Hope for Heaven

So so much has happened since I last wrote a blog! Let me start by saying that these past five months have flown by in a whirlwind full of ups and downs! Last July I lost my sweet, precious little cousin K in a tragic biking accident. Her accident was the definition of life changing in an instant! One minute I had gotten a message that she was being airlifted to a hospital and not even kidding you, like one minute later I had gotten another message that she had passed away. I didn't even have time to pray for this little girl who I hold so dear to my heart. She was only eight years old and going to her funeral was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. You expect older people to die but to be at a child's funeral is a totally different feeling. I was lost in my grief for a little while and found myself asking God "why did this have to happen to her and her sweet family?" Eventually I came to the realization that even though she was taken at a young age, she is up in Heaven safe in Jesus's presence and she never had really to experience the bad things of this earthly world. I am thankful that I have the peace of mind knowing where she is and that I have Hope for Heaven.

(Mother dearest, K, and I a few years ago)

Fast forward to this past January and I find myself driving in the middle of the night, with nowhere to go, just talking to God. I have been wanting to do some sort of missionary work for a while now, and surprise surprise. Guess what He laid on my heart? You got it! Blessing others without receiving anything in return.

My first act was to share my testimony with someone so very dear to my heart. Now I don't just share my testimony with anyone because at times it can still be kind of scary to talk about but I knew that I had to with this certain person because God had given me such peace about it. And let me tell you not only was that person blessed by my story but I was so completely blown away and blessed by sharing my story in return! The very next day I read this in my devotional (Jesus Calling. If you're looking for a devotional I seriously recommend this one!) "Your weakness and woundedness are the openings through which the Light of the knowledge of My Glory shines forth." This statement is so powerful to me, especially paired with the verse from 2 Corinthians 12:9~But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." In the study notes of my Bible it says our weakness not only helps develop Christian character; it also deepens our worship, because in admitting our weakness, we affirm God's strength. I believe that the most powerful teachings that I have ever heard about God's word have come through someone else's testimony.

My second act was to write one of my old high school teachers and tell her thank you for everything she had ever done and how blessed I was to have someone like her in my life!

My third act was to adopt my second soldier and send him letters and care gifts.

I am currently working on my fourth act which is taking a young lady's senior pictures who probably won't have the opportunity to have anyone else take them.

I have a big pay-it-forward act planned for the end of this year and I am so excited about it! This one is going to take some time and money to put together so that is why I am waiting until the end of this year to do it!

My pay-it-forward campaign has been so much fun so far and a total blessing to my heart! Seriously, try doing something for someone and not expecting anything in return. Guaranteed you'll be blessed in some way! The reason why I started doing this was to show people God's love and hopefully give them the same Hope for Heaven that I have and the peace of knowing that there is so much more beyond this life we currently live.

Did you hear about the Morgans?!

Hey guys, I am so excited to show you some recent wedding pictures I did! I had the honor and privilege of photographing Skylar and Connor Morgan's beautiful wedding ceremony! I have to say they make a beautiful couple! It is obvious to see that they are perfect for each other! Hope you enjoy!

Skylar and Connor!

Skylar, Connor, and their beautiful mothers!

It's official! They're married!

Sweet moments.

Mother, Bride, & Sister!

Gorgeous couple!

Did you hear about the Morgans?! They got married!

Day 1-Blessed & Thankful June!-Briiness Edition

So a few weeks ago I told Briiness that I was thinking about attempting to write a blog every day in the month of June for what I feel blessed or thankful for, so it only seems fitting that I write my first Blessed & Thankful June blog about her! After all, she is the one who is going to have to keep me accountable for this! 

