It's been how long? Christmas and Russia

My goodness, how time flies! I began this blog to chronicle my month-long missions trip to Russia in the summer. Now it's been six months since I flew home from that beautiful country. And now, one of my favorite times of year is upon us again: Christmastime! Russia has popped up in my brain a lot this December. Maybe because I've recently gotten to see friends who have been there themselves; maybe just because it has a special place in my heart. I thought I'd share memories that often pop into my brain as I go about life here at home. (Random proud moment of Laura- I used my high school html skills to italicize how in my title...yes, I'm excited about html.) 

The seemingly never-ending
escalators of the metro

1. Crowds. When I'm in a big crowd exiting somewhere, or when I'm in a busy line at a restaurant, I feel like I'm back in the Moscow metro or ordering food at the busy McDonald's in Kitay-Gorod.
2. Fishing for change. When paying with cash at stores, I always try to pay in exact change because that's seemingly the polite thing to do in Russia, and I half expect the cashier to become frustrated with me if I don't. One time at a self-checkout at Kroger, I put a 5 ruble coin into the machine instead of a quarter...oops.
3. Escalators. Riding any escalator reminds me of going to and from the metro. Metro escalators were super long and it was not uncommon for young Moscovites to make out on them...awkward yet humorous. 
4. Crossing streets. Crossing a street in Moscow is different from crossing a street here at home. Here, we make eye contact with drivers and wait to proceed until they wave us across the road. In Russia, it's a pedestrian's world. You just cross and hold your breath that the cars will stop for you. Typically, if you look a Russian driver in the eye, he'll take it as a sign for him to keep on driving.
5. Randomly speaking Russian. I'll often answer my friends or parents with little Russian words or phrases that I picked up while I was there.  Да. Нет. Спасибо. Пожалуйста. Я не знаю. Мороженое. I hope that doesn't annoy them too much...
6. Parks. I miss the pretty parks in Moscow. I live within walking distance of two lovely parks here in Flower Mound. They just aren't quite as picturesque as Kolomenskoe, or the park at metro Kitay-Gorod, or the garden at Christ the Savior. At my parks, there aren't ice cream vendors nearby, or well-groomed flower beds lining the pathways, or babushkas selling trinkets to passersby. 
7. Hearing foreign languages. So, obviously, living in Texas, the common foreign language one hears is Spanish, but every once in a while, I hear something different. I've become somewhat of a creeper in stores and restaurants, craning my neck and listening hard to catch any familiar Russian words. (see #4) So far, no Russians.
8. Movies set in Moscow. There are TWO movies out in December that are set in MOCKBA, where my very feet have trod. Haha. I want to see both of them: Mission Impossible (which Brent and I plan to see over the holiday) and The Darkest Hour, which may or may not turn out to be a cool movie. It has potential, I think. If not, I can just point to the screen a bunch and say, "I've been there!" I need to find someone who will go with me who won't mind my commentary... 

Cool city.

I've been able stay in touch with a few sweet Russian girls via Facebook. In honor of Christmas, I asked my friend Katerina to tell me about holiday traditions over there! It was fun to learn, and I wanted to share:
Christmas in Russia isn't as big of a deal as it is in the West. Because Russia was under Communist rule for many years and religion was banned, people didn't celebrate Christmas. So, New Year's is seen as the special holiday there. People get together and celebrate with their families at the New Year instead of at Christmas. The Russians have a "Santa Claus" figure similar to us, and he comes at New Year. His name is Ded Moroz, or "Grandfather Frost." Ded Moroz has a granddaughter, Snegurochka, "she helps him with presents, like a gnome :)" Katerina told me. Isn't that cute?? Christmas in Russia is also different from ours: it is celebrated on January 7th, not December 25th! I hunted online, and History.com said that in Orthodox tradition, it is believed that this day was when the three wise men visited Jesus. (Here's a link to the article, it's a pretty interesting read!) Katerina said that the religious attend church services for the occasion, but overall, it's just a day to be polite to your neighbors, to wish people well.

I love Christmas! I love spending time with my family and reflecting on God's blessings as the year comes to a close. And I love the story of Jesus' birth. :) How the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. My friend Kim (who works for Cru and lives in Moscow! Holla!) posted a super adorable Christmas video on Facebook and I thought I'd share it too! It just makes me smile.

Merry Christmas, y'all! Have a happy New Year!

God Bless,

               Laura

Photos courtesy of Lauren Young and myself 
Video from YouTube

Let's Be Real. Really.

This lil post stemmed from a night of insomnia. I find that occasionally my mind just turns on when my body and the earth's rotation are telling me that I should go to sleep. A lot of those aforementioned nights are nights when I just have some good time reflecting on the Lord. Last night falls into that category.

