This past weekend was GREAT! Luke and I got to spend extended time with his family on Saturday for Mother's Day. The weather was perfect, so we sat outside most of the day. Doesn't get much better than that! For Mother's Day, Luke's sister, Brianne, made Deb a video slideshow of pictures of them growing up. Thought you might enjoy seeing it as well: View Video.
Sunday, for us, had a bit of a different feel because there wasn't youth group due to Mother's Day, so we spent some quality time with my family at my parent's house. Again, with more time outside in the sun! When we came home, I spent the evening planting flowers, which I'll be sure to post pictures of soon. Our front porch is full of life again!
The best part of this week is knowing that I have all of next week off of work with no plans! I can't wait to actually have the time to get stuff done around the house and spend more time outside! Ahh...summer is in the air!
May 14, 2012
Apr 24, 2012
Where has April gone?
It's hard to believe that May is just around the corner! As you can probably tell from my lack of blog posts recently, we have been pretty busy around here lately! Although things never really slow completely down for us. Plus, in March, the weather was WAY too nice to be inside blogging! We spent our time grilling outside instead!
Luke only has three regular youth groups left before the seniors graduate and we break for the summer, which is hard to believe! In addition to regular youth pastor responsibilities, Luke started grad school in January and is now 20% done (as he would say)! He just finished a class and won't start his next one until July, so he is pumped! For him, that means a break from reading and writing papers. For me, that means a break from proofing papers!
As for me, this is one of my favorite parts of the year for me at work. High school seniors are making their college decisions, which means I'm beginning to figure out who will actually be coming to Huntington University this fall. During the months of May-August, my work load is much lighter, so I'm looking forward to some time off for youth mission trips and time to get some stuff done around the house. Like Luke, I will also be starting grad school this fall, working towards my MBA at Grace College. The best part is, it's essentially FREE! Because of my job at HU, I was accepted into Grace's MBA program on a tuition exchange, which means the tuition fees are waived! I only have to pay a small fee for each class. It's been amazing to see how God has provided and blessed Luke and I financially with grad school. We'll both be done within two years! God is good!
In other exciting news, Luke's sister, Brianne, is getting married this July, and her first bridal shower is this Sunday! We are so excited for her and her fiance, Matt!! They're keeping up the Diehl tradition by getting married in the month of July. Luke's brother, Brady, married his wife, Christa, on July 25, 2009. Luke and I got married July 31, 2010. And now, Brianne and Matt will complete the cycle by getting married July 14, 2012!
Well, I think that's all the news for now! Wish I had a picture to make this post more exciting! Guess I'll have to work on that next time!
Luke only has three regular youth groups left before the seniors graduate and we break for the summer, which is hard to believe! In addition to regular youth pastor responsibilities, Luke started grad school in January and is now 20% done (as he would say)! He just finished a class and won't start his next one until July, so he is pumped! For him, that means a break from reading and writing papers. For me, that means a break from proofing papers!
As for me, this is one of my favorite parts of the year for me at work. High school seniors are making their college decisions, which means I'm beginning to figure out who will actually be coming to Huntington University this fall. During the months of May-August, my work load is much lighter, so I'm looking forward to some time off for youth mission trips and time to get some stuff done around the house. Like Luke, I will also be starting grad school this fall, working towards my MBA at Grace College. The best part is, it's essentially FREE! Because of my job at HU, I was accepted into Grace's MBA program on a tuition exchange, which means the tuition fees are waived! I only have to pay a small fee for each class. It's been amazing to see how God has provided and blessed Luke and I financially with grad school. We'll both be done within two years! God is good!
In other exciting news, Luke's sister, Brianne, is getting married this July, and her first bridal shower is this Sunday! We are so excited for her and her fiance, Matt!! They're keeping up the Diehl tradition by getting married in the month of July. Luke's brother, Brady, married his wife, Christa, on July 25, 2009. Luke and I got married July 31, 2010. And now, Brianne and Matt will complete the cycle by getting married July 14, 2012!
Well, I think that's all the news for now! Wish I had a picture to make this post more exciting! Guess I'll have to work on that next time!
Feb 29, 2012
Winter Retreat Update
Our second winter retreat with the middle schoolers was awesome! God answered our prayers because none of the 70+ students got hurt or injured, which I think is amazing! It was a great weekend! Many students either made commitments to put more effort into their daily walk with Christ or made first-time commitments. I've included some pictures below.
