4 days

It's SO crazy to think that I really only have 4 days left of Mission Year.

I'm going to be very sad to leave my family here in Philadelphia!! But I'm also excited to go back home to Michigan to my friends and family! I'm excited for new beginnings!

I can't even begin to express how this year has changed my life. I've learned sososo much this past year. I've learned a lot about myself as a person. I've also learned a LOT about God. I've experienced The Lord working in so many ways and have had some great times learning more about Him! I've learned a lot about myself; how strong I am, how independent I can be, learning to face fears, but most importantly, I've learned that God is always with me and He gives me confidence. He is my stronghold!

This past year has helped me grow in my Christian walk TREMENDOUSLY!

I'm so thankful and grateful that I was able to have this oh so beautiful experience. I've been blessed with amazing support back home and even here in Philadelphia! I can't thank all of the people who made this year possible for me enough!!! All you donors, prayer warriors, and encouragers out there, THANK YOU A BUNCH! You're so wonderful! (:

Looking back on the year, the first word that pops in my head is excitement. I'm excited for how far I've come, as a person and in my walk with The Lord! I'm excited for all the new things I've learned this year, the oh so many things! I'm excited that I got to spend the past year with some really amazing roommates/housemates! I'm excited how far God has brought me! And I'm also excited for how far He is going to continue to take me!

Tomorrow we leave for the weekend to go on a retreat. And then we have one last day with our team members before we part our separate ways. I'm looking forward to that sweet, precious time with not only my roommates but also other Mission Year team members. I'm looking forward to growing more within myself and expanding my abilities to share with other my thoughts. I pray that The Lord will give me confidence like He has been all year to be able to open up and share. I'm also looking forward to just being able to sit by the pool and have that valuable down time with all these lovely people I've been blessed with!

I'm super excited to be home in a week and to have a month home before I start college! Although I am excited for college, I'm looking forward to that month break of not doing anything and just having that precious time with my sweet friends and family!

If you happen to see me, anytime, don't be afraid to ask me questions about my year, because I would love to tell you about it! I'm going to challenge myself to answer all questions and not try to get out of any by saying "I don't know" because I'm working on voicing my opinion and being vulnerable. So, please, help me with this challenge of helping me grow as a person and ask! (:

2 weeks.

I officially have 2 weeks left of my Mission Year.

With at being said, I need your help to get me to my goal to raise $12,000!

Please please please help me out by donating to my Mission Year account!

www.missionyear.org/donate (designation = Emily Nichols)

ANY amount helps me!!!

I don't even know how to begin to explain everything about the past 11 months. Some words I think of when I think of my experience in Mission Year are: encouraging, hard, fun, learning, challenging, exciting, slow, fast, tough, lovely...I'm sure I could go on forever. So, to sum it up, I've learned a lot being in Philadelphia for the past year. I've learned that the Lord will always protect me. I've learned that God is my strength. I've learned that I can't live this life without fully depending on God. I've learned how to be venerable. I've learned how much I have grown as a person. I've learned how much I've grown with the Lord and also how much more I can grow! And again, I could go on forever, but the point is that I've learned a lot here. I'm so thankful and grateful to have had this amazing experience. I couldn't have spent the last year with any more awesome people! My roommates/housemates made this year amazing!

I am really excited to go home to Michigan! I'm excited to start new things to Spring Arbor University! I'm excited to see all my friends and family again! Although I only have 1 month from the time I get home until I leave for college, it is still going to be amazing! I'm aware that I will get asked a lot of questions about my Mission Year that I might not be ready to answer, but I am excited to share what God has been doing in my life! I'm also excited to see how God is working in the lives of all my friends at home!

I wrote a blog about being fearless at the start of Mission Year around October. I can tell you that I've come a long way since then. I used to tremble at the thought of ever leaving the building I live in or even talking to the girls who came to bible study at Teen Haven. I used to hate the thought of walking to the mailbox down the street by myself and the thought of ever riding SEPTA (public transportation) alone. When I think back about how scared I was about everything, I realize how far God has brought me. I also mentioned in another blog that I talked in front of the middle school youth group at my church back home. Before I couldn't imagine myself doing that for the sake of being scared. I think I've come along way since August and it feels really awesome!

Please pray that these last 2 weeks are eye opening and that I continue to grow with God! Also, keep it in your prayers that I continue to grow in what I've had during Mission Year with God and myself. He has brought me so far!

Who likes food!? Or cooking!? Or me!?

