Cat Lady Status

So I know it's been awhile since I posted last... I wonder if anyone missed me! Haha...

Besides a lack of time due to getting a new job, I've also been lazy and going through a rough couple weeks.

The reason it's been rough all started when my College & Career Sunday School class decided to plan a trip to the beach for a bonfire night. And then the idea was added for everyone to think of and write down or bring an item in our lives that has been a hinderance to us in our Christian walks. So I started thinking about what my hindrance item would be. My automatic dramatic idea was to throw something big in the fire...but that was just being prideful and trying to show off... So I decided against that and earnestly started thinking about what was a hinderance in my life.

I honestly couldn't come up with anything that was hindering me, so I stopped thinking about it and figured I'd throw something together at the last minute if I even ended up being able to go. In true God fashion, I was SHOWN what my hinderance is, although it took me about two weeks to realize it.

My hinderance: loneliness/longing for a relationship.

That should have been the first thing that popped into my head because I know it's a struggle, but isn't it funny how we're blind to things? I went through two weeks of depression, reverting to some old, bad habits, obsessive wishful thinking, listening to more secular music then worship music, etc. I started obsessing over wanting a skinnier more fit body, prettier face, new hair, enough money for make-up and clothes... Anything that would make me better then what I am, because obviously how I am is what makes me alone, right? So if I become attractive then I won't be alone, right?

I couldn't be more wrong.

Because I started obsessing over all those things I started getting depressed and hopeless and nasty, lets call it like it was: I was being UGLY. Ugly comes from the INSIDE. So with all this ugliness inside came all the "I'm going to be alone forever, I'm going to die a miserable old lady  with a ton of pets, no one will ever care about me" (I'm pretty much dilusional at this point).

The last straw was today at church. I found out I can't even go to the bonfire cause I'll be working (shouldn't I be thankful for that??) Plus I was sick. I hate being sick. So I was a grump. In the afternoon for choir practice I was wearing a baggy black skirt, baggy teal t-shirt, and a baggy black sweater with cats and dogs all over it. I couldn't feel more ugly if I TRIED... Then to make matters worse, I was put in charge of the cutest little love offering to give to one of my friends by her admirer... SHOOT ME NOW. I was about to cry because of the jealousy and bitterness I felt at that moment. That was the ultimate #foreveralone moment in my life.

Now the good part! We had REALLY good sermons today, both I really needed to hear. And I hit the alter with an aching heart and I just cried out to God, finally realizing that this, this attitude I had about being single, THAT was my hinderance. And I needed to surrender it. So surrender I did. And I'm so glad I did! I feel like a weight has been lifted! But I know I need to be prayerfully careful too, because I know this struggle won't just disappear. I'm always going to hate being single, and I'm always going to want to be found by The One and be wooed and then get married and have kids and live realistically-happily-ever-after. But if I spend my time and energy being defined by God in the mean time, it's going to make that experience SO much better.

So. Patience, self-control, prayer, and self-worth are what I'm going to be working on. I'm actually glad this all came up because I DID learn from it. And I'm so thankful for the friends I have around me who put up with my dramatic outbursts of insanity. Seriously. So thankful.

Well... That pretty much ends my post. I feel like it was kind of random, but after all I AM sick and it IS after midnight... So that's as good as it's gettin'! I shall leave you with a picture of my "cat lady status" sweater. Enjoy!

Tough as Nails

Tough as Nails

(Before you start this one, I want you do do what the speaker asked us to do: ask God to search your heart and reveal your spirit.)

Tough as nails; How to eliminate drama from your life, was taught by April Goestch. And since that title is self-explanatory, let's jump right into the notes! (Grab your Bible's for this one!)

JAMES 3:13-4:3

Fact: 90% of the time drama comes from/is started by girls... But Rebekah and I know that's not always true! *wink*

Regardless of gender, where does drama come from? ....More then likely the answer is YOU. 

1) PRIDE is always the first step, and pride starts in the heart. 

 -Pride comes in many forms, for guys it's probably more of a vain pride, and for girls it's usually insecurity...insecurity is also pride, why? Because whether you're vain or insecure you're focusing on yourself. That's pride.

THE SOLUTION: Be sober minded. Basically, be realistic. 

Do you know how to think realistically?

Think about it this way: There are pictures that make you look 

terrible, and there are pictures that make you look fantastic. 

BOTH ARE LIES. 

Being realistic is realizing that God made you perfectly to

be you and no one else can be you. 

So stop trying to change who you are!

 

-Develop humility, humility leads to peace. And you need to be at rest with what is thought about you (whether good or bad), because there will always be opinions surrounding you, the only one that matters is Christ's! 

