Sunday, November 7, 2010

One Million Possibilites.

If you were required to distribute one million dollars any way you wanted, how would you do it? Why?

If I was required to distribute a million dollars any way I wanted I honestly wouldn’t know what to do with myself. I’d probably be a little jealous at first because I’d at least want to keep some of it, and if we were all honest, you would agree with me. That is a lot of money for one person to have power over in distributing. It also has the power to make a huge impact in people’s lives.
      My dad is the state side director for a corporation that does a lot of overseas work. Times are tough and missionaries need help. I, being the daughter of a mission-minded home, have a huge heart for the missionaries. I would use some of the money I was given to help the families overseas as well as the corporation my dad works for. I know they would use it in a way that would glorify God.
     I also have a huge heart for adoption. Going through the process with my family, I know how expensive adoption can get, and how stressful fundraising can be. One million dollars can help multiple families with the expenses that are needed for the adoption process. It would be a relief to the families knowing that they had the adoption paid for.
     There are truly so many things I could do with one million dollars. The possibilities are endless. Supporting missionaries and families who are in the process of adoption are just two. It’s a lot of money for any one person to have, and given time I know I would use it to better God’s kingdom.

Thursday, November 4, 2010

What's been happening with my netvibes account?

Well, I have definitely not checked my netvibes account in, what feels like, ages. The update on my Oklahoma Sooner’s is good though! Although, they got beat by Missouri a few week ago. Those fans had to be the hardest thing I faced the next day. I just wanted to hall off and punch them, square in the jaw, but I kept my cool. The rest of the sports teams seem to be doing well and my site for flute music has a bunch of new songs. I’m not sure if I’ll ever play those songs, but they are fun to look at.
     I still have managed to avoid learning how to play Sudoku. No matter how hard I try I can’t figure out how to play. I also have a problem in patience and I get frustrated too easily, so I just gave up on that one. My site for dancing has no news feed, sad day. I guess I won’t be learning how to dance either. On the other hand, the verse for the day on Bible Gateway is 2 Corinthians 3:6- “He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”
      Jon Acuff’s “Stuff Christians Like” is just hilarious. He posted on finding out that Justin Bieber was a Christian, and the rarest church musician of all time. In the blog about Justin he stated three things about how people might treat him now that he has said this- People are going to “Bono” him, People are going to Brittan him, and People are going to think Ludicrous is next. The guy is just hysterical.
        Acuff’s post today was on organs. He talks about all the reason why you would want to play the organ, in the kindest way to make fun of someone. If you haven’t read this guys stuff, I would advise you to. After searching through my netvibes account, I guess netvibes isn’t so bad after all.

Monday, September 20, 2010

"You did what?!"

Confrontation isn’t something that most people enjoy. I mean really, who likes having to tell someone that we think they are doing something wrong. No matter how you chose to go into the confrontation, no one likes it. It is just not a fun subject to talk about. I do believe that confrontation is something that we all have to do sometime in our life, and it shouldn’t go unmentioned.
      For most of us confrontation isn’t something we can avoid. The way you confront someone is so important. You can choose to send a letter, write an email, call them on the phone, or confront them face to face. Although some of those choices might not be the best way to handle the situation. When writing an email words don’t always come out the way you plan. People can read way into the message and create something monstrous when you were only trying to resolve the problem. Phone calls aren’t foolproof but you can hear the tone of voice: although, you can’t see the other person’s facial expressions.
       When confronting people I chose to use the method of face to face. You don’t have someone reading in to what you are saying, you can see their face and you can be real. This has to be the hardest method to use. I know for me I don’t want to come out sounding like the bad guy, or the one throwing all the blame. I just want to get in there tell them what I think and it be all better. Really, I don’t think that it too much to ask. I know from experience that is not what always happens though.
      Confrontation takes courage and an open heart for anything that might come out of the conversation. No one likes drama and avoiding that is hard, especially in these wonderful high school years. No fear, it is quite possible. Going into the confrontation conversation, make sure you know what you are going to say. You don’t have to write it out, but have an idea. That way you won’t butcher a relationship that might already has some tension. Confrontation, in the end, could be just the thing you need.

Thursday, September 16, 2010

"In reading great literature..."

C.S. Lewis once said, "In reading great literature, I become a thousand men, yet remain myself." This quote can have so many meanings for different people. For C.S. Lewis I believe this quote meant so much more than just random words coming out of his mouth. When he reads he can be whoever he wants to be. He can take himself into another world and make himself a thousand different men. Yet, when he is finished with the book he is still himself.
       I would assume from reading this quote that C.S. Lewis would say that reading books is something beneficial for you. It’s not like watching television; it’s a whole new world you can explore.  Reading can take you places that you have never been before. It can open up your imagination. There is really no limit when you are reading a book.
     Personally, I love reading. It’s the one time out of my day that I can escape. I can read any genre of book and live in that time. Reading can be the most exciting thing I do all day. I know, I sound like a total nerd but I have a love of imagining things. I love just being able to get into a good book and drown in the story line. If you don’t read I encourage you to at least try.
      I have read many of C.S. Lewis’ books and he is brilliant; the way he uses metaphors and describes objects and places. We both seem to have a shared love of reading. It takes us places that we could never go unless the author wrote the story in that way. It’s so exciting to get a new book and dig into it. That is when we truly become, “a thousand men, yet remain myself.”