Day 1--Blessed & Thankful June!--Briiness Edition

I don't even really know where to start! I guess I should tell you first how we met! A little over a year ago, my friend Fronster took me to a Woman's Retreat in Falls Creek, Oklahoma. Little did I know that by going to this retreat, I would meet a sweet young woman who has become one of the best and closest friends I could have ever asked for. She understands my heart so well, beyond what my other friends do, and I think this is mainly because her heart is the same as mine. We both have a passion and a drive to be the best we can be for Christ! Now don't get me wrong, we are in no way perfect! We both have dealt with some pretty tough decisions, mistakes, and their consequences, but when I tell her about my screw-ups I never have to worry if she's going to judge me for them. She embraces me as I come, flaws and all! I recently experienced the most awesome "God brought me to my knees" moment and she was the first one I had to tell about it! She understood how I felt, and was sooo supportive and encouraging. She also told me a little about her history too. I think this is how we learn about each other. We tell each other about our God moments, our triumphs, and our failures knowing that we're always there supporting one another! I could not ask for a better person to keep me accountable in Christ. I can honestly say there have been times that she has reminded me how blessed I am and she has no idea that she has done it. We have only been friends for a year but in this last year she has taught me so much! The saying "Friendship isn't about whom you've known the longest... It's about who came and never left your side..." describes our friendship perfectly. She's my long-distance bestie and sister in Christ. This is why I feel so blessed and thankful to have her in my life!

"A Friend Loves at All Times..." --Proverbs 17:17

Feeling Frustrated!

Well I have to say this has been quite the day! It felt like anything and everything was pushing my buttons today! Dang devil! He was really hittin' me hard today! Especially in the form of other people that I had to deal with! It was all I could do to control my patience today, which isn't usually like me for those of you that don't know. I'm usually pretty calm and laid back about stuff, but today was the exception to the rule! In a world full of so much negativity, it's hard to stand against all the junk being thrown at you. Not gonna lie, on my drive home from work tonight, I literally just wanted to scream at anyone and everyone, and was consumed in my thoughts. At least that was until I took a moment to listen to the radio. K-Love was the radio station I had on and This Is Your Life by Switchfoot was playing. I don't know if any of you have ever listened to this song, but it is so powerful and exactly what God wanted me to hear at that moment. "This is your life, are you who you want to be?" are the part of the lyrics that was especially like whamo! Is this who you(me) want to be? Someone who gets frustrated easily at worldly things? My answer was no! As soon as I got home, I opened up my Bible and started looking for scriptures! These three are some that I found that really hit me! :)

"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." John 16:33

"He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." Rev 21:4

"A man's wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense." Proverbs 19:11

I hope you enjoyed reading about my short driving revelation! We definitely serve an awesome God!

Blessed

Hey guys! I know it has been a while since I last blogged. Life has been crazy busy here lately! But I honestly wouldn't trade it for the world! About three weeks ago I got to go to an awesome Women's Retreat in Oklahoma and it was such a blessing to my heart! I've been in such an awesome place here lately walking with God every step of the way and enjoying the peace I know I can only get from him! He most definitely spoke to me at this retreat and told me to step out and tell part of my testimony to the Youth Group I help with, so I am actually going to be sharing it tomorrow! I'm ready to do it, my only prayer is that it is powerful and will impact at least one person. I am not one to step out like this so it should be interesting! I have to say that right now I should actually be studying for my last two finals I have coming up on Thursday but I felt compelled to just sit and write! Haha! I have and am so, so blessed! I can honestly tell you that I have never been in a place like this before, just feeling completely at peace, and it is just one of the most awesome God experiences you can ever feel! It has most definitely been a long road to get to this point! Lately I have really been noticing the abundance of just how many blessings I have in my life! And how many of my prayers are being and have been answered! It's almost like looking at my world with new eyes! I can truly say we serve one awesome God! I have no one else to thank but him for this blessed life I live!

Me and Miss Briness at the Women's Retreat! I just love her! 

This is one of my favorite verses!

Spiritual Healing

Hey guys, just wanted to share a little about part of my spring break. I spent a lot of time alone on my spring break, both at home and at work. At first I was feelin' a little sorry for myself and lonely not gonna lie but then I realized I had not been putting my focus in the right place for quite a while now. I haven't been giving things to God they way I'm supposed to. I would hold on to a little piece of it like I could control it even when I would say I give it all to you God. Totally hypocritical of me I know. So I decided with God's help that I was going to get myself turned back around on to his path. And let me say, deciding this and sticking to it, I felt like I was getting attacked right and left by the devil. It has been a pretty rough week but I feel like I am  prevailing slowly with God by my side. I am going to take a sentence from my devotional Jesus Calling by Sarah Young because it explains exactly what I was feeling. "Anxiety wraps you up in yourself, trapping you in your own thoughts." This is exactly what I allowed myself to do, trap myself in my own thoughts. It is never more prevalent what's on your heart than when you spend lots of time by yourself and your thoughts start to roam. I allowed myself to worry about things that were happening and things that had not even happened yet. The other night I literally felt like I was having an anxiety attack in the shower. So I just sat down with the shower still running and gave it all up to God. We Won't Be Shaken by Building 429 was playing over the IPod stereo and it could not have been playing at a better time. This part of the lyrics especially touched me:

