... a weekend flight to Selawik.... camping in Denali.... so many stories from this year.

night of the lunar eclipse

wedding fun

Selawik, Alaska

Denali, AK

This summer was a full one; was still working at Aerofuel and then a couple nights a week at the airport. Also, had an opportunity to tutor a teen from Hong Kong in English. During the summer, that was usually 6 hours a week of tutoring. Yes, sometimes I tend to be a workaholic. 

The end of the year found me with my nose in a book or writing papers. This semester at UAF was a tough one since I am nearing the end of my degree and most of my classes are upper level. I had several writing intensive classes, which means a lot of reading and then a lot of writing. So glad for this Christmas break! 

One of my not so favorite moments of this year was my very good friend Whitnie leaving.... :'( Whit has been a true friend from the first day we met. We've had wonderful times of just talking, laughing, drinking coffee and praying together. I miss having her here, but glad she is following the Lord's leading. And Lord willing, I'll see her in a few months!! 

sweet time with Whit

A major highlight for me this year, was getting to go to SIBBC and teach a two week English Writing class. It was tough fitting that in, since it fell in the middle of my fall semester, but we made it work. What a blessing it was to me to meet young people, who love God and his Word, who want to use their serve God with their lives, either in translating the Bible into languages or other ministry. It was a refreshing time for me spiritually. 

my class in India

And now, 2015 stretches out in front of me.... an huge, empty slate.Ready to be filled with my choices. May I always listen and yield to God's promptings.  

Arabian Desert

Merry Christmas

Christmas Time! 

It didn't really seem like Christmas season leading up to December 25th.... maybe because I was working so much and also I've been housesitting. I didn't get to enjoy the decorated tree and secrecy of wrapping presents that goes on at my house. But it still was a good time. For one thing, I am thoroughly enjoying the break from school. The last couple weeks of the semester were rough; I had several large projects due, plus studying for finals and work was a little hectic at the same time. Hence the lack of blogging, BUT it is now finished! (for another few weeks)

This Christmas my older brother, his wife and son spent the day with us! It has been so much fun having my brother and his family back in Alaska. They come over frequently for dinner and Christmas spent most of the day at our house. 

dad modeling his new googles

Nanook jersey from my awesome bro

Dinosaur puzzle from Aunt Lacey

Hope your Christmas was peaceful and wonderful. May we never forget what Christmas is really about. Thank you, Jesus, for coming to that manger bed so many years ago, so we could have a Saviour and be reconciled to God.

Thanksgiving Day with the Nephew

Well this post is slightly overdue. These pictures are from Thanksgiving Day. My sister-in-law and nephew came over to enjoy a quiet day with lots of food! Eventually my brother came too when he got off work. It was a nice, relaxing day. I was excited to sleep in, since I had just gotten back from India four days prior. 

gonna play hockey one day! 

getting a hair cut from Maha

sledding with Nana

yay for a driveway to sled on!

The Traveling Life

I love traveling. Not just the part about going to new places and experiencing new cultures and languages, but also the the actual travel part. Flying is part of the adventure (even though I do admit the 9+ hour flights are a bit long). And airports are some of my favorite places to hang out. Seriously. 

People watching can be so entertaining. Just have to be sure not to laugh out loud so they don't know they are being watched. And I can stare just as well as any one else. I have to resist the urge at times to make faces at those who are staring... my mom always told me it was rude to stare, but guess that's not universal. 

chilling at SEA-TAC airport

Sipping coffee or munching on a meal in airport, just part of the traveling scene. Sometimes the food's great and other times... well let's leave that memory alone. The price can be out of this world, too. Whew. 

7 hour layover in Bangalore

Personally, I love layovers. At times, I purposely plan for layovers of more than 6 hours, then I can go out and explore. On my way home from the last trip, I had 27 hours in Dubai. Figured since I was traveling through anyways and it didn't cost any more for the flight to stay longer, why not? But it did cost me more in the long run... hotel, transportation, tour, etc, but it's not like I'm passing through Dubai on a regular basis. 

tallest building in the world - Dubai

I heard once that Dubai had more cranes than any other city in the world. And I believe it! There's buildings going up everywhere. Amazing how they have made a city at the edge of the desert. In town, you see green grass and trees, massive buildings and a regular city, then a random city block of sand. And outside of town, the sand dunes stretch on and on. And on. 

hotel construction

Have to say I like international flights better than domestic. For one you get food. :) And usually the flight attendants are much nicer. Not to mention the personal TV screen in each seat. This was my first time flying Emirates Air, but have to say, it's one of my favorites. Their food was better than most, service was great and the seats all have individual plugins! Was surprised to find out the flight crew was from a diverse assortment of countries. I don't think I met anyone actually from UAE. On one transcontinental flight, there were flight attendants from Egypt, UK, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland, Lithuania, USA, Thailand, Ecuador, China and a few others. So cool. 

Representing Spain  - USA - Egypt