Here is a real quicky update on Czech Republic stuff that I wrote probably a month ago, but never posted: 

1) Ahhh....big sigh of relief as I dropped my Visa application and everything that was needed with that off at the post office yesterday morning!  That sucker caused me a lot of stress and worry so I am very glad to have it sent off finally!  Now I get to wait and pray that I sent all the right documents and everything goes smoothly with that.  I'm trusting that the Lord has it under control though. 

Update 12/5/12: I still have not heard back about anything Visa related.  I did get an e-mail about registering for classes over there.  I thought that I would have to wait until I was over there to register, but I found out that I can register online now!  I take back any negative comments I have ever said about registering for classes at Truman because registering at Masaryk is 100x harder.  I'm sure I will get it figured out eventually, but I think I'm going to have to wait until after finals to tackle that one.  

2) I watched a YouTube video on learning basic Czech.  Oh boy am I in for a treat!  The only thing I remember from the video is that Ahoj (Hello) is pronounced "Ahoy!" just like a pirate.  I have a feeling I will be saying this a lot.  If you care to see the video click here to watch it! 

Update 12/5/12: I watched this same video several times and added a few more words to my vocabulary! So exciting! I now know the following: 

Na sheldanou (Goodbye) 
Co je to? (What is this?) 
Ymenuji se Megan (My name is Megan)  
Dobré ráno (Good morning)
Jak se máte? (How are you?) 

I also learned Very well and you? and please, but they have weird accent marks on them and I don't know how to put those on here.  

Czech It Out!

Ahoj! (Hello!) 

Today was the day that I have been anxiously awaiting--I found out my placement for the exchange program next semester! I will be going to the CZECH REPUBLIC!  Ahh!  I could not be happier with my placement.  The Czech Republic was one of my top choices and it had a limited chance of placement, so I feel extremely blessed that I get to go there!

Right before I found out this morning, I was reading my Bible in the book of John.  Although I've read this passage many times, part of one verse really stood out to me in a new way: 

John 15:16 (MSG)

"...I chose you, and put you in the world to bear fruit..." 

First off...what? Jesus chose me? I love this sweet reminder that the Lord chose me to be His child and His friend.  

Secondly...What an awesome command and statement of purpose for my life!  I have the privilege of serving the Lord and showing Him to others through the fruit of the Spirit working in my life.  Also...whoa...what a big responsibility. 

(refer to my previous post to see a cool connection: http://inexpressiblegloriousjoy.blogspot.com/2012/09/welcome.html)

So after I finished reading, I decide to check my e-mail real quick before doing some last minute cramming for my Physics test later this morning.  To my surprise, I received an e-mail from a foreign looking name that said that I had been accepted to Masaryk University in Brno, Czech Republic!  I was/am beyond excited!!!! Needless to say, I did not get much studying done. :) 

(Bear with me...this story will come full circle eventually)

I have been looking stuff up on the Czech Republic all day long and once again, something really stuck out to me: 

"Some say that more Czechs believe in UFOs than in God. Although tongue-in-cheek, it is not far from the truth. The Czech Republic is one of the most secular countries in the world and 60% of Czechs consider themselves atheists. Few have even heard of the Jesus Christ of scripture or, at best, consider his story an ancient, foolish fable. "

This. breaks. my. heart.  But, the first thing that came to my mind was: "...I have chose you, and put you in the world to bear fruit..." 

Before I knew what country I was going to , I prayed about this opportunity to study abroad.  I prayed that the Lord would send me where He wanted me and that I would be able to serve Him while I am studying abroad.

I see now that God wants be to be in Czech Republic for a reason.  For a big reason.  

Obviously I don't think that I will be able to win the whole country of Czech Republic over for Christ.  That would be the coolest thing ever, but that is probably not realistic and probably not what the Lord is calling me to do.  God is simply calling me to bear fruit.  

My prayer is that God will begin to work in the hearts of the Czech people that I will come into contact with.  I pray that the Lord will use me and that they will be able to see the fruit, the evidence, of Christ's love in my life.  I pray for opportunities to share my faith with the people of Czech Republic.  I also pray that I do not waste this awesome opportunity that God has given me to show His love to a lost nation. 

Will you join me in praying? 

Dekuji! (Thank you!) 

Dobrou noc! (Goodnight!) 

Welcome!

Hello!  I am so glad you stopped by!

Why did I start a blog? 

Good question.  I was planning on starting this once I was 

studying abroad, but for whatever reason, I decided to start it now.  

Am I an eloquent writer?

No.  I think my writing skills have actually gone down hill since being out of high school.  Thank you high school English teachers for being awesome and challenging.  Thank you college for not making me write too many papers (yet). :)

How did I choose the name, "Inexpressible & Glorious Joy"?

The name comes from 1 Peter 1:8-9 which says:

"Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls."

If we have accepted Christ's gift of salvation and are in a personal relationship with Him, shouldn't our lives be overflowing with joy?  Shouldn't others be able to see Christ in us because of this joy?

Joy is one of the fruits of the Spirit.  In Galatians 5:22, Paul tells us all of the fruits of the Spirit.  He tells us that if we are walking with Christ, then these fruits should characterize our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).

Joy is not of higher importance than the other fruits, but it is the one that has been on my heart lately.  Having joy does not mean that we have to be happy all of the time.  It does not mean that we should not have bad days.  Joy is not easy to define.  To me, to have joy means that despite our current circumstances, we are always confident and grateful that the Lord has saved us and that we get to spend eternity with Him!

If you can't tell, I think that joy is a really cool thing.  Jesus thinks so too, which is why it is emphasized in the Bible several times.  I also love looking at different translations of the Bible and seeing the different words they use to replace joy.  Here are some of my favorites...

1 Peter 1:8 in The Message translation explains joy as "laughter and singing" 

1 Peter 1:8 in the King James Version says, "ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory"

Galatians 5:22 in The Message translation uses "exuberance about life" in place of the word joy 

In 2 Corinthians 6:10, Paul describes himself as "sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing everything." This is true JOY! 


What am I going to write about in my blog? 

I am going to share with you random parts of my life!  The reason I have joy is because of the hope I have in Jesus.  Part of having this joy, I think, is enjoying and appreciating this life that God has given me!  I made a sticky note at the beginning of this semester that says, "Make a memory every day!"  It is easy to let school and life bring me down, but this is a great reminder to me to be thankful for each day I am given (even the ones that seem bad at first glance). 

Basically, I want to share an awesome part of my day with you each day.  This could be anything from a delicious meal I ate (you would be surprised how often this can turn my day around) to winning the lottery (okay, this one hasn't happened yet, but it is always a possibility) to something cool that the Lord taught me that day (I especially love these days). 

So, here we go.  Thank you for joining me on this pursuit of living a life full of joy.  I pray that God will somehow use this to lead us closer to Him and to teach us what it is like to live a life that is overflowing with joy.