Are You Worth More Than Rubies?

Disclaimer: This post is strictly for the ladies....

    "A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies." -Proverbs 31:10

    I have heard this verse many times and I have to wonder, why rubies? Then I did a little research. I found out a ruby is one of the most precious and valuable gemstones. So how is a woman more valuable than rubies?

    If you have not read through Proverbs 31, I highly recommend it. This morning, my small group and I really dug into what the Proverbs 31 woman looks like. Going through this passage can be a bit intimidating. The woman described in Proverbs 31 seems like the perfect woman. I found myself thinking "is this even possible to achieve?"

    "She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy. When it snows, she has no fear for her household; for all of them are clothed in scarlet. She makes coverings for her bed; she is clothed in fine linen and purple. Her husband is respected at the city gate, where he takes his seat among the elders of the land. She makes linen garments and sells them, and supplied the merchant with sashes. She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue." -Proverbs 31:20-26

   Are you kidding me? This woman is perfect? Does God call me to be a perfect woman? No, he does not. God does however give us guidelines to follow. These guidelines can be overwhelming at first glance. This woman had no fear, she was respected by not only the city, but her children and her husband. In all her "free time" she made linen garments and sold them. She seemed perfect. But I had to remind myself, the woman described in Proverbs 31 was not always this woman. Being a woman of noble character is not something you just become in a day. As I read through this passage more and more, I realized to become this woman takes work. It takes complete trust and faith on God.

    Proverbs 31 describes a woman who seems perfect. But we all have our trials. We all have times that things are not perfect. One thing I am confident of is that this woman looked to God in all of her trials and tribulations. I know that is the woman God calls me to be.

    So what does it mean to be worth more than rubies? To be rare, to be precious and to be valuable. To be a woman of the world is nothing like the Proverbs 31 woman.

"Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised." -Proverbs 31:30

Are you a woman who fears the Lord? Are you a rare gem? If you have not read through Proverbs 31, I think you should. And challenge yourself to become more like the Proverbs 31 woman. I will be praying that you have the strength and perseverance to become more like her. But remember, without God, it is just not possible.

   

Blessed Opportunity

    A couple of months ago, I felt God telling me to start a small group one morning a week. All I could think was "God, I am already so busy. How on earth am I going to have time to start this study and make it successful?" God simply said, "You are going to make time." Simple as that, huh?

    I had so many concerns. The biggest was, what 8th grade girl is going to want to get up on a school day to meet at 7 in the morning? To my surprise, more than I thought. 

    Today was our first meeting and 4 girls showed up along with one of my friends who is also a leader. I am not sure if they could tell, but I was so excited that they were coming to hang out with their small group leader to talk about God. 

    Every Wednesday evening during youth group, I am amazed at their passion for the Lord. When I was their age, I didn't have any friends who loved and understood God the way they do. I am so thankful God chose me to be their leader. I am excited to see where He will take this study and the impact it will have on all of us. 

    I know it will not always be easy to get up every Tuesday. But what I do know is that God has called me to pour into the lives of these girls. Mark 10:45 tells us "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." If my Saviour was a servant and I am supposed to live a life that is pleasing to God, I am going to serve with all I have. 

    I read a blog yesterday by someone I consider a mentor. She spoke about tithing not just our money, but our time. One hour every Tuesday may not be a lot of time to tithe, but hey, it's a start. It may even get us all in the habit of tithing our time to God more often.

    I wonder if these girls know what an impact they have made on my life. They encourage me to be the very best leader I can be. To serve God regularly and be a positive influence on them. If I have learned one thing by being their leader this year, it is, only good comes from serving God and pouring into the lives of others. I am blessed. 

 

What is Your Passion?

    Last week I saw a family with a little boy around five years old get out of a van. They had parked right next to a motorcycle and the little boy was completely captivated by it. He could not take his eyes off of the bike as he pointed to different parts of it, telling his parents everything he knew about motorcycles. It got me thinking about how passionate kids can be. If a child is interested in something, you know it. Not five minutes go by upon meeting them before you are hearing all about their passion. In that moment, the most important thing is to tell you everything they know about the thing they love.