A couple of Fridays ago, I headed off to Norman, Oklahoma, to attend a beautiful wedding. (Quick shout out to Misty and Gerhard! Woo!) The wedding was that Saturday, but I left the night before to visit with my friend, Abby, from Summer Project. It wasn't long into the evening before we sat down on her RA office couch, and I more or less just had a good cry throughout the conversation. Abby and I chatted for hours about life and love and the Lord, and how the Lord totally affects life and love in awesome (awesome: astonishing, stupendous, stunning. Not merely awesome: "Gnarly, dude!") ways.
Okay, so maybe depending on how well you know me, the idea of me crying on my friend's couch is not a stretch of your imagination. I'm a "crier." I haven't always been. Depending on how well you know Abby, you may be surprised that I was the one who did the crying and not she. She's a crier, too. We share that bond. And tissues, if they're scarce. ;)
I look up to Abby in many ways. She's a year older than me, has a huge heart for others, is a bit more spiritually mature, and she's a couple inches taller than I am. More, if she starts up a metro escalator before me...whoops. Did I mention it's late and that I have my father's sense of humor? Silliness aside, I admire the girl. And I got to spend a big chunk of my month in Russia at her side. She's become very dear to me, even though we only really became friends this summer.
I have lots of friends like Abby, with whom I feel comfortable crying, and who mutually feel comfortable crying around me. It makes me wonder if most people have friends like that, or if I have an extraordinarily vulnerable circle of friends. But crying's not the point. It's being able to talk about touchy, scary, difficult, sometimes shameful life issues with someone. Things that would cause some people to look away, or cringe, or change the subject to something more pleasant. It's about being real with each other.
I remember those crying moments with friends well. The time I was moved to tears in a Moscow coffee shop as Abby and I talked about the wonderful students we had met. Times with my best friends crying over broken relationships. Times when conversations dug down deep, and healing tears were shed. We are all broken people. I don't mean to be a cynic when I say that. I like life! Life is full of sweet moments and wonderful experiences. But no life on earth is untouched by struggles and disappointments. There are points in time when each of us needs to sit down and cry. Or at least have a good verbal vent with someone, if crying's not your style. (It's not everyone's style.)
"Girlfriend, it's okay to cry," said Abby, half-laughing. She gave me a pat on my back and continued, "Shortest verse in the bible: 'Jesus wept.'"
Abby and I sat back and marveled, recounting how Jesus also went through lots of difficult moments in his life. How he chose to become human and experience a world full of harshness. He didn't remain aloof, or skirt over touchy issues. He dug into people's messy, broken, dirty lives and loved them with a perfect heart. And when his friend Lazarus died, Jesus wept. Jesus was real.
Abby and I talked of the blessings God has given each of us.
God loved us enough to become a man and ultimately conquer sin and death in order for us to be with him forever. (Hello, Good News!)
God has blessed us with loving families and friends with whom we can seek counsel in times of need. We are not perfect family members, nor perfect friends, but we can right wrongs and show grace to others because we ourselves have been forgiven much.
I have dealt with my share of struggles these past few years. Lots of soul-searching and question marks. However, the reason I cried that night with Abby was not because of my anxious heart or my fears of the future. The tears came through talking out my issues with her, recognizing God's blessings in my life during difficult times. What mainly caused me to cry was seeing my Father, in his love and wisdom, taking care of me and disciplining me gently through the rough patches. How he cares for me!
Jesus said, "Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS." 
Jesus was saying, "Come on in! Come take a load off and tell me how you're doing. Here, let's sit on the sofa. Can I get you a drink of water? Tell me what's up."
I mentioned earlier that I wasn't always a crier. Back in high school I acted like I had it all together and everybody else were the ones that were weird and messed up. Ha. False. Freshman year of college was when I began to realize that putting up a front all the time is just lame. Superficiality is tiring. I didn't want to pretend like I was this well put-together girl all the time. I learned that I could find rest in the Lord. He lets me be real with him no matter what! And in time I learned that I should be real with others...to share my joy as well as my struggles.
Let's get real, readers! Don't you want a friend with whom you can be your happy, sad, silly, messy self? Well, Jesus is a good friend to begin with! What did he do? He led by example. He loved people. He never hid who he was. He was open. Some people scoffed at him and the things he said, but it didn't phase him. He kept on loving. And he loves YOU!
Be that loving friend with a shoulder to cry on. Or one with an open seat next to you if you have personal space issues. Be real! You'll find that you can, in turn, share your hardships with others. Now, disclaimer, don't get all "woe-is-me" around your friends all the time. Ecclesiastes 3 (or The Byrds song) reminds us that to everything there is a season. There's lots of time for joy and laughter!
Be a good listener! After my rant to Abby, I asked how she had been, and she caught me up on the latest in her life. (Abbs, you remarked how you're often "the listener" and it was nice to just sit with me and share your life, and I'm glad I could listen to you. Being a genuine listener is something that God began to tug at in me this summer and he used your good example to help me learn! As our buddy Pittman would say, "See how he brought that back around?") I'm thankful for the Lord helping me learn to listen.
Folks, there are many seasons in life, good and bad. Let us not put up a facade over the struggles, but let's allow God to gently mold us into pictures of his grace and understanding. Let us rest in the Lord's care and follow Jesus' example. Let's be good friends. And let's surround ourselves with friends we can laugh and cry with along the way. :)

Happy Holidays: Sanderson Style

Christmas is right around the corner, readers! I, for one, am thrilled! I absolutely love this time of year, from Thanksgiving all the way to Christmas. For this blog, I thought I'd share some of the Sanderson family's annual holiday traditions, and some memorable holiday anecdotes.

