whenever you feel distant

“WHENEVER YOU FEEL DISTANT from Me, whisper My Name in loving trust. This simple prayer can restore your awareness of My Presence…The grating rancor of the world’s blasphemies cannot compete with a trusting child’s utterance: “Jesus” - Sarah Young


 Jesus. How humble I become when I think about Him or say His name. His presence is sweet and brings unspeakable joy to my soul. If only I thought about him this way every time I prayed, how significantly different my life would be. Often times I find myself rushing into words and I do not truly talk nor listen to God during prayer. I get so distracted and focus on other things that are so much less important.


BUT HE IS GOD. I don’t think I will ever comprehend how blessed I am that I get to spend time with Him daily. All I know is that I want to embrace Him and be thankful that I get to have this relationship with a perfect God, who calls me his beloved.  When I feel unfocused or unaware of his presence I just say his name and I become surrounded in that sweet presence only He can provide. 

love & love songs

A rant about love songs.

This week I have discovered a whole new era of love songs and they come from the master himself Ron Pope. 

His voice, lyrics and melodies will make you swoon. 

do you want an example? well then, click here.

And for an even better example, click again.

Now don't get me wrong I think love songs are great, especially when your married or dating someone you plan on marrying. Most likely they make you think about your loved one and you become all giddy listening to the lyrics.

However, if you are single (as I am) they kinda just make you want someone to feel giddy about.

Now before I continue this rant I want to make it known to the readers that I feel happy with the decision I've made being fully aware I am not ready to date for a very long time.

I have come to terms with the fact that I need to mature my relationship with Christ before I even think about dating. But these love songs certainly do not help that decision. So why is it that a simple love song can bring these emotions of affection?

 Because people love love, it's that simple. People love thinking, singing, wishing and dreaming about love.

 In fact, most people are obsessed with it.

But the thing I've come to realize this past week is that God invented love, He is love. Ron Pope is not the master (although his voice is amazing) of love, God is.

When I sing love songs about God, I get that same giddy feeling. Most of the time it ends up overwhelming me and I have to remind myself to inhale. But to me that is worship, singing love songs to the one I love. So why is it that people spend their whole life searching for love, instead of searching for the one who invented it? 

Just think about it...

In the meantime, i'm going to go listen to Phil Wickham and get all giddy for Christ.

If you'd like to join me click here.

One Year Older, One Year Wiser?

Today is my birthday and earlier while I was celebrating I was thinking about all the things that have changed in my life this past year and how much God has changed my heart. This past year has been a season of growth and renewal. And I am thankful that God’s grace surrounds me, if it weren’t for Him I would be broken and lost. I am so thankful for his presence in my life, I cannot even put it into words. It is simply indefinable.


Okay, now it is story time.


After church today I went out to lunch with the usual Cornerstone crew and as a dear friend Lance prayed over our food, he also prayed for me. Although he prayed for multiple things, what really stuck out in my mind was his prayer that I would be more intimate with Christ and also that I would be a light to everyone on campus.


Now he doesn’t know this, but that has been my prayer for the last three months for myself. Falling in love with Christ is a beautiful thing, but this summer I haven’t felt that zeal that I once felt. I’ve been praying constantly for God to renew that love and to make it grow stronger than ever. Slowly but surely he has done that and I have felt joy like never before. I have also prayed many times that anyone who would come into contact with me this school year would see God’s presence and work in my life. That I would be bold and share the gospel with those around me. I am trusting Him and I know that things will work out to God’s perfect will, He makes all things work together for the good of those who love him. The only thing that is left for me to do is devote my whole life to Christ. He is so worth it.


These past 19 years have been interesting and it has been made clear to me that the best moments that I have had in this short life, are the moments when i'm focused completely on Christ.

Below are some pictures to show how I spent my birthday, feel free to leave feedback!

how I spent my birthday

the amazing ice cream cake

ashley and scotty, thanks for everything!

feeling creative

just some chicken scratches

half of the time i dont even know what im painting

water color paint splatters

the editing made the picture look better than what it really is

the only one i really kinda like

this is a painting i finished today that matches my comforter

lets just say im a hard worker

Simple Pleasures

     My life is quite simple. I enjoy the things below.

I enjoy the bible, I find pleasure and joy in reading God's word. The more I read the more I love him.

I enjoy Diet Coke and when I say enjoy I mean LOVE. However, I am considering running a 1/2 Marathon, so sadly I am going to quit drinking it. You will be missed my friend.

I enjoy shoes, look into my closet and you will see evidence of this guilty pleasure.

I enjoy unhealthy things, like ice cream. No matter what time of day it is, I will always want Ice Cream.

I enjoy painting. I use to do it in high school quite a bit, but I stopped for some unknown reason. Now I have picked it up again and it is so relaxing. Recently I have started painting pictures for my new apartment and I am looking forward to see how my paintings look hung up on a wall.

(Photo Credit to Tom Huling)

(Photo Credit to Tom Huling)

Lastly, God's creation. He is a creative designer. There are never ending "awe" moments in my days where I just look outside and am amazed at how beautiful His creation is. 

