Service Project

This past Friday, a group of kids from one of my classes went to volunteer at Hope Community of Shalom church here in Lubbock. We are all taking the class Communication, Civility, and Ethics and our most recent assignment was to do some community service project with other classmates then write a paper on how the teamwork was. We went to the church where 400lbs of pecans had been donated. They have a church member who would spice up the pecans, but first... the shells needed to be disposed of. That's where we came in. We spent two hours separating the shells from the pecans. The church was then going to sell their pecans at a local bluegrass festival and hopefully add some monetary stability to their church budget. We were more than happy to help out.

While sitting there for two hours, we came to know one another better and spent the majority of the time talking about God and our relationship with Him. Some beautiful stories and insight were shared and it was wonderful to be able to fellowship with one another. These classmates of mine are fantastic people who all have faith in God and it was such a blessing to spend the afternoon together :)

From the outside

working hard :)

pecans and shells

the boys

and the girls

And Paige. Not from volunteering but later that night :)

God is still God

Hello world. I realize it's been a while, but this semester has been particularly difficult for me. Not saying that is a valid excuse to take a break from blogging, but it's the excuse I'm going to stick with anyways. So in the midst of the stress and difficulties, God has shown me that He is still God and in complete control. Let me share my week with you :)

So this week, 2 very close and important people in my life have had to go through some traumatic changes. Although they have handled these situations with great maturity, the hurt they have been through has managed to take hold of my heart. On top of my social life being under loads of stress, school hasn't slowed down any. I have 2 tests and 3 papers due this week. And no, nothing has been done yet to prepare myself for that. With work and church, the time is being cut short on when I will be able to take care of that. Stressful week to say the least. But again, God is still God.

Today I have two classes and they were both unexpectedly canceled, giving me ample time to take care of some homework. My roommate and myself were then treated to lunch by our wonderful bible study leader before heading to our weekly bible study. At this bible study, the word "sanctify" was brought up and this leader told us that sanctify meant "to make holy, to set apart". This was God speaking to me through our leader because right when she spoke, my face lit up. I promise you that I have heard that exact definition at least a hundred times from my sweet father. So while reading with my Father, I was reminded of my father. It was simply wonderful. And as if this wasn't awesome enough, we were exploring the words of Paul in Hebrews and I read verse 12 which said,

"Therefore, let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us at the proper time."

Yo, it IS the proper time!! That's whats up. It brought so much peace regarding my friends. And everything else for that matter. It was a beautiful study today that God blessed me with.

So yes, it has been stressful but I'm so blessed that God is continuing to show himself to me. Even if it is just in the little things. Sorry for the blogging break but I will attempt to be better in the future :)

Baby it's Cold Outside

These are all pictures that make me feel warm inside, so yes. You may have seen them before. I'll explain why I did this later in my post. So go :)

Let's preface this post with saying, it's been cold here in Lubbock, America. Last night when we checked, it was 12 degrees outside and I'm sure it grew colder as we slept. But this weather has brought along many negative comments. Most people find this temperature very uncomfortable but for some odd, unexplainable reason, I love the cold weather. I have always preferred it to the heat (even more reason for me to stay away from Hell, huh? hehe). So why do I love the cold? Here are a few reasons on the top of my head.

• You can always layer clothes to keep you warm. Ya can't always take them off :/
• I don't particularly enjoy shopping, but there is an exception with scarves, sweaters, coats, and boots which is all you really need in this weather!
• Gathering around a fire always makes me feel close to home for some reason
• There is no feeling more precious than walking into a warm, toasty room from the cold outside and then feeling your flushed cheeks. It sounds silly but you all know what I'm talking about.

I could go on forever but I don't think adding bullet points will affect peoples understanding of my love for cold weather so I'll leave it at that. The point is, in the midst of the freezing weather, there's this warmth buried inside of me. Let me explain...

As you noticed, there were no posts over Christmas and if you are a friend of mine on Facebook, you would notice that there weren't any posts there either. At the end of the break, I had friends tease me about being M.I.A. over the break. Apparently I was really bad about answering texts and phone calls and updating my social networks. This is not a typical characteristic of mine, I admit. But it was different over Christmas. I had the pleasure of spending it with my family. Whenever I'm with them, there is absolutely no other place I would rather be. Technology can take a break while I share that precious time with my favorite people. 

Whenever I'm home and with them, I feel that warmth again and it's a feeling unlike any other. However, my family isn't here in Lubbock with me and I have to find that warmth from somewhere else.   Luckily, I am blessed enough to have the warmth of Jesus Christ in me wherever I go. I have something inside of me that gives me more warmth than any amount of coats, sweaters, and scarves than I could possible possess. 

I know it's cold outside, but I pray that the warmth inside of me is uncontainable and spills out onto any and everyone. Thanks for reading :)

Thankful for my dad :)

First of all, I should also be thankful for forgiveness. I never realized how busy I would be and apparently a blog every day was a little too much for me to handle. However, I wanted to share with the blogging world just how awesome my father is.

He’s the guy that I love running errands around town with because everywhere we go, we run across someone who wants to chat or just say hello. Everyone knows him and everyone wants that communication with him. If all any outsider saw of my dad was the way other people treat him, they would see the respect people gave him and see a tidbit of his good character. Even those who don’t “know” my dad are able to see a glimpse of Godly personality.

