Sizzling Bowl of Dol-Sot Bibimbap

Well, first time traveling over seas alone is going well so far. Left Flagstaff at 6pm, got to LA around 7. I am definitely a fan of airports and riding on planes! I just love seeing all the different types of people and meeting people with some awesome life experiences! My trip of meeitng neat people started on the first flight to LA. The guy I sat next too worked for a company that did all the visual effects for Shrek, Star Wars and Indiana Jones!! When I arrived in LA I had about 5 hours to kill. So I ate a $10 airport salad in a little cafe, watched soccer, and talked on the phone with friends until I had to board the plane. Seeing as this is my first time traveling into Asia, I really wasnt sure what I was gettting myself into. Instead of going through a gate to get on the plane like normal, they cram as many people as they can on buses and bus you to your plane far away from your gate! It was awesome! Then you get on the plane and all of the flight attendants are all dressed up in their matching hair-dos and outfits.

The flight to Seoul Korea wasn't as bad as I had expected it to be. It was a 14 hour flight, but because it left LA at midnight, I was able to sleep most of the way! Watched a few movies, and talked with the people sitting next to me headed to the Philipines!

Getting into Korea, I started to get nervous, because I had to goto baggage claim to pick up my bags and re-check in. After figuring out where to go and exchanging American dollars for Rupiah, I went to go check in. Man you dont realize how freakishly tall you are until you go to an Asian country. I am pretty sure they were all thinking I was some giant haha, it was great :)

Once safely pass security check points, I was free to roam-for the next 9 hours. The airport here is like a mall- fancy stores everywhere you go! As I was walking around like a lost American (which I definitely was) I found this cute little booth that had a very intriging sign "free event- experience true korean tradition. The girl who worked the booth wore traditional clothes. She spoke broken English, but was so sweet. I ended up making both of the crafts, and established a nice little conversation partner. She taught me some Korean and I helped her with her English. I think she told me her name 5 times and I still couldnt say it. She said it meant Pearl, so I told her that was her new "American name " :)

My next adventure in the Korean airport was finding something to eat for lunch. I had asked Pearl where I should go, and she wrote it down in Korean on a piece of paper and I went searching. I ordered my first adventure meal of the trip....

I wasn't exactly sure what I had just ordered, but I wasn't going to be a whimp. When the buzzer went off for me to pick up my food, I came to the counter to receive my sizzling rock bowl of mystery food! To my surprise, it was all delicious! Seaweed soup (tasted like miso soup) some type of hardboiled egg, kimche, some pickled things and rice and egg...it was so cool because the bowl was so hot it was still cooking the food (ended up cooking the raw egg on top). So after my first adventure meal I survived! I also had an adventure drink- corn iced tea... not too back kind of tastes like cereal haha

I have about one more hour to go until I get on the plane to Indonesia! I can't wait to see what crazy adventures are to come!!

Preparing for Indonesia

Well, I got home from school 2 weeks ago Wednesday. Left for Colorado last Monday. Just got back late last night, and leave for Indonesia for the next 2 weeks tomorrow at 5pm. Wow, and they call this Christmas break :) Actually this break has gone pretty well so far. Colorado was gorgeous! Since my mom is an adventure seeker, we took every mountain pass we could-risking the lives of all of us and adding like 10 hrs to our trip, but after it was over, it was definitely worth it (well the times that I was actually awake in the car :))

The time in Colorado was nice, but slightly stressful. You know when you ask God for patience, instead of just handing you patience (which would be way too easy and we would never learn) He gives you situations in order for you to work on your Patience-well that was what this week was all about. This break taught me a lot about my self and how I need to love and see all people just the way the Lord sees them.

I wasn't able to get alone time like I was hoping for, but I have a 36hr long trip to Indo to look forward to- I will be all alone, lots of down time, and in countries where I can't speak their language. Yeah, I'm thinking God and I will be having a lot of time together and I can't wait!

Here is what my schedule looks like while I am in Indonesia:

- December 31st-arrive late so we are staying at a guest house in Jakarta

-January 4th- Waterfall hike with the Crowthers

-January 5th-8th- Batam trip (total God thing that we are going!!)

