WELCOME! This blog chronicles the ministry events of Emily's work with the Outdoor Leadership Team (OLT) of the CCO. OLT staff invest in the lives of college students often by "suspending the normal rhythms of campus life" through adventure activities that allow students to check their bearings in life. We engage in recreation for the sake of re-creation, learning, and growth that can transform lives into those of leadership and service.

Please note: the views expressed on this blog are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the CCO or OLT.

Tuesday, March 31, 2009

The Miraculous Spring Break Trip

If you talked with me just a couple weeks before this year's spring break trip with Carnegie Mellon University, you would have heard hesitancy, little enthusiasm, and even doubt that the trip would run. There were perfectly logical reasons for this: I was tired and pouring energy into people that needed me, and I dreaded the potentially miserable weather of North Carolina in March. Not to mention that we only had two students signed up, and needed at least four.



BUT... from this side of the trip I am excited, awed, energized and amazed. So what happened? Frankly, I saw God's fingerprints all over the place! Here's a brief summary of some of the miraculous aspects of the trip.
1. Student recruitment.
We needed at least four students to run the trip. At the cut-off (two weeks prior), we only had two and my co-leader Dave (campus staff at CMU) had recruited in every way he knew how. BUT...through encouragement from our supervisors, we decided to extend the deadline another week. On the last day, Dave called me and said that we had enough students! These were not the students Dave expected, but we trusted that they were the ones supposed to be there.
Yixin was invited by his lab partner who knew Dave.

2. My attitude. Honestly, I wasn't excited UNTIL... God gave me a dream! Yes, God can work in any way he chooses. Six days prior to the trip I dreamt that I was excited about the trip and could envision all these great things happening. I woke up and realized the truth of this dream. It would be fun. God would be working. So all the rest of that week I prepared with enthusiasm and eager anticipation for the trip! I wanted to lead this group!

Our first day on the trail.
3. An unexpected kink. So in one week we finished preparations, and headed out early Saturday morning for Pisgah National Forest in western North Carolina. However, as we drove that day, a lingering stomach and intestinal bug (symptoms like Giardia) that I had fought since Tuesday flared up. We arrived at the trail head in the early evening, but by that time I was in so much pain that I knew I would be of little use to the group and certainly couldn't hike into the wilderness in that state. I managed to give basic camp instructions to the group before heading back into town to the ER. After some IV fluids, tests and medication, I went back to camp and slept. If I wasn't well, the trip could not continue as planned because I was the only wilderness trained staff present. (No pressure!) BUT...when I woke up in the morning, I felt almost completely fine! I can't explain why (medication wouldn't have worked that quickly), but we continued with the trip as planned and I continued to experience good health. Praise God!

I could enjoy the amazing food on the trip, like this pizza!

4. SUN! If you've ever been to the mountain of NC in March, you know that the weather is a complete wildcard, usually including a healthy amount of cold rain, snow, clouds and wind. Ughhh...*shiver*. BUT... we had the best weather I've had on just about all the trips I've ever led! Perfect temperature (sweated when you hiked, but perfectly comfortable when you stopped) and sun 5 of the 6 days. In the evening it was refreshingly cool, but not cold. Challenging weather + beginner backpackers = not fun. But God allowed us to experience the potential kindness of NC mountains.

An absolutely gorgeous day to be on Pilot Mountain

5. Group life. The group consisted of four participants and three leaders - Dave, Mitch and I. It just so happened that all the participants were men, so needless to say, the trip was characterized by much playfulness, laughter and good-spirited joshing. At first I observed a hesitancy to get to know each other on a deeper level, but during a group conversation halfway through the trip, we acknowledged the value of allowing people to know us, and began to make a conscious effort to begin truly learning about the people in our group. I saw the interactions in the group change significantly from that point on, and observed a deeper and genuine camaraderie .

A break to play and explore at a beautiful little creek.

6. Trip theme.
Dave & Mitch selected readings and facilitated conversations based around God's character and our identity. The progression was as follows: Day 1 - God's hugeness, awesomeness, power, holiness, etc. Day 2 - God's creativity, playfulness and extravagant love. Day 3 - Our sinfulness and hopelessness (without God). Day 4 - God solves the problem by giving us Christ's righteousness; our identity as sons and daughter of God; God rejoicing over us. It was simple, yet profound, creating a very real picture of the distinction between God and us, yet it demonstrated the incredible, extravagant measures God went to call us his own. I was particularly excited about this because not all the students were Christians, and this was one of the clearest presentations of the hope of the Gospel I've heard in a long time.

Instructors - Dave, Emily and Mitch

So God took a trip that nearly got canceled multiple times, and turned it into something wonderful! I am humbled because I know I should be expecting to see God do great things, and I am so forgetful. Yet I cannot help but to be amazed and excited to have been apart of these events!

Thanks for reading and sharing them with me! I hope that this sparks you to look around you and see God at work in your life.