It's Been Too Long!

Okay, so once again, I have neglected posting. Sorry y'all, but, when life gets busy, internet is not exactly my top priority! It's been another crazy month. I keep wondering when life is going to settle down, but it looks like it just keep getting busier!

What I've been doing:
     ~Reading The Christian Counselor's Manual by Jay Adams and gaining invaluable insights about bringing people to hope and change through God's Word,
     ~Continuing to read Systematic Theology by Wayne Grudem (hoping to finish it by Christmas),     
     ~Preparing to play the epic song "Fantasie Impromptu" next month in my piano recital,
     ~Visiting my brothers and friends in Kentucky and enjoying Christian fellowship, lots of laughs and good talks, and helping my brother and his fiance prepare for their wedding
     ~Having six girls over for a Bible study/sleepover and doing WAY too much giggling and game playing ;)
     ~TRYING to finish my high school subjects - Spanish 3, History, Literature
     ~Staying busy with about a hundred and one other misc things that come up in life!

What I've been learning:
     ~Our pastor is teaching about Esther on Sundays and I'm learning about Esther's wisdom, courage, and faith in God. She used her winsome ways not to charm and manipulate, but to rescue a nation. Also, seeing the contrast between Mordecai's humble faithfulness and Haman's pride and ungratefulness.
     ~Reading in Joshua in my devotions is encouraging me to fight HARD against the "ites" (sin) in my life - even if it takes a long time and isn't a pretty battle, I must let NONE remain,
     ~God is really convicting me about how I treat my family. I am such a "servant" in public, but I'm not a true servant unless I'm willing to serve EVERYONE. Especially my family, since my duty is first to them.
     ~And another big things God's revealing is my critical spirit. Why is it that when I look at something, the first thing I see is what's wrong? I want to see through hopeful - not skeptical - eyes.

What I am excited about:
     ~My brother's wedding in less than 7 weeks!!
     ~The snowbanks in our yard are finally melted and it's warm enough for short sleeves :)
     ~My last recital ever is in 4 weeks. It will be a sad goodbye, but a wonderful finale.
     ~God is not letting go of me and never will. No matter how many times I fail Him, He continues to love, chasten, and sanctify me. He has plans for my life!

So that's my life. Happy Spring, everybody!

Life is Beautiful

My mind is full of thoughts - happy thoughts and random thoughts, mostly.

I'm sitting at my kitchen table with my laptop, and the house is quiet. The sounds I hear are the quiet buzz of my computer, the wind chimes on the front porch twinkling lightly, the chattering of my fingers typing quickly, and the woodstove in the back room.

Mom and Dad are visiting my brothers for the weekend, so Zach and I are on our own. It's very quiet, but so far I don't mind. It's peaceful.

There's snow pouring down outside, and it looks beautiful. I have an intense delight in all of nature - it is so beautiful and refreshing. I can't imagine living in the city, separated from all of God' glorious natural creations! I'd rather be outside than inside any day.

Last night I made chocolate chip brownies that taste incredible.

I have so many good friends - old and new, near and far, kindred spirits and friendly acquaintances, all of whom I am very thankful for. I never cease to be amazed at how blessed I am to have so many wonderful people in my life.

My piano teacher is in India on a missions trip, so I am playing the piano in church for the next month. It's a big stretch and at first I didn't want to do it. I am reading about Moses in my devotions, though, and how he refused to do something that God placed in his lap and really missed out. I don't want to be that way. So, if the Holy Spirit can speak through our mouths, I'm sure he can play through my hands. I'm excited at another opportunity to grow up and accept responsibility!

I love reading and writing and thinking. It seems my desire for these things is insatiable!

I also love people. And I love animals. They are just fabulous.

I think pretty much, I just love life. It's so wonderful! Without Christ, I truly could not enjoy any of these things because they would have no purpose and I would be wracked with fear and despair. But with him at my side, life truly is beautiful.

June 2012

Rising Radiance

When morning gilds the skies, 

my heart awaking cries, 

"May Jesus Christ be praised!"