-January 9th- Aaron, Emma and Jennie get in on this day, not sure what we're going to do

- January 10th- Emily's birthday, not sure what we're going to do

- January 11th- Church, Sea tribe meeting, Bandung feasting

- January 12th- 13th- School starts, you can hang out with me, hang out in PE, talk to some high school students

- January 14th- speak in Middle School chapel and then head out in the afternoon to take you back to Jakarta (you might end up going back by yourself, not sure...)

So ya the trip will be quick, but I can't wait to go! I am really looking forward to seeing Molly and growing closer to her!!I am pretty nervous about traveling so far, but man the Lord is going to be with me every step of the way, so why should I be afraid? Pray for safe travel and a blessed time with my sister and the people of Indonesia!!

Christmas in Colorado- Georgetown

Merry Christmas! Well it has been an eventful few days. We headed to Georgetown yesterday to tour around the town and check into our Victorian bed and breakfast The All Aboard Inn.

When we were walking downtown, it definitely felt like Christmas wintry weather-it had to have been below freezing! Georgetown is a little historical town nestled in the mountains near Denver. Our bed and breakfast was built in 1880, so you can get the idea of the town we were staying in.

After we were done shopping, we headed to find a bite to eat at a local sandwich shop and then checked into our cozy new home. The lady that owns this house has the cutest and biggest dog ever- he's an English mastiff named Maynard . Abby and I are plotting a way to take the dog home with us, but we aren't sure the parents would be fans of that and it would be a little difficult to hide him :)

Later in the evening, we headed up to winterpark to watch the Christmas Torchlight service. It was an awesome performance of skiers and snowboarders carrying torches down the mountain, with Christmas music playing and fireworks! :) Abby and I, however, were wimps and stayed inside during the whole performance because it was so cold! After the torchlight parade, everyone headed inside the lodge for a church service. The place was packed out and the gospel was shared! Winterpark was beautiful, so we took advantage of the scenery and took some pictures.

We got back to our house and did our usual family tradition- open up all the presents :-D As the years go by, the amount of presents decreases, but the love and time together is much more appreciated. Only getting the chance to see my family 2-3 times a year, I embrace the time I have with them-even if we make each other crazy!

Today we are going to do a little bit more of adventure driving to make my mom happy (my poor dad hates heights and he is the one driving up in the mountains-guess that's what true love is :) ) We will probably eat somewhere fancy and just chill! Thank the Lord for family and friends-but most of all a Savior to redeem this sinful world!

Christmas in Colorado

Yesterday, the Evans' hit the road for Denver Colorado to spend Christmas with Grandma Judy. With any trip with the Evans family, something has to go wrong :) Well, we chose the best time to travel-right when the storms hit :) The roads were pretty icy and there was a ton of snow, but the Element did a good job in the snow with the skills of our expert snow driver (aka dad).

We were able to get to Grand Junction safe and sound for the evening. I got to see my long lost friend Tyler, so that was awesome! The only way to get to Denver from Grand Junction is driving through Vail Pass- well because of the freak snow storms, Vail Pass was closed for the evening and beginning of this morning. We prayed hard and hoped that when we reached the pass that it would be open. Thank the Lord, the weather settled down, and the pass opened.

We then started our adventure- driving through Vail Pass with the snowy icy road conditions. Chains were required for commercial vehicles, so along the road, there were semis lined up putting on chains. Although the roads were a little scary, the country was breath-taking! The usual 3 hour trip from Grand Junction to Denver soon turned into a 5 hour trip. We finally reached our destination earlier afternoon and met up with Grandma Judy.

Tomorrow we will head west to Georgetown for the next few days to spend Christmas in a victorian bed and breakfast :) Thank you Lord for getting us here safe with no troubles!!

Back in Flag (for a few days)

Well, I arrived back in Flag late Wednesday night. The two hour long trip up the mountain was slow going and it felt longer than normal. The roads were pretty sketchy because it had been snowing so much this week, that the schools had snow days every day and finals got cancelled. So I came home to a foot and a half of snow! It was beautiful!!

The past few days haven't been too eventful:

~had doctor appointment in phoenix Friday, and it was very encouraging! The MS has not progressed for the second year in a row-PRAISE THE LORD. It is so cool to see the Lord provide strength and good health these past 3 years of being diagnosed now! This should give me more confidence in the amazing thing the Lord can do-yet I am human and I can quickly forget the miracles...

~Spent the day delivering food gifts to friends Saturday then watched Twilight for the 2nd time

~Spending lots of quality time catching up with the parents and sister.

