The Hard Places

It is hard to believe that it has been almost two months since my last post!  It has been a busy spring so far with test prep season in full swing (my students take their state tests in 3 weeks!), lots of traveling to Rome and Birmingham for various fun activities, and a semester full of graduate school work! It has flown by and the countdown is on until the start of summer- 20 school days left! With June and July just around the corner, I have been busy planning things to fill my free time.  I'll be celebrating weddings, visiting with friends, spending time at the beach with the family, taking a class, preparing for next year, hopefully making some extra money somehow, AND going on a 10 day mission trip to Cambodia (in between Thailand and Vietnam) with Fondren Church!

It has been two years since I went out of the country on a mission trip and I have been on the lookout for new opportunities.  Our pastor talked about the Hard Places Community (HPC) one Sunday in February and I officially signed up in late March.  I am SO excited about this trip but I am also very apprehensive about all that I will encounter.  The Hard Places Community works specifically with young girls and boys in Phnom Penh (the capital) who are being sexually exploited.  We have had several team meetings now and my heart is already aching for the children (some as young as three years old) that walk the Riverfront trying to sell books or water but are often times taken home and raped by a stranger promising a meal or $5.  Many of these girls and boys are sold to pimps by their families because they have no skills or education to make money any other way.  And with such dedication to the family in Cambodia, many children feel obligated to help support their family in whatever way possible.  There is also a great deal of oppression and fear present in all Cambodians as a result of the genocide by the Khmer Rouge in the 1970's where an estimated 1.7 million people were killed over the span of 3 years.   Since the end of the Khmer Rouge, the country has basically had to start over entirely.

As our team learns about the hard place that so many Cambodians are currently in, we also begin to realize our role and the work that is already being completed through HPC.  Our goal during the 7 days we are in the country will be to empower these children, women, and men by teaching them English, giving them a safe place to play and grow, helping them realize their worth in Christ, and providing opportunities to escape their current situations.  We will be working in HPC's boys center, the girls safe house, and in the afternoons doing Kids Club (very similar to VBS) in the park and outside the temple.  Both of these places where we will be doing Kids Club have a high concentration of children who are prostituted to foreigners and/or locals.  Through Kids Club, the boys center, and the girls safe house HPC forms relationships with these children and learns about  the people who might be exploiting them.  They can then report this to the proper authorities or try to help the child escape through the boys center, safe house, or another partnering agency.

There is so much more to learn in order to begin to understand the lives of this oppressed and often forgotten people.  I am excited about reading, watching, and hearing more in preparation for the trip but I also know the only true way to understand is to be there in the midst of it all.  Please be in prayer for me and the rest of our team (there are 12 of us total ranging from one 16 year old to a couple in their mid-50's).  Pray for discernment and strength as we will be physically and spiritually exhausted.  Pray for safety and physical health throughout the trip.  Pray for the people that we will encounter.  Pray that their hearts be opened to freedom and hope in Christ.  Pray that we will be effective bearers of light and that we will work and grow together as a team.  Pray for the full time HPC staff who live and work in the middle of all of the spiritual muck in Cambodia each and every day.  Above all else, pray that the Lord's will be carried out and that all of the glory and honor would go directly to Him.  "Apart from me you can do nothing" John 15:5

To learn more about the Hard Places Community, visit their website: http://hardplaces-community.org/
I will try to post more information about our trip as we get closer and definitely look forward to sharing with you all that the Lord did in and through us!

GO!!!!

Pretty crazy, right?? Second post this week?? What has gotten into me?!?! Well, first of all, I have figured out how to be a teacher that has a life outside of school! And with that life outside of school, I have had more time to think and reflect on some recent things so I just thought I'd share!

One of the things that I LOVE about Fondren Church is their commitment to serving.  And when I say serving, I do not just mean bringing money or food or clothing to give to another organization.  While there is nothing wrong with any of that and Fondren Church definitely does some of that, Christ calls us to SO much more! The Great Commission says to "GO and make disciples of all nations".  In order to GO you have to be active.  Since the short time I have been attending Fondren Church, I have had the opportunity to help a missions organization in Jackson clean up their facilities so the people they serve feel welcomed, pray with and talk to people on the streets of downtown Jackson, bring and serve a meal to homeless people, cheer on children at their basketball game who would otherwise have no fans to make them feel special, and participate in an event to raise money for a tutoring program just around the corner from the church.  In addition, our pastor has interviewed and spotlighted various mission organizations and opportunities ranging from adoptions in the Ukraine to human trafficking in Cambodia.  I have been so encouraged by the faithfulness of the people at Fondren Church in their desire to GO and DO whatever the Lord calls them to do.  I have seen true ACTS of faith and love.  As  Acts 20:22 says about Paul, we ought to be "compelled by the Spirit...not knowing what will happen to [us] there".

Happy Tuesday everyone!!