-Always remember that this world doesn't need perfect people that have it all together, it needs REAL people.

-Proverbs 8:13

-Proverbs 16:5

-Philippians 2:3

-Romans 12:3-8

2) JEALOUSY is the second step, and jealousy builds in the mind.

-Proverbs 6:34

-Proverbs 14:30

-We, (especially females), kill people all day long with our envious glares. 

THE SOLUTION: stop comparing! 

-No one has it all together. No one. 

-2 Corinthians 10:12-13, 17-18

3) BITTERNESS is the third step, and bitterness infects the soul.

-Hebrews 12:14-15

-Facts of life: *Life is unfair *People will hurt you *You won't understand why.

-You HAVE to eliminate bitterness, it only hurts YOU.

-You can't choose who hurts you or the type of hurts you receive, but you CAN choose how to react to it. 

-Bitterness is a POISON; the drug of the emotions. It's addictive and it destroys the vessel it's stored in. Bitterness is also a choice; don't be a record player needle that's stuck in the same groove that just oozes the same sob story over and over and over...

-Bitterness is the deliberate nursing of an offense.

THE SOLUTION: choose to forgive! 

-Make the choice to delete your "mind-script" 

-Make the choice to give mercy. 

-Forgiveness is un-conditional, even if they never apologize and even if the offense is repeated.

-You were shown mercy (by Christ) when you didn't deserve it, so how can we withhold it from others?

-Complete revenge on the person who wronged you will NEVER set you free! Showing mercy is what sets you free.

4) NEGATIVITY is the fourth and final step, and negativity comes out of the mouth.

-Ephesians 4:29-32

-Luke 6:27-36

-You would never throw up on someone, or let someone throw up on you, so why do we allow that or do it to others with our words?? (Word vomit)

THE SOLUTION: be nice!

-True kindness: *is not a respecter of persons (it's not choose-y), *always requires action (you have to BE kind), *always leave people encouraged after being with you, *doesn't have an on/off switch.

-Don't let jealousy, insecurity, and envy corrupt your life. 

-If you do all the good you can, to whomever you can, whenever you can, you will eliminate drama!

Pure Design

Pure Design

 

This session was taught by Ashley Chappell and it covers purity. It was supposed to be for teen girls, but Rebekah and I decided to crash the party anyway and check it out. Purity is always good to be reminded of!  Her main topic point is: "Why you're worth waiting for."

-You are loved! Be careful of settling for a quick love.

-You are beautiful! True beauty is a humble girl who admits her sin and then takes on the beauty of God's image. Your identity is in Christ!

- You are worth MORE! Realize the value of your purity and guard it. You deserve someone who would give up their life for you.

Some steps to maintaining purity:

1) PURSUE GOD -- Make that your focus. You deserve someone who values you enough to do anything for you, even die for you. So make God your focus and he'll bring you the right man for you.

2) ONLY DATE WHEN YOU'RE READY TO MARRY -- "You can't go shopping without money." I covered this a little bit in my last blog, but it doesn't even need much explaining.

3) ONLY DATE CHRISTIANS -- If you are a Christian you should only be dating Christians. "Do not be unequally yoked" the Bible says. And the men you date need to be devoted Christians, they need to take Christianity seriously and have a well established relationship with Christ.

4) SEEK WISE ADVICE/COUNCIL -- When you need advice or council on a relationship (or anything really) seek out people who have already "been there, done that"! It's not going to help you if you ask a friend who's never had any experience with what you need help with...Make sense? Haha.

 5) SET PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL BOUNDARIES -- Boundaries are a blessing and a safe-keeping and they need to be seen as such, if you view them as oppressive you'll end up compromising and that only leads to worse and worse things. ESTABLISH boundaries that will keep you physically and emotionally safe, and stick to them! 

6) GROUP DATE -- As someone who's not too sure about courting, I approve of this as a good "compromise" between one-on-one dating and courting. Go on group dates with other godly people. It should be a mix of guys and girls, but not everyone in the group has to be dating someone, groups can be made up of friends and couples, as long as you're not alone. This keeps you safe in multiple ways, plus it's a good way to see how your date reacts to this. If he doesn't want to go out with your friends a couple of times, then he's sketchy. Get rid of him! 

7) PRAY FOR YOUR FUTURE SPOUSE -- Even though you don't know who he is, pray for who God has in mind for you. If you're looking forward to your future then it's going to be easier to wait.