This past week I've really enjoyed getting back to school. Christmas break was wonderful and restful, and charged me up for the other half of my final year of homeschool. On Sunday, I sat down with mom and planned out a schedule (yes, another one - I love planning!) that works for both of us, and I have really enjoyed it. Each morning I get up at 6:30 and have my morning devotions. Oh, it is incredible to watch the sun rise through the leafless trees, splashing color across the sky! It's like a painting; it doesn't even seem real. It's as though the sky is a colorful piece of translucent stained glass and the sun is behind it, making it glow. And it encourages me, because it brings to mind all the verses in the Bible about the rising sun.

"For from the rising of the sun to its setting my name will be great among the nations, 

and in every place incense will be offered to my name, and a pure offering.

 For my name will be great among the nations, says the Lord of hosts." 

Malachi 1:11

"From the rising of the sun to its setting,

the name of the Lord is to be praised!"

Psalm 113:3

"The Mighty One, God the Lord,

speaks and summons the earth

from the rising of the sun to its setting.

 Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,

God shines forth."

Psalm 50:1-2

"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases

his mercies never come to an end; 

 they are new every morning;

great is your faithfulness."

Lamentation 3:22-23

"For his anger is but for a moment,

and his favor is for a lifetime.

Weeping may tarry for the night,

but joy comes with the morning."

Psalm 30:5

Our sovereign, holy God is reigning, and deserving our praise - let us remember to worship Him with our lives every waking moment. Let's praise Him early - don't wait! Let the rising sun remind you of His attributes and cause your heart to reverence Him. May we be able to say with David,

"I will sing of your strength;

I will sing aloud of your steadfast love in the morning."

Psalm 59:16a

Resolution Vs. Goal

Last year I made a lot of resolutions. I was so sure that this would be the year that I would become, well, perfect. Part way through the year, though, when I was still doing very well at keeping my resolutions, I realized how petty they were. As if banning movies and facebook would make me a better person! As if meeting my personal standard is what makes me righteous! As if I could ever be good enough through my own actions! As if I could ever be perfect enough to meet even my own requirements, much less God's! I realized that I was setting myself up for failure.

So I made a new resolution. No, actually two.
1) Nullify all previous resolutions.
2) Never make another resolution.

Now you're saying "What is wrong with her? She's flown to the opposite extreme!" But really, I'm not. Bear with me. I'm definitely NOT saying that we shouldn't set goals to try and meet. Without goals to strive toward, we don't make progress. But there's a difference between a resolution and a goal. With a resolution, you either succeed or fail. There's no in between. Even if you almost succeed, it's no good - you still failed. With a goal, you work toward achieving a desired result. And, no matter, how slowly you achieve it, how many times you mess up and start again, or how far from perfect you are, it's still worth doing!

For example, one of my goals this year is to memorize the Westminster Shorter Catechism. If it's a resolution, it's only worth doing if I memorize it all. But as a goal, it will be valuable even if I only memorize a quarter of it.

I believe this is a biblical concept. It's in line with the biblical model of progressive sanctification, in which we never "arrive" but we are always moving forward. No matter how many times we sin, it's still worth it to strive for righteousness! And, Ecclesiastes 5 warns us against making resolutions we can't keep.

So friends, let's be careful not to make rash vows this year. Only God can make a promise and be sure to keep it! We're not perfect. We simply cannot guarantee to anyone, even ourselves, that we will certainly do or not do anything. Rather, let us make goals, and move on to godliness!

'Tis the Season

It's been two busy weeks of Christmas season, and I'm loving every minute of it. I'm glad I planned for lots of time off of school, because so many things keep popping up! Like...
~A trip to see the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra perform, and then lunch at a nice restaurant. It was the most glorious performance I've ever seen!
~A day with a good friend yesterday, just catching up on life
~A "sledding" party today (actually, there's no snow... but we'll still have fun!)
~Christmas shopping - I've gotten pretty much all of my gifts set!
~Christmas with my Grandparents - they gave me the book "Joyfully at Home" by Jasmine Baucham and I am thrilled to read it.
~Setting up the Christmas tree and the various decorations around the house. Playing some Josh Groban Christmas music in the background and talking with my mom, decorating was very relaxing and fun this year.
~The monthly girls' Bible study and sleepover I've had the privilege of leading for the past four months
~Lots of chores, trying to keep up on the mess in the midst of the busyness!

