Crete

I just got to Crete, the largest island of Greece...and yes, you guessed it...It is beautiful! Just wanted to let you know though...Internet costs a ton, so won't be writing much for the next two weeks. I'll post a bunch when I get back...

You can be praying though...

-Continue to be a light to the family and that I would be able to serve them and just let Christ shine through me
-Exhaustion..Yes, I am on an island but playing with kids all day does get tiring :)
-The nanny and I have become really close...So I hope to just continue building that relationship even more! Also, there is another au pair from America I will be hanging with, so pray for her, too!
-That I can enjoy my time here even though I am working. It can be difficult sometimes going to all these really nice ritzy places and wishing my family could have money or do these type of things...I do not want to be jealous or cynical

Ok, love you all lots!! Will post again in a couple week probably! :) xoxox

You Like Me...You really like me...

A flashback of a Sally Field's acceptance speech for an award in the 70's ran through my mind when I got an approval that the family likes me...."You like me, you really like me!" If you don't know the Greek culture...Let me give you a little tidbit. When you first meet a Greek (not in all cases), you will probably think that they do not like you and they can come across kind of standoffish, while somehow still being very very hospitable. My first time here, I thought this one Greek woman hated me and then by the end of the semester, i found out I was one of her favorite Americans. So this time around...I was not sure how I was doing with the lady that I work for. My job description had been so vague and I was hoping that I was doing enough but she had not really said anything so I was not sure and I was wanting to lean to the side that she did not like me. One night though, I was talking to Maria, the nanny, and she said she wants me to come back every summer...That was really nice of her to say! But then I told her that I was not sure if Anna, the mom, liked me. She informed me that she sees me playing and doing things with the kids and that she likes me, but I was not 100% convinced. The next morning, I was thinking to myself that I am kind of a "words of affirmation" person and that it would be so nice if Anna would just say one thing to let me know that I was doing enough or doing a good job. Well, maybe 30 min later, Anna and I are talking. She out of the blue says, that it was such a good thing to have an English teacher here this summer and that she wants me to come back every summer. Wow! Well, I would say that's a pretty good approval. She told me to think about it and let her know. Now I am not sure if I would come back again for the whole summer but it is definitely an option. So that is an answered prayer that they approve of me and that I am doing a good job!

Your Love Oh Lord

"Your love, oh Lord
Reaches to the heavens
Your faithfulness stretches to the sky
Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains
Your justice flows like the ocean's tide
I will lift my voice
To worship You, my King
I will find my strength
In the shadow of your wings"

One starry night in Mykonos, I was reminded of this song as I sat on a ledge and looked out over the mountains and the sea. Creation screams the name of our Maker (Rom 1: 19-20) and how anyone can deny He exists when they look at such beauty, I will never know!
He is faithful, righteous, and just. Those three attributes sum Him up. No matter what, He is always faithful. No matter what, He is always righteous. No matter what, He is always just. His faithfulness is so great, that it stretches to the sky. His righteousness is like a rock, or a mountain. It is firm and steady. His justice flows in like the ocean tide. There is no doubt that the tide will come in, just like his justice will come.

We worship you Lord when we look at your creation because you are majestic and worthy to be praised!

"When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,
what is man that you are mindful of him,
and the son of man that you care for him?

Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor.
You have given him dominion over the works of your hands;
you have put all things under his feet..." (Psalm 8)

Mykonos!

We had to walk to the plane!
Welcome to Mykonos!
The beach we stayed at!
Me on the beach at Kalo Livathi

View from the house!

I got to go to the island of Mykonos with the family for 5 days. We went by plane...only a 30 min ride. We stayed in a house owned by another family. The house was beautiful. It was perched on a mountain top and was your typical white house with blue and gray accents. It had an infinity pool and overlooked the sea and other mountain ranges. I had no computer access which was actually kind of nice...a lot of time to read, look at the stars, etc at night after the kids went to bed. We went with another family that has 3 girls, who were super adorable. Everyday consisted of playing at the beach for 8 hours straight...Not my ideal vacation but it was still a lot of fun! I must say I have become a sand castle master. I did get to go to town one night, which was really fun! I got to walk around and see the stores and all the night-life. If you don't know, Mykonos is infamous for being a party and gay island...But I would still totally recommend going there because it was beautiful. It was very difficult to get all 5 kids to want to learn English, probably because we were on vacation...So I am hoping I can come up with some more creative ideas to teach in Crete. By the end of Mykonos I was very exhausted, but it was overall a wonderful trip and I am so grateful to the family for taking me with them.


Here is a video! Sorry about the wind!

A Dream Come True!