8) DRESS TO KILL! (Evil desires) -- This is by far my favorite point for two reasons: a) it's got a sassy title *wink* and b) when the speaker gave us this point she also shared a statistic with us: there have actually been studies done that have proven, PROVEN, that when men see a woman in a bikini their brains register her in the same way it registers other OBJECTS (like a hammer and nails and other tools, etc...) However! When they see women dressed modestly their brains register her as a person... Basically they respect her. This is the way their brains actually work and process things. It's not anything they really control. So why do women get surprised when they aren't treated as valuable when they don't make themselves seem valuable?! Dressing to show as much skin as possible will, yes, get you more male attention, but they will only see you as an object...a toy...

9) MAKE A COMMITMENT TO GOD -- this is pretty self explanatory... Make a commitment to God that you're going to stay pure until marriage, and by pure I mean it mentally and emotionally as well as physically. 

10) LEARN FROM OTHERS MISTAKES -- I am a prime example of mistakes you can learn from. One day I'll post my story, and hopefully it will be a help to others. But you know what? I learned from my mistakes, and I'm learning from others mistakes too... It's how we grow. So, see how it's NOT done and do the opposite, and if you happen to see how it IS done, then copy that! (Referring to a good, godly marriage).

Shopping Without Money

What a silly thought! Shopping without money?? Also referred to as "window shopping," it's a womens hobby.... What's even stranger then the idea of torturing ourselves with looking at stuff we can't buy? The fact that we do it with people too! I'm serious!

Y'all know what I'm talking about! Don't act like you don't! MEN. Yeppers. That's what this is all about, my bad habit with window-man-shopping, hopefully blogging about it will help more then just me. *wink*

So. Window shopping, or shopping without money, is going around looking at stuff you want, but you don't have any means to get it. The way it equates to relationships in my mind is with that phrase you hear in church a lot: "don't date unless you're ready to get married!" ... Which is true, I've learned the hard way that if you aren't ready for marriage, or don't understand marriage, or don't know what you want in a spouse etc., then dating is NOT a good idea. And yet, I'm stuck in this terrible phase of seeing practically every guy I meet as a potential relationship. (I do realize how desparate that makes me sound, sad eh?)

I have come to the conclusion that in order to break this phase, all I need to do is write myself a "shopping list" so that I stop "shopping without money" which will, hopefully, enable me to be more patient. I'm hoping that made sense....if not, the English interpretation is this: I'm going to keep a list of what I want in a guy and in a marriage in the back of my mind so that I know what to look for, and when things and people don't match up it is as easy as checking off the list... No more wondering! No more confusion!

A few things on my list are:
-Christ centered
-second to God, family is the priority
-the thing I want most in a guy is one who loves kids and will be a present, involved dad in his kid's lives as well as a good example to them.

...Those are pretty much the most important things, I could go on forever with little things, but I'm learning slowly to be less demanding. If those three things are met, I'll be a content woman.

I know this was a short, somewhat random, post. Hopefully it spurs some thoughts and helps some people in some way, but if not it at least helped me to get it "off my chest" so to speak. *laughs*

~till next time!~

Tools for Christians

Tools for Christians

NOTE: You'll need to have your Bible pulled out for this post, there's a lot of scripture references that are essential but would take me hours to type out, *laughs*

While this session was originally titled "Tools for Singles," I sat through this class a little confused because none of it really seemed to point to singles in particular. I can see how these things are important to know and apply in your "single" life, but even the non-singles could use these things. So, with that said, I have renamed it "Tools for Christians" (nice and general, eh?) Here we go! 

This session was taught by Rachel Graham (I can't link to her because I can't find anything about her.) Her main thoughts are: "Who Jesus Is" and "We Are Complete In Christ" and she had these verses at the top of the page:

Colossians 2:9-10 "For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority."

Philippians 4:10-13 "But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned before, but you lacked opportunity. Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being fulled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." 

1) JESUS IS OUR SAVIOR -- That is our foundation; Jesus is our firm foundation. 

-Titus 3:5-6

-John 3:16

-2Timothy 1:9

2) JESUS IS OUR LORD -- We need to consciously make Jesus the LORD of our lives, every part of it. 

-Philippians 2:9-11  

-Romans 6:14-16

-Romans 14:8

-Luke 6:46

-Mark 12:30

3) JESUS IS OUR LOVE -- Jesus is the only one who can fulfill. Commit to moral purity.

-Romans 5:8

-Romans 8:38-39

-John 15: 9-13, 17

-1John 4:6-7

4) JESUS IS OUR PEACE -- Worry, anxiety, and fear plague all of us, but they don't have to. 

