HI!!!!! :D
Happiness overload.
Oh yes.
SO. I have not blogged in a really long time, partly due to computer issues, and before that, lack of things to write about.
But in the time that I have not been able to blog, I have had so many things to write about, I don't think I will remember them all.
The first one that I'll mention happened yesterday, and this is just one of those kinds of moments that I think I have shared before and most Christians reading this will recognize. I was really having a bad day. I'm not going to share exactly why, but I felt really upset, and I was trying to do good and be...good, I guess. But everything was just failing and I felt like it was my fault and I just couldn't do anything right.
As I mentioned before, my computer has not been working, so as I was pretty much at my wit's end, I was finally able to get on Facebook and the first thing I read was, "I wish I could express how good God is."
I knew I needed to be reminded. I know He is good all the time but sometimes He feels a million miles away, so I read on.
There was more about how good He is, but what really spoke to me was the verse,
Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit. Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it. The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and his ears toward their cry. The face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth. When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. (Psalm 34:13-18)
Oh man.
I would not call myself righteous by definition, but the bible says that I am righteous. Abraham was called righteous because of his faith, and God calls me righteous for the same reason. So I believe that God put this verse there at that time for me to read, because He knew I needed to be reminded that His eyes are toward me and He hears my cry, when I cried for help He heard me, and He will deliver me from my troubles. He is near to me and He will save me.
Ahhhhhh........
Anyways, so that was the first thing. This is going to be a long post, sorry guys. :P
The second thing is this, does anyone remember my post from November called A Day To Remember? It was about my sister who had a miscarriage. Since then she is pregnant again, this time with TWINS!
But there is a problem. She has a negative blood type and her husband is positive, that means that the babies have a 50/50 chance of getting either positive or negative. So if she happens to be carrying a positive baby, her body can develop antibodies which can potentially attack the baby. You are supposed to get a shot to prevent them from forming if you are a negative blood type.
We didn't know this at first, so during her first pregnancy that is what happened.
Once they develop though, there is no getting rid of them, they are there to stay, and will be a danger to all future pregnancies. They can't shrink either, they only grow. It is scientifically impossible for them to go away.
But we believe in miracles. :)
At our prayer meeting at church, we have been praying for these babies, and we have been praying the impossible, that the antibodies will disappear.
A few weeks later my sister came home from her midwife appointment to report that her midwife was astonished to find that they had shrunk. They were so small they were barely traceable, and she really didn't know whether to worry about them or not.
We didn't stop praying though, we kept praying that they would go away completely, and as of a few weeks ago, they are GONE.
Completely. Disappeared.
HALLELUJAH!! :D
AND, if you want more miracles, read this earlier post if you haven't already, So Strong, and then check out what is happening with these twins, https://www.facebook.com/senntwins
Have a great day!
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Monday, June 2, 2014
Encourager
My God is an Encourager.
And for this, I am blessed.
Recently I have been wrestling with a lot of discouragement. So I have been praying for some kind of encouragement. In any form really, I'm not picky.
On Friday I went to a craft show to sell bracelets, (if you don't know what that is all about, read 'Bracelets for Ballet' on the right side of the screen) it was a three day show, Friday night, and then Saturday and Sunday.
So the last two days were much like any other show, except a bit slower.
But then today was like a "Hey! You asked for encouragement, you're gonna get it!" kind of day. :D
This may not seem so awesome to you guys just reading this, but to me, it meant a lot.
I met a girl on Friday who told me today that she is a professional dancer. She told me good luck with our bracelets and gave me some contact information and said that she does free dance workshops sometimes if I was interested.
That was super exciting!
And then after that a girl came over and asked where I was planning on taking dance lessons. I told her either the Dance Barre or Academie Ste Cecile, and she said she works at the Dance Barre! How crazy is that?
She bought a bracelet and then continued on her way. A few minutes later I saw her talking with a guy who I assumed was her brother, and in a few seconds he came my way with a five dollar bill in hand.