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

College. College. College.

Being a senior we all know what’s next; college. Going to college has always been an exciting idea for me. I have always been the one ready to get out and explore the word without my parents being right behind me. We all want that sense of freedom and college is the way we slowly gain that freedom.
    I think the part we most forget about when striving for that sense of freedom is responsibility. All of this college stuff is a little scary to me now that I am so close. Whenever I need something, such as toothpaste, I’ll have to go buy it myself. I know that is just a petty thing but in reality it’s one step closer to me and adulthood.
    This college process has already got me stressed. While looking for that perfect school, filling out college applications, and finding time to go on college visits, I am also trying to maintain my grades for scholarships, raise my ACT score, balance band, drama, family, friends and my boyfriend, all while keeping God first. Needless to say, I am way beyond stressed and it probably has to do with my lack of saying “NO!”
    I am hoping that this year just less stressful as it progresses. I have my first interview for college tomorrow and I am a little nervous. This is one of the biggest decisions of my life and I want to be in God’s will. I am also really excited as I get closer and closer to the point of college choices. I know that this is a change that we all have to go through eventually and I am ready.

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Face Time with God

Chapel on Monday’s is my new favorite thing. I really enjoy starting off the week with Jeffery Dean, our new campus pastor, sharing his thoughts on what God has placed on his heart for that day. It really jumpstarts my week and makes me feel as if this week could be the greatest week of my life. Okay, that’s a little over the top but I still have a good feeling about what’s to come in my life.
     Jeffery Dean gave us all journals to take notes for our thoughts. I am such a note taker so this pretty much made my day. He spoke on face time with God, asking each of us to ponder the thought of where we are with God. It is crazy to know that where I am in my relationship might be so far away from where other people are. It got me to thinking that I want my classmates to feel the closeness that I feel with God. It breaks my heart to know that we go to a Christian school, where our teachers teach us Godly morals, where the Bible is the number one text book, and there are tons of students here that don’t have a personal relationship with God.
     Jeffery Dean’s message really got me thinking. I don’t spend enough face time with God and I believe it shows. It saddens me because I want to shine God’s light through my everyday life. I want people to see me and see something different; something that they want to have. Jeffery Dean told us a story about going to a swimming pool surrounded by junior high cheerleaders. We can only imagine. When he jumped in and was underwater it was silent. How many times do I just sit and listen? I feel like that answer is never.
       The time I spend daily on facebook or texting everyday could be spent with the Lord. God doesn’t want all of your time; He just wants a few minutes. That has to be the hardest thing for me in my, what I call, busy schedule. Just a few minutes of face time could make all the difference in the world. I really think Jeffery Dean is going to change chapel as we know it. I really believe this year will be the best one yet, and not just because it happens to be my senior year. I am so excited to see what God has in store.

Friday, August 27, 2010

I love Friday's!

Yahoo! It’s Friday. This has to be my favorite day of the week, really.  On the subject of my netvibes tabs, I am still enjoying it. I mostly enjoy the tab with all of our class blogs on it. I really like reading each blog post and getting an insight in to my classmate’s heads. I know some people don’t really care for blogging but I find it quite enjoyable. I think I have a new found love of writing.
      On the other hand, I don’t really care much for the things under the “Things I want to Learn” tab. I don’t really have the time to learn how to dance, and although I have rhythm, I just wasn’t made for dancing. If they had a tab for learning patience or learning how to not stress out about applying to college, I would be all over it. I can always just change the tabs to something more…doable. I could always learn French. Right, because that is MUCH easier. (I also have a new love of sarcasm. Thank you, Mrs. Smith!)
        In my “this is where I am with God” area that needs attention is my quiet time with God. It’s not that I don’t think they are important or that I don’t have time, it’s the fact that I don’t feel like I am doing it right.  My youth pastor really encourages us to have our daily quiet time every time he sees us. He knows the importance and the effect having our quiet time has on our lives. It can be the most beautiful part of your day, the time you look forward to the most.
     That is where I struggle. I don’t really look forward to my quiet time. I feel like it’s something that I have to do, kind of like homework. As believers we starve ourselves by not reading scripture. We look to other people to feed all the right answers to us. I really feel like that is where I am. I find the Bible so interesting, yet sometimes the words on a page feel just like that, words on a page. I want to read the Bible and it actually mean something. I want it to change the way I think, act, and present myself. I want to live on purpose.

