The Lord Truly Loves Me!

I have been meaning to write for some time.  The Lord has done so much since my last post and opened many doors.  Here I will try to review month by month since my last posting.

August 2010-September 2010

Wow, this was such a time of movement and opportunity.  First, I applied for and was accepted into the Long Beach City College Clean Energy Workforce Training Program.  This program provides free training and job preparation for people in the Green Workforce.  I went to classes nightly for a total of 6 weeks and ended up taking two tests.  I passed both tests by God's grace and received the accreditations.  I knew that these could open up doors and get my resume seen.

LBCC Clean Energy Workforce Program

LEED Professional Credentials



I also had the opportunity to visit a community of Church Resource Ministries called NeiuCommunities in San Diego.  This is a small group of 20 to 30 people who live intentionally together in life and mission.  They live within walking distance, share meals, worship, and open their homes to their neighbors.  They have all decided to be missionaries of sorts through CRM, but the concept is very applicable.  This gave me a lot of vision for a community that I'd like to be a part of in the near future.

NieuCommunities

September 2010 - December 2010

The fall went by in a whirlwind!  I had a close group of friends over for my birthday and served homemade pizzas.  I spent most of the time in the kitchen while my friends hung out and played games, but I had so much fun.  I was so blessed to celebrate my birthday with friends.

In October I took the LEED Green Associate exam and passed!  This is the first step in the process of becoming a LEED Accredited Professional.  LEED Accredited Professionals can be architects, engineers, real estate agents etc and serve as consultants in getting a building LEED certified.  Many states and principalities are now requiring that new government buildings be LEED certified, so this is a great area to be in.

During my time at the Long Beach City College Workforce program, I got to know a young man who is active with the United States Green Building Council LA Chapter.  I had attended a few meetings but up to this point hadn't made any real connections in networking.  I attended Emerging Professional meetings in October and November and in December I started volunteering with a project here in Long Beach.

The project (which is still going on) is a student design competition set here in Long Beach.  We are partnering with the Long Beach Redevelopment Agency for students to design a mixed use structure out of shipping containers.  I headed up student marketing, and it was a great opportunity to reach out to people I used to work with.

Christmas


For Christmas I went to Phoenix to see my aunt and cousins, who I hadn't spent Christmas with since I was Seven.  It was so much fun to hang out and just laugh over silly things.  I am perhaps most myself around my aunt and cousins, so it was amazing to spend the weekend with them.

More to come...

It's June?

Dear Friends,

I can't believe it's been so long since I've written all of you.  So much has happened since November and every time I think of writing, I only think of how much ground I need to cover. So, I am going to give you a recap of my my life in themes.

Housing and Roommates

Last December I gave my one month notice at the house in Huntington. There were many reasons why it didn't work, but the biggest was the cost of rent.  The Lord was so good to me in December!  I spoke with a number of girls about getting a place or moving in with them.  I was content to stay in Huntington, but my heart's desire was to live in Long Beach.  I contacted a friend in Long Beach named Elaine about possibly living with her, because she was alone in a two bedroom apartment.  I really needed cheap rent, and I was beginning to feel desperate.  On the Sunday before Christmas, the girls in Huntington were not getting back with me and I felt a go ahead from God to move to Long Beach.  At church, my friend Elaine told me that our friend Erica wanted to share the bedroom with me.  I was dumbfounded!  I had never thought that may be what God had for me.

Erica's birthday party. My roommates are on my right and left.

Weeks later we made all the arrangements for Erica and I to share the bedroom and lease.  I moved in January 1st and Erica moved in February 1st.  We bought bunk beds and divided up the room like college students. It has been such a blessing to live with two godly women who desire community.  We pray for one another regularly, walk to church together, and host parties at our house.

Work and Mission

I quickly settled into my new store and by January was a member of the family.  I saw the Lord use me in amazing ways.  The barista life allows for a lot of conversations!  One of my friends Dev said to me, "Justina, you are so good. I wish I could be like you."  I gave up Facebook for Lent and was able to share my decision with Dev.  He hadn't been to church since Easter, so he was excited to go to church with me.  Dev visited my church for a number of weeks, practiced lent, and visited Rock Harbor with a friend.  It was such a blessing to share lent with him and share the gospel.  I found amazing opportunities to share the Lord with him and encourage him with his new goals.

