Written by Caleb, Matt, Kimmy, Maddie, Kenzie
Dec. 8th, 2018: On this Saturday the Joshua staff decided to implement a one time all day Sabbath. So basically we could not make plans, couldn’t go down the hill, and do things that are generally restful for us. I personally enjoyed it because I got to hang out with some guys here and just do whatever we wanted. It was an eventful day and it was just nice to not make any plans and just go with the flow. Oh, I also slept in till 11:40, so that was very restful and nice. Sabbath on Saturday was a good choice by the staff and maybe we will do it again.
Dec. 9th, 2018: We all had the weekend off and so a group of about 12 of us Joshua students went down the hill to DJ’s church. (DJ was the speaker from the week before) It was called Saint Rest Baptist. It was Amazing! Everyone was so on fire for the LORD! It seemed like it was a bit of a unique service in the fact that the Sunday school lead the worship. There where like 5 to 6-year-old kids singing worship and thanks to God and it was beautiful! While DJ was speaking the band stayed up there and every time, he said something powerful they started playing in response and it was awesome! Then after the service DJ gave each of us a book from his library. Then he gave us a tour and ended with bringing a bunch of the people from the church together to pray for us as Joshua students.
Dec. 10th, 2018: This week instead of having guy and girl night we did a big white elephant exchange! The rules were you couldn’t bring something alive, dead or trash. Each one of us contemplated what to bring to the event. We set each one of our gifts in front of the Christmas tree and each person grabbed a random present. Tiffany Hamilton our RD told us a Christmas story and every time she said right or left we would have to pass the gift in that direction. We passed the gifts over and over again with the anticipation building up as to which gift we were going to get. Tiffany finally reached the end of the story and we all opened our presents! After opening them we went in a circle and shared what our gift was and then the person who gave that gift had to raise their hand. There were gifts like, candy, notes, a blanket, mugs, etc. It was a very sweet event to spend time with our class just enjoying and taking in the holiday spirit before we take our Christmas break.
Dec. 11th, 2018: As I reflect on the week I am realizing there is so much I could share with you however it has been one long week and I am drained so this one will be short and sweet. First, I want to share how touched I am by the closeness and sweetness I see in our community. As we continue to do every aspect of life together, I see my friends reflecting Jesus’ character in the way they interact with me and each other. Second, I want to share a piece of what God is teaching me in this season. Tonight, we had the pleasure of learning from Dallas Dewitt, Joshua Alumni and now Hume staff member. We opened up 1 Kings 19 and read Elijah’s interaction with God. Elijah went to a Holy place, interacted with a Holy God but early in the chapter continued to do what he wanted to do. I saw pieces of myself in Elijah. I am on a mountain in a discipleship program, seeking a Holy God but often still doing what I want to do. I felt gentle conviction when Dallas lead me to ask myself, “Do I have a heart that desires closeness with Christ through obedience to His word?”. I know that I am here because I desire closeness with a Holy God but do I pursue closeness in obedience to His word? I loved this lesson. I am excited to pursue a Holy God by studying His Word, becoming more familiar with His voice, and being obedient.
