I look so weird there^
So, I don't really feel like explaining my job. If someone was really interested, I can talk about it and what I do :-) But, for some reason, I don't think that will be very interesting for you all. Anyhow though, related to work, I do want to talk about one thing.
Not long ago, in care group, I was talking about how it's not that I don't try to witness...I just don't really get in many situations that allow me to do so. Being homeschooled, having Christian neighbors, all the classes I take are with Christians, all my friends are from church(mostly), etc. Well, now I can say that I have a good opportunity! I know that the couple I work for is not Christian. Not saying this as though I'm judging their hearts, but she came right out and asked me about my church and all and she told me she doesn't like an 'organized religion' and has met too many hypocrites, so she doesn't really do the 'church thing'. Well, anyways, I'm excited because I'm really hoping I can be a light to them. Or at least I'm hoping God will find a way to use me.
I feel like it's sort of an answer to prayer(as was my job) and a great opportunity to do a 'hard thing'. I think it's awesome how God works!
That's all...I'm just excited about that =D Whether anyone else is...
I feel like I should post. Because it's been 4 days.
Won't it be awesome to have no perception of time someday? Can you imagine time being nonexistent? Time which never passes and never ends. This time that never ends already has start for all of us. The only difference is that we're still in a world filled with sin and in our worldly bodies. So, physically, yes, time is passing, but in our spirit and soul, time is non-existent. But, time being non-existent can be wonderful for some and awful for others. If you're a Christian, that means literally forever with God. Forever in absolute perfectness. So perfect that we can't comprehend what perfect really is. If you do not know Jesus as your Savior before you die, it will be more terrible than you can every imagine. It will be completely opposite from heaven in every way. Except for the fact that time will go on forever there as well. That means eternity in terrible torture. Sometimes I wonder how is that so hard to choose between?
Time. Think about it.
So last night I was reading through Romans 6. I noticed that Romans 6 is very straight forward and obvious with it's message/theology. Especially compared to some of the other books in Romans. But of all the verses in the chapter, this one really stood out to me: Romans 6:19 I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness.
It's the very last part that especially stands out. At first I was thinking, that's weird...righteousness and holiness seem to mean the same thing....why would they say that righteousness leads to holiness? But then it occurred to me. That's the process of sanctification! When we follow God and do what's right, we are being righteous...or doing righteous acts. When we continue in that, we grow in holiness or become more holy.....we are shaped into the image of God. But, by being righteous, we aren't automatically holy. It's a process that we have to work at and grow in and the result is holiness! But, it's a never ending process....as we can never be perfectly holy as Jesus is....because we are sinners and 'weak in our natural selves'. That's why we're slaves to righteousness. But how fortunate we are to be slaves to righteousness instead of impurity and wickedness!
I know I elaborated quite a bit on just one little verse. But, for some reason, this was so interesting to me ^_^
I don't really feel like posting anything about my life right now. First, because everything going on in my life seems so insignificant compared to how awesome my God is. And second, I gotta go do school.
Just one thing. YOUTH GROUP!!!!
I know Chad doesn't read my blog...or at least I don't think he does =P But anyways, Happy Birthday Chad!! You are amazing on the piano and the guitar. And you give me another reason to practice and get better. ;) You're really funny and it will be fun filming the movie with you! I have seen you grow in your walk with the Lord over the past and it really excites me :)
Happy birthday =D
Oh, and just 'cuz I wanna say this: Save the whales!(even though I know nothing about that joke =P)
Ok, so I hope I'm not posting too much now! I go through these little posting spurts I guess :)
Today I was rereading everyone's new years posts about their resolutions and stuff. Well, I realize that I haven't done all that well in following up with everyone on that and holding them accountable. Yet, I see a lot of growth in you all.