Family Traditions:

Re-enacting the Nativity. This was a yearly fun family event every Christmas when we were children. I think it was a good way for our parents to teach us about Jesus' birth from an early age. The whole family would get involved! Someone would read the story, and then parents/kids would act out the parts. Mary would always ride in on a donkey, which was usually one of the boys. And the youngest family member or a baby doll played the role of baby Jesus. Our manger was a laundry basket. We got creative. ;)

Pie. Okay, I mean, pie is just a food, but my family is exceptionally fond of it. There is always an abundance of cherry and pumpkin pie at every extended family holiday. Apple and pecan also make their appearances, but the two family favorites are definitely pumpkin and cherry. We have good cooks in our family! And good eaters, too!


Storytelling. Whether it's re-living past holidays, or just recounting crazy past events, my relatives love to tell stories. Some recent family favorites are: Eric and Julia's apartment toilet fiasco (Eric conveniently devoted some blog posts to the tale. He's a fantastic writer, y'all.), and cousin Natalie's startling experience with Odessa PD, who came to the house while she was home alone, guns drawn, looking for a suspect named Juan...whoops.

Christmas tree decorating. Yeah, most everyone decorates a tree at Christmas. My family likes to buy a real one every year! It has always been a lot of fun to pick it out and take it home and decorate it together. We don't have super fancy, sparkly, coordinating ornaments. Mom has made it tradition to buy each of us an ornament every year. (When Eric and Julia were married, she gave him all of his ornaments from over the years as a special gift for their Christmases together.) There are also many ornaments that have been gifts, or crafts that we kids did in elementary school. I love our Christmas tree. It's homey and sentimental. :)

My mom and my aunt matching. A running joke of my family is that my mom and Susan, her sister, quite often buy and wear matching outfits without consulting one another. They have done this for years, even back when they were in college. They also unintentionally buy my cousins and me the same things as gifts. A few Christmases ago, Julie and I got identical bathrobes. Years before that, we three girls showed up to Christmas with matching pajamas. Even this Thanksgiving, as Momma and I drove to Plano to meet the relatives for dinner, I said to her, "I bet Susan will be wearing a teal shirt, too." Lo and behold, we walked in and burst into laughter because Susan was, in fact, wearing the same colored shirt as my mother. Must be a sister thing!

Watching The Muppet Christmas Carol. This is a very long-standing tradition that is dear to my heart. Every Christmas when we visit Dad's relatives, we all sit down and watch The Muppet Christmas Carol together. It's definitely my favorite Christmas movie, not only because it's just really great to watch, but also because it is such a well-kept Sanderson family tradition.

After-meal naps. It is common practice for my entire family to scatter around the host house to take a full-bellied snooze after Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner.

Lincoln's Thanksgiving proclamation. When the Russell side of the family has Thanksgiving in Midland, Uncle David reads Abraham Lincoln's Thanksgiving Proclamation. It's really neat to listen and to be reminded of the blessings and mercy of our Heavenly Father.

Granny's home cooking. My dad's mom, Granny, is a phenomenal down-home, Southern-style cook. For years, we would always have homemade bread, her special macaroni and cheese, and big chocolate cupcakes from scratch at Sanderson holiday gatherings. Recently, though, Granny's health has been declining, and she rarely cooks. Thankfully, we have her recipes. I hope to try my hand at keeping those foods in our family. I'm already a pro at the mac and cheese. It's SO good.

Combined family birthday party. It's tradition with the Russell (my mom's) side of the family to have a combined birthday party at Thanksgiving time. We're all together at one home, and there are four members who have birthdays in the end of November and the beginning of December: Grandma, Uncle Dale, Eric, and cousin Sam. So, it's rather ideal to throw a party for everyone at once!

Memorable Thanksgivings/Christmases:

The Christmas when Uncle Dale proposed to Aunt Kathy. At that time, we lived in Chicagoland. Dale and Kathy traveled to the midwest to visit Kathy's family in Indiana, and then to us in Illinois. And they surprised us with the news of their engagement! It was an especially happy and celebratory Christmas.

That Thanksgiving when the plumbing went kaput. A few years ago, we Sandersons hosted the Russell family at our house, and that holiday, one of our plumbing pipes decided to burst. We had NO WATER, with guests at our house! We had to take family potty trips to nearby fast food restaurants. Luckilly, my aunt and uncle rented a hotel room nearby, and they let us Sandersons shower there until we could get plumbers out to our house to fix our problem. (Which took a while, because it was Thanksgiving and everyone was on holiday.) What a predicament.

That Thanksgiving when it snowed. I think it was my junior year of high school, and we all woke up Thanksgiving morning to snow in Midland! We cousins bundled up and ventured out to a nearby field and had a snowball fight. :) 

Our first Christmas with Julia in the family! We got to have Eric and Julia with us on their first Christmas as a newlywed couple. And just to celebrate, God gave us a white Christmas Eve!

That Christmas when we cut down our own tree. One year when we were in Illinois, we went to a tree farm and cut down our own tree! It was such a festive activity! However, I most vividly remember that David stuffed a lot of snow down my back...still a little bitter about that part.

