Wimbledon!

Kristina, Mimi, Ian and I left the house just after 7 am to take the tube to Wimbledon!
We got there about 45 minutes later or so, and walked from the tube stop with EVERYONE else from the tube to get to the queue and line up! We were nervous about getting tickets, but we got our queue cards and I felt confident that that meant we would get tickets! It was just a huge grassy field with thousands of people lined up and hanging out with picnic blankets and such!

About two hours later, after a few rain showers and spending three pounds to buy a picnic blanket along with a newspaper, a poncho, and a cool woven bag, our line moved and we were able to get in!

Once we got in, we had access to all the grounds! We went and saw some practicing, and then wandered around and found matches that Ian told us were good (he's a big tennis fan and knew everyone, so I was glad he was there to lead us around!). It was a HUGE place and I was surprised at how close we could get to the games and players! The biggest matches were for ticket holders and were in the bigger courts like they show on tv, but we saw some awesome matches and it was great!

It was SO HOT out and I was sweating like crazy, and dehydrated, and I got reaaallllyyyy tired of standing almost the whole time (my knee is getting so much worse). We got lunch in the middle, which was a nice break from being in the sun. It was just a tiring day, but I'm so glad we were able to go and have the experience of going to Wimbledon! I don't know many of the players names, but here are pictures from the day:

The girls went to to the store and then left around 5, and Ian stayed to watch more. I didn't feel well and I was beyond exhausted and just ready to be off my feet and out of the sun. The tube ride back went well and I came home, took a cold shower, and crashed super early! An experience I was glad to have, but don't think I would ever do again.

The last day of May

Well, we ended up not going to the Trafalgar Square opera thing last night. A bunch of us ended up going out to dinner in Covent Garden at a cool little pizzeria place (I swear I eat more pizza and Italian food here than anything else...). The owner was hilarious and made fun of us a lot throughout the night, but it made it fun and entertaining! I got a DELICIOUS panini that didn't fill me up at all, but was so good nonetheless.

After dinner, we went off in search of a pub and ended up wandering over into Piccadilly Circus and Trocadero area, finally settling at St. James Tavern. It was the birthday of one of the girls in our group and she ended up joining our group later on in the night. We beat the rush at the pub- it ended up getting so busy! We definitely were the youngest ones in there- apparently the pub scene is more for older people. Oh well. I enjoyed it!

We spent a while at the pub and then took the tube back home where we all kept hanging out in our flat pretty late- none of us had any classes today so there was no real reason to head to bed early.

Today was a FREE DAY. No classes or any group activities! I slept in til about 10:30 which was AWESOME, and then spent a few hours taking notes for class in my new notebook, working on my blog post for my solo class (you can check it out at londonpublicsphere.blogspot.com if you're interested in a more in-depth analysis of my class outings), and writing some postcards and such.

Around lunch time, five of us headed out to go back to Camden Town to revisit the things we had seen earlier this week when we went. It was much cloudier and chillier today and I was not totally prepared in my outfit choice, but it ended up being fine. I think the gloomy weather affected my mood a lot, because I was not feeling being there at all. All the stalls have basically the same things, so every sales person basically attacks you when you walk in trying to make you buy their stuff, and I was not in the mood for it. I basically just followed the group around in a weird daze and didn't buy anything or really pay much attention to anything. Not the best day, but oh well.

We spent a few hours there, and then took the tube back home and went to Sainsbury's for some groceries. Grocery shopping is a much more often thing in Europe, which I really like. It was sprinkling a little bit when we were walking home. I had a sandwich and veggies for dinner, took a power nap, and got back to work on my blog. Today has been such a blah day, but hopefully tomorrow and our outing to Oxford as a group is more fun!

Here and now and looking ahead

Freshman year. 2010. It was a gross rainy day, and I moved in to my first dorm room in McGraw Long Hall here at JMU.

End of sophomore year. 2012. It was a cold rainy day, and I moved out of my last dorm room in Huffman Hall.

It's funny how things like that repeat themselves, but it's even more comforting to know that  God is working it all out perfectly, orchestrating things in the magnificent way that only He can. It always comes back to Him, it comes back to His will and His way.

So much has changed in these past two years living on campus and going to classes and being involved in InterVarsity, I can't even express it all. As this year comes to a close, we're all reflecting a lot on where we are now and where we came from and what's still yet to come, and it's honestly just blowing my mind.

God is so real. He's so perfect and glorious and incredible, He sees the whole big picture yet works in the details, He loves me when I fight against Him and when I seek Him with everything. I can't even comprehend how much I've changed since my first day of college, and how none of it was because of me at all, but all because He loves me and never gives up on me.

