For it's one... two.... three strikes...

Actually, there were far more than three strikes last night at my first ever Braves game! Our long-time friend, Aron, had three extra tickets to the Braves vs. Padres game last night and was kind enough to invite us to tag along. Knowing it would be a long night without a girl to chat with, I got to spend some sweet time with my dear friend Sarah Rhodes! (We had a lovely time guessing the ditties they played and making witty comments about each players cameo). The game in itself was a downer (only three runs the whole night), but the atmosphere was superb. We had a fantastic view of the ATL skyline and enjoyed an all-American hotdog. I think night games are the best. The last baseball game I went to was back in youth group... I saw the Cardinals vs. Cubs (The home run battle of McGwire and Sosa) and saw McGwire hit his 65th home run. I can't even remember the name of half the people on that trip, but I remember that random trivia. Anyway, that game was mid afternoon in summer, and about 30 innings in I made a covenant (now broken) that I would never attend another baseball game. I'm glad I did.

Here's some shots of us at the stadium....




On the way home I had a craving for some ice cream, so we pulled in a Wendy's where I continued walking on youth group memory lane and ordered a frosty and fries. Scoff not! The harmony of salty and sweet comes to crescendo in this perfect snack.



Today Andrew and I got the pleasure of visiting Grandmother and Grandaddy Harwell. They hosted us for lunch (a full menu of friend chicken and okra!) and we had a really pleasant visit with them. We love the two of them very much and are thankful for all the ways they encourage and inspire us. Grandmother reads this blog every day and you better believe she let's us know how long it has been since our last update! We love you two!!

The Great Convergence

Thursday night at our weekly meeting, our campus director Bill Boldt explained to the 300 students that showed up why we feel called to invest our lives into them. We believe that college students are the most significant people (the next leaders, movers and shakers) in the world at the most significant time (independence, deciding what to do w/ their life) time of their lives. It was such a moving reminder to Andrew and I of what we are called to: this great convergence. We hope to impact these students for Jesus, so that in turn they would impact their community and the world.

Thus, being the first week of school... we were rather busy this week! On Monday morning we handed out 1,000 cups with Crusade's information and the football schedule in 45 minutes! On Monday afternoon we hosted 40 students in the Crusade office who desire to have a personal ministry. We challenged them to think about what would happen if there were 100 gospel-centered (experiencing Christ, outward focused, relationally driven) communities on Auburn's campus.

On Wednesday night, me, Andrew, and our dear friends Hank & Anna had a craft night until midnight getting some new ambiance for our weekly meeting the next day.


Just call us Martha Stewarts! Anna recovered some lampshades while I made a table cloth for our "Connections Table."


Our manly men worked on some stands to drape cloth over for some ambiance behind the band.


This is how the hard work payed off for our connections table


A shot from our first weekly meeting

Our first weekly meeting was incredible. Not because of anything we did... you could just tell that God was moving in the hearts of these students. Our series this fall is called "The Essence of Christianity" and we are studying through the book of Acts. Bill gave a great challenge from Acts 1:8 that we should be actively pursuing ways to be God's witnesses in both the near and far places in our life.


On that note, I want to say that we are praying for our partners in the gospel who just arrived in East Asia a couple days ago to continue the ministry that Auburn Crusade has been a part of for years in this huge city. We are so excited to see what God is going to do through Chris & Anne Marie and the rest of the team!

Then.... on Friday night we headed to Sylacauga, Alabama to have a leadership retreat! It was so encouraging! We had 41 students show up with a heart to reach their campus for Jesus. Please join us in prayer that through these students God would sweep Auburn's campus with a great revival that would in turn impact our nation and world. We have great expectations for what the Lord is going to do this year!

Here are a couple pictures from the retreat:

Getting behind in posts is overwhelming. Africa feels like it was three years ago! Since we've been stateside, here are a few things that we've enjoyed:

Time at the lake... we especially love when we get to enjoy it with family. (My parents even got to come for the 4th of July!)






Speaking of my parents... we also got to make an ATL trip with them, so of course we checked out the Varsity's greasy burgers!


It was so sad to be away from our "son," Samford, this summer.... so we've enjoyed being around him again. He always provides a good laugh with his vibrant personality.


And finally, the thing I've enjoyed most is just being in our home! The older I get, the more of a homebody I become. This probably has a lot to do with the fact that we basically left our house as soon as we moved in. I realize that I neglected to put any finished pictures of our home on the blog... so here's a few:


This is our entry.... I have to brag on my hubby. He is an INCREDIBLE craftsman. I showed him a picture of a table I liked in Pottery Barn and he put this together from scratch. How lucky am I?! I also should add that I've been wanting a bonsai tree a couple years now... guess how long this one lasted with my any-shade-but-green thumb? A whopping two weeks.


We are already enjoying hosting in this room... I love the feeling of "home."


In case anyone who read my short-lived design blog wondered what happened with my beloved iron horse... he received the place of honor in our living room right smack dab on the coffee table. I love him even more today than the day I bought him.

Well, that's all for now folks! Tomorrow morning we are headed onto campus! First day of class is finally here! We'll be handing out Crusade cups with the football schedule to advertise for our ministry and hopefully get to meet some students. I love the fall! We wait in high expectation of what the Lord will do this year. I pray I am faithful to document it on this blog.