He came up and said that he doesn't really wear bracelets, so he didn't want to buy anything, but he said he liked what I was doing, and he wanted to support me. "My sister is a dancer," he said, "and for someone to not get lessons...that really hits home for me."
That made me so happy...you have no idea. :)
Talking with these three people really made me realize how many people come by and buy a bracelet just to support us. It makes me really grateful.
I feel like someday if I become a professional dancer, I will be in some interview, and I'll be like, "I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for God, my parents, etc. etc., and I just want to thank that one guy at a craft show a long time ago who told me never to give up, and that lady at another craft show who told me I was pretty and to keep on going, and that other guy at the same craft show as the lady who gave me twenty dollars!" At this point I will look at the person who is interviewing me, "Can you believe that? TWENTY DOLLARS! For a THREE DOLLAR BRACELET." Then I will keep going, "And that little boy who only had a quarter but he gave it to me so I could take ballet, and that one..." The reporter will probably have to shut me up. I have had so many people that I am so grateful for, who didn't know me, but just felt like blessing me. :)
These people are so encouraging, and I know it is God who used them to encourage me.
He is my Encourager.
He is awesome.
And for this, I am blessed.
Recently I have been wrestling with a lot of discouragement. So I have been praying for some kind of encouragement. In any form really, I'm not picky.
On Friday I went to a craft show to sell bracelets, (if you don't know what that is all about, read 'Bracelets for Ballet' on the right side of the screen) it was a three day show, Friday night, and then Saturday and Sunday.
So the last two days were much like any other show, except a bit slower.
But then today was like a "Hey! You asked for encouragement, you're gonna get it!" kind of day. :D
This may not seem so awesome to you guys just reading this, but to me, it meant a lot.
I met a girl on Friday who told me today that she is a professional dancer. She told me good luck with our bracelets and gave me some contact information and said that she does free dance workshops sometimes if I was interested.
That was super exciting!
And then after that a girl came over and asked where I was planning on taking dance lessons. I told her either the Dance Barre or Academie Ste Cecile, and she said she works at the Dance Barre! How crazy is that?
She bought a bracelet and then continued on her way. A few minutes later I saw her talking with a guy who I assumed was her brother, and in a few seconds he came my way with a five dollar bill in hand.
He came up and said that he doesn't really wear bracelets, so he didn't want to buy anything, but he said he liked what I was doing, and he wanted to support me. "My sister is a dancer," he said, "and for someone to not get lessons...that really hits home for me."
That made me so happy...you have no idea. :)
Talking with these three people really made me realize how many people come by and buy a bracelet just to support us. It makes me really grateful.
I feel like someday if I become a professional dancer, I will be in some interview, and I'll be like, "I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for God, my parents, etc. etc., and I just want to thank that one guy at a craft show a long time ago who told me never to give up, and that lady at another craft show who told me I was pretty and to keep on going, and that other guy at the same craft show as the lady who gave me twenty dollars!" At this point I will look at the person who is interviewing me, "Can you believe that? TWENTY DOLLARS! For a THREE DOLLAR BRACELET." Then I will keep going, "And that little boy who only had a quarter but he gave it to me so I could take ballet, and that one..." The reporter will probably have to shut me up. I have had so many people that I am so grateful for, who didn't know me, but just felt like blessing me. :)
These people are so encouraging, and I know it is God who used them to encourage me.
He is my Encourager.
He is awesome.
Monday, May 19, 2014
His Beautiful Picture
Good afternoon y'all! Or Good Whatever-time-of-day-it-happens-to-be-when-you-read-this, I am sure it can be just as fabulous as any other time of day. :)
I am thinking of actually changing this blog to a Bible insights/God sightings blog, because that is what the majority of my posts seem to be about...what do you think? Please comment and let me know.
