What I've Learned

The other day as I lay in bed falling asleep I started thinking about some of the things that I've learned from having friends and from being around my some-what crazy and totally amazing friends. ;) I made a list and emailed it to a couple people, then Emily said I should put it on here, so here goes.

Over time I've learned many things from my experiences with friends such as...

1. It's never a good idea to punch your refrigerator

2. Being blonde is a reason, not an excuse

3. It's okay to act crazy as long as you're wearing an Iron Man or Captain America mask

4. Don't talk in your sleep or they will tell the world

5. If a best friend tells you to be quiet there is probably a good reason

6. It doesn't matter how old you are, Veggietales will always be cool ;)

7. Gummy bears are very good motivators

8. It's always worth it to stand up for a friend

9. It's more fun to stand around and talk on the field than actually play football

10. Even boys can feel "too young and pretty to die"

11. If someone is laying on the ground saying his arm is broken, he's telling the truth!

12. Coffee can create craziness ;)

13. Surprise parties are cool, but randomly sneaking into a friends closet with out them knowing you're at their house is even cooler

14. Prank calling some one you met in the summer doesn't work, because they will remember your voice!

15. Never tell your friends if you are sunburned, or they will try to hit you... or they will draw a replica of your sunburn on the dry erase board at church

16. The petals of those little flowers on the table at Chick-fil-A are a choking hazard!

17. It's never a good idea to give anyone a squeaky spinning chair in a quiet room

18. It's always worth it to stay up late talking with friends

19. Two teenage girls on a twin bed is not the most comfortable thing ever

20. Shadows on the ceiling can cause quite a disturbance!

21. If you're gonna make someone listen to rap, expect them to make you listen to country music

22. Making brownies at midnight isn't the best idea ever

23. Huge spiders in the kitchen at midnight are SCARY!

24. It's okay to cry for no apparent reason

25. It's really hard to take a picture of 5 people in a public restroom stall! (this was a scavenger hunt... just in case you're thinking this is sketchy ;)

26. If you need to feel joyful just try skipping down the drive way in the dark, singing a children's song

27. Putting flamingos in your neighbors yard at 11 at night can be a tad creepy

28. Those little spray hoses on the kitchen sink are very good for self defense!

29. It hurts to be hit in the head with an iron skillet

30. It's okay to go to Chick-fil-A dressed as a cow as long as you're not alone

31. If you tell someone not to sign your cast in large letters expect them to do just that ;D

And that my friends, is what I have learned.



A flamingo




Lauren, Me, and Justin



Tale of Two Cities

So... I have been inspired.

I admit that it doesn't take all that much to inspire me at times. And I get inspired by the randomest things! Like for real. I mean... I'm kind of looking for inspiration lots of the time, plus I'm just easily inspired (weather that's good or bad, haha). Sometimes something will hit me, and I'm just like, "Wow." Sometimes it's a golden Georgia sunset, a paint color at Home Depot, a silhouette at dusk, lyrics to a song (this is probably the most common thing that inspires me, haha), the sound of trees whispering, the scent of Italian dressing, the crazy antics of my siblings, or even the sparkles on the surface of the lake at church... but today it is a quote.

"It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known." -from Charles Dickens book A Tale of Two Cities

These words are talking about a man named... well, I won't tell you his name in case you read the book... who lived a somewhat crummy and useless life. However, he died gallantly and demonstrated extreme selflessness and love. I won't tell you too much because you really should read the book yourself. ;) But, I will say that I hope I can learn to demonstrate the love and selflessness that he displayed during the last few days of his life.

But really.

I've been inspired by this book, specifically that quote. :)

You really should read this book. :)

What Faith Can Do

(Yes, I know I already posted today, but I really wanted to post this as well :)

Piano music.

I love it so much! :) I mean, I can get unnecessarily happy- okay, even giddy- over some sheet music! For example when I got "River Flows in You". That song is glorious! ^_^ Annnd at the same time, I can get unnecessarily frustrated or disappointed with other sheets of music. Such as "Lead Me to the Cross." I just couldn't make that song do what I wanted it to! Haha. ;)

Anyways, piano is my way of venting and celebrating too. When I'm frustrated I can just go play "River Flows in You" super fast like four times in a row and I'm good to go ;) Or, if I'm super happy I go and play it with tons of emotion! Mmmm... maybe you're not weirded out yet...

So, the point I'm trying to get to is that somehow I've ended up playing in church on occasion. I it enjoy, but I do get nervous. But something hit me today! (Why does it take me so long to realize this kind of stuff?!) It doesn't matter how I do. Yes, I want to do my best for sure. But who am I playing for? The audience? Myself? No! I'm playing as an offering to God really... So, I have no reason to worry about playing perfectly. That was a comfort when God finally brought that to my mind. Also it was very convicting. I realized I've had the wrong attitude about my music for quite a while. Please pray for me to learn to focus on what I can offer God rather than what other people think. :)

So, here is me playing part of my cover for Kutless's amazing song "What Faith Can Do." :)

It's far from perfect: the piano is slightly out of tune, the recording isn't all that great, and you'll probably hear my siblings in the background (they are learning to play chess haha), but hey... it's just more realistic that way. xD

Be Strong and Courageous!

