10 Things That I Just Don't Understand

1. Why people name their cars

2. Why people factor in pressing the snooze button x amount of times when they set their alarms...why not 15 extra minutes of sleep instead of pressing snooze 3 times?

3. Why people set themselves up for failure

4. Why people curse...expand your vocabulary

5. Why people listen to screamo "music"

6. Why people drive below the speed limit
7. I don't understand "high fashion" magazines...the models and their clothing look ridiculous.

8. Why would someone dress up his or her dog?!?!

9. Why kids/teens date before they can drive

10. Spray tans...if everyone knows its fake, what's the point of it?

Artistic

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." -Genesis 1:1

So in church this morning, my pastor took a firm stance against evolution. As a science major, I know evolution backwards and forwards, I have been taught it more times than I can count, and I do not believe it. But this blog is not really to combat evolution....in this post I am just going to point out one thing about God's creation that has stood out to me.

I truly believe that one attribute of God is that He is an artist. He designs intrinsic masterpieces that function at the highest level of intellectualism that the human brain can grasp, and He creates us all (male, female, human, monkey, dog, bacteria, etc.) beautiful and worth standing in awe over.

I had one course my first semester of college called "Human Experience" (HMXP for short). In this course we were supposed to be finding out who we really were since most of us were on our own now and just starting college. Apparently a liberal arts college thinks that the best way to find out who you are is to sit down with a bunch of other people and listen to their problems and views. Who woulda thought that finding out who I am would involve so many opinions of other people thrust upon me? Anyways, overall the class was crap, but it got me one step closer to my degree; however, I specifically remember one awesome thing that I got out of that class. One day, a discussion we were having involved evolution versus creation. One very intelligently designed guy said, "I don't see why people couldn't believe in evolution. Our DNA is 98% the same as chimpanzees, if that's not proof of a common ancestor, I don't know what is." Silence filled the room until the girl next to me did what I wish I had the guts to do at the time, she spoke up. She said, "Maybe its not proof of a common ancestor, but rather a common creator. Just like Picasso or van Gogh has common themes and brushstrokes in all of their paintings, maybe God leaves similar marks on all of His masterpieces." I was blown away and that statement has been with me ever since. Maybe God is using the world around us, the familiar, to create the variety and beauty that we see today among His creation. All I know is that I praise God that I am fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14).

I challenge you to view God as an artist and enjoy His creations to the fullest. Go star gazing, watch some animals, or enjoy being around people. And most importantly, praise Him for His beauty and the beauty of His creation.

Oh boy!

"God gives us guys to complement us, not complete us." -Rachel Herrin

Let's be honest, if you put 2+ girls together and get them talking, one topic is always guaranteed to surface, boys. In the fall of 2010 almost a year ago to the day, I went on a retreat with the girls from Winthrop's Baptist Collegiate Ministry. We were in small groups with girls from other schools with no more than two of us per school in each group. I knew absolutely no one in my group, yet I loved these girls so much. We were just supposed to get together and talk about things in our lives and share each others burdens (Gal. 6:2) and offer godly words of wisdom to each other. It took about five minutes before my group was on the topic of boys and relationships. We threw around ideas about relationships, hardships, temptations, and our views on them. As one girl went to offer her view, the sentence above slipped out of her mouth, and it has forever changed my view on friendships/dating/ marriage and everything in between.


"God gives us guys to complement us, not complete us." Such a powerful statement in my opinion. A reminder that God has made us to be unique and to be able to survive a powerful and worshipful life with or without a mate. Now this is not to make guys sound like arm candy and this statement was shared in the midst of having the utmost respect for men. This statement was just to make the point that marriage is not our ultimate goal in life, that finding "Mr. Right" isn't all its cracked up to be, and that if we are destined to be single, God will bless us just as he blesses marital relationships if we are using our lives for His glory.


I once heard it put that while you are single, you have opportunities to serve God that someone in a relationship does not have. You need to take advantage of these opportunities because you never know when God will bring someone into your life, you begin a relationship and those opportunities are gone (Col. 4:5). Also, a popular song among Christians is the song "While I'm Waiting." This is the poster child of how we should approach singleness. "I will move ahead, bold and confident. Taking every step in obedience. While I'm waiting, I will serve you while I'm waiting, I will worship. While I'm waiting, I will not faint, I'll be running the race even while I wait." The whole song is posted above. Remember that love is patient (1 Cor. 13:4).


If we are one that is chosen to share our life with another person, we need to get everything we can out of that relationship, if we are one of the ones chosen to be single, ditto, get everything you can out of that opportunity. Now for those who will be/are married, remember that you serve as a support system for your spouse. You are their biggest fan, hardest critic, and partner in ministry of Jesus Christ, and all this is to be done with the love of Christ in mind. 


I challenge you to sit back and take all of this in...maybe read this whole blog again. Then, I challenge you to act on it. Serve God while you are single, become a better wife, change your view of relationships...whatever the step you need to take is, take it.


*I felt a little weird writing that last part since I'm not married, so feel free to add some wisdom if you are! :)

10 Things You Shouldn't Post on Facebook Because No One Else Cares About Seeing/Reading It

It's been a while since I've done a top ten list, so I figured it was time for one...the title says it all.

1. How much you hate something/someone
2. A picture of you taking a picture of yourself in a mirror
3. 10 relationship changes withing a 24 hour time span
4. A status update saying "I'm bored"...everyone else was also bored while they wasted a second of their lives reading your status
5. A status update every 30 min...I am not above hiding anyone...just saying
6. Every picture you post shouldn't be a picture of you and a significant other making out. Stop for a second, take a breather, and smile for a picture for a change
7. 400 updates while you watch a football/baseball/lacrosse/etc game...everyone else is probably watching it too
8. Stuff about politics...even in cyberspace, it starts arguments and they never end pretty
9. Sentences such as "wth idk wat 2 even say bout dis" ...you sound like a fool
10. Don't complain about facebook changing on facebook. Everyone knows it changed. It changed 2 weeks ago and it will change again. If you don't like the changes, no one's forcing you to use the network.

