true life: I'm addicted to owning things and approval

Okay, I'm totally not one of those missionaries who goes to another country and then returns to America only to rant and rave about all the wrong ways that Americans live.

However, since being back in America, I've noticed some very deep sin in my life that results from 1. adam and eve eating that dang fruit and 2. being born and bred in America.

I miss the way that things don't matter in Fiji. For example, it doesn't matter what you wear. The kind of car you drive doesn't matter (because hardly anyone has a car anyway), and the kind of job you have is totally negligible. I think, after living in Fiji for a year, I supernaturally began to adopt this mentality.

I discovered that because, now, after living back in America for two months, I find desires that creep into my heart that seem completely quenchable but in reality are totally, absolutely, exclusively insatiable. Desires that mask themselves as needs. For example, I think I need a new car. Apparently post-graduation is the time to buy a new car, because all my friends have new cars. I can't really talk on the phone when I'm driving because my car is so loud that it's hard to hear the person on the other end. I think that's really funny. But let's be honest: I have a car that gets me to places (well, mostly). I think for now I'll keep my ford focus.

I just started working at a coffee shop. When people ask me about my job situation, I tell them that I work at a coffee shop right now, but that it's a temporary thing until I can find a real job. Because I am a college graduate with a bachelor's degree. And it is ludicrous to think that I would work at a coffee shop making minimum wage. And I care about what people think about me.

Well, maybe I will work at a coffee shop forever. I don't know.
p.s. I'm also living with my parents.

I miss being in Fiji where it doesn't matter. Here's something that made my mind spin: Fijian girls don't struggle with body image issues. Okay, that's a huge generalization and not true for every single girl. But it's not an issue there. Weird, huh? There aren't socioeconomic strata that guide friend groups. Super weird. I miss not caring about my car, job, weight, bank account balance, relationship status. Because in light of eternity and the purpose of my life, they just don't matter. And I wish I could remember this more often.

Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had expended in doing it, and behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun.

fiji meets america

Adonia and Nina have been working on their visas, raising support, and searching for warm clothes for months now. On December 20, Adonia flew into Columbus and spent some time at with me before heading down to Cincinnati for a couple days and then to Indianapolis Christmas Conferece.


I introduced her to Chick-Fil-A.

And buckeyes!







one time I found Adonia with earmuffs on in my bedroom... I think the cold was getting to her.







I couldn't decide my favorite Christmas gift: a visit with adonia all the way from Fiji... or the rugby ball she brought me!








"get a picture with me and the highway."

"umm, okay adonia."







INDYCC - a five-day Cru conference with students from schools all over Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan. The theme of the conference was God is Greater Than. I was so excited for Adonia and Nina to get to attend a conference where I learned so much throughout college!





and that's where I met up with the one and only NINA TAMANI!

She got me totally lost one night, wandering around downtown indianapolis looking for where I parked my car.









the gang: adonia, nina, tuma, and Tuma's american host, brian!







Adonia, Nina, and Tuma are currently checking out Cali for a bit, before heading back to Fiji on January 11. I'm really excited to hear about the impact they have at USP this year and how god uses what they learned at the conference and during their time in America.

a week in the life of an american

I've been in America now for a little over a week. I can't believe it. Leaving Fiji was pretty hard. Actually, it was really hard. Saying goodbye to people who you've grown to love dearly and to a culture that you've come to adopt as your own is no easy task. But after days of travel, I was looking forward to sleeping in my own bed in ohio.

Being home has been so good. Since flying into Columbus, I've been amazed at how much stuff is here. So many buildings. So many lights. Walking around in Honolulu during our layover was a snap back into american reality, with so many stores and so much stuff everywhere. Expensive, shiny things. Mostly unnecessary things. But we did get some last minute sunbathing on the beach in during our 12-hour layover in Hawaii.


After 50 hours of busses, planes, and cars, we were exhausted. Rob was really tired. He took a nap in the airport when we found out that our flight from Newark to Indianapolis was delayed.





I've loved getting to actually watch my fantasy football players play. I don't even shower every day because I don't sweat continuously. The adjustment from having 2 stations on the television to 700 can be overwhelming. Americans are way meaner than Fijians. I went to walmart the other day and forgot my wallet at home. I thought it was funny but the checkout lady was not amused. :( On a brighter note, Both of my sisters are finally home from university (all three eberle girls in one house makes for a loud, loud norwalk)!