    I wonder what my daily conversations would be like if I began sharing the thing I was passionate about. Unlike children, I worry about what a stranger would think if I walked up to them and began to describe how much I loved Jesus. I deceive myself into thinking any one of the six times I have run into this stranger around town was not the one specific time God had planned for me to share my faith with them. I wonder how many opportunities I have missed because of the questions I have constantly asked myself. I can only pray for opportunity and not seize it for so long.

    I am reminded today of how many lost people there are in the world. How easy it is for some to slip away. So many people in my life do not believe what I believe. They do not have a deep love for Jesus and do not understand why they should. The thought of people I love not spending eternity in Heaven with me should be enough to make me run around sharing the gospel like a crazy person.

    If I leave this earth tomorrow, I want to know I took every opportunity I could. I want to know I told everyone I know about my love for my Saviour. I want to know that I did everything in my power to bring the lost to Jesus.

    While it saddens me to know how many lost people there are, I am encouraged to know people are being led to Christ daily. People are hearing the good news. I just want to make sure I am one of the many being used by God to bring his people home.

   

My True Love

    As the "Week of Love" comes to an end... I thought it fitting to write about Valentines day and my true love.

    I was always the single girl that dreaded Valentines day. Always bitter at the fact that I didn't have someone to share my love with. This year was different. I realized that I have been sharing my love with someone for the last 26 Valentines day's. I realized that my true love has been by my side every single day of my life. No, I have not realized my undying love for an old friend. I am still single. However,  my perspective has completely changed.

    I felt more love this Valentines day then ever before. Not just because my uncle got me flowers, or because my mom sent me a very sweet package. Don't get me wrong, I appreciated the gifts and was very grateful for them. I just realized that I have the most unconditional love I could ever imagine. The love of God. My creator. I know to some, this love does not seem tangible. God is not waiting at your door step with a bouquet of roses. Instead, he offers us a love that we cannot even comprehend. It is real. It is full. It is more than we are capable of.

    It has taken a long time to realize this, but I am not single because God wants to hurt me. I am not single because God has abandon me. I am single because God is protecting me. I am single because God loves me. I am single because God does not want me to settle for less than the who he has created for me. God wants me to understand that HE is my true love. God wants me to rely on Him to provide the intimate love I need to feel. He knows my hearts desire. He knows that I want to be married. But for now, I truly believe that he wants me to trust in him so that when the right guy comes along, I will be able to love him without straying from God.

    Last year I wrote a letter to my future husband. I prayed and made a promise to God and to myself that if I was dating someone and I could not hand them that letter on our wedding day with full confidence that they were everything the letter described, I would not continue dating them. I have waited 26 years for the right guy. Why settle now? God does not want us to settle. And that is not just for single people. God does not want you to settle in your married relationship. Every relationship goes through tough times. But if you make God the center, spend time in prayer together and separately and trust in him to make the relationship stronger, He will.

  I want nothing more than to find a man who loves the Lord and will be the spiritual leader of our home. Someone I can serve God along side of. I know being single will not always be easy. I know I will struggle. But I know who I can always come back to and share my heart with and I am thankful that God loves me so much and wants me to constantly pour my heart out to him.

    I hope that those of you who are reading this will realize how much God loves you and how He wants to be your true love. And when you love Him and put your trust in Him, your life will totally change.





   

Praying in the Moment

    I once heard a sermon by Mark Driscoll (one of my favorite pastors to listen to) that talked about prayer. He said when you tell someone "I'll pray for you", you are not only making a promise to them, you are making a promise to God. Why had I never looked at it like that? How many times have I told someone I would pray for them and just as quickly as I said it, I forgot to say a prayer. Time goes by and you remind yourself "Oh yeah, pray for this person for this struggle" and you still don't pray.

    In the last year, prayer has come up so much in my daily life. I remember a little over a year ago, if someone asked me to pray in front of people, I would freeze. My palms would start to sweat, I would get that big lump in my throat, I would stutter and get nervous that I would say something wrong. Then after a sermon at church, I realized what prayer really was. It is a conversation between God and I. It does not matter if I "pray well" in other people's opinion. It does not matter if I stutter or stumble over words. It does not matter if I forget to say something and add it in at the end. God knows what is on my heart and the moment I realized God does not judge my prayers, I didn't care what other people thought of them either.

