Guatemala Preparation

This post has been brewing and in my "drafts" far too long and it's time to get it out!

July 2nd I'm embarking on a short but powerful trip to Guatemala City, Guatemala. I'm going with my Arkansas-home-church, Fellowship Bible.  This is will be my first time to central America, but 3rd mission trip to a foreign country.

This trip will most certainly be life changing. 

Guatemala City, Photo: Wikipedia

A little bit of TBT info: In 2007, I took my first flight to Trinidad & Tobago for a week on a college campus sharing my faith to students with Campus Crusade.  In 2011, I spent 7 weeks at a university in southern Italy, generating momentum for Agape Italia, (a college ministry) and building gospel-centered friendships with some of the most genuine people I've ever met. 

My trip to Guatemala will be a little different.  The focus will be on the members, leaders & children of Fellowship Guatemala. It's a non-denominational church serving as a light to a city that is certainly encompassed in darkness, confusion, and thirsty for community.  Our concentration?  Discipleship.  Our agenda is to encourage and teach brothers & sisters that have a lifestyle & culture completely differently than mine. We're helping out where it's needed & spending a little life with people that are far more happy than I am, with way less than I have. We've got Vacation Bible School, lessons planned & some worship will definitely be going down.

I'm psyched.  If you've ever been on a "mission trip" you know what I mean.  You think you're going into a community to create change, "share", etc. but the funny thing is, YOU are the one that leaves different.  

With that being said, 'm equally a little nervous and I'm not sure if I'm prepared to see what I'll probably see.  Intense poverty, for instance, will be all around; the average *yearly* income is around $2K.  Mind blowing, huh?

Guatemala City, Photo: TripAdvisor

I'm sure once I get back in a few weeks from now, I'll have MUCH to blog about.  Prayer warriors tune in here:  1) keep in prayer the Guatemalan people, young and old, that I will meet and share life with for these short but sweet days. 2) Next, my health and safety are going to be crucial going to a culture and environment like Guatemala.  3)Finally, this trip has a price tag more than I can handle, and no I'm not finished yet. (This is true Sarah fashion) Please pray for my attitude for the rest of the support raising process. I've got less than $400 left to go. 


If you would like, you can send financial support to 

Fellowship Bible Church

Attn: Finance Department 

P.O. Box 7123, Little Rock, AR 72223     

Just remember to put my name in the MEMO <----- crucial="" font="">

I'll be sure to keep you updated.  Don't forget to check back for a thorough follow up come mid-July.

Thanks for reading y'all, blessed to have ya! 

Finger-licking good Friday

I'm not exactly the denomination that partakes in "Lent" but for the last several years, I always have.  People ask why? It's because I think Easter, as a Christian, is THE most significant holiday because it's really what sets us apart from the rest.

God's son was sent to earth, lived the life we live, perfectly.  Then was used as a sacrafice to save us from sin and filth we live in and create daily.  After was he brutally crucified, he escaped the TOMB. So much symbolism for God's love, mercy, etc. I's hard for me to type it all out.

This is something I believe with my whole heart, therefore Lent is something I do for remembrance of the 40 days Jesus was temped my Satan before the cross. 

2014 I did something pretty drastic.  "Paleo" diet isn't really a diet, it's a way to change how you eat.  Vegetables, protein, fruit, nuts are the things you eat, nothing else.  No soda, no dairy, no cheese, no wheat, grain, flour-- It was tough.  I can honestly say in the beginning two weeks it took a role in my mood; I was grumpy & irritable.  Black coffee is a large reason I could stick with it-- it gave me energy when I felt like I had none.

When I say, "change how you eat", the best way to explain it is changing the thought process when you sit down in front of food.  I love fried food, cheese, potatoes, the list goes on--this lent was not easy for me.  I went from "living to eat" to "eating to stay alive"-- I don't need to divulge in every meal.  I took what i eat out on my emotions, instead of simply using food for sustainability and life.

Anyway, today I can eat whatever I want.  Oreos are game on. Thanks for reading, y'all!

Identity Crisis

I've been a very busy girl with several blog ideas; but today is this... identity. It's something that is relevant for me recently and something on my heart.

Being on TV can be super cool sometimes but also very strange. People know who you are, but they don't really  know  you.

Identity is something, in my opinion, that I don't reflect on enough.  You start off with your relationships-- so I know I'm a daughter, sister, niece, cousin, friend, etc. but that doesn't really tell you much about who I am at all.

This season of life that I'm in right now would consider me a "young professional" which means work is my life. Work as a Meteorologist, on TV, in Little Rock, Arkansas.  But is that where my identity leaves me?

I've received some recent attention, in particular, for my appearance.   I am completely flattered but it brings me full circle to what I said earlier about feeling "strange."

