We have a new YOUTH PASTOR!

Ladies and Gentlemen, after 1 year and 5 months, South County Christian Center is no longer youth shepardless!

• Praise the God of Heaven!
• Blood that never fails me!
• Jesus' Blood, Jesus' Blood!

Pastor Ryan Stoops has been announced as the NEW youth pastor of the Upper Room! I couldn't be more excited that God has chosen you, Ryan and I couldn't be more thrilled at the thought of moving forward and working with you. You have so much to teach and so much vision and I can't wait to catch it and grab a hold of what God has ignited in your spirit!

Thank you Jesus! Thank you Lord! You alone are awesome and you never cease to amaze and humble me at your grace, goodness, and faithfulness. God please continue to guide us. We need your help now with this joyful transition. God give Ryan boldness. Give Ryan fresh perseverance, fresh vision, fresh love, and fresh annointing! God, I pray that you help our team. Continue to unite us by your Spirit. Father God, I pray that both Ryan and Katy will become to us like the missing piece of the body that you envisioned for the Upper Room. Help them both to take up the role of leadership with great respect, honor, and ownership as you have given it to them with the same. Help our leadership team to accept with great privelage the oppurtunity to serve you and our new leaders. Help us to make their service a joy so that you recieve great honor and glory from this part of your bride.

I pray against conflict that would try to separate us. I pray against the authorities that would try to overwhelm us or try to inflict worry or strife. I pray against pride in our group and I pray against division. I pray against miscommunication or assumptions. I pray against confusion and against hidden agendas. I pray against anything that would try to inhibit us from moving forward towards new goals, new lessons, new ideas, and new organization within our group. I pray against the idea of personal ministries that do not uphold the vision of the house. And I pray against the resistance of change. All in the mighty and sovereign name of Jesus Christ!

Father, overwhelm us with your peace and joy that will be our guide through this new season. Help us to iron out details and make ourselves readily available to welcome our new leader in as a king settling in his throne room. Call on your servants to pray for Ryan and Katy and their beautiful children. Protect us all from the evil one and his evil schemes. Thank you again Father God and praise you for always knowing what is best and always helping us to trust in your unfailing love and mercy. Father, I adore you and I love you with everything in me and I ask all of this in your Son's sweet name, AMEN!

Follow closely . . . Definately more to come on this!

Girl Night!

Yesterday, the UPPER ROOM planned a GUY/GIRL Night. This doesn't mean that the guys and girls couple up and hang out! In fact, it means the very opposite. We all met at the church and then broke off into two separate groups. The ladies went over to Mandi Gummel's house to swim and the guys went over to the Cocos' to play paint ball. We had such a great time! When I was not a Christian, "girl time" was not always fun. It was full of back-stabbing, gossip, popularity contests, constant comparison of bodies, clothes, hair & make up, who's dating who talk, and the ever present struggle of "who's your BEST friend?" It was like stepping into a war zone every time there was a slumber party, when you were young enough to have slumber parties. Then, when you got older, like high school - it was even worse! Girls were down right EVIL! I won't even go into the horror stories of it all.

Anyway, so I was just lounging by the pool, talking with Jamie Brown (Ladies and Gentlemen - Jamie Brown! Clap, clap, clap . . . applause, applause, applause!), looking at all my little sisters in the pool, doing hand-stands, racing across the pool, making George Washington hair-dos, and giggling and laughing like 5-year-olds! I was so joyful about this season of the Upper Room. Then of course, that got me totally excited about the new youth pastor (God speed that time) and the NEXT season that God's going to bring us through and I was filled! It's just so awesome now and then it's going to just get more awesome, so I started freakin' out wanting to do the "sk, sk, sk, sk" sound and move my fingers in joyful anticipation. (SOME OF YOU WILL NOT UNDERSTAND THAT SENTENCE, AND THAT'S OK. SOME OF YOU DO, AND THAT'S FUN TOO! Either way, it's a good thing! My girls get me, right ladies?!)

Ladies, I love you! I think you're amazing and I am so glad to know you all! You bless my heart and give me encouragement to be a better example for you always. I hope that I have the opportunity to teach you all as much as you teach me everytime that I get to be with you all! I love you so much and I love the way that you love each other!

• Happy birthday to you,
• Happy birthday to you,
• Happy birthday dear Caleb,
• Happy birthday to you!

• Caleb Sebastian Dittmann turned 5 years old yesterday! 5 years old!