Lovely people!!
 My North Philly Mission Year team has put together a cook book of the many miraculous things we have eaten throughout the year! I HIGHLY sugest that you get your hands on one!!! How do you do that? Welllll, if you go to www.missionyear.org/donate and donate any amount that your heart so desires [to Emily Nichols, Mary Simms, Megan Johnson, Aaron Swank, or Rigsbee Sanders] and forward your donation confirmation receipt to me [enichols2894@gmail.com] or one of my roommates [jedi.megan@att.net OR maryrsimms@gmail.com]! Then you just have to wait patiently for a reply email with an attachment of your very own PDF copy of our lovely cookbook! From there you can do as you desire with it, either save it, print it, or just look at it. AND THEN START COOKING! (:

True Blessing

This past week has be so awesome! The Lord has answered prayers!!

One of my housemates, Rigsbee, works at a school called Logan Hope and on Monday, June 24th, I had the blessing to be apart of their summer day camp! I will be helping serve there this summer, or for the next 3 weeks of work that we have in Mission Year. I can't even begin to express how grateful I am to have this opportunity! Even though I just started this past week, I already LOVE it! Being able to be around the kids all day every day is a blessing in itself, but also being able to pour God's love into them is the cherry on top of an awesome ice cream sunday! I know I am not the most outgoing person, but when it comes to those kids, you just have to let go of all shyness and act crazy and have fun.

On Tuesday, I was wearing a shirt that said Saved With Amazing Grace and at the bottom it said #jcluforever. One of the kids came up to me and started reading my shirt. When he got to the part that said jclu forever, he asked what that meant. So, I went on to tell him that it meant Jesus Christ loves you. It felt really amazing just to say to a little kid that Jesus loved him, even if I was just telling him what my shirt meant!

These kids are already making an impact in my life and I've only been there for 3 days! I can't wait to see where God will bring me in these next 3 weeks working at the day camp!! I know that it will help me grow more as a person and help to expand my knowledge and pour into these beautiful children.

I just wanted to let all of you know what has been happening and how God is answering prayers and working in my life! I can't even explain how grateful I am for opportunities like this!!! God has blessed me. (:

The Logan Hope website says this about their summer day camp:
"The Relevance of a Summer Day Camp
LOGAN Hope Summer Day Camp fills the summer void for neighborhood children by giving them positive and challenging activities such as sports and competitions, swimming, educational field trips, brain-strengthening activities, and mentoring relationships. In the same way that staying in school has been shown to reduce gang involvement, teenage pregnancy, drug use, and violence in our community, our summer day camp accomplishes the same things when school is out of session."

Help Me Finish Strong!

Amazing. Meaningful. Challenging. Inspiring.

There are so many ways to describe this last year, I don't think I can choose just one word to capture the entire experience.  But one thing I do know is that this year has changed my life. 

Thanks to your support, I have been able to live and serve in North Philadelphia in one of the city's poorest neighborhoods.  It has given me a new perspective on what being a neighbor means. I've seen God working in ways in which I didn't expect.  

My year is coming to an end and I'd like to ask for your support so my team and I can finish strong this year.  Your gift will allow me to be the hands and feet of Jesus by extending love to my neighbors.

Without you, I would not have been able to experience this amazingly, wonderful, challenging year.  If you are able to donate and help me finish strong, I would be deeply grateful!

Thank you so so much!

https://missionyear.thankyou4caring.org/2013-finish-strong-donation-page?srctid=1&erid=125822&trid=af1732ba-717c-4225-b330-0540841bf395

The designation says Mission Year at default. If you want to donate to me personally, click the arrow and scroll to find my name! (Emily Nichols) (:

(These are not my own words but they do fit oh so perfectly!)

Follow Jesus!

Some people think that only the "poor" need help. Only the "broken" need help. Only the "less wealthy" need help. Only the "struggling" need help. I'm not saying I agree or disagree with any of this. People say they've noticed that mission trips normally take place in "bad" or "poor" or "rough" areas. This is mostly true, because we all believe that they are the ones who need the most help.

The way I see it is just because someone looks "unclean" or "less wealthy" doesn't mean they automatically need our help over someone who looks like they have everything together. Sometimes the people who seem to be put together are the people we should be focusing on too. Yes, everyone can use help, every one needs to be shown kindness, but I think it's unfair to automatically assume that people in an "urban" area are the only ones who need help. I know that you can make a difference to people in suburban areas or any areas. I've been thinking about this a lot. Sometimes I've been treated as a some big hero because I'm doing this big mission trip for a year. Yes, it is awesome, but just because I have a title over my name doesn't mean I'm better than anyone else. You are living for Jesus too and you don't have to go to another place to show that! You too can get outside and love on your neighbors and show them God! Love God and love people? You can do that anywhere! Just because I happen to live in a broken neighborhood doesn't mean I'm more high and mighty than others. You can be doing the exact same thing as I am, just in your neighborhood! And yes, it is easier when you are 100% devoted and don't have distractions of school or friends or family and your whole purpose is to love The Lord and love your neighbors. If you follow Jesus and love Him, you can spread His love to people and help people in need no matter where you are!

