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September Joy Project

September Joy Project

Last updated on: October 1, 2014 at 4:14 pm by Chelsea Patterson

September Joy Project 2014-10-01T16:14:12-05:00 Chelsea Patterson

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

September was probably one of the busiest months I’ve had to date. While I’m exhausted as I type these words, I could not be more thankful for all of the incredible opportunities I’ve had. If you’re new to what the joy project is, read all about it here.

Enjoy!

Labor Day!

My official hashtag for Labor Day was #NotLaboring 😉 Clever right?!

The day started off nice and slow. I sat on the sofa, drank coffee and read for several hours, then I laced up my sneakers and headed out for a run. The weather was humid, hot and stick. I completed six miles, but much to my dismay ended up walking about half of it. Oh well, at least I was outside! For the rest of my day, I went to the National Zoo to spend the afternoon celebrating a friend’s birthday. We strolled around enjoying one another’s company and the animals. The lions were my favorite!

I had dinner with a few friends, and while we were at dinner a storm passed through D.C. Managed to snag a beautiful picture while at dinner!

My heart was burden with some news I received, and to be honest I didn’t feel like going to Bible study at church. But I knew that I should go and hear Scripture taught and surround myself with people who loved and cared for me. After Bible study, I was browsing the book stall and I picked up the book “Spiritual Depression” by D. Martyn Loyd-Jones. Many people have recommended the book to me, and I was holding the book while finishing up a conversation with a friend. An older woman in the church joined in the conversation and asked if I was going to get the book. I said, “yes”. Immediately she grabbed the book and went to purchase it as a gift to me. She’ll never know how much her act of love and kindness meant to me!

A former co-worker was in town to train me in her old position. She and I were actually roommates and co-workers for a year, but she’s transitioned to living and working in Central Virginia. After work, we headed to a Mexican restaurant we’d both been wanting to try out.

A friend came over and we cooked dinner together while catching up on life. Thankful for quiet evenings with dear friends!

One last day at the beach for Summer 2014. A group of 40 people from my church went to Rehoboth Beach in DE for a day trip. There are very few places that I’d rather be than on the sand and by the water. THe day was filled with swimming in the ocean, tanning, frisbee, conversations, etc.

Today receives a spot in “Top Moments in D.C.” Why? Because I had the incredible privilege of visiting the West Wing of the White House. You can more in depth about my West Wing Adventures here , but let me just tell you, it was amazing!

My dear friend who recently got married spent the night with me because her husband was out of town. It was wonderful to chat late into the evening and catch up on life.

After work, I boarded a plane bound for Florida, Disney World, and most importantly, my family!

My sisters didn’t know that I was coming, and I got to surprise them! They were speechless when I arrived, and it was so much fun to get to surprise them!

* Read about my Disney trip here.*

10.

Sunsets in Florida

11.

My favorite ladies!

12.

Coffee in the sunshine

13.

Dinner with my parents

14.

Bye bye Florida

15.

The Capitol at night. Never gets old

16.

I was eating breakfast at a local, hole in the wall diner on Capitol Hill with a few friends when the Speaker of the House, Mr. John Boehner himself! I have a little crush on him, and got pretty excited. Not wanting to be a total fangirl, I didn’t go introduce myself – but I did get a picture! Hee hee 😉

17.

After work, I headed over to the Ronald Reagan building in downtown Washington D.C. I had the incredible opportunity of volunteering at the Angels in Adoption Gala.

I helped with registration and check in, and then got to head down and enjoy the gala!

The evening wasn’t without it’s share of excitement. The entire building was evacuated due to a fire in the kitchen. Thankfully it was able to be taken care of quickly, but it definitely made for an exciting evening.

The little couple from the TLC show recently adopted two children and spoke at the gala.

18.

I downloaded the ios 8 update for my iphone. There’s a new health app and it tracks almost everything…including how many times you’ve fallen! Iphone has jokes 😉

19.

Three times a year, my church hosts pastors from around the country and around the world to come and spend a weekend learning how Pastor Mark Dever leads the church. I volunteered to help with dinner, and had a wonderful time getting to know other church members and serve the men.

20.

Celebrated the birthday of a dear friend!

21.

Sermon notes from church

22.

After work, I headed up to Silver Springs, MD to see one of my all-time favorite bands perform at the Filmore. I met up with some friends, we grabbed dinner and hopped in line.

The show was impeccable. I’ve seen them once before in concert and love them. They do one of the best concerts I’ve been to!

This is how you enjoy a concert – mouths wide open! Hahah 🙂

23.

I woke up at the crack of dawn with my mind racing. I tried to go back to sleep, but the thoughts floating through my head wouldn’t stop. So I laced up my sneakers and headed out for an early morning jog before work. I love running in the mornings, and it’s always such a delight to run in D.C.

24.

I stayed at work super late and ended up taking an Uber home because I was exhausted and it was late and dark and I wanted to be safe. My Uber driver works during the day as a grief counselor for those that are dying. The Lord opened up the door and I was able to have Gospel-centered conversation with him and witness to him. We exchanged contact information and I invited him to church. I’m not sure if he’ll come, but hopefully the Lord allowed the words I spoke to plant seeds in his heart. He had this sign in the back of his car.

25.

This picture accurately describes my morning! It was a rainy day, I got drenched and I was running around the city all day!

Thankfully I had a few moments to pause and ask the Lord to help shape up my attitude. I was in charge of working a local conference (Values Voter Summit), so mid-afternoon a co-worker and I headed over to the hotel to set up Concerned Women for America’s booth.

26.

My day was spent representing CWA at the conference. My co-workers and I snagged a picture with Mr. Josh Duggar! 🙂

27.

I had the pleasure of meeting one of my favorite Fox News Contributors, Todd Starnes. We hit it off immediately, and I felt like I was chatting with an old friend instead of meeting him for the first time. Also, I made him laugh. They say that someone is more likely to remember you if you make them laugh. Later in the day, I passed him in the hallway and he greeted me by name!

That evening was the Gala. I’ll be honest, I didn’t feel like going. By nature, I’m an introvert and hadn’t had much down time in the past week to rest. All I felt like doing was going home and curling up in bed with a book and a cup of tea. However, CWA needed a presence at the gala, so I went!

Meriam Ibrahim, the Sudanese lady who was thrown in prison and gave birth in shackles all because she would not renounce her faith in Jesus Christ was honored. As soon as she walked on stage, tears started falling uncontrollably. I cannot even begin to imagine what this woman went through. There are a lot more thoughts in my head, and I need to properly process them before sharing them. I was extremely touched and humbled. Meriam was absolutely radiant and such a great example of courage and boldness.

28.

After an exhausting past few weeks, where I logged in 10-12 hour days at work, I headed to bed at 8:00 p.m. It was absolutely glorious!

29.

Today was National Coffee Day! It’s safe to say, it’s one of my favorite days out of the whole year! #ChelseaLovesCoffee #ChelseasHoliday

30.

I recently joined a new small group through my church. Since moving to the Hill, my old small group was a tad far away to attend. Tonight was the first night I was able to attend. There were only about 5 people there, but it was a wonderful time of sharing our hearts and getting to know one another.

I hope you enjoyed getting a peek into my crazy month, and seeing the things that have brought my heart joy!

Until next month!

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The flesh seeks itself, but the Spirit seeks God The flesh is weak, but the Spirit is strong The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace The flesh leads to sin, but the Spirit leads to righteousness