Sorry if I stepped on any toes. Also, this list could have probably gone to like 50.

Ami Amour

"Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." -John 15:13

They say that a picture is worth a thousand words...well if that's the case, this one is worth a million. This picture is a summary of one of the best things that has come out of working as a counselor at Camp Longridge...friendship. The people in this picture, along with others, have made a stamp on my life that I hope never fades or gets covered up. At times, I have been frustrated with all of them, and yet, the love that I have for them stands tall over the frustration. I was reading through John last night (even though I am currently doing my reading no where near the book of John), and I came across a passage that we did a skit on this past summer. This passage can be found in John 15.  As I approached verse 13, I read it and immediately stopped reading and reflected on the friends that I have had my entire life. In middle school and high school, my friends changed on a seasonal basis. I had trouble finding people that I could connect with, talk to about anything with, and people that I could trust to always have my back...eventually, I found two of my very best friends (this is where I give a shoutout to Lisa Thornsberry and Brittany Serago). Their presence taught me the true meaning of friendship and they saved me from drowning in the ocean of thousands of teens in high school. Thanks guys!

As I continued to think about the friends I've had over my entire life, the zenith of all my friendships began in May of 2010. I was never so blessed to have found so many people that were so much like me in one place. To say that my fellow staffers are blessings is a huge understatement. I cannot thank most of these guys enough for helping me through some hard times, and I would trust them with my life.

Go reread that last sentence because you probably just skimmed right over it. "I would trust them with my life"...kinda a gutsy statement don't you think? Think about that, I would put my life in their hands. But here's the other thing, check out verse 13 above. I love them enough that I would risk my life for them. Now a lot of people would be critical and say that I do not know if I would risk my life for them until I am in that situation, and this criticism is true. And I hope I never have to find out if I would do it or not; however, I can confidently say that I love them, I know they love me, and I would be willing to do anything for them. So the greatest of my love goes out to these wonderful people. I love you all and I hope that our friendship lasts a lifetime. <3

I challenge you to thank that person (or people) that are your backbone and friends in life. I don't know how people make it in life without a friend by their side.

Routine Checkup

♪Pardon me while I throw up, I guess some people grow up. What happened to the salvation you claimed? It breaks my heart to see how much you've changed♫ -Relient K "What Have You Been Doing Lately?"

Facebook is a great tool nowadays. You can keep up with people that you never get a chance to actually see and talk to in person, and, most importantly, you can stalk those people that you don't really care anything about but you just want to know about their lives and how they are doing.

I have been out of high school for almost three years now, and I often find myself checking up on people to see what and how they are doing. Many times, I find myself reminiscing about great times I had with these people, and I silently wish them the best in life. Other times, I come across people whose lives are a complete disappointment to me. I find that they have completely changed and that there is no way that I would have been friends with them if they began as the person they are today. Anytime I find myself in this mindset, I think about the Relient K song above. These once claimed 'Jesus Freaks' are now sucked into a world that promises rebellious freedom, and yet only delivers them bondage into a certain lifestyle. It makes me sick to say the least. 

So I ask you, why did you change? Was Christianity not good enough? Was Jesus not all you expected Him to be? Was church not meeting your standards? Whatever the case may be, something has changed, and it is not for the better. James 1:27 reads, "Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this...to keep oneself unstained from the world." If you are one of these people, I challenge you to get back to where you started. It may be a gradual process, but I know that your faith and salvation is something that you once believed, and  it is never too late to regain it and to get back to where you were in your walk.

If you are not one of these people that has lost your footing, I challenge you to help others that have. I can almost guarantee that as you read this, one or two specific people came to your mind. Be an encouragement, help them keep the faith, and, most importantly, pray for them. I also challenge you to not be one of those people that loses the faith.

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

"Some boys take a beautiful girl and hide her away from the rest of the world. I wanna be the one to walk in the Son, oh girls, they wanna have fun. Oh girls just wanna have fun!" -Cyndi Lauper "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun"



Here's a special blog for all the girls out there anywhere between the ages of 10-30ish. Hmm...maybe even a wider range than that. This song has probably been covered by more bands than any other song out there...and it has every right to be covered because it's a great song. I was listening to a cover of this the other day and I suddenly had a Biblical epiphany about this song; it relates to all of ours' favorite subject...relationships. Above is the lyric that hit me. "Some boys take a beautiful girl and hide her away from the rest of the world", I've seen it over and over again in relationships and even had it happen to me where you start dating a guy and the first thing to go is your friends, then the things you love to do, and then God. When it all ends, you're left with no one to turn to because you have spent all your time and energy focusing on one person, and it was all wasted. If you are in a relationship and it is stopping you from doing the things you love and that is pushing you away from God and the people that matter the most in your life, that needs to be fixed.

Now if you continue to read the lyrics above, you will see that I have misquoted it, and for a legitimate reason. "I wanna be the one to walk in the Son..." When God is pushed out of relationships, it never ends well. If you make sure that you are that girl that is walking in the Son and following the footsteps of Jesus and shining His light, you are sure to be right where He wants you to be in your relationship with Him and with others.

I challenge you to make sure that all of your relationships involve three people and that God is the superior of the three. I honestly believe that this is the key to a successful, godly relationship. But then again, I am only 20 and in my second relationship...so I know there are women out there who are much more wise than I claim to be or will ever be.

*As I wrote this blog, I realized a fault of my own. I haven't been spending as much time with my family as I should. I aspire to fix this dilemma. :)