That Christmas I had mono... Oh, hey! That was last Christmas! Yep, I was struck with mononucleosis last December/January, and it decided to rear its evil head with gusto as we traveled down to Midland for the holiday. I was miserable. My family got a kick out of making sure that no one touched anything I ate or drank out of. They actually labeled things.... I also had no appetite, so I barely partook of any wonderful Christmas food. However, I can definitely say it is a Christmas I can look back on and smile. 

All of these little stories just make me feel blessed beyond measure. I am privileged to have a close-knit extended family, and family members that love and follow the Lord. These holidays together are always times of thanks to God: He has so richly blessed and provided for us over the years. And with that, I am thoroughly looking forward to Christmas travels in a few weeks! Wishing you readers the same. Cherish the time with your own families!

Photos courtesy of Julie and Natalie Brown, Google searches, and myself.

Faith is NOT a Feeling!

As I was in a particularly dreary mood one day, my mom handed me an old paperback book. Its slightly worn cover bore retro font imposed on a photo of some daisies. Frankly, its aesthetics didn't wow me. It was old. Mom said, "Here, sweetie. I think you should read this." I thanked her, set it next to my bed, and continued to mope. Lesson 1: Don't judge a book by its cover. (Lesson 1b: Don't mope.)
The book was called Faith is Not a Feeling, by Ney Bailey. My mom told me that Ney Bailey was involved with Cru (I'm trying to get in the habit of calling it Cru rather than Campus Crusade, but I digress.) and she mentioned that she really liked the book when she read it way-back-when. However, I didn't feel like reading at the time. So, there it sat by my bed for a couple of weeks, until I got tired of Momma asking me if I had started reading it. Lesson 2: Listen to your mother.


Let me tell you, folks, that the book was a proverbial blow to the gut to read, as well as a giant sigh of relief. Ms. Bailey had me in tears in chapter one (and in subsequent chapters). She began the book with a story about a devastating flood in Colorado in 1976 that took the lives of seven Crusade staff women. Bailey narrowly escaped the floodwaters herself, and her response to the tragedy was supernatural- possible only by placing her faith in God and His word- and by learning from her past experiences and mistakes. Throughout the rest of the book, she shared intimate stories from her life of discovering to walk by faith. I dare you to find yourself up a copy. If I had a disposable income, I would buy tons of copies and give them out to my friends for Christmas. (It's the thought that counts, right?)

So, what is faith?

My Merriam-Webster app on my iPhone (I'm a nerd. I like words. Don't act surprised that I have this app.) has three different definitions that talk of allegiance, fidelity, trust, belief. While those definitions are perfectly acceptable for life, we're specifically talking about faith in God.
Ney Bailey wrote that faith is our choice. Faith is "a matter of taking God at His word."
Looking at the above words from ol' Mister Webster, specifically the first three, those words seem conditional: based on the performance of whatever you're putting your "faith" into.

• Allegiance: We ally ourselves with like-minded individuals. Allegiance can change as quickly as an opinion. (Or poor sports performance, for all of you fair-weather fans out there.)
• Fidelity: Our society is plagued with a lack of fidelity, especially concerning relationships and marriage. These days, I feel like we don't take that word seriously.
• Trust: "I trust you as far as I can throw you," is one of those good Southern phrases that we hear every now and then. Good trust depends on the constancy of the trustee.

On the "Christian flip-side," faith is about OUR action. Our choice. Why do I say that? Here's something Ney wrote, and then I'll expand with my two cents:

"If faith is a matter of taking God at His word, what does God say about His word? I found the answer in Scripture itself.

'Heaven and earth will pass away, but My Words shall not pass away.' [Matthew 24:35]

'...The word of the Lord abides forever.' [1 Peter 1:25]

'The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.' [Isaiah 40:8]

"These verses were telling me that everything in life may change, but God's Word remains constant! His truth never changes."

Faith in God is different. God tells us countless times in the bible that His word is unchanging! One can even see this chronologically speaking, if one researches the accuracy of today's bible compared to centuries-old manuscripts. (That's a blog for another day...or go pick the brain of Josh McDowell and look through his books.) Fact is, God has promised us His constancy. So, the strength of faith is dependent more on us, the "trusters," rather than the Trustee. The Trustee has told us that He has 100% perfect, unfailing performance. What an awesome God we have to put our faith in!

FAITH is taking God at His word. How do we do this?

I loved peering into the life of Ney Bailey, reading about her personal ups and downs and how she learned to take the Lord at His word. I saw a ton of parallels in myself. I'm a woman. Women are "girly," for lack of a better term. We have lots of emotions, and I, like many, let those emotions run my life more than I'd like to admit. (Seriously, that's hard for me to admit, because I often pride myself in being a rational, logical person. In reality, I am often a basket case. Ask my best friends. Or Brent. Or my parents.) I can let conflicts get the better of me. I can easily give up on situations based on feelings of insecurity or doubt.
The absolute gem that I unearthed in the book was Bailey's simple example of a prayer:
"Lord, I feel...but Lord, Your Word says..."
I can't even tell you how many times I prayed that today in some instance or other. How do I feel? And what does God say about that in His word? Seek and you will find. God gave us a whole book of answers. A love letter full of faithfulness.

