08.09.08

Since May I've been interning with my church. My role was to help plan and promote this conference that we hosted. I have never felt as stretched as I did these past two days, when we hosted the conference I had been working on for months. It was a huge two days for me. God confirmed His desire for me to be at this church. I left a church I absolutely love, a church I really miss, a church that I thought I would be at for decades, all because I heard God say follow me to this church. This church, a church I had never wanted to go to, a church I didn't even like, a church that I didn't feel like I could grow at. It was a painful process, many times I would talk about it and just start crying. But I obeyed and I trusted that God knew where He wanted me. About a week after I made the switch, I was offered this internship. I took it, because I believe that when God calls me somewhere, He doesn't just call me to sit in a chair every Sunday. So I went from new attendee to intern in just a few weeks. And I am so glad I did it. Even though I spent my summer super busy, stressed out and not really liking my assignments for my internship, these past two days have made it so worth it. I went from a bad attitude on the first day to really loving serving on the second day. I was able to see how some of the people who came were deeply impacted, moved and inspired to really go after God. That was enough for me. If one person was changed and drawn toward the feet of Jesus, this summer has been more than worth it. I was so blessed to have this opportunity, I got to know so many of the staff and some really cool volunteers. I learned to truly submit even I don't understand and I really don't feel like it. All through the conference God has been challenging me with words He spoke to me when I was in DC. I was admiring the World War II memorial when He said,"Katie, are you willing to sacrifice for Me, even when no one notices, when no one shows gratefulness for your work, when no one else will even know of your sacrifice except Me?" I had to really struggle to live up to that these past two days. I had to constantly ask God to keep my mind and heart focused on Him. God is so good and He definitely honors your place of sacrifice. He honored mine when I left my old church, He honored mine when I gave up a not so busy summer to take this internship. The faithfulness He shows to His people is crazy amazing. Living in His will is not always fun but it does always draw you closer to the heart of your Father. And that's all I ever want.