-Isaiah 26:3 

-Ephesians 2:13-14

-Philippians 4:6-7, 9

5) JESUS IS OUR FORGIVENESS -- The key to our relationships.

-Ephesians 1:6-7

-1John 2:1

-Isaiah 55:7

- Colossians 3:13

6) JESUS IS OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS -- On our own we will always fail, but we can do all things with Christ. 

-2Corinthians 5:21

-Philipians 39

-Romans 9:30

7) JESUS IS OUR DELIVERER -- We are free indeed. Jesus can deliver us from every struggle we deal with. 

-Isaiah 61:1

-John 8:32, 36

-Romans 8:2

-Romans 6:22

8) JESUS IS OUR FELLOWSHIP -- Depend on Jesus. Take life one day at a time.

-1John 1:3

-1Corintians 1:9 

-Revelation 3:20

-John 14:23

-John 15:4-5,7

9) JESUS IS OUR EXAMPLE -- Don't ask "why me??" Ask, "why not me?"

-1Peter 2:21

-Ephesians 5:1-2 

-Philippians 2:5-8

-Mark 10:43-45

10) JESUS IS OUR COMPANION -- (at this point the speaker realized she was running out of time so I don't have any more side notes, just the scriptures)

-Psalm 119:63

-Proverbs 18:24

-Hebrews 13:5

-John 15:15-16

-1John 1:7

11) JESUS IS OUR BROTHER

-Matthew 12:50 

-Romans 8:29

-1John 3:1

12) JESUS IS OUR SECURITY

-1Peter 1:3-5

-John 10:27-29 

-Philippians 1:6

-2Thessalonians 3:3

13) JESUS IS OUR SUFFICIENCY 

-2Corinthians 3:5; 9:8 

-Philippians 4:19

-Mark 11:24

14) JESUS IS OUR EVERYTHING

-Philippians 1:21; 4:13

-Romans 8:37 

-Psalm 68:19 

-Ephesians 1:3

Some extra notes I took:

-We are complete in Christ

-We need to develop personal discipline: body, spirit, and soul.

-Fill your mind with influences that strengthen your walk with Christ.

-Intimacy with God is important, develop it!

-Lack of moral discipline disqualifies many Christians from the race of life.

-God didn't call you to be the judge, He just called you to love others. But be wise in how you act on loving others... In the case of helping those in need: don't just hand out money to those who ask, instead offer to go with them and buy them what they need. Then invite them to church or hand them a track.

-Live selflessly and give extravagantly.

-Examine your friendships, do they build you up and bring you closer to Christ?

Building Your Dream Home

Building Your Dream Home

This session was inspired by HGTV... Personally I have never even heard of that, but they talked about how people win dream homes and home make-overs on that channel. So, following that theme, this session gave us some essential qualities that our "dream homes" should have. 

1) CHRISTIAN -- First and foremost, our homes need to have Christ present and He needs to have preeminence. We need to be teaching sound doctrine in our homes, and we need to be prayer warriors for those in our homes. 

2) LOVE -- We need to say it and we need to show it. When we say it, say it often, and then put actions to your words and show your love. "We don't have to do great things, just things with great love." 

3) FORGIVENESS -- Don't hold on to past offenses, it only does damage, and most of that damage is done to yourself. 

4) TRUST -- Proverbs 3:5 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding." Psalm 56:3 "When I am afraid, I will put my trust in You." We need to trust the Lord with His plans for us and our families. Trust His protection and provision. Also, "do what you say, and say what you do," so that you build trustworthiness and others can trust you. 

5) HUMILITY -- James 4:10 "Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exult you." Philippians 2:3 "Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important that yourselves." DON'T BE SELFISH! Be a servant! Admit mistakes. And have a zero tolerance policy for bad attitudes. 

6) GRATITUDE -- Enemies of being grateful are: entitlement and comparison, don't allow them to creep into your life and steal your joy. Be grateful for everything. 

7) TEAM WORK -- Train your children to give 100% and be the example of that for them. Everyone should be helping out in the home. One person doing everything for everyone else is only harming them, not helping.

8) HAVE AND CHOOSE CONTENTMENT -- Philippians 4:11-13; 19-20 "Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me..... And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Now to our God and Father be the glory forever and ever. Amen." Who you are, where you are, what you have, every circumstance, in everything be content.

9) HAVE FUN -- Make time to have fun with your family. Fun with your family is an important aspect of life, it doesn't have to cost anything, but make sure you don't get so busy that you never have any fun with your family. 

10) COMMITMENT -- Be faithful to the Lord and surrender your will to Him. 

One final thought: Is how YOU live going to inspire your family (current or future) to imitate you and live a life that follows Christ?

