Refine Me

Let me start with two honest statements:


God is good.
This stinks.



That is a pretty good way to sum up the past week! I don't mean to be depressing or overreact, but the move to Phoenix has been really challenging. It's not really the fact that I have moved TO Phoenix, because I love that I get to be with my sister, some old friends from college, and my wonderful Rusty...it's more the fact that I'm NOT in Flagstaff anymore that's the crusher. It really wouldn't have mattered WHERE I moved TO...I left THERE. So I have been adjusting to that, ( to completely UNDERstate the time I have had doing it ) and I am slowly finding my footing in Chandler.

God has been faithful and close to me in so many ways, not letting me lose sight of the big picture too much and being a constant comfort...well, a constant ANYTHING right now is pretty powerful in itself. I have been holding on to Scripture that speaks about his consistency, everlasting-ness, and enduring-ness. The song "Refine Me" by Jennifer Knapp has also been particularly excellent to me. The link for it is at the bottom of this post. Any other encouragement is MUCH appreciated.

These pictures are from a hike Britni and I did before I left Flag! It was in Oak Creek Canyon, and it was BEAUTIFUL! The leaves were just starting to change, so maybe I'll make another visit this weekend when I go visit to see if fall has made its full appearance.









This past weekend, Rusty and I traveled to Visalia, CA to attend his sister's wedding. Pictures are to come whenever I get hold of them, but it was a fabulous time. What a great escape for a few days! I got to reconnect with his immediate family, who I had only met once before, and I met the WHOLE family, who were an incredible amount of fun and very easy to spend time with. They are also a bunch of dancing fools, making the wedding a sweet time of celebration and letting loose! We returned home yesterday, and today I have the day off before I start my internship TOMORROW! AHHhhhhhhhhhhhh! Please pray for me, I am nervous.

Here are those lyrics. Go here to listen to it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXtz_3HWxHU&feature=related

Have a blessed day.

Refine Me by Jennifer Knapp:

I come into this place burning to receive your peace
I come with my own chains
From wars I've fought for my own selfish gain
You're my God and my father
I've accepted your son
But my soul feels so empty now
What have I become?

Lord come with your fires,
burn my desires refine me
Lord, my will has deceived me
please come and free me
Refine me, refine me

My heart can't see
When I only look at me
My soul can't hear
When I only think of my own fears
They are gone in a moment
You're forever the same

Why did I look away from You
How can I speak Your name?

Lord, come with Your fire,
burn my desires, refine meLord,
My will has deceived me
Please come and free me
Come rescue this child
For I long to be reconciled to you
Refine me...

All I can do
Is lift my heart and soul to You
And pray, oh I will pray...

Good "old times"

Graduation day!!! Well, sort of. Today was the final day of my FIRST internship of the school year. To remind everyone, my first PT internship, which is now COMPLETED, was in Sedona AZ at a nursing home. I LOVED it! I am actually sad to go and begin my outpatient rotations because I found that I loved that setting so much. I hope to work somewhere like that in the future. Every day is something new, and with the right sense of humor, every day is a crack up.

Here are a few favorite patient quotes:

1. me: "Ok, let's just try to move your legs a little"

patient: "You know, dear, in 10 years it won't matter that I tried to move my legs today. I'm 94 today. I'll be dead then. You see?"

2. me: "Mrs. S., I think your diaper is disconnected" (the velcro was loose)

patient: "I think my BRAIN is disconnected, should we worry about that?"

3. me: "Mr. G, do you want orange juice or strawberry juice?"

patient: "I just want some HOOCH."

4. me: "Can I get you some water?"

patient: "Get me a mint, I feel like a dog walked through my mouth and then pooped in it."

5. Monday:

me - "Mrs. R, let's go do therapy!"

patient - "What's therapy?"

me - "exercise and walking"

patient - "oh, ok sure!"

Tuesday:

me - "Mrs. R, let's go do therapy!"

patient - "What's therapy?"

me - "exercise and walking"

patient - "oh, ok sure!"

Wednesday:

you get the point

6. patient: "You people sure are angels for coming here each day and helping us old nutjobs get better and dealing with us all the time...I guess you're probably a little twisted then, too, come to think of it."

So the good times at the nursing home come to an end, but hopefully for only a short time!

In other news, God continues to show his goodness through my final weeks in Flagstaff. I have thoroughly enjoyed my last days here by spending time at my favorite Flagstaff spots and with my favorite Flagstaff people. Last week, I had coffee a few times at the local joints with some wonderful girl friends whom I ADORE fully and will miss fully. I also brought my guitar up to the lookout hill and, in an unexpected twist, played worship songs with a group of 30 U of A foreign exchange students from Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and the Dominican Republic! I love the random yet NON-randomness of God's sweet plans.

This weekend I will continue spending time with the excellent people here, and Monday I am hiking West Fork in Oak Creek Canyon with my roommate, Britni, to see the fall colors!

Wednesday I will move down to Phoenix (somber death march plays in the background). There are certainly things to look forward to there, but...well...it's PHOENIX. In the early New Year I will get to venture to Boulder, CO! I am still seeking a place to "lay my head" in Boulder, so if anyone has any leads on that, I would love the help.

I'll keep this post to that for now and hopefully get the chance to write on deeper thoughts someday soon. The time in Flag is precious, so I will savor it while I can and write about it LATER! Peace to everyone and hope to hear from y'all if you get the chance. Blessings!