A few days ago, I was pretty much the happiest woman in the world...Well, I still might be actually. I still catch myself smiling to myself and daydreaming about the day that I met....Sakis Rouvas. If you don't know who he is, it's ok! I didn't know until I came to Greece the first time. He is the biggest and most famous pop star singer in Greece...maybe like a Justin Timberlake but WAY BETTER! My Greek friends always used to laugh at me last year and would make jokes that I was his biggest fan...pretty funny since I am American. Well this time around, I had this instinct or gut feeling that I would see Sakis on my trip to Greece. I figured the chances were high since I was going to some pretty ritzy places with the family that I am working for.

Well one afternoon while sitting on a beach in Mykonos with the family, another lady comes up to us and says that Sakis is on the beach with his family. The lady I work for informs me that she knows the people he is with and we can go down there and talk to them. I totally brought my camera with me. So I think I was so excited that I actually was skipping towards him. Anyways, we met the other people he was with and met HIM! The lady I work for asked him if I could take a picture with him...I think it helped to say that I was from America...I mean really...how many fans does he really have in America?!? So we took like 3 pictures and I was the happiest camper!I am usually not the type of person to take a picture with celebrities...They are just normal people but I knew that no one would believe me and that my Greek friends would be super excited to see them. Oh yeah, and we also found out that he will be vacationing with us in Crete.....Wow, what a nice surprise! So folks....maybe more Sakis pictures to come!

A Servant in the Making

"For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them" (1 Cor. 9:19).

A thought entered into my head recently as I was complaining and grumbling about being a "servant" in my new endeavor this summer. Let me back track a bit....The family I am working for is very very wealthy. They have lots of people working for them and doing the messy work that most people don't like to do. Now at first glance this seems nice if you are on their side but I am not...I am on the "servant" side; the one that does the messy work. A strength of mine is not necessarily being "servant-like" to people, so this is very new to me. When they call my name to do something or want me at their beck and call...As a Chicagoian (insert laugh here) and someone that does not like authority....What I really want to say to their request is, "Go do it yourself," or "I don't want to do that!"

But then...

this thought entered into my mind....probably from the Lord. The idea of serving and servant started to swirl around and I decided to go to the back of my Bible and look up every verse that had to deal with those things. I was slammed hard when I read Paul's verse in 1 Corinthians. It says, "For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them." Paul became a servant to ALL. Key word there is ALL. For me that means, not just serving poor people. If you know me, you know I have a heart for the underpriveledged poor people and now here I am serving rich and privledged people. But I still need to serve them just as much as I would serve anyone else. As a Christian, I want to see all people come to Christ, not just the poor. If I smile at a poor person, I need to smile at a rich person. If I say encouraging words to a poor person, I need to say encouraging words to a rich person. If I give a poor man a sandwich to eat, I need to give the rich man the same thing. I need to serve them even when I am hungry, tired, cranky, and just don't want to. I want the family I am working for to come to Christ, so I must serve them just like I would anyone else. I need to show love, kindness, and faithfulness to them and maybe even more than I normally would. Remember Jesus even said that he came not to be served but to serve. He is a great example of the reality that our own Savior and King wanted to and still wants to serve us so that we can bask in His glory and love with Him. What a beautiful thing....

So I ask you and myself....Are you serving the way that Paul talks about? Are you giving your all to everyone around you so that they may come to Christ? Are you serving instead of being served?

Jesus, make me more like you. Give me a servant's heart, hands, feet, and words. Allow me to show your love to everyone around me....my family, friends, the poor, the rich. Allow me to serve them like you would serve them, with utmost sincerity and humility. Thank you for being my Servant and making the ultimate sacrifice. Amen.

Honey....I'm home! Well...More like my 2nd home!

Yep, you guessed it! I am back in the wonderful land of gyros, feta cheese, and white houses with blue accents. Greece, as well as the family I am staying with welcomed me with open arms! I must say, I forgot how beautiful it is here. As I came in on the plane, everyone including myself was looking out the windows at the beauty that surrounds you while flying into Greece...the bright blue water with specks of islands all around...You'll have to use your imagination a little on this one since I was not at a window seat to take a picture...ha! I am amazed again at how the Lord has blessed me once again to come here. I would not have imagined that I would be here one year later.

So what am I doing here you may ask? Or maybe you don't care...I'll tell you anyways! :) I am working as a private English tutor for a family. I teach a 4 and 6 year old. I will be reading and playing games with the kids and just surrounding them with English all day. I also get to go on vacation to some of the islands with the family, which is really cool! The family is great, very nice and very generous. The kids are sweet with your normal 4 and 6 year old issues! The house is amazing...5 floors and an elevator! I have my own room and bathroom, too.

I am excited for what the Lord will be teaching me and how he'l be using me on this trip. I have a feeling there will be some interesting lessons to be learned...

Well...that's it for now folks...will post again soon! :)