I'm just a average girl and these are some of my random ramblings on life. When I say random, that means they can be anything from Bible to Awana to politics to something in the news to...whatever is on my mind. So, welcome.
life's really actually pretty easy right now. my life consists of doing 42+ hours of school, chores, church, the occasional run and being a klutz. as usual. ......uh. yeah. i need to get involved in another campaign. and yet it feels mad crazy busy. what is up with this?
oh yeah. then there's the big decisions to make. the pondering of stuff. {111 days til i'm 18. aahhh!!!!} the praying and searching. debating stuff, tossing ideas about life around. dreaming. hoping. wishing.
and school. i'm officially convinced that it's the government's plan to try to kill us all and make the earth go extinct. {don't tell them that it's not working too well... the world's ending this year anyhow.}
anyhow. i found one of my new hobbies. going to this place. climbing on
these rocks. {having a few heart-stopping slips.} and not dying. they
say the not dying part is good...if you've ever been to Gettysburg, it's kind of like some of the rock formations there, but almost better. the indians went up here for many years and used it for "spying." you can see for miles.
after climbing up the front side of this, we then realized that there was a back side which might have been safer to go up....so we got pics from that side.
michelle is my reenacting buddy and we've decided to go exploring together. she says my dare-devil-ness makes her do more stuff...
i fell off the top of that...landed on a ledge and was like "oh, i'll take a pic." {there was a good many feet to fall after that, had i fallen more.}
this is the cliff that i slipped off the top of...
this is looking down from one of the huge rock formations
i discovered that this place is awesome to go to if you want to work on getting over fear of heights...and hope to go back sometime kind of soon. we shall see. it's amazing how much fun you can have outside in your area. i forgot how many awesome places there are here. i love PA.
this has been one of my favorite songs currently, i guess. it's a really good reminder. no matter how alone we feel, no matter how beaten down i feel, no matter how much i feel like giving up, no matter how tired i am, i'm not alone. Jesus is there. he carries me. all the way. he catches me when i fall. he never leaves me alone.
starting september 2008, Awana has been my life. 9 months of the year, my Quiz book has practically always been within reach. every tuesday and wednesday for 7-9 months was devoted to Awana.
my life kind of revolved around Awana.
Awana kept me going quite often.
I learned some of my best lessons from it, have some of my best memories from Awana.
and then there was Summit~~Awana nationals. best week of my year, no question about it. {okay, so Generations Joshua Student Action Teams are a close second. so is Values Voter Summit...}
Summit is awesome. you prepare for the better part of a year for it with your team. as a team, you go through moments of borderline hating each other.you go through insane stress an high tempers at times. you get to Summit and realize just how close of a team you are.
then you realize~~you aren't just a team. you're a family.
you win together. you lose together. you succeed together. you mess up together. you laugh so hard you can't breathe. you cry with disappointment. you pray together. everything you do, you remind each other that it's for God's glory. as medals are placed around your neck, you cry together again from stress, happiness, sheer exhaustion, joy, pride and thankfulness. you see each other at your absolute best moments. and you see each other at your absolute worst moments.
for some of us, the Grace Bible Church, Hollidaysburg PA Awana team is our only real family....
3rd place in the nation for AwanaGames
and then, you're told you can't go back. that you're done with the team. that your parents won't let you return.
"WHAT???"
immediately, a bunch of dreams go up in flames...
~getting your Citation at Summit
~getting to the Platinum round of Quiz
~getting 1st in Games
~another, final year with your family, the team
everything i practically own is somehow related to Awana... down to my shoes. medals are hanging by my bed. medals and trrophies and certificates in the schoolroom. medals, certificates, pictures, ribbons, everything is hanging in my area of the attic. even my bible sitting next to me was chosen specifically for Awana Bible Quiz....
i miss Awana. i feel so lost without it. it was what really helped me get to know God, to learn about him, and allowed me to be around other strong christians...
i've missed it so much over summer, but hey, it was ok 'cause i was going to go back in september.
but apparently God has other plans for this year. His ways are best.
but that doesn't meant that it doesn't hurt...i took down most of my Awana stuff today because seeing the stuff all over just hurt worse. i had to blink back tears while packing it up, but it's ok. it'll be ok.
i'll leave 12 or so medals up, in the attic and next to my bed. and a few pics. oh, and the 30 yds of Games tape that I was wrapped in...good memories.
someday, i'm going to unpack my Awana stuff and display it. but for now, it looks like it's time to just move on. when God moves us past something, it's for a good reason, and usually for something better...i can't imagine what. but i'll trust his plan.
