2011?!

I would just like to say, time needs to stop going by so fast. It's seriously getting annoying. For real though, the past few weeks have been a blur. Christmas is already over and in a couple hours it will be a brand new year.

Let's recap on 2010:
-I started a blog!
-I blew out 17 candles on my birthday cake
-My true love came into my life (Brylon, my camera)
-I applied, and was accepted into Clearwater Christian College
-I actually attended 2 school dances (If you know me at all, that is a pretty big deal)
-A new addition to the family! My cousin now has a beautiful baby girl, Rylee Paige, who will actually be a year old tomorrow!
-I learned how to catch a frisbee
-Senior? Is that possible?
-I watched my baby brother sing in many Show Choir performances
-Speaking of singing, my little sister scored the solo in her Veteran's Day program
-Youth group went to Teen Leadership Conference
-New(ish) Youth Pastor, and exciting things are happening at Southside Baptist Church
-Started playing guitar
Wheww, I feel like that's a lot, when it really isn't half of it!

Looking ahead to 2011:
-Graduation
-I will be a legal adult!
-College
-China? (Oh, I'm hoping so!)
-Did I mention graduation?

I love the idea of a fresh start and a new beginning. A new year kind of gives us that, a time to start again with no mistakes. What we forget though, is this is a gift God gives us everyday. Each morning we wake up is a brand new opportunity to serve Him. So my new years resolution is this: Remembering I don't need a new year to start again. God forgives my mistakes and I can live everyday for Him!

10 Days until Christmas!

Time is just going by faster and faster. I can't believe Christmas is right around the corner and 2011 is right behind.

Where does time go?

 First off, I have been accepted to Clearwater Christian College. Wooohooo! It's very exciting and at the same time completely terrifying. Does that make any sense? I am almost finished with half of my senior year. That is just crazy and a little bit sad. On the bright side, I treated myself to an early Christmas present and bought a new best friend. (A Nikon D300) I have been drooling over this camera for a couple years and I am so excited to finally have one. This means I have been spending a lot of time taking pictures recently. It's been great.

With Christmas coming up there is a lot of festivities going on. Tonight at youth group is our annual Christmas party. It's kind of sad to think that this will be my last Christmas party in youth group. A girl in my small group said to me the other day, "I can't believe you're graduating. I can't picture youth group without you." Well good. Because I can't picture me without youth group. It will be a hard transition but I hope to one day be involved in youth ministry and invest in young people's lives just as so many leaders have done for me and the other students in my youth group. This Saturday, the girl's Sunday School class is hosting a ladies brunch. The goal is for our girls class to connect and build relationships with different ladies in our church. I know my mom has put a lot of hard work into this event and us girls are excited about it.

I have started the countdown and it is 103 days until I am 18. Woot! (Not that I'm excited or anything)

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7

I am so thankful for the peace of God. I don't have to worry about tomorrow, or the next day, or the next day. God gives me a peace when I do not understand the things going on around me. And the best part, God wants to hear about it! God wants to hear my requests, my confusion, my excitement. And then he gives me a peace about all of it!

Joy To The World

Joy- the emotion of great delight or happiness caused by something exceptionally good or satisfying; keen pleasure; elation

A very famous Christmas song is "Joy To The World". I love it. And the meaning of joy. Christmas is when God sent His son to this messy world so we could find delight and happiness.That is so awesome to me.We have joy! We can see the delight and good in things because Jesus was sent to Earth. There was a gift given on Christmas that nothing can compare with. Jesus came on Christmas. And because of it, we are given the gift of salvation, and joy in Him!

It is pretty much the best thing. Ever.

Winter Snow

I wish it snowed in Florida, or I at least want to see snow. Especially at this time of year.

Snow or no snow, I can enjoy the lyrics to this song.

