Thailand 2010

Tomorrow morning I fly out from the grand city of ATL to Seoul, South Korea. From there my fellow team-mates with the KFBC college group will make a connecting flight to Bangkok. After a mere five hour stay in a hotel, we'll catch another plane to Chaing-Mai, Thailand and finally reach our destination.
The purpose of this trip is to build relationships with the Buddhists and Muslims of the area. We're going to start small, by just hanging out and getting to know each other, and then move on to deeper topics such as religion, faith, and Christianity. During this time, we all hope to be able to share our faith with others and, God willing, see hearts turn to Christ for salvation.
I'll try to post updates on here, or my Facebook account, so keep a vigil watch for any news from me or my team. Prayers are requested and much appreciated. =)

Passion 2010

This past week I had the opportunity to attend the Passion Conference in Atlanta. I arrived with an expectancy of worship and learning and what I experienced was an awakening. Ironic that this year's theme for the conference was "Awakening". 21,000 students filled the Phillips arena and Georgia World Center and 1.2 million dollars were raised for mission funds. Louie Giglio emphasized the need to exchange our "little" for God's "big" plan and that we must surrender what we hold onto to Him. Beth Moore talked about how God as already equipped us with everything we need to fulfill God's purpose, and that God uses both good and hard times in our lives to help shape us into what He needs us to be. God spoke through Francis Chan's breakout session of Holy suffering and that when we suffer with Christ, an intimate bond is formed between us and Christ which gives us inexpressible joy and peace. John Piper also dug deep into the Word with a profound statement that, "God is a God-centered God, not a man-centered God"- everything we do or that happens is for God's glory. Yes God is jealous for our love, but when we glorify His name, we experience a feeling of being right where we are supposed to be...because we were created for praising His name.
I had the personal experience to help send a new testament written in the Chinese language to underground church members who have requested for their own personal copies. It is an amazing experience to be able to know that someone will now have a Bible that they would otherwise not have and that I have a name of the person who will receive the Bible that I can pray for daily.
Of course worshiping under gifted musicians such as Tomlin, Redman, Christy Nockels, and Hall was amazing, but the best part was being able to sing the lyrics of the new songs after learning so much about the grace, mercy, and glory of God and applying that joy to my worship. 21,000 students all journeyed to Atlanta with one purpose in mind - to worship God - and God was definitely glorified.

Check out what passion is doing for the kingdom at their website: www.268generation.com

Mission trip - Cleveland, GA

So the college group at KFBC ventured out on a mystery mission trip (as in i had no idea where we were going until we got there...and believe me i really tried to find out). We stay at Truett-McConnell college and the first day we washed shop windows for Jesus! That night we read the passage in John about Jesus washing His' disciples' feet and then Eric/Erin/and John washed our hands - not only showing that they were humbling themselves, but the process also humbled me. The next morning we picked up trash by and in a river (i was one of the lucky ones to get to jump in the river!) and then after a quick lunch, we went to a mobile home park and hosted a back to school party for the kids living there. We made snow cones, had a puppet show, and played games with the kids all afternoon.
That night we were blessed to have one of the new professors from the college speak to us about missions and that night God really convicted me that i hadn't completely given myself to Him, that my ideal life wasn't God's plan and instead was my own. Needless to say, God brought me to my knees in prayer and I adjusted my point of view. This night was the most profound i experienced all week.
The final day, we helped paint and clean up some apartments on campus. I love painting, so i had the best time serenading the others with my wide range of songs and artists. When we got home, i was so exhausted. But it was a good kind of exhausted, like i had accomplished something important.
Now my next journey is working through the book of Esther. I have a Beth Moore book to guide me, and i'm excited as i look for God's calling on my life. Soon i'll be back in Charleston and classes and Ministry Team. I know this coming semester will be a good one for sharing Christ with others.

Psalms of Ascent - into the mountains

The college girls here at KFBC have been working through Beth Moore's Psalms of Ascent study. The Psalms of Ascent are a group of 15 Pslams, starting at 120, and are attributed to the 15 stairs in the temple. At each step, the priests would sing one of the separate 15 psalms until the steps had been fully ascended (or descended symbolizing God coming down to us).

This past weekend we had a "retreat" where while we were learning about the context and treasures in pslams we also journeyed , or as the old testament would say, 'pilgrimaged', to different locations - such as a garden where we went to pray (just as Jesus did in the Garden of Gethsemane) and a very steep mountain which we hiked up that portrayed not only our memory chapter (Psalm 121-"I raise my eyes to the mountains, where does my help come from?...") but also symbolized us stepping up in our faith. The climb was hard, but the view from the top was glorious. Being able to have time with the Lord on a mountain top was pretty amazing, especially as we sought to "quiet ourselves like a child" (Pslam 131).