Faith is NOT a feeling. Faith is a choice. A habit of taking God at His word.

I want to make faith a habit. I have the bible, the Word of God, at my fingertips. (All the time, people. I have the bible on my phone, too.) Also, as a follower of Christ, the Holy Spirit lives inside me- I have THE voice of reason hidden in my heart. A wonderful Counselor.
God has made it simple for us to hear, but we must have the faith to listen and believe, instead of yielding to what our feelings tell (and sometimes yell at) us.

"...no matter how I felt or what I experienced, I could choose dependence on the Word of God as the unchanging reality of my life."

Quotes from Faith is Not a Feeling by Ney Bailey

Such is life.

I have been itching to blog for so long, it seems, and I really have no reason as to why I haven't...I've had plenty of time here and there to come up with something. BUT! Hello, friends! Welcome back into my crazy life! That's right, it's crazy. Let me give you a little update....

Alright. I don't even know where to begin...well, I'm home! I'm spending this semester back home in the lovely town of Flower Mound, working and taking a break from school. Big change. My time home has been pretty interesting. Ha. Through its upsides and downsides, I have really been encouraged by the Lord.
I've enjoyed being back with my family! Not only am I spending this semester back at my house, but my brother, David, is also home again. He graduated from UNT this summer (WOOHOO!) and is in search of a teaching job. Too bad our education system is pretty awful right now...but anyways, my parents went from being empty nesters to having their two youngest back at home! We are all busy with our own stuff, but it is really nice when we can all actually hang out together, even if it's just watching an episode of Modern Family (LOVE it.), or eating a meal together. (I've realized that I am super blessed to live in a household that has always made a point to eat supper together as much as possible. Go Mom and Dad!) Living at home again can also have its downsides: Dave and I are both used to living on a "college schedule," coming and going as we please, doing stuff on our own, etc. So, we've both been adjusting to living back under our parents' roof. We may be young adults, but Mom and Dad still have the say-so in what goes on in their house.
I think the most difficult part of taking the semester off is being away from my community. I went from having really intimate, Christian community while in Russia, to having very little support and very few friends nearby. My family is great, but they're only fun for so long! I miss my friends in Lubbock terribly; there's not much else to be said about that. I miss all things Cru: the big meeting, worship, ministry, and discipleship group. And I miss my home church! There's not a church like Redeemer around here, although there are plenty of awesome churches. It's been an adventure navigating through this season of life, trying to figure out how to plug in to things temporarily, without feeling half-hearted. In addition, I miss being in school. (Strange, right?)
I have been able to find a nice church to attend while here in DFW, and I work with really awesome people. (Seriously. I love The Container Store!) And I have some fun and encouraging people scattered here and there in the Metroplex that I can spend time with. It's been nice to see my bestie, Julia, at TCU, have coffee with the lovely Kesslie Gilbert, and giggle and talk about life with Mrs. Lori Montgomery! (Y'all are great!) Not to mention, several weekend visits from Brent have significantly brightened up my time here. I don't know how he can stand driving that far in a not-so-fuel-efficient pickup truck...I guess he likes me or something... :) God has definitely provided for me, and I'm very thankful.
So, want to hear the crazy part of my life as of late?? It is quite vexing and has been pretty darn aggravating to deal with. So, apparently I have some sort of mystery affliction, which is causing me to occasionally become lightheaded and feel like passing out. I get tunnel vision, my hearing becomes muffled, sometimes I feel like I'm gonna barf, and I usually have to go sit down somewhere so I don't, you know, faint and hurt myself. At any rate, it's not something I have enjoyed enduring. I will be going to my third doctor's appointment next week, and hopefully it will be more conclusive than the last two. It's a frustrating thing, and I want it to be fixed so my life will return to normalcy. Talk about having to trust that God has everything under control. There isn't anything I can do about it yet, so I'm leaving it up to Him to take care of me, and He always does.
Speaking of God, I really love Him! :) Even during the roller coaster of this semester at home, He has been so constant and so apparent in His love and provision. It's been an adjustment, after being in an environment of total reliance during Summer Project, to coming home and being somewhere "comfortable." It was easy for me to slip away from leaning on the Lord every day. However, I need Him now just as much as (maybe more than) I did while in Moscow. I'm still human and I still have a rebellious, selfish nature. Yielding to what God wants is more difficult to do when you're comfortable. I'm really glad that's a life lesson that I learned this summer. I'm still learning. I'll probably never stop learning this. It's something that I had heard many times in my life before project, but I have really experienced it now.
I've taken something else away from my time in Russia- I now find it easier to share my faith. That's not a comfortable thing to do, folks. I used to be timid about it, not wanting to offend people, or not wanting people to think I was weird. (Fact is, I am weird, so people just need to live with that.) Now, after being in a ministry setting where I shared the gospel with complete strangers, I don't find it so difficult to talk with my friends about God. Honestly, why not? He is the whole reason I exist: to bring glory to Him and to show people His love. I want to have real relationships with people, not just be another superficial friend, with which our society is filled to the brim. If I can't share the biggest, most important part of my life with someone, I'm not being me. And how can I expect them to be real with me if I'm not real with them? I want to model Christ in all I do, and that includes digging deep with people. Jesus didn't skirt around the big stuff. He taught about the important things. He got into people's business. He was real. If I can show that kind of relationship to someone who maybe hasn't experienced that before, what better way to point them to the love of Jesus? What a cool thing. :)