    After hearing what Mark Driscoll said about making a promise to God, I took it as a challenge. I am challenging myself to pray in the moment. If I am talking to someone who is going through something, instead of saying "I'll pray for you", I will challenge myself to say "can I pray with you now?" If that person is texting me, I will challenge myself to put down the phone and pray in that moment. I also keep a pad of paper at my desk and when I hear someone is having a hard day, I write their name down and bring that paper home and pray for those people.

    I was talking to someone today who said that she uses her Facebook news feed as a tool. When someone's name comes up, she prays for them. She said "I don't always know what their struggle is, but God does". She is right. God knows what the people we pray for are going through. Psalm 145: 18 says "The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth." God wants us to call on him. Not just in the bad times, but to praise him in the good. When we call on him, he is near. What a comfort.

    So my goal for myself is to pray in the moment. Keep track of those in my life who need prayer. No more empty promises to God. What tools will you use to better your prayer life?

You Never Let Go

As I was driving home from youth group last night, I was filled with questions for God. He had not been speaking quite as clearly the last week. I knew he was there, but I just had to talk to him and pour out my heart.

I was overwhelmed with sorrow for a particular couple from church who is going through something I would never wish on anyone. I began to sob while I asked God why these things happen to such great people. "Why God?" I kept begging that he would help this couple to rely on him through this time and to that they would become stronger as a couple and be what each other needs. I prayed that they would seek him in this time and also remember him when things get better. Suddenly God said "be quiet and listen". So I wiped my tears and listened. And as soon as I did I heard the words "Oh no, you never let go. Through the CALM and through the STORM". There it was. God's voice was speaking to me through KLOVE.

Right when I think "hey, I have not heard from you today", he reminds me that it is because I have not called out to him. And as soon as I did, he reminded me that he is there. Always. In good times and bad. That is his promise to us. And I know that while this couple is struggling, God will continue to do amazing things through them. He will help them use this pain to comfort others just as he has comforted them.

A Little Hot Beverage and a Whole Lotta God!

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of going over to my pastors house to have warm drinks and conversation with his wife and some women from our e3 service.  I was excited for the opportunity to get to know some of these women I see every sunday a little bit better.

It is becoming more apparent to me each day that God has bigger plans than I can imagine. I have spent so much time lately thinking about the changes that God is throwing my way and all the exciting things to come. I tend to forget what God is doing in other people's lives. As I listened to all that was going on around me, I heard the different ways that God was working through these women and their families. One woman talked about how she and her husband are looking to start a home for children in the foster system that have attachment issues. Another woman talked about how she and her husband were in the process of adopting. I listened to the excitement coming from both of them. Both so excited to see how God was going to change their lives completely. But I could not ignore the women who were hurting. While some of us have incredibly exciting and new things happening in our lives, some of us are struggling to get by. And sometimes I wonder why people have to struggle, or why they have to hurt. And then I remember John 9: 1-3 "As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind? Neither, this man nor his parents sinned, said Jesus, but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him."

I do not think that we have to struggle because of sins that we have committed. What I do know, is this, God will help us in times of trouble. We just have to put all of our faith in him. Each of us is going through something different in our lives. Some of us are on top, while others believe they have hit rock bottom. It is important to remember that in either instance, we must rest in Him and know that all we have is His and that he will provide for us and get us through the rough times.

I am thankful for the time we had yesterday and thankful that God spoke to me in that couple hours we spent together. I am thankful for the reminder that we all have a story and I need to take more time to listen to what others are going through.

An Unexpected Turn of Events.

On April 22nd, I wrote about my last day at Starbucks. Such a scary time to begin a new chapter in life. I was safe in my little Starbucks bubble for almost five years. Starbucks was a comfort for me. I knew that no matter where I went, I would have a job. I could go into a Starbucks in any unfamiliar place and as soon as I smelled that smell, the feeling of home would come over me. Towards the end of my time at Starbucks though, I came to realize that it was time to step outside of my comfort zone and rely on something or someone rather, who could offer me the sense of belonging and home that Starbucks never could.