I was thinking about posting an 'update' on how I am doing on all my resolutions, as I know several of you said you'd help me with them and pray for me. Thanks to all of you who have done that, you have no idea how blessed I am by that. But, after looking over my resolutions that I posted, I realized that I'm not really a good judge as to how I've been doing in most areas.... As I know we often don't have a good perception of our sin.
So, I thought I'd ask you all to please tell me how I'm doing. And I'm asking you to be honest. If you see a pattern of sin in my life, I want you to tell me. If you see a place where I'm lacking godliness or could grow, please tell me. And I'm completely serious.
So like either leave a comment on here or talk to me in person sometime about it. And don't be afraid to bring it up, ask me particular questions, etc. I'm also asking this as an on going thing. Not just for right now :)
I'm going to try and do better at holding you all accountable too.
Here is the link to my post with the resolutions. Oh, and while I do want to grow musically and all, I'm asking about more of the serious important things ;) Click here.
Wow! How do I manage to always make such long posts? There's one thing to work on....talking less =P
I think I'm going to change this into a prayer for my life...
Ever since the day that I saw Your face
Try as I may, I cannot look away, I cannot look away…
I am captivated by You
May my life be one unbroken gaze
Fixed upon the beauty of Your face
Beholding is becoming, so as You fill my view
Transform me into the likeness of You
This is what I ask, for all my days
That I may, never look away, never look away…
No other could ever be as beautiful
No other could ever steal my heart away
I just can’t look away…
What I have come to realize is that the more I grow in my walk with the Lord, the easier it is to love Him. To me, He just gets more beautiful, more attractive and more awesome(if that's even possible). I agree with Mr. Connelly in a message he had not to long ago. God is the most attractive thing ever. The most lovely thing ever and the most lovely thing to have and see in a friend(their love for God).
Here are some random pictures I took a few days ago. I have realized via Olivia's complaints, lol, that I don't post pictures often enough. So, I guess I'm going to try and post more pictures more often.
Spring definitely looks like it's here!
Hope your day today is so special Anna! You are such a lovely, sweet and awesome person that I'm glad to call my friend =) I love how you are such a hard worker. And how whenever I talk to you, are always positive, joyful and encouraging, while still being very down to earth and 'real'. And of course I love your love for Jesus! Have an amazing birthday Anna!
Well, these past few days have had so much going on, I don't know where to start!
On Wednesday, we went to IKEA, had lunch there and did some shopping. It was actually quite fun...even for some one like me who's not too fond of shopping excursions. =) The food was good, lol.... A few pictures are below!
A really cool round bed/mattress!
I liked these polka-dot rugs =)
haha, this HUGE sign made me laugh!(see below as well.)
Can't you just see someone complaining that their 50 cent hot dog wasn't as big as the one on the sign?Thank you my friends.
Thank you....
to those of you who care about me enough to humble yourselves and confront my sin.
for caring about my character and growth.
for always loving me even when I'm not so lovable.
for you girls who have been like my sisters.
for you guys who have been like my brothers.
for forgiving me the so many times that I've messed up.
for encouraging me.
for making me smile and bring joy into my life.
to those of you who have awesome deep discussions with me.
to those who know when to be serious and when to have a good time.
to those of you who don't care what anyone but God thinks of you...
to those of you that are older than me and wiser....thank you for your wisdom and counsel.
for laughter.
to those of that are striving for holiness and Godliness.
to those who try to honor God in everything you do.
for challenging me.
for Doing Hard Things.
for being down to earth.
for all of you that use you talents to honor God.
for knowing what matters in life.
I could obviously keep going for a while. I love all of you. =) I was just overwhelmed today when I was thinking about all of you today. I thanked God for each of you today. =)
I'm hopefully taking a computer fast tomorrow, so I'll probably post on Saturday...
I'm posting because Nathan said no one posts enough. I guess I don't post as much because I feel like I have nothing interesting to say. But I guess I'll post...for the sake of it =P
Ok, so this is going to be random, but this has been bugging me and has been on my mind recently.