This Is Me. 

See, I told you my life was simple.

Friendships

Recently my thoughts have been focused on friendship and what a Godly relationship with someone looks like. I've thought a lot about my brothers and sisters in Christ. I’m aware that God has placed them in my life for different purposes and I am so thankful to Him for leading me to them. I truly treasure each and everyone of their friendships. I grew up in a very small town where being a Christian is basically just claiming the “title.” I was one of those people. Yes, sometimes I prayed and I believed that God existed, but I did not truly know who God was and what a relationship with him looked like. Until God completely changed me. He gave me a new life and a new heart and I fell completely in love with Him. But it was still hard, I was finishing up high school with friendships that weren't Godly and I was not yet grounded in my faith. Which led me to sinful temptations and mistakes. I remember back then thinking and praying for a support group, a group of believers who would hold me accountable. Then I went to college…


I made so many friendships through Campus Crusade for Christ and also just by God leading me to people, I was amazed. I went to a smaller college and I did not know one single person, yet I developed friendships that I know will last forever. I gained brothers and sisters in Christ who I fellowship and worship with. People who aren’t afraid to step up and hold me accountable for my sins. I am so grateful to God for making beautiful hearts and placing them in these people who are apart of my life. It is still so unreal to me. I’ve always dreamt of friends, people that I could just pray and read The Bible with and I now have that.


What really made me think about this was a camping trip I went on not too long ago. It started out a little rough, considering the fact that we were all first time campers. But we were trusting in God for safety and comfort. Unsurprisingly God worked out everything wonderfully. We ended up having a beautiful night where we prayed, read the bible, talked about life and how God was moving. I can honestly say that it was a night that will remain on the Top Ten Best Nights Of My Life list. Being there with fellow believers just led me to rest in His glorious presence and I am still in awe at how wonderful God really is. Since the trip God has placed great thankfulness and joy in my heart for my brothers and sisters in Christ. I would just like encourage   you that if you are not surrounded by believers or in a church body, reach out and start making friendships. They are completely necessary for your faith and you will be blessed tremendously. 


I am blessed and it is all for His glory.




Colossians 3: 12-15 
Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.

Philippians 1:27

In the beginning of the year I attended Passion 2011 in Atlanta Georgia, it was an amazing conference and I recommend everyone to go to it. But today I sat down and listened to a sermon Francis Chan preached at Passion. It was so awesome, honest and convicting. Francis read Philippians 1:27 and it got me thinking about how my life is suppose to resemble Christ’s life. If I had to ask myself that very question, “Does my life resemble Christ’s?” Would I be able to say “Yes. It does.”

 Philippians 1:27 Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel.

Now if you really think about it can you honestly say “Yes, my life matches up to the gospel.” I don’t think I would be being honest if I said mine did exactly. Because if I truly believed in the gospel then I believe that there is a hell. A place full of nothing but suffering and destruction. Why in the world would I want the ones that I claim I care about to go there. If I honestly care for my friends and family who are not believers, wouldn’t I be out there trying to tell them of God’s amazing love and grace to save them from the place of torture. If I am truly in love with Jesus like I say I am, then wouldn't I want to do nothing in my life but glorify, honor and worship him. Just to make his name known to the world. 

 Sometimes I feel like I get content with my relationship with Christ, which is something none of us should ever want to feel. If I want my life to look like Christs I shouldn't be afraid to speak the gospel. Even if I am persecuted, rejected and hated I would know that I received those things for Christ‘s name and my life would start to look more like Christ’s. One thing we must remember is that Jesus was beaten, tortured, mocked and murdered. Even though he went city to city performing miracles and helping people, in the end he didn't receive love from all, instead he received death. Being a follower of Christ I should expect to suffer and I should be happy to, because If I do I’m becoming more Christ like, I should rejoice in that. 

I want my life to change so drastically, I want my life to match up to the gospel. I no longer care if I am rejected or disliked, If I can help anyone experience God’s goodness, love and mercy then it’s worth it. I want everyone to know what it feels like to fall in love with God, the creator of universe. It is the most amazing feeling in the world. In America 76% of people identify themselves as Christians. But what we don’t realize is that in other countries such as China and India people are being killed if they claim to be Christian. They lose their family, their homes, they risk so much and yet they continue to live for him even when they are losing everything. If you were to risk losing your possessions, your friends, family and your life would you still claim that you are a Christian or would you deny that “title.” I hope that you would cling to Christ, I pray that you wouldn’t deny him. Because He is the only one who can fulfill you, He is the one who gives you life. But some of you may doubt that you would still claim Him and that is exactly why I am writing this note. Like I said I want everyone to fall in love with Christ, I’ve completely given my life to Christ and I’ve never felt more peace and happiness in my life. I've heard in scripture and in songs the phrase “Lose your life just so you can find it.” and I never understood what that meant, until about year and a half ago. I’ve found my life finally and now I just want my friends, my family and everyone to find their lives also.

Sorry this note took longer than expected, but I just want lives to start changing including my own. I want to make God’s name famous to the nations, even if I risk everything or lose it all.

Jesus is worth it.