October 1, 2011
by Sus
in CCC News
Tags: athletes, Denver Broncos, Florida, football, Gainesville, Gators, Heisman Trophy, students, The Swamp, UF, university, University of Florida
If you know our family, you know we’re University of Florida Gators fans. Both Ben and Josh graduated from UF in physics and mechanical engineering, respectively.
Naturally, we were thrilled to learn that at the first UF Cru meeting of this year, ninety-four students indicated decisions to follow Christ!
“It was just an amazing night really,” says Allen Williams, our UF ministry campus director. “I definitely felt the Holy Spirit there moving in people’s hearts and knew something special could take place there. It’s exciting to be a part of it and get to witness that firsthand.” (Read the entire article on ccci.org.)
Some of our other UF Posts:
NOTE: The image of the UF mascots, Albert and Alberta, are in the public domain.
September 7, 2011
by Sus
in Ben, Family News, Life Lessons, Life and Faith Lessons
Tags: faith, family, first child leaves home for college, God, life, son leaving home for college, true stories, UF, University of Florida, when your first child leaves home
Two A. M.
Waves of nausea interrupted my sleep. No one told me I would feel sick. Yes, I had been warned about morning sickness long ago, but no one told me I would be physically sick with grief after we took our firstborn to college.
I stared at the ceiling, remembering all the smiling faces of friends who had gone through this before me; no traces of any internal agony that I could recall.
I got up to check my e-mail. My son’s name jumped out at me from my Inbox. Hungrily, I read Ben’s first communication from college. He was just asking for some information,but I focused on the P.S.: “Love you guys.” I had bottled up my tears for days and finally let them flow. I was very grateful for e-mail to help relieve the intense separation I was feeling.
A friend called later in the morning to ask how I was doing. I appreciated her thoughtfulness so much. “I want to do that some day for someone,” I thought.
In the afternoon, I focused on another P.S. in a second e-mail from our son: ”P.S. Please don’t worry about me, I am a child of God.” Ben’s words seemed to be just what I needed. I sat down right away and replied from my heart:
“Your P.S. is a VERY good point. Thank you very much for helping me trust the Lord. This is just another thing I need to learn. I appreciate your simple, but profound reminder. I THINK I have been concerned about others hurting you in some way, not about you as much, since I know your faith is genuine.
”I know I want you to be at the University of Florida. I know it will be a tough environment for a Christian at times. I know it is important, necessary, and inevitable, that you must begin your own life, but I miss having you around (so I love hearing from you). The Lord “said” to me in my Quiet Time that it would be selfish of me to deny you new experiences, new education, and new independence, even if there is potential risk in each of those areas. I know I do NOT want to deny you those things, so I must learn to trust Him with the risks and learn not to be selfish. The Lord also reminded me that we have an eternity together with Him, so this time is short in comparison.
”I love you very much, your Mom”
As I re-read my letter and clicked “send,” I knew the Lord had healed my heart.
Read this post in:
Czech
Spanish
Norwegian
NOTE: Sus wrote this popular post right after Ben left for college in 2003. We are re-posting for all those parents who are sending their first child away to college.
We recommend How to Stay Christian in College by J. Budziszewski. This book was published recently, but we haven’t read it personally: Thriving at College – Alex Chediak.
June 4, 2010
by Sus
in Ben, Bonnie, Family News, Family Photos, Jenn, Josh, Mike, Sus
Tags: aquarium, barbecue, Disney, family, family life, Florida, Gainesville, gardens, highway, interstate, Orlando, pictures, recommended, restaurants, road trips, things to do, tourist attractions, UF, university, University of Florida, zoos
We had a busy Memorial Day weekend. Ben flew in from Washington with his girlfriend, Bonnie, so we could meet her… and so he could introduce her to Central Florida in one long weekend!
On Friday, we went to Sea World and found out Bonnie had never been before and had never been to an aquarium or on a roller coaster or on a flume ride, so we took care of that. We made sure to take her to our favorites: the Kraken rollercoaster, Journey to Atlantis, Wild Arctic, Jewel of the Sea Aquarium, Stingray Lagoon, Dolphin Cove, Penguin Encounter, Shark Encounter, Manta Aquarium, Pacific Point Preserve, and the Blue Horizons show. We didn’t know the park was closing early, otherwise, I’m sure Ben and Josh would have taken Bonnie on the Manta rollercoaster and we would have taken her to A’Lure, an acrobatic show. We had a barbecue dinner at the Voyager’s Smokehouse.
On Saturday, Ben, Josh, Jenn, and Bonnie went to Gainesville, Florida. She was able to meet some of Ben’s good friends and they took her around the University of Florida campus. For dinner they went to a very unique pizza place, Satchel’s. (I explained more about Satchel’s in a January 2008 post.)
Sunday, we went to church and then stayed around home for a yummy dinner and belated birthday party for Ben. He turned 25 this year! He loves to make cakes, so he actually made his own birthday cake, a Black Forest Cake.
See tomorrow’s post for news about the rest of our big weekend, a video of barnacles, and a link to a photo slideshow about our weekend visiting St. Augustine, the beach nearby, and Campus Crusade for Christ headquarters. Or just click here for a slide show with pictures from our fun-filled family mini-vacation.
Want more ideas about visiting Central Florida?
See older posts on St. Augustine, Gainesville, and Sea World. This post is part of the series of recommended tips for enjoying I-95.
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