Standing Still

In the past as I have blogged about the trip, I have written primarily about feeling like Moses at the Burning Bush - not at all qualified for the task at hand and scared out of my mind to go stand before Pharaoh. But this year is different. This year, I am ready to strap on my armor and go head first into battle, the Lord leading the charge and me following Him. This year, I'm feeling much more at peace about everything. I know our team will come together; I know our budgets will be met; I know that traveling with a fifteen-foot long pole vault case will be no problem; I know that the Lord has this thing under control. Which is a much better place to be in, compared to the posture of a terrified Moses. Praise God for how He has continued to mold me, shape me, and bring me one step closer to the finished version of me that He has planned.

This year, the verse that the Lord has given me is really beautiful. It's Scripture, so of course it is beautiful, but the beauty is deeper and more personal because I know that this is a promise of things to come. The verse that the Lord has given me is:

Now therefore stand still and see this great thing that the LORD will do before your eyes. - 1 Samuel 12:16

Two things stand out at me. The first is "stand". I am by no means a Biblical scholar (as proven to me each week as I ask the Lord to write the lesson for our weekly Northwood AIA meeting), but I do know a thing or two about standing.  I do a lot of standing. If it's a baseball double header, I stand in the dugout for eight hours on solid concrete. Standing hurts. Standing is active. Looking at it through a sports medicine lens, standing demands prolonged periods of active muscle work and stabilization. Hips are fully extended, your butt is "on", knees are extended (with a soft bend) and slightly externally rotated, shoulders are depressed and externally rotated, scapulae (shoulder blades, for those of y'all that don't have an anatomy background) are retracted and depressed, the neck is in a proper neutral position, and the abdomen is drawn up and in. Muscles are ready to move, to be active, and to be used. It is in this position that the Lord has called me, has called us, to be. I am not to be sitting, I am not to be reclining, and I sure as heck am not to be sleeping. I am to be ready. While I may not be actively be doing anything, I am actively ready for something. The Lord has already said that He will be doing great things. I am to stand.

The second thing that stands out is the word "still". I really appreciate the fact that the author included this word here. It may seem redundant to include, as standing usually means don't move, but how many of us truly practice that? How many of us, when we are standing, fidget or sway? Do you shuffle your feet, look for something to lean on? How quickly after you start standing still do you pull out your phone? Is being consumed by social media or online phone games really being still? I would argue that stillness requires a certain kind of concentration or awareness. Stillness requires a level of trust to just be.

That is what I see the Lord telling me to do - be ready, to be still, and above all else, to trust Him. He has promised great things. He wants me to see these great things. If the sanctification process currently happening in my life right now is a sign of things to come, then the Lord is going to be showing off in ways that I couldn't even dream of.

Lord, please help me stand still and see the great thing that You will do before my eyes.

Je Cours

May I present to you the unofficially-official song of AIA Belgium 2012. It is from the same artist who brought us last year's song, "Alors on Danse." 

"Je Cours" - Stromae

Translation: I run. Perfect :)

ROUND. THREE.

It is official - AIA Belgium Track & Field is happening this summer.

Four weeks of living out of a suitcase in a hostel.
Four weeks of training with my favorite Belgian track & field club: Daring Club Leuven Atletiek (DCLA).
Four weeks of living in Christian community while simultaneously "doing life" with those who have yet to trust Christ.
Four weeks of Belgian ice cream, waffles, and Speculoos (or just ice cream if your autoimmune system doesn't like gluten).
Four weeks of sharing the Gospel on planes, trains, buses, hostel living rooms, track & field stadiums, restaurants, bars, grocery stores, and markets.
Four weeks of shopping every day for a team of hungry athletes.
Four weeks of zipping through traffic on a rusty bike (and trying to not abuse the bell).
Four weeks of learning more about how to use your sport as a way to both glorify God and tell the world about Him.

July 2012, please get here soon.

A of All...

Ten points to the first person who can correctly identify who the title of my blog is referring to. The person to whom I am referring can't play. That wouldn't be fair.

Anyway, I've had some trouble deciding on the best way to share all that God has done. I've processed through a lot of it, but since this is the internet, I prayed about what exactly I will share and how much. After much journaling and prayer, I've decided to lead off the post-trip posts with the change that happened to me while in Leuven.

I can say with 100% certainty that I am not the same Rachel that I was four-ish weeks ago. I don't know exactly when the change occurred, or how, I just know that it happened. I feel a lightness, a joy, a childlike approach to life, and a freedom that I didn't feel prior to the trip. I feel like, for the first time, I am resting - truly resting - in the peace of God that comes when you really do trust Him.

I'll use a real-world example to show the change that has happened inside of me. The university that I work for is expanding the number of athletes from 160 to 200. Currently, I am the only certified athletic trainer for our athletic department and our training room is straining to accommodate all of our current athletes. When I left for Belgium, I was told that we would be adding some storage, rearranging the layout of the training room, have a job post up for a new assistant athletic trainer so I could start sifting through resumes while I was overseas, doing some much needed repairs to the training room, and that my pay would go up so that it would be closer to what I should be making for the job that I do. I come back to find that none of the promises have been denied (but they didn't take my assistant), and I actually lost a sizable chunk of my budget that I use to bring in extra help. Needless to say, there was some frustration and disappointment when I was told this news.