Anyways, so, I don't have a specific passage or anything to talk about, I just had a really cool mental image the other day that I wanted to share.
For anyone who has not read my earlier post, Reading Genesis Again, I am going through the old testament with a new perspective. The new perspective is that, instead of just reading it for face value, I am searching for prophecies about Jesus, places it mentions Jesus, or just things that resemble the character of God, that I would not have noticed before. I am still in Genesis, but a lot further along than I was when I wrote that.
So the other day I was reading, and I came across a place that prophesied about Jesus.
Thinking about this, I thought about life as a story. God is the Author, and we are His characters. He is writing the story, and He is in every page, holding it all together.
This brought on a new train of thought, thinking of life as a tapestry. God is the Weaver, and we are His threads. From our perspective, all we see is a mess of thread, because we are part of it, we do not have the point of view to see what He is weaving.
Then I thought, He is weaving a picture of Himself. He is throughout the picture, in every part of it, He IS the picture, He IS the life.
That brought on a new thought, I thought about war. The holocaust. How death and pain are also throughout history, how can that make a beautiful picture?
Again, we are too near sighted. We don't see it from the Weaver's perspective.
Every time there is war, every time there is hurt, the blood stains the thread.
In the end, when the picture is finished, it will be a picture of Him, the stained threads His wounds that He endured for our sake.
It won't JUST be a picture of Him, I realized, it will be a picture of what He did. It will show that the mistakes we made that stained the tapestry, He made them stain Him, so that the picture would be perfect.
So remember that whatever you are going through at any time in your life, you don't see the bigger picture. You may just see a mess of thread, but God can use it to weave His beautiful picture.
I am thinking of actually changing this blog to a Bible insights/God sightings blog, because that is what the majority of my posts seem to be about...what do you think? Please comment and let me know.
Anyways, so, I don't have a specific passage or anything to talk about, I just had a really cool mental image the other day that I wanted to share.
For anyone who has not read my earlier post, Reading Genesis Again, I am going through the old testament with a new perspective. The new perspective is that, instead of just reading it for face value, I am searching for prophecies about Jesus, places it mentions Jesus, or just things that resemble the character of God, that I would not have noticed before. I am still in Genesis, but a lot further along than I was when I wrote that.
So the other day I was reading, and I came across a place that prophesied about Jesus.
Thinking about this, I thought about life as a story. God is the Author, and we are His characters. He is writing the story, and He is in every page, holding it all together.
This brought on a new train of thought, thinking of life as a tapestry. God is the Weaver, and we are His threads. From our perspective, all we see is a mess of thread, because we are part of it, we do not have the point of view to see what He is weaving.
Then I thought, He is weaving a picture of Himself. He is throughout the picture, in every part of it, He IS the picture, He IS the life.
That brought on a new thought, I thought about war. The holocaust. How death and pain are also throughout history, how can that make a beautiful picture?
Again, we are too near sighted. We don't see it from the Weaver's perspective.
Every time there is war, every time there is hurt, the blood stains the thread.
In the end, when the picture is finished, it will be a picture of Him, the stained threads His wounds that He endured for our sake.
It won't JUST be a picture of Him, I realized, it will be a picture of what He did. It will show that the mistakes we made that stained the tapestry, He made them stain Him, so that the picture would be perfect.
So remember that whatever you are going through at any time in your life, you don't see the bigger picture. You may just see a mess of thread, but God can use it to weave His beautiful picture.
Thursday, May 15, 2014
Standing Alone
I just wanted to share a cool picture I got a few days ago.
On June 7th, at Marlborough School, put on by Ambassador Baptist Church in West Windsor, we are having a carnival to reach out into the community. (If you want to come, information is at the bottom)
So a few days ago, myself and two of my siblings went around to the neighborhood houses delivering cards for it, and one house I came to had a really interesting thing in front of their porch.
There was a beautiful single tall yellow tulip beside the steps, it far out-shone the flowers around it. But the others, for whatever reason, were all bend away from it, as though they were avoiding it.
