Sneak Preview

So, I boarded a plane last weekend and headed to the East Coast. It was a delight. I have never anticipated a trip as much as this one.

I must say, I was stoked to land in Virginia, but I was met with my first challenge before I left the airport. I found the desk to rent a car and they pulled up my reservation and handed me the keys to a crown victoria. I laughed, but then I realized they were serious. So, I headed out to the garage and gave them my paperwork. The lady at that counter said, "Thats a big car for a small girl." I thought, "Uh, yeah...maybe she'll see this is about to be a big mistake." But she didn't change it. So, I coaxed myself and thought it can't be that bad, besides I have my pillow in my bag, so if worse comes to worse I can sit on that. It was wishful thinking. The car had to be the biggest on the lot. It stuck out at least a 1/4 more than all the others. But, I tried to look on the bright side... most people would be thrilled to have a large luxury car like this for 15.00 bucks a day. But after loading up my stuff in the trunk and checking out how bad it would be I realized this is not happening. Not only could I barely reach the pedal when it was all the way forward, the seat did not move up at all! I was doomed. My eyes literally hit the top of the steering wheel, which was only half way up on the dash.

So, I marched back to the lady at the counter who told me I was small and I calmly let her know that for the safety of myself and the vehicle I would appreciate if they could find anything smaller for me. I reassured her I did NOT need a luxury vehicle and I would be pleased as punch to be in their smallest vehicle. Thankfully, she understood and obliged. : )

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I was visiting my first law school. (Pretty much the only one I'm interested in attending). But it was more than just a law school visit to me. I was expecting God to speak in an amazing way. For a couple months I debated back and forth about visiting the school in the spring or fall, but after much time, I knew God was calling me to visit in November. It made much more practical sense to wait until the spring, but I know better than do what I think is right as opposed to being obedient.

So, in my obedience I took off for four days to a place I have always wanted to live. I was full of so much anticipation. The weekend turned out to be a lot of what I expected and nothing of what I expected all at the same time. The school was a amazing. It became very clear very quickly that I want to go there. I have never seen an organization operate with so much excellence.

RABBIT TRAIL/SIDE NOTE: I have to laugh here because I definitely did not expect the Preview Weekend at Regent to be anything like my undergrad college weekends, but I definitely didn't expect this. Imagine undergrad, you are met with a bunch of hyper screaming students all wearing color coordinated T-shirts and dancing to loud music while vibrantly welcoming you to their school. Now fast forward to Preview weekend at Regent University (which is mainly a graduate school) and I am met with a bell boy at the University's 4 star hotel. Talk about a clash of worlds. haha. I almost didn't know what to do. I was glad that I was by myself and I could just be calm and quiet and blend in so as not to make a scene. lol.

(To the left is a picture of the Founders Inn. It was the 4 star hotel on campus. I felt like I was in English Gardens when I walked outside.) It was cute. The bell boy fit right in. : )

Back to the story, I quickly found out why I liked Regent so much. One of the first things I did after arriving on campus was meet with the International law professor. It was an incredible meeting. The dear sweet woman that I met with was someone I will probably never forget. You could see in the lines on her face her compassion and care towards God's people... especially to those that society has forgotten. She had so much passion and it is obvious that she has given her life to this calling. She told me a story about God speaking to her in regards to human trafficking and she was reminded of the song "Onward Christian Soldiers." This is the song that she hears playing in her head as she studies the law and fights for the freedom of children who have no other voice. I was sincerely blessed by this meeting. The best part was that she told me that no matter what school I go to, she would only ever be an e-mail away. And she encouraged me that whatever law school received me would be blessed because of my desire to help the poor and the needy. She then threatened me that if I did choose Regent and I didn't come visit her within the first week, that she'd hunt me down. : ) Yeah, I like her. She also gave me some wisdom regarding scholarships. Overall, it was a great meeting and I walked away thanking God for his favor.

I didn't have much time to look around the campus until Saturday, because our time was packed with activities. I had the opportunity to hear from the chancellor of the school and hear the vision from him, heard the current president speak, had dinner with the dean of the law school, met several professors, talked with current students, alumni, and staff. It was great. I seriously could not think of any other questions to ask. I mean not only had I looked this school up before I came, but I had pretty much read their website 4 or 5 times, called the school with questions, e-mailed and spoken with current students before coming. So, I got the overview. :)

But here are some pictures that I finally got to take on Saturday with my iphone. Unfortunately, I was planning to bring my mom's sweet camera just to take some fun shots, but she forgot it, then my camera ran out of batteries, so this was all I got...