People tell me they don't want me to worry about things back home because they don't want me to have any distractions and want me to focus everything I have on being here and loving God and people and yes I understand that. Some may say I could be spending more time with my housemates, neighbors, or Jesus instead of being on the Internet. I believe everyone can spend less time on the Internet and more time doing other important things, such as focusing all your time on loving God and loving people. Sometimes I feel like I get punished for being on Facebook or wanting to have a conversation with someone back home, but I know they are doing it out of love. And yes, I understand that they want me to get the most out of this experience because it probably won't come around again. I also believe that anyone could make the decision to get off the Internet and get outside and spread God's unconditional love! You don't have to be on a mission trip to impact people. You don't have to be a leader to impact people. You don't have to leave your city to impact people. You can impact anyone right where you are.

Now that it's summer time, I want to encourage you to get out there show some people Jesus!(:

One Year

Today, May 31, 2013, marks ONE YEAR since I got accepted into Mission Year!

[The picture above was my status update on Facebook on May 31, 2012!]

I can't even begin to express everything that has happened in the last 9 months. Living in Philadelphia has been the best experience of my life. Not only have I grown as a person, but I've grown incredibly in my relationship with the Lord! "I've found a love that's greater than life itself." My roommates/housemates have made this the best 9 months of my life. They are so awesome and their love for God shines through their actions. I love being able to be a part of a community that prays together and who constantly encourages one another! If you know me, my favorite thing is encouragement. "A family that prays together stays together." Yes, family. I consider every one of my housemates family and I wouldn't trade any of them for anything!

I never would have thought that over a year ago I would be where I am now ; physically, mentally and emotionally. I don't think I would have ever pictured myself living not only in a different city, but a different state. I didn't even want to go to the gas station by myself let alone a different state where I didn't know anyone. I am probably one of the most shy people I know, or I used to be. I can now walk down the street by myself and go to the mailbox to send out my newsletters! [WHOA DREAM BIG!] But for real, I think that is a pretty big first step into facing my fears. I also don't think I could have pictured myself to have such a burning passion for the Lord! God has shown my so many things that I don't think I would have experienced if I wasn't doing what I am. Devoting every single hour of every single day with NO distractions of hanging out with friends, spending time with family, or school has helped me grow in my relationship with Christ incredibly. I can't even begin to express how grateful and blessed I feel to have had this opportunity. I will admit, I am scared of people. Living in my neighborhood and being afraid of people don't really go together. There are people everywhere and almost everyone you walk past talks to you, which I think is really neat [most of the time] because I'm not very used to that. A simple "Hello" can change a person's whole day and make them smile! Sometimes I do feel discouraged by what some people comment as you walk past them, but I know that God is always with me and He will protect me from any harm. "Don't let the world change your smile, let your smile change the world."

I have been looking for another service site to help/serve at along with my service site now. I've struggled a lot with finding my purpose at my service site now, Teen Haven, and wondering if I really am making any difference. I don't believe that God brought me to Philadelphia to just clean a building, but who knows, He can do some pretty crazy things! Two of my roommates work at schools with kids pre-k through 8th grade. I am hoping to help out at one of those places, if not both, this summer for summer camps. I would love to have the opportunity to work with kids and help them grow closer with Christ. While doing that, I would still be helping out at my service site now and continuing to keep the building squeaky clean. Please pray that I will figure out where God wants me!

It has been a marvelous, awesome and sometimes hard first 9 months, and I am so greatly excited for these last 2! I feel so blessed having all the support I've had the last year with everything dealing with Mission Year! I can't even begin to thank my friends and family enough for their support, prayers and encouragement! Like I said earlier, I would have never seen myself doing this over a year ago, but thank the Lord that God gives me confidence! My year wouldn't have been possible without my support and my God!

Now we have 2 months left, exactly. I'm tremendously excited to see how much more I can grow, even in just 2 months. I know that God has a great plan for me and He is going to do magnificent things in me and through me! (:

NOWWWW, with there only being 2 months of my Mission Year left, I need ALL of your support prayerfully AND financially! I am not even 50% of the way done with my fundraising, and I only have 2 of my 11 months left. I am so grateful for everyone who has helped me out and donated to my Mission Year fund, but I would LOVE to see some new names on there! If you haven't donated to my Mission Year fund, please please please prayerfully consider helping me out! I wouldn't be able to eat or live in the house that I do if it wasn't for you donating! A lot of the time, I do feel as though I am holding my team and city back because I don't have even most of my money raised. Maybe I will buy you an ice cream cone if I see your name show up on my donation list!(: Please, help me out by donating to my Mission Year fund! (www.missionyear.org/donate [click the arrow where it says Mission Year for the designation and scroll down and find my name, Emily Nichols]) THANK YOU SO MUCH! :D