Winter Snow
By Audrey Assad

Could've come like a mighty storm
With all the strength of a hurricane
You could've come like a forest fire
With the power of heaven in Your flame

But You came like a winter snow
Quiet and soft and slow
Falling from the sky in the night
To the earth below

You could've swept in like a tidal wave
Or an ocean to ravish our hearts
You could have come through like a roaring flood
To wipe away the things we've scarred

But You came like a winter snow
(Yes, You did)
You were quiet
You were soft and slow
Falling from the sky in the night
To the earth below

Oh, no, Your voice wasn't in a bush burning
No, Your voice wasn't in a rushing wind
It was still
It was small
It was hidden

You came like a winter snow
Quiet and soft and slow
Falling from the sky in the night
To the earth below

Falling
(Oh, yeah)
To the earth below
You came falling
From the sky in the night
To the earth below

One word: Beautiful

Beautiful Feet

"How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of the messenger who brings good news, the good news of peace and salvation, the news that the God of Israel reigns!"  Isaiah 52:7 (NLT)

Oh how I long to have beautiful feet!

The application for Show Hope's Student Trip is now online and after much prayer and consideration, I feel God working in my life and I have decided to apply. If accepted, I will spend 2 weeks of my summer in China caring for the special needs orphans at Maria's Big House Of Hope. It is a big trip, and there is still a lot to consider, but if it is truly God's will, I am confident He will provide a way.

Speaking of applications, I mailed my Clearwater Christian College application this week. Yikes! I am feeling old...

Plugged in.

For youth group last night we did something a little bit different. Each small group went somewhere to spend time and fellowship with each other. I had a wonderful time! The small group I am in all met at panera. There was 4 of us girls and then our small group leader. Such an awesome group. I absolutely loved hanging out with them. After we finished at panera we went to petco to look at kittens. One of the girls fell in love with a kitten and even tried to convince our leader to buy it. That plan didn't work out so well. But it was still a lot of fun, and we even compromised and got starbucks on our way home instead of getting a cat. Overall, a fantastic night. And from what I hear, all the other groups had a really good time too.

I love the opportunity I have to be involved in such a loving youth group where the leaders really take time out and care about us. It means so much to me.

I can't wait to hang out with my small group again!

November!

I don't know how it can be November already! Absolutely crazy, but totally exciting! November and December are my favorite months. I love the smell of food on thanksgiving day. I love the sound of Christmas music playing on the radio. I love the feel of the cool winter air outside. I love the taste of pumpkin pie and hot chocolate. And I love seeing all the smiling faces this time of year.

This season is full of a lot of fun, but often times a lot of distractions as well. This year I am making a promise to keep my priorities straight. As I head into thanksgiving and spending time with family then all the commotion of Christmas, I want to remember to be giving thanks to the God who gave everything to me in the first place and remember the power of the manger that held Jesus, the man who would die for me.

It may seem a little early to be talking about Thanksgiving and Christmas, but if you haven't heard yet, it's November 1st already. Time is going to fly by in the blink of in eye! And this year, I am going to keep my eyes fixed on Christ the whole time.

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

Let's catch up

I feel like I have been neglecting my blog. Shame on me. Well let me catch up a little bit.

The biggest thing I have had on my heart recently is missions. Through a book I recently read (Jenna Lucado's newest- must read) and our missions conference at church, I really feel like God is opening my eyes to missions in a whole new way. I even started looking into short-term mission trips for the summer of 2011. One that keeps grabbing at my heart is a 2 week trip with Show Hope to China. During the trip the team members stay at Maria's Big House of Hope and take care and love on all the kids staying there. I don't know all the details of this trip yet, but I am seriously praying about it. If the dates are to work out and financially I was able to go, I would love to spend 2 weeks of  my summer in China.

God is reminding me time and time again that missions does not just happen on the other side of the world. It starts right here at home. We have are very own mission field right in front of us. That is a definite challenge to reach people.

He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation" -Mark 16:15
Are you going?

Missions Conference

Tonight was the last night of our missions conference at Southside Baptist Church. It makes me kind of sad because I had such a great time this year. All the missionaries had kids and it was so much fun to hang out with all of them this week. We all got along so well and spent a lot of time laughing. It was great.

Between the conference and a book I am reading, missions has been on my mind and on my heart a lot. We need to be praying for all the different countries and nations. Culturally we may be different, but we are all in desperate need of a savior.

