Raising Missionaries.

There are somethings I would like to see happen in my life that I'm sure most any girl my age would like to happen in yours. Like falling in love, getting married, staying married, having kids, grand kids, you know. The basics. But God has called me to something much deeper than that.

For so long I just wanted a normal family with a normal life. But recenty God told me my kids would go to other countries at young ages. And that I would have lots of children. The weird thing is that now the last thing I want is a normal life. I wan to raise kids that love The Lord so much they can't possibly be "normal". I want them to have such integrity to seek The Lord that they will do anything and go anywhere to do so. I want them to know how gracious and good God is to the point that they HAVE to spread the news. In the U.S and other countries. These kids already bless me.

God I know you are good and have big plans for my life. I thank you for revealing yourself to me. And revealing some of the blessings You have in store for me now and for my future. Prepare me to be the mother you would want me to be. And help me to never take things like hearing from you for granted. Thank You for Your goodness and for your desire to bless us, God. Amen

So even if I seem "normal" now, just know, my kids won't be. ;)

Insulting From the Heart

Do you ever experience days when you feel beat up from the world? Like you've given the day your best shot and it chose to destroy your day. I am very familiar with the feeling of "Can't I do anything right?" or "Is anything going to be in MY favor today?"

It's funny the things we think of excuses for. It's funny that we think we have the right to write people off. It is also funny to me that we think we have the right to sit and pout because things have not gone our way. That sound like a 4 year old's motives.

I don't know about you but there has definitely been times when I've said "I know I shouldn't have done that but if you knew what they did to me, you wouldn't think it was so bad." I wonder when we decided that selfish ambitions and living a completely self centered life makes us happier.

There have been many people in my life that I completely avoid because after being with them, you are left feeling unappreciated, uninportant and unworthy. And the last thing I want to do is spend more time with them. They're the ones you can only take little bits at a time of.

Those people, I included have something inside of us that lets anger have its way. And because we let anger have its way, it lashes out through insults. There are two ways to insult. Passive insults are confusing, and they put you into a vortex of doubt, concern and confusion. It is really an insult hidden by a compliment.

Then there's active insults. They are blatent, in your face kind of insults. I know I have lashed many active insults. Purposely or not, I have.

Do anybody else have passive-aggressive people like this? They'll say things that you think is trying to be an insult but if you confront them they'll be like "That's not what I said." or "Yo took that the wrong way, I don't even know why you're mad." And you're left feeling even more instulted and slightly ignorant.

Here's my trick to those tricky passive insults. I like to agree with their "compliment" overzealously. For example, anything that starts with "No offense, but.." That leaves you sure that they in fact meant it as an insut. And I could sit all day wondering what they meant or I could say "No offense taken, man! Thanks so much!" That has the opposite affect and leaves THEM confused.

If you can't insult enough, there's is a problem. Just because you lack the courage to say it to someon'e face doesn't mean you're heart is free. If you in backrooms love to run your mouth about people, then when you see them you're like, " Hey!" That's a problem. And that is something I think MOST of us are guilty of.

Insults and obstinance are the ways an angry heart reveals itself.

Mathew 5:23 "So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift."

Mathew 5:25 "Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the gaurd, and you be put in prison. Truly I say to you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny."  Jesus isn't letting up on the pressure on us to quickly forgive those who have been offended by us and make things right.

Help us, Father. Heal our hearts so there is nothing inside of us that lashes out at offense. Amen.

Pray In Faith

 ^{Mathew 21:18} Early in the morning, as Jesus was on his way back to the city, he was hungry. ¹⁹ Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” Immediately the tree withered.

²⁰ When the disciples saw this, they were amazed. “How did the fig tree wither so quickly?” they asked.

²¹ Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. ²² If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”

Have faith that he is good and he loves you.
Have faith that he will hear and answer prayer.
God gives you three answers "Yes" "No" and "Later".(might seem elementary but we should always be reminded of his diligence)
Stop trying to control God's answers.
Pray succinctly.
Pray without ceasing.(1 Thessalonians 1:5)


Praying in God's will.
Sometimes we ask God to bless things that are not in His will.
If you know it's in God's will, keep praying.

When you stop praying for someone it could mean that you've lost hope for them.
If you love them, keep praying.
Luke 18-1 says "We ought to always pray and  not lose heart."

