True Beauty

 "Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God." -1 Peter 3:3

I love this verse so much. It is such a great reminder of what true beauty looks like. It is so easy to get caught up in society's views of beauty, instead of wrapping ourselves in the Truth. It's so awesome, the Creator of the universe made me. He thought of me. And He loves me. And He sees me as beautiful. Society's opinion will change, but the Lord's remains the same. I wish it was easier to grasp this truth and hold onto it. So that's what I'm going to work on. Being confident in who I am through Christ, and remembering this precious scripture.

New and Improved

Okay, so I had a revelation today... I am not going to worry about the things that are out of my control. I am not going to spend another moment stressing myself out over someone who needs time to heal. Even though it hurts me to see how much pain they are in, there is nothing I can do. Right now I am just trusting God and letting Him guide me to do what is in His will. He has a plan and I am resting in that. Now I just get to sit back and enjoy dating my best friend. Even with all the junk, I wouldn't change anything. Because when I'm with him, I'm happy. And I'm comfortable and everything just feels right. And I am loving every second of it.

Love this

Overwhelmed

Ever have those days when you just think about life? And wonder if you are really living life the way God wants you to live? And then you are just consumed with thoughts about life and then you become overwhelmed with all the things that you need to change about yourself and then you forget what you just thought about even though you know it was really important then you find yourself trying to remember what your last thought was and then you just become lost... then you look at life from afar you realize how insignificant all the things that you are worried about are. And at that moment all you really want to do is just serve the Lord. And do whats in His will. Because, His way is always better then the road we choose for ourselves. Then you start thinking about how to be a better follower of Christ. And how you can be a better person, and then you see all the things you're doing wrong. And then you start to wonder if your doing enough. Or if your just living your life by doing the bare minimum. And then your not quite sure where to go from here. Not quite sure what to do next or how to change or even what to change. So then you start thinking some more and you're kind of right back where you started... Yeah, today was that day for me.

And I completely understand what I just typed probably did not make any sense, I just really needed to spit out all of the thoughts that have been running through my mind in order to try and make sense of it all.

Forever Reign

Oh, I'm running to your arms,
I'm running to arms
The riches of your love
Will always be enough
Nothing compares to Your embrace
Light of the world forever reign

You are more, You are more
Than my words will ever say
You are Lord, You are Lord
All creation will proclaim
You are here, You are here
In your presence I'm made whole
You are God, You are God
Of all else I'm letting go

My heart will sing
no other name
Jesus, Jesus

Open Doors

The other day, God totally gave me the oppurtunity to share His word with my friend. My friend asked me if I would ever date someone who wasn't a Christian. I tried to explain to him that it would be extremely hard to be in a relationship with someone who had different morals than I did. He replied with a verse from the Bible. It just amazed me how much he knew. He told me he read the whole Bible and believes there is a God. Yet he chooses to live his life going his own way and choosing his own path. I continued to share my beliefs and he continued to share his. My friend is very strong in his beliefs, and had no intention of changing his mind on Christ. But I pray that our conversation would make him think more about his religion (if thats what you can call it) and what is true. I pray that God will tear down any boundaries that keep him from following the Lord. But, it was kind of cool. I feel honored to say God used me in that way. I'm not sure if I made any difference in my friends life, but I'm thankful that God gave me that oppurtunity to share with him.

Oh Martha... Oh Christmas!!

Man, the Christmas season is finally here!! Yes, I know it's November, but this weather is so crisp and winter-y! And all these Christmas commercials just put me in the mood! But today was so fun! It was pretty much the most perfect study day. I spent the whole day wrapped in a blanket, by the fire, studying some serious history. I mean, I am so thankful I have a friend who makes studying this much fun. But anyways, we also went to go see Puss in Boots, which was pretty funny. Then to top it all off, we ate some apple yummy-ness by the fire. I couldn't have asked for a better way to spend my Saturday.

God,
Thank you for friendship, and laughter, and cold weather, and Christmas time, and studying. Thank you for a really great, winter-y day. Thank you for being so good to me and loving me so much. Thank you for caring for me and being on my side. Guide me to do what's in your will. You are so great God!

Giving Thanks

"Give thanks in all circumstances, for it is God's will for you in Christ Jesus" -1 Thessalonians 5:18

Not because God needs to hear praise, but because we need to be reminded of how good and faithful the Lord is. It will strengthen our relationship with the Lord and build our trust with Him. This is what I want my mindset to be like. I want to be in a constant prayer and praise with God. So my faith will be strong when circumstances get tough. He is good and deserves all the praise, not only when things are good but also when things are bad.

My Prayer

"Show me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long" -Psalms 25:4-5

Help me to trust you and your plan Lord.