Adventures and Convictions

It's been a while so I wanted to update all of you on various adventures.  Since January, I have been to New Orleans twice (once on a spur of the moment trip at 8pm one Saturday night after prosat with two other crazy teachers!) and this week I made a surprise trip to Rome for Rebecca's birthday!! Basically caught everyone off guard and enjoyed a little get away myself from Hazlehurst and almost felt like I was back in college for a day.  I have stayed very busy with grad school work and as much time as it consumes, I know I will not regret it come December when I graduate with my masters!  We are only two weeks away from Spring break and my desire to be back at Berry grows even stronger as the weather warms up.  I am currently writing this sitting in our $10 rocking chair we saw for sale on someone's lawn while wearing a tshirt and my chaco's!!  Went on a nature walk in Clinton today with Angie and Jenna.  I am so blessed to have such awesome friends here that love Jesus, make the hard days of teaching much more enjoyable, and go adventuring!!  Angie and I have also been attending a new church and as much as we hated the idea back in August (and even in December) we drive twice a week to Jackson for church and small group at Fondren church.  After our first visit at the beginning of January, we decided it was well worth the gas and time to worship with more people our age, be challenged by the word that Robert brings each Sunday, and be encouraged by our small group as we talk about our lives and how we should be living to point everyone we meet to Christ.  Not only is Fondren an incredible place to worship and grow, they also have so many opportunities to serve the community both in Jackson and across the globe.  Yesterday, I got to meet and work with a handful of missionaries at We Will Go that live and serve in inner-city Jackson.  Their hearts have been broken for the brokenness of the people of Jackson and the are committed to working in whatever way the Lord leads them to help restore different communities within Jackson.  After being so encouraged and challenged by the missionaries at We Will Go, I checked out their website and the first thing I saw was a mission trip they are taking this summer to the Matamoros Children's Home in Matamoros, Mexico.  Please pray with me as I seek the Lord's guidance about participating in this trip or some other global missions opportunity this summer.  Through conversations at Fondren and one-on-one time with the Lord, I have been really convicted about my attitude towards my students and some staff members at my school.  I have found myself freaking out and being really hard on one particular student for something so small and it throws everything off in my classroom.   It is evident that the Holy Spirit is not working through me at times like this and I am really trying to work on biting my tongue and letting the love, compassion, and patience of Christ spill out instead of words that could hurt my students.  Lyrics to the song "Give Me Faith", which we sang this morning, could not be more fitting...

I may be weak, butYour Spirit's strong in me.My flesh may fail, butMy God You never will
I'll post some pictures from my adventures.  Also, huge thanks to those of you who helped sponsor my classroom!! My DonorsChoose project has been fully funded and some of the materials already shipped!!

Trip Number 1 to NOLA with Becky and Taylor over MLK Jr. Weekend!

Trip number 2 to NOLA with Jenna and Molly (a week later).

Sunday adventures in Clinton with Angie and Jenna!

Housemate craziness...so glad it held us!!

Love these two girls so much!

Jenna and I...before the ants attacked us!

I couldn't post an update without mentioning our newest addition, Jackson!!

If you are interested in the inner-city Jackson ministry, check out We Will Go's website.  They do incredible work and are so obedient to whatever God tells them to do!

Love you all! Micah 6:8

New Year Update

Happy New Year! It is hard to believe it is already January and that I survived my first semester as a teacher (and at one of the most difficult schools too!).  I absolutely loved being at home for Christmas and it was a very relaxing break filled with lots of fun family time and catching up with friends as well. Two weeks was just enough time to get some work done (not too much) and feel like I could start fresh with my kids after the break.  And that is just what we did.  It is absolutely amazing what a few new systems (like my awesome new pencil management I am very proud of implementing-thank you free TeachersPayTeachers downloads...and a new book checkout system-thank you Pinterest!) can do to help and change a classroom.  Going back last week kind of felt like we were starting over again in August except that I already knew my students and there are only 5 months instead of 10!!  We also had several school wide changes in scheduling that have really helped my students stay focused.  I am really excited about having an assistant teacher for our 2 hour reading block each afternoon (shout out to the 2nd grade teachers for letting 3rd grade borrow your AT's!!) to do some intervention and fluency practice with my students.  It has really helped having smaller center groups to manage now that there is another teacher in the room during that time.  I am really looking forward to the rest of this year and hoping that I can help get these kids where they need to be.

In addition to the first week back at school, I also started my second semester of grad school.  Last semester was quite interesting as I had professors with very different styles.  It is all online and it definitely took me a while to get used to the online learning system Delta State uses.  (Suggestion to any first year teachers: WAIT to start grad school until your second semester!!!) My classes this semester seem to be pretty work heavy but at least I already know how to maneuver the system and have a better handle on my classroom than I did in August.  Because I received 9 course credits for my summer TFA institute at Delta State last summer, I should finish with my Master's of Elementary Education in December of this year!!

In other exciting new, Angie and I successfully hosted our second party at our house this past weekend for our TFA friends in Hazlehurst.  Since most of us were in our respected states for New Year's, we decided to throw our own New Year's Eve party a few weeks late.  We had a blast "shining bright like a diamond" and counting down to midnight (we actually only counted down to 11 because teachers don't last til midnight on a Friday night)!  We also visited a new church in Fondren (a section of Jackson) and really loved the more contemporary worship and challenging message the pastor brought. We love FBC Hazlehurst but there just isn't anyone really our age.  I'll keep you posted!!

