Stories from a Sojourner

"If you know for that which you were created for let absolutely nothing deter you. Do not let..."

Fri, 08 Jun 2012 10:50:05 -0400

““If you know for that which you were created for let absolutely nothing deter you. Do not let uncertainty and fear dissuade you. Do not let people and choices distract you. Do not allow shortcomings and mistakes to define you. Do not admit defeat. Is not the one who created you greater than all these things?””

- Emily Nicole

Some of the English Conversation Club

Fri, 08 Jun 2012 10:47:56 -0400

Some of the English Conversation Club

Women’s Turkish Breakfast with Elif, Candace, Gerry,...

Fri, 08 Jun 2012 10:46:45 -0400

Women’s Turkish Breakfast with Elif, Candace, Gerry, Chinelle, Tulay, Lisa, Seren, and Joelle

Learning How To Make Sarma

Tue, 05 Jun 2012 06:31:23 -0400

Learning How To Make Sarma

Tulay and I at Ephesus

Tue, 05 Jun 2012 06:29:00 -0400

Tulay and I at Ephesus

Drained...

Tue, 05 Jun 2012 05:15:00 -0400

This Sunday I found myself drained spiritually, emotionally, physically… It was the end of a very, very long week filled with so many different things. I think we were all feeling it. I went for a run to clear my mind and just be alone with God. To be honest, one of my greatest mistakes was choosing not to run while I was here. I need that time alone with God, to rid myself of everything else but him. I couldn’t run all the time here just because of how busy my schedule is but I should have been running when I could. Then Michelle, Steve, and I got together and had our weekly devotional and went over the last chapter that we had read of “Don’t Waster Your Life” by John Piper. Afterwards we went out on the porch and watched a lightning storm while singing worship songs. Honestly, it was the most refreshing, beautiful ending to an exhausting, but just as beautiful week. I think I was just running myself into the ground this week because I wanted to fit in as much as possible and I didn’t have the heart to say no when people asked me if I could do things with them and add more to my already out of control list. Do not get me wrong it was a wonderful, God praising week, but even Jesus needed alone time with his Father away from the crowd and that is what I was missing this week. Today is Tuesday and it is my day to focus on God and kind of bring myself back together so I can spend as much time as possible the next week with the people I have met here. Please pray that this last week I will remain focused on being here and not the fact that I am going home. Part of me is excited to go home but the other part does not want to leave. I love these people. I only wish I knew more Turkish so I could converse with them more.

"He knows what he is doing with me, and when he has tested me, I will come forth as pure gold."

Sun, 03 Jun 2012 15:35:35 -0400

“He knows what he is doing with me, and when he has tested me, I will come forth as pure gold.”

- Job 23:10

"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose."

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 10:19:33 -0400

““He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.””

- Jim Elliot

"I personally have never ceased to rejoice that God has entrusted me with His service. People talk a..."

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 10:18:27 -0400

““I personally have never ceased to rejoice that God has entrusted me with His service. People talk a lot about the sacrifice of devoting my life to Africa. But can this be called a sacrifice at all if we give back to a God a ‘little of what we owe Him?’ And we owe Him so much that we should never be able to pay off our debt. Can this be called sacrifice which gives us the deepest satisfaction, which develops our best powers, and gives us the greatest hopes and expectations? Away with this word. It is anything but a sacrifice. Rather, call it a ‘privilege.’””

- David Livingstone

Prayer Requests

Thu, 31 May 2012 17:48:52 -0400

Well the past week has been interesting and has brought up some things I would like it if you all could pray for. This Monday I will be teaching an english class for seven-year-olds with help from their normal teacher. I am a little nervous but am very excited for this opportunity. Also this Saturday I will be going to Ephesus again with some local believers and non-believers. If you could please pray that this trip would be God-exalting that would be wonderful. Last, but certainly not least, please pray for my family, especially my mom. Yesterday at 6:00 p.m. she received a foreign call from a man in Turkey saying that I was trying to get a hold of her and she has been very worried. I had no idea that someone had called but all day today I felt like I needed to get a hold of her but the internet was down. Finally when it came up I found out what had happened. I don’t know who it was that called her and kept calling her but it really scared her and my family. I was able to talk to her and tell her that I am fine. I am slightly upset that someone would play this kind of a joke on her but it did give me an opportunity to talk to her. Whoever it was, I hold no ill-will against him. One, such as myself, who has been forgiven much can do nothing less than forgive another. So, please keep my family in your prayers and if you see my mom, please give her a big hug. She needs it.