I thought for sure I would love my new job. Getting to dress up every day and have my own desk. Weekends off. Yeah... this is the life of a REAL adult. As time went on, I realized I was still not content with the way things were going. I began to listen to sermons all day long while I was at work and started to spend more time talking to God. Reading the bible and really seeking what it was that he wanted me to do. Finally, God spoke to me. It was not a loud voice coming from above that gave me a list of what I was supposed to do, but more of a "eh ehm.... is this really what you think I put you here for?"

For almost 9 months, I had felt so far from God. I began to feel angry with him. Like no matter what I did, he was not going to give me what I thought I deserved. He was never going to give me a husband. He was never going to give me the job I had always dreamed of. He was never going to speak to me the way I saw him speaking to other women that I went to church with. I began to feel envy. I wondered what I had done that made God take these things away from me. It was not until late this summer that I realized... God does not leave us so much as we leave or stray away from him. What always brings me back though, is 1 Peter 1:8-9 "Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with and inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls." This passage always reminds me that sometimes God is silent. He is not always going to speak to us and show us exactly what he wants us to do and when. I truly believe that he wants us to seek him and seek out his plan for us. So that is just what I did.

As soon as I realized that I was not doing what God had put me on this earth to do, I began to try to figure out the path I was supposed to take. I think I knew all along, but was too afraid to take the plunge. So I entertained the idea of going to night school... but still, God told me "no Erin, not school. Yes, you will get your degree in education, but you will not be a teacher. You are going to serve me and use your gift of compassion". So I sat down and prayed and finally God told me, through other people and their experiences, but also his loud booming voice spoke to me during prayers. God told me to apply for a DTS. And as I spoke with a friends Dad, God gave me the nudge to also consider getting my education degree from the University of Nations.

So, I accepted his plan and wondered how on earth would I convince my family that taking that much time off of work would be a wise decision. And when I say time off of work, I am talking like up to four years. How will I make money? How will I afford school? Money is such a stressful thing to me, but God just keeps telling me that he is going to provide. That I should no worry about money. And as I tell each family member about this choice that God has led me to, I am overwhelmed by the support I am getting. Everyone has encouraged me and helped me feel more confident in this decision and God's ability to provide.

I am so excited to see what happens! I know that if I do not get in, he will have other plans for me. No matter what it is, I know he is going to teach me how to use my spiritual gifts and how I can serve him in my everyday life.

I was lent a book by my pastors wife called Kisses from Katie. I came across something she said that totally stuck out to me... "I thought of how, after a long, hard day in my previous life, I would have crashed on the couch with a pint of ice cream, a good sappy movie, and my closes girlfriends. Here, at the end of a long, hard day, there was nothing to do by cry out to Jesus for the strength to go on."

That is what I want. I want to be pushed out of my comfort zone. I want to learn to be bold for HIM. I want to show others HIS love. I want to cry out to Jesus and rely on HIM daily to get me through. And in the process, if I can touch just one person, it will be worth all of the pain and struggles I am about to endure. I have been given this one life. It was given to me by God. I am SAVED through Jesus Christ and I want everyone to know what he has done not only for me, but for all of us if we chose to accept that gift.

So begins something amazing in my life. This blog post is long and does not even cover half of what I want to get out. I cannot promise that I will write more, but I can promise that my life is about to change drastically and I hope to continue to document what happens. Even if I am the only one that ever reads this.

I will leave with this verse... 1 Peter 4:10 "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms."