I hate the word hate. It's really sad to me how frivolously that word is used. I think a lot of people use it with out even thinking of it's intensity. I was talking to some people not too long ago that said they hated several people within like one paragraph.
Definition of hate: To fill intense animosity or hostility toward.
Definition of animosity: Bitter hostility or open enmity. Ill will or resentment.
Definition of hostility: Unfriendly and aggressive feelings or behavior. Act of war.
So, if I hate someone, that means I feel intensely/very strongly that I want to cause harm to them, hurt them and/or create a type of 'war' with them. Do you really mean that when you say hate?
I just feel like it's a very strong word and it shouldn't be a word commonly used when talking about....well everything, but particularly people. Please just think about it.
*stepping off my soapbox now*
Easter was lovely. I loved the sermon on Easter Sunday. It wasn't like your classic Easter message, as it was on Joy, but Mr. Connelly did a good job of connecting it to the gospel and the Cross. And I had a good time laughing afterwards =D Anybody do anything special for Easter?
So, this week is my spring break. It is so nice to not have any school to do and to be about to sleep in a little. I hopefully will get to do a few fun things with friends tomorrow and maybe on Thursday. That should make my spring break even better!
Oh, and my goat keeps trying to bit me. It's weird. He hasn't manage to injure me again though. I hope he gets over this soon, lol!
And now I have nothing else to say. So bye! And if you read this, and you have a blog, then post! ;-)
My goat bit me this morning. It actually was rather painful....and now I have a huge, swollen purple bum on my arm to show for it. Ah...farm life =P
So, yeah, it's a bit hard to do the 'posting everyday thing'. I've actually had quite an interesting and eventful few days.
Yesterday, we very last minutedly(lol) had the Bell's over. We, as always, had a lovely time with them....which consisted of mainly eating pizza, laughing and watching youtube videos. It's sort of a tradition, lol. And we were able to talk Abby into playing Captivated for us. ^_^
Anddd, for the past several weeks, my dad has been organizing and preparing to basically tear apart his entire bathroom down to the 2x4's and remodel the entire thing. So, almost daily, we've had packages showing up....some are small....other are rather large...like two sinks and a bath tub. haha, but it's pretty exciting. Just a few days ago, he started tearing the wall out. That looks like so much fun to me. I really am hoping he'll let me go in there with a sledge hammer. =D But I guess I'm weird like that.
Oh, but he just cut a pipe on accident and it made a big mess and is apparently a big pain to fix now. I feel bad for him... Now we have our water turned off, until he fixes it...I hope it's fixed soon! We might be living off of bottled water for a little while, haha :-) I'm glad I have a daddy of many talents, lol =P
Um...oh, yeah! I'm applying for my first job. Well, actually two different jobs, with the possibility of one more. But, what really excites me is that they all involve working hands on with animals and should be very enjoyable and a great experience. So, we'll see what happens. I'm not getting my hopes up. I know God's and control and if it's the right job, I'll get it. I only hope that if/when I get a job, that it won't eat up all my time. I don't really want to work all the time...I just want to be able to start saving for college, etc. and have a regular paycheck :-)
I'm so glad youth group is tomorrow. There is no place I'd rather be than at church. Seriously. But yes, I'm looking forward to seeing most of my super friends and hopefully having an awesome time with the Lord.
Then, there's Easter on Sunday. I love Easter! I just wish more people would remember the true meaning of it. =/
Oh, and I've been thinking about something. It's probably going to sound strange though. I want to live as though I'm going to die at any minute. Yep. As much as we all know it could happen, I think we too often forget. Or if we knew that the Lord was coming back on a particular date. I can bet you a lot of us would be living differently if we knew we were going to die soon. You know? I'm not stalking about being Saved....although that's a big part of it for everyone who doesn't know Him. And this guy is a great reminder...for me at least. He's a huge inspiration: http://www.abcchurch.org/clayton/
Hmmm, well, I guess I better go now! Peace.
