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All of the Spring Arbor University spring break missions teams gathered in the DC on Thursday, February 9, from 9 p.m. – 11 p.m. for the Missions Market. Students and faculty came to support the different teams by purchasing food, drinks, and other objects in the makeshift “market place.”

Don’t forget to pray for our teams as they prepare to serve in March!

Catch a glimpse of the fun-filled night on YouTube! The music segment I chose is by Tim Hughes, “We Must Go.”

God bless!

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Check out the large neon LOVE letters on the side of Whiteman-Gibbs!

Over the weekend, someone was a busy bee and decorated the side of the Whiteman-Gibbs Science building. I’m sure many students on campus have seen the large “LOVE” plastered on the side of the building in bright yellow neon squares. So what could this mean? Is it in preparation for Valentines day? Not exactly.

This week, Catalyst and the Student Development Office are sponsoring the “Week of Love.” The purpose is to focus on showing love to our surrounding community by doing community service. They are advertising different opportunities to serve in the community and want to log the volunteer hours the SAU students provide this week. You can get involved through signing up at the table outside the dining commons during meal times. So join in and serve with the other students!

Opportunities include:
- Volunteering at the Salvation Army in Jackson anytime during the week from 3:30-5:30 p.m. to help with their after school program called STARS [OR] play basketball with the youth at open gym from 6-8 p.m. between Monday and Thursday

- Picking up trash on campus this Wednesday night from 7-9 p.m.

- Cleaning up the Falling Water Trail (the trail by Lime Lake) on Saturday from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.

- Writing love/encouragement notes to the people living in the Arbor Oaks Living Center on Thursday from 7-9 p.m. in the Student Center

As a reminder, you don’t have to do these things listed above in order to love the people around you. I encourage you to go out of your way this week to hold the door open for someone, write someone an encouraging note, or thank your professors after class. God bless!

“Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. ” – Romans 12:9-10

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A picture of the frozen Lime Lake. If you look closely on the ice, all of the little black dots are the rocks we threw.

Can you believe it? It’s already the second week of February and the sun is shinning and there is no snow on the ground! This past weekend, I gladly took advantage of the beautiful weather. After an extremely busy week of classes and work, I worked hard to get the majority of my homework done on Saturday. (As a side note, I highly recommend getting all of your work done on one day so that you can rest and relax the next day… it’s extremely beneficial).

As I walked over to brunch in the Student Center on Sunday with my roommate, I couldn’t believe how nice of a day it was! I knew I couldn’t spend the whole day inside. After eating and finishing a paper, I headed out to Lime Lake to go on a walk with my boyfriend, Mark. I had such a good afternoon! After walking through the Falling Water Trail, we stopped along the side of the frozen lake and began skipping rocks across the ice. It turned into a game and I felt like a little kid again. An hour later, we realized how cold our hands were getting and decided to sit down on a nearby bench and simply enjoy God’s beauty through his creation.

Amidst your busy schedule, I hope you can set aside some time this week to enjoy God’s creation and beauty. It is so good to have a time of rest – in fact, God commands us to rest!

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 4:6-7 NIV

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My busy spring semester schedule!

Congratulations Spring Arbor University students! If you are reading this blog, then that means you survived syllabus week and completed your first week of classes during the spring semester! In 3 1/2 months, we will be wrapping up the semester with finals. When I look at my syllabi, it’s easy to get overwhelmed with the number of projects, reading assignments, papers, quizzes, tests, midterms, and finals that will happen during the semester. However, let’s enjoy the time we have right now!

With the start of the new semester, I also have to start a new schedule. My classes are different, my work hours are different, and my sleep hours are different (unfortunately, I have early classes all week which means waking up earlier in the mornings… fantastic *hint of sarcasm*). But that’s what syllabus week is for – figuring out how to survive the next 3 1/2 months.

Even as I talk about “3 1/2 months from now,” I get excited when I think about all the things I will learn academically, spiritually, and relationally during this time. It’s important not to wish this time away. I am learning to cherish the time I have at Spring Arbor University and I don’t want to jump ahead and miss everything God has in store for me right now. So what are you looking forward to this semester? What do you want to learn about God during this time? What are some of your goals for the semester?

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Some of the quote cards my roommate and I made!

After a busy J-term, we have one day of rest before the spring semester begins. Since we don’t have classes today, my roommate and I stayed up really late last night watching movies and making little quote cards. I absolutely loved hanging out with my roommate and diving into crafts.

Once we looked up some quotes, we began pulling out all our scrapbook paper, pens, and other craft supplies. I think we went through three or four movies last night as we made our creative quote cards. Since we stayed up so late, we took advantage of sleeping in this morning. When we woke up, we noticed that the Village was much louder than it had been over J-term. Today, everyone is moving back to campus for the spring semester. This afternoon, it’s common to hear screaming and the pounding of feet from the floor above us as people greet each other when they return. Residents here are rearranging their rooms, getting books for the new semester and are catching up with old friends.

So how are you spending your day off? Are you meeting up with friends? Rearranging your room? Catching up on sleep before the start of Spring Semester? Whatever you do today, I hope you have a blessed, restful day before the start of new classes. God bless!

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On campus, many students are finishing projects, writing papers, and studying for J-term finals. I can’t believe that J-term ends on Tuesday! These 3 weeks have gone by so fast and I have learned so much during this time.

The "Rules" page of my Rule of Life booklet I made.

For my Spiritual Formation’s class, we have a final project based on a “Rule of Life.” Throughout J-term, we discussed the importance of spiritual discipline and how spiritual discipline can enhance and develop our spiritual formation. So, as our final project, we must apply what we learned and create a “Rule of Life” depicting different spiritual disciplines that we will integrate into our life. This “Rule of Life” is a personal plan for how we will practice spirituality in our everyday life.

For my “Rule of Life”, I incorporated 3 different rules: Silence and Solitude, Symbolic Stone, and Spiritual Direction. For Silence and Solitude, I want to spend at least 30 minutes a day in silence before God. This is a time set aside during my busy day to intentionally commune with God. For the Symbolic Stone, I want to focus on a specific verse or fruit of the spirit at the beginning of my day. Then, I will put a small stone in my coat pocket and when I feel it during the day, I will recall the verse or specific fruit of the spirit. Finally, for Spiritual Direction, I want to meet with a mentor for about half an hour once a week. This will help me gain perspective in situations and encourage me to continue growing in my relationship with Christ.

So what are some things you could incorporate into your “Rule of Life”? Do you have one? I encourage you to think about some things you can integrate into you life in order to grow in your relationship with the Lord. God bless!

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