We spent a Saturday exploring a nature reserve. We saw buffalo, birds, and tons of prairie dogs.
We met this man and his wife and had great conversations with him about God. We also found a random canoe and borrowed it...
Today we ventured to Boulder to do some hiking!
The hike was absolutely beautiful, full of summer sounds. At one point it started thundering and sprinkling and it was such an amazing time to be in such beauty and in such an amazing atmosphere. I cannot explain nor capture such things.
God really reveals Himself to me in nature, I feel His presence all around me. I treasure moments where I can just sit in nature and reflect on life and be close to the beauty of this earth. So, I told my hiking group to go ahead of me and I got to sit out in the trees for three hours. I got to take my shoes off and lie among giant rocks nearly drifting to sleep with the sweet sounds of summer ringing in my ears.
One of the things I love about Denver is how there is always something cool going on... always free art and amazing live music in the streets. A big summer event here is the chalk festival. Many artists get plots of pavement in the streets and can draw whatever they like in chalk. They close the streets and tons of people flood in to view the amazing drawings. They were so elaborate that it was crazy to think they would eventually be washed away.
We got gelato and walked around the streets enjoying the atmosphere and the beauty.
Tomorrow I will be staying the night in a box out on the streets!
My church is taking a bunch of people to stay the night on the streets to raise awareness of homelessness in our community and to fundraise for organizations helping the homeless.
If you could donate anything to this cause it would be amazing-- click here. You can also see more information about "Night in a Box" here.
I love that Jesus calls us to be so radically different in order to lead His broken people to Him.
I am constantly in awe of what God is doing here in Denver. The church family I am slowly becoming a part of, at Providence Church, is so amazing that it makes me want to come and live in Denver just so I can be a part of it.
There is a time of testimony when people get up and share what God has been doing in their lives. There are times of fellowship and of sharing the Word. The pastor is so vulnerable and so passionate (not to mention CRAZY challenging) about the work and Word of God. The congregation is so friendly and inviting. One of my favorite aspects about this church is the diversity. Every Sunday we sing songs in multiple languages throughout the service. Today we sang "How He Loves Us" in Swahili, Spanish, and English. It was amazing and brought tears to my eyes. The worship and the family feel of this church is truly one that is pleasing to God... a pure picture of Heaven.
Today I felt a strong urge from the Holy Spirit to pray for healing for a woman. I knew at the beginning of this summer that I wanted it to be a summer of abiding in God and following where He leads me--however hard or uncomfortable things are. I got to pray with this woman who was suffering from multiple ailments. After, I knew I had been obedient to God and that I had begun a new journey of constantly being radical for Him and actively loving His children.
This Friday night we are joining the church in a fundraiser to raise awareness about homelessness AND we are sleeping in boxes downtown... pretty much my jam, as most of you know.
There is a time of testimony when people get up and share what God has been doing in their lives. There are times of fellowship and of sharing the Word. The pastor is so vulnerable and so passionate (not to mention CRAZY challenging) about the work and Word of God. The congregation is so friendly and inviting. One of my favorite aspects about this church is the diversity. Every Sunday we sing songs in multiple languages throughout the service. Today we sang "How He Loves Us" in Swahili, Spanish, and English. It was amazing and brought tears to my eyes. The worship and the family feel of this church is truly one that is pleasing to God... a pure picture of Heaven.
Today I felt a strong urge from the Holy Spirit to pray for healing for a woman. I knew at the beginning of this summer that I wanted it to be a summer of abiding in God and following where He leads me--however hard or uncomfortable things are. I got to pray with this woman who was suffering from multiple ailments. After, I knew I had been obedient to God and that I had begun a new journey of constantly being radical for Him and actively loving His children.
This Friday night we are joining the church in a fundraiser to raise awareness about homelessness AND we are sleeping in boxes downtown... pretty much my jam, as most of you know.
A few of us headed out on a tasty adventure the other night--we ended up at Little Man Ice Cream.
This ice cream place is basically in a GIANT old milk thingy..(?)
The line is always down the block so obviously it is a must try. I had a wonderful strawberry sorbet with a sneaky bite of my friend's SALTED OREO--life changing, worth breaking a vegan diet for.
When I came to Denver, before I had moved in and met my fellow interns, I was scared. Scared that I would not be able to find people to explore this state with me... I was even scared I would have to just sit in my room every evening after work by myself and do nothing... I was so wrong.
There are so many amazing interns here that I have become friends with over the past week. Interns that build each other up, have fun with together, challenge each other, and love each other... interns that love to explore as much as I do! SO, this weekend we took advantage of our little break from social working and went downtown!
The Denver downtown area is amazing. There are live performers everywhere and even pianos just sitting on the sidewalk asking to be played or painted. There is shopping, festivals, and live music galore. I just love the flair of this place and the creativity that is being embraced.
^^Denver Rescue Mission's downtown campus (temp shelter and feeding line)
AKA DRML (Denver Rescue Mission Lawrence Street)^^
^^My cute little roomie--I am so thankful for her!^^
^^homeless people just making art on the street--beautiful^^
^^this quirky character sketching on this random plastic tent set up for people to sketch on..?^^
^^a random sample of things you might see downtown...a rejected gallon of milk...ndb^^
