As our trip came to a close with a 7 hour day in the car (we did stop for a long lunch with some awesome people) I decided that this may have been the longest week I've had in a long time. 125 hours away from Hanover during a school week is probably not the best idea ever, but I do not think it is a decision I regret at all. The time that was spent with a best friend was priceless (we really did get along a lot better than we both expected) and the time at PTS was something we will not forget as we continue along this journey of discernment and listening to where God is calling us next. I joked a lot about not wanting to leave Princeton, however, the closer we got to Hanover today, the more anxious I was to be around friends, the more excited I became about class in the coming week, and even more I realized that tomorrow is Sunday (a day that will be busy with church, leadership meeting, Bible study, and chapel) but none the less my favorite day of the week. The closer we got to Hanover, the more I felt that we were getting closer to home.
6 days of adventure, 6 days of stopping and listening, 6 days of intentionally reflecting on what is going on in my life at this point in time and what it means for my future, 6 days of laughing, 6 days of pure white snow all around, 6 days of meeting new people and sharing life with them, 6 days of being away from my community but being accepted and feeling at home in another, 6 days of being fed information, 6 days of asking questions, 6 days of being excited and joyful, and 6 days of just being.
I am thankful for safe travels (and one trooper of a car :-D) for friendship, for windows of opportunity, for confidence in making decisions, for support and prayers by friends, for the hard work on behalf of PTS in getting things put together during the blizzard (the show must go on sometimes), and for all of the people I met and shared the week with. I do not think this week would have been the same with them (or the blizzard), it was a blessing to meet each of them and share stories, to share meals, to share Christ, and to see how the visit informed, shaped, and guided each of us differently, yet in a way that will make the future of the Church something to look forward to.
What else is there to say....
God is good...All the time...All the time...God is good (just a reminder of the influence others have on us over time right Julie? ;D)
Valentines day is tomorrow so I guess it is appropriate to remember 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
567 "Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."
I guess this week it was patient enough for Rosa and I to have a great time together with out agitating each other, kind enough to share so openly with one another. It was not envious when things went crazy, boastful when we shared our stories with the group, arrogant on behalf of those who were all older than we were. It did not insist on its own way when it snowed 2 feet, it was not irritable when the schedule changed, or resentful when we did not get our way. It did not rejoice when Rosa got a hotel room 30 minutes out of the way but it did when we found that hotel (just kidding Rosa, that was for laughs, it wasn't as bad as I make it out to be), but love did bear all things, believe all things, hope all things, and endure all things, on our almost 1400 mile journey in 6 days, across 5 states, and in the blizzard.
Happy Valentines day, may the active love of God the father sustain you, the love of Christ be your motivation each day, and the love of the Holy Spirit be within you each and every day, now and forever.
In Christ,
KP
Today's picture was taken during the sunset in Pennsylvania on I-80 on Friday February 12, 2o10
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