Wednesday Night

Today went pretty well.  Hebrew at 8:00, Worship at 10:00, more 2 classes, then lunch at 1:00.  And then I was free. :)  So I met with Dr. Parker and went to Records and got an essay scheduled for Friday morning.  And then I did my homework and DeWayne and I ran into town.  We went to WalMart and then BestBuy so he could buy a small fridge.  And we spent way too long browsing. =P  But I actually held my very first Canon 5D Mark II!!!  I could not believe it!  I saw my very first one in real life this morning during class, because the media department came in and did some filming during one of our classes and they were using one.  And then I got to touch one at BestBuy!  Yeah, a very nice camera. :)  Only $2,500... lol

I'm still not feeling well at all, so I took a shower as soon as we got back and now I'm heading to bed...  So good night all!  I'm supposed to try to lead song service at 7:25 in the morning...  Yeah, should be interested.  Oh why did I pick Great is Thy Faithfulness and How Great Thou Art?

August 30

Today was very busy, but a lot of fun!  It started at 5:30, when I got up to read two chapters in Dr. Samaan's book "Christ's Way of Reaching People".  That was really good.  Then I ate breakfast at 6:30 when the caf opened.  After that, I met the pianist, Emil, at 7 and we picked out the songs for worship.  He played piano last year too, so at least he knew what was supposed to happen. =P  Worship was at 7:30, then I had Hebrew lab at 8:00.  After that I had the last bit of worship with the SALT team, then several classes.  At 11:00 I had to take 3 tests for Theology degree entrance, so that took me until 12:30.  I ran over and ate lunch then, and rushed back into Hackman for my 1:00 class with Dr. Martin.  At 2:00, Joe started his outreach class, and shortly after that we all broke out for outreach.  Hahna and I started knocking on doors shortly after 3:30, and we worked until a quarter to 5, when we went to our first scheduled Bible study.  The lady was sick, so she hadn't studied the lesson yet, so we just visited with her for awhile.  Our next study was at 6, and that one went really well!  Ary ended up having class tonight, so she texted me asking to reschedule.  So that was our 7:00 study...  But we went back to our territory and knocked on doors for another 40 minutes.  So that way we still got our 4 hours in today. :)  And then we came back to campus.

I went to Ryan's room after I got back and spent quite a while sorting through surveys and putting all the Bible studies in my calendar.  We got 3 more scheduled today...  And we ate supper. :)  So that was good.  Anyway, I just finished my Hebrew reading assignment, and I'll read the one chapter out of Case for Faith in the morning.  So I'm off to sleep!

Monday

I'm off to bed because it's late, but I decided to write a quick post. Today went well. Classes in the morning and homework in the afternoon. I still have two more chapters in a book that I have to read by tomorrow, but I'll do that in the morning... Oh yeah, and my name is finally on our door. :)

Sunday

Today was great!  Class started at 9:30, which was nice.  So I got to sleep in. :)  We had training in door-to-door stuff mainly.  After lunch, we had a little more practice and we were assigned our partners.  My partner is Hahna.  Michelle said that these are tentative partners at the moment.  It depends how the first little bit goes.  If there's lots of arguments and bruises at the end of the day, they'll rearrange some of the teams.  But the first day went alright. =P

After we went door-to-door, where Hahna and I got 4 Bible Studies scheduled for next week, we met back here at the college for testimonies and sharing.  Then we all went downtown for pizza. :)  Then I came back into my room and called Mom and Dad and talked with them for awhile.  So that was really nice. :)  And then I went up to Ryan's room for awhile, then there was a hall worship at 10:00.  And now I'm getting ready for bed. :)  So have a great night!

Sabbath

Another wonderful Sabbath!  We went to church this morning at DeWayne's church, which is Apison SDA Church.  It was really nice.  And we even got back to campus in time to eat at the cafeteria before it closed. :)  In the afternoon, the three of us plus a girl we met at lunch, Tiffany, walked some of the biology trails.  That was a lot of fun.  We walked quite a bit, but I think nearly half of our time was spent sitting in a circle at the intersection of several trails discussing miracles that have happened in our lives as well as parts of the book "True Revival" by E.G. White.  So that was really nice.  Evensong was at 7:30, so DeWayne, Ryan and I went to that. (Tiffany went home after supper...)  Then we went back to Ryan's room for awhile, and then we went over to the Sabbath School teacher's home where we had some food and talked about true revival and the need for a personal walk with Jesus.  There was a lot of food for thought...  But anyway, we just got in and it's after midnight, so I am off to sleep.  A long day tomorrow, with outreach in the afternoon...  Goodnight!