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Genesis 12

So, Monday was our first official chapel of the year. I think it was in the school’s best interest to hire two amazing Christian men to take on the job as they did. Thank you Lord, no more chalk! The praise band did an exceptional job leading us in worship. I felt like the students were actually into it. After playing a terrible game of Simon Says, where like he said, Mr. Teller wasn’t defeated he spoke on Abram in Genesis twelve.
     The story in Genesis twelve is all about faith. The biggest point Mr. Teller wanted to get across was, “If I live by faith I win. If I live by sight I lose.” Faith is such a hard thing to grasp at times, and most people don’t fully comprehend what it means, myself included. He described it as believing and trusting God, no matter how I feel because I know God has promised good results. Every step Abram took was a step of faith. He was seventy-five years old when God told him He would bless him and make him into a great nation. Seventy-five! I will so be done with my baby making days by that age, but Abram trusted God and lived by faith.
     Faith isn’t just a thing we do on Sunday’s, it’s an everyday thing. It can be so difficult to praise God through our petty everyday trials. I know for me there are plenty of times where I am just ready to throw in the towel and quit. I feel like everything I do is wrong, and no matter what I do, it won’t be fixed. The amazing thing is I serve a God of second-chances. I serve a God who loves me in my angry, sad, happy moments in life. It just amazes me that He loves me that much! It is the least I could do to live by faith daily.
       A struggle I have is listening to God. I am always wondering if that desire is what God wants for me, or if it is what I want for myself. One statement that really stood out to me was “you can never get something good out of doing something wrong.” I feel like if you love to do something than you should do that wholeheartedly. God isn’t going to make you do anything, and He doesn’t want you to be unhappy. As we walk by faith, I believe that His perfect will for us will be more evident in our lives. I feel as long as we go into whatever we do with all of our heart and passion then we can get something good out of it, and it won’t be miserable. He loves us and as we walk by faith we will grow stronger in our relationship with Him.
    

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Modern Day Satire

The Art of Kissing Is Easy
Kissing is easy to transport. It really doesn't matter where you are. You can kiss: at the gym, in the boardroom, in the space shuttle, even in Alaska from June through September.
Kissing requires so little equipment, which means you can do it even when not prepared for the occasion, and even when you have to travel light. This makes it the ideal participation sport for businessmen, world travelers and marsupial groupies.
Kissing always livens things up. Try this: the next time you are in an oh-so-booooring meeting that seems to last oh-so-foreeeeever, why not just kiss somebody. Go ahead; try it. See how it livens things up?
Kissing is legal in all 50 states and most earth-bound countries. Rumors are circulating that kissing will even be legalized soon on Mars, Jupiter and in Afghanistan.
Kissing is 100% biodegradable, so when you kiss somebody, you help the environment.
Kissing is safe to do in a moving vehicle, as long as you are not driving.
Kissing is non toxic...unless you kiss somebody who has just swallowed a bottle of Drano. Even so, kissing is still safe, as long as you do not use your mouth.
Kissing is non-fattening. This is perhaps the best news of all, because dieters now have something to keep their mouths busy while not eating, and smokers can quit smoking without having to chew candies until they a) need to diet or b) induce diabetes. (Read the headline: "Kissing prevents diabetes")
Kissing is organic, low in sodium, preservative-free, low in saturated fats and does not contain dozens of delicious ingredients that cannot be pronounced, like javelchromopntheoremicherbicidic acid.
Most kisses are not tested on animals, but who am I to stifle your sense of adventure?
You can kiss just about everyone: your boyfriend, your aunt, your wife, your veterinarian, the Prime Minister of the Duchy of Grand Fenwick and your pet aardvark. Don't try kissing them all at the same time, though...especially not your boyfriend and your wife.
Kissing meets the toughest safety regulations of any national or international sporting organization. Kissing has a tremendous safety record, except for the occasional locked braces. But a quick call for a AAA tow truck fixes that problem (CAA in Canada, AA in the UK, the local plumber in France) 

Extreme Kissing NOT Recommended
The only recorded deaths involving kissing are by third parties, usually wives, husbands, spurned lovers and other spectators who somehow get past security and storm onto the playing field like that well-dressed gentleman at the Superbowl.
We do NOT recommend "extreme kissing". For instance, don't kiss an on-duty garbage truck; it is considered dangerous. Don't kiss a metal fence-post in sub-zero weather; readers in northern climates know exactly what I mean. Don't kiss any electrical outlets, or you'll look like this.
Are you paying attention? This one is important. Don't kiss the vacuum cleaner if you want to retain all your vital organs. It's OK to kiss sandpaper, just don't use your tongue. Don't kiss a chainsaw; we feel this one is self-explanatory. And don't kiss your office manager while on duty...unless you happen to be a work-from-home hermit like me.
But overall, kissing is so great that it makes baseball, hockey, football and soccer seem like bush league sports. Next time you hear a brawl at your local barbershop, just go in and give everyone a kiss. I guarantee that you will win the argument hands down. And if not, at least you will make some new friends to argue with. 