When I got home, I was greeted the next day by some colorful daises from the one and only jenn king :) She also sent cookies, but they were gone before I could get any pictures.






I also got to meet my niece, kieran renee! She is so so so cute, with bright red hair and big blue eyes. She doesn't like me much yet, but I'm pretty sure the more she gets to know how cool I am, the more she'll actually let me hold her without screaming. I taught her how to cook for thanksgiving.




yesterday I went to a bookstore and drank a caramel apple latte (I get to celebrate autumn after all!). And I read some books. I found a book called Cold Tangerines. Any book that makes me cry in the first two of three chapters is a keeper. So I came home and bought it on half.com for 3 bucks, NBD. I also set out to discover what donald miller really believes about life and god.


happy thanksgiving!

in perfect timing

2 weeks from today, I'll be hopping on a plane in nadi, fiji. about 36 hours later, I'll be landing in indianapolis, indiana!

grace in the wilderness

If you've ever tried to read through Isaiah or Jeremiah, I am impressed by your efforts. If you've ever actually completed the task, you must be way more diligent and smarter than me. I've been trying to read Jeremiah since like March. It's hard to get. And it's sort of depressing, because for being "god's people", Israel isn't very faithful, and God's a pretty just God.

It's a lengthy passage, but read chapters 30 and 31 of Jeremiah. Seriously. The best story ever told. From the beginning of the book through chapter 30, Jeremiah keeps telling Judah and Israel about what God thinks of sin. Over and over again (a Nelly reference, what?). He gives little hints of God's grace but mostly talks about God's wrath. And in ch. 30, Jeremiah shoots straight with the israelites. He quotes God saying things like "your hurt is incurable, there's no healing for you" and "your sins are flagrant and your guilt is great".

Then, one of the clearest pictures of redemption in all scripture that I've read: chapter 31. "With weeping they shall come, and with pleas of mercy I will lead them back, I will make them walk by brooks of water, in a straight path in which they shall not stumble... For the Lord has ransomed Jacob and has rescued him from hands too strong for him" (31:9 & 11). Verse 2 says they found grace in the wilderness. They were in the wilderness for a while. But even in a desolate place, they experienced the grace of God.
How's this possible? It doesn't even make sense. God's a god who redeems. He restores. And gosh dang, even in the midst of our deep, dark, death-deserving betrayal, we get his grace. We get the cross and a clean slate. It's what I'll spend the rest of my life trying to understand.

On a less serious but equally blog-worthy note, we've seen sun in suva everyday for like a week straight. If that's not evidence of God's goodness and a straight up miraculous act of the sovereign God, I don't know what is. I might come home with a tan after all!

sand day saturday

Last weekend, we took a trip to some wicked sweet sand dunes! I've never been to sand dunes before, but I'm pretty sure these are some of the coolest around. check out a couple pics:



















that's all for now. keep it real.

All-Star Nina (and american sunnies)

Hellllo blog world! Well the countdown has officially begun: 5 weeks or so (okay, so maybe not an "official" countdown) until our arrival to our home sweet home! I'm excited! But there's still sooooo much to do (for example, the All Blacks have to win the Rugby World Cup) here, so I'm not looking too far ahead.

This semester at our weekly meetings, we've been talking about what sort of things define our identity as followers of Christ. A few of our student leaders have the opportunity to speak throughout the second half of this semester. Nina, one of the girls I meet with, is a final year student at USP. She talked about our identity as children of God. Nina did a STELLAR job. It was completely outside her comfort zone, but she walked with the Lord through the process and God used her.
We had a girl's weekend retreat a couple weekends ago. About 25 girls came for the weekend. We expected a few more students, but it turned out to be a perfect number. The group was small enough that they really got to know each other on an intimate level. The girls had a blast. The first night was a P.J. dance party theme night and the second was a Hollywood talent show. We heard incredible teaching from Sai, a Student Life staff woman at USP, held topical seminars, a sports afternoon, and had some awesome worship jam sessions.
Mary, Jenny, and I had a delightful picnic in the park on saturday. A shout out to Rachel, who sent a package from america with sunglasses! we rocked the shades, despite suva's greatest efforts to bring a cloudy day.