Thus ends my ramble. I really tend to just spill my guts out as I write. I tend to be wordy, I use lots of parentheses, and I like run-on sentences. I hope that's a good update for my far away friends, with whom I am really bad at keeping in touch. (Misty, especially, because you always ask for updates and this is long overdue.) Just remember that I very much enjoy letters and phone calls, even though I am not one to initiate. (Working on that.) And please pray for my health, that we'll soon find out what is going on and that it can be fixed quickly! Thanks, all!

"See to it that no one misses the grace of God..." -Hebrews 12:15
-Laura

Team Moss-Cow!

Well, I'm on a blogging roll, apparently. I have decided to paint a picture of my super-fantastic, absolutely ridiculous, incredibly gifted and encouraging team to all of you readers out there. I miss them a lot, even though it hasn't been very long since project ended. So without further ado, I introduce you to the 2011 Moscow Summer Project team!

Zach and Jamie Stephens.
Occupation: OU Campus Crusade staff
Skills: Shepherds, logistics management, previous experience in Moscow, being a cute couple, encouragement.
Favorite moments with Jamie: Bible studies, ministry at MGLU, the banya, team night at the flat.
Favorite moments with Zach: Day one ministry buddies, morning briefing, team night at the flat.
What I learned from the Stevenses: A Christ-centered marriage is a strong and beautiful thing.
Award: The Cool Parents Award. These two had to put up with our team's craziness and made sure we stayed out of trouble, but they stayed fun and hip while doing it. ;)

Jeremy Horton.
Occupation: College pastor, Wildwood Community Church
Skills: leader, iPad master, straight-talker, being American, previous experience in Moscow.
Favorite Moments with Jeremy: Ordering for him at Business Lunch, witnessing the MGU "running man," the cactus water song, my ministry team attempting to pickpocket him while walking around town.
What I Learned from Jeremy: It's perfectly okay to be straightforward when sharing the gospel.
Award: Jeremy, my ministry team named the courtyard at MGU, "Jeremy's Park." I feel like that's a pretty cool award, right?

David Powell.
University: OU
Skills: Metro navigation, balancing restaurant checks, speed-walking. not being in the girls' room.
Favorite Moments with David: Sitting next to him at TGI Friday's, plane buddies on the flight to Moscow, prayer walks across MGU, witnessing a proposal in the MGU courtyard, playing Fan Tan.
What I Learned from David: You don't have to be outgoing to be an excellent leader. (You were awesome, DLP!)
Award: Sleepy-Eyes Award. This guy was rarely, if ever, responsive until after his morning shower. ;)

Abby Coppedge.
University: OU
Skills: Negotiating with government officials, comfort, dealing with people occupying space on her bed with utmost grace, previous experience in Moscow.
Favorite Moments with Abby: Our day of "no plans," walking and talking together ahead of the rest of the team, singing high school choir songs together, speaking in "Russian" accents, giggling on the metro.
What I Learned from Abby: Relationships become more genuine just by asking deeper questions.
Award: Big Sis Award. Abby and I spent the vast majority of our trip in each other's presence (Holla!), and she was so amazing at looking after my welfare and the welfare of our whole team.

Stephen Pittman.
University: OU
Skills: Guitar and vocals, photographer/fancy camera owner, bargaining with Russians, intentionality.
Favorite Moments with Stephen: Chatting with Ignat, leading worship (that one time...ha.), watching Stephen go into artsy photography mode while traveling on the metro together.
What I Learned from Stephen: A passion for studying scripture.
Award: Costa Coffee Award. Stephen was all about coffee. Especially Costa Coffee. Pretty sure a large chunk of his per diem was spent at that establishment.

Steven Hudec.
University: OU
Skills: Charming Russian girls, words of encouragement, body guard for late night metro travel.
Favorite Moments with Steven: Elephant Love Medley duet with Brent, lunch with Dasha, Katya and Angelina, crossword puzzles, the tooth brush dance.
What I Learned from Steven: Even the goofiest of guys can have a sweet, sincere heart.
Award: Vogue Award. Steven strikes a (silly) pose every time he knows someone is snapping a picture of him. The picture to the right is one of few relatively normal shots I could find in my friends' Facebook albums.