I never knew how amazing the book of Psalms was until i started this study. It's filled with songs of praise, suffering, and of hope. The Three Great Feasts of the Israelites were also key in the context of the Psalms of Ascent (for this is where the pslams were sung), and even in the new testament when Jesus was quoted saying "I am the Light of the world" and "I will give you living water", was said in the context of one of the Great Feasts. Knowing the context of Jesus' words opened my eyes to the depth that He spoke them with....it's so cool!

This weekend really did grow me as a Christ Follower, and i'm excited to be able to praise the Lord with more joy than i had before! I'd like to send a special thank you out to Erin who leads the study and got this group of amazing women together. Also, another thank you to the other Aaren who encouraged me up the mountain and to Jen who rode the shuttle with me back down =).

"I'm with Cobb County Police...MOVE!"

This summer i've been interning with Cobb County Police Department. Between precincts, domestic violence, and tons of case reports, i'm having so much fun. I love the fact that my "work clothes" consist of a bullet-proof vest, flashlight, and a really cute outfit. The only downside is the 40 hour work week that shifts from day shift, to evening shift, to morning shift (aka night watch). I don't mind it that much though, it's when it gets dark that we get the most action. I've decided to compile a Top 5 List of my Favorite Moments so far working with CCPD, Enjoy

Ashleigh's Top 5 Moments

5) Running a search on a man's vehicle tag and driver's license only to discover that he was an illegal immagrant with a couple of warrants (including sexual predator) and then sticking him in our car to take him to jail while listening to his cell phone ring a very obnoxious latino song, trumpets included.

4) Helping plan, and participating in a stakeout in a few parking lots monitoring cars and waiting for our perps to do something stupid so we could hawl them off to jail - while listening to Aerosmith and Green Day.

3) Running around like mad and hiding from airsoft pellets that were being fired between a detective and seargent during a slow night in the office at Domestic Violence. The shell casing hit the other intern, but i ducked just in time. Evening shift does have it's perks (soundtrack this time was the newest hit from Black Eyed Peas)

2) Participating in Officer Training and being used as a Bonnie in a Bonnie and Clyde armed robbery scenario where i was told that if i was given the chance, to use the gun i had stuck in my pants and shoot the officer cadets. Obviously, the cadets did not pay enough attention to Bonnie, and were soon welcomed with a few shots to the head and chest. (They had armor on...but i was shooting one handed!)

TOP MOMENTS SO FAR) Saving Atlanta $18,000 by stopping a burglary in progress of a loaded 18-wheeler trailer and stolen truck. We arrived just as the call went out and a full-on man hunt transpired. I was able to assist by man-ing the radio, montioring a meth-addict, assisting to process the crime scene (fingerprint powder included!), and then gloating at Marietta Diner at 3am to find out we have the perps information already and that it is only a matter of time until he gets caught.

So there you go...now keep in mind these are only my top 5...and i'm only 3 weeks into this blissful job =)

Drayton Hall Photoshoot

Charleston is home to many southern plantations. Drayton Hall is one of these. Dating back the the 1800s, Drayton Hall has the history, and beauty, that a photographer desires to capture. My hall-mate Stephanie is an excellent photographer, and asked if Michael and I would be willing to take a few pictures for her - for the sake of practice. Of course i couldn't resist. The weather today was hot, humid, and bugs were everywhere. Michael started of miserable, but i'm pretty sure after the 50th picture, he started having fun with it. I was really excited when i saw the pictures because Steph was able to capture the real "us". Yes, there are a few that we look serious in, but I would rather our personalities come through just a "little".
The majority of the pictures are on my facebook account, but for those who just want a taste of some fun pics of me and my now battalion staff officer...here ya go =)

A Simple Act of Kindness

I had a very bust morning. Test, Class, grab something quick to eat, check mailbox...I was running around absorbed in my own world when someone past me and said hello. I looked up to find one of the most amazing Christian guys on campus and when i replied to his greeting, he asked about how the ministry team was going. After i informed him that we only got one more weekend to go, he said something that struck me and has kept with me all day, "Your doing an amazing job Ashleigh". I do alot for CSU and I don't see myself as doing my job as something that i volunteer for, but rather it is something i must do because i am called to do it. For some reason i don't expected to be thanked for doing my job, and when i am, it leaves me speechless. I appreciate the moments when people have come up to me and thanked me, it encourages me to keep pressing on. It's also a reminder that a simple act of kindness can mean to world to someone - such as this instance.