I have to admit on one hand, I didn't expect to have this question, but when I got there it wasn't even a matter of which law school, it was a question of is this really what you want me to do Lord? I can tell just by everything that I have learned that law school is super intense and a major commitment of time, money and family. It's that last one which I find hard to cope with. It will be very difficult to leave everyone I know to come to a place I've never lived and not have the time to develop friendships because I have to dive into law school. But, God and I had a lot of time over the weekend to work this out. Basically, I surrendered and said yes. All of my hours of free time turned out to be a great blessing because it gave me a lot of time to pray and process over the weekend.

During one of the sessions the admissions director told us about one of the professors who I had the opportunity to meet at lunch just after hearing the story. Apparently this professor has 8 kids. (some of his own, some adopted, some foster kids), but with every new class that he has he lets his students know that if they have an unplanned pregnancy or know of someone who has an unplanned pregnancy and they are thinking of aborting the child he told them that there is always room for one more at his home. Wow. So beautiful. I know that's how we are supposed to live our lives and I couldn't help but think... I want to be around you. I told my mom this story later as I was standing outside that building there and I just choked up. I love it when the church looks like Jesus. : ) When I did get a chance to meet this man all I could see was his humility and love for people. Awesome. So much of this trip was like this story... it was full of unexpected blessings and surprises. I later told God in prayer... "I saw you this weekend. I mean literally saw you, because you were so alive in some of the people that I met."

As far as Regent goes, I was totally impressed by the caliber of the teachers, the heart of the university, the vision for the future, the family feeling from the students, faculty, staff and everyone I met. I was convinced it was a special place. I know that even though I'd be 24 hours away from family and friends, I would be okay.

I am excited to say, that I made it to the beach while I was there. I will be honest, I wasn't expecting too much because its so cold, but I at least wanted to see it and walk along the boardwalk. Unfortunately, because it was November all the little establishments were closed and it felt a little erie... but oh well. I am sure it would be nice to go there in the summer. It's so weird being in a new place because you don't know where the "safe" places to go are. I kinda hate that. I am so blessed to be in a city where I know so many people and I know the area.

Isn't this a funny picture? lol... When I saw this I thought of ORU and I felt right at home. They need one of these signs for sure!

So, the very best part of the trip was Sunday. I love how God brings absolute divine connections along our paths. I met up with a family there that was great. I met them at church and then we went to lunch together. They were super busy, but I felt really special because I knew they made time to sit down and have lunch with me that day. I know that connecting with them will be a huge answer to my prayers. I also really liked their church. I am excited because I was praying that I would find a church. I had in my heart that I wanted to attend a small, but vibrant church. I would say that they are definitely that... small but certainly alive. It was kinda funny because it felt a little bit like the beach bum's church. : ) For one, they are really close to the beach, and two, it was really casual. The young adults pastor got up to say a few words and he was wearing a beanie, a plaid shirt and some skinny jeans on a sunday morning. Yeah, somehow, that just screams my culture! lol. I love their heart and I'm excited to get to know some of the people.

So, in a nutshell, that was my trip. I look forward to what God has in store for the future. He certainly spoke clearly to me and I'm so thankful for that.

I will say, that due to this trip, I came home and realized just how blessed I am. I have so many wonderful people here that I will miss dearly, but I also know that I have to follow God where He is leading me, and I very clearly feel like this is it. God is so good, and he is so faithful. I never want to be on a path that He hasn't already led me in.

In my opinion a rich life is one that is surrounded by people who love them. So, I would consider myself rich.

I am reminded though of a word that I felt heavy on my heart back in June of this year when everything was coming together... that is "to whom much is given, much is required." I have been given oh so much, and I know that I am so loved, but there are so many who have never known HIS love. I want to give that love. I want to be a voice for those who don't have a voice.

Sometimes when I ask myself, is this what I am to do... I can't help but think. I don't need a special mandate. I have already been given one: Care for the orphan and the widow, give unto the least of these, feed me, clothe me, defend the cause of the poor and the needy, bring freedom for the captive. Yes. I have been called.