videos from ski camp

here is a list of videos you all can check out from camp :)
enjoy ...comment on here, on youtube, or on FB!
xo
jessica

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QyVHCQrUS40
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0JeLrhBjc0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V37HSWrf46I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9veNXw_yrw

back from ski camp

well hello hello!
we just got back from ski camp late on sunday night.
i took video of several things throughout the week. it will take some time to upload everything on youtube. bare with me!
i will work on that this week.
hope you enjoyed my update. there is SO MUCH more to share, but i like to keep my updates to one page. please ask questions if you want to know more. that i what im here for.
thanks for your support and prayers.

bisous,
jessica

Video Blog #5

Just received a care package in the mail! yayyyyy
Sharing it with you guys. "The fabulous bag of prizes!"
We did that in the U.S. at YL. I had someone translate and we do it here in French! mu ha ha ha ha

check out the video blog at this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZzx5GerQDQ

hope you are having a great week! please keep in touch :)

videos of kids

wow it has been forever!

believe it or not i did make some videos. i just never posted them. ill post these for now!

below is link for a video of a boy explaining why he likes JV and how he has benefited from being a part of it. sorry he is speaking french. and there is no translation!
click on this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t042QJwIKVI

you can also watch 3 different kids sharing what JV means to them.
click on this link to view it http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNav_x_Kwvg
again this is in french :s

happy watching!!

update

hi there!

thanks for reading my update and thanks for connecting to my blog.
hope you would like to keep connected through these forms of communication i have established.

message me on here, email me, write me, call me, facebook me! id like to hear about what is going on in your world too.

as a supporter what do you want to know, what do you want to hear, what do you want to see, how would you like to participate? please feel free to share this with me.

thanks!

jessica

yo estava praticando mi espanol!

yeah thats right
i went to spain last week for several reasons.
to have a spiritual retreat.
to hear from God.
to meet Jonathan's family: Elena, Judith, Noemi, and Lidia. For over a year I said I would go visit :0 (Jonathan is the Area Director of Young Life in Banyoles/Barcelona)
to speak with some Godly people, exchange ideas, get advice, soak it in.
see a new place: Banyoles, Girona, Barcelona, and Besalu.
get some things accomplished without being interrupted or distracted.
to work and get things done, but not constantly think about YL.
get myself right with God before trying to give give give.

these things were a success. HOWEVER i got sick the day i arrived home. ive been working but i have felt miserable. ill work for like 2 hours then have to lay down. i hate it! this is not me at all! especially after the week i had. i was so excited about all that i got done. had even scheduled when i was going to do things when i got back home.

today we had club. this morning i didnt really know what i would be able to do. it crossed my mind to just pass my ideas on to someone and have then do the games, but i didnt want that at all. if iim responsible for something im going to get it done. good thing i was well enough to get through the whole evening. even right now its almost 2AM and im not so tired. i know im still sick but i feel a lot better than i did before.

well you should check out my latest video blog from la playa!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1T7v00KpJzs
let me know what you think :)
xo
jessica

CONNECT WITH ME!!!

how do i get more people to read this? i am way more motivated to keep this updated. so i want more people to connect with me!!!

today is an absolutely beautiful day here. i wish you could come and visit for the afternoon. i woke up to the nice sunshine, had a yummy breakfast- pb on toast with bananas, it is warm out, ill go later to get a gift for a friend. tonight im having dinner at an old friends house. it should be fun, but it will also be a little strategic.

should be nice!!

this photo is of us in the corn field. we took a walk while at our leaders retreat.

internet usage

im really into this video thing. i made one earlier this week but never got a chance to post because i was limiting my internet/computer time. it felt quite freeing to be able to do that. now im back on for a short time, but ill start up normally on monday.

here is a picture of our group at the leaders weekend. 13-15th sept.

see newest video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBWHBliRcEI

whatchya doing?

here is the newest blog taken on thursday

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hqA3ktDOpk

hope you like!

possibly the solution to my blogging delinquency

does anyone know how to upload a video on blogger EASILY? i tried to upload this and it wasn't going through. maybe i had to wait a really long time?

anyhooo this will work for now. click the link to see my newest blog-video style!

questions? comments? thoughts? would love to hear what you think

jessica

click hereeeeeee!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZAUAMFCsRw

confusion

can not really understand what God is trying to do with me right now.