Dance in the Rain (Song)

Tue, 29 May 2012 03:51:52 -0400

I spin around and my feet hit the ground

It’s a beautiful, magical sound

And, though the storm, there’s no end in sight

I’ll remain praising you all through the night

The people around me, stop and stare

Asking is she crazy or just out of her mind

I no longer care what they think

Their feelings come and go

Only yours remain unchanged

So I will dance, dance in the rain

Though I don’t understand all of your ways

And I am thankful, thankful for the pain

Cause you care enough to let me fall on my face

And I will dance in the rain

Dance in the rain

And the crowd grows larger still

Watching a girl dance alone in the dark

They see the drive in her tear stricken eyes

They can’t see your love burning inside my heart

Your love calls me to sing, it calls me to dance

And forget all of my crazy plans

And I can no longer hold all these feelings within

So I let go

And let you take control

And I dance, dance in the rain

Though I don’t understand all of your ways

I am thankful, thankful for the pain

Cause you care enough to let me fall on my face

And I will dance in the rain

Dance in the rain

And you are so determined not to let me become comfortable

Living this life that’s not even my own

That you would allow this world to break my heart

So I can see clearly just who you are

And you are beautiful, indescribable

So much more than I deserve

I’m a selfish child

Looking in your eyes with hurt

But you are God and I am not

Your love is healing me…

You are the reason I’m still standing…

And I dance, dance in the rain

Even though I don’t understand all of your ways

And I am thankful, thankful for the pain

Cause you care enough to let me make my own mistakes

Yes I dance, dance in the rain

Though I don’t, I don’t understand your ways

And I am thankful, thankful for this pain

Cause you care enough to turn my face

Towards you in this rain

To see you in the rain

My Weekend at the Orchard

Tue, 29 May 2012 03:41:30 -0400

On Saturday morning I headed for a weekend with my friend, Merve, at her family’s orchard on the outskirts of İzmir. I stayed there until Sunday night. When we first got there I got to experience a traditional Turkish breakfast of toast, nutella, jam, tomatoes, olives, birek, and chai tea I am not a big fan of olives but I absolutely love the rest of the items listed. I also can’t count how many cups of chai tea I had this weekend. Turkish people are addicted! After we ate, I was shown the orchard. They raise chickens, ducks, geese, turkey, and so many other types of birds. They grow olive, peach, apple, plum, and cherry trees, to name a few. Most of my time at the orchard was spent with Merve. We danced, sang, watched TV, played with the dog, talked, etc. I don’t know what it is about Turkish people but they absolutely love my singing voice. I’ve sang so much that I’ve gotten to the point where I’m no longer nervous. For those of you who really know me this is shocking. It has been such a blessing to sing my songs for some of the friends I’ve made. I’ve written songs since I was in 1st grade and nearly all of them are about God in some fashion. Having so many opportunities to sing these songs and talk about the meaning behind them is wonderful. Merve asked to learn one of my songs and we spent a good half hour learning my personal favorite, “Dance in the Rain”, which she absolutely loves. It was wonderful to tell her the story behind the song and why it means so much to me. We had many conversations about prayer, God, and Christianity and I am so thankful for this weekend. At dinner that night, I ate almost every single part of the chicken except the actual meat. I’ve had chicken liver before and it is one of my favorites, but I can’t say that I’ve had chicken lung or stomach before. After dinner, we went into the nearby village and had more chai tea and played Turkish backgammon. I won one of five games against Merve’s father. To redeem myself I challenged him to play me at checkers and proceeded to teach him how to play. He almost beat me but I won in the end. It was a very enjoyable night which ended in vanilla ice cream with berries on top. The next day I got up early and had some alone time with God because I was missing church to spend the night at the orchard. The day went about the same as the day before. Then Michelle, Steve, and the kids came to visit for dinner and take me home. At the end of the day, Merve’s father said he would love to send Merve to America for the summer one day. I told him that if he ever had the opportunity she would have a place to stay at my house. After all, we already have one person living in our basement and we had someone spend part of Christmas break with us this year. If there is one thing I can say about my parents, it is that they are the most hospitable people I have ever met. I can’t help but think about what a wonderful opportunity this would be but I have to remind myself that my imaginings are nothing compared to what God has planned. Praise God for what a beautiful weekend. I am so excited to see what this next week has in store…