• "That's a whole hand!" - (quote by Travis Dittmann)
• Anyway, so I have a 5 year old son. That amazes me that I am old enough to have a son that is that old. What seems wild to me is that it doesn't seem that long ago that he was little (like just learning how to walk or putting him in the car seat kinda little) but it seems like longer than 5 years ago when I was pregnant with him. Maybe that's because God has taken me so far away from that place that I was in when I was pregnant with him. I dunno! Hmmm . . . something to think about!
• Well, my dad took us (Caleb, me, my sister, Nicole, Chad, Elise, and my dad's girlfriend, Kelly) all to Chuck E. Cheese's. Caleb kept referring to the mouse as "Chuck" and we got a kick outta that . . . why, I'm not sure because that's really the dumb mouse's name! Anyway, so dad spent way alot of money on mediocre pizza and cheap token prizes, but Caleb had a blast, so it was probably worth it in a grandparents viewpoint. I am grateful to have a dad like that and I hope that I can raise Caleb to appreciate a birthday like that. After going over to "Chuck's" we went home. Actually, dad took Kelly home and Nicole went home too, so Elise, Chad, Caleb, and I met Josiah at my house and we celebrated some more. We sang "Happy Birthday" over some homemade cake that I helped Caleb make earlier that afternoon. We sat out on the deck and enjoyed summer's finest - strawberries, bing cherries, grapes, fruit dip, chips and dip, and COFFEE all surrounded by the cool of the evening and the aroma of citronella. Chad had to be at work early today, so he called it a night and went home. (Way to be disciplined Baby!) We wore Caleb out, so he headed to bed with Papa and left the "big kids" out on the deck to sit and enjoy the starlit sky. We talked and laughed about old times and about how we all became friends. Gina even called and we all got to hear about how God is moving in amazing ways in her life and how He answered our prayers for her. It was awesome! Eventually, the coffee ran out and we were FULL on strawberries, so Josiah helped us clean up and then ventured out on the lonely road to his own home. Elise and I crept upstairs and caught a few Z's before the morning sun found his way through my bedroom window. It was a great day!
• Today is Papa's birthday and he's out "partying it up" with family and friends. It's good to be able to celebrate another year given to us by the Father!
• God, thank you for my family. Thank you for my friends and thank you that so often, there is no distinction between the two! Lord you are so amazing to me and with the coming of every year with my son, I get to see your plan continuing to unfold before my very eyes. I thank you especially for my son and for my daddy and I ask that your pour out the very spirit that was present in your own son over them both. I ask Father that you continue to mold and shape both of their lives to be more like your son and that you help them to recognize your presence in that process as well. I pray that through that both of them magnify you and give you all the glory that you are deserving of. Thank you for saving my life and saving me a seat in the royal places with you and that through saving me, you have allowed that example to touch both my son and my daddy that same way that you have touched me. I thank you and love you Jesus! There is no one like you and no one that can make me feel the way that you do and I love that about you! I humbly ask all this in your sweet son's name, AMEN!

Meet Chad . . .

Well, I didn't have to kiss a frog to find Prince Charming . . . I just had to look right in front of my face. This is my friend Chad . . .

He's my boyfriend. He's amazing . . . he's handsome . . . he's kind . . . he's passionate . . . he's dangerous . . . he's talented . . . he's encouraging . . . he's intelligent . . . he's wise . . . he's patient . . . he's brave . . . and most importantly . . . he loves the Lord with his whole heart and life! I could go on and on and on . . . I won't because I don't have to. What I mean is, that he's awesome, just plain and simple - HE'S AWESOME! I am blessed to have him as a part of my life and he's a great challenge to my spirit, I love that about him. I just wanted to give you guys a little status update. Actually we've been together for 2 months now, so sorry that I haven't been keeping you too up to date, but you know now . . . so that's good!

METAMORPHOSIS

"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will."

You have waited long enough to hear about camp . . . I apologize for that . . . I've been busy, but more on that soon . . . Anyway, CAMP WAS AMAZING! Not only was it soooo fun, but God moved in a mighty and fierce way.

This year camp was held at Lake Williamson in Carlinville, IL. For the past 2 years before, we've had camp at Taylor U. in Upland, IN. So, from the very get-go, camp was set apart to be completely different. Monday we arrived and that evening service exploded and set the tone for the rest of the week! Worship was powerful and the Spirit was free to move and got to work immediately setting inhibitions aside. Tuesday and Wednesday followed with the same rushing wind. Prayer and fellowship only dug the roots deeper as youth sought after more of the Savior.

Thursday . . . AWESOME! Thursday was my personal "break free" day. Camp was alot of work. Emails, phone calls, messages, paper work, meetings, details, etc . . . it wore me thin. Working away had me in a place were things were getting done, but not in my heart. Rest is what the heart needs, not work! Thursday I felt my God whispering, "Come away with me Daughter! Let's dance . . . let's play . . . come drink from my quiet pools. I know that you are thirsty and I want to be that rest that your soul is longing for. Put it all down and come be with me awhile." And I did . . . Sarah sang the words of my Father's heart and it was beautiful:

• You dance over me
• While I am unaware
• You sing all around
• But I never hear the sound

• Lord I’m amazed by You
• Lord I’m amazed by You
• Lord I’m amazed by You
• How You love me

• How wide
• How deep
• How great
• Is Your love for me

God was so faithful to answer our prayers above and beyond every expectation that anyone had for camp and I am so grateful. I still have girls coming up to me talking about their lives since camp. Truly it was a great example of 2Cor. 5:17 - "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!"

THANK YOU JESUS! Lord, I am so amazed by your power, by your faithfulness, by your sovereignty . . . by you. Thank you for all that I was able to witness and be a part of with YouthIMPACT and I can only be in wonder that you would have allowed me to be of any service to you through it. Thank you for allowing me to serve you, God. Please give me more oppurtunities to bless your name and to serve your people. I love you Lord and I know that you love us. Thank you for being the strength and unity for us to see you work through this transition and through the trials. Please, Father, send us a youth pastor and please help us through that time as well. Your faithfulness has me assured that you have someone incredible lined up for us and that you are divinely working for the good of those who are called according to your plan for the UR. Thank you for that trust that I have in you Father. The glory is yours and yours alone and we long to bring you more and to always bring it to you fresh and in abundance. Please accept the work of our hands as a pleasing and sweet offering unto you. You are amazing and worthy, Daddy!