why am i scared of staying? why am i scared of going back? what the heck? why do i want to stay? why do i want to go back?

my list of pros and cons for both has not helped me.

if you read this, will you please pray that i get some CLEAR guidance? also that once i have that guidance that i will not be fearful of what it will require to make it happen?

thats what is going on right now. wish i had some answers.....

hola hola

hi yall!

i decided to not stress about writing once a week because i think there are only about 5 or so of you that actually read this.

last post was in portuguese hehehe. ive been really wanting to use my portuguese. while i was in spain a couple weeks ago i was talking with some brazilian girls and completely made up words that were half french half portuguese. it made me realize that i need to speak it more often. A LOT MORE OFTEN.

while away i also realized how much i love europe. i love living here. i love belgium....but especially THIS week. the sun has been out since saturday!!!! blue skies and warmish weather. i think God is very slowly giving me puzzle pieces i need to put together in order to make a decisions....whenever THAT is supposed to happen.

have a happy thursday! i cant get over the fact that it has been so nice :)

infinite possibilities

something i wrote for my portuguese class. basically a blog post in portuguese. hahahah love it! sorry some of you won't be able to understand. i know there are some mistakes, but im waiting to get the correction back. dad, im sure you could email me with the corrections as well.

Possibilidades Infinitas

Aqui eu estou em Wavre, Bélgica, uma mulher de 26 anos que trabalha com adolescentes belgas. Eu amo absolutamente o que eu faço. A pergunta é: Para quanto tempo faço isto? Tem muitas outras coisas que eu gostaria de fazer.

Como vou saber o que eu devo ou não devo fazer? Como posso fazer uma decisão? Eu gostaria de retorna para à escola e de começa um Masters. Eu gostaria de modar-me para Brasil. Eu gostaria me casar. Eu gostaria de viver em Portugal. Eu gostaria de continuar aulas de portuguese Eu gostaria de aprender como tocar o piano. Eu gostaria de viajar o mundo!

Com todos estes sonhos, esperanças, e desejos eu poderia fazer muito. Mas, onde posso começar? Eu amo a Bélgica. Eu aprecio verdadeiramente viver aqui. Desde o momento quando eu chegei aqui, eu comencei a aprender muito sobre mim mesmo. Eu tenho aprendido mais de quem eu gostaria de ser e sobre quem eu não quero ser. Este tempo na minha vida moldou-me. Que bênção é ter tido esta experiência?

A partir de agora tenho ainda um ano e quatro meses de vida na Bélgica. Me sinto como tenho decidir tudo agora. Eu sei que muito pode acontecer em um ano. Entretanto, eu gostaria de esta preparada para minhas etapas seguintes. A maior pergunta é: Como posso manté a fé no meio da incerteza?

A fé não é algo que eu levo muito leve. É algo que eu construi a minha vida envolta. Segundo Dictionary.com, a fé é "a confiança em Deus e em suas promessas feitas por Cristo e as Escrituras e que os seres humanos são justificados por ou salvo." Eu tenho muito fé. Mas, as vezes é difficile guarda-lo. Se nós não temos fé, ou algo para pôr a nossa esperança, por que estamos vivendo? Eu acredito na Bíblia e que ela diz. No livro de Mateus existe uma história de um homem cego que Jesus cura. Em um ponto Jesus coloca a suas mãos nos olhos do homem cego e diz "‘Seja-vos feito segundo a vossa fé.’ E os olhos se lhes abriram" (Mateus 9:29-30 (João Ferreira de Almeida Atualizada)). Ele deu ao homem sua vista! Essa história é apenas um dos muitos casos em que Jesus revela quem ele é.

Em uma outra história, mas uma vez ele é esta fazendo um milagre e esta com o seus discípulos quando eles lhe perguntam porque ele não poder fazer algo acontecer. Jesus diz em Mateus 17:20 "Por causa da vossa pouca fé; pois em verdade vos digo que, se tiverdes fé como um grão de mostarda direis a este monte: Passa daqui para acolá, e ele há de passar; e nada vos será impossível." Precisamos apenas ter um pouco fé. Parece muito fácil dizer, mas não é muito fácil de pôr em ação.