I've been reading through the Bible chronologically, and yesterday I finished the chapter of Joshua. It's been pretty cool following along with how the Israelites received the promised land. Even though they turned from God over, and over, and over, he kept on loving them and giving them another chance (not to say he didn't punish the people who needed punishment, because he certainly did that). In Joshua the stories of many battles and how the Canaanite cities were captured are recorded. Imagine going into someones homeland and just taking it over. If I'd been one of the Israelites, I know I'd probably have been wondering, "Isn't this kind of risky? I mean, we've been living in the middle of no where for 40 years. We probably aren't nearly as prepared as the people living in those cities!" Some of those people were huge- both in size and number. BUT the Israelites were not alone! They had God on their side! He promised them, "...the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go." One thing that really stood out to me was the repetition of one phrase in this whole book. During vacation Bible school long ago (good times...) I remember memorizing Joshua 1:9, "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” I always thought that was a pretty awesome promise from God. I know that he was talking to Joshua and the Israelites, but I believe it applies to us now as well. :) As I kept on reading, I discovered that the phrase, "Be strong and courageous" appeared at least 5 times through out the book. God commands his people to be strong and courageous. In one place he even says to be VERY courageous. He tells us to be strong and courageous because he "will be with [us] wherever we go." He doesn't expect us to do this own our own. He is with us and gives us that strength and courage that we need. We have a God who loves us and has promised to be with his sons and daughters. We need to learn to be strong and courageous by seeking God! The only way we can become strong and courageous is "on our knees with lifted hands". We must seek God!

Well... I wasn't even planning on using this song, but I just realized that it fits perfectly!


By the way, I love my sister Emily. ;) Just thought I'd throw that out there! *grins*

Marvelous Glory-Maker

Happy Thanksgiving! This is the sixth day now :)

Marvelous Glory-Maker.

Ahh, so, the title. Marvelous Glory-Maker. Any guess as to who that is? Well, if you guessed Jesus Christ, my Saviour, you are exactly right. I can't begin to explain just how thankful I am for my God. (You'll probably notice me quoting many songs, since they seem to so often sum up my feelings perfectly.) He is my All in All. He's my Strength when I am weak. He's my Treasure. He is Beautiful. He is my Father. He is my Hiding Place. He is one One was, and is, and yet to come. He is Awesome. You guys, he is beyond anything I could ever begin to describe or even imagine! He is so vast and deep and powerful, yet he loves me- a far-from-perfect, random teenager in Georgia. That's a pretty great God if you ask me. As I sang with the kids at the camp I worked at this summer, "Our God is a good, good, good, good, good, good, etc. God, yes he is!" He is so awesome. :) I am so thankful that he saw fit to save me when he did. Because he is in my life he's given me the strength I needed to get through many trials. Also, not only did he help me just get through those trials, but he used them to sharpen me and to make me grow more reliant on him. I've learned that "I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength" (Phil. 4:13). I've also learned that I can not do anything with out him.

"I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing." John 5:15

One of my favorite names for Christ is in Evan Wickham's song "Everywhere." He sings, "Marvelous Glory-Maker, should the whole world be shaken you will still be there." Isn't that just an AMAZING name? It's nice to know that our God will always be there no matter what and that nothing can separate us from his love.

"Neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:39

As this Thanksgiving day draws to a close, let's remember all the things we have to be thankful for, most of all a Saviour who loves us. He is our Marvelous Glory-Maker.

(It's so cool how God just puts things on our minds sometimes! I was sitting down to write this, and the first thing that popped into my head- and many things pop into my head, as many of you reading this will know- was the phrase "Marvelous Glory-Maker." I hadn't even listened to this song in weeks, so I thought that was pretty cool!)

So, I'd like to ask that if you read this, please comment and share what your favorite name for God is. :)

Friends

Day five! :)

Friends.

They are the people you you never grow tired of. They are people you don't have to worry about impressing because they already know the real you. You can share your hopes and dreams with them as well as your failures. They laugh with you rather than at you. They drive you crazy sometimes, but only because they've talked to you so much that they know every single thing that annoys you. You can trust them with your thoughts and feelings. They are like your "extra" brother or sister. :)

I've been blessed with so many friends. I've got a lot of acquaintances who I enjoy talking to and hanging out with, but I've been blessed with a special group of people who I can call my true friends. Those are the people who I know I can always trust with anything. We so often take our friends for granted and let little things get in the way of friendships because we are selfish. I know I've done that more than once. Remember that each friend (weather you see them every week, write letters, email them, or anything else!) and acquaintance that God has blessed you with is a gift, someone to be treasured.