Plugged into the Power

Plugged into the Power

Plugged into the Power was our first session at the women's conference, it was taught by April Goestch. (Blue words will be her notes, pink will be mine)

This message probably impacted me the most. Her question to everyone was: 

"What is Victorious Christian Living?"

1) KNOW WHO YOU ARE -- YOUR OLD NATURE IS DEAD (Romans 6:6)

  

A. The old man was crucified with Christ. Your past has no hold on you anymore, Christ is in you and has made you new!  

2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."

Galatians 2:20 "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now life in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."

 B. Even if you don't feel dead, you still are. Your feelings always scream louder then the truth and they tend to drown out the truth from your mind. 

-Sometimes it's hard for Christians to believe that their old nature is dead and gone, and if you stay chained to that you will never live victoriously. 

-The Bible doesn't say that the pleasure of sin goes away, it's just now against your new nature. 

-Don't ever allow your feelings to drown out the truth of the God's Word!

Romans 6:9 "Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him." 

2) KNOW HOW GOD SEES YOU -- AS FULLY ACCEPTED THROUGH THE BLOOD

-Satan tries to convince us that every time God looks down at us He's frowning because of how much we've failed throughout the day.  But that is so far from the truth! When God looks at us He doesn't see US, He sees Christ and HIS BLOOD SHED FOR US. 

-It's not up to you to make yourself acceptable to God, you'd never be able to do that. Christ already did that for us when He died on the cross for us, wasn't He enough?! 

-The Blood of Jesus was not meant for us to see or feel, it was solely meant to satisfy God. 

3) KNOW YOUR MOTIVATION TO LIVE -- BECAUSE OF CHRIST'S DEATH, YOU HAVE HIS LIFE  (Romans 6:8)

-The Blood of Jesus was not just meant for salvation, but also to give us complete, direct, unrestricted access to God. Nothing we can ever do will make us better or worse, we come before God through the Blood regardless of how our day has been. 

-Hebrews 9:1-14 

-Boldly approach the throne, because you have a High Priest (Jesus) who has provided a way for you! 

4) KNOW THE REASON FOR THE FRUSTRATION -- SATAN WILL DO EVERYTHING HE CAN TO GIVE YOU A FALSE IDENTITY 

A. Don't believe the LIES of Satan. (Romans 6:11 "Likewise reckon [continually conclude] ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord") 

-Just like a hypnotist, Satan will try to convince you of every lie in the book. 

-Satan can't take your salvation away, you can never lose it, so he does the next best thing: he confuses us and makes us doubt our identity. 

-The song "I'm just a sinner saved by grace" can be a dangerous thought if taken too seriously, because when we are saved we share CHRIST'S identity...why are we downplaying the magnitude of how He has changed us??  

-Do you ever look at a butterfly and think: "Wow! What an awesome, converted, used-to-be-ugly, worm!"??? NO. You just see a butterfly. So why do Christians believe Satan's lies and look at ourselves that way? YOU'RE NOT A WORM ANYMORE, DON'T ACT LIKE ONE! BE A BUTTERFLY! 

 

B. Don't give POWER to the flesh. (Romans 6:12-14)

-Ephesians 5:1-8

-WE have the CHOICE to yield ourselves to Christ or to Satan. Which will we choose? 

-Always ask yourself, "what's true, and what's feelings?"

5) KNOW YOUR PURPOSE IN LIFE -- YOU ARE A FRUIT HANGER; NOT A FRUIT PRODUCER (John 15:1-5)

A. Follow the PATTERN of Christ--Total dependency on God

-John 5:36 "But I have greater witness than that of John: for the works which the Father hath given me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of me, that the Father hath sent me."

-John 12:49 "For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. 

B. Love Him because He first loved you

-Love leads to Dependency which leads to Obedience.

-1John 4:10 "Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins."

-1John 4:19 "We love Him, because He first loved us"

C. Constantly ABIDE in the vine

-John 15:5 "I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in Me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without Me ye can do nothing."

-It's only the branches job to HOLD the fruit, that's it, nothing more. It's Jesus' job to bear the fruit. 

One final thought:

There's a story of a boy in a room, he's got headphones on and is clapping and tapping to the music he's listening to. Then (as a test) a deaf boy is added to the room... He sees the boy clapping and tapping and figures that that is just what is done in this room and so he starts clapping and tapping too. However, since the deaf boy can't hear the music, he eventually tires and stops clapping and tapping. 

