Hey guys! I’m so pumped I get to do this! To whoever is reading this, I hope this finds you well. I figured I would share some things about me: I hail from New Jersey (but I don’t claim it), I am a middle child, my favorite color is light yellow, I don’t enjoy onions, I went to UNC (go heels), and I really really like ducks. Oh, and I am newly a Raleigh Fellow!
The past 3 weeks as a fellow have been abundant, energizing, soul-filling, and purposeful while also feeling new, foreign, and even overwhelming at times. We have jumped right into friendships and testimonies and classes and work — all things that make this program uniquely comprehensive. Our first week at Lake Gaston revealed our totally different, yet incredibly cohesive personalities. We are so different and yet somehow it works better than I could have imagined! Life with these people is exciting and refreshing! I feel extremely blessed to play a part in this year’s Raleigh Fellows class; the Lord’s gracious leading has brought me here, and I am expectant of what He will do.
Each month, I plan to select a song of the month that, in some way, represents or reveals something about that month. For September… “God’s Plan” by Drake. I picked this song for a few reasons, some obvious and some not so much. Surprisingly, or maybe not, I didn’t pick this song for its lyrical genius or catchy beat — I could go without the song for sure. Something I can’t seem to shake, however, is the memory attached to it.
It was late Sunday evening and a few fellows and some other youth group leaders decided to go to the top of the parking garage near church to hang out for a while after youth group. After some time, we decided to call it a night, so we all got in our cars and drove off… pretty typical. About 30 seconds after everyone left the church, we got a text from Tyra (a fellow fellow) saying “I need car help”. Within seconds, four cars came flying back into the church parking lot to make sure Tyra (and her car) were okay. Were five people needed to sort out her car issue? Probably not… but that’s just the kind of people these friends of mine are. They were willing to get home an hour and a half later on a Sunday night if it meant their friend and her car were okay. We (and when I say “we” I totally mean the boys), eventually figured out what was causing the car to malfunction, praise God. But one thing that made this fairly serious situation just a little bit lighter, was the fact that “God’s Plan” by Drake was playing at a low hum the entire time. 3 guys and 2 girls running around a church parking lot trying to fix a messed-up car to the sound of Drake’s voice. Was Tyra’s car breaking down God’s plan? Hard to say. But these people, in this place, all at this time? That I know for a fact is God’s plan.
See ya next month!
- Lilly
