Giving Thanks Where It's Due

Being thankful is truly an understatement.

I take for granted the things God has blessed me with on a regular basis. I don't think I'll ever fully comprehend how blessed I am. A New Year's resolution is starting early for me...giving thanks on a daily basis. Throughout the day today, I made a list of the things I take for granted.

God's grace. Family. My best friend. The support I'm surrounded with. Love. Trials. God's blessings. The little things. A house. Food.

The list does continue, I have it written in my journal...but hopefully the point was made. I read the book "The Hole in Our Gospel" this past summer and today I read some again...realizing how much I have in comparison to the majority of the world. So many live in poverty and starvation and here I am worrying that I'm eating TOO much. Something's wrong with that picture.

Realizing how thankful you are makes you see how little others have.

Divine Appointments are Irreplaceable

I was overly excited about coming home this week, but I didn't know why. It was just another visit home, nothing special. But through my quiet times and talks with God, I've seen that He put the urgency in my heart to really reach out to my family this week, showing them the light of the gospel in everything I do and say. I haven't noticed my actions being different, but I sure have had a lot of comments about them -- which could be taken as a compliment or as an insult of how I used to act.

My mom hit my car yesterday. Backed straight into it. Her excuse...I was looking at how cute Sandy was laying on her pillow (Sandy is my dog). Was I angry? Oh yeah. I mean, come on, she just seriously injured Misty (Yes, my car has a name). So that was situation #1. Thankfully, God put me in an awesome mood during my quiet time that morning and my best friend gave me some solid advice to calm me down. It wasn't until that night that I saw how my reaction impacted my mom.

Today was a pretty eventful one. I spent the day with my grandma visiting residents at the nursing home. My grandma goes every Tuesday and volunteers, so I asked if I could join her this week. Hearing nothing but compliments about my grandma and how they love her visits made me realize how lucky I am to have this amazing woman as my grandmother. She is one of the best role models a woman could ask for -- selfless, humble, caring, forgiving. The last room we went in, we visited a lady who was reading her Bible. Seeing that immediately brought a smile to my face. She was a wonderful woman and I got the priviledge of talking to her for almost an hour. She was telling me how she had wished she had "gotten into the Bible" (the phrase she used very frequently) earlier in life and how much it had changed her perspective. The whole time I listened to how God had put peace in her heart, all I could think about was how I haven't been setting aside time to acknowledge the peace I've gotten from Him. There she sits, all day every day, in a nursing home....and she's joyful. That joy can only be from God alone. It was so humbling to hear all she had learned and we ended up reading a passage out of John together before I left. I was able to tell her about my interest in going to Australia this summer on a missions trip and I have never experienced the kind of encouragement I got from her in just the few minutes we had together. Women like her are who I admire. Divine appointment indeed, thanks God.

We sang this song together before I left her room...with tears rolling down our cheeks.

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
when sorrows like sea billows roll;

whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well with my soul. 

It is well with my soul, 
it is well, it is well with my soul. 

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, 
let this blest assurance control, 
that Christ has regarded my helpless estate, 
and hath shed his own blood for my soul. 

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole, 
is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more, 
praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!  

And, Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight, 
the clouds be rolled back as a scroll; 
the trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend, 
even so, it is well with my soul. 

Being Saved Daily

God used Cameron like no other tonight at Aletheia. Repentance and Faith shouldn't occur once, they should occur daily.

Purify me daily. Make me white as snow.

"Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Restore me to the joy of Your salvation and sustain me with a willing spirit." -Psalm 51:10,12

We have to approach God as David did...knowing that we did wrong, knowing that we are sorry, and knowing that God has the power to sustain us.

Break us down so You can build us up stronger.

New Opportunities and New Albums

Does God think I'm ready? Do I think I'm ready?

Those two questions have been on repeat in my mind the last 2 days. I was offered a position that requires responsibility, leadership, and faith. Was I happy that I was asked? Of course. But after the initial excitement, those two questions suddenly surfaced.

Responsibility isn't my main concern. I'm an overall pretty responsible person, or least I tell myself I am. And the faith part is for the most part solid. I have learned from experience and continue to see that one's faith can cause the unthinkable to happen. The word leadership, that's what gets me.

"A Christian leader is first and foremost a servant, a slave. They don't lead with words, they lead by example."

Do I meet this criteria? Only God knows, and only He will decide. Praying and seeking is pretty much what I can do.