The End of an Era

Yesterday marked the end of a nearly five year career with Starbucks. It is hard to believe that I no longer work there. In fact, I don't think it will actually sink in until tomorrow when I head to my new job. I remember how excited I was when I got hired at Starbucks. I thought it was the coolest job ever. I remember my first day and doing my first impressions. Hearing all about the company and doing my first ever coffee tasting. I was tasting Tanzania. I was most afraid to take orders over the headset. I thought that there was no way I would ever learn everything or be quick on bar. Now it is almost five years later and just about everything of that job has become second nature. I find myself accidently reaching for the "b" button on my headset when I am at home and trying to talk to people, only to realize that I am not at work. Or answering my phone "thanks for choosing Starbucks". It is definitely going to be an adjustment not working there. I knew I would not be there forever, but it is still sad to leave. I have made some really amazing friends in the years that I have worked there. However, I am excited for this new journey. I am ready to have weekends off and actually get to see my family. It will be such a nice feeling to go to church on Sunday evenings and not feel exhausted from being up since 4. I know this is the change God wants for me, its just hard to put myself back into the "newbie" role and start completely over. I know it will be a great change for me. I know that I am moving forward in my life and that is very exciting. So while I close the doors on one chapter of my life, I am looking forward to starting the next chapter and seeing what it is God is going to bring my way!

Until Next Time..

Time to rethink this blog...

I started this blog mostly for myself. I wanted an outlet to write. As I have come to realize, I am not a great writer. I do not use big words. But I do have things to say. I am a person with real feelings. There are some real things going on in my life and I think it is important to talk about them. So while I think of new names for this blog, I will at least create a new theme for what I want to talk about.

First things first,  I have prayed and prayed about where God wants me. Oregon? Montana? What is the verdict? Well, I feel that God has told me to stay in Montana. For whatever reason, I do not know. All I can say is that he has something planned for me here. So for now, I am staying in Montana. And I am so happy to say that I know I am making the right choice in staying here.

Some of my earlier posts were written in a very dark and depressed stage. I was not feeling great because of an ankle sprain that had me laid up for weeks. Nobody would feel good about themselves or their life if they had numerous hours to sit around and contemplate life and where they were. However, I am happy to say that i have snapped right out of that. I am much happier now. I am learning to trust that God has a plan for me and for my life. I know now that he will help me learn from each and every circumstance in my life. I am thankful for that opportunity.

I want to be positive in this blog. I do know that the biggest thing going on with me is trusting God to bring "Mr. Right" into my life. So there is a good chance that I will talk about that often. But I want to have a positive outlook on it. I want to be able to encourage other singles out there that God really has chosen someone for each and every one of us. Someone that is better than we ever could have imagined they would be. I am so excited to see who that is for me and for my friends and family.

I have spent a lot of time praying for change in my life and for direction. And I feel like God has delivered. I am not sure what will happen in the next year, but what I do know is that he has some serious curve balls headed my way. For the first time in my life, I can say that I am incredibly excited to see what it could be. I am finally open to change and to following the Lord in any way that I can. So all I have to say is.... BRING IT ON!

I certainly will try to write more often. And if anyone decides to follow this blog, I hope that what I talk about will help you out or encourage you. But for now, I must get some rest.

Goodnight.

It's Coming on Christmas..

Well, it is that time of year again. December 3rd and I already feel as if Christmas is over. It seems to come and go quicker every year. As I look back on my childhood and think about past Christmas', I have so many wonderful memories. Waking up December 1st and knowing... ITS TIME TO START DECORATING! My mom would fill the house with cinnamon candles, home made decorations and what seemed like thousands of poinsettia's. I remember her pulling out this ceramic tree with these little plastic pins that would illuminate when you plugged them in. Every year she said the same thing, "Erin, do you know who made this tree?" I would always respond with "Oma?" as if I was not totally sure. My mom would be singing Christmas songs and the one I remember hearing the most was the famous duet by Bing Crosby and David Bowie... Little Drummer Boy/Peace On Earth. She always told me that Opa used to sing it to her when she was younger. Those stories still don't get old. I remember every year we would Christmas shop and my brother and I would decorate our rooms with lights and small trees and homemade wreathes and stockings on our doors. It was perfect. Every Christmas Eve, we would get dressed up and go to church. My favorite service. Always touching and the fact that it was a candle lit service made it extra special. Then we would load up in the car and go look at lights before heading home. Once we were home we would have summer sausage, cheese and crackers and now our new tradition... pizza. Before heading to bed, we would open one gift to hold us over until morning. And as you can guess... we would go to bed and lay awake anticipating what Santa had left for us. Christmas morning came and I remember my brother and I would BOLT out to the living room. We would anxiously await as we heard mom start the coffee pot and put in the cinnamon rolls. Finally the coffee is ready and she would take a cup into my dad.... and then... slowly.... he would roll out of bed. Nick and I were about to burst at this point. But before we could open presents, we had to read the Christmas Story. AND THEN FINALLY.... it was time to open gifts. We always got the neatest things. I remember one year we wanted a trampoline so bad. Our cousins had one, so we figured we should too. But since we were in the middle of a remodel, we could not afford a big one. So my mom rolls in a small, red exercise trampoline. And you know what? It was perfect. We loved that thing. I loved everything about Christmas back then.