Education and Career Planning

I had a few interviews in the last few months and the recurring theme has been further training.  In my desperation for a job I forgot about the further training I can get while waiting.  So, I have attended three free architecture training sessions.  I also looked into software training that is vital for re-entering the workforce and found a reasonable class I can take next fall.  In the process of checking networking opportunities, I came across a program at Long Beach City College that is geared for the clean energy workforce.  If I qualify for the program, I will attend courses in August and September.  Through the program, I will prep for and take the LEED Green Associate certification exam.  This is a certification used by design professionals to design and rate sustainable buildings.  The test alone costs $250.

To be continued...

"Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content"...Say What?

Recently I've been praying about moving out of my house.  Two months ago I would have told you that I live in a hostile environment that I wouldn't wish on anyone.  These days I would say that I'm learning to be content in my living situation although it's not ideal.

As many of you know, I go to church in Long Beach and I love it.  Honestly, I'd love to live in Long Beach, but I am seeing that my eyes need to be opened to God's kingdom here on earth.  A few weeks ago, my church held a leadership dinner with 30 leaders of our church.  Our lead pastor talked about the necessity that we each be disciples to people in our lives.  Last week, the store manager of my Starbucks was fired, which brought much delight to every employee of the store.  During our time without a manager, I felt not only like a team member, but a vital member of a family.  On Monday I had a conversation with one girl about relationships and with a guy about seeing My Sister's Keeper.  I am excited about the relationships that are developing with my coworkers at Starbucks.

In Philippians 4:11, Paul says that he is not speaking of being in need.  He gave up all the riches and honor that he knew as a Pharisee in exchange for the riches of Christ.  A few weeks ago, a wise friend of mine at the ripe old age of 23 proposed that God may be asking me to live on less.  Hmm...This is a tough one because it requires not that I gain more, but that I cut back.  So, I am praying about ways that I can do that.  Working at Starbucks 25 hours a week, I bring in about $1000 a month after taxes and insurance.  That is hard for anyone to live on, especially one who was accustomed to three times that.  One of the biggest areas I am praying about is rent.  Currenlty I pay $600 a month including utilities but am looking for rent of $400.  That is hard to find in Southern California and requires sharing a room. 

Last week I had a phone interview with a company that I would love to work with.  I think I will have another phone interview soon, but in the meantime I wait.  I continue to ask the Lord what He requires of me and ask Him to provide all my needs for life and godliness. 

To read or not to read. Is there a question?

Recently I've become addicted to reading. I wish I was addicted to Theology books or even engineering books, but unfortunately I am addicted to reading fiction. When I moved to Huntington Beach, I discovered the Friends of the Library at the local library. Books are dirt cheap and arranged by genre. It is a thrift store lover's dream. On my first visit, I picked up four books for $2.25. The Princess Bride (Yes the movie we all fell in love with in the 90s, "Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die"), The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, The Devil Wears Prada, Jane Eyre, and The Canterbury Tales.

Consequently, I've read a lot of books lately. Of course, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants was a little juvenile, but was still fun to read. I was surprised by how different The Devil Wears Prada is from the movie. I forgot to read the synopsis before starting Jane Eyre and boy was I in for a loop. At times I wanted to throw the book against the wall because I was so frustrated with the twists and turns in the plot. I completely forgot about the lunatic wife upstairs and was amazed by the many coincidences.

I bought My Sister's Keeper a while back to resale and ended up loving it. I usually don't like deeply emotional books, but I was instantly captivated by the writing. Each chapter is from the perspective of a differenct character and each character has their own font type. I could sympathise with Anna's independent nature, but I wondered if she'd be complete without her sister. I was surprised by the romance in the book. There's the mom and dad (Sara and Brian), the lawyer and guardian (Campbell and Julia), plus Anna and Kate discovering boys. I literally
could not put it down and read half of the book in one day. I just sold the book on half.com today, so I'm excited to share it with someone else.

Todo, we are not in Kansas anymore, or are we?

It has been almost 6 months since I lost my engineering job, but I can say that the Lord unmistakeably has his hand on my life. Though that hand leads me through sufferings, I know that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope. As for endurance, I have moved 5 times in 13 months and the task has become less daunting with every move. As for character, I've been involved and volunteered at a church plant in Long Beach since April. I didn't know if I had a lot to give, but I gave coffee, attended a life group, volunteered at a rescue mission, and helped set up/tear down. As a result the associate pastor (and my friend from life group) told me I was the 'Set up look coordinator.' I think I asked for a job, so he saw a need and assigned it to me. As for hope, well I'm still discovering that. I am reading N.T. Wright's "Surprised by Hope" and I am blown away. I am also visiting an Anglican church that our associate pastor also attends and through that I am seeing how God has woven a thread through many denominations by His Spirit.