~Grandparents are driving through Sunday, so we will get the chance to spend some time with them as well as shower them with God's love!!!

~Lots to look forward to in the future-
*lots of opportunities for internships this summer-I just have to wait for doors to be opened. *Internship in the spring with Buckner International
*Trip to Indonesia
*Trip to Peru at spring break

**so my schedule is slightly crazy the next month, so I have decided to "go off the grid"...meaning spend time with my family and God! Take advantage of the cool places I get to go, people I get to be around- I am going to simplify my life and get away from the every day distractions of life (cell, facebook etc) I will keep this blog updated, but other than that, Emily is going to take some time off from the busy world! This is gonna be a test of self control, but I really want to be receptive to the Lord and what He is trying to teach me this break! I am really looking forward to quality time with the family and some awesome solitude with my Lord!

Merry Christmas ♥ Em

I'll be home for Christmas

Well, this has been the craziest, most frustrating, exciting, challenging, thrilling semester of my life... I still need some more time to reflect on all that has happened, but I can conclude that I wouldnt trade it for the world. I have learned a ton of life lessons, I have grown so much spiritually and most of all am more confident in the Lord and His faithfulness because of this semester.... I think I have finally grasped the idea of surrendering and listening to the Lord's voice. I have not mastered it in any degree, but I have learned that when my eyes are focused on Him, it's much easier to hear His voice over all the distractions of life. More about this semester once finals are done...

The thought of going home is so exciting. Living away from home has been an awesome experience so far- I have come to really appreciate my parents and everything that they have done for me and what they are doing for me now! When I dont have my clothes washed, a nice warm home-cooked on the table and love and support right there, it makes me thank the Lord for when I get the chance to have that when I go home! Man I am blessed :)

Although I will only be in Flagstaff for maybe a week total, I am taking full advantage of family time. I am most looking forward to seeing the snow covered mountains, more than 3 stars, my friends that I can pick up where we left off and most of all my family!!!

Plans for the month-long Christmas break? All I can say is the Lord is good:

*In Flag for a few days (like 3-4)

*Drive up to Colorado to spend time in the mountains with the family and grandma-guarenteed white christmas (4-5 days)

*get back to flag and a few days later I fly to Indonesia (12/29-1-15) to go visit molly!! God is so faithful to provide and I cant wait to see how the trip goes and what crazy Evans' sister adventures I'll have!!!

*get back to the states (1/15)and the next day i fly back to dallas....(1/17)

as you can see not much of a break, but this break is gonna rock! Goal for the break- take full advantage of time with my family and grow in my relationship with the Lord :)

the blog will be updated while in Indo (or at least that is the plan!)

Life With Multiple Sclerosis part 4

So God is good and that's all I have to say. For someone with a chronic disease of the nervous system that causes weakness and fatigue (affecting mostly my legs) I am so blessed-blessed with an amazing family, school and amazing friends. Also I am super blessed to still be able to play soccer at the collegiate level! My freshman year I started and played every game in the goal. I had a couple days where I thought "Lord, I don't have enough strength to play 90 minutes" but then He would step in and shut-outs would happen. After a pretty successful first year getting 4th place in NCCAA national tournament, something awesome and unexpected happened. It was a few days before I was flying home for Christmas break when my coach called me into his office. He sat me down and informed me that I had been awarded with the NSCAA All America Goalkeeper! What?! Me, a weak, unfaithful, undeserving soccer player from Flagstaff, AZ, an All-American award? Wow, again the only one I could thank and give praise to was the Lord-no where else!

I knew that I had to use this amazing honor to glorify God, and man did I have a ton of opportunities to do so. I live in a pretty liberal town back home, but when they wanted to interview me about my All-American award, I knew I was going to get to share my testimony as well! The article came out and God definitely got all the glory! (the article)http://www.azdailysun.com/articles/2007/01/29/news/sports/20070129_sports_28.txt

This year, I got the opportunity to play forward, a position that requires a lot more running than what I am used to. In a few games I wasn't sure I was going to be able to make it, but then again the Lord proved me wrong and I was able to get through the games as well as score my 1st collegiate goal- man nothing is impossible for my God!!!