Some things I'm wondering:
~When you put your back out, isn't there a way to fix it without spending $100 on chiropractic visits?
~When you are in a chiropractic appointment,why do they try to talk to you while your face is crammed in a little cubbyhole?
~Why is snow being so lazy about coming this year?
~Why does fudge require such a specific cooking time to keep it from turning into greasy crumbles?
~Is Santa Claus really my dad?

Hahaha :)

I hope you are all having a Merry Christmas season. Remember to ponder and give thanks for the incomprehensible gift that God gave us - the fullness of God dwelling in a tiny human baby, born in the lowest condition, born to die and be raised, born to SAVE. Meditate on the incarnation of Emmanuel!

Every good and perfect gift

There are many times in life when God gives us things we don't want because they are better for us than what we do want. In fact, I think we all recognize that this happens multiple times every day, and sometimes seems to be continual for seasons of times. But every now and then He gives us a ton of little, wonderful blessings and makes lie just what we want. These interludes are rare, but that's why they are so incredible. I want to praise and thank my Lord and Lover for giving me all of the little things I have been desiring lately! Like...
~My bedroom. It's so pretty! I have a pretty quilt and lots of nice decorations, and it feels so relaxing and refreshing to walk into my little haven! Of course, it's not all that great really, (I never got around to redoing my room this year - the quilt is one I had when I was a little girl, the decorations are mostly garage sale trinkets) but it's still beautiful and I'm so thankful.
~Good food. We purchased "Fruit and Vegetable Share" with a local organic farm this year, and each week we get TONS of fruit and veggies - so delicious and healthy, and mom and I get to spend lots of time in the kitchen together preserving them.
~School. This year I get to spend most of my time reading theology, scripture, Christian books, and listening to incredible sermons! How cool is that?!
~The weather. As I have said, (probably too many times!) I LOVE autumn weather. The sky is intensely blue with brilliant white clouds doused in bright sunlight. The leaves are still richly green, interspersed with hues of red, orange, and yellow. Each morning the soft grass is covered in sparkling frost that melts into dew. When it rains, it pours torrents of cool drops to refresh the earth. The air is cold and crisp. Ahh I could go on... but I won't.
~Recreation. I've been able to do a lot of the things I love to do lately - bake, cook, clean, (I know that doesn't sound like recreation to some!) watch good movies, read books, journal, talk on the phone, visit friends, and so many other nice things.

Most of all, though, what delights my soul is that the holy, terrifying, worthy, perfect God of all creation has become my intimate friend and lover, and sees me as perfect through the righteousness of His Son. He answers my prayers and speaks to me through His word. He is so good, I can't fathom it!

I know that as life goes on, God will mercifully give me seasons of discomfort and not getting my own way, to sanctify me. I know I will not always be in sweet closeness with God, I'll stumble and fall and have to be picked up again. But I'm not sad to know that life won't always be this perfect. I'm just amazed that He would see fit to give me even a short time so sweet as this. <3 p="p">

Pain has purpose

"Man has a claim on God, a divine claim for any pain, want, disappointment, or misery that will help to make him what he ought to be. He has a claim to be punished, and to be spared not one pang that may urge him toward repentance; yea, he has a claim to be compelled to repent; to be hedged in on every side, to have one after another of the strong, sharp-toothed sheep dogs of the Great Shepherd sent after him, to thwart him in any desire, foil him in any plan, frustrate him in any hope, until he comes to see at length that nothing will ease his pain, nothing make life a thing worth having, but the presence of the living God within him; that nothing that nothing is good but the will of God; nothing noble enough for the desire of the heart of man but oneness with the eternal. For this God must make him yield his entire being, that He himself may enter in and dwell with Him."
~George MacDonald

Wow...