At first I just thought it was weird, but as I thought about it, I came to realize that it shows a picture of what the world is like.
God is awesome.
The more I know about Him, the closer I come to Him, to more I realize that. He seems to get better and better every time I learn something new.
I feel like something that beautiful should attract people, should draw them in, but instead, they are all shrinking away. Leaning as far away from Him as they can, even though their stems might break because they are so bent.
I just thought that was cool.
And now for anyone who is interested in the carnival that we are putting on, here is the card with the details. :)
On June 7th, at Marlborough School, put on by Ambassador Baptist Church in West Windsor, we are having a carnival to reach out into the community. (If you want to come, information is at the bottom)
So a few days ago, myself and two of my siblings went around to the neighborhood houses delivering cards for it, and one house I came to had a really interesting thing in front of their porch.
There was a beautiful single tall yellow tulip beside the steps, it far out-shone the flowers around it. But the others, for whatever reason, were all bend away from it, as though they were avoiding it.
At first I just thought it was weird, but as I thought about it, I came to realize that it shows a picture of what the world is like.
God is awesome.
The more I know about Him, the closer I come to Him, to more I realize that. He seems to get better and better every time I learn something new.
I feel like something that beautiful should attract people, should draw them in, but instead, they are all shrinking away. Leaning as far away from Him as they can, even though their stems might break because they are so bent.
I just thought that was cool.
And now for anyone who is interested in the carnival that we are putting on, here is the card with the details. :)
Thursday, May 8, 2014
A Familiar Smile
Siblings are gifts.
This is something I learned again yesterday.
Yesterday was just one of those days. I probably seemed totally normal to everyone around me, but through most of the day I was fighting a battle inside my head, trying to weakly fight off attacks of "You aren't good enough," "You'll never achieve your goals," "You can never work hard enough," etc., and failing miserably.
Near the end of the day, I was stretching after a ballet class in my living room, and I came to a point where I looked over and saw my sister who is way more flexible than I am, and pretty nearly had a break down.
But just then my older sister walked in and started to make me laugh. Within seconds I had forgotten the weight of the day and was able to laugh and appreciate her company.
I thought about it a lot afterwards. It's amazing how big a blessing something as simple as talking and laughing can be.
And I am thankful for the familiar faces around me, the ones that can snap me out of a depressed mood simply by walking over and smiling.
This is something I learned again yesterday.
Yesterday was just one of those days. I probably seemed totally normal to everyone around me, but through most of the day I was fighting a battle inside my head, trying to weakly fight off attacks of "You aren't good enough," "You'll never achieve your goals," "You can never work hard enough," etc., and failing miserably.
Near the end of the day, I was stretching after a ballet class in my living room, and I came to a point where I looked over and saw my sister who is way more flexible than I am, and pretty nearly had a break down.
But just then my older sister walked in and started to make me laugh. Within seconds I had forgotten the weight of the day and was able to laugh and appreciate her company.
I thought about it a lot afterwards. It's amazing how big a blessing something as simple as talking and laughing can be.
And I am thankful for the familiar faces around me, the ones that can snap me out of a depressed mood simply by walking over and smiling.
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
In This World You Will Have Trouble...
Hey again!
So...in the beginning when I created this blog, I was meaning for it to be just looking into life's blessings and showing them to Christians and non Christians alike, but as I keep posting, my posts are more and more from a Christian perspective.
I hope you guys don't mind, there is just too much that I love about God to not post it on here.
So, I have another one. :) Surprise!
If anyone has checked out my business that I own with my two little sisters, you will probably have discovered that we are trying to raise a lot of money for ballet lessons and time is our enemy.
Recently I have been feeling very overwhelmed by it, because I feel like there is no way I am going to get the money when I need it, and I won't be able to take lessons.
Some of you might say, "Well that is okay, just save up for next year."