I am still recovering cold that has left me physically drained, but I will definitely be posting more about what is on my mind later this week.

Judgment House

This weekend has been absolutely spectacular.

Friday night a group of 30 teenagers and leaders headed to Largo for judgment house. It was incredible. I have been to judgment house before, but I have never felt the emotions like I did this weekend. Maybe it was the fact I had friends with me who are not saved (who heard an awesome presentation of the Gospel and I am really praying about them responding). Maybe it was seeing the horrors of Hell. Or maybe it was catching a glimpse at how absolutely wonderful Heaven is going to be. I was already on edge after the Hell scene, but then walking into Heaven and hearing kids shout "They're here! They're here!" and watching angels sing praises to God, I am not ashamed to admit I lost it. Standing there thinking of how amazing it will be to get to Heaven and have Jesus look into my eyes and say "welcome home". I still get goosebumps as I type this. And to think that the scene won't even compare to the wonders once we reach Heaven.

To end the evening we headed to Rita's. A very nice bonus in my book.

Today has been loads of fun. Girls are having a great time in Sunday School (lead by my awesome mom) and I am really excited to see all the fun we will have this year. I was able to see a couple of my favorite little kids today, which made me very excited. After church I finally finished my online class. *Insert giant leap for joy here* Later in the afternoon I hung out with my friends Andrew and Will. We got ice cream, talked a lot, and ended the afternoon by shaving Andrew's head. Lots of fun if you ask me. At church I got to see some of my favorite people. Southside Student Ministry had a S.N.A.C. (Sunday Night After Church) tonight. We headed out to Camp Sparta to chill at the Snyder residence. What a great time of fellowship! As well as a classic game of ERS. I had a wonderful night hanging out with everyone in youth group.

No school tomorrow which means sleeping in and then babysitting the rest of the day. It shall be quite enjoyable.

Simply Delightful

"Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4

Unbelievable? Yes
True? Yes
Wonderful? Yes

When I delight myself in the Lord, His desires become my desires, and He gives me the desires of my heart.

Oh how that makes me smile....

Quotes

Here is a collection of my favorite quotes. Some serious, others, not so much. :)

"Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened."

"A woman's heart should be so lost in God that a man must seek Him to find her."

"Do one thing everyday that scares you."

"Blow the candles out , looks like a solo tonight I beginning to see the light  blow the candles out ,looks like a solo tonight but I think I'll be alright "
"I'm just a nobody trying to tell everybody about somebody who can save anybody."

"Life is about taking chances, about doing something everyone said you couldn't do, it's about acting goofy and not caring what other people think and learning to love everything you have."

"Forget the risk of take the fall, if it's meant to be, it's worth the fall."

"What if the Hokey Pokey really is what it's all about?"

"Let's write a song that we can sing to and you can lead the choir and put the hook where it hurts most and you threw a spark that lit the candle that set us all on fire and sent a flame down the east coast"

"All I want is peace, love, understanding and a chocolate bar bigger than my head."

"You're the direction I follow To get home When I feel like I can't go on You tell me to go And it's like I can't feel a thing Without you around And don't mind me if I get weak in the knees"

"Be the kind of woman that when your feet hit the floor in the morning Satan says 'Oh no! She's up!'"

Senior Year Update.

I am now in the middle of my 6th week of school. Yay! That is majorly exciting for me. So far the year has been spectacular and I really feel like I am growing closer to God. In all the stressful situations that come into my life with school and friends, I feel such a peace with God as he wraps His arms around me.

I am super excited about youth group this year. Last Wednesday was our first week with Aaron leading us as youth pastor. We had such a spectacular night! Plus I had two friends from school come. I think they both had a good time and I am praying they come back to hear Gods word. Both have since then asked me different questions about church since in was new to them, and both are very open to my responses and my faith. I hope and pray to see exciting things in their life!

In other news,  I have officially started my first college application. I have decided on Clearwater Christian College and at this point I feel God leading me into the Communication Arts major. I have no idea where that will lead me, but that is kind of fun in a way. Right now I am focusing on my school work in hopes to have good enough grades to have scholarships available. And I am happy to report I currently have straight A's. Woot!