It's in these moments I turn to prayer.  I don't always-- I'm not a saint-- but I didn't want to be in this light-- in the center of attention alone.  Just a quick conversation to give thanks for what I've been given and ask for the correct thoughts, words, and actions so that they would be honorable rather than flashy.

My gut nudged to ask for help-- so I text Whitney. I would call her a friend, but I'm going to say "doing life" because I feel like friend is a little too shallow. We met in a small group from church and we're unlearning to re learn what it looks like to be a disciple rather than a "Christian".

The timing was perfect.  She passed along this great excerpt from Phil Wickham and said she'd already been praying for me.

Here's a sum of what he had to say.  

"...I am learning that our biggest and brightest identity is one that we can’t ever lose. Voices, platforms, people, buildings, beauty, skills, relationships, life... can come and go. But our identity as a forgiven child of God, our identity as part of the redeemed bride of Christ---THIS is our capitol “I” Identity.  This is the one that we will always have. This is the One that will define us forever. May we not define our worth by the praises of men, or the breadth of our influence. God defines our worth by running to us as he did the prodigal son, and wrapping us in His arms. And in this worth, in this identity we find our calling: to love Him who first loved us in such a way that it spills out of our hearts, lips, hands, and feet. In living out this calling, we have certainty that our legacy will be a joyous and eternal one. "

Isn't she the greatest?

Exactly what I think I needed to hear,  know and learn.  My image may be the local weather lady, the girl on the news, the woman with the crazy dog at the park -- BUT my Identity is one that will never change and one that I can't lose-- a child of God & a Jesus wannabe.

Feeling the Love

I can say with this job I get emails constantly referring to the tiniest details that 97% of people wouldn't even notice.  From my grammar to my nail polish-- some people just find reasons to be negative.  This post however is on the brighter side.

Not sure what it is, but lately people have been so patient and I just want to thank you..  Moving away from home, in an unknown state, with difficult weather forecasting doesn't make this easy. But, people can be kind, and that's exactly what Arkansans have shown to me: kindness.

Consider this post as a note of appreciation for taking me into your home, letting me screw up, say things that don't make sense, and geek out about nerdy things like dew points and cold fronts.

The Lord is good for putting me in this special place.

slowly but surely

Well if jumping back into a blog after 2 years isn't cool, call me a loser.

Thinking to myself, why haven't I done this is so long? Two reasons in particular, first being my laptop from 2006 was on it's last leg and I've finally got an upgrade.  Another excuse is because I didn't have much time.  This is the Sarah of 2K14.

Funny my last post was my introduction to Little Rock-- such a young little lad.  This state, the weather, the people are molding me in a way I don't know how to explain; I'll describe it as a growth spurt. 

Your twenties are an "smh -- lol" time in your life, at least for my first half. I look back on these several years and amateur blog posts and think,  I am so different.  I have fewer friends with less drama.  Being on TV and telling a "weather story" is finally shaping up as something that makes sense and has some my nerd-swagger mixed in.  

Most of all, the Holy Spirit is un-teaching me so much that I thought I once knew about religion.  I feel like it's when a photographer takes off the flashy & long fancy lens to put on a simpler less dramatic version to take pictures.  It's been fun... and hard.... and confusing but the most over-churched word is finally settling into my heart.   grace.

Time to run.  Knox is eating drywall, again.  More to come on him later.  

Little Rock!

"Not everyone who says to Me, "Lord, Lord," will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is heaven will enter.  Many will say to Me on that day, "Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles? And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness."                      - Matthew 7: 21-23 

I know it's been forever since I shared my thoughts into the blogosphere, but really felt the need to share this!  I was recently challenged to read through the Gospels, starting from the beginning, and I have a feeling this wont be the last you'll hear about it!

Update:

Living in Little Rock, AR as a meteorologist / multimedia journalist at the CBS station. 

Missing Florida and my church family in Ohio, everyday.  

Turned 24 earlier this month... crazy I know!

Still learning to seek His Kingdom. 

Ides Of March

March is halfway over and I can't believe it!  New things lately:

One of my most treasured friends of all time is getting married!  Kelly & I have been friends since the 5th grade {and by friend I mean we started as ememy's and clearly we were the same person so we became besties}.

kelly + sarah circa 2007

Another big change includes my other half / partner in crime / bff / co-anchor moving to Rochester, NY for a job!  Although this is a huge step in her career, I'm going to miss her terribly.

Pittsburgh Ringing in 2012

Danielle Cotterman is my new co-anchor and we're having a great time getting to know one another too!

While this is a shallow post, I'll be back to share more shortly.  Have a great Sabbath! 

Life Lately {Nov-Jan}

Despite my blogosphere hiatis, I still in fact exist!