Eu tenho que ter fé que o Senhor sabe exatamente onde ele me deseja. Tenho que largar o fato que eu penso que eu tenho que controlar tudo. Não é realidade. Se eu continua a ter um relacionamento com Jesus (ler a minha Bible, ora, estar companhia com outros cristãos, procurar sabedoria, etc.) Deus me direccionara no bom sentido. Eu continuarei a orar para que ele me dara as respostas no momentos certos.

more since jan

things are better since my last update. not anything exciting. i still feel like things are just going and im not as enthusiastic about life right now. that is the complete opposite of what im usually like. talked to a belgian last night, who has lived in the states for a few years, he said...well youre its belgium in february. i guess that reassured me that it wasnt just a problem i was having but maybe it is just the weather, etc.

im hoping to get a spiritual boost soon! how? i dont know.

thanks for your emails! i still have to respond to some ppls.

the most significant thing happening is ski camp. we leave tomorrow!! i hope that i can still be passionate about the kids that i work with. that i can give. please pray for that.

also my computer is no longer here :( it is pretty sad.
i hadnt backed up my stuff since probably august. i know i know. but its just the way it goes. my brother says he is more than likely NOT going to be able to retrieve any files. but we can PRAY FOR A MIRACLE!!!

other than that i dont know what im going to do in the mean time. ill have to figure that out after ski camp.

thanks for reading! sorry no pics :(

the month of february...

howdy!

this month has been so busy. i have been occupied every day of the month. it has been fun, but im definitely looking forward to march when things will calm down.

i went to my second to last training in england. i travelled on the same day that they had the blizzardy stuff. yeah...it was crazy in london. my train was only 20 min late. i ended up waiting at the station for some friends that were arriving from paris. it was cold in that station, but i thought if i needed to get a cab to the hostel we had to stay at, i would do it with 2 other ppl.

their train was 2hrs late!! ahhh i know :) so then i learned that our training would not happen that day because everyone was stuck somewhere. we had lunch at the train station and then i went to the hostel to sleep. i had only gotten 1hr and 15min of sleep the night before. i know what you are thinking, dad. it just happened.

we had a great time as a smaller group since many ppl couldnt even get out of their own airports in their respective countries.

on that wed night i was able to watch the show, wicked with some yl friends to celebrate my b-day! well, i was celebrating my b-day. they didnt know it was soon to be my b-day ....hehehe not until we were about to part.

on sunday my roomate laure made my favorite belgian dish...mmmmm RABBIT in a beer sauce with apples and raisins...hmmm hmm good! she invited the 3 friends i wanted to come over AND THEY CAME!! it was a really good time :)
these are french speaking friends ive been praying for! please pray that we can continue building our relationships.

that evening i went to go pick up my friend, Rachel, from the train station. she came to spend my birthday with me! it was so good to have here and see what my life is like in Belgium. she was able to visit with the people i work with, see some kids, and do a bit of site-seeing. plus she did some incredible friend things for me...like she did my hair! my nails! and brought me some pretty cool goodies that were a huge surprise! im thankful for her!

Belgium Update Jan '09

I can't believe it is almost February! Can you? Wow, Christmas came and went.

I'm so glad to have had an experience of Christmas in Belgium. However, right about now I have a feeling of wanting to go home. I wish you all knew how I really feel. Sometimes I feel so humbled and privileged to be here. At other times I feel like I'm trapped, which is definitely not the case despite my emotions.

January has been a tough month for me. I've been feeling quite down. Actually, I thought I was out of this "funk" until Saturday. Uhhhgg. That is how I feel!

Everything in ministry is going well. I truly do enjoy being here. It is just hard to explain my mixed feelings. Some people think it's due to the weather. I think it might be that I sometimes I need to "be the kid" and not always feel stuck being the leader. This is where I ask you to send me a little message. I surely miss EVERYONE. That is probably part of it as well. Last year at this time I was able to see many of you, even if it was only for a few minutes. Honestly, I didn't think I would miss everyone as much as I do. We get so comfortable with the people that surround us and don't realize how it feels without them there.

I share this so that I can be transparent to you. My hope is that if you too are feeling down; remember to lean on the Lord. We are called to be obedient to the Lord no matter the circumstances. This is a season that is here and in time will pass. We must stand firm! But it's hard!

Sorry I don't have much to offer this update. Hope you are all well and that you are blessed this year of 2009. God has big plans for all of us! I pray that we are patient, obedient, and confident in our Savior and his will for our lives. Pray for you who receive this update. Thank you for your year-round support and especially your year-end giving!

