Free

I'm finally getting back in the habit of blogging! With school and just life in general being crazy the last month, I haven't had time to do much of anything. Anywho, I'm finally done with the semester!! This semester was a weird mix of classes. I had my Child and Family Studies classes such as Family Life Education, Theories of Family Development, and Family Financial Management, then I had Neuroscience and also Christian Ethics for my religion minor. I absolutely LOVED my Child and Family classes. I love the professors, the content, and the students in my class. Neuroscience? Not so much. That class was so incredibly frustrating. It was team taught so there were 4 professors, 1 of which was not a very nice man. Lastly, Christian ethics was a lot harder than I thought it was going to be. I have to admit, by the end of the semester, I had learned a lot and I loved going to the class and discussing Christian Ethics. However, I figured out that I like an answer to things. When I ask a question, I don't want to hear what Aquinas would say about it and then what Bonhoeffer would say about it; I want to know an answer. Anyways, looking back on the semester, it was a great one. It was hard and frustrating and I definitely had a meltdown or two, but we live and learn right?

As most of you know, my grandpa has been in the hospital for quite some time now. He fell and broke three ribs and then things kept piling up and getting worse. BUT, he's doing so much better now and God willing, he'll be home by Christmas Eve. During this time, I've seen a lot of things. I've seen how much a church family can support someone in their time of need. I've seen how God answers prayers. I've seen how a hospital staff can become a family to the patient. I've seen how my grandfather simply adores my grandmother. By this point, I think everyone in the hospital knows the story of how they met, fell in love and got married. Cutest thing ever.

Also over the past week I've seen people change. I've seen fear struck into American citizens and it makes me so so so sad. The shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary makes my heart heavy. I pray for the families that lost children and parents. I pray for the elected officials. I pray for the children that survived the shooting and lastly, I pray for our country. Even though I do realize how devastating this event was and how big of an impact it has had on us, I do not live in fear. I do not fear my fellow Americans. I do not fear crowded public places. And lastly, I do not fear our government. Hebrews 13:6 states. "So that we may boldly say, the Lord is my helper and I will not fear what man shall do unto me." My hope and trust is in Christ and no one else. 

Proven Wrong

Alright guys, I'm blogging for the first time in a month but don't get too excited. Seeing as I have a final in 2 hours, this blog is going to be quite short. However, there's just something I wanna say. 

I'm not proud of it, but I'm one of those people who doesn't like to be wrong. I'll admit that I'm wrong, but I don't like it. However, in this situation, I'm wrong and I couldn't be more happy about it. 

Whenever I'm stressed and upset about things, I tend for forget just how big God is. Call it lack of faith, but when things are looking no bueno and I don't have control over it, I get really frustrated. Over the past month or so, I kept getting discouraged with certain things. My grades aren't where I would like them to be, my grandpa has been in the hospital for over a month now, and some other things have happened that have been so nerve racking and frustrating. A little over 12 hours ago, I was panicking to the point of tears about my grades and finals, my grandpa was having a lot of problems in the hospital, and I was just tired of it. Now, I look back over the past 12 hours and I can see how God provides for and takes care of His children. I did way better than I could've ever imagined on my test, my grandpa has gotten WAY better and I'm proven wrong. I forget how big my God is. I forget how He can provide for us and how He can hold us in His arms and take care of things that we can't take care of. 

There's no possible way to have control over everything in our lives, so why not hand that control over to a God that can provide?

Frustrated

I'm super frustrated with people right now. Most people on my Facebook are frustrated because Obama just got reelected. That isn't what I'm frustrated about. I'm frustrated with people. I'm frustrated with hate. I figure I can rant on my blog and I can get away with it. Yall have a choice at whether you read it or not so I'm gonna type what I think.

1. This is America. Have pride in that, people! Do you understand how great our country is? It doesn't matter who is in office(unless it's a drastic, killing, tyrant of course), you need to stick with your country. Stay loyal to the United States of America. Just because you don't agree with who is in office, you threaten to leave to a different country. What good will that do? Will you prove a point by moving? No.

2. It is NEVER okay to wish death upon someone. I don't care if you hate Obama, it is awful, sick, and disgusting to wish that he gets assassinated. Not even just Obama, it's awful to wish that anyone gets assassinated. Personally, I think that is one of worst things someone can think about someone else. You should never wish death upon someone because of the political office they hold.

3. Have faith in Christ, not in our government. In my opinion, getting soooooo worked up about who is president shows lack of faith in our all powerful God. Christ will take care of us. Who are we to not agree with His plan? 