God is definitely giving me an awesome year. It is so great to have a steadfast God who is the same everyday, all the time, in all situations of my life. I serve a God who always provides, and always will!

Fall?

Oh how I wish it felt more like it!

This song is my new recent favorite:

Starry Night by Chris August

From the Birds that Sing, In the Tallest Trees.
To the Human Life, of you and me.
From the Desert Sands, to the place we stand.
He is God of All, He is Everything.

Waohhh

I'm giving my life to the only one who makes the Moon reflect the sun.
Every Starry Night, that was His design.
I'm giving my life to the only son, who was and is and yet to come
Let the praises ring, 'cause he is everything
'Cause he is everything

From the Autumn Leaves, that will ride the breeze
To the Faith it takes, to pray and sing
From the Painted sky, to my plank filled eye
He is God of all, He is everything

Waohhh

I'm giving my life to the only one who makes the Moon reflect the sun.
Every Starry Night, that was His design.
I'm giving my life to the only son, who was and is and yet to come
Let the praises ring, 'cause he is everything.

Ohhhhhhh (everything)

Hallelujah (Hallelujah)
Hallelujah
I believe
Ohhh
Hallelujah (Hallelujah)
Hallelujah
I believe

I'm giving my life to the only one who makes the Moon reflect the sun
On that Starry Night, He changed my life.
I'm giving it all to the only son who gave me hope when I had none.
So let the praises ring,
Ohhhh Let the Praises Ring

I'm giving my life to the only one who makes the Moon reflect the sun.
Every Starry Night, that was His design.
I'm giving my life to the only son, who was and is and yet to come
and the Angels sing, that he is Heavenly

'nuff said.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

"¹⁶Be joyful always; ¹⁷pray continually; ¹⁸give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." -1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

This verse was in my devotions this morning, and it really made me think. God has really been showing me a lot about His will recently and what He wants in my life. This verse shows me what His will exactly is.

Be joyful always. Not just when it is easy, and not just when you feel like it. But always. I know that is hard sometimes. There are days when I just don't feel like being happy or joyful. But God commands us to forget about that, and always have joy. After all, look at everything He has given us that we can be happy about. Pray continually. It is so easy to get into the habit of just praying before a meal or before bed. God wants us to always be praying though. Our lives should be a constant conversation with Him. Give thanks in all circumstances. That is a tough one. A lot of circumstances we are not very thankful for, but God put us in certain situations for a reason. We should always be thankful for those circumstances, even when its hard.

I certainly struggle with applying this verse in all areas of my life, but I am learning. And I am excited to live out God's will in my life.

(Please keep the family of a young student in youth group in your prayers. His father passed away suddenly Friday night. We are praying for Gods comfort to this family during this time.)

Time Flys!

Ahh! This past week has just flown by! It has been a pretty awesome week though.

Let me see.. from the posted we have had our first official meeting with the film crew at church. We named ourselves "Philm 48" based off of Philippians 4:8. We had a lot of fun hanging out for Labor Day. Hopefully in the near future we will have videos done that I can share.

This past Thursday I hung out with some of my favorite girls. I picked up a couple middle school girls and met some of the high school girls from youth group and headed to the pier. Unfortunately it was pouring rain so we relocated to the church. I had an awesome time talking with these girls about their lives and how much God loves them. I'm looking forward to doing it again in the near future!

Friday began with excitement when I found out I made homecoming court. I never thought I would be in this position but I am excited about the experience! Later I signed out of school early to head to Universal for Rock the Universe weekend. The only word to describe it is awesome. Some of my favorite bands were Kutless, Fireflight, Hawk Nelson, Tobymac and Relient K. All of the music was extremely good and it is so cool to see musicians honoring God in their music.

This week feels like it is going just as fast as last. I am praying I finish this week out strong!

Have a happy happy day!

Labor Day Weekend!

Happy Labor Day Weekend!
Even though I have only had two weeks of school, I am already excited about having Monday off. Not only will I be taking advantage of sleeping in, but some of the kids in Youth Group will be getting together for a "film crew" meeting. There are some students interested in making movies and filming events to play in youth group and upload to youtube. It is a great group of kids and it should be an epic amount of fun.

