Work Crew

My time at school is slowly fading with only 8 days left of Junior year and 13 days till I am serving at Malibu Club for Work Crew. So this past year with school and Young life has been amazing and now my summer will be just as amazing.

This summer I will be serving on Work Crew for 27 days along side with 40 other High School Students who want to serve for Christ. I am getting so pumped for all the wonderful people I will meet and the new bonds of friendships. It sure will be crazy to be away for so long from my home, family, friends and just the normal routines. However, it will be one time in my life to focus on my relationship with Christ and strengthen my faith. It will also help me establish myself and my identity. I have gotten several prophesies from people on how I will come home with new friendships and to be strong in my faith. It has made me realize my faults of being not loyal to Christ and to change my view on to bringing Christ into my peers life. Please be praying for the Lords strength and to bring encouragement to all of us. It is a blessing for God to have brought this crazy and amazing plan into my Summer and I can not wait one minute.

This is Malibu Club in Egmont, British Columbia in Canada.

How we get to camp :)

Beautiful.

Look at what I will be surrounded with. Too amazing to be in one of Gods paradise on Earth. Such an amazing place to have quiet times and laughs.

With Joy and Thanks,

Julia Sundstrom

P.S. Happy Mothers Day!!  

Bucket List for Senior Year.

While I am excited for summer to arrive with new friendships and late nights filled with smiles and laughs. The time of summer is coming close with less than 24 school days. It is bitter sweet because Seniors friends are leaving,Juniors taking the ACTS, AP Exams, graduation party's,and loads of school work piling up. It is filled with mix emotions with so many thoughts running through my head. It's crazy to wonder about where I will be in a year and a half. Next year, I am going to be a Senior and then going off to college. There are SO many things I still want to accomplish in my Senior career and so many decisions that need to be made for my future. All I know is to trust in our Lord and Savior and to rely on his strength.
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give 
you rest.Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am 
gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.For 

my yoke is easy and my burden is light."-Matthew 11:28-30

Senior Year Bucket List:

1. Impact my school whether it is friends, teachers or peers.
2. Make a difference in Young Life Club this year by bringing a new friend every week.
3. Go to all school dances for fun even if I don't have a date.
4. Help out under-class man.
5. Take a vow of silence for one day.
6. Camp with friends.
7. Go help out at the homless shelter with friends.
8. Be there for old and new friendships.
9. Finish strong with great grades.
10. Take a picture everyday with friends or an activity.
11. Go trick or treating with a group of friends.
12. Participate in Senior Ditch Day. ;)
13. Get my license before I turn 18.
14. Host an Ugly Christmas Sweater Party.
15. Make memories with old and new friendships.
16. Go to school assemblies.
17. Do something I have always been scared of.
18. Go out to eat with friends and tell them how much they mean to me.
19. Senior roadtrip.
20. Leave a note in a random library book.
21. Try out for All State Orchestra.
22. Talk in an accent all day.
23. Hold a motivation sign on the side of a road.
24. Go to major sports events.
25. Start See You At the Pole for every fourth Wednesday of September.
26. Write thank you letters to teachers, parents and role models.
27. Get friends together and ice block.
28. Chinese Fire Drill.
29. Make a Senior scrap book.
30. Have a dance off.
31. Get friends together and have a wheel chair race.
32. Laugh a lot.
33. Write a meaningful letter to 10 friends to read after graduation.
34. Talk to someone I have never spoken to before.
35. Get diploma and have fun at graduation.

For now I will have 35 :) Excited for the plans God has for me!

Patience and thanks,

Julia.

You Will Find Me - Andrew Ripp

Young Life had a concert to where the profits went to help kids go to camp. The guest was Andrew Ripp, he is a great artist and everyone loved him. I got the honors to go and this is my favorite song. This song is beautiful and the meaning is simple. Love this song so much that I can't stop Listening.