I saw this on Facebook and I really like it. Things like this stand out among all the arguing. "God has been the one to supply all our needs. He has given all of us the ability to work hard and to take care of our families, it is not up to the government to do that. So keep your eyes on Jesus, draw close to Him and be diligent about handling your finances correctly and God will watch over all our needs."

As Christians, we need to pray for whoever is in office, whether you want them there or not. Pray for them to have wisdom, discernment, and for Christ to guide them. Regardless of who is in office, don't stop praying.

Brothers

Today is my brother Joey's 26th birthday. It slightly freaks me out that he's 26 but then I remember that I'm 20 so that does actually add up. Joey has always been a great older brother. Sure, he picked on me when I was little, but it was the type of teasing that big brothers are supposed to do to their little sisters. In honor of his birthday, I decided to tell yall about some things that Joey told me over the years that I, being a naive little girl, believed because my older and wiser brother told me they were true. 

1. Joey convinced me when I was younger that I was adopted from the Cabbage Patch Kids. Maybe this is why I'm so interested in adoption now? Who knows. At the time, I could barely read. I had a birth certificate from one of my cabbage patch kid dolls. On the certificate, it had my name because I was the adoptive "parent." All I could really read was my name, "birth" and "Cabbage Patch Kids." I completely believed that I was adopted from the creepy Cabbage Patch Kids. He's lucky I turned out reasonably normal.

2. Joey also told me that whenever cows and horses were laying down on the ground, it meant they were going to die. Don't judge, but I believed this one WAY longer than I should have. He told me that since they were laying down, they wouldn't be able to get back up and therefore wouldn't be able to get to any food or water source. So if they were laying down, the end of their life was not far away. I vividly remember looking out the car window and seeing cows and horses in the fields laying down and being so sad for them! Those poor things were about to die!!!

Feel free to pay for my counseling whenever you would like.

3. I think out of everything Joey told me, this one was one of the most morbid ones. In Corpus, there is a statue of 2 people washing a car. I'm not sure what it's actually for, but it's been there as long as I can remember. One day while we were in Corpus, I decided to ask about it. Joey told me that two people had been washing their car in the parking lot and a plane flew over and dropped cement on them and they were trapped. Isn't that awful?! I seriously thought that there were actual humans trapped in that cement!

There are definitely more things that my loving brother told me over the years. There's probably still some things I believe because he told me. Maybe he was just trying to keep me young and naive as long as he could? While writing this, it makes me smile. It makes me happy to think that even though my brother is 6 years older than me, he still played with me and talked to me all the time. I'm sure I was annoying at times when I was younger so I probably deserved some of these stories, but they give me funny times to look back on. So happy 26th birthday Joey! I couldn't ask for a better brother.

Blessed

Everytime I go home for a few days, I realize just how blessed I really am. I've always appreciated the awesome things in my life, but it seems that when I'm home, everything is magnified. It's probably because now that I'm in Waco, I see how important these things really are to me. There are a few things I noticed this trip that I love with all my heart and some things I dislike. 

Things I love

1. My group of 2nd Mommies

I have a group of ladies that I absolutely adore. They are all Christ loving women that I love being around. This last trip home, I got to spend a lot of time around them and it made me so thankful for all them. Some of these ladies have known me literally all my life and a few of them I've gotten to know over the past few years. It's so comforting to know that I can call any of them and they'll be there for me to talk to. It's just so great to know that they're all back home praying for me and supporting me in all my endeavors. 

2. FBC Rockport's dedication to missions

This month, the church is focusing on mission work. Ever since I went to Honduras about a year and half ago, it's been brought to my attention how important mission trips are. I urge every Christian to do some time of mission work. Whether it's something local or something international; it's sooooo important. The Sunday I was home, we had a few people talk about their experience with missions and it's so encouraging to know that people in the church have a heart for sharing Christ with the world.  Going along with that, I'm officially going back to Honduras over Spring Break and I couldn't be more excited about it!!

3. Small town vibe

If you know me at all, you know I'm a small town girl at heart. I absolutely love it. While I was home, I ran into someone I knew literally every place I went and it made me SO happy. I know some people love big cities where they can blend in with everyone and do their own thing. Not me. I love seeing people that I know everywhere I go in town. 

Things I dislike

1. Humidity

Growing up, I never had a problem with the 200% humidity that Rockport experiences. My hair was never frizzy and it had no problem staying straight, I didn't think it was extra hot, and my skin was never oily. Now that I'm up here in the "dry" land, I can't handle humidity! I go home and my hair frizzes and won't stay straight, for the first day I'm there, I can't cool down, and my skin gets so oily. It's like 18 years is completely cancelled out by a year and a half. It's funny because people in Waco will mention how humid it is and I'm just like "ummmm no, you don't even know humid. This is stinkin dry." 

