Big Bro/Big Sis: Part I

Big Bro/Big Sis is a student group/program at Moody. They are not affiliated with Big Brother/Big Sister that you've heard of, but it's the same basic idea. I am a part of it, so I thought I'd share my experience along the way. I'm gunna write things down as they happen from application to meeting my Little Sib, and then I'll post it all together!

9/8
I went to the Big Bro/Big Sis meeting this day, and felt like God wanted me to step out and do it! Later this week, I filled out my application, prayed a lot, then turned it in!

9/25
Got an email saying that I got in to the program. All I have to do is fill out a few forms and mail them in to the program. I am getting more and more excited. I have seen a few little sibs on campus, and I just can't wait! They are going through the application process with the little sibs at the moment, and we should get paired in the next couple of weeks.

10/5
A couple days ago, a girl on the other wing of my floor found me and told me that I had been paired with a little sis! She told me her name, and that she is six years old. Today we arranged to walk over to her house and meet her and her mom tomorrow! I am so excited to begin this relationship, and see what God has for us.

10/13
A week ago today, as planned, Anna (who lives on the other wing of my floor and is on the exec team for big bro/big sis) and I headed out to meet my little sis. I was so excited, and listened intently as Anna shared with me some advice, as well as experiences she has had during her relationship with her own little sis. When we got to the house, we knocked on the door to no answer. We asked around, and found out that she did live around there, but none of the kids had seen her that day. Anna called the mom, and rescheduled for the following Monday. I was a bit disappointed, of course, but had a surprising amount of peace. I knew that God was preparing me, reminding me that I would have to have patience and flexibility. I continued to pray for my little sis and her family.

That Monday, I met up with another exec member of big bro/big sis, as well as my little sib's sister's future big sib (does that make sense?) Ashley, who hadn't been paired yet either. We walked the same roads, hearing more great stories about the impact this program has made. We knocked on the door, this time being greeted by the grandma. She told us that her daughter had started a new job that day, so she had had to put the kids in the after school program for that day last minute, so plans had changed. Again, we were a bit disappointed, but happy to have met the grandma, and exchanged numbers. It definitely felt like progress. That night, Ashley and I called the Mom and scheduled to meet the next afternoon.

<to be continued>

Love,
Emily

Quotables: The Shorter Life of D.L. Moody

I had to read this book for orientation, and though it was long, I really enjoyed it! I thought I would hare some of my favorite pieces and quotes with you guys. Some are obviously quotes from Sir Moody himself; others are by the authors, Paul D. Moody and A.P. Fitt.



"Some day you will read in the papers that D. L. Moody, of East Northfield, is dead. Don't you believe a word of it! At that moment I shall be more alive than I am now. I shall have gone up higher, that is all; gone out of this old clay tenement into a house that is immortal, a body that death cannot touch, that sin cannot taint, a body like unto His own glorious body. I was born of the flesh in 1837. I was born of the Spirit in 1856. That which is born of the flesh may die. That which is born of the Spirit will live forever."

"I didn't know what this was going to cost me. I was disqualified for business; it had become distasteful to me. I had got a taste of another world, and cared no more for making money. For some days after, the greatest struggle of my life took place. Should I give up business and give myself wholly to Christian work, or should I not? God helped me to decide aright, and I have never regretted my choice. Oh, the luxury of leading some one out of the darkness of this world into the glorious light and liberty of the gospel!"

(Writing a letter to a family member) "I wish you would talk to Warren about his soul. Tell him that you will pray for him daily, and God will answer your prayers. Tell him not to play cards, for it leads to gambling, and gambling leads to hell."

"Mr. Moody learned, in dealing with the dying, how dangerous it is to delay in the matter of eternal salvation, and hence his faculty of prompt personal dealing with the unsaved was developed. He learned precious truths as to the comforts of the gospel, the readiness of God to hear and answer prayer, and the value of His promises."

""Bristol," he wrote to his mother, "is where George Muller's great orphan schools are. He has 1,150 children in his house, but never asks a man for a cent of money to support them. He calls on God, and God sends the money to him. It is wonderful to see what God can do with a man of prayer.""