Friday

I am so sorry I didn't post anything last night!  It was just way too late, so I went right to bed...

Yesterday was a lot of fun.  Hebrew class was at 8:00 with Dr. Klingbeil.  I think I'm going to enjoy this. :)  After that, DeWayne and I went into town and bought oil for my car, then while he was in an audition for the choir, I got my car washed and vacuumed.  So it looks decent again. :)  Then we won't over to DeWayne's uncle's house and changed my oil.

In the afternoon, We spent our time in Ryan's room studying and talking.  So that was nice.  I then took a shower and walked over to Parker's house (they only live about a mile and a half away) for supper.  That was really nice.  We talked about Joseph after the meal.  Then we had vespers at the church at 8:00.  It was really good!  The Chaplain talked about being connected with Christ.  And he gave the statistic that in this area, 84% of Seventh-day Adventist young people are leaving the church...  After vespers, most of us met in a big circle in front of Wright Hall and had a service where we prayed for a connection with Christ.  And we gave ourselves and the school to God.  The person that gave a devotional thought at that said "When Jesus comes back, He won't be looking for people who are preaching the third angel's message.  He'll be looking for people who are living the third angel's message!"

Then DeWayne, Ryan, and I spent the rest of the evening talking about revival and reformation.  So it was a great night.  But I didn't get to bed until after midnight...  Oh well.  At least I didn't have to get up at the crack of dawn this morning. =P

I'll hopefully write again tonight, telling about today.  Below is a video montage I took of last evening's activities...  Hope you enjoy!

Joel

Pictures 2

Ryan, DeWayne, and faculty

Pictures

Pictures of convocation and the party

First day of School!!!

Today was my first day of actual classes!!!  It was SO exciting!  And wonderful!  And everything else! :)  I still can't believe I'm actually here...

But anyway, I had worship at 8:30 with Dr. Parker.  It was very powerful.  He talked about the cross, and that we each needed to count the cost before choosing to continue with Christianity or this SALT program.  And then at Convocation, Dr. Bietz had an almost identical message!  It was incredible.  He was talking about making a difference, and how we needed to be willing to suffer the cross.  And they both used Bonhoeffer as an example...  So that was interesting.

I had several classes today, one by Michelle, one by Dr. Carlos Martin, and one by Joe Reeves.  Very good.  I'm really going to enjoy this!

Joe and I went on one Bible Study this afternoon, but the person wasn't home. :(  So oh well.  We left a note.  And then we had the welcome party at 7:00.  Each department had their own party, and the religion department had theirs on the front porch of Hackman Hall.  Dr. Klingbeil gave the message on people who were willing to look like fools for Jesus.  And we did an ice breaker 20 question game and had banana splits.  So that was nice. :)

Then Ryan and DeWayne came over to my room and we discussed prerequisites for divorce. (Yeah, a great topic for bachelors to discuss =P)  And we had chips and salsa and, of course, popcorn.  So they just left, and I'm getting ready for bed.  So good night! :)

PS:  Pictures in the next post...

Address

I think I'll most likely be staying in my current room, so my address is as follows:

Joel Sutherland
Talge Hall Room #1124
PO Box 569
Collegedale, TN 37315

August 24

Today was quite the day.  It started with meeting in the gym at 8:00 this morning to get into our little groups (mine is the Religion - Evangelism department) so that all 650 of us freshmen could go out into the community and help.  Most of the groups went to places where they could do clean up from when the tornadoes went through back several months ago.  Six groups including mine, went to a horse farm and my group spent the morning tearing an old barbed wire fence out of this tangled mess of woods.  Then we had lunch on the bus on our way back.

