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?