Doin' What I Love, Lovin' What I Do

Alright. I know what you’re thinking. I said I was going to use this blog to keep everyone updated on what’s going on in my crazy life on tour…but it’s been 2 months on the road and I haven’t posted anything. Yeah…about that…

It didn’t take me very long after things got started to realize that our busy schedule was going to make it a little difficult to keep up! I promise I’ll try to do better. Haha So that being said, I’ll do my best to try to recap the last 2 months. Forgive me, this may get a little lengthy…there is much to cover!

After everyone arrived in Pittsburgh in August, we spent a quick minute getting to know each other over a scrumptious meal at Primanti Brothers, then got right down to business the very next morning to kick off training. For about a week, our days looked a little something like this:

10AM – Meet in the office, team devotions/prayer, discuss what our lives would look like for the next 9 months
12PM – Lunch break! (We introduced the out-of-towners to the 8th wonder of the world, Sheetz, leading to us enjoying many of our lunches, sometimes dinners as well, there.)
1PM-ish – Working in the office, writing/memorizing talks, practicing skits
4PM – Head to the warehouse down the road where we learned how to use all of the equipment, how to load and unload the truck, and how to set up and tear everything down. Then we’d spend hours upon hours practicing and running through the entire show.
Somewhere between 2 and 5AM we would finally wrap it up for the night (er…morning…) and return to our host homes to get a couple cherished hours of sleep before doing it all over again the next day.

Again, I know what you’re thinking. 16-19 hour work days?! That’s crazy! How the HECK did we function all week?! The only possible answer to that question is this:

Jesus and energy drinks.

Haha Monsters and Red Bulls were definitely appreciated among the team from time to time, but the reality is no amount of sugar-loaded beverages could truly keep each of us coherent, positive, and patient with one another if that was all we were relying on. The reality of it all is that God is our strength and provision. Only He could sustain us as each long, crazy hour ticked by, as we rehearsed for the 86,000th time. We often didn’t really realize just how exhausted we were until we were told we were done for the day! God provided us with just enough strength to do what we needed to do and learn the entire show and process surrounding it in only a week.

Of course we made plenty of time amidst the chaos to goof off as well, which was rather helpful in keeping our sanity ;) I swear I should have abs of steel by now after how much I have laughed since we’ve all been together…we definitely keep each other entertained, that’s for sure!

Once training week ended, we loaded up our glorified shuttle bus, said goodbye to our wonderful office family, and hit the highway! We had our first bunch of shows and school assemblies in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. When Hurricane Isaac pushed us out of that area, we escaped to Houston, TX about a week earlier than we had originally planned. After some relaxation, shopping and family bonding, we jumped back into show mode for another 2 weeks of shows deep in the heart of Texas. A quick stop back in MS followed by a weekend in Arkansas wrapped up our southern shows for a while, so we travelled back to Pittsburgh for a little break. During this time I got to spend time with my family, a bunch of friends, and my mentor, which was very refreshing and exactly what I needed to prepare for our biggest show yet – Cranberry.

Last Sunday we had a show at Victory Church in Cranberry, PA. Typically on show days I get that butterfly feeling in my stomach as I’m about to go on stage, but on this particular day, I was insanely nervous ALL DAY LONG. Why? Many reasons. We had a crowd of a little over 1,000 people, which included people from our office, my family and some of my friends. It’s so different when you’re on stage in front of people than you know as opposed to a large crowd of strangers. But, as always, God pulled through, calmed my nerves, and used me (as well as the rest of the team) on that stage.

In case you don’t know exactly what I do in the show, I am in a skit in the beginning, then later I do what we call the boundaries talk. I get up and talk a little about my personal testimony, my journey of abstinence, how I’ve remained pure in an impure world, and some tips for dating and waiting. Though I wrote my own talk, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve blanked on the entire thing just moments before walking out in front of the crowd. Panic. Deep breath. Lights come up. Mouth opens…and 8 minutes later I’m taking my mic off backstage, completely speechless. Sure, I don’t hit it perfect every night. Actually I think I’ve only done that for 2 out of the 16 shows we’ve had so far. But the beautiful part is…it’s out of my control. I practice my talk every single day, whether I go through it in my head to pass time on the bus, talk to the shower walls while I wash my hair, or perform for my hotel room mirror. I do my part. I give it my all. But when it comes down to show time, there’s no more time for practice. Now it’s all in God’s hands, and it’s been such a blessing to learn night after night that I am not in control. This is not my show. It is not my responsibility to simply memorize a bunch of empty words in a script. Much rather I am just a vessel for the Spirit of God to inhabit and speak through. All I have to bring is the emotion and passion I feel…He’ll provide the words.