I took a shower, then caught up on some online stuff and ran over to the financial office and got some stuff straightened out and got everything ready to be paid tomorrow. :)  Then I met my good friend, Anna Bartlett, who I haven't seen for 6 years, and we visited for awhile before heading over to the gym where all the campus ministries and clubs had set up booths.  Her boyfriend met us over there, so it was nice meeting him.  They had haystacks there, which were really good.  And then we had the SALT orientation at 6.  And after that, Mrs. Parker brought in popcorn and smoothies for us.  That was really good. :)  I came back to my room and called Mom, then I ran upstairs to DeWayne's room where I met Ryan and we had a short worship and prayer and now I'm in my room again and getting ready for bed.  Hope you all had a great day!

Tuesday Night

Today was another full day of orientation.  It started at 9:00, and we just had classes in the girls' dorm chapel all day until nearly 5:30.  Then Dwain and I ran off for two Bible Studies this evening.  They went very well!  I led them, so they were my first ones.  But I felt they went alright. :)

After we got back (about 8:30), I went up to Ryan's room and DeWayne met us there.  So we had another popcorn eating session while we discussed various topics.  Then we had our dorm orientation at 10:00, and after that Ryan, his roommate Christian, DeWayne and I ended the evening on our knees pleading for the Holy Spirit to fill this campus.  It is definitely the start of a great year!

I also got the job of leading song service for morning worships Tuesday and Thursday mornings, so that's nice.  It only pays $3.62 a worship, but that's not why I'm doing it. =P  So I'm looking forward to starting that this next Tuesday...

Have a great night!

Tuesday

It is extremely late, so just a quick post.  Today went well.  We had orientation classes, which were good.  Then about 6:30 the fire alarm went off in the boys' dorm, so we all had to run outside for awhile.  Our next meeting was at 7, and we were all still outside at that time, so we had to go to it without going back inside...

After that meeting, we had a scavenger hunt all over campus.  That was a lot of fun!  We had groups of 5.  Our group didn't win anything, but oh well. =P  Then DeWayne, Ryan, and I went to DeWayne's room and hung out for awhile.  We ended up in some very deep theological discussions...  We're all SALT students, by the way...  But yeah, it's going to be a great year. :)

Anyway, it's late (or early), so I'm off to sleep.  Good night!

Pictures

And here are some pictures of my room I took last night...

Sunday night

Hello All!

Today was pretty exciting.  I moved into the dorm!  But before that, I got everything packed up at Schwarzer's and we had wonderful breakfast.  And then Aunt Leslie and I watched the last two episodes of season 1 of "Road to Avonlea".  Too bad I can't see the rest, but at least I got season 1 done! :)

Then I left for campus.  There was a slight problem with roommates, so I ended up not getting the one I had requested, but we'll see what happens.  There's the possibility of switching later in the week - working it out ourselves - but we'll see.  I'm kind of settled and the guy I'm with seems nice enough.  His name is Ervin and he's Filipino.

After I got moved in, Duane and I went on a Bible Study we had scheduled for this afternoon.  But the person wasn't home, so we knocked on a few doors and got 2 more Bible Studies scheduled for next week!  So that's exciting. :)

We got back from that just in time to go to the welcome party at 7:00.  Boy was that interesting...  It was a lot of fun, though. :)  Got to meet all kinds of new people and run into others that I knew.  Like Kevin Miller and his son, AJ.  And my supposed to be roommate, Victor.  So yeah, it was a lot of fun.  And now I'm really tired, so I'm heading to bed.  Hope you all had a great day!

PS

Oh yeah!  And I forgot to mention that Luke Crawford happened to be at the concert tonight as well!!!  So it was wonderful seeing him again!  Yeah, I swear I can't go anywhere that I don't run into someone that I know!  Or at least has mutual friends with me...  But anyway.  Good night!

Sabbath

Today was a wonderful day!  I went to the Chattanooga 1st SDA Church this morning.  Sabbath School was pretty good and church was really good as well.  The special musics were amazing!  And the Summer of Evangelism students graduated.  I got to take pictures. :)  I'll post them soon hopefully...  Oh yeah, and then potluck was amazing!