Two more "news" occurred today...
1) NEW Chris Tomlin album came out - it is absolutely amazing!!!!
2) NEW Glee Christmas album came out - also amazing :)

Chris Tomlin is a "I love God so much" type of amazing and Glee is a "book in one hand, chai tea latte in the other, sitting in front of a fireplace" type of amazing.

One more new that can be added to the list...a NEW read. Radical by David Platt. I'm starting it tonight. Pretty stoked. I've heard some wonderful things about it :)

Inspiration From A Stranger

Do You Love More More than this Hurts

I was having a rough time
My problems were weighing heavily on my mind

I felt crowded, I wanted a place to run away and hide
I felt like I was choking from swallowing my pride

I didn't do as Ephesians 6:14, "Stand having your Loins About Your Girt"
When a Loving Voice asked me, "Do you Love Me More than this Hurts?"

I thought about it and thought about it for awhile
Again the Voice spoke and said, "Answer Me, My Child"

I said, "Yes Lord, yes I really do."
He said, "Trust Me, Praise Me, and this I'll bring you through."

"I know how much you're suffering; I know how much you've lost"
"Even though it hurt Me, I still went to the Cross."

Then I stood back and took a good look at myself
I should have been doing for others, but now I needed help

By looking at me you'd never know, that a Mighty God we serve
I had really gotten out of His Will, really gotten out of His Word

By looking at me and talking to me
You would have never known we have the Victory

So right then and there I got myself together and with the Word I make my attack.
All satan took from me in the Name of Jesus I took it back.

For all the things he had taken I didn't put up a real fight
I was looking at the problem, didn't use my Faith but my sight

If you have a problem, it sometimes will bring pain to the heart and flesh
Don't give up! Continue in Jesus to do your best

Stand on His Word and Trust Him for in Him we still have much work.
For you alone can answer the question:
Do you Love Me More than this Hurts?


This beautiful poem is from the pen of one of His children, Miss. Hatton. I was blessed to meet her last night at the banquet I attended. She introduced herself, and not long after, handed me this poem and told me she wanted me to have this.

This poem shares the gospel in such a unique way. It brings to light the ultimate power God has over us, what He can do, and what He can mold us into. We can't live without Jesus and His unending grace. It's impossible. Accepting that is the first step...realizing that we, as humans, are completely incapable of doing "life" on our own. We have sinned. We are broken. We are filthy. We have nothing. We realize we are worthless and we ask for His forgiveness -- we repent. The second part...believing what Jesus Christ did for us on that cross, is where faith comes into play. Those nails were nailed through his hands and feet for a reason. Just like all of those slanderous comments, a beating that most can't even imagine, betrayal from his closest friends, and loneliness. It was planned for a reason. That reason was us. Saving us from what we deserve...death. He took our place, and He did it flawlessly.

If you can accept, repent, and believe and are willing to spend the rest of your life doing so...then God is standing with arms outstretched saying, "Welcome home."

Glorification comes through Satisfaction

Tonight was the PRM Banquet, a night truly revealing God's glory and all that He has done in the lives of those at the mission as well as those who serve or have served. Tonight, a fellow counselor from camp and I had the privilege of sharing our testimonies of how camp this summer impacted our lives. If you have followed this blog at all, you will know that this camp did wonders in my life (if you have no idea what I'm talking about, read my blogs from late August).

Tonight was the first time I've ever spoken in front of a room of about 800 people. If you know me at all, you know that public speaking isn't something I will necessarily volunteer for. But this was something different, something that I wanted to share. God's impact in my life over these last 2 years has changed me -- a change I can't quite describe in words. He has taken the fear of talking about Him out of my heart and replaced it with an urgency to tell people what He's all about and show them living proof of His work (me).

Tonight I shared a testimony -- 5 minutes of how God is constantly showing Himself in my life. And you know what is crazy? I hardly prepared (speaking wise), but when I stood on the stage with lights focused solely on me, 800 pairs of eyes watching...all I felt was peace. Fear had fled and in it's place God left serenity.

Tonight I knew that God put me on that stage for a reason, a reason I may never know. But I do know this much, that it's only by His grace and His presence in my heart that I successfully shared my experience of camp in front of those people.

Tonight I felt God. He filled me. He encouraged me. He held my hand. He was there...working in my heart as well as those in the audience.

"God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him." -John Piper

Tonight's mission: Glorifying God.
Mission Complete.

The Little Things

It's that time of the year. red cup time :)

...I'll refrain from listening/singing to Christmas music. But only for 2 more weeks. Once that turkey is gone, it's all garland, cinnamon, and gingerbread lattes from then on.