So many things to be thankful for...

Today is a day to give thanks for all the things God has blessed us with. For me the list could go on and on and on...I have an amazing family and incredible friends, a job I don't hate :), a God who loves me as His own, a roof over my head, food to eat, a church I'm so excited and blessed to be a part of, seriously I could go on forever.

When I think about this, I can't help but realize how much I have and how much God has given me. So how can I not give back to Him?

Be blessed this day knowing our God LOVES YOU with a burning passion and desires your heart! He wants the best for you, the absolute best...

Oh and p.s. Just found out I'm GOING TO EUROPE with RVC! Aaaah! SO excited!

2 Timothy 3:16-17

I love this verse. SO amazing. The whole chapter is good...the whole book, but every time I read this it stands out and inspires me to dig even more into the Word, because it is so applicable to everything I do, every day of my life!

NIV: All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Message: Every part of Scripture is God-breathed and useful one way or another—showing us truth, exposing our rebellion, correcting our mistakes, training us to live God's way. Through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us.

Give to the Max Day

This is such an awesome idea, really cool!

Today, November 17, is Give to the Max Day!

You can support your nonprofit today and anything you give will be matched!

Donate today and make it count!

ICCM
Feed My Starving Children
Ronald McDonald House
Dorothy Day Center

These are just a couple of the ministries you can donate to today...take advantage of this chance to make a difference in someone's life! I love this! :)

He did it A G A I N

Will he never learn????

Can I just go, please?

Can I just tell you how much I want to go right now? There are times, like right now, where I just want to drop everything and head overseas and be God's hands and feet. I don't even know where. Just go. Back to Vietnam and Thailand...over to Europe...to wherever God leads. I just want to go. I just want to rely on God wholly. I realize I totally don't do that here. And I run into so many roadblocks. The battle is so different here than overseas. Really. I feel minimalized here. Not worth it. Pastor Rob's sermon comes to mind. SO good. SO needed. SO necessary to speak into the lives of the people here...I think Satan comes at us in a completely different way here. He tells us we're too small. We can't make a difference. We're not strong enough. We don't have enough faith. We lack courage. We're weak...hopeless...what can we ever do? But the funny thing is, we're the exact people God wants, because then He can use us, all of us, wherever He needs because we know we can't do it on our own and are completely surrendered to Him and His will.

Overseas, it's a battle to survive. It's literally life or death. Here, in America, it's a battle against our minds. Our hearts say yes and yearn for the things of God, but our culture and way of life beat down our spirits and our will.

I see my friends going overseas and leaving everything to do God's work, to show others how much God loves them. What's different about here? Why is it so much harder? Is it because the faces are familiar? We worry what people will think of us? I had this thought a few days ago. Really, in the grand scheme of things...when we get to heaven...are we really, honestly, going to care what people thought of us here? No...we're going to be really glad we did or said something when we had the chance, or heavily regret that we didn't.

2 years ago

2 years ago to this day, my dear Grandma (my dad's mom) went to be with the Lord. I just felt compelled to post a piece from my journal, kind of a letter to her this year again. I love her so much still...can't wait to join her in singing with the angels! Here is a little bit of my journal from last year:

All I know is God is so real, so alive, and that my Gramma is singing in His heavenly choir right now, rejoicing in radiant life, blessed with a new and perfect body, and no longer in any pain. I know she sees us. I know she loves us and is looking down at us and is proud of us and is praying for us even there. She can see things now that we can't, and knows such wisdom and truth -- she's come face-to-face with God -- and that just blows my mind! I'm so happy for her, so joyful to know she's rejoicing and singing God's praises now. But oh, the earthly separation is hard. Gramma, I know you love it there in heaven, but can I just say I miss you? ... I don't really want you to come back here and be in pain again. I just miss you and love you, but I know I'll see you again...probably much sooner than it feels like now. And what a reunion that'll be! I love you, Gramma!

Just starting out...

...so I decided I should start a blog. I haven't written my own blog since I did it for a class in 2005.

Time to venture out on my own? My intentions are good, hopefully I will update this more frequently than not. Just a lot of thoughts and hopes and dreams and passions all jumbled in my head. I hope you don't get too annoyed with me :-P. So for now...checking out...stay tuned for my first official b l o g. :)