Jesus gave us a model prayer:

Begins in #worship "Our Father who art in heaven, *Hallowed be you name."        
#submission-"YOUR kingdom come, YOUR will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."
#needs-"Give us this day our daily bread."
#repentance-"And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors."
#protection-"And do not lead us into temptation but deliver us from the evil one."
Ends in #worship-"For YOURS is the kingdom and the power, and the glory *forever, Amen."

To My Future Husband..

Piliippians 4:6 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situations, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your request to God."

I have never realy been boy crazy. But these days I (and God) have taken that to another level.
You see.. what I'm about to say might sound silly or made up.. But I truly feel like God has my "soulmate" here for me in Nashville. And I have felt this way for a while. I am not restricting God to this feeling but I feel a new peace that comes with the word "dating".

I am by no means ready to get married. Not even ready to date. (might sound pathetic to some considering the fact that I will be 18 in a month.) But being the best girlfriend/fiance/wife possible is what I'm going for. There's no telling how many Princes I could scare off if I tried to date them now. I am simply not the mature, Godly woman that I want my "soulmate" to look for.

I want to be the girl that guys know they can't have.

I want them to see qualities in me that they aspire to have in a wife. They have to be ready to pursue me in a way that would make my father proud and most importantly, I want it to be clear that I am off limits until then. I am not giong to bend my standards for someone who is willing to let me bend my stardards for them.

I have been praying for my future husband since I was a girl.

Why would I be preparing myself for a guy who is not prepared for me?
The guy God has picked out, ultimately will be perfect for me. He won't care that I am clumsy, forgetful, indecisive, COMPLETELY un-athletic and uncoordinated. Maybe he'll even like that about me? The only way this guy will be ready to handle me is if he is completely willing to let God change him.

Homegirls, don't let a guy change you, let GOD. I am confident God won't let me down. So whether or not I look back and say "When we met in Nashville.." or "When we were 18.." I want to be looking back at this blog in 20 years thinking "Wow, so glad I waited for the guy God had for me!" 
Psalm 25:21 "Let integrity and uprightness preserve me, For I wait for You."

Where I Am Now

Everyday I wake up I think, "Wow, I really did it." I am officially a Tennesseeian. I love it even more than I thought I would! I love the big town, the opportunity, being with family, the fall we're about to experience. It is just a fun place to live. I have been busy working but other than that I just spend a lot of time with my sisters and family.


In March I decided I wasn't going to culinary school and I had no idea what I wanted to do for about.. a week. But I'll never forget the moment Nashville was put on my mind. I was with my parents riding home from something one night and I'm sure I was freaking out wondering what I was going to do with my life. Then it just hit me. I wanted to move to Nashville. Ever since that night, I never changed my mind. I knew it was what God wanted me to do. I wasn't always excited about it. But I knew after summer, I would move to Nashville. Now I wasn't sure I wasn't going to change my mind, so I didn't tell a lot of people til later. But plans started forming and I felt sure it was what I was going to do so I made it official. And here I am, sitting in Tennessee, with a scratchy throat, drinking coffee, wearing a snuggie and extremely happy.
I know this is exactly where I am supposed to be and I have never been more peaceful in my whole life.

I haven't had a melt down yet, but I have only been here 13 days.
I already feel like this is home.
I don't feel like I have unfinished business in Moultrie.
I stay excited for the possibilities of the present.
I am discovering a new me that I never knew.
I rely on God and I feel like I finally get a chance to fully trust Him. He is faithful.

But there are moments when things don't look as peachy.
Like when everyone goes home for labor day and you're 8 hours from home.
When people freak me out and ask "What's next?"
Or when mom texts me sweet things and reminds me of how much I miss her (stop doing that)

I miss my parents. I know they are both hanging at the river this weekend wishing they had us there, trying to adjust to not having any kids around. And I know they will read this immediately and Dad will start crying just like I am now. And they'll talk about how proud of their children they are. I know for a fact I can call anytime I want and they'll do whatever it takes to be able to talk. But mom and dad, my biggest fans, don't worry, I'm doing fine!

I miss and love everyone at home. Pray for me if you remember, pray for wisdom and guidance as I trust God to use me in this new and exciting season!

Controlling Your Emotions

There's a couple of reasons I want to write this blog. 1. Because I've been thinking about it for months. 2. So I don't forget it. 3. is for my own good because this is a struggle for me.

This summer I realized how much I fear unhappiness. Which I think we all do, but I felt so hopeless thinking "I can trust God to protect me and provide but does God care if I am happy? " and honestly  that I fear more than if He will provide or protect. I don't really care if I am living on the streets as long as I'm happy. 