I just want to give a testimony of how amazing my God is. I hardly know what to say... He is just SO amazing and good!

First I will tell you all thank you for your prayers about the situation I shared in my last post. I have seen my amazing God do amazing things and change hearts for His glory, and it has blessed me so much. I still ask for your prayers though - there is still a LOT going on.

And well, all I have to say is that I have been so incredibly blessed this past weekend (and all my life really, but specifically now). I am so thankful for all God is doing and what an amazing, wonderful life I have. Sorry for two really vague posts in a row, there's just not much I can say!

Truly God is good.  

Psalm 73:1a

Passing through deep waters of trial...

Words fail me right now. All I can say is that I am going through something unbelievably painful. I am shocked, sort of in denial, and grieved to the depths of my soul. But I do not doubt God. I have seen God be more faithful than ever before, and have never been more sure that every letter of His precious word to us is truer than true, and that He is all He says He is. I am convinced that I am His child and more grateful than ever that He has chosen to save me. Yet, I still am suffering. What's more, I am watching others suffer. Please, please pray for me and all the people involved.

"Save me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck. I sink in deep mire, Where there is no standing; I have come into deep waters, Where the floods overflow me. I am weary with my crying; My throat is dry; My eyes fail while I wait for my God. ...  Deliver me out of the mire, And let me not sink; Let me be delivered from those who hate me, And out of the deep waters. Let not the floodwater overflow me, Nor let the deep swallow me up; And let not the pit shut its mouth on me. Hear me, O LORD, for Your lovingkindness is good; Turn to me according to the multitude of Your tender mercies. And do not hide Your face from Your servant, For I am in trouble; Hear me speedily." Psalm 69:1-3, 14-17


"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you." Isaiah 43:2


Scripture is an incredible wealth of comfort. In the midst of all this, I can truly say "God is good!"

All things

Romans 8:28 says, 

 "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, 

to those who are the called according to His purpose."

That's a promise.

But, we all face situations in life where we think, "Surely, this can NOT be good!"

Well, that may be true. But read the verse again - slowly. Does is promise that every single thing that happens will be good? No, it says that everything will work together for good. What's the difference?

Let me explain. 

Suppose you came to my house around supper time one evening, completely famished. "Christy, I am starving, can I have something to eat?" you say. 

I reply, "Sure! I'll get you a cup of flour." 

"Umm... eww?! That doesn't sound very good."

"No? How about a teaspoon of salt - that has more flavor."

"No, that wouldn't be any better?"

"What about some baking soda? That will really wake you up!"

*Blank stare*

"Oh, and then we'll wash it down with a big cup of Crisco oil... mmm. Finally, you can drink some buttermilk."

"Christy, all those things sound absolutely disgusting! Why in the world would anyone want to eat them?!"

"Well, how about if we mix them all together and make biscuits?"

"Ohhhh...."

You see, when you look at your life, you may see a bunch of bland-tasting flour, sickening oil, and bitter baking soda. You may wonder, how is God going to use all this for good? But God has the recipe; you don't. Lately I've been challenged to just trust that He's going to use every single thing to make something amazing out of my life. Even when I can't see, by faith I will believe that all things work together for good to those who love God.

Unto thee, O God!

Well, last week was a VERY busy week! I had even more things going on than I told about in my last post. I was gone all day every day except Monday! I got a little behind on school because of that, so this week I am working hard at school to catch up. So, this busy November day I am thankful for:

Oatmeal with strawberries
Phone calls from my big brother
Stepping Heavenward (AWESOME book!)
Thunderstorms
Knitting (Yes, I am learning!)
Christmas shopping
Answered prayer
and Long, pretty skirts

Thanksgiving is soon. How are you going to celebrate? :)

"Unto thee, O God, do we give thanks, unto thee do we give thanks: for
that thy name is near thy wondrous works declare." Psalm 75:1

Infinite Love

Oh my goodness! I haven't posted in a very long time! Silly ol' me. Life has been so busy this summer, and I've just gotten kind of lazy about it, I guess. I think it's time for a fresh start - in many ways.

