priorities

This subject has been on my mind a lot lately, and in everything I do I see that we need to get our priorities straight. What is most important in your life? Do you put those things/those people first? Do you spend too much time on Facebook? We are all to blame for this (yes me too) Sometimes at the end of the day I go over the events of the day and realize I wasn’t productive. I watch Netflix and fill my head with junk or spend too much time on Facebook being nosey. I think really… I spent the whole day I had off of work doing that. How sad? What I am trying to say is that I realize this, and I am working on being a better steward of my time.

                God also wants us to not be busy bodies as Christians.  He wants us to relax and enjoy our family and him and the time we get away from our places of work. In all that we do though God should be priority number one, whether you are single, married, have children, or whatever you do God should be first. You should show your children and or spouse that God is the head of the household. You should be that example to your children. Let them know that friends, sports and hobbies are good and fun but make time to come to church, spend time with God, have family time.  Make those things the important things in your life and in your home. I think we can all work on this and I do not think anyone has perfected it yet. We live in a busy world, but God should be our number one and we should train our kids (in my case the kids I minister to) in that way. Know that you can ask God to show you how you can prioritize a little better, and he will help. J  

little things life brings

Life has been really awesome lately.  Not because of anything big an amazing but because we have been enjoyng the little things. Enjoying our days relaxing and doing things we love. I crochet and he playes video games, I fold laundry and he plays video games (he did fold some too:) ) The point is God gave us tehis beautiful life, and yes things sure happen that bring us down, but that is what we have each other for. When life brings soemone down we pick them back up ( husband rocks at that) We make people laugh and make them realize life will go on. 
 I honestly have nothing in my life to complain about ( and my life is not perfect) I enjoy being a wife, doing housework, crocheting, reading, and loving my husband. Appreciating the little things is really one of the big keys to success. God gave us the little things to stop and enjoy and take a break form the big things that hurt and want to bring us down.
 Just a little random blurb about life and how amazingly great it has felt.

That's when I knew

I waited for so long and when you finally spoke to me...
It was like a concert when your favorite song starts to play and you get all pumped up and excited
When fall arrives and all the leaves change colors and start falling
The first snowfall
The first time you held my hand I felt like..
everything had changed

this was it
this was what I had waited for my whole life
You and me
That's when I knew..
That I loved you
That I would always love you
I wanted to be with you forever
That no matter what happens in our life Good or bad it's me and you forever with our love and God guiding us and leading us through this life.

I will follow

One of the Songs that we do for Worship on Sunday mornings is I will follow by Chris Tomlin. It is one of my favorite songs not only becasue it is fun but because of how meaningful it is. Every week in Kidz 4 Christ we always have new lessons and new verses and new things to learn but we generally always learn the same things. We always talk about worship and why we worship, and why we read the bible. Loving others and treating them the same way Christ would. I want the kids to follow Jesus in every single thing they do every day. These vital points tie into everything we do and talk about.
I teach kids every Sunday and Wednesday Gods word.  I don't teach  that we have to be perfect to follow Jesus. I certainly am not and I tell them that. When I am teaching them I tell them that even I and their parents struggle and have to ask God for help every single day. These are the things I want kids to learn is that theyCAN follow God. We need his help though and that they can ask him for that he will give it to them.
 This video I found is awesome and I think i will actually show it on Sunday morning. So take a look :)

God tube I will follow you - Chris Tomlin - Childrens Ministry - Ministry Videos

Enjoying seasons

As i was sitting outside this afternnon I was thinking about how wonderful each season in our life is. All four seasons bring something new and exciting to get us out of the everyday normal life. I also see that in the seasons in our life. Ecclesiastes 3:1-13 There is a time for everything. Verse 11 God has made everythign beautful for it's own time. When things are hard lovely things can come out of them. God has a plan for each thing that happens and each season of our life. Sometimes season are unpredictable. When it is supossed to be fall somettimes the weather stays in summer, and just like our life it is unpredictable but in the God's hands. :) We dont always understand but It will all be worth it. Let this song speak to your heart! :)