I may not be the  most sensitive or emotional person but I am a girl and definitely  have plenty of emotions. I get so frustrated with the mood swings I sometimes have and I wouldn't even consider myself that moody. So I can't imagine how moody people handle their emotions. I can hardly handle mine.  

The truth is that God is the God of joy. And joy is what he brings. My joy is found in the Lord. My happiness is based off circumstances. The way I  feel should not controll my peace and joy. Happiness is a feeling. It's a great feeling. But what I want is uncontrollable joy that can't be explained or diminished. It is His Joy that remains in us that makes our  joy full.

So I have been seriously trying to no longer let my emotions controll my attitude. And not only my attitude but my future. I don't want to make decisions based off of emotions and I certainly don't want to let them rob me of the joy the Lord has to offer. So though sometimes I may not feel happy, I choose not to let the feeling controll me.

I hope this makes sense to you and that it gives you hope for the times of struggle when you are not happy. God is joy!

Power of Words

So one of the weeks at camp this year, they had a class based on image and how God sees you/what He has to say about you. Though I did not get to really participate, I know they all really enjoyed it.

The first day they traced and cut out a big piece of paper in the shape of themselves, then wrote what they thought of themselves or what people have said about them. Then they hung it on the wall and later, anyone could write something positive about them on the back. I really loved this idea after I saw what the kids wrote.

Keep in mind these kids are 11-13 and they wrote things like: dumb, ugly, failure, fat, not good enough, unwanted, hideous, annoying, nerd, slut, whore, good for nothing.. And the list goes on.
I wanted to cry when I read them. Kids that I know well wrote terrible things that I would never have thought they would believe about themselves. I was absolutely heartbroken that 11-13 year old's were thinking suicidal thoughts. I realize now I was a bit ignorant.

So as I was in the room where the pictures were, by myself, writing some encouraging words, my heart was completely broken for these awesome kids. God then kinda revealed that I can prevent these thoughts from coming about in people's lives. And what I mean by that is, after I spend time with someone, I do not want them to feel fat or stupid. I want them to be encouraged. I never want someone I come in contact with to feel worse about themselves because of me.

You never know whose day or even life you might change by encouraging instead of discouraging them. Lifting them up, instead of bringing them down and by spreading the love of God instead of the lies of the enemy. 


One of my favorite verses ever happens to relate and that's Psalm 19:14 "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my redeemer."



(Proverbs 18:11) "Death and life are in the power of the tongue"

(Ephesians 4:29) "Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouth, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear."

My prayer is that I will be a light to people suffering from lies and that I will have no part in the enemy's plan of destruction.
God help me keep my tongue from evil and lips from speaking deceit. 

Sibs

This blog is really just a shout out to all my awesome sibs that make me so proud and happy. And I hope there's no character limit cause this is going to be LONG!

Chris- Probably one of the smartest people I know. There is such a wide range of stuff you know about. Totally made to worship and does such a good job at leading. Reminiscing my Birthday of last year, driving from camp to Nashville was the last thing I wanted to do especially with a brother I really hardly knew. Little did I know it would be the most enjoyable 10 hour trip of my life. We are so much a like and I didn't know it until last year! We talked literally the whole way. Such a good trip and start of a new relationship.

Kristen- I also recently got to know you a little better than I did before and I am so thankful that I've gotten a chance to. You're part of my favorite things about camp. I love talking to you. You are a fantastic listener and always have good advice. I really feel as though I can talk to you about anything and I consider that a gift. SO excited to be moving in with you guys and can't wait to see what God has in store. Love your writing. Love your teaching and love painting our nails together. :)

Jeremy- I really am not sure you will even read this but just in case.. :) I wish I saw you more because you are HILARIOUS. Love when I get to see you. You're so optimistic and positive. I know if we lived closer we would definitely be closer because I think we're a lot alike too. Can't wait til I see you again! Love you lots.

Denise- You are just all around a wonderful person. Very well rounded and confident and I love that about you. You are a fabulous oldest sister and such a great mom. I really love how you make me feel important. I don't think I could ever get sick of spending time with you. You are not only very smart but very wise and I would go to you for advice for anything. Thanks for being so loving and kind, favorite oldest sister!

Jacob- Thank GOD Denise married you. You are way too funny. So talented and smart and SUCH a great dad. You are a true example of the way a man should treat his wife. I love spending time with you guys and I feel right at home at your house. Thanks for being a Godly, strong, loving husband to Denise and I am so thankful for you.