This text is from: http://www.thehappyguy.com/art-of-kissing.html



This article is pointing out the fact that so many people, high school students mainly, feel the need for excessive personal displays of affection. (PDA) The irony is how the author mentioned how it is legal in all fifty states, non-fattenting and meets saftey regulations. The satire in this article is hilarious. So many people find the need to kiss their significant other in the most public places possible, and they don't even realize it is grossing other people out. The author clearly thinks PDA is a problem and is pointing it out in such a funny manner.

Friday, August 20, 2010

Sudoku, Sooners, and Jesus.

When Mrs. Smith asked us to create a netvibes account for English class I wasn’t really thrilled, at all, with that idea. I figured it would be the same, lame excuse to have fun in class. To my surprise, I actually enjoy netvibes. She encouraged us to check out other blogs and read about things we wanted to learn. I have always wanted to learn how to play Sudoku, so that was at the top of my list. It gave me a website to where I could go and read all about how to play the challenging game. Mrs. Smith also told me that women who play Sudoku are said to have better focus. That is definitely something I lack at times.

     We were also told to make a tab about school related things. I found a website that offers free variety of flute music that I can play anytime. I also chose to follow the official Oklahoma Sooners website. I am a big fan. It provides me with the access of all their general news without having to travel to their website. I bet you are wondering why this matter to you, or how it relates to you in any way. Honestly, it might not but there are tons of activities in the world I bet you are dying to learn. Netvibes can help you set that up to where you can have all of the things you desire to learn most all on one website.

     Mrs. Smith also encouraged us to create a tab discussing where we are in our walk with the Lord. In my daily walk with God I feel closer and closer every day. I know I am not perfect and that I mess up, but it is so awesome to know that there is someone out there who loves me no matter what. This summer was such a huge for me in my walk with the Lord. Ever since the summer before my sophomore year I have been in this state of total growth, and this summer was a vast part of that.

      I began the summer so ready for whatever God tossed my way, starting with one of my best friends, Hannah Jones, living with me for two months after the flood. This gave us an opportunity to grow closer as friends and build a strong relationship that is unbreakable. Then church camp. There is always high feeling after camp that soon wears off in a matter of weeks. I felt this year was different. Our youth group seemed so closely bonded by this experience and people’s lives were changed. I longed to see a change in my friends lives and seeing it was remarkable. When we got home the realization sunk in that our youth group was sick.

        I was selected for my third year at Truth & Peace leadership conference. It is by far my favorite part of my summer. I get to spend three weeks with other students my age that are as on fire for God as myself. This year I got the opportunity to lead a small group of students every night in a devotional time. Coming back to my youth group I really saw the need for specific things, and God put them on my heart.

      I know I seem like I have it all somewhat together, but the truth is I am screaming inside. I would rather be out in some other country than be sitting here in class talking about my walk with the Lord. Something that I have recently begun to learn is that I am on my mission field. God has placed my family in Nashville Tennessee for so many reasons. They might not be clear right now but He has a purpose, and I want nothing more than to live wholeheartedly, with an authentic faith for God.  

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Senior Year is FINALLY here!

Well this is it, Senior Year! I feel like I've been waiting for this moment all my life and now that it's finally here I want the time to slow…down... This year definitely has some great things in store for all of us. So many new additions to our school, a new principal, and for me a new band director, this year is one full of change. It has its potential to be a rough year but I am determined to make this the best year of my high school career. I don’t want to just walk into school everyday and expect the normal. I want to make a difference, and real difference
    As I was thinking about this year, I was thinking about how some people choose to go into senior year with the "slacker" mode turned on full force. Honestly, that would probably be the easiest way to face senior year and at times I want nothing more than to be that person, but not this year. Oh no, I am going into this year with the mentality of Luke 1:37, "For nothing is impossible with God".(Thanks Allison) 
     Being new last year I wasn’t sure how everything was going to turn out but I have made so many new friends that I love dearly, and I am so glad that I get to be a part of the 2011 DCA senior class. I want to create memories that will last a lifetime, which means I will have my camera out every chance I get. I cannot wait to see the things my classmates are going to do in throughout their lives and knowing that I had at least a little part in that is an amazing feeling.
     A couple of sleepovers with the girls and late night talks about what we want out of this year, and we are completely ready for whatever comes our way. We are all amazed at the support that has overflowed out of people’s hearts. I have seen us come together in a way that can only be described as the work of God. I really believe that the flood wasn’t a curse but a blessing for our school. Our administration and community of Donleson Christian Academy have really worked together to make this year one we will never forget.