After I got back, I laid on my bed and watched "Grace Card", which was absolutely amazing and powerful!  Definitely one of my favorites. :)  By then, it was nearly time to head to a concert Aunt Leslie wanted to go to.  So we went to the Athens SDA Church for that.  It was a bluegrass group called Higher Calling, and I really enjoyed their concert!  And yes, I did get a CD. :)

But anyway, then we came home and watched another episode of Avonlea, which was really good.  And now I'm off to bed.  Tomorrow's a big day.  I'm moving into the dorm...  So yeah.  Goodnight!

Friday Night

Today was a lot of fun!  Mr. Ivins got here around 9:30 or 10, and so I helped him sand sheetrock and paint.  Then I left at 1:30 for campus.  I was to meet the rest of the Summer of Evangelism students in front of Wright Hall at 2:00, but somewhere in there they changed it to 3.  So I had an hour to just walk around and wait for them.  After everyone got there, we took 2 vehicles and drove out to a beautiful river/lake place and went swimming for a couple of hours.  That was a lot of fun!

After that, we went to Pastor Dale's house for an Agappe meal.  It was a wonderful evening of fellowship and worship.  Dr. Parker had quite a few thought-provoking ideas as usual...

Anyway, I'm back here at Schwarzer's now and I am heading to bed.  So goodnight! :)

August 18

Today I started by heading into the college and making the deposit on my dorm room and getting all of that straightened out.  Then I went over to the church for the classes.  Most of today was final exams, so that was fun.  I did them just to see how well I would do.  I did surprisingly well actually!  Then after lunch, I ended up going with Travis to his 2 o'clock Bible Study because his partner, Julie, had to go with Michelle on another Bible Study around that time.  So that was fun.  It was actually Travis's first time giving one, and I thought he did very well.  After we were done with that, he took me back over to the church because Julie would be able to go with him for the rest of his, and I went back onto campus and got all my financial stuff straightened out.  So I think I've gotten nearly everything done that I can do before moving into the dorm on Sunday...  So yeah.

After getting back here to Schwarzer's house around 5:30, I helped/watched Mr. Ivins work until after 9 when he left.  And now I'm going to head to bed "early". :)  So have a wonderful night!

August 17

Wow, what a day!  The first thing I did was pick up my ACT scores.  I got a 31!!!  I was SO excited and thankful!  Anyway, and then I went down to admissions and made sure everything was straightened out, so I am officially a student at SAU now!

Then I had to go downtown and drop my car off at a shop to get the exhaust manifold replaced.  It was really loud the last few days...  Uncle Trenton picked me up and took me to class after that.  The funniest thing that happened today was when Stephan leaned his chair too far back and fell over right in the middle of Dr. Samaan's class.  Yeah, that was hilarious. lol

After class, Uncle Trenton picked me up again and we picked up my car.  Then I ran onto campus and stopped by several more places getting things ready.  I have a student ID now as well. :)

But anyway, this evening we watched two more episodes of "Road to Avonlea", which were really good.  And now I'm off to sleep.  Good night!

August 16

Today went really well.  We had great classes and a lot of fun.  We even got Michelle to try the wheelchair. =P  I've taken some video of all of this, so one of these days I'm going to upload a "wheelchair video". ;)

I think my favorite part of the day, though, was when Duane and I gave Bible studies this evening.  We did 3 of them, and it was so much fun!  They all were very excited about what they were learning and are really looking forward to next week!  I'm not sure how many of these people I will actually be able to keep, after we switch schedules and everything, but I am planning on doing these 3 people again next week at least...  We'll see after that.

Anyway, I got home around 9:30 and after awhile we watched another episode of "Road to Avonlea".  It was really funny. :)  And Uncle Trenton is off tonight and tomorrow night, so it was nice having him here.  He made nachos about halfway through the film, which were really good!  And then I ended up visiting with him awhile, so that's why it's so late.  But anyway, I'm off to sleep.  Good night!

Monday

I think I talked with most of you today, so I don't have a whole lot to say.  Aunt Leslie asked me if I had used up all my words for the day. =P

Just a brief summary.  Today I had classes from Joe Reeves, Michelle, Dr. Samaan, and Dr. Parker.  They were all really good.  And the wheelchair was a great hit as well.  I even tried balancing in it on the rear wheels.  I ended up falling over backwards twice as a reward for my struggles. =P

Have a wonderful night!