This is how it applies to us:

Apart from a heart motivated by the Spirit to live right, we're going to stop "clapping and tapping" to the "music." So seek the Spirit's guidance in your life, don't ever allow yourself to get to the point where you can't "hear the music" because that's when weariness sets in, and then we fall away from God. Instead, keep close to Him, read your Bible, pray, spend time in worship, all these things will keep you motivated; keep you going.  

 

Gentleman, please!

This is just going to be a quick little thought provoking post about something that's been on my mind lately. 

GENTLEMAN. 

What is a gentleman? By dictionary definition a gentleman is someone who is: civilized, educated, sensitive, or well-mannered: "He behaved like a true gentleman."

And of course, all over the internet lately you see things like this: 

"Real Men" ... "Gentlemen" ... In my mind they're the same thing, just different ways of putting it. But that is besides the point. The point I'm trying to make is this: A lot of women out there are complaining these days about how "there's no gentleman left!" And I'm sure the gentlemen that DO exist are probably wondering why they seem to be invisible. 

I don't think women realize the power they have in encouraging men to be more gentleman like, and so my question is this: are we ladies ALLOWING guys to be gentleman anymore? I think the answer, for the most part, is no. 

Women have a decent amount of influence on most men. The reason guys don't hold doors or bags or offer jackets anymore is because us women try to act like we're too tough for that, and we get all offended when they offer to take care of us and treat us as the precious jewels that we are. And then we turn right around and complain when a guy isn't treating us right. Tell me how that adds up to making sense? Because to me, it really doesn't! 

Ladies: it's as simple as body language...and maybe even a sweet joke...to encourage a man to act more like a gentleman. When you're walking with a guy and you get to a door, don't just bust through it! Stand there and wait, usually they will get the hint. And if not there's multiple ways of nicely saying that you're waiting for him to get the door for you. I'm not as big on the car doors thing, so I don't have a hint for you on that, but I'm sure there is a nice way to encourage that as well. Remember: honey catches more bees then vinegar.... Or something like that. Principle being this: if your nice a guy will want to treat you well.

There's also a Biblical reference for this, Proverbs 31 describes a good woman. If you go verse by verse and pull out her characteristics you will find that one of them is graciousness. Graciousness, by definition, is being courteous. Being courteous is "having or showing good manners, politeness." So if women were more polite to men, wouldn't they be polite back? I think the answer is yes. 

SO. My challenge to you is this: be conscious of how you act around the guys in your life, young and old. Try to encourage them to treat you in a more "gentlemanly" manner, and then come back here and let me know if it works! And keep in mind, this isn't just some haughty-taughty thing for women to get treated like queens or whatever, encouraging the guys around you to be gentleman and to respect women is helping men too! Men need to act like men, they need to be protectors and providers because that's how God made them, and I believe those characteristics should includes all women to a degree. 

So much for quick! I just keep going, haha. I think this is an okay place to end this for now, though. Let me know what you think about this topic, leave a comment! 

 

West Coast Baptist Women's Conference 2013

This past weekend, Rebekah Koontz and I went to the West Coast Baptist Women's Conference 2013 in Lancaster, CA. What an experience! The theme was "Make overs" and from the decorating to the little handouts to the messages, all of it was very well done and definitely a blessing in SO many ways! I was skeptical at first because I had no idea what to expect (this was my first conference), and I had been attacked in every way possible the morning we were supposed to leave. I LITERALLY arrived "battered, bruised, and worn" (my somewhat graphic picture of that is at the bottom... use caution in viewing). But God was faithful to speak to my heart through every message and I left beyond blessed, I have a lot of things to mull over the next few weeks, and they're going to inspire some blogs. Hold on to your hard hats! This post is just going to be my pictures from the trip, hope you enjoy them! 

These first 2 pictures are the doors of the hotel's elevator...I just love these, they're too cute!   

This was our view while driving to & through Lancaster

 These 2 pictures are a couple of the little handouts we got, AWW!

 This is the main sanctuary, it seats around 3000 I believe.

 This was the church's choir room decorated for a dessert night, how cute are these paint bucket inspired center pieces?!

 Rebekah and I found the pool & jacuzzi in the hotel and took some well deserved relaxing time! (I apologize for my indecent exposure...I should have just had Rebekah take my picture but as you can see, she was already soaking wet by the time I whipped out the phone for pictures.)

 

 These next 3 pictures were the view from our third-floor hotel room at sunrise, beautiful!

 

 

 This was the stage, and in this picture they're doing a game, they had some cute games!