Josh- I know if I ever need help with anything, to call you. You are so caring and willing to go out of your way to help anyone in need. Incredibly talented and smart. God is so apparent in your life and I know you will raise your kids to love the Lord. You and Steph are such a big part of my life and I appreciate ya'll taking the time to care about me the way you do.

Stephanie- God made you to be a mother and you are SO good at it. You are a mother I definitely want to model after when it comes time. I love talking to you. I am so glad you became a Folsom. You are such a wonderful wife to Josh and I am so thankful for you. I forget we're sister-in-laws. As different as we are, we get along so well. I know you are there for me whenever and I am so thankful for our relationship. I love spending time with you and you're definitely a role model of mine.

Rebekah- I forget if we're sisters or best friends.. Love hearing from you so often. I enjoy every phone call we share. :) You have so much going for you and I can't wait to see what God has in store for you. You are way wiser and way stronger than me. I hope you rub off on me. You are always just a phone call away and soon you'll be in driving distance and that excites me so much!! You are so fun to be around and I love your spunky personality.

Mary- when I think of you I think of like a teddy bear or something. Probably because 90% of the time we're together we're hugging or being weird and touchy. You are so genuinely sweet and lovable. You also, are one of my best friends. You're my favorite person to work with and I just love being with you. You have such a beautiful smile and personality. You're responsible and reliable and very smart and I you are always there when I need you. So thankful to live in the same town with you.

Caleb- I am so glad we are next to each other in age. God really knew what he was doing. So thankful for our relationship. I wouldn't trade the annoying arguments for anything. God shines through you whether you realize it or not and He is going to do incredible things with your life. I already know it. You are seriously the best ever and I know it's awkward for us to be nice to each other but I really don't tell you enough how great you are. You are such a joy to have around and I love and cherish our heart to hearts. I will miss our relationship when we move but I am so thankful for the time we had together growing closer. I know you'll be there for me always. Love you!

Love you all and am so thankful for each of you.

The Greatness of Our God.

There are many, many words that describe God. Or shall I say, help describe Him. Really, He's indescribable. I could sit here all day thinking of words that apply to Him. But what comes to my simple mind the most is 'good'. Because when I'm in a scary place, I don't want to figure out which word suits Him best at the time to calm me. God is complex. But I don't always think that way. So most of the time, I try to simply remember God is good. 

God has proven Himself to me to be very good. Many more words than good, but He is consistently good. I think a lot. Which some would not believe. But, it's true. I've learned I am slightly negative in my way of thinking. Which I am trying to work on. But since I've noticed this about myself, I have been trying so hard to not only change my way of thinking, but change the reasons I think that way. 

God is good.

God is on my side. 

I am made new.

I am an overcomer.

I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.

If He is for me, who can be against me.

I am saved by grace. 

I should not think/act any differently. I know these facts. I don't have to struggle with things people who don't know God do. 

One of my favorite songs is "Desert Song" because in that song it says "All of my life, in every season, you are still God, I have a reason to sing, I have a reason to worship." I want to remember that in EVERY season, He is still God (good) and I have a reason to worship and thank Him. Because of Him, I can live freely. Not like the people that are missing the greatness of our God. 

Help me to never forget how good You are, God.

Being Content

This is a blog that has been on my heart for quite a while now. Many of you may have read my blog about not going to culinary school. I am so happy to say that nothing has changed, I still know that is not what I need to do and for that, I am very thankful. One thing I worried about was not being able to make up my mind about going or not but God has made it clear that I'm not supposed to. In saying that, I have no idea what career to go after. PERSONALLY, that doesn't scare me at all. It's odd, and I can't explain why I'm not frightened, but I'm not. For that, I am also thankful.

I absolutely love where I'm at. Most people would be frightened, and like I said I have no idea why I'm not. I just know I am the most moldable I have ever been. If God called me to Africa, I could go. I have given up MY plans and have full intentions of following after HIS.

It is amazing how much pressure is on a 17 yr old to decide what to do with the rest of your life. I DON'T KNOW WHO I WANT TO BE IN TEN YEARS. I want to be more in love with God than I have ever been. I want to be exactly where He wants me to be in my relationships, career, town, finances and spiritually.

To work on being where I want to be in ten years, there are things I am working on now. Now I hope all of you are reading my dear friend/identical twin Sarah Taylor's blog, if you're not, get to it. She talks about being her own friend and by doing that, you 1. Can be content with being yourself. 2. You don't have to look for people for companionship. God would be the ultimate friend and I can't think of a sweeter friend. Now the thought of having no friends sounds horrifying and I don't think that God really wants that for me. But if my happiness is based off of how many friends I have or how my friends treat me, I will never truly be happily content.