Laura Peden.
University: OU
Skills: Scarf-wearing, moisturizer application, British accent, insightful bible commentary.
Favorite moments with Laura: Back rubs, chatting on Abby's bed, restaurant games, H&M, letting people make wishes in between the two of us.
What I Learned from Laura: We can delight in God's word every day!
Award: Best Smile Award. I mean, the picture right here just speaks for itself. :)

Kaleb Parks.
University: OU
Skills: Guitar and vocals, occupying Abby's bed during down time, toothpaste lending, metro napping, matching Jamie.
Favorite Moments with Kaleb: Singing "Lucky" together, language class with Sasha, talking about music, being Pizza Hut buddies.
What I Learned from Kaleb: Sometimes the best testament is being good friend.
Award: Morozhenae Award. I think Kaleb ate the most ice cream out of anyone during the entire trip. Magnum bars, McDonald's ice cream cones, McFlurries, milkshakes, coke floats, etc.



McCall Sanderson.
University: Texas Tech
Skills: Water conservation, conflict resolution, under-the-bed retrieval, Soularium.
Favorite Moments with McCall: Snuggling (that's right, folks. Snuggling.) in her bunk bed with Lauren and Laura, the banya, waiting for soup, H&M.
What I Learned from McCall: Good communication nips conflicts in the bud.
Award: Keepin' It Real Award. McCall is never afraid to speak her mind, and she often had us girls rolling in laughter from her bold statements.

Brian Gifford.
University: Harvard
Skills: The Russian language, prayer, blocking the sun's rays.
Favorite Moments with Brian: Hearing him yell (politely, of course) at the security officer when our group was separated in line at the Hermitage, shopping at Ismaylova, sitting at McDonald's with the other Techies.
What I Learned from Brian: Don't take Christian community for granted. Cherish it and seek it out!
Award: Best Laugh Award. This kid can bust up like no other. His laugh makes you laugh because it's so boisterous. Pretty fun :)

Brent Daugherty.

University: Texas Tech

Skills: Eagle Scout, metro napping, badgering Abby, ordering at McDonald's, learning Russian slang, teaching American slang.
Favorite moments with Brent: Watching him try to keep his balance on the metro, touring the Hermitage, crossword puzzles, shopping at Ismaylova market, plane buddies on the flight home.

What I Learned from Brent: When you're a leader, you have to let the Lord lead you.

Award: Song in My Head Award. Brent was constantly humming or singing a tune. Especially really weird things like Toni Braxton's "Unbreak my Heart."

Mark Osborn.
University: OU
Skills: Eagle Scout, British accent, the ability to make socks and Chacos look classy, escorting babushkas, gentleman.
Favorite Moments with Mark: hearing him order at McDonald's, joining in with Steven's and my tooth brush dance without hesitation, routinely wishing us girls a good night.
What I Learned from Mark: Chivalry is still alive and kicking, ladies. ;)
Award: Profound Statement Award. Mark would utter random, thought-provoking truths to our team, such as, "Hey, guys, can you believe that our bodies are made up of trillions of tiny cells?"

Lauren Young.
University: OU
Skills: Intentionality, hair braiding, befriending anyone, Magnum bar connoisseur, masseuse, garden hose engineer.
Favorite Moments with Lauren: carrying her flowers and her water bottle around after it spilled in her purse (in a church), shopping at Ismaylova, back rubs, girls' bible study.
What I Learned from Lauren: "They'll know we are Christians by our love."
Award: Creeper Photo Award: Just like it sounds. I mean, she took something like over 600 pictures. And she's good at getting candid shots.

Rachel Belth.
University: Cedarville
Skills: Personal chef, encourager, artsy photographer, Russian culture enthusiast.
Favorite Moments with Rachel: Fan Tan, touring the Hermitage, rooming together in St. Pete's, talking in the garden at Christ Our Savior, going to Red Square, sharing food at the Hard Rock.
What I Learned from Rachel: Everyone expresses love in different ways, and it's important to pay attention to that.
Award: Kind Heart Award. Rachel was always writing the girls notes of encouragement, and she was eager to serve anyone. Such a sweet person!



There you have it- a glimpse of the fifteen cool people with whom I got to spend much of my summer. We became a family! I'm so thankful for them. Lifelong friendships? I think yes! I can't tell you how much I gained from living in a Christian community. To have brothers and sisters around you, to build you up, to help you grow...it's a beautiful thing. I would recommend going on a summer project just so you could experience true and constant community like that. There's really nothing like it.

As iron sharpens iron,

so one man sharpens another.

-Proverbs  27:17

Having so fond an affection for you, we were well-pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, but also our own lives, because you had become very dear to us.

-1 Thessalonians 2:8

Thanks for a life-changing summer project, team.

Love,

"Sandy Pitts"

USA! USA!