My Weekend :)

So I had an amazing weekend! Yesterday I went surfing, had a light saber war, watched Tron, ate a half a carton of chunky monkey ice cream, and carved another pumpkin. I mean, what a great day! And then today, I carved another pumpkin. Just because I can! I am so thankful for friendships and the great people God has put in my life. They just bring me so much happiness! This morning, Matt talked about not conforming to the ways of society. One point that kind of hit home was "You can not always please people, but you can always please God." And lately, I have really been struggling with that. I just want to do what's right in God's eyes. I want to do what's pleasing to the Lord. I wish I could understand what He wants me to do... But it's okay, God has His plan. And I trust that His plan is perfect, along with His timing. He is good and faithful and I will rest in that truth. He is so good to me, He blessed me with such an awesome, fun weekend with my friend. God really does love me. :)

I don't even know

So surfing yesterday morning was great. Well the surf wasn't great but hanging out and being at the beach was awesome. Then we served lunches to people in our community. And man, I am so thankful I was able to be apart of that. The three people we talked to were so thankful and appreciative. I don't think they know, but I felt more blessed by them then they were by me. I mean, so often I forget how lucky I am. To sit in my room filled with things and have food down the hall. God really has blessed me. after that my friend shared with me a co-worker of his committed suicide yesterday. And it just breaks my heart... how he did it and to hear what he left behind... It just makes me think about life and how fragile it is. I mean, the fact someone has the power to take their life by choice is crazy to me. I don't understand. And I know I am in no place to judge, it just doesn't make sense to me. So after all that heavy stuff, a group of us went to Disneyland for the night. It was a lot of fun. I loved being there and with people who make me so happy. They just bring me so much joy

Weird

My pastor Matt gave a message on being weird. Not weird in a bad way, not in a good way, but in a GOD way. He explained to us that people around us will view our morals and beliefs as strange. Which is really hard sometimes. Being judged and mocked. But God called us to live among people and share His word. And we will look weird. I'm working on accepting that. Knowing it's not me who I am living for, but Him and His plan. Matt also encouraged us to obey God no matter how weird it may seem. But, how do I know God wants me to do something? What if He's telling me to do or say something but I miss it? What if they think I'm weird? I need to change the way I think and completely depend on the Lord and His strength during those times. And trust He will get me through. Because He always does. So...

Are we going to choose between pleasing people or pleasing God?

Freedom!

So... I got my license yesterday! And independence is just amazing. ;) It's so much fun! But it's also kind of weird. It's weird getting older and knowing that more responsibilities lie ahead of me. It's kind of scary, knowing that life will get harder. I mean, high school is almost over. Then college. Then a career. It's weird to think about... But I know I have my Savior who already knows my life story. Whether it will be long or short. Whether it be simple or extravagant. He knows. And I have to put my faith in Him and daily serve my Lord. For that's what He has called me to do. Not to live for myself, but for His plan.

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life... But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own" -Matthew 6:25-34

Lucky

Man I am so lucky... God has blessed me with the best friends EVER. I am so encouraged being around them, they bring me so much closer to Christ. I am so thankful He put people in my life who love me and want to hear what's going on in my life. Who want to know how my relationship with Christ is and how school is. I feel like people don't really want to hear me talk or what I'm going through. Maybe thats just a lie from the enemy. But I was so encouraged today being able to share whats going on and receive pure Godly advice in return. Another thing, God has been showing me how truly satisfying He is. Far to often I find myself wanting to be with the guy God has planned for me then with Christ Himself. Through this  He is showing me He is more fulfilling than any guy could ever be. And I know His timing is perfect, and even though I will probably get impatient again, right now I am content waiting for Him and His guy for me. I mean I have a perfect, heavenly Father writing my love story. It doesn't get much better than that!

The Little Things

The little things we take for granted everyday. It's amazing how God can use someone to teach you a lesson, while at the same time you can be blessing them in their life. I was reminded of how lucky I am to have the family I do. All the little things that embarrass me or drive me crazy, are the things that some people desire most. My mom is my dearest friend, my dad treats me like a princess, and my brother and sister make me laugh like no other. I mean, what do I have to complain about?

Thankful

Lord, thank you for friendships. It's such a beautiful gift you have given us, to be able to fellowship with others and draw closer to you. I am so thankful for the new friendships you've blessed me with at school. Sometimes I feel like I am the only one who loves you there, but this past month you have proven me wrong. Thank you for showing me so many other students that share the same love of Christ as I do. Thank you for bringing me a friend that encourages me and brings me closer to you. You knew I needed that encouragement. Thank you for my sweet friends outside of school. They bring me so much joy! I am so uplifted every time I am with them. I feel so blessed to have the friends I do. I think I am the luckiest girl ever... You are so good to me!

"THIS is my buddy!" :)

Insecurity

"Is it okay to be embarrassed by everything you do?" That was the topic tonight after service. My friend Austin used this example, "Because I know people who are controlled by their fear of embarrassment and never do anything and live in a shell. Yet there are others who do whatever they want without a care in the world." I think we are controlled by our insecurities and our fear of failing. He also made this point, "I know people who have a gift from God yet they chose not to share it because they are scared. Now there is a time to be humble, but when they choose not to do something it's just frustrating." And I felt really convicted. I know my insecurities keep me from doing the things God wants me to do a lot of the time. My fear of failing keeps me from singing freely to worship the Lord. My fear of not being good enough keeps me from pursuing more relationships. So whatever provoked Austin to talk about this, really made me think about myself and how I should be living in my everyday life.

Dear God,
Lord I pray I would not let my insecurities keep me from doing your will. Give me the strength to not be consumed about what people think about me. Lord let me only be concerned with what you think. Help me to be a fearless woman of Christ.

Giving it all to You

God,

Thank you for no more distractions. God I am done looking for earthly things to satisfy my life. I know life is better with you as my center. Help me Lord to focus my eyes on you everyday and daily give up my plans for YOUR perfect plan. Help me to remember who I am living for. Not for myself, but for You and your Will. God thank you for your new grace everyday. Thank you for giving me the strength to get through Tuesday. And Thank you for loving me even though I am procrastinating on homework right now...