Lauren and me



Melody and me



Me, Haley, Emily, and Lauren

Melody, Haley, and Emily

Some of the youth... Melody, Haley, Jamie, Emily, Michael, Justin, Marshall, and me

Proverbs 17:17 A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

Family

So, is this like... the fourth day? I think it is! :)

Family.

Loud? Occasionally... Ok, often. Crazy? That's an understatement. Silly? More than you'll ever know. Busy? Constantly! Hyper? Well, certain ones of us... ;) Sarcastic? Hah, us sarcastic? NEVER! Messy? Slightly, but hey, there are six of us! Accident-prone? Oh yes. *thinks of how my dad fell through the ceiling a couple hours ago* (Haha no joke!) Hungry? Always- I think my brother could eat all day long. Totally amazing? Haha, WAY more than amazing. That's my family! They are some of the best people I know. I couldn't imagine being in a family besides mine! I've been so blessed with the family God has given me. We might have our quirks, but that is what makes us who we are. I'm blessed with parents who love each other, two sisters to do girly stuff with, and a little brother to teach me how to make sounds effects for anything and everything. ;) Sometimes I think back to those two years of being an only child and start to wish I still was the only child, but then Emily and I start cracking up over something small as a radio commercial, or Timothy gives me a sweet kiss, or Natalie runs up begging me to fix her hair "so we can match" and I'm reminded of how much I count on and need my family. I love my family so much. :) Even though sometimes I feel like I just need some time alone, I know that without them I'd be so sad and that I'd be a very different person- probably for the worst! I am so thankful for the family God has put me in. I don't think he could have put me in any better group of people. Maybe you love your family, or maybe you don't, but I'd like to encourage you to love them no matter what. God has given you those crazy, loud, silly, messy, amazing, accident-prone people for a reason.




Emily and me




Me and Natalie (She's got my glasses!)



Our whole family

Me and Timothy

Music

Day three, here I come! :)

Music.

I'm SO thankful for music! I was thinking about it, and really my life would be so boring with out it! I listen to it when I'm in the car or when I wash dishes. The radio is always on in at least one room in our house; usually the kitchen or my bedroom. I find myself humming or singing my favorite songs all through out the day... :) Also, movies would be so boring with out music! They add so much dramatic effect! Another thing, imagine church without music. No melodies (hehe, no pun intended, if you're reading this Melody ;)) drifting down the halls as you prepare for worship, no songs to sing in praise to God. Wouldn't that be so different? No guitars, or pianos, or drums... In fact, a whole section of the worship service wouldn't exist without music! We have been blessed with the gift of music. :)

"It is good to praise the LORD and make music to your name, O Most High, proclaiming your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night, to the music of the ten-stringed lyre and the melody of the harp." Psalm 92:1-3

Let's praise God for his gift of music! :)

Life

Day two of things I'm thankful for!

Life.

I've been given life! Yes, I've been blessed with sixteen years and about 9 months of life. Each day is a new surprise. Sometimes it's things I like and other times not so much. Either way, I need to remember that my life is a blessing from Christ. I've learned that people watch how I live, and it's my goal to let my life be a witness for my God. We don't know how long our life will be. I could die tomorrow, or I could live to be 102! Since we don't know how long our life will be, we should live life like we're dying tomorrow. Don't worry about impressing society, live for what God has taught you is right. Stand up for what you believe!

“Where I was born and where and how I have lived is unimportant. It is what I have done with where I have been that should be of interest.” ~ D.L. Moody

When I say I've been blessed with life, you probably automatically think of a beating heart, breathing, existing. And, yes! I've totally been blessed with that kind of life (if I wasn't I pretty obviously wouldn't be writing this haha). However, I've been given much more than this type of life. I've been given eternal Life! That day when I was six and Jesus Christ arrested my heart, giving me the faith to believe in him, I received a totally new kind of Life. The new Life I received had SO much more meaning. I went from a human simply living for the sake of it, to a child of God living with hope and a purpose!

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16

So, if your are reading this, I'm going to assume you have life- as in existence. ;) But the question is, do you have eternal Life?

Cousins

So, Thanksgiving is upon us! It's one of the holidays that I really like just because everyone seems to be in a good mood and so laid back. It's really nice to have a chance to refocus and realize all that we have to be thankful for! So, I've decided to write each day leading up until Thanksgiving about something/someone I am thankful for! :)

Cousins.