He’s the guy with the best one liners that can make me burst into giggles, even when I’m in one of my moods. He has a sense of humor like no other and can always bring a smile to your face. It’s a shame so much of his humor is wasted on 7^th graders who don’t appreciate it :)

He’s the guy who has set such high expectations in any husband or future husband for my sisters and me. We want a husband like him who is steadfast in his faith and looks at my mother every time as if it were the first. His love pours out onto others.

He’s the guy who helps show me what fatherly love truly means. I know I could never possibly fathom our heavenly Father’s love for us, but if I had to pick an example, I can confidently say that I imagine it being how my dad loves me. Not a day goes by where I haven’t been abundantly provided for or where I don’t feel loved. My dad has been that rock for me and my family.  

I had a friend just today tell me that she couldn’t imagine how anybody could not want to be a part of this family. According to her, this is what people dream of. And honestly, I couldn’t agree more.

I love you daddy and couldn’t be more grateful for all you do for me. You have been my teacher, counselor, Webster, preacher, banker, cheerleader, tear wiper and so much more. I can’t wait until I’m able to see again. I love you :)

Thankful for Hannah!!

Today, my sweet sweet sister turned 20 years old. That's two whole decades people! It's kind of a big deal. It's so amazing to me to see how God has already begun to shape her into a woman of His own image. She has showered her love and compassion on me and always willing to lend an open ear and give an honest opinion. She's been there for me through some hard times and it's so evident to me why God has placed her in my life. God continues to radiate through her words, actions, and lifestyle. I'm so blessed to not only be able to call her my sister, but my best friend. 

She is attending Baylor University to become a high school teacher/basketball coach and has already begun to work in nearby schools. It warms my heart to hear her talk about what she experiences there. She has such a passion for teaching and the kids that most adults would just overlook. She loves every single student and has the highest hopes for them all. God is definitely going to use her to touch the lives of soooo many students. 

And with all of these remarkable qualities, this girl is still able to have some fun. I have some of the fondest memories with Hannah and they include but are definitely not limited to the following:

• country music and cowboy boots
• teaching Rebekah to dance :)
• road trips to Longview
• fireworks in downtown waco
• taco bell in movie theaters
• Cinnamon Spice Apple Delight P.J. Junior Beaudreaux Sheila Blanton
• early morning bible studies w/coffee
• space jam :)
• hopscotch and coloring
• Evey the Chevy
• our fish noises 
• baking in our aprons
• long walks at night, planning our future housing
• sharing a twin bed, just cause we felt like it
• Andy Davis concert :)
• Starbucks and CG

I could keep the list going forever, but what excites me the most is that I still have a lifetime to create some of the greatest memories with you. I love you Hannah. Continue to be the fearful, wonderful Woman of God that you have demonstrated thus far in your life. I love you nana. Happy birthday :)

"You're my best friend. Let's hold hands."

Thankful for hymns :)

Tonight I went to a regular wednesday night church service and it was awesome as usual. We always sing praise music then have a lesson. It always warms my heart though when they throw in a hymn or two with our contemporary music. Some of the lines that come from them are just breathtaking. I could sit and listen all day to someone on the piano or strumming on the guitar, just singing old hymns to God. It is truly beautiful. Tonight we sang "Great is Thy Faithfulness". Probably my favorite line from this one is "Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow, Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!". 

Let's play a game :)

Maybe you know some of the hymns from which my favorite lines come from...

Let courage rise with danger

Riches I heed not, nor man's empty praise, Thou mine inheritance, now and always

streams of mercy, never ceasing, call for songs of loudest praise

In seasons of distress and grief, my soul has often found relief

Watching and waiting, looking above,Filled with His goodness, lost in His love


I would love to hear what some of your favorite hymns are! I hope you enjoy and your day is filled with singing praises to our God! 

Thankful for creativity!

This morning started out hard. I stayed up WAY too late last night trying to register for classes (which was a major fail btw) and woke up to freezing temperatures here in Lubbock, America. Normally, I'm a big fan of cold weather, but I forgot to put on socks last night and cold feet is just a pet peeve of mine. Anyways, I bundled up in my new coat from mom and the scarf that my sweet sister lent me and headed off to my early class, with coffee in hand :)

I get to class and we were required to spend the entire time revising our papers. That was pretty nice though, since I haven't allotted much time to it. However, it was just one of those mornings where revising a paper wasn't on the top of my list.

So, my wonderful professor suggested for us to do the "Frankenstein technique". We started out by cutting out the thesis statement and all the topic sentences in our paper and taping them down to new paper. Then, we cut out all the other sentences. After having each and every little sentence cut out, we would look at it and see if and how it related to our thesis. If it didn't, we shot it in the trash can. And if it did, we chose a topic sentence for it to go under.

As you could guess, the organization of my paper has changed greatly. Sentences were thrown away or put into entirely new spots and actually improved this paper dramatically. It was just so cute, though, seeing all these college kids spread out with their scissors and tape, working diligently to finish this assignment. I have never had as much fun revising a paper and it actually helping. It was an awesome start to my day.

I think this strategy, though, is applicable to more than just my analysis. Let's play pretend for a second.

Let's say life is a paper. What's your thesis and topic sentences? Let's say my "paper" is focused around God's love for His people and that's what my thesis is. Well I want every single one of my "sentences" throughout the day to relate back to that. All the small things that happen throughout the day can be my sentences and I have the ability to choose whether or not those things reflect God's love. If they don't, I should just throw em away.

I make new paragraphs every day. But once this life is over, my paper will be complete. I pray that when God grades it, He sees an "A". Maybe one sentence doesn't seem important to you, but you can't have a paper without them. I hope you are able to cherish the small things today. And I don't know, maybe you can get creative too :)