Lately, it just seems like Christmas is more of a hassle than anything. Nobody decorates like they used to. You drive through neighborhoods to see lights, and you are lucky if even half the street is decorated. School is now required to call it "Winter Break" because they have to be politically correct. People go in debt in order to buy gifts for people they don't even want to buy for. I am struggling myself this year financially. I wont be able to buy for the people closest to me and it is killing me. But at the same time, it has really forced me to get back to the roots of Christmas. I am remembering all of these things from years past and it almost makes me sad to see what Christmas has become. Has it always been this way? Was my mom just so good at making every Christmas so special that I didn't realize how much of a hassle people seem to think it is? I sure hope not. While the presents are nice, it's not what Christmas is about. I love to see the lights and the decorations and it makes me sad when people don't get into the spirit, but I have to remind myself, that is not the most important thing. I wish that everyone including myself could take time to step out of the stores and remember why we celebrate CHRISTmas. The birth of Jesus Christ. Our saviour. We need to be celebrating him, his life and what he came to earth for. And we need to slow it down and enjoy time with our family. That time is limited. It is so precious and I want to look back on my life and be glad that I spent quality time with my family. I really hope that people will take a step back, slow down and just enjoy this holiday season. Stop worrying about money and grab your family, some mugs filled with hot cocoa and pop in a classic Christmas movie. I have every intention on making this Christmas count. I hope you do too.

Home.Sweet.Home

Well, I have officially been in Oregon for four days. I am sitting in the living room having my morning cup of coffee and just staring at the light drizzle coming down outside the window. I have said it before and I will say it again.... ahhhhh the Northwest! I am in love. I am struggling, because being here reminds me of how much I love this place. Not Gresham necessarily, but Oregon and what is here. My parents, siblings, grandparents and friends. It is hard to not want to just stay here. It did make me realize, however, that I do want to be close to my parents when I decide to settle down, get married and have children. With that said, I think my Montana days are numbered. I am not planning on getting married tomorrow, heck, I can't even think of a guy I would want to be with forever as of right now. But I do want to establish myself again. Find an apartment. Transfer to another Starbucks and hopefully get promoted sooner. The thing about living where there are more than one Starbucks, is that the possibilities of getting promoted are much greater.

It has been so nice to get to spend time with family. It really makes me appreciate them so much. I am one lucky girl to be surrounded by so many people that I love. I could not be happier. Or so I thought.

I got the best news yesterday! Laura and Bre will both be here next week! I get to see two of my best friends while I am  here!! I am overjoyed! I have not seen either of them in so long. It was Christmas the last time I saw Laura and June when I saw Bre. Another plus to moving back home, I will get to see them whenever they come back home. Which would be so nice to not be in Montana missing the time when everyone has come home and I am still there.

Now don't get me wrong. I love Montana. I love my family and that I get to see them every day. I love the church I am involved in. Sometimes I am scared that if I move back, I will not be involved or I will not go to church as often as I do. I know that I will have to push myself. I know that I will miss a lot of people and things about Montana. Mostly, my aunt, uncle and cousins. But I have just really realized how important it is to be close to family.

Enough about that. I just had to get my thoughts out I think. Time to get moving and get ready. On the agenda for today, shopping and pedicures with my mom! Its going to be great! That is all for now!

