Never Been So BUSY!

     In the last few days I have:
- gone hiking up Stone Mountain and swam in a waterfall
- bought a new camera, as mine broke as soon as I came to Atlanta (how convenient)
- stayed up until 4 a.m. working on my scripture study (yes, I have learned my lesson!)
- found out my small group, AUDAX: where faith and boldness collide. There is about thirty junior and senior kids in our group and I cannot wait to meet them all! We had a leadership meeting on Sunday where we shared our hearts for the group this year.. I am SO excited.
- gutted houses that were destroyed by the Georgia floods two weeks ago. That really put things into perspective for me and made me appreciate what I have!
So as you can see, I've been pretty busy! Tomorrow we have our first scripture test, so I hope that goes well! Also I get to find out my FAMILY! I am SO excited!


For those of you who wanted to send me mail, you can at:
Annie Morton
The Tabernacle Church
1580 Agape Way
Decatur (Atlanta) GA 30035
PS: pictures are coming up SOON, I promise!

I Didn't Think It Would Be THIS Hard!

     It’s been nearly 4 days since I moved in my apartment and started this journey called Masters... and I am already starting to feel stretched, scared, and amazed by how God moves. I’ll start with Saturday first, when I first walked in the church doors... It was raining hard, but I was too excited to care. I met all my roommates, Allie White, Kasey Peiper, Lyn Bohyn, Heather Robertson, and Danielle Klock. I love them all! We are all so different, and come from very different backgrounds... but we all have the same goal this year, and I am truly excited to be living with them! Our apartment is really big, nice and new. I am going to love living here! Anyway, at church on Sunday, Jeanne preached... and it was amazing! One of the best sermons I have heard in awhile. After that I went out with my parents for lunch and to get some groceries, followed by a tearful goodbye. I’m not going to lie, I wasn’t sure if I would be able to watch them go! But I did, and I’m really doing okay. We had a girls night on Sunday night, and as an apartment we went to Ikea to get some stuff for our little home. Then we came home and made pizza, and just got to know each other.


     The first day we really “started” was on Monday, when we spent most of the day going over our Masters handbook and talked about all the rules. I didn’t know prior to coming to Masters that I was not allowed to contact guys from home, as well as the guys attending first year. One thing Masters is big on is the fact that they don’t want us to be emotionally or actually dating when we are there. They want it to just be “you and God”, and teach us to view males as brothers in Christ rather than potential dating material. Some students are engaged, and even broke off the engagement to come here for a year, and I totally respect them for that. I think it will be very hard... but so worth it in the end!


     Last night, we went on a “surprise” field trip, and after eating at a Wild Wing restaurant, we drove to Athens Georgia. There is a beautiful botanical garden and a little chapel we went to, and even though it was dark, it was absolutely beautiful there. I hope we go back! If you want to pray for me, pray that I we be willing to be stretched. God is already starting to work on me and some areas in my life... and I am scared to death! I looked at the schedule today, and I realized I am going to be SO busy... so pray I manage to fit in some sleep time as well!

Tomorrow, everything changes...

     It's Friday night, and in 12 hours I will be starting orientation at Masters. I will move in to my apartment, meet my roommates and the other students, and start a whole new chapter of my life.. I feel excited, nervous, hopeful, and a little scared! Looking back on the past few months, I have realized that there is no way I would be here if it wasn't in Gods plan. He has used so many of you to support me along the way, and made it such a smooth transition for me so far.. and I just know God has something awesome for me here in the next 9 months. I cannot wait to see what he has in store for my life... and I know I will be forever changed. Thank you to everyone who is believing in me back home, and don't forget to keep me in your prayers. I love y'all!

I've arrived!

     After counting down for 173 days.. I have arrived in Atlanta! My day started at 3 45 am, so I am a little tired but otherwise feeling well. We (my parents and I) flew from Halifax, to Toronto, to Atlanta, pretty much without any problems. US Customs went very smoothly, after a game of 20 questions with the clearance officer. We arrived here at around 12pm (1pm in NS), picked up the convertible dad rented for us (his idea... not ours!), and went to the Sheraton. After a small mix up with hotel rooms, they gave us an awesome room with access to their VIP lounge... and let me say it is amazing! There is lots of free food and Starbucks, free internet, and a bunch of little extras. After getting settled in we had lunch at Ruby Tuesdays, and then went swimming in a half indoor, half outdoor pool. The day has been going really well so far!


     One thing I have noticed about Atlanta is that the people here are very friendly. Everyone I have met has gone out of their way to say hello, help us with directions, or just offer their assistance in any way. I can already tell I am going to love this city, the people, and their accents! I don’t start at Masters until Saturday when we move in and have orientation. Until then it will be shopping for apartment things, sightseeing, and just hanging out with my parents. I will let you know how everything goes, and blog about it hopefully next Monday... please remember me in your prayers, that this transition goes smoothly!