It's a fact, Jack.

Every once and awhile, I like to just post some facts about myself. If you know me really well, you probably already know the majority of these. However, some of these are little known facts. Also, don't judge me for the facts. If you love me, you love my weirdness as well.

1. Each night before I go to sleep, I look in each of the three closets in my room. I'm not sure why I even bother looking because if there were something/someone in one of them, I sure couldn't do anything about it. 

2. I really really want a tattoo, but I will never get one. 

3. I feel the need to control things. Whether it be just doing things myself, driving, or controlling a situation, I want to be the one doing it. When something is out of my control, it makes me uneasy. 

4. I'm the most well-behaved rebellious person you will ever meet. 

5. I'm really competitive.

6. I'm a "fixer." If you're talking to me about a problem, by instinct, I want to tell you exactly what you need to do to fix your problem. I realize that this is one of my not so good personality traits, so I'm working on it. Just because I think something would work, that doesn't mean it will work for you. 

7. I carry a permanent marker in my purse in case I run into someone famous. I just realized though that autographs might be outdated. Now, everyone just takes a picture. Oh well, I'll be prepared!

8. I cannot handle raw meet. Holding any type of raw meat just grosses me out. I blame it on getting a raw chicken burger at Sonic one time. When I saw raw, I mean RAW. As in, the chicken was still glossy looking. Barf.

9. I believe with all my heart that I'm called to work with families. However, I've recently discovered that I have a heart for teenage girls as well.

10. I refuse to look out the window at night. I'm terrified that one night, I'll look out the window and someone will pop their head up and look back at me. 

I hope you still want to be friends with me after learning all this. Remember, you love me. That includes loving my weirdness. 

God's Hand

Has someone ever asked you why miracles don't happen in today's world like they did in the times of the Bible? I've had people ask me that multiple times. They want to see for themselves just how God is at work. They want to see it not just read about it. Lately, it's like God's been showing off how awesome He is. And you know what? It truly is amazing. And now you get to hear about it.

1. There were tornadoes all around my brother and his friends in Oklahoma. There was a few literally down the road from him and they were headed right towards him. At the time, we had just seen how destructive those tornadoes were. The whole world saw houses ruined, innocent lives taken, lives destroyed, and now those tornadoes were headed towards my brother. Guess what. They stopped before they got to his apartment. I have no doubt that God had his hand on my brother and protected him that day.

2. Our neighbor and good friend has been battling breast cancer for some time now. It was pretty advanced when they found it and I think they said it was stage 3 (I could be wrong). We all know how awful cancer is. We all hate it. She had surgery about 2 weeks ago and got the test results back recently. 98% of the cancer was gone!!! As for the other two percent, they were nonviable. Seriously could not have asked for a better report! How awesome is that? This is one of those things that can't be explained; there's no doubt that it was God.

3. This past weekend, we had a wedding to go to in Port A. On the way back to Rockport that night, our car died on the ferry. Literally on the ferry, yall. After a big fiasco, we were finally able to be towed home by my dad's awesome and dependable BFF. I don't know if yall have ever been towed, but it's slightly terrifying. Because the battery was the issue, the power steering and power brakes were both shot. I was pretty worried about the way back, I'm not gonna lie. BUT our God is an awesome God. The whole back back, we NEVER hit a red light (slowing down can be a hassle), there was NEVER any traffic while driving or merging onto the bypass, there wasn't any traffic while crossing the bypass, and a person even drove behind us with their flashers on for awhile to make sure that we were seen. I was talking to my dad's friend that picked us up and he said that on his way to us, there was a ton of traffic and he was worried about us getting back. But then our God protected us.

It's kind of like God is showing off lately and trying to get my attention. These are just three circumstances that have been very obvious. I'm not even mentioning the things in life that people take advantage of that very obviously are miracles of God. Things like a baby being born, the fact that I'm still alive, the fact that God's grace saves mes when I screw up daily, and even the simple things like a sunset. It's nice to be reminded that God's hand is placed on my life and that he's not just chillin up there enjoying the show.

Vacation Bible School

Every summer growing up, I would look forward to Vacation Bible School. Because I was always one of "those kids" at the church, I came early with my family and was usually one of the last ones out the door. Even though I was blessed with a multitudes of things that influenced my Christian walk, I have no doubt that VBS was one of the bigger influences. Once I was old enough to work at VBS, I STILL looked forward to the week. I mean really, what is cooler than seeing 300 kids sing catchy (and slightly lame) songs about Jesus? The kid's smiles are contagious, the songs are catchy and will get stuck in your head, and rooms are decorated, and the seeds planted will last forever. 

All of that being said, the week of VBS this year makes me sad. This is the first time in 20 years that I won't be at First Baptist Church for VBS. Do the math, yall. I'm almost 21. I've been at VBS since I was 9 months old tagging along with my family. VBS is one of the highlights of the summer. And instead of being home showing kids the love of Jesus, I'm in summer school learning Spanish. 

Now, I know this is selfish. I know it's awful that VBS makes me sad this year. But I want to be there. However, I know that VBS will go on without me. And I know that really, me being there makes no difference whatsoever. So even though I'm not there physically, I'm there in prayer. I'm praying that those kids see Jesus through the workers. And I pray that those workers have enough strength(mental, physical, and spiritual) to get through the week. I pray that this week would plant seeds in the kids that will last a lifetime. Lastly, I pray that God allows me to be there next year. If not, I pray that He works on my heart so I realize that He has put me somewhere else for a reason.