It has been a long week and I am going through a lot of different emotions as I am faced with different situations. I have to constantly remind myself that God is in control of everything. The happiness, the surprise, and even the hurt. He knows about it all and He is here for me. It is daily struggle to get over the hurts and refocus my eyes on Christ. I know in a matter of time everything will work out. But it is in His timing, not my own. I am thankful I serve a Creator who cares even for a teenage girls emotions.

This upcoming week I have some potentially very exciting opportunities. I hope you will be praying with me as I pray about the possibility of some leadership positions in my school. But I will post more about that later.

Have an awesome weekend!

Fam{ily}

How often do you tell your family members you love them and appreciate them? If you are anything like me, it isn't often enough.

When I think about my family, I think of such an amazing group of people. Nanie and Papa, Mom and Dad, Aunts and Uncles, Cousins, Brother and Sister, all of them are so incredible. Unfortunately, I don't think I let them know how special they are to me.

So I am going to take a minute to do so.
Nanie and Papa- Both of you mean the world to me. I love being at your house and spending time with you guys. You always show me such a great amount of love. I love you guys dearly.
Nanie J and Phil- I am thankful for your love. You are so special to me.
Mom and Dad- Thanks for raising me in such a loving, Christ-centered home. Mom, you are a best friend of mine. Dad, I am glad I have someone to share my quirky obsession of office supplies with.
Aunt Debbie and Nola- Some of my favorite memories as a kid are ones on trips with you guys. I always have so much fun with you and I love you both so much.
Aunt Kim and Uncle Jeff- I love spending time with you. Kim, I feel like we have so much in common and I sincerely enjoy every time we spend together. Jeff, I can always count on your "ugly" jokes to make me smile.
Uncle Joel- I haven't been able to spend as much time with you as I would like, but when I'm around you you make me laugh. I love you.
Stacey and Ryan- Stacey, when I was a little girl, I wanted to be just like you. Now, I still want to be like you, and I am lucky to call you a friend. Ryan, I feel like you have been part of the family my entire life. I appreciate your sense of humor greatly. And now there is Rylee who has stolen a place in my heart.
Jeffery-As a kid, I thought you were the coolest guy ever. I enjoy listening to your strong opinions on things and you still are one of the coolest guys ever.
Matt and Abby- I feel like the three of us are more than siblings, we are friends. I love you so so so much.

Family is such a beautiful gift from God and I am so thankful for the family I have been blessed with, and I just wanted to make sure they all knew that.

P.s. There is a lot of family not mentioned, but if I kept going, the list would go on a long time.
Give your family a hug today!

Hope and a Future.

Jeremiah 29:11-
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

This is my favorite verse. There is such a comfort and peace in knowing God knows all my plans. He has an awesome future planned for me.

In recent days, this verse has taken on a new meaning for me too. It is for my youth group. After 8 years of awesome ministry, our amazing youth pastor is resigning. I am praying for Pastor Chuck and Emily as they move to Michigan and begin a new ministry as youth pastor there. I know they will have a great impact on lives at this new church, just as they have impacted so many of us in Southside Student Ministry. I am so grateful for the leader and example PC has been in my life personally. He continually poured love into students lives and always pointed us closer to Christ. Pastor Chuck and Emily will be greatly missed.

As I look into the future for our youth group it can be scary. But then I remember Jeremiah 29:11. God has a plan for Southside Student Ministry and it is so far beyond our wildest dreams. This next year will be a challenge, but an exciting challenge. It will be a lot of fun to see what God has in store for this youth group and the lives of the students. We are looking forward to new opportunities to grow this year. I believe that God has something special planned, and I am praying we see Southside explode with love for Jesus Christ and we can reach people in our community. One thing is for sure, God has an amazing future for us!

Please be praying for Southside Student Ministry during this transition time. Looking forward to a spectacular year!

Home Alone

The first week of school is already over! That makes me kind of excited. Overall, the week was good and I am looking forward to different opportunities this year.