The Lord continues to put people in my life that I have been able to minister to using my testimony, people who encourage me, challenge me and I couldn't be more thankful for those people! I love having the opportunity to share my story, because it is proof that the Lord is always there by our side even in the storms, that He does answer prayer, that He IS our strength when we are weak. I am very excited as well as fearful to what the future looks like for me. I know the Lord has a plan for my life and that He is going to use it to His glory!! So whether I am still walking in 20 years or in a wheelchair- no matter the case I will still praise the name of the Lord and live to bring Him glory in everything I do!!

Life With Multiple Sclerosis part 3

After I was diagnosed I knew my life never would be the same. I was going to have to make some changes in my life. One area was having to be on medicine. In order to slow the progression of the disease, the doctor put me on the newest medicine called Avonex. This meant that I had to give myself a shot in the leg once a week. The shot is intramuscular, so it is about an inch and a quarter- no fun! Even though getting a shot now twice a week, the medicine is working and my body is a responder to it. Like this past year the disease didn't even progress!

The area where things changed was my physical condition. I had to do a lot of research on what MS actually was and how it was going to affect my life. The definition of MS is a chronic, potentially debilitating disease that affects your central nervous system- it causes various symptoms such as weakness, loss of muscle coordination, vision problems, tinglyness, numbness, fatigue and potential wheelchair bound. Major temperature changes, not enough sleep, stress are just a few things that can trigger "bad days". I knew that the heat was going to be an issue now that I was headed to Texas to play soccer. I knew that going to college, I probably wasn't going to be getting the amount of sleep I needed and stress was inevitable.

However, I knew that I was supposed to be going to DBU, so the Lord was going to provide me everything I needed to get through practices, games, school and all the stress that comes with life, so I didn't have to worry.

There have been a lot of confirmations from God that DBU is where I need to be. When I was diagnosed, I was fearful in letting my coach know. After a lot of prayer, my coach emailed me back and instead of telling me that they didn't want me (which is what I was expecting) he told me that I had a teammate (becca) that had MS, and that he already knew all about it and that I had nothing to worry about. Can you say TOTAL GOD THING! What are the chances? I can only point it back to the Lord-and that would continue throughout my college years....

me and Becca -->

Life With Multiple Sclerosis part 2

So after my sophomore year, I didnt have any reoccurring symptoms- praise the Lord! I was feeling good and thought that I wouldnt ahve to worry about it again. However, my health took a major turn that would change my life forever. It was October of my senior year when I signed with the DBU women's soccer team. I was really looking forward to being done with high school and going away for college.

My high school soccer season began and things were looking good! It wasn't until Decmeber when I started feeling sick. One day we were running sprints, like normal, but this day was more difficult than normal. I wasnt able to finish the sprints and it came to the point when I literally fell over. This was so unusual that my mom took me to the doctor- we thought it could be anemia or mono. After the blood tests came back negative, the doctors figured I should get an MRI due to my previous neurological history.

Going into the MRI I wasnt nervous because it never dawned on me that there could be something wrong with me. A couple night after I got the MRI done, my parents sat me down on the couch with tears streaming down their face. They broke the devistating news to me- I felt empty and fearful. I remembered my friend's mom had MS and she was in a wheelchair-that really scared me! However, that same moment DBU's theme verse Jeremiah 29:11 came into mind "For I know the plans I have for you Emily, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future!" Although the fear of the future-whether I could still play college soccer, if I could live a normal life-God's peace totally came over me and from there He was going to do some pretty amazing things....

Life With Multiple Sclerosis part 1

It all started when I was a sophomore in high school. I was going to soccer practice like I always did, but this day was different. My skin was all tingly on my stomach, like when your foot falls asleep. The next day the tinglyness moved to my hands and feet. My mom was concerned with what was happening, so we went to the doctor to get some blood work done. When the blood tests came back, they were all normal. The tinglyness was still everywhere, so my doctor wanted me to get an MRI to see if that would answer any questions. Well, the MRI came back and it did answer our questions. The doctor found inflammation of my myelin-the layer that surrounds the axons in your spinal cord diagnosing me with Transverse myelitis. They were afraid that if I dove wrong while playing keeper that I could possibly paralyze myself, so I had to stop playing soccer. This was definitely devastating because soccer was my life, and now it was taken away. This news made me have to look to the Lord for comfort and peace. My faith definitely grew the next few months. After a lot of prayer, 3 months later I got another MRI and the inflammation was gone! It was a miracle! I was able to play soccer again! I had no idea that my life would be changed forever 2 years later...