God of This City

I officially started classes today for MTR. Tonight a couple of my new friends had a group over to their apartment for worship. For me it was a time of assurance that God is doing great things here in Memphis, especially in dealing with the injustices of the public school system. For many of us this song speaks a lot to why we are here:

God of this City 

You're the God of this City 
You're the King of these people 
You're the Lord of this nation 
You are 

You're the Light in this darkness 
You're the Hope to the hopeless 
You're the Peace to the restless 
You are 

There is no one like our God 
There is no one like our God 

For greater things have yet to come 
And greater things are still to be done in this City 
Greater thing have yet to come 
And greater things are still to be done in this City 

There is no one like our God 
There is no one like our God 

For greater things have yet to come 
And greater things are still to be done in this City 
Greater things have yet to come 
And greater things are still to be done here 

There is no one like our god 
There is no one like our God 

Greater things have yet to come 
And greater things are still to be done in this City 
Greater things have yet to come 
And greater things are still to be done here


Moving into Midtown and getting to know all of my peers and the MTR staff has been amazing during the last two weeks. We have already gotten very close with each other and together have been immersed into the history of Memphis, making me love the city even more. I have lots of stories and pictures to share, but not much time. One quick story about how well we know each other: On Saturday I went with my new friend Kristin to get a pedicure and the man doing her pedicure asked how long we had known each other. He was shocked when she said, "Only a week." Only God could remove the barriers and bring our group together so perfectly to serve in Memphis. 

1st Redbirds Game of the Season

I cannot believe it was three weeks ago when we went to our first Redbirds game of the season. Carolyn was in town with her friend Ali, so my mom made fried okra and we went to a redbirds game. [Two treats for our family]

It was a great night at the ballpark and the Redbirds scored 10 runs in the 8th inning to come from behind for the win.

One highlight of the evening was getting our picture taken with Rocky - we ended up chasing him toward the exit and were so excited that we caught up with him that he said, "Woah, lay off the Skittles!" and when he saw Carolyn, Ali, and Lara later in the game he shouted, "Hey Skittles!" So, here are Rocky and the Skittles:

Lexington

While visiting Cofer we did venture into Lexington a few times where there is much more to see!

Like bicycle racks made from bicycles and beautiful stone buildings:

and the Kentucky theater where Cofer's church meets:

And we had pizza at Joe Bologna's, which was originally a Presbyterian Church and then a Jewish Temple, but now is re-purposed as a restaurant. The jury is out on whether or not the raised seating was an addition or  a part of the church. I think it was completely an addition - any thoughts?

And I have share my inspiration for my blue table:

However, there was one part of Lexington that I did not enjoy so much - spotting Calipari. As a true Memphian, he just disgusts me!

Wilmore

Also, affectionately known as Thrillmore because there is not much to do but look at beautiful scenery:

Go to college (or seminary):

Eat a sandwich named after your favorite Theologian:

Drink Ale 8 in honor of Frase:

And, craft, which I'm particularly fond of!

Travelling the South

I've had some time between working and moving in the last two weeks to relax and visit some friends. I have made trips to ARKANSAS:

And KENTUCKY:

-Lots of good fellowship and food with dear friends during my trips! 

The Blue End Table

I love a project. And a sister named Martha who will sand, prime, and paint with me for hours!

We learned a big lesson with this project. Don't get oil-based primer on your body. 
-
We tried to use paint thinner to clean the brushes, FAIL - that just caused the primer to get all over our hands and the fumes made us lightheaded. 
-
Forget the brushes [don't tell my dad we threw them away] we just needed to get that stuff off our hands!
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Out comes the nail polish remover, but that wasn't going to cut it because all the rubbing and acetone was giving me a rash. So we asked Carolyn to google another way to get the primer off our hands. Two interesting suggestions 1. Mayo 2. Olive oil and salt. We chose #2, and it worked! Lots of laughs, but the result was much cleaner and smooth hands!

5 Dollars

Who needs a $5 footlong when you can get a $5 end table?

I definitely got the table! I'll be back with the finished product.