Saturday, May 29, 2010

Plans...

As I stand here, underneath my front porch, listening and watching in awe as the rain pours down in front of me, I can't help but think about how I got to this point and how magnificent God really is.

I've been looking forward to today for a few days now. My boyfriend has been off visiting his friend for a few days and I had this big surprise date planned for us this afternoon when he got home. Of course I would plan something outside on a day like today when it's absolutely pouring rain. He had no idea what I'd planned for tonight, and I'd rather not say in case he happens upon this blog anytime soon. When I called him to tell him the news (that our plans had changed), I started to cry some just because I was disappointed. He laughed (I guess because he felt sorry for me and knew I was being somewhat dramatic), and reassured me we'd still have a good time.

Unconvinced, he began to tell me of a wreck he saw on his way home this afternoon. Apparently a man in his truck had "fish-tailed" on the interstate when cut off because of another driver's blind-spot. He said he saw the man & his truck go front-end first into the median, throwing the man's head through the windshield and slinging him back into his seat. We talked about it for a little longer, and then I hung up the phone so he could finish driving. Then it hit me...I'm sitting her upset because something minor, like the weather, upset my plans that could easily be carried out another day, while someone's life was just possibly altered forever. I'm praying the man in the accident was okay, but if he wasn't...his family's lives will permenently be altered...plans they might have made could quite possibly never be carried out.

After contemplating this for a minute or so I went to stand underneath my front porch just to listen to the storm...let's just say that I'm completely over my change of plans for the evening. My prayers go out to that man and his family. Things may not always turn out as planned, but I need to be a little more flexible when they don't.

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Welcome back old friend...

Recently, with my internship and other things, I've been staying really busy. It's been stressful...not because I'm not loving my internship (because I really am), but because the things that I normally would get done during my days, I can't do and when I get home I'm too tired to do them. If I had a dime for every time I've heard the "Welcome to the real world..." speech this week I'd be rich. But see, here's the thing. I am preparing myself for the real world; so why give that speech or even make that comment? It's taking some getting used to, but I'm really loving what I'm doing.

Anyways, I'm babbling. Tonight I was helping my brother study for his chorus exam tomorrow...you know, counting out measures, naming different notes & vocabulary terms--stuff like that. I never really had to study when I took chorus because of myself being in band in high school for all those years. It just kind of came naturally. After we'd finished studying, I started remembering my high school days and how far I've come since then. I remembered playing my flute in the band and all the wonderful friendships I made because of being part of that group. So yes...I did it...I pulled my flute case from out of hiding (I haven't touched it in over a year--at least.) and I began to play. I couldn't play as loud as I felt because I didn't want to disturb the whole house, but nonetheless, I played. I can't describe how good it felt, honestly. Then I remembered how amazing playing always made me feel; kind of the same feeling writing gives me. It takes all of my stress and problems away to the point of helping me to forget what I was even worried about in the first place.

Call me a nerd, dork, whatever. I've heard it all. It was just nice to play again :)

So welcome back old friend...

Monday, May 24, 2010

So Far So Good...

As you know, today was the first day of my internship :) I got there early (because you never know..) and as soon as I sat down my boss gave me an assignment--I was told to write a press release type article. I don't have too much experience with this quite yet, but I gave it my best shot. He didn't seem to have any problems with it, which made me happy of course. I was then able to design the layout for the page that this article would appear on. Unfortunately, that's all I was able to do for the day, but I learned a few new things & am proud to say that I love what I'm doing so far! I hope it only continues to get better :)

"Choose a job you love and you'll never work a day in your life" -Confucius

Sunday, May 23, 2010

Progress...

So far 2010 has been very good to me. I started branching out at school and making new friends, became closer to the friends I already had, got published twice my college literary magazine, and even landed an internship for most of the summer. Not to say that there hasn't been some drama here and there, because there was...but I've learned to just follow my heart and not to let other people try to bring me down on doing what I know is right.

