Sitting, Thinking,...

I'm amazed at the thought of how great God is to think so much of me before I take my first breath into the world. I'm amazed to have a Father who pours His love out constantly without ever changing based on my actions. His ultimate sacrifice , His son,showing his love in action by dying on the cross to take my place and to pay for all of my sins. "His grace still amazes me."

My father and mother are not perfect people but one thing I know for sure is their constant love and sacrifice to ensure my brother and I always are cared for, even over things I don't recognize.. As much as they give to my brother and I, it in no way compares how great the love of my Heavenly Father's is!




This verse has really been useful for me to be reminded that in the midst of sorrow, anxiety, joy, the unknown, work, friendships, everything, that God really does work everthing out for our Good, whether we see it that way or not. I love being able to rest in this verse especially when I don't have the answers to those tough questions, one thing I can know of is that He has great plans for me!




God Bless!

(pictures are from www.bibleencyclopedia.com)

*Compassion International Child*

I sponsored a beautiful little girl who lives in Tanzania and is the same age as my cubbie bears (preschoolers) at church. Check out her bio! Her birthday is the same day as mine and the country she is from reminds me over and over of the song by Alli Rogers, Tanzania.


If you haven't sponsored a child through organizations like Compassion International or World Vision, I strongly encourage you to look into it. You can find little girls and boys who have the same birthday as yours or your mother or father or son or daughter. So many children are in need physically, emotionally and most of all spiritually. You may be their hope/ answered prayer. Help spread the love of Christ!

You CAN make a difference with one act at a time.

God bless,

Heather

Pouring out...

In a quiet place where your spirit surrounds me. Fill me with your love oh Lord. May you drench me in your passion for others to know you as their personal Lord and Savior. In a dry and weary land, I want to thirst for you Lord (Psalm 63:1). May I never grow numb to your neverfailing love and mercy. May I shout from the rooftops how glorious and marvelous you are. Lord I need you, my heart breaks for you but it still isn't enough, I want my heart to explode into a thousand pieces just so your hands can shape and mold it into something only made by you.

My life is like a vapor, here today and gone tomorrow. Make my life be worthy of your praise. Remove anything complacent and fill it with sacrifice, selflessness and joy. To live from the inside out is my heart's desire. Without you I am nothing. Without you Jesus I have no reason to live. As Paul even says, to live is Christ. If it were not for your death on the cross, I would not have the choice to go to Heaven. Only through your blood shed on the cross can I now accept the free gift of salvation. I cling to it as if it were my last breath, but Lord create a forever hunger in my heart and soul to "feed" others your word.

As John 21:15-19 says, "When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.” He said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.” (This he said to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God.) And after saying this he said to him, “Follow me.”


Reading this passage breaks my heart and reminds me that just like Peter, I tell the Lord, "Yes, Father I Love You." but in reality I'm not showing it through my lifestyle, through my walk. I must walk in the light as He is in the light. You see as Children of God and as Christ followers, we are called to reach the lost. To me, the lambs are those who are lost (without Christ) and also those who are "baby" Christians. It is up to the Christ followers to train them and love them as Christ did for His disciples. We are to encourage our brothers and sisters in Christ. So many times we leave those who accept Christ to fend for themselves when in reality, their new life has just begun and they need help understanding this new road map of life so that is where the "Tend my Sheep" come in. We are to encourage, disciple, hold accountable our fellow believers. As for the last part, Jesus tells Peter to "Feed my Sheep", this here is a cycle. Feeding Jesus' Sheep is another way of saying, tell people about Me (Jesus) so they can be in Heaven one day with their Father.

You see friends, it's not about us, it's all about Him. We have to be bold in our faith and take a chance at being rejected, because if we are afraid of getting rejected or afraid of offending someone, we'll offend them right into Hell.

Be bold, Be Strong!


"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil."