The busyness of the summer has required me to suppress some emotional and spiritual issues for a long time, which caused them to enlarge under the surface. This week they finally emerged. My heart has been disquieted by numerous fears for far too long. Mainly, I've been afraid of rejection and not having control. Those fears fears which have so seized my heart have displayed themselves in many ways... I have been afraid of being ugly, not having enough talent and aptitude, being rejected by people who love me, not having a "likable" personality, etc. You get the point. Quite honestly, I haven't trusted in God's unfailing grace and have not allowed Him to keep me in perfect peace. Fixing my eyes on myself, I have forgotten what my life is all about. It's all about Jehovah, my Savior! He is my Rock, my Lover, my Friend, my Father, my Redeemer, and my Joy. He is my life! Oh, how foolish it is to worry about not being lovable; that's the whole point! If I could gain favor with God by my own works, there would be no gospel. Christ died for my sin, because I could never earn favor with God on my own. Additionally, if I could "earn" grace, it wouldn't be grace! I am nothing but a totally depraved sinner, and that is why the gospel is such good news. the Lord Jesus loves me - though I do not deserve even a smidgen of His love - and has given His life to save me! Since I never earned His love to begin with, I can never "un-earn" it by not being good enough. He took the penalty for my sin, and placed on me infinite value. I am now adopted by the infinite God of the galaxies, and I am a co-heir with Jesus Christ! What incredible news! Can I get an amen?!

A Passionate Romance

"Love is here, love is now, love is pouring from His hands, from His brow. Love is near, it satisfies, streams of mercy flowing from His side." (Love is Here - Tenth Avenue North)

Wow, those lyrics are so true! In light of Valentine's Day, I thought it would be apropos to write a post about love.

All too often, we look for love from other people; girls are especially guilty of this. And, as Christians who are striving to remain pure for the person we will someday marry, it's easy to act like love is something that's in the future.

Love is not somewhere, someday. It's here; it's now. Jesus Christ is the only one who can satisfy us.

"Why are you looking for love? Why are you still searching, as if I'm not enough? To where will you go, child? Tell me, where will you run?" (By Your Side - Tenth Avenue North)

Jesus loves us. Yes, it's true! He loves you more than you can imagine. He gave up everything for you. Even though we are, by nature, God-hating, selfish, and wicked, God chose to love us and sacrifice everything for us. But His love has one condition. "But," you say, "I'm nothing, I'm a failure. I can't meet any conditions!"

Well, read on. His one condition is this: You must hope in Him. That's it! You must reject any other hope, any other pursuit of love, security, wealth, power, or anything else, and place all of your hope in Him. He is the only hope of salvation, love, and joy. If you cling to Him as the only way to save you from your sins, repenting of all of our sins, rejecting all that is contrary to His word, He will adopt you as His child. He will betroth you as His perfect bride. You will no longer be condemned, and sin will no long have any power over you.

And this isn't some distant, mystical love. Having a relationship with Him is a day by day, hour by hour, intimate romance. If we really believed He was our lover, how would our lives be different? We would daydream about Him. We would laugh with Him. We would talk about Him. We would tell Him everything, and listen with delight to everything He tells us. We would pour over His love letter to us, memorizing it, obsessing over it. We would be so much more joyful!

That's my challenge to you today. Treat Him as you would treat a lover.

"Therefore, behold, I will allure her, will bring her into the wilderness(alone with Him!), and speak comfort to her. I will give her her vineyards from there(blessings/tokens of affection), and the Valley of Achor as a door of hope; she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, as in the day when she came up from the land of Egypt(Coming out of Egypt = Being freed from sin/salvation). And it shall be, in that day," Says the LORD, "That you will call Me ‘My Husband,’ And no longer call Me ‘My Master,’ for I will take from her mouth the names of the Baals (idols/sins), and they shall be remembered by their name no more... I will betroth you to Me forever; Yes, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and justice, in loving-kindness and mercy;" (Hosea 3: 14-17, 19) (All of the words in parentheses were added by me, for clarification.)