Sunday

Wow!  Today was quite the day!  It was my first day with the Summer of Evangelism program.  Dr. Alan Parker talked about devotions and prayer.  It was very good!  He is such a good teacher!  Then I went out with another guy who had "lost" his partner this afternoon and we gave one Bible Study and got several more requests.  It was a lot of fun.

Then, this evening the church we're working with had a concert by Jody and Judy Melashenko.  That was really good!  And they had 5 young people that had gone with them on a mission trip, so they all sang and told stories from the mission trip.

After I got home, Aunt Leslie made a strawberry/blueberry shake and we watched another episode of "Road to Avonlea".  It was so hilarious!  All about Marilla Cuthbert's old "beau"...  Yeah.  Anyway, I'm off to sleep!  Good night!

Sabbath Night

Today was a lot of fun!  Aunt Leslie and I got up at 5 this morning so we could watch meteors.  We were laying out on the sidewalk in front of the house for a little over an hour and saw at least 11 meteors and 2 satellites.  So that was a lot of fun.  Then we went to the first service of the McDonald Rd. Church at 8:45.  The pastor gave a really good sermon about the cleansing of the sanctuary.  Sabbath school was pretty good too...  Then we went over to Donesky's for lunch.  We had quite a time!  Orville reminds me SO much of Mr. Gordon.  Combative on everything. =P  But he is so funny.  So anyway, after visiting for awhile, we left around 4 to go to a birthday party they were supposed to attend.  So we all went out to a State Park and had a great time visiting with people there.  I guess everybody left around 8:00...  Oh, but they said that I shouldn't wear jeans around here - it's too hot.  So Andrew loaned me a pair of shorts and sandals to wear to the birthday party. =P  I'll make sure and bring my own next time I see them. lol

Well, after we got home, we watched the next two episodes in the "Road to Avonlea" TV series.  They were really funny.  But anyway, it's late and I have to be at the Chattanooga First SDA Church by 9:00 tomorrow morning, so I'll sign off.  Good night!

Friday Night

Just a quick update tonight.  I spent most of today helping Mr. Ivins on the bathroom.  We did a lot of sheetrock sanding, and then we got one wall painted (the one behind the toilet and sink) and got both of those installed.  I also got the showerhead installed in the shower.  But we were missing several parts for the sink, so I ran to Home Depot to get them, but after I got back he realized we didn't have the drain assembly either.  He was going camping this weekend with his family, so he had to leave, so after lunch I ran into town and picked up the drain pieces we needed and came back and put those on.  But it still doesn't work because one of the pipes isn't quite long enough...  So I need to get an extension next week...

After lunch, Aunt Leslie was down playing the piano, so I pulled out my violin and played with her for awhile.  That was a lot of fun. :)  Then this evening, we watched about every video I've uploaded to the internet and some that she wanted to show me.  And then we looked at a bunch of pictures.  So it was fun.  But now it's late and I need to get to sleep because we're getting up at 5 in the morning to see if we can see an meteors...  They're supposed to be falling tonight and that is the best time to see them - or so they say.  So we'll see...

Anyway, have a great night!

First Post

Hello all!

I guess this is my first post on this blog...  Just as an introduction, I decided that I would keep an online "diary" while I'm away from home for two reasons.  Number one, so family can keep up with what I'm doing and number two, so that other people can also see what I'm up to if they're interested.

Today went well.  I spent the morning bringing stuff into Schwarzer's house and getting somewhat settled.  So my car is nearly empty again. :)  Then I left here soon after 12 to head to Southern to take my ACT.  That was a long test, but it went well.  There were actually 31 of us taking the test, and the instructors were saying they didn't remember ever having that many people on one day.  So it was kind of amazing.

After I finished that, I came back and Aunt Leslie fixed rice and beans for supper.  That was good, because I hadn't had lunch.  I ate breakfast around 9, so I wasn't hungry before I left for my test.  So anyway...  After we finished supper, we visited a little, then we watched the first episode of the "Road to Avonlea" television series.  I really have no idea why we did that, because now I'm just going to HAVE to watch the rest of the series!  How I'm going to watch 70 hours is beyond me...  I guess I have 3 years to do it in. =P

Anyway, then I got on the computer and got distracted watching Brad Paisley songs and stuff...  But I am now off to sleep, so have a good night all and I will post again soon!