As a kid, I remember always hearing grown ups in small talk saying how fast the holidays fly by.  I guess it really wasn't small talk at all.  It felt like Halloween & New Years were about a week apart.

Things lately:
I got a new iphone! Whew! I'm pretty sure someone could run the world with this beast.  I havent even fully engaged everything the phone can do, but I'm slowly learning.  I did not hesitate to get a adorable phone cover though.

I was also able to go home for Thanksgiving..  I spent a lot of my time with family and it was wonderful :) So thankful for them.  This is a pic of my cousins daughter.  Seriously such a doll!

Before I knew it, Christmas was here!  This was our cheerful holiday set at work...

Christmas trip home, I got a little of everyone in.. 

The fam:

The Grandma:

The best friends:

To start off the new year, I made the trek east to Pittsburgh and spent it with my other half:

All in all, things have been going pretty alright.  Adjusting to the new temperatures, and had my first experience driving icy roads today, and survived.

Hitting the slopes tomorrow with a youth group from Florida -- heading out to Beckley, West Virginia! Woo!


I'll definitely have some fun posts to follow after this weekend! Cheers!

Fill-In-The-Blank-FRIDAY

1. When I was a kid I wanted to be a scientist when I grew up.

2. As an adult, my dream job would be a Meteorologist. No, really, I LOVE my job.  If I had to choose something different, it would be to own & run my monogram shop!

3. When I was younger I wanted to be just like my cousin Katie.  Living < 7 minutes away; we were basically inseparable.

4. The childhood Halloween costume that I remember most was when I was a cheerleader!! I can remember going to high school football games with my big brother and still wanting to wear my uniform!

5. My favorite childhood toy was my Barbie Jeep. I thought I ruled the world driving around in my backyard with that thing. I also had a play house which only contributed to my imagination of being a big kid.

6. I got into the biggest amount of trouble when I was a kid when I would fight with my brother. So MANY time outs. I'm pretty sure a third of my childhood I was in time out, a third was fighting with my brother, and the last third plotting my revenge on my brother. poor kid.

7. I get daily inspiration from my friends.  Distance really does make the heart grow fonder.  So blessed for  every single friendship that I have :)

TGIF Y'all!  Have a great weekend - I'm off to Pittsburgh for Halloween!!! 

Motivation

Fill-In-The-Blank-Friday

1.  Nothing says fall like the smell and taste of cinnamon.
 

2.  My favorite autumnal tradition is carving pumpkins.  But not just in general, it's right after you cut the top, and get to stick your hands inside all the guts and pull out the seeds.  Sounds raunchy but it's really my favorite part. 

3.  My favorite fall treat is candy corn.  I've already bought some, but trying to resist at all costs. I know they arn't good for my chompers, but not eating these sinful little clumps of sugar is much easier said than done.  

4.  Fall makes me think of comfort.  With combination of seeing more family, cozy sweaters, bonfires, my Northface, and warm colors- it really boils down to all things pleasant.

5.  My go-to outfit in the fall is anything with fleece.  I'd like to think I look cute with tights and boots and preppy skirts, but not always the case.  I'm a work in progress as far as fashion goes.  My favorite pair of jeans, long-sleeve shirt, and a fleece sweater is what you'll most likely find me in. 

6.  My favorite fall holiday is Thanksgiving.  The food, the parade, my family and giving thanks are all so special! It also means the next day all things Christmas are socially acceptable. 

Have a great fall weekend y'all!  

Zoo In Zanesville & Potential Roommate

If you happened to watch ANY news yesterday, you probably heard about the exotic animal outbreak in Zanesville, Ohio.  Literally the newsroom was a riot.  I was playing step-in reporter and answering phone calls from all over the place. Boston, Chicago, Canada, & New Zealand: just to name a few.  This was one of the LEAD stories worldwide!  Animals included lions, bears, mountain lions, monkeys, & wolves. The man also had nearly an eighth of all Siberian tigers in the world in his backyard, that sadly had to be killed. This is really causing a big stir with "animal lovers" and I'll admit it's a very tragic story;  but what ignoramuses aren't taking into consideration is the safety of the public.  Can you imagine this guy greeting your kids at the bus stop?

The hype was so much fun.  The stress, excitement, and urgency to get the information to the public was so exhilarating.  This may not be very accurate but I feel like this story gave me taste of what it's like doing national news- and needless to say I'm hooked.

In other animal news, I'm thinking about getting a puppy.  And when I say thinking, I've been thinking for about a year.  I'm in one place, my appartment allows pets, I have a lot of free time, & I think it would be nice to come home to something.  I've been reading articles on pet ownership, the demands,  responsibilities, and even long term planning (how puppies turn into dogs, etc.).  I think I'm going to stick with the Labrador Retriever breed, preferably black, but maybe chocolate.  Goody-goody-gumdrops I'm so excited!!! The only thing in the back of my head is taking him out for potty breaks and exercise in the snowy-wintery Ohio weather.  Anyone ever live up North, in the winter, with a dog?