A Tour of İzmir

Tue, 29 May 2012 02:04:57 -0400

On Friday, I got to spend the day with my friend, Ece, and some of her friends. She is the one who is signed up for the Intervarsity ministry program for the summer. She is still asking so many questions about the program and the people and charge and she seems so excited. So am I. I met her and her friend, Emi, inKonak and then we proceeded to walk around Kemeraltı. They showed me so many areas of the market that I had never seen before. There is a whole section where they just sell pets and animals. I got to see so many golden retriever puppies! Later, we met up with two more friends for Turkish coffee, which in my opinion, is so much better than American coffee. It has so much more flavor because it is not filtered. You just have to make sure not to drink the grounds at the bottom of the cup. After we finished, the flipped their cups over and began reading the coffee grounds. It was interesting but was so much more beautiful was the fact that I had the opportunity to explain why I don’t believe in predicting my future from the bottom of a cup of coffee. I got to explain that I already know my future based on the cross, not some coffee beans. They respected my beliefs, even though they did not agree with them. Out of all of them, Ece seemed the most interested. After we paid the bill, we went to the Asansör, which is an elevator built into the side of a mountain, so you can take it all the way to the top. It was such an incredible view and I got some beautiful pictures. By this time, Emi was about to die from starvation so we all took the steps down the mountain and went to a local cafe for some food. I ate iskender, which has got to be one of my favorite Turkish meals. Then Ece, Emi, and I all headed to the İzmir Zoo. I got to see so many animals and more importantly spend some wonderful time with Ece. After a long day I came home and crashed because the next day was going to be even busier.

My View from the Roof at the Orchard

Mon, 28 May 2012 04:18:56 -0400

My View from the Roof at the Orchard

Ece and I at the Asansor in Konak

Mon, 28 May 2012 04:17:07 -0400

Ece and I at the Asansor in Konak

"This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD. “Go down to the potter’s house,..."

Mon, 28 May 2012 04:15:53 -0400

“This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD. “Go down to the potter’s house, and there I will give you my message.” So I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him.”

- Jeremiah 18:1-4

"If Christ is an all-satisfying treasure and promises to provide all our needs, even through famine..."

Wed, 23 May 2012 10:30:00 -0400

““If Christ is an all-satisfying treasure and promises to provide all our needs, even through famine and nakedness, then to live as though we had all the same values as the world would betray him.””

- John Piper, “Don’t Waste Your Life” pg. 107

Traditional Turkish Dance

Mon, 21 May 2012 13:46:07 -0400

Traditional Turkish Dance

Saying Farewell to Jenny

Mon, 21 May 2012 13:43:39 -0400

Saying Farewell to Jenny

The Never Ending Weekend

Mon, 21 May 2012 13:40:36 -0400

This past weekend was the halfway mark for my time here in Turkey and was filled with many adventures and blessings. Most of Friday was spent catching up on Turkish homework but saturday night, all of us had dinner with a Turkish family Steve and Michelle know well. Michelle says they absolutely loved me. The grandfather, Ismael, taught me some Turkish and we also watched the Chelsea soccer game. While we were there at their apartment there was a wedding reception going on outside in the street. Michelle’s friend took me to the reception and I got to experience some traditional Turkish dance firsthand. They were amazed that I picked it up so fast. I also got to have my first cup of Turkish coffee that night and it is so amazing! Sunday, I went to church and Maillin told me that my friend, Ece, signed up for their “ministry” opportunity for the summertime. Praise God! I will be spending time with Ece, Merve, and Havva this Friday. I believe they decided they want to take me to the zoo in İzmir, the Asansör, and Kemeraltı. I also got to meet with my friend, Tulay, Sunday night for coffee and will probably be spending some time with her next week as well. The end of this week will be pretty busy. I think my time is completely booked this weekend. By the way, Saturday, Steve hurt his ankle pretty bad playing basketball with some friends. We are pretty sure it is not broken but he is having a hard time getting around and I don’t think I’ve ever seen an ankle injury that has caused the ankle the foot to swell that bad or turn color that much. If you could keep him in your prayers, that would be wonderful. Also, I found out a few minutes ago that one of my friends from back home had his father pass away yesterday. His father is a believer but the family could still use your prayers. I think of you back home every now and again and hope all is well for you. I love you.

Emily Nicole