One of my biggest pet peeves is people complaining about this town. Listen. If you are here in this town and can't help it, you are here for a reason. God didn't accidentally choose Moultrie/Thomasville/wherever for you to grow up. If you are here and feel like you're not supposed to be here, WHAT ARE YOU STILL DOING HERE? Now I know this is way easy for me to say because 1. I love Moultrie. 2. It is easy for me to go somewhere new, I have nothing holding me here.

God is GOOD. Ho doesn't want us to be unhappy. He has us where we are for a reason. What career he has for me, I don't know yet. But that's not for me to worry about. All I need to worry about is listening to Him and obeying what He says. I want to be content in every circumstance.

Help me God to be content with where You have me.

Blessed.

Warning: this might sound cheesy, but it is truly genuine. Today I was thinking about this time last year and I remember something I told someone which was "I was raised right and I love God". Often I get asked what is different about me than others and that is all God. But second to that is definitely my parents. I honestly was raised right. My dad is one of the wisest people I know. And I would not be where I am today if it weren't for my mom's love and support.There is no way around it, my parents are awesome and I am so blessed to have them. I believe the reason I enjoy church is because I was raise to like it. I wasn't raised to have negative feelings about church. I wasn't raised to find happiness in the things of this world. I wasn't raised to search for love from boys. I wasn't raised to disrespect leadership. I was raised to listen to God, and follow the path he has set before me. I was raised to work for what I have and to spend money wisely. I was raised to turn to God instead of any earthly objects. And yes, it is because of my parents that I was brought up with those morals but it is because of God that I have stuck to them. Thinking back on that time last year, I was a different person. I still have issues but God has done so much in my life since then. It is such a good feeling to know I don have to struggle with the same things I struggled with last year. I have been forgiven and renewed and that is the old me. And pretty soon the person I am now will be the old me and I'll be further in my walk with Christ then I am now. How refreshing is that! I know I am able to say no to things I don't agree with because I wasn't raised to bend my standards. And living a Godly life instead of a life of sin is somethig my parents raised me to do, but because of the grace of God, it is something I choose to do and am fully capable of. Huge thanks to God for choosing me to be their daughter and huge thanks to my parents for listening to God in everything they do and for "training up a child in the way it should go"

Fearing Death

 

Lately I have been thinking a lot about why I fear death. The other day I was sorta almost in an accident and I thought about how "lucky" I was that nothing happened. But what made me "lucky"? My life could have ended that day but it didn't. So that got me thinking. I thought about how bad that COULD have been, but wasn't. 

Now I know nobody likes to think about death but if you think about all the near death experiences you have had in your life (which is like.. impossible). What kept you alive? I know it's more than luck. I know that if it were my time to go, I might would have actually hit the car the other day. But God has a plan for me and dying wasn't it. 

If it were my time, I would have died. And when it is my time I will die. And there's nothing I can do about it. It will be apart of God's PERFECT plan. I don't know that God wants me to live to be 100, but I know He isn't finished with me yet, so why should I fear dying in some tragic accident? I think it is all apart of faith. Saying "Okay, God. I know you have given me a life to live abundantly so I'm standing on that and I won't fear my time to go, because YOU are in control." Besides, what good does it do to freak out about things and worry all when you have no control?! 

 

Thanking God that His will be done in my life and that I will not fear his plan. 

New Plan.

Ever since I was a child, I have wanted to be a chef. I had NO doubt in my mind that I would go to culinary school, open my own restaurant and live happily ever after. In fact, not only did I want to do that, I thought That's what God wanted me to do. Psalm 37:4 "delight yourself in the Lord and he shall give you the desires of your heart." And for my whole life those were the desires of my heart.

As my last year in high school, I obviously have been trying to decide what to do about college and whatnot and never once did I have any doubt that I would find some way to go to some culinary school somewhere! I loved not questioning what I wanted to do with my life. Loved it.

Recently, my desire to do that COMPLETELY went away. I mean I have no desire whatsoever to be a chef. I don't want to own a restaurant, I don't want to own a bakery, don't want to cater. I want nothing to do with the food industry. And I don't know why. I can't think of any event that changed my mind. I just simply do not have those desires anymore. Not even one of them.