{this song has been stuck in my head a lot. the Daniel Doss Band came to Summit my first year~~they hold a special place in my heart.}
i kind of like music. a lot. it's saved my life more than once. sooo....don't be surprised if approximately every other post is about music.
i got the CompassionArt album the other day. i really hated it at first, but since listening to it like 6 times, i'm discovering it's actually a pretty good album. this one song, by Paul Baloche, has really hit me.
When my heart is overwhelmed
And my eyes are blind to you
And the pain of life is just too heavy to bear
When the mountain seems so high
And my faith too weak to climb
Lord, lead me to the rock that is higher than I
Lead me to the rock
Lead me to the rock
Lead me to the rock that is higher than I
When my life is hit with fear
And I fight to hide the tears
And I wrestle in my heart to know what to do
Lord, I’m welling up inside
But I know you hear my cry
Jesus, lead me to the rock that is higher than I
You are the rock, there is no other
A tower of strength, you are my shelter
You are my hope eternal
You are the rock that is higher than I
i'll keep coming back to this, but it's true. we don't have to do life on our own. we have Jesus, our rock, with us. He's not going to move. He'll always be there for us. and He knows everything. he knows when we are crying in the inside and can't show it. He knows when we have pain so deep, so painful, inside us, pain that there aren't words for. and He cares. He's our shelter, and our daddy. He's the one who gives us the ultimate comfort.
life sometimes stinks. it doesn't go the way we planned or hoped. it brings pain we don't want. but God is still good.
i just heard this song on the radio. it's pretty epic. Jesus doesn't leave us when we fall. Jesus doesn't push us or our pain away. Jesus loves us not matter what. He's always there for us. He knows how many stars are in the sky. how many grains of sand are on the beach. and He loves us. He calls for us to come to Him, so we can know His perfect love. and when we know that love, all the pain of life, how much life stinks sometimes, it all fades away.
thank You, Jesus!
Reach--by Peter Furler You hold the weight of the world Still I don’t slip through Your hands Your love is bigger Than just a notion built by man I fall again and again, But you whisper, “You’re still mine.” You feel the pain of the world, But you never push mine aside.
(Chorus) And You reach for me With a love that quiets all my fears And You reach for me Like a Father wipes away the tears So many people in this world, But I hear You calling out my name. You reach for me. Now I’m never gonna be the same.
You know all of my fears There’s nothing Your eyes can’t see. When I tried to give up, Lord, You never gave up on me. I give You all of my hopes and dreams, I lay them down. Of all the place I’ve looked, You’re the one truth I have found.
You hold the weight of the world, Still I don’t slip through Your hands. You put the stars in the sky. You know every grain of sand.
Blessings. we usually think of blessings as something that we can see as good. something that is new, or better, something good.
but check this out. Laura Story's song, called "Blessings"
We pray for blessings We pray for peace Comfort for family, protection while we sleep We pray for healing, for prosperity We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering All the while, You hear each spoken need Yet love us way too much to give us lesser things
Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops What if Your healing comes through tears What if a thousand sleepless nights Are what it takes to know You’re near What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise
We pray for wisdom Your voice to hear And we cry in anger when we cannot feel You near We doubt Your goodness, we doubt Your love As if every promise from Your Word is not enough All the while, You hear each desperate plea And long that we'd have faith to believe
Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops What if Your healing comes through tears What if a thousand sleepless nights Are what it takes to know You’re near And what if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise
When friends betray us When darkness seems to win We know the pain reminds this heart That this is not, this is not our home It's not our home
Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops What if Your healing comes through tears What if a thousand sleepless nights Are what it takes to know You’re near And what if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise
what if those sleepless nights are really a blessing? what if those tears really are blessings? maybe we have these trials to bring us closer to God. i think they do. i know they do.