Abby did an incredible job last night on this song. She sang beautifully and is amazing on the piano...especially for one who's only been playing for a little over a year! She's truly gifted. [she is going to hate that I posted about her, lol]
Anyhow, since I loved it so much, I decided to post the lyrics and the video of her. I hadn't heard this song ever until last night. But I really love these lyrics. This is my prayer for my life....
Captivated
by: Vicky Beeching
Your laughter it echoes like a joyous thunder
Your whisper it warms me like a summer breeze
Your anger is fiercer than the sun in its splendour
You’re close and yet full of mystery
Ever since the day that I saw Your face
Try as I may, I cannot look away, I cannot look away…
Captivated by You
I am captivated by You
May my life be one unbroken gaze
Fixed upon the beauty of Your face
Beholding is becoming, so as You fill my gaze
I become more like You and my heart is changed
Beholding is becoming, so as You fill my view
Transform me into the likeness of You
This is what I ask, for all my days
That I may, never look away, never look away…
Captivated by You
I am captivated by You
May my life be one unbroken gaze
Fixed upon the beauty of Your face
This is what I ask, for all my days
That I may, never look away, never look away…
No other could ever be as beautiful
No other could ever steal my heart away
I just can’t look away…
I heard/saw some very talented people tonight! Everyone did soooo good at the arts festival! The bands at the end were super-awesome too. According to Adam, I didn't come across as one who liked it. haha, I guess I'm not all that enthusiastic, because IT WAS SO AMAZING!!!!!!
So there you go, lol.
I'm sad I didn't get to see everyone's performances because I had to wait back stage like half of the time. If anyone got good pictures or videos, please email them to me!
That's all. Peace.
Well, not too long ago, I was honored to be awarded to be picked of one of 5 fabulous blogs by Kimberly.
In order to receive my 'award', I need to do two things: 1. confess five things to which I am addicted, and 2. pass the award on to five other fabulous blogs.
I will list 5 things I love, but I hate to say addicted, as I try to only be addicted to God :-)
1. God!
2. music
3. friends
4. church
5. thinking deeply(weird, I know, but true).
Now, for the very hard part of picking 5 people. Please know that I would list every single one of you if I could...
EDIT: Ok...I'm having a way too hard time choosing just 5 people. So...I've decided not to choose anyone. That's how much I love you all =P Can't pick just 5 =)
Other randomness…. This weekend should be fantastic! Arts Festival is tomorrow….I can’t wait to see everyone’s art and performances. Of course, I’ll probably be really nervous when it’s time for our skit, lol, but all should hopefully go smoothly! I’m really looking forward to church on Sunday, as I’ve missed two weeks now. I had CM both weeks because the fourth week was my week to serve and then I had to go fill in for someone who didn’t show up last week. Then, of course there is care group, which will be especially enjoyable if everyone comes =)
This week has been very full. I can hardly remember what I’ve been up too. We just got a bunch of new furniture for my parent’s room, so we’ve been busy moving out the old stuff and unpacking the new stuff. Um, seems like we’ve done more, but I honestly am drawing a blank at the moment. Oh, I know...I got to spend a few hours with my amazing friend Marissa. She’s so fun!
Oh, and for April Fools, I only played one joke….haha. I’m not good at keeping a straight face, so the only joke I played was via email, lol.
I really want to go on a missions trip right now. I'm struck with awe right now on how people who hardly have enough to live are so thankful.
I want to die to myself to go help those who have nothing. I want to devote my life to whatever God has in plan for me serving Him. Even if that includes giving away all I have and moving to a third world country. That would be really tough, but I would do it.
You know, I would actually love for my family to adopt a child from another country. The most unwanted, un-adoptable child, if possible. I just have such a heart for those poor children. But even God has a plan for them. Isn't that incredible to think about? God sees them and loves them, even if no one else does. Amazing.