Happy (belated) Valentine's Day, everyone! I pray that you will have an every growing, passionate romance with the Lord.

Hope and Courage to Face Tomorrow

"God, I can't do that again! I just can't!!" I bawled. "I wish I could just erase this day from history."

It had been an awful day. From the time I got up, things weren't going as I had planned. Everything, even the most trivial inconveniences, seemed overwhelmingly difficult. I cried, and then prayed, and got my emotions straightened out. Diligently, I tried to keep my emotions tamed and work on my school work. But, I ended up crying again, and the process started all over.

As the day continued, I eventually got my strength and joy back. Later on, I went to play practice, which I normally love. It started well. While we were working on our choreography, however, I started to get discouraged. I was the only girl (out of about 1o girls) who couldn't do my part correctly. Finally, I started to cry. Yup, I cried. Right there, in front of everyone, I started sobbing. To make things worse, just a few minutes later we were supposed to go on stage and practice with the rest of the cast. Trying to regain my composure, I went into the bathroom to see if my appearance made it obvious that I had been crying. Well, I looked okay, so when I felt ready I started to go out to the stage. I made it about halfway... and then started my ridiculous weeping all over again! I couldn't bear the thought of failing in front of everyone. Exhausted, I sat in a dark room and thought, prayed, and listened to music. Eventually, I went out and practiced with everyone. It was humiliating - everyone could see my tear-stained face.

After the practice, my mom came to pick me up. As soon as I sat down in the car, my emotions sprung up yet again. "Today was one of the worst days of my life!" I told her between sobs. She listened sympathetically as I recounted to her the traumatizing events of my day. When we arrived home, I sat in the car for a little while, praying. This is where the first line of this blog post fits in. I just wanted to disappear, and never have to face the mountain of fear and embarrassment that stood before me.

I went inside, got some supper, and flopped on the couch. Hoping for some spiritual encouragement, I started to watch, "Facing the Giants" (an AMAZING movie!). Wow! It was SO uplifting! God reminded me that He wants me to give my very best - for His glory. The only way to every be truly fulfilled is to be poured out for Jesus Christ. Whether I perform perfectly or completely fail, I need to give my very best and give Him praise. And, I can be triumphant! The greatest success I can ever have is to honor Him. He loves us so vastly... I don't ever have to be afraid of what anyone else thinks of me, and I don't have to be the best. All I have to do is give Him my very best. He's my audience, and He gives me the hope and courage to face tomorrow, whatever it may hold.

"Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you." 1 Peter 5:6-7

Though none go with me

I've been reading The Chronicles of Narnia recently, which I had never read before, and I am amazed at how spiritually beneficial they are! I had seen the movies plenty of times before, and there is some spiritual analogy in them, but not nearly as much as the books.

I just finished reading Prince Caspian - the second book of the series. At one point in the book, Lucy finally meets up with Aslan (who represents God). The conversation that follows goes like this:
"Welcome, child," He said.
"Aslan," said Lucy, "you're bigger."
"That is because you are older, little one," answered he.
"Not because you are?"
"I am not. But every year you grow, you will find me bigger."

I love that! There are times in our life when God seems big to us, and times when He seems small. But is He the one changing? No! God is always the same, infinitely awesome God. But as we grow, we get a bigger glimpse of just how awesome He is.

As her conversation with Aslan continues, she tells him about how she saw him earlier, and knew it was him, but the reason she didn't follow him was because no one else believed that it was him and they all went the other direction. She felt like the only thing she could do was go along with the others, even though Alsan wanted them to follow him. But then she realizes (with Alsan's help) that she should have followed him, even if she had to do it alone. Aslan tells her that she must go and tell the others that she had seen him, and tell them to follow him with her. But if they wouldn't follow, she must follow him alone.