You know my every longing

You've heard my every prayer

You've held me in my weakness

Cause you are always there

So I'll stand in full surrender

It's your way and not my own

My mind is set on nothing less

Than you and you alone

I will not be moved oh

Whatever will come my way

Through fire or pouring rain

We won't be shaken

No we won't be shaken

Whatever tomorrow brings

Together we'll rise and sing

That we won't be shaken

Here's the link to listen to the song: We Won't Be Shaken by Building 429

So after that I really started getting into my Bible and focusing on my devotional, not just going through the motions of reading it because I felt like I had to. I have been listening to Christian music when I'm driving, working, or just have some down time because it has been helping me to put my focus back on God. Some of the ones that have been on repeat on the IPod this week are: Even If by Kutless, You Are I Am by MercyMe, Need You Now by Plumb, & Strong Tower by Kutless. 


Now when I say it was a rough week, I wasn't kidding. I had to fix a co-workers mistake at work that was a pretty big boo-boo and then after that happened one of my bosses asked me to come work on the only Saturday I have off this month, which is when my co-worker was supposed to work, because they would be talking to my co-worker about something when she came in on Tuesday and I have my suspicions on what is going to happen with her. So if any of you are reading this, say a little prayer that this situation will work out the way God intended it to. And then I found out one of my sweet family members had passed away. I didn't find out about it in time though to get off work to go to his funeral though so I think I'll be going for a drive this week to go put some flowers on his and my dad's grave. And then there was just that little stuff that tries to work its way in and bug you.

Even though it was a rough week, I am so so grateful for it because 

it made me stronger in my walk with Christ and it was just the 

awakening I needed and was a true spiritual healing for me.


One of the devotionals that I read this week really touched my 

heart so I'm going to share it with you...

"It is good that you recognize your weakness. That keeps you 

looking to Me, your Strength. Abundant life is not necessarily 

health and wealth; it is living in continual dependence on Me. 

Instead of trying to fit this day into a preconceived mold, relax and 

be on the lookout for what I am doing. This mind-set will free you 

to enjoy Me and to find what I have planned for you to do. This is 

far better than trying to make things go according to your own plan. 

Don't take yourself so seriously. Lighten up and laugh with Me. 

You have Me on your side, so what are you worried about? I can 

equip you to do absolutely anything, as long as it is My will. The 

more difficult your day, the more I yearn to help you. Anxiety 

wraps you up in yourself, trapping you in your own thoughts. When 

you look to Me and whisper My Name, you break free and receive 

My help. Focus on Me, and you will find Peace in My Presence."

-"I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am 

ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses 

inner strength in me; I am self-sufficient in Christ's sufficiency].

--Philippians 4:13

-"A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up 

the bones."

--Proverbs 17:22

In A Rush...

The whole two people that probably read my blog are going to think I am so weird when I say this next sentence. I am a people reader. No not in the psychic sense lol! I don't have any weird connection with the dead flowing through me or anything like that! I observe the people I'm around, who they talk about, and what they do. I can usually get close to spot on in telling if they are going through trials, what kind of relationship they have with Christ, and what their true personalities are like. That being said, here lately what has stood out to me about girls that I've been around, is that they're in a rush to get into a relationship or if they're already in a relationship they're in a rush to get married. I'm not really sure if its been so blatantly thrown in my face by the devil here lately as an attempt to waiver my faith that God has a plan for my life or not. I'm going to go with most likely so though! I've never been one to be in a rush to find a guy. I truly believe that when the time is right God will present me with the one I'm meant to be with for the rest of my life! There is so much that I have left to experience in my life without worrying if I'm going to find that right guy or not. Don't get me wrong though. I am definitely not perfect. I have my weak points where I do start to worry, but that usually happens when I take my eyes off God and start worrying about worldly things. Psalm 37:4 says, "Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart." Who else knows the true desires of your heart other than God? No one. So my advice to girls who are worried about if they'll be alone the rest of their life is simply to take this next verse and hold it close to your heart... "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."-Philippians 4:6 The one relationship you should care about is your relationship with Christ. He is the one perfect guy, who will always be there for you!