Blessings,

Jessica

blog: jessinbelgiumyl.blogspot.com

I've included a page from an "Our Daily Bread" book....just something reassuring to think about.

January 18

All things work together for good… to those who are the called according to His purpose. ~Romans 8:28

When a cowboy applied for an insurance policy, the agent asked, “Have you ever had any accidents?” After a moments reflection, the applicant responded, “Nope, but a bronc did kick in two of my ribs last summer, and a couple of years ago a rattlesnake bit me on the ankle.”

“Wouldn’t you call those accidents?” replied the puzzled agent. “Naw,” the cowboy said, “they did it on purpose!”

That story reminds me of the biblical truth that there are no accidents in the live of God’s children. What seems like a tragedy from the human standpoint can actually be a providential means of blessing.

Does everything seem to be going against you? These apparent misfortunes are not accidents. The Lord allows such things for a blessed purpose. So, patiently trust Him. Someday you will praise Him for it all!

–R.W. D.

GOD TRANSFORMS TRIALS INTO TRIUMPHS.

e-newsletter pics

hi there!

just wanted to share some background on the photos us put in the january update.

the first photo is of us girls preparing dinner before club. we made some type of soup/stew. very very yummy! that is probably another thing i can put on my resume :) hehehehe teaching teenagers how to cook. they get so caught up in following the exact directions. that is just a little proof of their inexperience. in cooking...you go by what it looks like, taste likes, feels like..hehehehe. it was a fun time of being together in the kitchen and then taking some pics while in action.

the second photo is on my sled ride down the mountain of the austrian alps. it was pretty amazing! im so glad i went to serve another YL region. i had the wonderful opportunity to goof off and be a kid again sledding down the ginormous mountains.

thank the lord for that opportunity as it helped me take the first step out my "funk."

its so late....gotta sleep. thanks for reading!

car and cold

ohh boy my car. it didnt start on monday when i was on my was to portuguese class. so i missed it :( uggghhh what a bummer. :(

so it got working and i thought it was fine.

on tuesday (yesterday) i used it to pick up a girl after school. it was fine.

i didnt want to drive to class this morning because i was afraid there would still be ice etc. plus the traffic stinks already in the morning. i was going to take the train.....ended up not doing that. luckily i didnt go outside because my car didnt work anyway. i went to leave this afternoon and it didnt work. try out some things to make it work and it didnt happen.

sheesh! ill be taking the train everywhere tomorrow, which is fine besides the fact that each ride is at least 1hr. booohoooo. i do prefer taking the train but they arent as convenient as getting your car...you know!?

so thats the deal. dont know when or how ill fix the car yet. maybe saturday. that is the first day ill actually have time and not have to miss or cancel ONE more thing :(

goodnight!
yes, i guess i can put mechanic on my resume now. ;)

austria

i realize that this is not something ive been making a priority. id like it to be very much.

who actually reads this? i was hoping to write a little every week, but it seems like ive only been doing every 2 or 3 weeks. id like to continue however would like to know that people read this.
_____________________________________

today i was supposed to go to my last french class, but it was WAY too cold and im afraid of going too far in my itty bitty car on these not so very good roads that are not plowed and VERY icy. ive been home working which is great! but i do feel bad for not going.

next week im going to austria...but to get there it will be an adventure. marissa and i will be travelling together. at least that is a plus! we fly out really early on wednesday to rome and then from rome to munich. in munich, lyndsey will be picking us up and we are driving to mittersill. or something like that. apparently it is 2-3hrs away. we will be there providing child care for our old region. (well we split and their half is the other half!)

im bummed that we wont be near salzburg because i really wanted to do the sound of music tour. i guess ill have to do that another time.

you know when your time flies by and "the end" seems near you get more antsy about going places. all of a sudden i feel like i have to get so many cities and countries checked off my list. I LOVE TO TRAVEL. hope that i will be able to do some fun travelling soon.

tootles. j

mum

you know...when im driving i always think of these great things to blog about. now that im at home and in blogging mode, ive forgotten what i thought was so great.

i guess ill just share that i get to see my mom in 6 hours. that is pretty amazing! i mean. how neat is it that you can be on one continent and then a few hours later and a thousand miles away you are on another one! i love it and i cant wait.

i know we will both be really tired the next few days, but man oh man is it worth it!?!?!

can you tell im excited! :)
ok gotta go. hopefully ill remember the things i was wanting to blog about. cheers!
-moi