Wow, what an amazing analogy that is! Often, God shows Himself to us, and asks us to follow Him. We get excited and tell other people, (as Lucy did) but when they don't believe us and scorn what we have to say, we give up and decide to follow them. God wants us to follow Him, even if no one else is. We are never alone, because He is with us. And in the end, if we follow Him, we find out (as Lucy did, but it would take too long to quote the whole episode) that following Him is the only safe thing to do, and it leads to victory!

Every day I must make the choice to follow Him, through dark and seemingly dangerous paths and unknown territory, even if it means being abandoned and mocked by everyone. His path is not always the easiest, but it is the only one that lead to life!

Idols

Hello everyone! I suppose it's about time I wrote a post. Well, I had a wonderful Christmas! I got 3 books - "The Pleasures of God" by John Piper, and "The Lost Art of True Beauty" and "Sacred Singleness" by Leslie Ludy. Wow, they are such great books! God has been teaching me so much recently. He has been calling me to lay everything down at His feet... all my desires, all my dreams, and all of my "rights." But once I lay them down, He satisfies me with His love, which is so much more wonderful than anything the world could give me! I love the passage in Matthew chapter 4 about Jesus being tempted.

"Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him, 'All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.' Then Jesus said to him, 'Away with you, Satan! For it is written, "You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve."' Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him."

Often Satan offers us "pleasures" and "glories." All he asks in return is that we worship him by making those pleasures idols in our lives. And all too often, we agree to his terms and believe his lies. But Jesus said, "Away with you, Satan! For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'" That is what our response should be. And when we do that, we get much greater blessings. An intimate relationship with Jesus Christ is so much more wonderful than any of Satan's lies could ever be.

I also wanted to tell you all that I deleted my facebook. That was a huge step for me. It's not that facebook is, in and of itself, "bad." But for me, it became and idol. I found myself wasting so much time on it, and caring way too much what people thought of me through it. Often I based my social "worth" on how many comments I got, or something like that. God was asking me to give it up for Him, and He enabled me to do it. And honestly, I don't miss it! I still have email and blogger to keep up in touch with people, and I have so much more time to do God's will because I'm not wasting it on facebook! God has torn that idol from my life, as He is doing with many others. And the process is oh, so painful at times, but so worth it! He is so good, all the time!

Some thoughts on God's love and my life :)

Hello all! God has been SO good to me lately. This week I have been growing so much in Him. I've been learning about just how much he loves us.

I think that too often we get into a mindset of thinking, "Okay, if I can just do this right... if I can just do the right thing, obey God... THEN God will love me and be pleased with me." That is just not the case! God loves us SO, SO much!! His love is not dependent on our works! Song of Solomon describes God's perfect love for us... "You have ravished my heart, My sister, my spouse; You have ravished my heart With one look of your eyes, With one link of your necklace." (Song of Solomon 4:9) Put into modern terms, God says "You make my heart beat faster... I LOVE it when you look to me!" WOW!! Do you get what that's saying? God doesn't just think, "Well, yes, I guess I'll forgive you... I'll be good to you and answer your prayers just because I'm good, even though you're a loser, even though you stink, and even though I can't stand you..." Not at all! He is in love with us. Take a look at a newly married couple... they can't get enough of each other! They are obsessed with each other, really! They love to make each other happy! That is how God feels about us! Isn't that amazing?! We can't comprehend how much God loves us. It is SO wonderful! We don't have to be discouraged by our sins, or by how difficult life is, because God will always be faithful, and will always do us good!

