Bethel Blogs » Stephanie

A Light At the End of the…Not Again!

Stephanie — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 18:56:12 +0000

Welp! Here I am again at the end of another semester stressed out and wanting to be in the arms of my mommy like nothing else. I’m not as crazy this go round since I learned a lot from my first week of finals, but can you blame me for wanting this to be over???
I have since compiled a small, but crucial list to survive Pre-Finals week and then the big boss of Finals Week:

1. DO NOT PROCRASTINATE! I cannot stress this enough. I can bold it, capitalize it, italicize it, and add a million exclamation points. If you wait to the last minute to do your work, you will regret it later. But it’s not like I’m speaking from experience or anything. P.S. It’s 5:10 AM right now as I’m writing this. Yeah…

2. Caffeine will become your best friend. I feel like I don’t need to elaborate on that. I mean, there’s coffee, energy drinks, dark chocolate…choose your poison.

3. Make the best of your semester. It seems that this time of getting everything done and rushing to turn in the last projects and papers might not be worth getting all the fun things done during the regular semester. This is wrong. It is worth it. Trust me. You’ll want to milk it for all it’s worth.

So it’s a small list, but you don’t really need anything else.

OH, I almost forgot…There is one more thing.

RELAX. Don’t stress. At the end of the day, and the end of the semester, it is important to know that God has got your back. So yeah…get excited. There are fun times to be had. I have to remind myself of this even as I continue to do homework right now at this very moment.

Nothing is Impossible

Stephanie — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 18:55:19 +0000

[insert dramatic music here]

It’s that time of the semester again. Everything is due and I’m about ready to pull out my hair! But, I am determined to stay on top of things and not cry and curl up in the fetal position.

That, however, is not the reason for this blog post. I am writing because I want to share that my God is a healer. It is absolutely impossible to describe with words. Allow me to explain:

This past week has been a challenge for me physically which is already a hard statement to admit because I don’t often struggle with health. According to the plethora of doctors though, I have ITAs (InterTransitional Allergies). I’m still not honestly sure what that means, but it seems like I’m paying them to tell me what my mom would tell me if I thought I was getting a cold. It’s really frustrating. I am susceptible to nosebleeds, my eyes water and get itchy, I sneeze multiple times in a row, and my nasal passages are swollen something serious. Yet, in all of this, I’m not allowed to take normal allergy medicine because it has the potential to inflame something.

The miracle in all of this is that God has allowed me a considerable amount of grace with my assignments. My professors are way more than understanding of my situation and basically, I don’t feel like I’m going to keel over with stress. It’s such a relief and I know for a fact that God deserves all the glory in this thing.

Now, while it still seems like I can’t breathe through my nose and it feels like I’m crying as I watch this when I’m not, I just wanted to share the awesomeness of my God. Be encouraged. The theme scripture for me during this time has been Philippians 4:13

This Too Shall Pass

Stephanie — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 16:58:12 +0000

This week has been so stressful. I have endured pain on just about every level. I worked out and had some injuries, I was challenged mentally because I’m pretty sure I was assigned the most homework this semester. And to top it all off, I had to encounter the death of a beloved family friend that still has me in a state of shock. Needless to say, this week has been pretty hard.
However, I am also reminded that I serve a God of peace. He has brought peace to my mind, my soul, and my restless heart.
He has worked amazing miracles with things that I was sure were going to fail.

God is good. And one thing that I can appreciate is that there are people everywhere who can show you genuine love. It blesses my soul.

I am also very thankful for the weekend especially since I have guests staying with me. My cousin is here and I have missed her terribly. We plan on having the best time, and I have been looking forward to it for so long. She’s only 11 now, but maybe there’s a chance I can convince her to become a Bethel Pilot yet

Spring Forward, Pilots

Stephanie — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 16:09:34 +0000

It’s the final countdown! Well, not really. But the days are quickly dwindling down until the completion of my first year here at Bethel College. It’s surreal, actually. It seems like just yesterday when I was jumping up and down in my kitchen with my acceptance letter in hand. All that aside, there are just a few things that I would like to share from this past week to affirm why I love BC and why there is no other place where I’d rather be:

1. I was ambused -Ok, so this doesn’t seem like it was the best part of my week, but it was a definite highlight. While my run for Ambush this year was very short-lived, I enjoyed every minute of it. I just have to be a little more careful next year.
2. The beautiful weather- I have to admit this. I wasn’t quite ready to embrace the new warm weather outside. It just seemed too good to be true. But then after a couple of days, I finally got over myself and broke out the shorts and flip-flops.
3. The completion of midterms- I finished the last of my midterms this past Wednesday. My mind was so relieved from the stress that I conveniently indulged myself in a few 80′s pop culture songs.
4. I’m closer to my birthday- So, this doesn’t really have anything to with my Bethel experience, but I’m really excited and I feel that you shouldn’t judge me.

And so if there is ever a time where you think that Bethel is the right choice and for whatever strange reason, you might doubt yourself…DON’T.

All Work, you know?