Nothin' beats Oregon in the fall

Yup, I said it! Which means of course, that I am in Oregon! After a looooong and uncomfortable train ride, I arrived at Portland Union Station this morning at 10:25. I slept on and off through most of the ride until around 8:30. I finally decided to look out the window and take in the Northwest. I was taken back by the beauty! There were so many amazing colors. Green and yellow and orange and red! AH! It was amazing! I found myself totally lost and just staring out the window. I really didnt notice anything going on around me. As I looked up onto the hills, the tops of the trees were covered in fog. It looked almost...dare  I say... Twilighty. Another thing to love about the Northwest.

As I stepped off the train, I was instantly hit by the smell... if you are from here, then you know what I am talking about. That smell that comes right before the rain hits the ground. I just stood there and took in a huge sniff! I didnt care who was looking. Nobody could take that moment from me. The air was crisp and cool and evertyhing was perfect.

I called my mom to let her know I had made it and she was running a little behind, so I decided to head into the staiton and look around. There is not much to it, but Union Station is pretty cool. Kind of historical. I sat on a bench and watched people for a while before I decided that I was in desperate need for a caffiene fix. I grabbed a double tall white mocha and went out front. You know your in Portland when the first thing you hear outside is a symphony of car horns, street sweepers and sirens. For some reason, it made me feel right at home. I was pretty much in heaven.

The first person to come up to me outside was an older gentleman. Probably late 40's I'd say. He was selling news papers for the homeless. I opted out on buying one and went back to reading my book. About twenty minutes later he sat on a bench next to the one I was sitting on. He pulled out a baggie with a sandwhich in it and a bottle of some Dr. Pepper knock off. As he helped himself to his lunch, I could not help but feel a tug at my heartstrings. My mom always tells me I am too compasionate, and it is times like these that make me think she is right. I have a hard time watching people eat alone. It makes me wonder what their story is. Why they are alone. Have they lost a loved one? Have they ever had a loved one to eat with? So many things run through my head, but today all that ran through  my head was to pray for him. So I did. I prayed that God would bless this man that I didnt know. I asked God that if he was homeless as well, that he would find a place to live. I just prayed for a while until the tears dried up. Then I looked up and my mom was there. We loaded the car with my bags and as I was getting in, I looked over and the man smiled at me. I said to him "have a really great day" and he said "well thank you, you have a good day as well." I hopped in the car and he was standing right in my view and nodded at me. I feel like this was God saying "Hey Erin, he is surely going to be blessed today". It just gave me an overwhelming feeling that everything was going to be okay.

So, that is my first hour in Oregon. I hope that man is  blessed today. I hope everyone is blessed today. I know I am and I cannot wait to see what other awesome things happen on this trip!

First blog...

So I have decided to write a blog. Not really for anyone to read, but mostly so I can just get my thoughts out. I have been stuck at home for over three weeks now with an ankle injury and I have three more weeks to go. I figured that I should do something productive with the rest of my time off. The first three weeks consisted of watching countless hours of TV and movies on Netflix. I think my brain could quite possibly be fried! Time to start reading or doing something that will feed my brain and possibly spark some creativity.

Yesterday, I made a five month calendar and each week has a different book to read. I have tried so hard to set a goal to read a book a week and for some reason I blow it off right as the words come out of my mouth. So starting Sunday, I will start the book 5th Avenue 5 A.M. The synopsis of this book is "Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany's and the dawn of the modern woman". I figured this is a good book to start my 5 months off with. I am slightly obsessed with Audrey Hepburn and Breakfast at Tiffany's. What girl isn't?

So I guess I will end today's post with a little bit about myself. I am 24 years old and having severe anxiety about turning 25 in December. I moved to Kalispell, MT in May of 2010. So far it has been an incredible adventure. I have gotten really involved in church and I have made some really great friends. Bonus, I have grown even closer to my family here!  I have worked at Starbucks for a little over 4 years (hence the title of this blog). For the most part, my life is pretty awesome! Great friends, great family and great things yet to come. Now it is time to get this Friday started! Who knows what is in store for today? I am sure it will be nothing short of awesome!
Until next time!