So, what is with the title, you might ask. Yesterday I moved to Huntington Beach. I am 10 miles from Long Beach (which I love and hope to move eventually). Huntington Beach is in Orange County and I am amazed by the difference. The neighborhoods are much quieter, the houses have porches (affordable houses I suppose and with yards), and people park their cars in front of their house. That might seem normal, but in LA every neighborhood has traffic, few people live in houses, and parking is first come first park. I am renting month to month from a mom of three kids (two in college) and the house is beautiful.

Why Long Beach? God is doing a work there that I want to be a part of. My friend Seth from Kansas introduced me to his friend Sarah from Iowa (they grew up together). I first visited her small church and met her friends in February. I also attended Rock Harbor and I was sweetly reminded by one of the guys not to judge Rock Harbor by first appearances. About a year ago, a few young people from Rock Harbor started praying about planting a church in Long Beach. They spent more than 6 months gathering people from Long Beach to pray, serve, and worship. Through the soil they tilled, a church has grown that is passionate about worship, service, prayer, the working of the Holy Spirit, and the community of the saints. I am so excited to be a part of this community. My move to Huntington Beach allows me to be more involved and hang out more often. I plan to buy a bike and work towards biking to Long Beach. I am also looking into transferring to a Long Beach or Huntington Beach Starbucks. That would save me immensely on gas and work would feel more like a ministry.

Here are a few pictures from our church in Long Beach, the Garden:
http://www.thegardenlb.org/


























We spent the weekend of August 6-8 at the Long Beach Rescue Mission in which we served at
the mission, ate at the mission, and served in the community. We learned so much about homelessness through our interactions at the Mission and on the streets of Long Beach.

























The Garden met weekly in the basement of a historic church from February until September. Mid September, we started meeting at a night club in downtown Long Beach. It was a night and day change! We doubled in size overnight, but most of all, everyone is excited to be a part of the Garden. We have 5 or more life groups and we are growing more.

I got a free mug out of it

Many of you know that I was laid off two weeks ago, but for those who didn't know, I was laid off two weeks ago. It came as quite a surprise, though I feel the Holy Spirit was preparing me. In January, we had a team meeting and learned that our biggest job was put on hold. We worked on the job for another two weeks, then everyone in the office scrambled for work. I would have loved some direction from my bosses, but without it, I studied for an exam for two days. Two days seems like a small amount of time, but two days not making money for the company is huge.

I'll spare you the grueling details of how my day unfolded: February 26, 2009. I have to say that this was the best February in a few years. This year no March 1st deadlines (scholarships, FAFSA, leases etc.) creeped up on me. At 10:30am I was called into a meeting with my boss and the HR director, and the rest was history. We had no warning or rumors of a possible layoff. I didn't say goodbye to anyone because I felt embarrassed and was on the verge of tears. I simply packed up my things and left the office.

I spent the rest of that day texting friends, grieving and reading the word. Since then I've been looking for a new job and truly enjoying my time off.

What does the future hold, you may ask. I am asking God whether he wants me to stay in Los Angeles or move to secure an engineering job. As of right now, I am planning to stay in Los Angeles, though God will have to provide a job. I started attending a Vineyard church in August and I have experienced so much growth and healing through the body. I am in a class on relational healing that ends in June, so I am committed to finish the program. There are not very many engineering opportunities locally, so I am looking to admin jobs at universities. Since there are so many universities in Los Angeles, so I hope to put my admin experience to good use.

If you desire to pray for me, here are a few prayer requests.

• Faithfullness to the Lord though I can't see around the bend
• My needs would be met through the body until I secure a job: free/cheap housing
• I would obtain either part time or temporary work very soon (within a month)
• I would not be swayed by the voice of others, except as the Lord is using them
• The perfect engineering job in God's timing (I don't know if I'm ready)
  

I love this economy!

I just booked a flight from Los Angeles, CA to Kansas City, MO roundtrip for $169. Wow! Have flights ever been that cheap??

I'll see many of you April 17-19 for Dawn's wedding!