Stephanie — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 18:24:54 +0000

As Spring Break drew to a close, I found myself immediately thinking about the deadlines and projects that i would have to encounter. Almost instantly, I became frantic and started stressing out and freaking out over my ever growing to do list.
I knew that I was going to have to calm down and relax so one of the first things I did was go to my Bible and read about what God said to do in a time of stress. John 14:27 says “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” Basically, when it comes to stress…DON’T DO IT. There are always going to be times where the deadlines are going to seem bigger than you, but remember. God is greater than any test, project, or presentation that you have to make.

Home Sweet Home…at last.

Stephanie — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 20:44:04 +0000

There is something about coming home after a long while on campus. You get this feeling of refreshment that is simply indescribable. No, really. I feel my attempts to describe how amazing it is being home right now have failed tremendously.
This is not to say that campus isn’t great. As a matter of fact, it was hard coming home to begin with because there were so many events and things that I didn’t want to miss. But especially since Little Women, there was a need to come home and just relax from all the nonstop of campus.
Being home is so relieving. It’s nice to hang out with high school friends and eat at the “hole in the wall” restaurants that only my hometown has to offer. The most amazing part, though, is the fact that I get to come to my home church and experience worship like nothing else. It’s so refreshing being able to just indulge in the comfortable atmosphere and praise, pray, and fellowship with my peers.
So while I love campus and I love home, sometimes I think I like home a little bit more. But not to worry; Monday morning, I’ll be right back at it again because one can’t just stay away from Bethel for too long.

Opportunity is Knocking…

Stephanie — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 14:50:25 +0000

With Spring Break rapidly approaching, I would just like to share the staus of how my mind is working at the moment: …
And if you’re saying yourself there is nothing there, then yes, you are right. There is nothing there. This is because I am thinking of everything and nothing at the same time. My brain is working in overdrive lately and I don’t know how to slow things down. I can better explain by first letting you know that one of the things I simply adore about Bethel is the plethora of opportunities you have during the semster AND during the breaks. If you don’t feel like going home during spring break, do a task force mission. If you don’t feel like going home after the semester is over, do a May term task force. This and other countless chances to serve through the campus makes it that much harder to choose what I want to do with my life. I’ve applied to do summer missions, I’m going to apply to be a block mentor, I’m praying about whether or not to do any type of missions work within the next year–
Alas, you understand my dilemma.
But if I have not learned anything here at Bethel College, it is that faith is one of the most important things to have in EVERYTHING you do. So, that is what is the driving force behind all of the decisions I have made. It is still the only thing that drives me to my decisions because, well, where would we all be without faith?

Decisions, Decisions

Stephanie — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:30:22 +0000

Going into this week, I had to do some definite self-evaluations. There were a lot of things due, a lot of meetings to attend, and many preparations to make for the opening of Little Women (P.S. you should definitely buy tickets to see the show…it’s going to be amazing).
I found myself asking God for a lot of strength and a lot of patience especially since it seemed I didn’t have enough time. But during this week, I felt God quiet my little anxious heart and give me peace. Then the story of Jesus calming the storm came to mind and it allowed me to see that no matter how rough things get, it’s up to you to decide whether you will be defeated by the tiredness or triumph. Its something I learned this week in chapel. “It’s a choice.” It’s sort of like how I came to Bethel…I decided to follow God’s will and even if there are things that have overwhelmed me, I know that no matter what, I will praise Him in this storm.

Ladies and Gentleman…the WCAC.

Stephanie — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 14:53:07 +0000

This week, I was able to take part in the World Christian Action Conference. It was amazing to say the least and I know for sure that God moved in the hearts of a lot of students here on campus. First of all, the main speaker, R. York Moore, was phenomenal. I didn’t go to the first night service, but I went to the other night service and he shared his story with us. He talked to us about mission and our faith in Christ. He is also an advocate against human trafficking and modern slavery. Everything was enlightening. I particularly enjoyed the power point presentations he put together.
There was something about this week that spoke to me on a spiritual level though.
I honest to goodness feel like I have a heart for missions.
I am actually on the path for it to be my career in life. That being said, there were a lot of things that touched me about the kinds of things that people from all over the world are doing all for the glory of Jesus. It’s amazing all the different ways that his name is being spread around in the Earth. I want to be a part of that. It’s actually one of the reason that I came to Bethel College. It seems like one of the best places to get engaged with the world around you. There are task force mission trips and semester abroad programs. How could you not want to travel and be in sync with at least one other culture than your own.
The conference this week has most definitely been a blessing. If I think about, I’m actually kind of sad that there is no chapel on Friday. But that’s why I don’t think about it

“Whatever is loveley…think on these things.” ~Philippians 4:8

White Fluffy Stuff Falling from the Hands of God.

Stephanie — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 17:09:50 +0000

As I sit at the desk writing this post, I am noticing that it is once again snowing outside. Isn’t it wonderful? I mean, don’t get me wrong, I don’t like the fact that the wind changes directions every time I decide to walk outside as much as the next person, but there’s something about the snow that’s…dare I say therapeutic.
It’s wonderful to marvel at the things God does. Even in the most horrible weather, I find ways to find God and how He is so awesome in everything he does even in the snow. I like how the snow can continuously fall and maybe even hope for “snowpocalypse” so that I can miss class and stay in and drink all the hot cocoa my little heart desires. That’s not going to happen, but a gal can dream can’t she?
Well, while I continue to enjoy the semester and watch the snow fall, I will allow myself to just bask in God’s presence and his creation.