Rose with a Mission

  And just like that another week is in the books. Whew, hang on. Where did the time go? This weeks topic was the 7 Spheres of Influence. In any society you have government, celebration (arts, sports, entertainment), economy, family, education, church, and media. They all interact with each other, but each has a profound impact. I appreciated how our teacher encouraged us to think about questions deeply and shared a lot of history. He encouraged us to enter whatever sphere we are called to and be salt and light.  It definitely encouraged me in my filmmaking. And that wasn’t the only time God brought up my filmmaking this week.   During a prayer time God gently showed me how I’d been letting fear get me down. I was afraid that the film I’m making would turn out bad and people wouldn’t like it. I was afraid that I would be labeled sub-par and canceled. I confessed this to my prayer group. They all encouraged me and prayed over me. It made me feel better and helped me s...

    This weeks topic has been on the disciple making movement. We talked a lot about Gods heart for multiplication and how to create a small group that can be reproduced in any context. While not completely new information, I was so grateful for the Christ focus of this week and for all the time we spent in the Bible.  Through class this week and through some conversations, I’ve been convicted that I need to expand my relational network. I all too often pick one or two friends and that’s who I share most of my heart and life with. While this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, I’m sensing that God wants me to pour into a lot of people. While I put the E in extrovert I worry that I’ll spread myself too thin. But here again God has been reminding me that He will replenish what I give away. He will show me who I need to reach out to. So I’m reaching out to others more and am looking for people to encourage.  The sunrises and sunsets here have been so beautiful. Even with the...

  I finished filmmaking school!  This week we filmed and edited a music video, learned how to record and edit high quality audio, learned about green-screening, finished the short film that we shot last week, and had a showing of the short film. It was great fun to collaborate with these new friends and I learned so much. On Friday they handed out awards to the class. I got the Golden Smile award. I think partially for my smile and partly for my goldfish cracker obsession. Before I came home had the privilege of spending some time with Diane. She's an elderly single woman that has served the Lord all her life. It shows in her stories and conversation. She encouraged me by her calm wisdom and sweet faithfulness. I came away encouraged that you can serve the Lord faithfully and beautifully as a single. I'm so thankful for the people I got to meet on this trip. From the instructors that I learned so much from, to my hosts that cared...

  Week 1 of the filmmaking course is complete! Wow! I had no idea at the beginning of the week what God had in store for me.  First off I had a great trip to the airport with my mom. I have the best family. They love and care for me when I'm at home and see me off with smiles to the airport.  My flight was smooth and I got a window seat!  When I arrived in Charlotte, I met up with my hosts and we began to make our way towards the JAARS center. They have been delightful. Retired missionaries from Cameroon with a lot of God stories to share, this couple has made me feel so at home. I'm thankful that I got to meet them.  Filmmaking class has been going amazing, I've been learning so much from this course about how to make a good film and how to tell a good story. I'm so thankful for people who will teach me the technical aspects of filmmaking. It's also been fun to collaborate with others to make a short film. We've been able to go through the process of filming an...

Today I'm cleaning my room, decorating for Christmas, and packing in preparation for my flight tomorrow! It's hard to believe that I'm flying out for a two week film school in a matter of hours. I've got my bags mostly packed and my boarding pass ready to go!  The last few days I've been getting more excited about this. When I first heard about this filmmaking course I thought that there was no way I could go. It was during holiday break. I don't have the money for the plane ticket. I'll only have been back from DTS for two weeks. And so my logic went on. And then God encouraged me to keep the option on the table. I had someone donate enough for me to buy a plane ticket. God provided me with a host home and transportation. Everything came together and I'm grateful God gave me the opportunity to get back into filmmaking.  I've been able to decorate a little bit more using things that I got during DTS. They are such an encouragement to me. ...

  On Saturday after I updated you guys on my week I had coffee with one of the staff here. It was an amazing time. She asked me what my long term goals were. I said that I'd like to come back for SOE and join staff. She encouraged me in this, but also wanted to know what else I was passionate about, what I wanted to do beyond just being on staff. I realized that for the past few years I haven't been dreaming much with Jesus. He gave me talents in filmmaking and ASL but I haven't been using them for a while. Fear, business, and insecurity all played a role in this, but I was sensing an invitation. In the course of our conversation I sensed God inviting me to dream again. To dream about how He could use my passions to expand His kingdom.  It's made me want to brush up on my filmmaking/ASL skills and pray. I want to catch God's vision for what He wants to do in and through me.  As part of that there's a Filmmaking intensive that will be happening after ...