As I write this, we are on our way back to Pittsburgh after a show last night in Warren, PA. I sit here completely consumed by thankfulness. Sometimes I still can’t believe this is my life. 4 years ago I walked into a church in Indiana, PA with my youth group and walked out with a silver ring on my finger. 3 years later, just last year, I was volunteering at shows while just visiting a friend when she suggested that I look into applying for the tour team myself. Now here I am, on the opposite side of things, doing everything I’ve always wanted to do but didn’t know I could have all together. My interests/passions of acting, speaking, being on stage, working with people and kids, ministry, and seeing change in a downward-spiraling culture…they all combined into one big package called the Silver Ring Thing national tour team. And I get to be a part of it. I couldn’t be more at peace and in love with where God has me. It is so true that He knows the desires of our hearts. This has been mine all along and I didn’t even realize it until He revealed glimpses of His plan to me and said, “Go.”

Sure, life on the road with 12 other people, living in close quarters and getting very little sleep isn’t always a bundle of rainbows and butterflies. Sometimes it’s difficult to see the silver lining or the bigger picture when you’re tired/hungry/sore/sick/irritable. But it is in those times that the Lord stretches and grows each of us on this team to become more and more like Him…preparing us for a beautiful purpose.

(If you want to see for yourself a little of what the team has been up to, check out our webisodes! Silver Ring Thing videos)

This. Is. Happening.

It starts as a jittery, run-and-tell-everyone kind of excitement. Then comes the flood of I-MUST-be-dreaming thoughts, followed by that this-is-all-so-crazy-I-don't-know-how-to-feel feeling. Finally...you reach the something's-alive-in-my-stomach-and-it's-throwing-a-dance-party stage (sometimes known as "butterflies"). You get to that point where you begin to realize...this is happening. This is actually happening. That stage...yeah, that's where I'm at. The only difference? It's combined with all of those previous feelings as well! With only ONE WEEK to go before I head to Pittsburgh to meet the rest of the team and begin training, I have become this jumbled mess of pure enthusiasm, occasional disbelief, and sudden realization as this crazy reality finally starts to sink in - the life I have for the past two months known and referred to as my future is now becoming my present.

In church yesterday, the sermon was about how the same God that performed miracles back in biblical times, walked beside His people through every high and low. and changed so many hearts and minds is the same God present in our lives today. After all that He has done, what can't He do? Who are we to doubt the impact He can have in and through us after the difference He has made in and through those before us? I'm pretty sure He's over and beyond proven Himself. right? For that reason there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that I, along with the rest of the team, am about to see God at work in some incredible ways. This team was in no way a mistake. Each of us was chosen to fill a very particular role on the team, in the show, and as part of a family. I, for one, am definitely looking forward to seeing His hand in both our individual and team growth as we fulfill those purposes.

Someone said to me today in talking about how much I am sure to grow on tour, "You are definitely not the same Chelsea I met a year ago." It got me thinking...the same God who changed my life over the past year, who shaped, molded and transformed me into who I am now, who prepared me to stand exactly where I am now...that same God isn't finished with me yet. If I can look back now and notice that much growth in a 12 month period, how much more will I see when I look back 10 months from now? It's so crazy to think about, yet so humbling at the same time. A year ago I absolutely would not have been at in a place in my life where I could say, "Hey - why don't I just leave school, hop on a bus with 12 others, and travel the country telling people about abstinence and Jesus?" No. That most definitely would not have been a good idea. My heart for ministry and the things this particular ministry stands for was there, and it was blazing...but it took a year for God to bring me to that place of, "I'm actually ready for this. Lemme have it, Lord!"

I'm not the same. I'll never be the same. And there is more change to come. That can be a scary thought at times, just knowing that God is about to stretch me even more (I mean, come on, you can only stretch a rubber band so far before it snaps, right? Is it really possible for me to keep stretching?).