Hello, everybody! I am back stateside! Happy Independence Day!
Once again, apologies for the tardiness of my blog posting...I still get that overwhelmed feeling when I sit down to write stuff because there's just so much information floating around in my brain. But, in light of my homecoming, and as a tribute to my country, I figured today would be a good day to bite the bullet and do some blogging! (With PICTURES. Courtesy of my team's photography...Lauren Young and Stephen Pittman, in this particular post.)
My team and I traveled home a little over a week ago, on the 23rd of June. We woke up at 2:30am (after going to bed two hours beforehand) and rushed to gather our belongings and haul them down four flights of stairs to the street. Everyone was sleep-deprived and on edge as we loaded into our taxi vans. I know I wasn't the happiest camper that morning. We got to Domodedovo Airport (I was so proud to be able to read its name in Cyrillic!) just as the sky began to lighten...you know, just before four in the morning. We shuffled through customs (Abby made it! Woohoo!), tiptoed through security, and plopped down on the floor near our gate. As we boarded our plane, I prayed for no airsickness for myself and my team members...
Well, right at about breakfast time, I barfed. It was NOT fun. I seriously don't recall vomiting since sometime back in high school. I hate it. I felt bad because I was sitting in between David and Lauren when this occurred, but it couldn't be helped. Lauren shifted into mommy gear and took great care of me. And David was quick to find me an extra barf bag in case I needed to hurl again, bless him. Okay, but enough about vom. Ew. Basically, I just felt pretty lousy during the first leg of our trip.
We had a layover at Heathrow, where at times, I caught myself trying to answer security personnel in Russian...whoops. By the grace of God, I found a bench without armrests that I could lie (Lie? Lay? I can never remember the rule...Eric?) across in order to recover before our last leg of air travel. I also had the pleasure of randomly meeting up with an old high school classmate, Derik, who happened to be passing through London at the same time our team was there. Small world! We had a nice chat and then it was time for my team to get to our gate. Apparently, our airplane was the plane to be on if you were traveling back from a missions trip. There was us, a group coming back from Kenya, another group traveling home from somewhere in Africa, and even four Mormon boys coming home from their 2-year missions.
Thankfully, the last leg of the flight was very pleasant. I had fun sitting next to and talking with Brent, was able to eat a decent amount of my food, watched True Grit and an episode of Modern Family (I'm a fan of British Airways, y'all.), and napped probably more than I did on the three previous flights to and from Moscow combined. I even managed not to toss my cookies!
As we landed at DFW and trudged our way through to awaiting family members, the sadness of leaving finally hit me. Summer Project had come to an end. Tears were shed as my teammates and I said our goodbyes and went our separate ways home. I'll always be thankful for this summer, and the many things that God taught me during my time in Moscow. What an incredible experience. :)

Okay, so since I've been back home for a week and a half, I have new lists of things I miss about Moscow, and things I am SO happy to have back at home! Drum roll!

I Miss...

My Russian friends! Sasha, Masha, Oleg, Katya, Tanya, just to name a few. I loved meeting and getting to know each and every one of the students I encountered. They were so much fun, and so very friendly to us! They showed us around the city, took us to yummy restaurants, laughed with us, played games, told stories. I loved being a part of their lives, even for just a little while. If any of y'all are reading this, I miss you and I hope we can stay in touch! :)

New Life staff! Thank y'all so much for your help and your encouragement to us while we were there! I am praying for you guys.

My SP family. Steve-O, Khleb, Plaura, B-Giff, McCall (hmm, no nickname...), Moz, Brenton, Gopher Girl, Rach, DLP, Abbs, Pittman, Jerms, and Jach and Zamie. It was a pleasure to live with all of you for a month. What a blessing to experience Christian community with y'all! :)

lamb shashlik at Ismaylova market

Russian food. I have been craving blinis and shashlik and pastries and sharma and yes, even kvas. Pretty ridiculous. I brought home a cactus water, but I'm saving it to drink in the fall. That's the plan, anyway....

The metro. Seriously, I miss Russian transit! I miss being able to walk to stores and restaurants, or just hop on the metro to get across town. Now I have to drive places. (Except I'm glad Nana [my car] and I have been reunited. She missed me.)

An example of a beautiful,
sunny Moscow day!

The WEATHER. It's. So. Hot. In. Flower Mound. I miss my breezy, low-to-mid-seventies Moscow weather. Even the occasional rainy days. It's a sauna outside in Texas, my friends. 95-100 degree weather. (35-38C)

Okay, as much as I really miss Moscow, 

there is no place like home. Yay, America!

I'm Glad To Come Home To...
My family! It's been great to come home to Mom, Dad, David, and my dog Roxie!
Giant glasses of ice-cold, fresh, clean, free-of-charge water.
Iced tea.
Momma's cooking. :)
Dr. Pepper. (We stumbled on cans of Dr. Pepper at a street vendor in Moscow for three American bucks a pop, but to have it for cheap and in unlimited supply in the States is quite a comfort.)
Virtually no exposure to second-hand cigarette smoke.
The English language in general. Speaking it, hearing it, reading it again.
Air conditioning.
Hot showers with good water pressure.
Not smelling people with awful body odor...(e.g. "Smelly Man" in our hostel, crowded metro cars)
Ample access to fruits and veggies.
Tex-Mex. Praise the Lord.
Fat Straws bubble tea! Holla!
My full-sized bed and space to store my stuff.
Christian and country music radio stations. :)

Well folks, that's all for now. But don't worry! I have a lot more Russian adventures to blog about. If you want to hear about any aspect of my trip in particular (hostel life, students, sights, my team, lessons learned, etc.), post a comment and I'll blog about it! That would help me decide what to focus on next. ;)

I just wanted to let everybody know that my team and I are home safe and sound. Thank all of you for your prayers and support throughout my trip! It wouldn't have been possible without y'all at home! God is so good.

In Christ,
     Laura