If you haven't already, please check out my DonorsChoose website (http://www.donorschoose.org/alyssa.nobles) and consider making a donation.  I am trying to get some new books and a listening center for my classroom.  If you want to know more about DonorsChoose, you can check it out here!

I hope everyone has had a wonderful Monday and has not had any intruder lockdowns or bomb threats like our school did!!  As they say..."Welcome to Hazlehurst!"

Help my students!

This school year, I want to make sure my students have the books they need to succeed. So I've created a classroom project request on a 501(c)3 charity website called DonorsChoose.org.
  
I'm writing to ask for any donations possible for my students - no matter the size, it will help my kids. This week only, any donation you make to my project will be doubled! If you know anyone who is passionate about education, please pass this along. Your tax-deductible donation will have a direct impact on at least 30 students (and many more in the future), and you'll hear back from our class about your impact on our learning!

To learn more or donate:

1.     Visit my Teacher Page, www.donorschoose.org/alyssa.nobles
2.     Choose one of my projects, enter the amount of your donation, and click "Give"
3.     During check-out, enter the word INSPIRE where it says "Match or gift code", and your donation will be matched dollar for dollar.

The INSPIRE match code will double your donation for the next 7 days.

Please feel free to send me any questions you may have, and know that my students and I greatly appreciate your support.

Peace

This morning at church, our pastor spoke about the peace that Jesus provides.  The peace of knowing Him as our Lord and Savior and then a second peace that he gives us in all situations through knowing Him.  I am so grateful for peace and it is one thing I constantly feel.  Even on the days when I feel like I don't have the strength to get up and go another day.  And those days when my patience runs out and love is not obvious in my actions or words.  There are other days when preparing lesson plans feels hopeless because it never goes the way I want it or they just don't get it.  But amidst all these other feelings, I have peace.  And not just a peace that everything is going to be okay but that everything is already okay because it is all HIS hands.  He gives me peace about my decision to move to Mississippi.  He gives me peace about my finances.  He gives me peace about what the next year and a half will hold.  He gives me peace about all those other bad feelings I get because He has it all under control.  I never really have been much of a worrier and I know it is because of that peace that can only come from the Lord Almighty.  With the tragedy that happened in Connecticut, we have to trust in His will while clinging to His promises and His peace.  

"And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" Philippians 4:7

This week will be filled with holiday fun as we take 9 weeks tests and prepare for the 3rd/4th grade holiday concert on Thursday.  I am especially looking forward to doing some "Holidays around the World" activities throughout the week.  I cannot wait to be home next weekend though!

Best of friends!  We went to several holiday parties this weekend to help us get in the holiday spirit before heading to our  families next week.  Me to Georgia, Jenna to Ohio, Angie to Texas, and Amber to Tennessee!

10 things I am thankful for...

1. my Heavenly Father because without Him, who would I be and what purpose would I have?  Everything comes from Him and to Him alone belongs the glory and praise!

2. family!  I realize now how much I took advantage of living at home during college.  I have never been more homesick but am SO thankful for the encouragement and support of my family.

3. Christian home...after experiencing life outside of Rome and the Berry bubble, I am even more grateful for parents who raised me in the strength and love of Christ and holding me to biblical expectations.

4. friends...church friends, Berry friends, high school friends, TFA friends...I have been SO blessed by an abundance of friends no matter what stage of life.  And what is even better is that we have been able to keep in touch and stay close even with those that I do not see on a regular basis any more.  I still spend time with my church and high school friends when I'm at home and catch up on the phone or skype with my Berry friends!

5. church...I currently attend First Baptist Hazlehurst and am constantly amazed by their love and hospitality.  I am also overwhelmed by the continual support of CBC.

6. my job...although teaching 3rd graders in rural Mississippi is the hardest thing I have ever done in my entire life, I am so grateful for a job with a salary that I can live off of.  I have met so many incredible people through it as well.

7. my third graders...all 23 of them!  I have to remind myself and my students often that the reason I teach in Hazlehurst, MS is for each and every one of them and the tiny bit of difference I hope to make in their lives.

8. opportunities...to travel, to spread the love of Christ, to enjoy other's company, to meet new people, to see beautiful wonders, to make new memories, to learn new things, to remember old times...we are all constantly blessed by a myriad of opportunities but often times miss them because we are too caught up with other less important things.

9. Berry College...not only did I meet some of my best friends and make some of my favorite memories there, I also learned A TON about teaching, friendships, leadership, and other random things that have made me into who I am today.  Experiencing it firsthand is not just a saying!

10.  the holidays...it was so wonderful to be at home this week for Thanksgiving and it was very hard to say goodbye this morning when I pulled out of the driveway.  But, with it being the holiday season, less than a month and I will be back in Rome!  Four weeks of teaching and difference making here I come! :)