This was during worship. I couldn't resist taking a picture of this song because just before going to the conference, one of the ladies who used to go to West Coast's college was telling Rebekah & I a story about how some of the college girls twisted this song to something like: "Lord, prepare me, a man to marry..." I don't remember the rest, but you can imagine. Rebekah & I couldn't stop laughing... Probably just cause we're those "forever alone" girls. Don't judge! 

 

 On Saturday, they had a main morning service, three multiple choice services where you could choose which lesson you wanted to attend, and then another main closing service. These were the classes Rebekah and I took together... I'll go into more detail in my next blogs.

 

 

 This was just a pretty fountain on the grounds of the church that I decided to snap a picture of...Funny story, it's in between two "tunnels" that connect one building to another (you see the door in the background?) Well, I decided to cut across rather then walk around...that yonder door? Was locked. Rebekah and I shared a moment of terror thinking we were locked in as we rushed back the way we came, and were greatly relieved to find that door hadn't shut all the way when we had walked through it. Thank God! We were free! Haha.

  

These were the very beautifully designed sections of the stage!

LUNCH TIME! How cute are these lunch pails?!

 

 

Of course, Rebekah and I HAD to stop at at least ONE thrift store... It's in our blood. The door boasted signs promising 25 cent treasures (marked with a green tag). Excited Rebekah and I set out searching and searching.... I don't think we ever found a green tag. But Rebekah found some photo worthy items (which will probably be posted on her blog soon)

  

Every good conference has good singers! This first picture was a ladies trio, they were really good! And below them was a men's quartet, they were really good too!

 And last, but not least, the picture of my head wound... 

Gnarly, ain't it?!

The story behind that: Mom and I were doing last minute shopping before taking off for the conference, and I was not paying attention (standing around texting) and she went to close the trunk thinking I had walked away...My head caught the corner of the trunk. BUT! At least I can say it's just another battle scar that didn't hold me down! I've been injured in stupid ways all my life, since before I was a year old, this wasn't anything new! Haha. 

Oh, Heart

Oh, Heart...

The dreams you contain are so precious, don't lower your standards in times of lonliness. I know you dream of what you had and wish that it had turned out another way. And I know you dream of future things that seem so far out of reach. I know you see others with what you wish you had, and even others who don't understand that what they have is so special and you long for it too. But in this time of solitude you have a lot of learning to do!

Be patient young Heart, the day will come! Be steadfast dear Heart, for that day will be more then you had ever dreamed possible! The Lord doesn't take away without reason, and He knows you better then you know yourself, He can surpass the dreams you cling to if you're just patient enough to wait and to trust.

Oh, Heart....

How I know you long to be cherished, how I know it's over-due. If loving God with all that we are fulfills us, I know it would be simpler to do if we could be physically held by Him. Contentment would overflow and nothing else would be needed. But since it can't be, I know you long for a good, strong pair of arms to hold you...  Maybe you more then most because of what was lacking in your early life... But God is faithful, lean on Him! Don't turn your thoughts toward flattery and your emotions toward unsure things. Heart, what you contain is precious, don't spread it here and there in hoping, keep yourself contained; controlled, so that you have all of you to give when the time is right.

Jesus, friend of sinners.

I know.

My last post was pretty dark and bitter... But I think I'm going to leave it up just as a reminder that we all go through dark times, and that there IS hope for tomorrow.

Today is yesterday's tomorrow, and Jesus has been pouring His hope into my heart all day. The whole morning at church was a blessing, I hadn't been to the alter in awhile (proof I was trying to creep control of my life back into my hands), so this morning my knees hit that alter and surrendered once again my life into Jesus' more the caple hands.

Not two hours later, I got a call from PetSmart saying that everyone had been asking for me to come back to work there (aww) and that since I'm known by everyone I can skip the interview process and just pick up my drug test paper tomorrow morning. (The first step in getting hired.)

PRAISE GOD!

Pastor taught this morning on how to be godly, Christian employees... Sounds like God is preparing me for something.

I can't even describe how I feel right now... No matter how desparate I can get to feeling, Jesus is always there whispering "lean on me, I can carry you through and bless you more then you're expecting."

Wow.

Just... WOW.

I will definitely be more thoughtful before I go slumping into a depression again. If I had just prayed, read my Bible, or actually listened to the worship music playing in my car last night, I highly doubt I would have sunk so far within myself.

Yes we all have pains in this life, but they should not consume us. And God is faithful to renew us each morning if we just seek Him. I'm honestly blown away.

Pain

I want you to imagine something.

I want you to imagine a cut, a deep cut. Got it? Good...

Cuts scab over, and so does this one. But you, you're a little neurotic and when you have a scab you tend to pick at it. Picking at it hurts but you do it anyway. Soon the scab is gone and you skin is stinging and raw and probably bleeding again.