You gotta love 'em! :) They are people who you can hang out with and be yourself. Often they know your embarrassing secrets, random quirks, and are just plain fun! This weekend a few of my cousins came over to spend the night. We picked them up, then I drove them to our house (hehe, yes... I drove them. No one freaked out amazingly... and Mom was in the car too, just in case you were wondering if it was legal) and then we had a campfire and roasted hot dogs and marshmallows in this FRIGID Georgia weather! It's so cold these days... at night at least. Some how my hot dog took flight, and then dove for the ground. Quite frustrating. :P But the marshmallows were yummy. I'll never figure out an easy way to eat those sugary, gooey sandwiches. xD After our meal, we went on a "hay ride" (aka, cramming 4 teenagers, and 3 kids in the bed of my dad's truck with tons of blankets) and rode down into the swamp where strange things happen (for real...). Haha, it was amazing! Then we got into a more legal riding situation and rode to the Square to look at the Christmas lights! Finally we went home. While the younger kids watched Elf and played on the Wii, Emily, Andrew, Adrienne, and I talked... and talked... and played a prank (hehe) and then watched Numb3rs. :) At last we went to bed... Ahh... It was great! :) Anyways, that's what I'm thankful for today- my cousins. :)



Andrew on the tire swing



Me

Adrienne and Emily



The sunset :)




We want YOU! ;)




Alex playing with the fire


Haha, on a side note, for some reason when we get together with these particular cousins, we (for some odd reason) display pyromaniac tendencies... such as sticking sticks in campfires, melting forks over candles, rejoicing as Styrofoam plates become convoluted when you put them in campfires, throwing food in fires, throwing plastic cups in fires, purposely over-roasting marshmallows and hot dogs, (accidentally) melting our shoes... Haha stuff like that ;)

So, what are you thankful for?

His Best

I fail.

Really. I fail. Not all the time, but so often I do. And when I fail, I go away wondering how I ended up flat on my face even though I did my best.

If I'm doing my best, why do I fail? Well, the problem here is that I'm doing my best. MY best. I'm just a human- a very sinful one at that. On my own, I can try very very hard, but more than likely I'll end up on my face again.

"I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." John 15:5

See? We can do nothing apart from God. So, when I rely on MY best to accomplish anything, I'm, in a way, setting myself up for failure.

 I've known this for quite a while, but it's finally sunken in to my hard ginger head. I guess it's kind of like how you know the oven is hot, but it doesn't really sink in until you touch it. Haha ;)

So, I've decided I need to stop relying on MY best and start asking God to do HIS best through me. I need to ask him to help me with everything. Not just in my relationship with Him, but also with my school work, my relationships, my actions, everything! Nothing is too little for my Saviour :)

The Light in Me

All morning I've had this song in my head! (Perhaps it has something to do with the fact I was constantly listening for it on the radio yesterday... haha) Anyways, this song really makes me think. Christians have been given a light within us and we are supposed to "raise it high... let it show from the roof tops down to the streets below." We've been given this amazing light, and it makes us different from the rest of the world. But, so often we try to hide the light we've been given. We are in a world of sin and darkness. Why on earth would we hide any bit of light that we can share with others in a place of darkness? Sadly, we are all too often just afraid of what others will think of us. The more I think about it, I realize that this fear is really a kind of selfishness. We want others to like us, so we hold back the light we could share in an attempt to be liked or "cool". It's time to get over what other people think about us. We've got a light within us and it's been put there by Christ! It's our job to let it shine! :D

My life before You

I was a flame burning down

I was burning out

But You knew me better

For You there was never a doubt

Not since You gave me life

Something was different

I knew it the instant

You put the light in me

The spark

The shot to the heart

You are the hope that leads me

Out of the dark

You let Your love shine down

So that the world can see

You put the light in me

The light, You put the light in me

The light, You put the light in me

The light, You put the light in me

The light, You put the light in me

You are the Maker

You tell the sun when to rise

I'm just a house on a hill

But You make me brighter

Than all the stars in the sky

Keep me from growing dim

‘Cause in Your perfection

I'm just a reflection

So pull me closer to You

I'll catch like a fire

And I'll hold You higher

‘Cause You put the light in me

I'll raise it high, I'll let it show

From the roof tops down to the streets below

In day and night, You will be known

And all will see

You put the light in me

"In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven." Matthew 5:15 

Policemen on Bicyles

As we drove through town today on our way to pack shoe boxes for Opperation Christmas Child, I noticed a policeman on a bicycle. He was crisply dressed in his neon yellow and black uniform and glided smoothly up the sloping sidewalk towards the center of town. The following conversation consisted of me trying to convince Emily, Haley, and Lauren that it was really possible for a policeman on a bicycle to ride after someone speeding in a car, catch them, and give them a ticket. I mean, I think it's possible. In fact, it seems like someone told me that they actually do catch people speeding and run them down on occasion (at least I think someone told me that...). BUT the others thought that wasn't very probable and that the car would easily get away. Hey, ya never know though... anyways...


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