My summer has been pretty bland so far. I guess it's because this is the first summer away from a school where I actually felt that I had a home. I really miss being in school with all of my friends and being involved in that "community" of people. I have had some fun with several close friends of mine though during my time off so that has made everything worth while. Tomorrow is my first "official" day of my internship for the summer, so I'm slightly nervous, but VERY excited to begin. The reason I say "official' is because I went last week, but there wasn't anything for me to start on yet, so the man I'm working for sent me home for another week. It was disappointing, but I'm now ready to start tomorrow.

I can't believe that this time last year I was freaking out over transferring schools and worrying about whether I would fit in anywhere at all. I'm happy to say that I have found my college family and I couldn't be more happy w/ how things are going. I love college and even though I sometimes say I'm ready to graduate....I know I'll miss being there on campus. I've got time to worry about that though. I'm proud of all that I've accomplished lately. I've knicked a few habits that I hated, such as biting my nails. Things are good with the boyfriend and the family right now, and I also have learned who I can and cannot trust which is always good. And finally, I feel good about the path I'm now heading down tomorrow with my internship. I hope it's everything I expect it to be. Details to come soon!

Ghost

My church's series "Ghost" this month was really powerful. It was all about God's presence in our lives, His power, and how he can transform our lives. I've really gained a lot from each series that we've done so far. There have been points that have been refreshed in my memory, but also those that I had never considered until that point.

The first Sunday we talked about God's presence in our lives and whether we are sometimes afraid of the Holy Spirit to fully take control over every part of us. Should the Holy Spirit really be scary though? Of course not...God's spirit comforts us, counsels us, guides us, convicts us, and above all, will never leave us.

After all, God's presence is first shown in the very first verse of Genesis in the Bible: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." God also created each and every one of us in His image. What could be scary about the God that created the very foundation for the world we live in today?

Next, we talked about God's power. This particular sermon really spoke to me because lately I have been going through some problems. It seemed that I'd hit a rough patch that I couldn't quite get out of. After this sermon, I realized that the reason I continued to sit in this problem area was because I hadn't gained the confidence to give God control over these situations. We talked about God's power being like dynamite--it's powerful, dangerous, and overwhelming...but with this power, there is nothing that we cannot do! I decided to give my situations over to God...not just part of it, but everything. It seemed that slowly, things started to get better-I had God on my side and I couldn't lose.

The third Sunday, we talked about having a spirit-filled life. This is probably something that all of us need to work on in one way or another. The bible verse was from Galations 5:8-18. In this Bible verse, it explains how every one of us is lost in darkness without God's light to show us new insight. It goes on to say that we should all rebuke the acts of the world and evil, and instead do what is pleasing in the eyes of the Lord. We should not live as fools, but instead, live like those who are wise. Finally, we should not be drunk with wine, for it will ruin our life.

Paul says, "Don't be under the influence of alcohol. Instead, live a Spirit-filled life. Be under the influence of the Holy Spirit." While under the influence of the Holy Spirit, you will act differently, think differently, and even talk differently. Our pastor went on to say that there are many reasons that people may drink alcohol, but a lot of similar reasons involve that it gives them confidence or comfort. He did not say that having a drink was wrong, but it is wrong to drink for the purpose of getting drunk. Although I don't drink, I'm sure that there are other things that I or others use for comfort. Instead of these things, why do we not turn to the Holy Spirit for that comfort?

To wrap up our Ghost series, we talked about God as the transformer of lives. In Acts 9:1-18, is the story of Saul and how God transformed his life. Saul was transformed from from someone who hated Christians, to one of the most powerful missionaries. After Saul's "transformation," he decided that he could no longer use his actual name, and therefore changed it to Paul. Although God loves us the way we are, he loves us too much to leave us that way.

In Romans 7:15-24, Paul writes that he has all of these good intentions, but cannot get past his sinful nature. I believe every one of us is like this because we were all created with a sinful nature. Without God's presence, power, and spirit, we cannot be transformed into his design.