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| The Whole Group! |
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| My Cabin of 6th Grade Girls Can you tell they're having a good time? |
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| Some of My 6th Graders Eating Icicles on the Last Day |
Feb 24, 2012
Winter Retreat - Round 2
Well, Luke and I are off again for another weekend winter retreat at Spring Hill Camp! This time, however, we're taking middle schoolers...about 70 of them, in fact! So many signed up that we are now taking two charter buses! Even though there's no snow here at the moment, Evart, Michigan (where Spring Hill Camp is), got 5 inches of snow last night and are expecting another 2-4 inches to fall today. That's a sure sign that we are in for a fun weekend. Please pray for our safety to and from Michigan, that no one gets sick or hurt, and that lives will be changed. With the size of group we have, I think that will be a miracle if we do come back without something like that happening. Thank you for checking in and for praying for us! I will be sure to post pictures when we return.
Jan 29, 2012
Winter Retreat Pictures
Here are a couple pictures from the senior high winter retreat last weekend! The weekend turned out be pretty awesome--two students accepted Christ!! The only negative thing that happened was early on Sunday morning (the day we left for home), Luke and two other students got the stomach flu. Fortunately, they didn't got sick on the bus ride home and no one else got it after returning home!
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| The Whole Group! |
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| Me and Most of My Freshmen Small Group Girls (Kaitlyn Sheets, Nikki Aumsbaugh, Summer McEvoy, & Amy Spencer) |
Jan 19, 2012
Winter Retreat
Tomorrow afternoon, Luke and I are hitting the road on a Charter bus with 41 high school students to head to SpringHill Camp in Evart, Michigan, for a winter retreat! We are so excited, as this was one of the highlights of our ministry last year! We have quite a few students going with us this year who are not very plugged into the church, so we are expecting God to do great things in them this weekend. Please pray for our safety and that lives will be changed! I'll be sure to post pictures when we get back.
And if you're thinking we'll be tired when we get back, you are absolutely right! We'll both be off from work and in a sleep-induced coma on Monday. ....But, we get to do this all again in February with over 50 middle schoolers! That's when we'll REALLY need your prayers! :) The high school trip is a breeze!
And if you're thinking we'll be tired when we get back, you are absolutely right! We'll both be off from work and in a sleep-induced coma on Monday. ....But, we get to do this all again in February with over 50 middle schoolers! That's when we'll REALLY need your prayers! :) The high school trip is a breeze!
Jan 1, 2012
Happy New Year!
Well, I didn't quite complete my goal of posting a "Lesson Learned After College" every day until the end of 2011. To be completely honest, I ran out of lessons and got too busy doing other things! Even though I didn't post one every day, I know the important thing is that in addition to the education I received in college, I have learned a lot since then from simply living life.
Tomorrow is the last day of Luke and I's vacation time, and I must say, I am not looking forward to going back to work on Tuesday. I have thoroughly enjoyed relaxing and spending time with close friends and family. Luke and I were able to sleep in until 8am most days (two of those days, I stayed in my pajamas all day!), the house has stayed clean all week, I got to shop a lot, and I read two books this week! I highly recommend both of the books: Sticky Faith by Dr. Kara E. Powell & Dr. Chap Clark and The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas J. Stanley & William D. Danko (thanks to Aunt Marcia!). I was inspired by both of them.
As my Christmas decorations come down tomorrow and the new year begins, I'm going to make it my goal this year to take the time to be still and remember that God is faithful each and every day. "Great is Thy Faithfulness" is my all-time favorite hymn, and I think it's a great reminder as life moves forward that God is always faithful. He's always provided everything (and more) than I have needed.
Tomorrow is the last day of Luke and I's vacation time, and I must say, I am not looking forward to going back to work on Tuesday. I have thoroughly enjoyed relaxing and spending time with close friends and family. Luke and I were able to sleep in until 8am most days (two of those days, I stayed in my pajamas all day!), the house has stayed clean all week, I got to shop a lot, and I read two books this week! I highly recommend both of the books: Sticky Faith by Dr. Kara E. Powell & Dr. Chap Clark and The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas J. Stanley & William D. Danko (thanks to Aunt Marcia!). I was inspired by both of them.
As my Christmas decorations come down tomorrow and the new year begins, I'm going to make it my goal this year to take the time to be still and remember that God is faithful each and every day. "Great is Thy Faithfulness" is my all-time favorite hymn, and I think it's a great reminder as life moves forward that God is always faithful. He's always provided everything (and more) than I have needed.
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