Weekend recap!

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend! 

Mine was very full, but very fabulous

Here is a little recap:

My Thanksgiving plate...yum!

Our first Thanksgiving as a married couple :)

My Gigi's homemade pumpkin pie!

Family tradition...we cut down our own Christmas trees! 

Our first tree!!

We were very excited :)

Listening to Christmas music!

Candy cane time 

My wonderful family!

We decorated our tree with popcorn and cranberries!

Here it is!

It's the most wonderful time of the year :)

Thanksgiving feast

"O God, you are my God;
      I earnestly search for you.
   My soul thirsts for you;
      my whole body longs for you
   in this parched and weary land
      where there is no water.
 I have seen you in your sanctuary
      and gazed upon your power and glory.
 Your unfailing love is better than life itself;
      how I praise you!
 I will praise you as long as I live,
      lifting up my hands to you in prayer.
 You satisfy me more than the richest feast.
      I will praise you with songs of joy."

Would you sit at your Thanksgiving feast and eat a rotten banana instead of the gourmet meal available to you? 

(No! Of course not!) 

This would not satisfy your hunger.

...and yet we try to satisfy ourselves with things of this world instead of looking to God

(The ONLY one that will truly satisfy)

 "You satisfy me more than the richest feast."

Don't miss the feast this Thanksgiving!

Thankful

I had a great time at our girls youth event!

Friday consisted of laser tag, Just Dance, lots of food, laughter and sleep.

The group right after laser tag

Our shirts!

Saturday we challenged the girls with God's word. 

We had my sister Steph come and speak, and she spoke truth! 

The lovely speaker and I

It was such a blessing to love on these girls, and see their hearts open up to God!

As Thanksgiving is here, I am reminded how thankful I am that God is my hope. On my own, I can do nothing. Without God everything is meaningless. This morning on the radio a song played that said, "What if Jesus had never come?" ...just the thought of that makes my heart ache. Without Jesus, my life would be pointless, and full of despair. 

I am so thankful that Jesus came and died to save me from a life of despair. But He didn't stop there! Not only did He save me, but He wants a relationship with me. He wants to use me to bring hope to a lost world. This, I am thankful for. This is what gives my life meaning instead of despair.

Yes, I am SO thankful for all the things God has given me and blessed me with. BUT I am most thankful for Him...for His work in my heart, and my life. For the joy and purpose He gives me.

"Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts."

Colossians 3:16

Beloved

Do you need to feel God's love today?
Listen to this song by Kari Jobe. It is a love song from God to you.

This weekend I am going to be hanging out with middle and high school girls! We are having an overnight event called 'the trUth event'. We want these girls to know that their identity is found in Christ...not their appearance, accomplishments or relationships! Our key verse is John 8:32 ~ "Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free". Freedom, satisfaction, and joy only come through Christ! 

Please pray for this. I SO want these girls to know the truth so they can stand strong as the world shoots lies at them. I pray for open hearts. I pray for brokenness, so that God can heal. I pray that these girls will know the truth, and be set free! 

It's one of those days

It's one of those days...

When I get 2% milk, extra whip, and caramel on my latte 

-- usually skim and light whip -- 

(note: before the picture I ate half of the whip ;)

My excuse = an unending pile of homework sitting before me at Panera (my second home) ... unaddressed thank you cards sitting in a pile at home ... and three hours of class sitting before me tonight

Well, I confessed. Now it's your turn! :) 

What's your "extra whip"?...that little thing you splurge on when stress knocks on your door.

think about it

"Would you be satisfied to go to heaven—have everybody there in your family that you want there, have all the health and restoration of your prime, and everything you disliked about yourself fixed, have every recreation you’ve ever dreamed available to you, and have infinite resources of money to spend—would you be satisfied… if God weren’t there? If you were... totally fulfilled emotionally, spiritually, relationally, and sexually, would you be satisfied without Jesus? If you were finally assured that your friends, your spouse, and your pastor had your best interests at heart, loved you, and would never hurt you, would you be satisfied without Jesus?"

~Quote by Mike Wilkerson in his book 'Redemption'

think about it: 

Would you be satisfied with heaven if God wasn't there?

Are you truly in love with God? 

truth.

Lately I have been reminded of the importance of not only what I allow to fill up my time, but what I allow to fill up my mind.

Satan is the father of lies (John 8:44). All he needs is a small foot hole into our minds, and the lies begin. Often, these lies are not obvious, but they subtly play on our weaknesses and insecurities. Let's not allow this! John 8:32 says "then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free". Do you want to be free today? Ask God to renew your mind. Listen to, read, and think about TRUTH.

"Letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace." ~Romans 8:6

"Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth." ~Colossians 3:1-2


"Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." ~Philippians 4:8