A little time passes and another scab appears. You pick it off again. And again. And again... Then finally the skin becomes tough and heals but in the scabs place is a scar, a permanent scar that will never go away. Scars are ugly. What do we do with ugly things? Hide them. On goes the makeup; on goes the mask. The scar isn't gone, it will never be gone. But at least no one knows it's there.

In time even you forget the scar, hiding it is habit and the pain behind it is long gone. But the effects of that long ago pain still lurk in the corners of your mind, toying with your emotions. Suddenly hiding a scar isn't enough. Suddenly nothing is good enough. Weight, height, looks, feelings, thoughts, words, none of it is good enough and it all needs to be covered up. But covering it all up takes time, effort, energy.... And after awhile weariness sets in. What's the point in hiding? What's the person behind the mask become?

Who knows. You don't even know. You're so entangled in a world of pains felt over and over until you made yourself tough enough to ignore them. But the pains are still there. And no matter how you seek peace, no matter how you seek solice, you cannot find it... You know the One who heals all pain and takes away all sorrow. You love that One desperately. And yet... You still long for physical arms to hold you; for a physical voice to sing away your fears and promise you the sun will shine again. All around you are others who have what you seek, it seems so easy to find what you yourself are longing for but seem so unable to attain. Why. Why?

Pain is a monster. It swallows you alive and chokes you to death. But how do you define a pain for which there are no words? You can't.

BUT.

There is only hope.

There is always hope.

You just have to be willing to seek it, and when you find it: willing to accept it.

Lord, send your hope to me. Heal this aching heart and set me free. Make me a new creation in you. I want the freedom to make a change, I don't want to stay chained to the past anymore. Save me. Save me.

Prince Charming?

Prince Charming? Hmm...

 

"Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
    but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised." - Proverbs 31:30

That verse could just as easily be said:

"Charm is deceptive, and good looks are fleeting;
    but a MAN who fears the Lord is to be praised."

 

So. Let's be real. What is with the whole Prince Charming dream? Why do so many girls dream of a being a damsel in distress, totally unhappy with her life, just waiting around for a Prince Charming to come riding in on a white horse and whisk her away to a life of sudden happiness? I'll admit I was one of those girls, but recently I've started to question that "dream." 

Don't get me wrong,

I DO dream of marriage and 

"happily ever after..." 

But that doesn't mean that a woman's

life should be spent waiting around,

nah,

let's be honest:

WASTED 

pining away after something that

is so far away from reality it's crazy.

 

"Prince Charming" doesn't even sound very promising. 

 

The Bible says that charm is deceptive, so why are girls/women dreaming of being deceived?? It doesn't even make sense. As far as I know, a woman wants a man who is mature, self-sufficient, strong and caring, a protector/defender, a provider, a best friend, their other half. Not some pretty little boy who says all the right words but then can't follow through. We never get to hear what REALLY happens after Prince Charming and the Damsel get married...OH, SURE...They tell you they lived "happily ever after" but I don't think that's true. I'm sure they had their fair share of problems along the 50+ years they spent together. 

 

But I'm heading into a different subject, so let's get back on track...

 

LADIES,

We already have a Prince who has rescued us! JESUS! He came to die to save our souls and win our hearts. I don't know about you, but I think that's pretty dang romantic, and I think that's a love we should seek after above anything else. Show me ONE fairytale with a better storyline then THAT. I'm betting you can't. 

 

So if we have a real Prince, who isn't trying to deceive us with charm, who has rescued us and is waiting for us to seek him out and return his love, that should change things quite a bit. No longer would we have to sit around the house pining away. We would have all that we needed, we would be fulfilled, and would have the freedom to stop day dreaming and go out and make a difference in the world. This world of ours needs a lot of help, and yes, one extra pair of hands definitely does make a difference! And yes, each pair of hands has a special gift that no other pair of hands does! Don't get caught in the lies of the world, don't allow yourself to believe you're worthless or not good enough or whatever it is, because if you were then would the God who made the universe send His Son to save you? ...Probably not... So that alone should show how much value you hold. 

 

Can we all agree that "Prince Charming" is yes, a nice story, but it's just that: a story? I think we should leave those stories in our childhoods and move on to a more realistic dream of a man. (Though, I wouldn't mind keeping the white horse...don't judge me...) Let's seek out the real Prince, let us return the love He has shown us, let us find our fulfillment in Him. Jesus is the only real source of fulfillment, so put the fairytales down and pick up a Bible and begin a new chapter. It's beyond worth it. I promise. 

 

~Daughter Of The King~