The problem with this is that I am already 15 years old, and that is LATE to be starting taking lessons. If I want to be a professional someday, ideally, I should have started when I was 2 or 3.
So I am feeling the pressure. A lot. And I really want to take lessons this year.
I keep telling myself that if God wants me to get lessons, He will make sure I get lessons. I am doing my best to raise the money, so I need to leave it in His hands. But then I get bombarded with thoughts like, What if He doesn't want you to take lessons? What if He wants you to do more than you are doing to raise money? What if... The doubts never end.
But then yesterday I went to prayer meeting at our church, and my dad read John 16 to open up, and right at the end this verse just stood out like it was taking up the whole page, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)
I can have peace in Him. I can rest in Him. The matter is really in His hands.
In this world I will have trouble, I will have doubts and fears, and maybe I will never get to take dance lessons, but He tells me to take heart, because HE HAS OVERCOME THE WORLD.
So...in the beginning when I created this blog, I was meaning for it to be just looking into life's blessings and showing them to Christians and non Christians alike, but as I keep posting, my posts are more and more from a Christian perspective.
I hope you guys don't mind, there is just too much that I love about God to not post it on here.
So, I have another one. :) Surprise!
If anyone has checked out my business that I own with my two little sisters, you will probably have discovered that we are trying to raise a lot of money for ballet lessons and time is our enemy.
Recently I have been feeling very overwhelmed by it, because I feel like there is no way I am going to get the money when I need it, and I won't be able to take lessons.
Some of you might say, "Well that is okay, just save up for next year."
The problem with this is that I am already 15 years old, and that is LATE to be starting taking lessons. If I want to be a professional someday, ideally, I should have started when I was 2 or 3.
So I am feeling the pressure. A lot. And I really want to take lessons this year.
I keep telling myself that if God wants me to get lessons, He will make sure I get lessons. I am doing my best to raise the money, so I need to leave it in His hands. But then I get bombarded with thoughts like, What if He doesn't want you to take lessons? What if He wants you to do more than you are doing to raise money? What if... The doubts never end.
But then yesterday I went to prayer meeting at our church, and my dad read John 16 to open up, and right at the end this verse just stood out like it was taking up the whole page, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)
I can have peace in Him. I can rest in Him. The matter is really in His hands.
In this world I will have trouble, I will have doubts and fears, and maybe I will never get to take dance lessons, but He tells me to take heart, because HE HAS OVERCOME THE WORLD.
Tuesday, April 22, 2014
"Mary."
Wow, yeah, it's been a while.
Sorry about that.
But here I am again, and I have something AMAZING to say! Well, it is amazing to me. I hope someone else is amazed as well.
I have always known this, it's one of those things that Christians grow up hearing all of their lives, and then one day you are just like, "WOW! Seriously?!?! YEEEEEEEESSSSSSS!!!!!"
This thought came from our Easter Sunday service at church, in which our pastor was talking about Mary Magdalene.
In case anybody doesn't know who she is, you can read about her in Matthew 27:56, 61; 28:1; Mark 15:40, 47; 16:1-19; Luke 8:2; 24:10; John 19:25; 20:1-18. Although if you are going to read these, I suggest reading before and after these verses, because these don't tell you the story, they just tell you where she is mentioned.
Mary Magdalene has been one of my favorite women bible characters ever since I first read Luke 8:2,
And certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils,...
I've always felt like I can relate to her, because when I became a Christian, I was lifted out of TONS of bondage. It was like a million pound weight had been lifted off of my back, and I know that the more God brought me out of, the greater reason I have to be thankful.
I didn't have seven demons. Mary was under that much more bondage, she had that much more weight on her back, and Jesus lifted it off for her just as He lifted mine off for me.
So although I know I did not come from nearly the same place that she did, I have always felt like, We both have so much to be thankful for.