So you can imagine how freaked out I was. I had it all planned out. I now have no peace about culinary school. The thougt of it actually gives me a gross feeling. I am now the senior who has no idea what she's going to do with her life. No idea where she is going to school. It's a very new feeling that I have nover felt. I planned out my life and forgot to involve God in the plans and that would lead to a disaster. I really don't want my life to be disastrous. Or anything of that sort.

So now I am clueless and trying to ask God to clear up those desires that are somewhere deep down in me. Though this is suppoaes to be a stressful time in my life, I have such a peace about everything. I have no fear. I have a lot of questions but I am so excited to live out the new plan. His plan. Because that is a plan, I could never come up with myself. A plan much, much greater.

Btw, church is about God..

I think I'll write this in purple. 

Recently, my best friend in the whole world (Kellye DeMott) told me her and her family were being called to leave New Covenant and going to Heritage, a church here in Moultrie. And trust me, I was DEVASTATED. I loved that I was guaranteed to see her every week at least once, no matter what. I loved teaching the 3,4 and 5 yr old Sunday school with her, I loved going to worship practice knowing I would get to see my very best friend. And I have loved that for years. Ever since we became friends (whenever it was). 

So I pretty much moped around for a week, cried every time I thought about it, and let myself just bask in the thought of "losing my best friend". That was ridiculous. No, I won't see her at worship practice and get to look over at her when something hilarious happens anymore, And yes, I will have to teach Sunday school to our favorite kids by myself. But I WILL still see her. And I will adjust to teaching alone and keeping my hilarious thoughts to myself.

One night we were texting about how our different church services went and I'm pretty sure we were both crying our eyes out but the next morning she sent me a very long (nothing unusual), very life changing message and here it is...

" Just a reminder that church is about God. I know you know this. But keep in mind that it doesn't, or it shouldn't matter who you're with, how things go, or even how it sounds although we do want to give God the best worship that we can and do everything in excellence. If you're just focused on God, hearing Him, and having an awesome time with Him, you can have the best service of your life by just choosing to focus on Him, worship Him, hear from Him, and have an awesome time with Him. Regardless of what is going on around you. I love you and I don't want this to be hard for you for long. I want you to be able to get everything out of your experiences at church that you can. And I'm not saying you aren't it's just a friendly reminder just in case."

So there's that. Think about it. Why am I so worried about how the music sounds or who will be there? I don't want to serve God unless my best friend there with me? That's harsh, sorry God. Church is somewhere you go to be fed spiritually and to fellowship with other believers. And my job is to serve Him, not to whine about God calling Kellye to greater things. That is exactly what I DO want for her. So what the point I really want to get across is, church is about God. And that's exactly why we should go. Not to please the flesh, but to please the spirit.

This might be very obvious to some of you, but to me it was just what I needed to hear to keep me going. my pray, friends, is that I serve God for the right reasons and that I glorify Him in every season no matter what. Amen.



  

Fasting

So every January my church does a 21 day fast to pray about what God has planned for the new year. Last year I fasted wheat and sugar, and that was awesome. Well.. I mean the results were awesome. And I don't mean physical. It was the first time I had really taken a fast seriously. I had fasted some as a kid just to do it but never really prayed about anything specific. Last year God really showed me some things to improve.

This year I chose to go the media rout. When I say media I mean Facebook, Twitter, any apps on my phone that I would spend free time on. I really don't ever watch tv so that wouldn't help me much but I'll probably try to avoid that as well.

As I was deciding what to fast, I was thinking about what I spend the most time on. The first thing that came to my mind was work. Then school, church, friends, etc.. And obviously I can't fast work or school, though I wish I could. But if I spend so much  of my 24 hours a day on that, why am I not involving God in it? Why do I need to get away from it to spend time with God? Now media is different to me because it is something I choose to spend time on instead of God. But what would my day be like if I woke up and fasted thinking negative thoughts? Or jealousy or selfish motives and replaced it with pure and holy thoughts? What if I woke up and brought God to work with me and spent time with Him there? I think it'd be beneficial to give Him a chance to go to one of my least favorite places and brighten it up for me.

With that being said, my goal is not to only fast what I do in my free time, it's to fast how I spend the time I don't necessarily have free. I also hope this lasts much, much longer than 21 days. Maybe God has chosen January to hold a season of difficulty (with worrying about school and work and pretty much everything else I can think of) cause he knew I'd be fasting. Who knows! There's a lot of things I would like to improve this year and just the way my days go about is an area I know I need His help in.

So pray for me. A Facebookless world is going to be tough. :)