But in my ever-changing life, I can rest in knowing that my God will always stay the same. He knows exactly what changes are in store for me this year and their exact purpose. I don't know what to expect, but this one thing I do know for sure - I am ready for this.

Want a glimpse of what I'm about to dive into? Check it out --> REWIND Promo

To Where, Exactly?

God has blessed me with the heart of a traveler. I recognized this at a young age and have watched Him mold and shape me to accept call after call. That heart followed His lead to find St. Petersburg, Russia three years ago, and willingly returned to love on students there the next two years. After this past Spring, God gave me a strange peace about not returning for a fourth mission, though I didn't understand why at the time. That is, not until three weeks ago.


Let's rewind three and a half years...I attended a Silver Ring Thing event on November 15, 2008 where I put on a ring and made the commitment to wait, to save myself for my future husband, to remain abstinent until the day that ring is replaced by a wedding band, and, until that day comes, to live by 1 Thessalonians 4:3-4, "It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control your own body in a way that is holy and honorable."

Now fast forward to 2010...towards the end of my senior year, on a campus tour at Geneva College, I met another prospective student who would soon become one of my best friends. Savannah and I hit it off immediately and discussed maybe being roommates. However, she told me that she had applied for the SRT National Tour Team, and if she was accepted, she would be taking a year off of school and would not be attending Geneva in the Fall. Not long after, Savannah found out she was accepted.


We kept in touch through out the rest of high school and through my Freshman year at Geneva while she was on the road. I attended many shows in that time frame when the team was close by, both to see Savannah and to help out with set-up and tear-down while I was there. It was at one of those shows that she asked me if I'd ever considered applying for tour myself. Up to that point I really hadn't. I just enjoyed helping while I spent time with my friend and got to know the team. However, once she'd suggested it...my wheels started turning. I loved everything about the ministry. From the experience I'd gained so far, I'd gotten used to how things worked and how the show was run, from start to finish. Through Savannah, I'd been exposed to some of the behind-the-scenes aspects that gave me an idea of what life on the road is really like.


I spent about a month really praying hard about it as I gradually filled out the application. Despite my dear friend's impatience (she would have loved for me to have the paperwork in the mail the day after that show), I took my time. I didn't want to rush this kind of decision. I mean, think about it - simply signing my name and putting a stamp on that manila envelope could change everything for me. Was I really ready to withdraw from college after only a year, live on a bus with a bunch of strangers, travel the country for 10 months, spend every day in a different city, and all the while not be able to hop in my car and commute 2 hours back home to see my family at the drop of a hat? This was big. But the longer I mulled it over, and the more encouragement I got from great friends, my wonderful mentor, and my amazingly supportive mother...I finally decided in November to send in the application.


Fast forward once more...it's now June, 7 months since I applied and 3 months since I had an interview. Let's be honest here - at this point, I'm going CRAZY. The longer I waited to hear whether or not I was accepted, the stronger my desire grew to join the team. I knew if it was God's will, it would happen. But you try convincing yourself of that after not hearing a peep about it for that long! Looking back now, I realize that the whole waiting game was just God's way of testing my sanity and teaching me a much needed lesson in patience. Finally I let go of my own desire to map out my life (or least the next year of it) and relinquished the control that I was so tightly holding to (driving myself crazy). It was then that God gave me this inexplicable peace, followed by that wonderful phone call inviting me to be a part of the 2012-2013 National Tour Team.


And so...my life changes in August. Instead of heading back to Geneva for the fall semester, I will be traveling to Pittsburgh August 6 where I'll meet the other 11 members of the team. We'll train together for a week, then hit the road to spread the message of purity, share God's love, and be a light in cities and towns all over the country. I am so incredibly excited for this next chapter of my life, and I cannot wait to see what God has in store for me and for my new "family." So if the title of this blog I've started still has you a little stumped, and you find yourself asking, "To where, exactly?" I can't give you a straight answer to that. God put me on this crazy train, strapped me in, and now I'm just along for the ride, asking Him each day, "Where to next?" He's prepared me for this journey, and I'm ready to travel "there," wherever that may be, "and back again."


The ministry: http://www.silverringthing.com/

My bio: http://srttourteam.wordpress.com/chelsea-bio/

Meet the fam! http://srttourteam.wordpress.com/tour-team-bios-landing/