When your soul is weak
When you find doubt
When you can't hear me
Lay your troubles down

In your dark moments
When your hearts weak
Bring yourself broken
You will find me

Who wrote the rain
Who wrote the sun in
Who called your name
Where are you running
I'm gonna be there near or far
I'm gonna meet you where you are
Who wrote your name
Who wrote the sun in

When you come thirsty
When the wells dry
When your souls dirty
I am by your side

When your faiths broken
When you can't see
With my arms open
You will find me

Who wrote the rain
Who wrote the sun in
Who called your name
Where are you running
I'm gonna be there near or far
I'm gonna meet you where you are
Who wrote your name
Who wrote the sun in

You carried all my shame
When you called my name
I am not the same

Who wrote the rain
Who wrote the sun in
You called my name
I'm tired of running
I'm gonna be there near or far
I'm gonna meet you where you are
Who wrote your name
Who wrote the sun in

Check out Andrew Ripp his music rocks!

With joy and thanks,
Julia

Summer Plans

It is the time of year where flowers are blooming, grass is greener, the water is warmer and the sun is brighter. It is so close yet so far away. It is Summer. I just can't wait any longer to have no school, sleep in or stay up late as I want and to be surrounded with my friends. But this summer is totally new and exciting.

For the last couple months, I was struggling with what my summer would have in store for me. I had three choices: to go on a Thailand mission trip,apply for Young Life work Crew or to stay home. The one thing I knew was that my summer plans were to be surrounded with my faith. So here is the story.

There were so many pushing and pulling factors of why to go on our Youth Groups mission trip. It was pushing me to step out on faith but also the risk of money. My parents were unsure and leaning towards no. I was really confused because I wanted to go. On the other hand my YL leader asked for me to fill out the application for Work Crew, and I did. Unsure of what God wanted from me, that Wednesday night when I went to church I gave it entirely to God and fasting from the addictive Facebook.I felt so at peace because I knew he would answer, I prayed for a slam of closed doors and the opening of new ones. In a week he answered, I was getting on my parents about the Thailand application saying it was the last day to turn it it and they said "No you are not going, we do not want you to be distracted from school by raising ALL that money and times in other countries are dangerous.I respected my parents but I cried and fought about it.

After going to church and getting prayer by a good pastor and friend she heard God say I will be creating tons of friendships and serving him. That gave me so much assurance and comfort that it was Work Crew. About a week or more later I heard some of the most exciting news, it was a voice message saying I had been accepted to Work Crew and to call back. That night I could not sleep wondering about where I will be going. The next morning around 10:30 I called my YL leader and asked where I had been accepted. She was like "So how about Malibu Club?". Malibu Club? I was astonished because is one of the most applied camps and hard to get accepted to so i said "really?" and I was. After we were done talking out all the details I hung up and squealed with joy and thanks! Now, it is official that I am going because my tickets are bought and I am committed, all I have to do is finish paperwork and wait a month to go.

Let me just say how amazing Our God is!! We are so blessed to even have God who sent His son to cover our sins and to love us even since we are unworthy. I gave it to God knowing it is not I and trusting in His perfect timing, and look He has taught me SO much in this last month about relying on His plan and not mine.THANK YOU JESUS!!

So to all you waiting for Gods approval, be obedient to Him and He will show you where wants you to go. Just trust in Him because our God is SO big that He can make any plans happen. One important thing, God triumphs your plan so let him lead you to the water.


With love and thanks,
Julia

Chapter 1

To me identity is something that everyone stuggles with at one point in there life because we are trying to figure out who we are and what we believe in. My identity is something that I admire the most because it gives freedom for you to be you with no outliers or restrictions. My identity is found in my Savior, Jesus Christ. He has molded every inch of me and knows me by name. In my identity I seek friendships that are close at heart. I am identified by Young Life, servant, smiles, baking, photography,life, music, family and friends.

Ephesian 2:10"For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them."

Psalm 139:13-18 "For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.How precious to meare your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. When I awake, I am still with you."

Honestly, I am so blessed because of God and I love the journey he has for me even when I walk in the hardest or sweetest times in my life. Thank you Jesus (: