Hello from NEW ZEALAND!!! I am sitting in my room after getting back from a nice walk along the country side. The weather is beautiful here. Last night it thunder stormed. Today is perfect; sunny with a breeze - and I already got a sunburn! The sun is very bright because there's a hole in the ozone layer, so that's different. But I like it.
I had great flights... I sat next to Relient K! WOOO! So awesome. Also, someone asked me about my "Ask Me About Osteoporosis" bag and told me he sold a drug that helped it. HAhahaaaa that was hilarious.

So, when I got to the base we took a tour and met some people. Dinner was a fabulous stir-fry... looks like I'm going to be eating good stuff here. :)
I got some stuff unpacked and went to bed early. After 8pm it was still light outside! But I slept 10 hours straight.

Today we've been making the most of our day off... school starts tomorrow afternoon!
I feel like I've known these people for a while. Everyone seems so familiar! I'm sure it's Jesus :)
We walked into the tiny town of Oxford and visited the grocery store and a little coffee shop where I got some LOVELY hot chocolate! We tried walking on a tightrope, we jumped on our trampoline, we went to the local playground (which is the coolest playground ever!), and walked to the gorge (a pretty river with a waterfall).
Now it's about time for dinner and who knows what else!
So there's a little update for you... I'll post again soon!

Until then,
Me

I'm excited.

  Hello, lovely people! I just want to say thank you for supporting me with money but most of all by praying for me. You are all amazing. I am continually overwhelmed with how blessed I feel.
The Lord has poured His blessings over me during this time and confirmed over and over and over that this is the direction He's pushing me toward. I'm following His path and never turning back!!!
  My trip is coming up fast--just a few days and I'll be in New Zealand all settled in at the YWAM Oxford base (: YAY!
  


It's really cool to see all of these puzzle pieces God is putting together for me. I look back at certain times in my life where I've had to make decisions, and I am blown away by God's greatness. Every time I was able to take a step back and surrender my plans to Jesus, He has opened a surprise door. Those doors have led to rooms full of AWESOMENESS. Seriously! Each and every time.

Stupidly, I easily get wrapped up in myself and all these plans I have for ME... and then I realize where I've wandered off to. I'm like, "WHOA. Lord, I am so sorry. Your will above mine. What do YOU want me to do?" ...and BOOM. Something crazy happens. I'm not kidding!

God honors us for making a decision to follow His plan. GOD... the God, the MAKER of heaven and earth... not only acknowledges us, but knows every fragment of our being... and delights in us. He loves it when we come to Him. He loves it when we ask Him His opinion--even if it's only something little. And he wants our lives to be full of goodness. So when we surrender our lives to Him, what do you think we'll get? I think we'll get LIFE to the FULLEST. Every time. YESSS!
 I'm tellin ya. I'm in love with that guy.



So anyways. Here's a little update!

I decided to post something tonight because I cannot stop thinking about all the exciting things God is putting in place for me! My last post talks about the unbelievable missions work I'll be taking part in during Discipleship Training School, but it doesn't end there...

There is already an awesome opportunity for me to continue outreach after graduating in August! Plans are not settled completely yet, so I don't have a lot of details. However, I do know that I would be with some of the people in my DTS and we would spend time in Europe, ministering in various ways there. In order to do this I will need continued support, though! Please pray with me about this and ask God to give me direction and peace. I feel like this is where He's pointing me, but I would love some confirmation on that.

  Another thing I'm quite excited about is how God is using my gift for photography.

Okay... a couple years ago I started looking into art colleges and scholarships and what not. I was so closed minded with the plan I had for myself until I was able to lay that down at His feet and let Jesus be my guide. 

I look at the life I could be living right now: college, photography, looking for ways to earn money on my own... hopefully making enough money to go visit some countries so I could photograph them (HA!), looking into careers, etc. And MAN does that sound boooorrring. For real. 

After trading God my plan for His plan, I see now that I really got the best deal out there. I would've had so many struggles the way I was going. But with God's plan, I am going to be able to use photography for things that truly matter. I will have opportunities I never would have dreamed of having. I get to work for the best Employer in history.

So, how is He using my photography gift? Well, naturally, I will take photos everywhere I go on this upcoming trip around the world. But He is taking that a step further and putting those photos to use! 

My brother-in-law and sister, Josh and Sarah MacLeod, have a ministry (view website here or here!) and I have the opportunity to work with them while I'm with YWAM! They are equipping me with much needed gear and they will be able to use my photography for such good things. I'm very excited! But more about that later (:

I'm thankful for friends and family who love me. Thank you for being there for me. I hope you are encouraged by the things I post. I will update this blog as often as I can while I'm gone, so be sure to check in! I'll post pictures!

God bless,

Steph

p.s. if you feel led to give money, it would be much appreciated! There's a "donate" button on this website or you can send me a check in the mail: 

3900 Pepperwood Drive

Antioch, TN, 37013