CHRISTmas!

Okay, I have a lot to say, but I don't even know where to begin, or how to say it all.

I guess I'll start with Christmas. It was wonderful! On Christmas eve we had a nice supper together, and then played games. We had my friend, Vicki, and my neighbor, Zach, over and they added to all the fun! Right now my bedroom is torn apart because we're fixing it up some, so my bed was out in my oldest brother Erik's bedroom. So, I slept in his room. It was kind of a funny night... somehow the heat got turned off so it was FREEZING cold, and I kept having weird dreams and waking up (mostly because it was so cold!). Anyway, we all slept in on Christmas morning and that was actually really nice. I think this is the first year that I've slept in on Christmas. We all got up around 8:00 and sat around talking and such for a few minutes... then we all took our showers and got dressed. It was neat because it was just a nice, low-key day. We opened our stockings, and then had a nice breakfast. After breakfast we opened presents. It was a lot of fun... all of us just sitting around together, laughing, and enjoying ourselves. I got a couple of pairs of shoes which were really cool - one pair was neon pink and the other was neon green. :) I got two books - "Before You Meet Prince Charming" by Sarah Mally, and "Raising Maidens of Virtue" by Stacy McDonald. I've read both of those books before, but it's especially nice to own them. They are SUCH good books!! I would very highly recommend them to any young lady who wants to serve Christ. I also got a really nice handbag with music notes and Scripture about music on it. I love it!! We got some gifts that were for all of us - a bunch of Christian movies! We got Fireproof, Facing the Giants, Flywheel, and some others. I couldn't have gotten any better presents! I love my family so much. It was great to be with all of them for the past few days.

Now to tell you about all the WONDERFUL things God is doing in my life!! I don't know how to put it into words... He has totally changed me, and my view of life! A week or two ago, I was trying very hard to live righteously, but I didn't feel the passion and closeness of our Savior. I wasn't living completely for Him. I was tying, but I wasn't trying in HIS power, filled with HIS Holy Spirit. I just couldn't take that. I hadn't done anything the most people would consider a "big" sin, but I had strayed so, so far from where I needed (and still need!) to be. I got down on my knees and poured out my heart to God. I confessed everything I had done... all of my selfishness and pride, all of waywardness, everything. I prayed and begged God to reveal Himself to me, to give me a passion, to fill me with the Holy Spirit. That was my constant prayer for about a week. On Christmas day, He truly did show Himself to me. I can't explain it... I just had a total change in my understanding of Him. These past few days I have just CRAVED Him. It's wonderful!! I have been reading the two books I got for Christmas, another book called Stepping Heavenward, and of course, the Bible! It's wonderful. God is teaching me so, so, SO much about how I am to live. Please, please pray for me. I don't want to lose this passion. God is doing marvelous things in my life. He is SO INFINITELY GOOD! Praise Him!!

"I cried unto God with my voice, even unto God with my voice, and He gave ear unto me." Psalms 77:1

"I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever; with my mouth will I make known they faithfulness to all generations." Psalm 89:1

The Wilson Heart

Hey everyone,
I'm putting in a link here to a blog from a family I know of who's 7-month-old baby boy, Josiah, has Hypoplastic Left heart Syndrome (HLHS). If you take the time to read a little bit about him and the family, I know you will be blessed. Please pray for them! Pray for healing for Josiah and for rest and comfort for the whole family. They are a wonderful example of trusting God through hard circumstances!

TheWilsonHeart.com

Lessons...

Today I just have a thought to tell you about what God is teaching me. I have been learning to let go of things. I have a real tendency to be angry about things... which leads to bitterness. I used to just get depressed when bad things happened, but recently I've started getting angry. I've been watching a series of sermons on DVD by Paul Tripp called, "How to Be Good and Angry," and it has really been good for me. I realized that the reason people get angry is that we make our normal desires into demands. God has given us desires... that's completely normal and good. The problem is when a desire becomes a demand. We HAVE to control our desires! We all have a sin nature, and our desires can very easily take control of us. The human heart is an idol factory. We have to keep laying our desires down before God and not let them become controlling. I've been learning to keep returning all of the things God gives me to Him, and also learning to rise again after I fall and mess up. When you sin, don't fall into a pit of despair. It is right to feel grief over your sin, but don't wallow in it. Repent and keep going on to do what's right. Thankfully, God is SO merciful and good as I go through the process of learning these things!

"For the righteous falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked stumble in times of calamity." Proverbs 24:16, ESV

Thanks for taking the time to read! God bless you all; have a great Christmas!

"I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now." Philippians 1:3-5, ESV

Christmas Vaycay :)

So, I'm on Christmas vacation!!

On Thursday we packed up to leave for my Grandparents' (on my dad's side) house on Friday morning. We didn't expect, however, to get about a foot of snow, or to have our snow-blower break! We got a new snow-blower on Friday, and got up bright and early on Saturday morning to leave. When we left we had about 2 feet of snow, and we probably will have more when we get back!

Anyway, after a hectic morning of packing and cleaning, we left at around 8:30 AM and traveled for several hours, and with a few stops along the way, made it to Gma and Gpa's house at lunch time. Grandma made us a delicious lunch - she's such a great cook! After we were done eating, we sat around the table and shared Christmas memories. It was especially fun to hear my mom and dad's memories of Christmas as kids. Later we watched a movie together, and then opened presents!! I got a big purple storage box thingy (kind of hard to describe) that will look great in my bedroom. I also got some jewelry and candy. I love everything I got! Supper was wonderful. We had shrimp, homemade cream of broccoli soup, garlic bread, and fruit salad. The table was beautifully set, so it looked very lovely. We had quiet Christmas music playing in the background. It was so nice. It was especially nice to spend the day together with family.

Today we got up and went to my grandparents' church. It's really different from ours, but it was nice. :) Everyone recognizes me, but I don't recognize most of them - lol. As soon as we got home, we headed to my other grandparents' house for Christmas with my mom's side of the family. It was a great night. I got a lot of presents, too! I got a bracelet, some body spray, and shower gel from my aunt and uncle. My grandparents (on my mom's side) got me some earrings, sheets and a furry blanket, and candy. I also got to see my uncle's 2 month old daughter, Macy Elizabeth. She is so beautiful!! Tonight my grandma and I and maybe my brothers are going to watch a movie together, then head home tomorrow. God has blessed me SO much, and showed me such abundant love and mercy! He is the reason for the season, not presents or travel or any of that. And HE is what is truly bringing me so much joy. Praise be to HIM!!

I'm Back!!!

Hey there everyone!! Guess what - I'm back!

I haven't blogged for a while because it was getting very stressful. Life is still pretty crazy, but I'm going to start blogging again, even if I don't do it very often.

I won't write much now, because it would take a long time to try to summarize the past 3 months! I will try to keep you posted about what happens from here forward though, as much as possible. All that I'll say now is that God is SO GOOD to me! :) That's all for now friends!