Ephesians 6:10-11

80's Skate Night

With sequence style fabric to 80's candy and video games, it was a night to remember last night as Freedom youth and the "young at heart" rose to the occasion to dress in their 80's best. We had a ball as we skated the night away with our "stylish" roller skates. Students and young adults enjoyed the walk down memory lane whether it was just a few years ago or decade or so ago, it was still fun to see if we still could do it or not, that is skate without falling. Some succeeded in their own challenges while others were a bit more daring as they showed their stuff with a hard blow soon after on the hard floor.

Nonetheless, it was a night of 80's throwback and laughter with fun and games. Many of us are ready to go back, so next time we may make it a 70's theme night or just go in our regular gear. Spring time is here and Summer is right around the corner. Lots of fun things ahead! Bowling, Putt-Putt, water parks, and roller coasters! Let the good times ... ROLL :)

It's All The Rave...

My new favorite place to go that I recently found is Freedom Park. It's so amazing! It is a huge park with beach volleyball courts, basketball courts, baseball fields, tennis courts, swings and a playground for the little ones, even a box car from a train to take pictures in. It has plenty of grassy areas to set up a nice blanket for a cozy nap or just a nice place to read. So many people bring their dogs and one of the cutest things I saw was Dads taking pictures of their princesses ( aka daughters)as they smiled their babydoll smile. Some friends and youth from church went with me last Saturday and we made sure to throw in a game or two of "Easter Egg Toss" while we had the chance for "Easter Weekend" sake ofcourse, haha. After all the eggs were cracked, we decided to throw the frisbee around a little or until it landed in the nearby pond. Good times good times! If you are ever in the area, be sure to check out this free and fun-filled place :)... because it's all the rave!

Spring Break

Time goes so fast! Over the past few days of my Spring Break I have been catching up with friends and family that I normally do not get to spend much time with. I've gotten to go to my cousin's elemntary schools and eat lunch with all four of them. It's been a fun adventure to say the least. I've also gotten to hang out with "my peeps" at CharlotteOne. Last night I stayed with my friend, Stephanie in Charlotte. She's a Georgia peach :) My goals this week has been to get my car cleaned, CHECK:)... and to get my Taxes at least started on! That is on the list for today. I need to clean up more around the house but time has been short with working and catchiing up with everything else. So for tomorrow, I will visit my Great Aunt Dorothy and then catch up with cleaning. I know many of you dont really care much about my routine, haha, but I thought I would tell you all anyways just for kicks so thanks for listening to my "interesting" life.

My time with the Lord has been good but I still want more. Today at Family Dollar I found an awesome notecard/notebook to keep track of memory verses. I'm pretty siked about it. It's like a folder, rubber band, and it's spiral bond. You know that's cool! :) It's all about the small things in life.

Oh and can anyone tell me why we interchange St. Patrick's Day and St. Patty's Day? Did I miss something? Man to woman? I dont' get it. Please help me understand, afterall I should know since I'm Irish.

Ready to Rest in Him...

My fear lately if I can be brutally honest with you is that the things God has brought me through to get closer to Him will be forgotten or rather not applied. I'm not sure if any of you know what I'm talking about although I have reason to beleive most of you may. I don't want to be complacent in my upbringing but rather unsettled for seeing the world much bigger than through my mere eyes. I want to see,ache, experience and reach the world for Christ. I want to think past my own desires and seek His desires so through His desires they will become my desires. Pslam 37:4 I'm off of work next week since it's Spring Break and to be honest, I'm looking forward to a great retreat to get more time with my Father,God.

Being back home is great! I'm so blessed to have a family like I do. It's funny though that no matter where I/You am/are, I'm/you're always going to have something to complain about. The truth about it all is, life isn't perfect. People definitley aren't perfect and there's only so much one person can do. The older you/I get, the most demands we have put on us. Do this, do that, the list(s) go on and on.

I am emotionally and physically tired. I want to Seek the Lord. Pray and love Him. I miss my Father. My Savior. My life has been more out of balance than I have wanted and my focus isn't in focus like I pray it to be.

I blog all of this out in hopes I'm not alone. I also blog it all out to just filter my thoughts out onto something visual.

So much on my mind...

Praying for a rested, humble spirit.