On a somewhat different note, let me tell you what I've been up to lately! I have been really busy with school. I start at about 8:30 in the morning, take an hour for lunch, and get done around 4:30 most days. Some days though, like today and yesterday, are much busier! Yesterday I got to go shopping! I went to Salvation Army and Second Impressions - two second hand stores. :) Salvation army is a donation store, so it has lots of junk mixed in with a few nice items. But, if you look hard enough, you can get some great clothing for hardly any cost at all! I got lots of nice skirts and shirts there. Second Impressions is a consignment shop, so the prices are a little higher but the clothes of beautiful! I got a pair of nice, modest pants for $9 in excellent condition! Today has been busy also. I had a full school day, plus piano and voice lessons. It has been a wonderful day - I am so thankful that I get to have music lessons! It's getting late though, and I still have some school to do, so I'd better get off! ;) Thanks for taking the time to read! :)

Kentucky - Part 2

Okay, and now for the conclusion! :)

We were home for only 1 week before we went back to Erik's house again. This trip was a lot easier, but still had a lot of challenges. We were SO blessed. It's amazing how God has lead Erik all of the way... giving him the perfect job at the Creation Museum, leading him to a house in Petersburg, blessing him with a wonderful church family... everything!

I was with my awesome friends every day -it was SO much fun! When I'm with them, I can be myself. Even in spite of me being a total loser sometimes, they still loved me! It was really refreshing. We had tons of fun, crazy times, good talks, lots of laughs, and fellowship in Jesus Christ. What more could I ask for?!

Above: Lauren, Me, Patty, Otto ~~~ Below: Autumn, Patty, Me, Gwen

Below: Me, Patty, Candy, Otto

And Joseph. :) He wasn't there the day we took the other pictures, so I had to get a different one.


I got home again Monday, the 11th. It's been weird trying to get back into the rhythm of school/life/etc. I've been so blessed being home again though... I've missed my good friends here! God has also been working in me so much... I've been reminded of how important it is to live life 110% surrendered to Jesus Christ - not holding back, not distracted, not looking to anything or anyone but Him. He is enough. He is so much more than enough!

Kentucky - Part 1

Whoa! I haven't posted in a LONG time! The reason is that I have been in Kentucky for most of it! Yes, I know, I was only going to be there for a week... but things didn't go as planned... at all!! I don't know where to begin because so much has happened. I guess I'll have to leave out all of the details and just sum up.

Erik's house was a wreck at first!! We worked for a whole week and got some stuff put together, but not nearly all of it. It just so happened that Erik decided t get a well drilled, and God perfectly worked it out that he was able to get one right away!! You have NO idea how amazing that is! Many people wait months or even years to get their well drilled by the person who drilled his well. God's timing is amazing!!

Since he was getting a well drilled, though, we had to stay until it was finished. That meant that we stayed all the way until September 25 - more than 2 weeks!! It worked out so well, though, because we were able to get a lot more work done.

And, while I was down there, I met an AMAZING family - the Neffs!! They are the Pastor's family of Erik's church. I ended up hanging out with them every single day the second week of our trip! I've become really, really close with them... it was so hard to say goodbye! We had lots of fun, and God taught me SO much on the trip. In spite of how hard some things were, it turned out to be an amazing trip!!

We got home on Saturday night, the 25th. As it turned out, there was so much work left to do on Erik's house that we ended up going back a week later! I'll write about that another time though... I'm worn out from typing! :) Thanks for taking the time to read!

Me? Fun? Is it possible?

So I was thinking today. (Amazing, right?) And I realized that most people write blogs that are actually fun to read, and well, my blog is usually pretty boring. So that made me even more thankful for the followers I do have! And it also made me think that I would like to make my blog more fun and interesting. Aren't you excited?! Haha, I am!

Anyway. I was also thinking about how amazing it is that God just will NOT let go of me! I couldn't run from Him if I wanted to! Despite all of my sin, my selfishness, and everything about me, HE is still GOD! He is an amazing Lover and Friend.

And guess what! I'm going to Kentucky this week! Erik, as I have mentioned, is moving to Kentucky - only a few miles from the Creation Museum! I am going to miss Him so much. :'( So we are going down for about 9 days (including travel time) to help him clean, fix, and set up his new home. I think it will be really fun! Whenever I have access to internet, I let you know how it's going. :D

God bless!
~Christy