The Journey 2011

It's hard to capture the right words for the week I experienced up in Michigan at The Journey. Much of what happened in my heart there feels sacred and I just want to keep it for me and those closest to me.

However, I wanted to share a few highlights here. As I look at each photo that I've selected to share here, my heart is feeling an outpouring of emotion as there could be many paragraphs written about each one.

There were unexpected familiar faces - a special couple who is dear to my heart. A friendship has been renewed to me and I am in awe of God's way of weaving people in and out, and back in to our lives.
An unexpected brother-sister relationship formed between myself and a man in my group.
Valerie. What a joy to know and be known by this woman.
"Mufasa." Though his real name is Ted.
The "cool" girls. A forever friend made. She is one of the most amazing women I have ever encountered.
Roommates. And friends. I'm glad we live in the same city!
On Friday night I shared this snippet of a testimony of what the week had been like for me...."A few years ago I sat at a table across from a woman with tears streaming down her face, begging me to fight for my life. And this afternoon my group gave me words like 'warrior princess' and 'dragon slayer!'" This is that woman. And this time her tears for me were a different kind.
Words. An abundance of words that felt almost too glorious to receive.
The dancing. Oh there was dancing! I have told some that I danced for three hours on the carcass of the dragon that I slayed. (o:
And a new part of "The Journey" begins.
My heart is full, stirred, awakened, disrupted, grieved, overjoyed, broken, full of longing, and beaming and bursting open with HOPE.