"Don't be afraid to borrow or lend Bibles," he used to say. "Some time ago a man wanted to take my Bible home to get a few things out of it; and when it came back I found this note in it:

'Jesus only:


The light of heaven is the face of Jesus
The joy of heaven is the presence of Jesus
The melody of heaven is the name of Jesus
The harmony of heaven is the praise of Jesus

The theme of heaven is the work of Jesus
The employment of heaven is the service of Jesus

The duration of heaven is the eternity of Jesus

The fullness of heaven is Jesus Himself.'"





Hope you enjoyed!


Love,

Emily

"What exactly are you doing at that fancy Bible school, anyway?" Part I: Classes

Well, friend, let me tell you!

Classes! I am taking 5 classes this semester. That's not as many as some people, but the perfect amount for my first semester. I have just finished my third week of classes, and have already learned so much! I am taking...

1. The Church and Its Doctrines (a.k.a. CDOC, pronounced "c" dock)
This may be my favorite class so far! It's so fun to learn about theology, and go over each topic in more detail than I have before. I really like our professor. He always starts with a Bible verse, devotional style, but totally relating to what he is going to talk about in that day's lecture. After that, he jumps right in with the lecture, and doesn't stop until class is over. We furiously scribble down notes, trying to catch everything he says. Thank goodness he puts the lecture notes and slides online later on, I always have to go fill in what I missed.

2. College Writing
I like our professor, some of the essays we've been reading have been really good, and I can already tell that it's a good idea to be reviewing grammar rules! I am generally pretty good at writing, but this class has been reminding me that there is always room for improvement. Thank goodness she grades in purple pen, not red!

3. Old Testament Survey (we just call it O.T.) 
Such a fun class. Dr. Marty is quite well known and loved around here, and for good reason! He makes the class really fun, and has been known to grab people by the shoulders, or tell them they should marry "that girl over there in the blue shirt" just to illustrate a point. This would be why some of my friends and I sit in the "Dead Sea" (a.k.a. the back of the auditorium) so we are able to observe the craziness, but not be a victim of it.

4. Spiritual Life and Community (SLAC, of course, pronounced like slack, for no particular reason...)
This is the only class I have at night. I don't mind, though, it's just once a week for three hours. Basically this class entails a little bit of lecture, being part of a small group that meets for about 1/3 of the class time, meeting with an accountability partner from the class once a week, reading three books, and writing three book reports. I am not loving one of the books we're reading, but regardless, I do enjoy this class. It's a chill, encouraging class to go to at the end of the day. This week, our prof brought us his wife's homemade whole wheat chocolate chip cookies and milk. That was a particularly good class. Yes.

5. Intro to Ministry
I have this class once a week, for one hour, with around 280 other kids. The purpose for this class is to help us with our PCM (Practical Christian Ministry, which I will explain in a future post) and train us for ministry in the future. We'll have lots of guest speakers, and hear about different types of ministries. We are learning some really great foundational stuff, which is good whether you've been doing ministry for years of not. For some, it's all brand new. For many, it's a good refresher to remind us what our goal and purpose is, and what the most important parts of ministry are.

Speaking of classes, I am off to finish my first OT paper which is due on Monday. Oh boy.

Love,
Emily

Welcome!

Hello!

You've done it, you've made it, successfully over to my brand new blog site! Do you just love it? I absolutely do. It was designed by my lovely friend Gloria- also a blogger, of course! Please follow her here :).

I suppose we will start with a few basics. However, I have an About Me page, so if you need to know more, that's where you should go! My name is Emily, but if you're reading this, we're probably related, or friends on Facebook, so you know that. I'm just being polite.

So, what am I going to blog about? I thought you'd never ask. I love Jesus, I am studying Pre-Counseling at Moody Bible Institute, I have awesome friends and family, I live in Chicago and frequently go on adventures, and I love Pinterest and other such cooking/fashion/crafty pursuits. I will blog what I know and what I love. Random thoughts, cool things I'm learning in my theology classes, and adventures I've been on. Basically, whatever comes to mind. I may focus on a more specific topic at some point, but for now I'm going to try everything and see what I like. Please give feedback so I can  better hone in on what to write about! You can do so by marking one of the little checkboxes you will see at the end of a post, commenting on a post, or sending me an email.

If you'd like to see my old blog, you can read through my posts right here. I am working on getting my posts to pop up over there as well, but am having many technology-related difficulties as it is. I will be continuing most of my regular posts, such as Monthly Favorites, Life Lately, Instagram Lovin', and vlogs! I have so much fun stuff lined up, just you wait and see!

Much love,

Emily