Before I go on to my awesome moment, I want to tell you another thing which made it even better. I am not a very quick learner. When it comes to bible stuff I feel a little bit helpless, and like I want to know these things, I want to know about Jesus, but I can't, because I don't know how to teach myself, I don't know how to study. So for years I have been asking God, "Teach me, because I can't do it on my own. I don't know how to study, so show me. I don't know how to understand, so open my eyes and teach me."
And He answers prayer! He has been teaching me all the way, and I know that He will continue to teach me. He is my Teacher.
So when our pastor was reading the story, and he came to John 20:16, (read before this before reading on, if you have not before. It makes it all that much better.) Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher).
That is about enough to make my heart stop.
All He said was her name, but she knew it was Him. That...I can't even...just WOW. Hearing that was like hearing Jesus saying, "Keturah." It was Him talking to His friend, He didn't just say her name, He said it in a personal way because He knew her personally. He knows me! He knew her! And He knows me! He knows my name. This is so amazing.
And then, in response, she turned and said to Him, "Teacher!" Another personal thing, because He taught her. Not just as a face in the crowd, but He taught her. And He teaches me.
I'm sorry if I am really repetitive, I am never sure if I made the point clear enough.
Have a great day, and know that you are not just a face in the crowd, but Jesus knows you, and He knows your name. Listen for it, He's calling it.
Sorry about that.
But here I am again, and I have something AMAZING to say! Well, it is amazing to me. I hope someone else is amazed as well.
I have always known this, it's one of those things that Christians grow up hearing all of their lives, and then one day you are just like, "WOW! Seriously?!?! YEEEEEEEESSSSSSS!!!!!"
This thought came from our Easter Sunday service at church, in which our pastor was talking about Mary Magdalene.
In case anybody doesn't know who she is, you can read about her in Matthew 27:56, 61; 28:1; Mark 15:40, 47; 16:1-19; Luke 8:2; 24:10; John 19:25; 20:1-18. Although if you are going to read these, I suggest reading before and after these verses, because these don't tell you the story, they just tell you where she is mentioned.
Mary Magdalene has been one of my favorite women bible characters ever since I first read Luke 8:2,
And certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils,...
I've always felt like I can relate to her, because when I became a Christian, I was lifted out of TONS of bondage. It was like a million pound weight had been lifted off of my back, and I know that the more God brought me out of, the greater reason I have to be thankful.
I didn't have seven demons. Mary was under that much more bondage, she had that much more weight on her back, and Jesus lifted it off for her just as He lifted mine off for me.
So although I know I did not come from nearly the same place that she did, I have always felt like, We both have so much to be thankful for.
Before I go on to my awesome moment, I want to tell you another thing which made it even better. I am not a very quick learner. When it comes to bible stuff I feel a little bit helpless, and like I want to know these things, I want to know about Jesus, but I can't, because I don't know how to teach myself, I don't know how to study. So for years I have been asking God, "Teach me, because I can't do it on my own. I don't know how to study, so show me. I don't know how to understand, so open my eyes and teach me."
And He answers prayer! He has been teaching me all the way, and I know that He will continue to teach me. He is my Teacher.
So when our pastor was reading the story, and he came to John 20:16, (read before this before reading on, if you have not before. It makes it all that much better.) Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher).
That is about enough to make my heart stop.
All He said was her name, but she knew it was Him. That...I can't even...just WOW. Hearing that was like hearing Jesus saying, "Keturah." It was Him talking to His friend, He didn't just say her name, He said it in a personal way because He knew her personally. He knows me! He knew her! And He knows me! He knows my name. This is so amazing.
And then, in response, she turned and said to Him, "Teacher!" Another personal thing, because He taught her. Not just as a face in the crowd, but He taught her. And He teaches me.
I'm sorry if I am really repetitive, I am never sure if I made the point clear enough.
Have a great day, and know that you are not just a face in the crowd, but Jesus knows you, and He knows your name. Listen for it, He's calling it.
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