How can I begin to describe the blessings God has bestowed upon me in these last few weeks? The days have been full, in so many ways. My internship reached the halfway point this past Monday, and I am excited to say that things are picking up. I have been spending a lot of time on the phone and in the car, making contacts and gaining information. The directory that i've been working at over the last several weeks is almost complete. Beyond that, things are happening in the church and around LaFayette. The church is looking to start an ESL program and hopefully partner with organizations in the area to provide quality, secure, and legitimate methods of saving for local Hispanics. They are also hoping to join Hope for Chattanooga in an effort to serve the community on a more holistic level.
The days are always interesting. Today I drove all the way to LaFayette, just to talk to the woman behind the counter of "The Real Deal" -which is a strange little general store on Main Street in LaFayette. I was hoping to speak with the Pastor of Harbor Lights, who owns the place; however, this lady was fairly helpful in telling me about what I had come for. The community dinner starts at 5:30 on Wednesday night.
On Sunday I drove out to Dalton and joined in on the party at Grace Presbyyterian Church. They have an incredible Hispanic ministry, and have given me some really solid advice. That, and they know how to throw a party. I love tortilla soup! When trying to sneak out at the end, Pastor Carlos snagged me, and made me come up to the pulpit and write my cell on it. Love him, you know?
Beginning this Sunday, I will be moderating focus groups in church small groups. The goal of these is to get a better idea of the gifts congregation members have, and their level of willingness to make use of these for the benefit of the church and of LaFayette. I've been working through these for several weeks now, and can't wait to see how they go.
In other news, having people back in town for school is fabulous. I am living in my own house (hurrah!!!) along with three good friends. We are enjoying each other very much, to say the least. God has blessed me with these girls. Other than that, I am waiting on my car to be fixed. I pass it almost every day in the little auto body shop, and wave. Well not really. But I probably should.

It has been an interesting week.
Monday
12:00 pm: working on report for Pastor Travis. battery charger dies.
3:00 pm: saved by Charity with laptop charger. hurrah!
5:00 pm: report given to Pastor Travis. go on search for mystery history box.
Tuesday
2:00 pm: heather gets lost in Georgia. again.
2:30 pm: heather gets off the phone with hard-to-trach-down pastor and pulls into parking lot. not lost. victorious.
2:40 pm: the dental van has called. hurrah! welcome to my office. HWY 75 has excellent cell phone service.
5:00 pm: heather writes paper that was due yesterday. i think.
Wednesday
9:30 am: heather goes for pleasant run in Chicamauga. in state of euphoria.
11:30 am: world is hateful, hateful place. someone has physically attacked my car and stolen my gary allen cd.
11:45 am: there is a nice old man telling me about stalkers and college students. apparently they don't mix.
12:00 pm: the state trooper is taking finger prints off my car. nice.
12:45 pm: man in corvett won't go away.
1:30 pm: i am on hold.
2:30 pm: i am on hold.
3:30 pm: hurrah. there is a fabulous tow truck man.
5:00 pm: Darla has come to my rescue. She is quite possibly the most generous and hospitable person I have ever met.
6:00 pm: heather realizes ole what's-his-face theif person has stolen darla's keys. am terrible house guest.
Thursday
8:00 am: heather starts harrassing insurance agents and glass men alike.
11:00 am: i am conquerer! insurance woman has called.
4:30 pm: i have a car! that smells like sweat! not mine! and everything is so sparkly...
6:00 pm: Heather is NOT lost in Rossville.

tomatoes and peanutbutter

Mrs. Pace, a new friend of mine, suggested I try a tomato and peanutbutter sandwich. "They've got zip," so my 87-year old neighbor claims. She has lived on our street, in the same house, for over 65 years. she moved there with her husband when they had their first child together, back in the '40s. I've seen that child, and i assure you he is not so little anymore. He mows his mother's lawn every-so-often, and I like to watch from my window. pretty much nothing happens on that street, so this is a prime source of entertainment. actually, I like to watch, because Mr. Pace likes to mow as close to the Azalea bushes as possible, and often literally gets stuck in them, his face literally hidden in its branches. I guess it's better than getting out the weed wacker?

down to the business of the business, I'm getting a thorough soaking of LaFayette. This week I spent most of my time on the phone with various individuals who have given themselves fully to the work of loving others. I called everyone from Al Anon, to Lookout Mountain Counseling, to a clothes closet operated by an elderly retired couple, which operates on a back road "by the Baptist church" in Rock Springs. I talked to one woman for over an hour, simply because she wanted to talk, and I was all about it. So it has been interesting to say the least. On the slate for tomorrow is hunting down and interviewing Don Alejandro, the manager of a Hispanic Resturant in LaFayette. Alejandro, or Alex, as his friends call him, knows pretty much everyone, especially in the Hispanic community. Highlands really wants to reach out to the Hispanic community, and we are hoping the Alejandro will give us some good pointers for how to do so.

that's all for now, but i'd love to hear from you! I'll be here for two more weeks, then home for a wedding, and back for school and continued internship time.
some prayer requests:
-Highlands. This church is an amazing, open, spirit-filled place. Pray that God would work and move here and that He would be glorified through whatever changes may take place as a result of my research.
-Lafayette. A small town like so many in Georgia, but SO unique in so many ways. Pray that God would move in this place and draw people to himself that they might know Him.
-Pastor Travis. He is going to be the first full time pastor at Highlands, starting in September. Pray that God would give him strength and wisdom in directing the church through these changes. He is incredibly gifted. Pray that God would continue to bless these gifts.
-me. in general, prayers are always good. I'm doing well and enjoying life, work, and people. I could always use a little more wisdom, however, and more God in me.