Although this is a Golden Retriever, I don't think I'd be able to turn down any pups covered in powdery snow :-)

...Eventually.

Despite the wonderful temperatures and beautiful changing leaves around Zanesville, I must admit I'm terribly homesick.  Living alone is a very hard thing to do when you're a people-person.  I don't know if anyone even reads this thing, but if you are, I encourage you to be thankful for your home life. Appreciate coming home to an occupied home.  

Studio Mishaps, Jack & Seuss

So many funny things have been going down in the studio.

Wednesday during our close we did a story on a parrot that likes to ride around on a dogs back. It's our fun-light-hearted-happy-news story. Following, Ashley and I talk about the story and give our 2 cents... I proceed to mention how I was on the market for a new puppy. Big mistake. I have a lady now that keeps sending me pictures and calling the newsroom trying to get me to adopt her dog. I guess people actually DO watch our Sunrise show...

Today just moments before I go on air- something falls from the ceiling out of the corner of my eye. My heart skips a beat.
"Please Lord don't let that be a bug..."
Sure Enough, an 8 legged MONSTER tried to make it's debut on "Sunrise in Southeast Ohio".
I jumped out of my skin, and camera man Jeeves saves the day literally hundredths of a second before going live. That would've either catapulted my career by going viral on YouTube. Or ruined it.

In other news,...
I got a new job! [Part-time that is] I'm officially a server at Jack Havanas "A Wing Revolution"

It's in a somewhat sketchy, yet somewhat neat, and somewhat historic part of town but I'm really excited. It's going to be mainly on the weekends for some extra fly-home shopping money. So grateful for this opportunity to get to know the town a little better and meet new people!

Going to leave you with a little reminder from the best::

Love the Doc :-) ... Happy Thursday Y'all!

Makes Sense...

Week's End

Wow! This weekend passed in record timing, but it was a great one indeed.

Friday night included a bonfire, campsite, and coyote hunting. Yes, coyote hunting. This girly-girl bit the bullet, painted the face, wore camouflage, and was one with the locals. The moon was very bright, so that helped my fear of darkness, and I went along with people who've done it numerous times before.

Although ending the night empty-handed..(PRAISE GOD)...it was pretty fun, and before the sun set I was able to be surrounded by trees changing colors!

I can honestly say I've fallen in love with the all-too-unfamiliar season "Autumn". Sorry Mom & Dad, but looks like you won't be bringing this girl back into the bland southeast anytime soon.

Saturday was spent the only way it should be in the fall: filled with football! Despite the tragic loss in Winston Salem, the hype was fun while it lasted. Now we're the laughing stock of the top 25 polls. But what'evs, I'm over it. I must say the healing process is a lot easier when you aren't surrounded by the others wounded.

God was extra good to the Ohio Valley this past Sabbath - the sun was so bright and temperatures very comfortable. Spent the afternoon converting a Ohio State fan to a 'Nole was also pretty awesome. Granted she's 5, I'll take what I can get... it just warmed my heart having someone to do the CHOP with!

Rules for Life!

Stumbled across these great rules for life.

1. Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

2. When you lose, don’t lose the lesson.

3. Follow the three Rs:
-Respect for self
-Respect for others
-Responsibility for all your actions.

4. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful blessing.

5. Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.

6. Don’t let a little dispute injure a great friendship.

7. When you realize you’ve made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

8. Spend some time alone every day.

9. Open your arms to change, but don’t let go of your values.

10. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.

11. Live a good, honorable life. When you get older and think back, you’ll be able to enjoy it a second time.

12. A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.

13. In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don’t bring up the past.

14. Share your knowledge. It’s a way to achieve immortality.

15. Be gentle with the earth.

16. Once a year, go someplace you’ve never been before.

17. Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.

18. Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.

Purpose.

Treated myself to a lazy afternoon, and came across this statement in a sermon by David Platt:

The purpose of my life as a Christian is to advance the Gospel to the ends of the earth.

Such a great reminder to put things into perspective for a mid-week thought.

The Way I See It...

Fall + Friday = Happy Girl

1. The best thing I did all week... included officially learning to drive a tractor.


2. Black Lab puppies ...make me super happy.


3. Pets are... considered family.


4. Hope in  Christ  ...is the best thing about my life.


5. With the cooler weather I am looking forward to... an actual winter wardrobe, and leaves changing colors. 


6. Something that's on my "wish list" right now is a... iPhone - I think I'm ready to make the switch.


7. This weekend I am going to be... missing my family, and watching my 'Noles take on the Clemson Tigers.