I was broken. Now I'm being restored in Him.
I was lost. Now I'm found in Him.
I wanted control. Now I surrender more freely.
I was seeking. Now I'm finding.
I was empty. Now I'm full of life and the One who gives it.
I was wandering. Now I'm walking in trust and faith alongside my Creator.
I was alone. Now I'm surrounded by a family of sisters in Christ that blow my mind daily.
I was unsure. Now I stand in confidence that He has plans for me.

God never stops working. He will never just think I'm good enough and there's no more to be done. He will never give up on me, no matter how many times I fail and stumble and fall down on my face. He never stops changing me and growing me and opening my eyes to more of who He is and what that means for who I am. It's been two years of more growth and maturation than I ever could have imagined, and there will only be more until He calls me home. And I'm seriously STOKED about that! My God is so good and all I am or do is for His glory.

"Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you." -Psalm 9:10

the path ahead.

Hope has changed my life this summer. Hope Church, that is. The ways God has worked through that place and those people are incredible.

At the last week of The U, a few of us shared a bit of our stories and what beatitude we related the most to, as we had studied one beatitude each week throughout the summer. I went first, and it was awesome getting to just talk about my life and how I've seen God move in it, especially through college and this summer.

When preparing for these little interview sessions, Nicole told us she might ask us "In a year from now, if you were to be back here again, what do you hope to have seen change in your life?" She didn't end up asking me that question in front of the group, but it really got me thinking. A few days after that, I had a conversation with a new friend that I met through The U as well, and he asked me what my answer to that question would be.

So, here's my answer. In a year from now, I hope that I will have sought God wholeheartedly and unashamedly and lived out my life and my faith with a boldness like I've never had before. This past year has been full of such insane growth in my faith, and most specifically in the realization that I truly need community and accountability in my life. Before college, I tried to do everything on my own and didn't want to let anyone in; I didn't want anybody to be able to hurt me like I had been hurt before. But being in IV and my small group shattered that skewed perception I had in my head and showed me that vulnerability and accountability is so precious and leads to such depth and intimacy that then leads you so much closer to the heart of who God truly is.

I want to build on the momentum that's been growing in me this year and take my faith to new heights and new depths. I don't want to just live my life for me, sheltered in my little world. I want God to move mountains through me, to shine a light through me that is powerful and wonderful and that humbles me like never before.

I'm so excited for this year; for the opportunities and experiences I know lie ahead, for being back with my small group and the ways we'll learn and grow together, for just being back on campus, surrounded by believers and strangers and just friends all alike. I'm so ready for God to take my heart and shape it and perfect it and chisel it away to become more like His, in the best of times and the hardest and most challenging of times.

Next summer, I want to look back on my sophomore year and see God so clearly and vividly. I want Rachel to fade away and God to shine brightly. I know God is writing my story; I want him to be the star. I'm just a member of His cast, and I want Him to move powerfully in me and through me this year.


"Jesus calls you to be his intimate ally once more. There are great things to be done and great sacrifices to be made. You won't lose heart if you know what's really going on here, where this Story is headed and what your Lover has promised to you."
-Epic by John Eldredge

the things i've learned this summer.

I'm a big fan of lists, so here's one about lessons learned this summer as I look ahead to one more month of summer before going back to school!

1. Pursuing God with my whole heart and surrendering to Him is the most freeing and exciting way to live.

2. Family is everything. They're my foundation, my solid ground, my biggest fans, my best friends, and my favorite people in the world. I've loved getting to know them in such a new way this summer after a year away from home; they're the most amazing people I know and I have such a newfound love and respect for them.

3. Working as though for God and not for man is extremely humbling and motivating.

4. The city of Richmond is an awesome place. Glen Allen...not so much. But I honestly already knew this.

5. I'm crazy about my small group. I never realized how much I just love seeing those girls every week and diving into the Word with them. I crave time with them much more now that I haven't had it in a few months.

6. Hope Church is an incredible place for fellowship and community. The U at Hope has been the best thing to happen to me this summer- having such an awesome group of people to meet with every week has kept me passionate and excited about my faith and about people.

7. God is an amazing source of refuge, strength, and confidence. Knowing I'm in His arms and in His heart is the most comforting thing. Nobody can truly harm me when I have Him surrounding me.

8. The Beatitudes are powerful. Extremely powerful. Study them, and I mean REALLY study them. Your life will forever be changed.

9. When I let go and let God, awesome things happen.

10. I don't need a boyfriend to be happy, to be strong, or to feel loved.