Me and my brother are home alone this weekend while my parents and little sister are visiting family. My Nanie had her last round of chemo this past Thursday so family is spending this time to celebrate that. God has watched over her the past few months and I am so thankful that He was able to heal her body. I love my Nanie.

Me and Matt stayed home for a youth activity tomorrow. It is a kick-off to the school year event held at another church in the community. It is always a lot of fun and I look forward to fellowship with some of my friends.

I am looking forward to a great weekend!

I am second

First off, I want to say Happy Birthday to my wonderful mommy. She turned 40 today! I am so thankful for my mom and all her love, encouragement, and support. God really blessed me with an excellent mother and example of christian character in my life.

Recently I stumbled across a really cool website. Its called I Am Second. On this site are a bunch of videos of people talking about their life and things they have gone through, but at the end of every video they say "I am second". They say this because they have realized God is first. God has done something in their lfe and they realize it is not abot them and they have decided to put God first.

What a cool concept! We live in a society that is constantly telling us it is all about you an what you want to to. The world has become a very selfish and self absorbed place. I know I need a reminder that it is not about me. I need to humble myself and relize God is first. How are others supposed to see Christ through me if I have the selfish idea in my head that I am above God?

It needs to be a daily decision to put God first. We need to wake up in the morning and give it all to God, realizing it is never about us, it can never be about us.

I am Kate, and I am second.

Dun dun dunnnnn!

The first day of school has already come and gone! Already it is going by to fast. It was an easy day though because the only classes I had were study hall and guitar. I am super excited about my guitar class this year. Not only are some really cool individuals in there, but I am hoping to learn quick and maybe play guitar in church. The rest of the day was rather uneventful. I am hoping tomorrow will be a bit more exciting.

I am excited about this year and how God is going to use me. I am praying for growth in Southside Youth Ministry, a change at Sebring High School, and for me personally so fall more in love with Christ everyday.

Well I am off to play Egyptian Rat Screw with my family!

Have a happy day!
P.s. Check out Psalm 27:1 today :)

To Save A Life

My family and I watched the new movie "To Save A Life" tonight. If you have not seen it yet, I recommend you stop reading right now and go watch it. It is mind blowing. The main character in the movie is in shock when his childhood friend commits suicide. He decides to start looking for answers and that is when he finds God and gives up his old ways of living. I won't ruin the rest of the story but I will say after he gets saved he is a new person. He begins showing love to other kids at school and in youth group. And that is where the challenge is.

Just a little love and compassion can change someones life. You never know who is in desperate need to be shown some of God's love. I mean that is what it is all about. It isn't going to youth group on Wednesdays, then church on Sunday but on the days in between living a hypocritical lifestyle. Who are we to judge?

So no more judging, just loving. And maybe, just maybe, it can save a life.

I'm lovin' it

Last night was water fight night at youth group. Or it was supposed to be water fight night, but it got postponed until next week due to rain. Yep. Irony at its finest. We still had a good group of kids there and it was fun to start getting back into the swing of things with the new school year coming up. I ask that you will be praying for Southside Student Ministry this year as we undergo some changes. I know God is in control and I am excited to see what he has planned for our youth group.

Today was orientation day for Highlands county. I turned in all my papers to start my senior year. Yay! I can't believe school is starting on Monday already. I have no idea where my summer went. It is filled with lots of good memories though.

This verse has been on my mind today:
"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9

It is just another reminder that I can do anything because I have God on my side. I need to be strong and courageous. "And if our God is for us, then who could ever stop us? And if our God is with us, then what could stand against?"

Music and such.

I think I can safely say that JJ Heller is one of my new favorite artists. She is adorable, has a great voice, and writes some pretty powerful lyrics. Check out these lyrics from her hit song Your Hands.