Now, old-Rachel would have freaked out. I would have been stressed; I would have gotten really, really angry; I would have panicked; I would have been bitter; I would have bottomed out. But, I'm not old-Rachel any more. I'm new-Rachel. So, while there was frustration, disappointment, and feeling a little overwhelmed, I was alright with it all. Because I know that my God is a God who is bigger than a university. My God has carried me through life up until this very moment and I know He won't drop me now. He has made it very clear that I'm supposed to stay where I am for right now, so I know that He will make sure I have all I need to do the job well. I just need to keep returning to Him, trusting in what Christ did on the cross, and not try and do it on my own strength. My strength will fail, as I have seen it do before. Sure, things may work out for a bit, but at the end of the day, I will go down in a spectacular, fiery crash. While God sometimes uses flames to refine me, they are meant for good, not evil destruction.

I would appreciate prayers, though. There has been a lot of coach turnover this past year, and I am one of the few staff members remaining this year. It's going to be a tough adjustment year for everyone, and I pray that I can shine my light and point everyone toward the Anchor that keeps me steady and grounded.

Tot Ziens!

Here it is... my least favorite part of the trip: the end. I'm not too sure how coherent my thoughts will be because I didn't go to bed last night until after two and it is currently 4:56am as I sit here and type this.

My heart breaks as our time here as a team comes to a close. This team is so much more than a team, we are a true family. I will miss each and every person with every part of my being, and it makes me sad to think that we all live so far apart (with the exception of my fellow Texan). The Lord has used every person on this team to speak into my life, be it with wisdom, encouragement, or a revelation about His character.

Not only will I miss my new-found family, but I will miss all of my new friends that I have made. I will miss the accents, the questions, the different lifestyles,  and the conversations. I will miss listening to the Dutch/Flemish language. Of course, I will miss the silly things - Speculoos, ice cream, and waffles, but they are just the added bonus of the ability to do life with some truly amazing people - both believers in Christ and non-believers.

I am truly thankful for the opportunity that God has given me to travel to Cinque Terre, Italy for the next four days. While I am a little hesitant to travel alone, I am also looking forward to having that time with no laptop, no large group, and really have some quality time with God. I worship Him through food, so the thought of having Italian food, some good wine, and the chance to sit with God, praying about all that has happened on this trip is something that I am looking forward to. When I'm honest, I really think that I need to take the next four days and be alone, because if I had the distraction of others, I wouldn't really properly work through all that has been done through me, in me, around me, and goodness knows what other prepositions could be used regarding Him.

This post is not the last post that I will put up about this trip. I have much to share, but I can't properly share it all right now because I cannot articulate what exactly God has done. Over the next few weeks, as He slowly walks with me through the mountain of experiences that have occurred, I'm sure He will reveal what He wants me to blog about. Which is where the title of the post comes from. "Tot ziens" means see you later. I know that I will see this family again. We will be able to connect in person, not just online. This isn't good-bye by any means, but merely a, "See you later!"

Messy Pierre's - AKA European Sloppy Joes

When you say "Messy Pierre's", you have to say it with a ridiculous French accent to get the full effect of the dish. Our own Paul H. gave this dish its new name. It's the recipe from last year - a European twist on an American classic. I say "European twist" in that the BBQ sauce is pretty much a mystery and the meat that I'm using is a blend of ground beef and pork. And maybe chicken? Whatever it is, it's delicious and always a crowd pleaser. This will be the last meal that I cook here in Belgium for the year. Tomorrow, one of our new Belgian pole vaulter friends (who also happens to be the reigning Belgian champ) is cooking us a traditional Belgian meal. It makes me very sad to think that our time here is coming to an end and that I will have to leave on Sunday. I will have one more full day on the 21st of July before I fly back to Texas on the 22nd, but it won't be the same being here without my crazy family. This happened last year, and to be honest, I was kind of hoping that it would be easier to leave this year. It looks like, however, that it will be just as hard, if not harder, to leave. 

Anway, back to the reason you're here - the food:

Ingredients:

• One pound of ground meat
• One red or orange bell pepper, chopped
• Two carrots, chopped
• One bottle mystery Belgian BBQ sauce
• One can crushed tomatoes
• Buns

Prep:

• Brown the ground beef. Add the sauce and tomatoes and simmer for 20 minutes.
• Add the vegetables, stir together, and simmer for another 15-20 minutes. 
• Serve on a bun, as a sandwich or open-faced (filling on top of an open bun)

Panzanella Salad

I'm heading over to Italy next Sunday, so I thought I would get in the Italian mood by serving this salad. The e.coli outbreak does not deter me from serving a dish full of tomatoes and cucumbers (the vegetables affected the most by the outbreak), mainly because Belgium has some of the strictest food standards that I have ever seen and there was not one case reported in the entire country.

This recipe is based off an Ina Garten recipe, and she is one of my favorite Food Network people. All of her recipes are easy, simple, and crowd pleasing. This dish is just day-old bread, veggies, some added chicken for good measure, and a vinaigrette dressing. How fabulous is that (Anyone?? Anyone??)?

Ingredients:

• Three Tablespoons olive oil
• One small French bread, cut into one-inch cubes (about six cups)
• One teaspoon Kosher salt
• Pepper to taste
• Two large, ripe tomatoes, cut into cubes
• One cucumber, skinned, seeded, and sliced 1/2 inch thick
• One red bell pepper, cut, seeded, and sliced into one-inch cubes
• One yellow bell pepper, cut, seeded, and sliced into one-inch cubes
• 20 large basil leaves, coarsely chopped
• Three boneless, skinless chicken breasts cooked and cubed into one-inch cubes
• Your choice of vinaigrette dressing

Prep:

• In a large saucepan, heat the oil and add the bread. Season liberally with salt and pepper, turning frequently until all of the bread is browned, about ten minutes.
• In a large bowl, mix remaining ingredients. Add the bread and too with the vinaigrette. Allow salad to sit for at least thirty minutes for flavors to blend.