2. Baylor Defense

I guess I should say Baylor's lack of defense. Our football team is driving me crazy this season. I think it's mainly just because I was spoiled my freshman year with RG3 and his awesomeness so now that's what I'm used to. Our offense is pretty decent this year, but with no defense, it's killing us. Games we should be winning, we lose by a small margin. Plus all the scores of our games are crazy high basketball-like scores. If we had a defense at all, we would easily win. 

I think if the only things I can complain about are humidity and football, then I'm a pretty blessed person! 

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

God's grace never ceases to amaze me. After I stopped doing the internship, I was doubting whether or not I was actually called to family ministries. I thought that what I had in my head wasn't really family ministries and what I wanted to do in the church wasn't really an actual job. I feel like I'm called to work with the family unit, but especially with parents. So on Thursday, I met with a minister out at First Baptist Woodway (the church I've been going to in the Wack) for a paper I had to write for a class. After talking with the guy for about 30 seconds, I knew that I wanted his job. I guess not his job but I absolutely loved what he did and I didn't even know it was an actual position! His official title is Minister of Discipleship and Young Married Couples. He works with nearlyweds up to about 45 year olds. He arranges parenting classes, family retreats, financial management classes, etc. It's pretty much family ministries but working a lot with the parents, which is exactly what I wanna do!! It was just really encouraging to know that what I want to do is an actual job because I was starting to think it wasn't.

Complete change of subject. Before you start reading, there is a disclaimer. I don't talk about politics. I avoid the subject as much as possible. The following paragraph is neutral as to who I want to be the next president. That's not the issue on my heart lately.

Honestly, I'm tired of seeing political garbage on Facebook. But here's the thing, it's not the politics that I'm tired of seeing. It's the hateful, rude, and nasty conversations that I see between people on Facebook that really get to me. Think about it, do we really think that telling someone that their opinion is wrong and that they're an idiot is going to change their political views? Of course not. As Christians, we are called to a higher standard. We are supposed to represent the image of Christ in everything that we do. Our love is supposed to show Christ's love. Also, our identity should be in Christ; not for who we want to be our next president. Our hope should be in Jesus regardless of who our political leaders are. Yes, I understand standing up for what you believe in, but there's a line that we shouldn't cross. A line that nobody should cross  regardless of what their religious beliefs are. It all just comes down to having respect for the person you're talking to. There's absolutely no need to personally attack a person in a public place because of what they believe. That being said, if I offended you with this, please please please don't comment on my Facebook about it and make it a public ordeal. Message me, that's totally fine; I even encourage you too.

I also encourage you to read THIS article, I think it has some really good things to say.

Enough serious business.

I'LL BE HOME IN LESS THAN A WEEK!! I'm definitely ready for some time off of school. It's pretty nice to have a fall break, I'm not gonna lie. I'm not exactly sure what day I'll be home, but I'll at least have 3 days in Rockport which will be sooooo nice!

Lovin this song right now.

Direction

Remember that internship I mentioned a few posts back? Turns out it wasn't the place I needed to be at. For the past 4ish years, I was planning on going into Family Ministries after college. This awesome opportunity fell into my hands and I was so excited and just took it. The thing is, the internship wasn't right for me. Which I hate to say, because it was such a great opportunity and it was such a great program. I feel like I'm called to work with the family unit as a whole and specifically with parents. Don't get me wrong, I love working with kids. However, as a career, I feel called to work not just with children, but with the whole family.

That being said, I'm not positive about what I'm going to do after college other than go to seminary. I know I am called to work in Christian Ministry but I don't know what specific part of ministry. I don't know whether I'll work in a church setting or out in mission work. I don't know what I'm going to do. However, I'm not worried about it. Did you hear that, people!? I'm not worried about! It hit me last night that this is the first time in my life that I don't have an exact plan for something and I'm not completely freaked out by it! Now, I know what some of you are thinking. I know what some of yall are saying, "well that's lack of direction. She's in college and she has no clue what she's doing with her life? No bueno." Yall probably don't say no bueno though, huh? I don't think it's lack of direction, though. I think it's faith. I DO know what I'm doing with my life. I'm following Christ and I'm trusting that He'll guide me.

Does this mean that I'm just going to sit here stagnant all of college cause I know God's got this? Heck no. But I know that as I work in different ministries and feel each of them out, that I'm not alone in it. God will lead me to where I need to be in the long run anyways. I'm not worried about it and few things could make me more happy.