I have unanswered prayers
I have trouble I wish wasn’t there
And I have asked a thousand ways
That you would take my pain away
You would take my pain away

I am trying to understand
How to walk this weary land
Make straight the paths that crooked lie
Oh Lord, before these feet of mine
Oh Lord, before these feet of mine
When my world is shaking, heaven stands
When my heart is breaking
I never leave your hands

When you walked upon the earth
You healed the broken, lost and hurt
I know you hate to see me cry
One day you will set all things right
Yeah, one day you will set all things right

When my world is shaking, heaven stands
When my heart is breaking
I never leave your hands
Your hands that shaped the world
Are holding me
They hold me still

Amazing, right? God is always holding us. The same God who created the universe holds us! So I've been thinking today about hands and holding things. You see the thing about someone holding us is even when we let go, we aren't going anywhere. The one holding us isn't the one who let go. That is the way it is with God. He is holding us, and even when our world is shaking and we feel broken, He doesn't let us go anywhere!

Sometimes we get the idea in our head that we are the one in control. That is when we "let go". But God is the one still holding on to us. Not because of anything we have done but because of who He is and how much He loves us. It is so comforting to know I am in hands that will never let me go. Even when those hard times in life come, God is holding us! God is not going to let us go anywhere!

I love being held in the hand of God.

Kindred Spirits

Today I was able to have lunch with a dear friend of mine. It was fun to catch up on events over the summer and also get some last minute school work done. I was reminded of how precious the gift of friendship is. God really does put special people in our lives to encourage us, pray with us, and sometimes just make us laugh.
I have truely been blessed with some amazing friendships in my life.

I am thankful for each of the kids in those pictures (as well as many that I currently could not find a picture of). They have all had a special impact on my life and I wanted to say thanks to them. I love my best friends!

And I couldn't write a blog about best friends if I forgot to mention the ultimate best friend Jesus Christ. How awesome it is to have an intimate relationship with Him! It is so great to always have a best friend to talk to knowing He will always listen.

I am a friend of God, He calls me friend!

Happy Sunday!

One of my favorite songs to sing in church as a little girl was "This is the day". You know the song: This is the day, this is the day, that the Lord has made, that the Lord has made. I will rejoice, I will rejoice and be glad in it, and be glad in it. What an awesome song!

Psalm 118:24- This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it. (NIV)

I love the book of Psalms. And I love the truth in that verse. Each day God gives us is a blessing and another opportunity to bring Him glory. We are given this day to rejoice and be happy in Christ, bringing Him praise. I don't know about you, but I kind of feel like singing!

Have a happy Sunday, and remember, be glad!

Rainboots and smiles.

To those friends of mine who laugh at my rainboot fashion statement, don't laugh anymore. They really are catching on. Just look at that picture. One day all of you will be wearing them too. Rainboots are simply wondeful. Almost as wonderful as the little girl wearing those boots.

Abby Beth is my adorable 8 year old little sister. Take one look at these pictures and you will agree with me.

It is a lot of fun to have my own personal model on hand whenever I would like to take pictures. She loves it, I love it and we both have a lot of fun. I love my Abby girl so much.

One last chance.

My senior year of high school begins in just a little over a week. Crazy? Yes. I have no idea where the time has gone. Suddenly I feel as if life is coming at me too fast. At this point in time I am not sure what I want to do after high school and I don't have very many plans. Sometimes that can be a little overwhelming. But God is constantly showing me that He is in control and if I live my life for Him, He has better plans than I could ever imagine for myself. Which makes me ask myself one question: Am I living my life for the King of Kings?

I think about how fast the previous years of high school have gone by and I am reminded that this year will only go by faster. Before I know it, I will be saying goodbye. So I have one last chance to make and impact. This year will be the year that I make a difference in the halls of Sebring High School. God has poured out His love and mercy and I give very little in return. He loved us so much that he sent His son to die an awful death for us. And how do I show my love in back? In all honesty I do very little.

So this year is going to be a change. I am going to put God first. After graduation, the next time I see some of my peers may be in heaven. And sadly, a lot of them will not be there. I want to show God's love in EVERYTHING I do. Kids are going to notice, and kids are going to ask questions. And when they ask, I will gladly point them to the cross. The mighty cross where Jesus took my sin away. The mighty cross where I can find rest. The mighty cross where I am given eternal life.

It is going to be worth it. God promises that living a life for Him, will be. So I'm giving Him control. I am letting go and choosing to follow His ways and not my own.

Till the race is finished and the work is done, I'll walk by faith and not by sight.