Do something new

I think i want to start crocheing..(how do you spell that anyway?) I am not sure that I am crafty enough for that, but you never know until you try. There will always be new things happening and changes in life, and sometimes that calls for us to do new things and make changes. I am not saying that I will actual crochet any time soon. I think that it is good in life to have things you want to do even though you may not ever do them anytime soon. Having those thoughts in our head to do something more, something new I actually kind of think is healthy in a way.
 Finding those things that you enjoy that you never thought you would is kind of fun. I realized that I enjoy painting (not amazing masterpieces) but things that are fun and unique. Although I now need more paint cuz i wore out that 5 colors that I had. If i make anything else it will all start to look the same. It is fun and thrilling to try to new things and decide that you actually really like them.
 Finding new ways to relax and feel free and like nothing else matters.  what makes you feel free..? What takes away the realization the world around us is crazy..(if its even possible to take that thought away for a bit) For me as silly as it may be I love the feeling of reading while cuddling on the couch with Josh while he is playing a video game, or cooking something new, and when i write.
 I think it is important yet exciting to find these things in your life. The things that make you feel carefree for that short amount of time.

His prized possession

As I am reading through the bible this morning, pondering on what this week and what this month will bring for the children's ministry at church I stumble upon a verse that seriously makes me step back read it again. James 1:18 He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation became his prized possession.  Whoa! Did you see that? We out of ALL creation became HIS prized possession. I absolutely love this! The whole first part of the chapter is about trusting in God, having joy and not letting your faith waver. When I get to verse 18 I realize why should we no trust or not be able to have joy. Just the fact that out of everything God created I am his prized possession makes me full of joy.
 This is of course not the only part of the bible that tells us this. Psalm 139 tells us that he knew everything about us before we were even created, and he knows our thoughts. Our God is so awesome! I don't care what you say I'm pretty sure there isn't anyone who loves us like he does.
 When these verses these truths become real to me I realize the things we make a big deal of in life are silly and small. God knows everything about us and yes we have bad days, but I am God's treasure and he loves me and holds me in his hands. We are God's prized possession! Think about that...Now how do you feel? :)

sacrifice and love

"Your love never fails it never gives up it never runs out on me"
 This line of a song is stuck in my head, and I love it! We all needed to be reminded so much of his love, and that it doesn't end. My continuing prayer for the past few days has been about selfishness. I didn't really think of myself as being selfish until i took a step back and examined things. God has called us to live a life of love and sacrifice. Sacrifice means we don't always get what we want and we are going to have to deal with it. I realized that although I can do with it I could be rather whiny and complain alot.
 You see I like going to bed at a decent time and not being out real late, and I enjoy being by my husbands side.  I guess I like doing things when I want on my terms as dumb as that sounds it has been true. I want to be an example as a woman of God, and I want to be able to lead by example. You see when I complain and act as if it's all about me that's not being an example.
  We attended an event with the youth group, and when i look back on the event i realized that i didn't get what i could have out of it because of my attitude. My husband said one thing that really made me think about my actions. He said it wasn't at all about us it was for the youth, and when we were that age there were youth leaders who I am sure didn't want to be out late or be in a van or probably many things they didn't want to do but they sacrificed for us.
 I realized my husband was so right, and he didn't say it but yeah i was selfish i tried to make this fun event about me and my life. I want to examine every part of my life and get all of the "it's all about me" mentality out.  I want to live my life as a sacrifice and with love and as an example to everyone around me young and old.
Thank you Jesus that your love never runs out or gives up on me when I choose to make things about me and not about you.  Thank you Lord for your never ending love. :)

choose to laugh at yourself

This morning started out as a normal Sunday morning getting ready for Kidz 4 Christ that is until my phone took a plunge in the toilet. So at that I just laughed and went on with things. I need a new phone anyway, so i laughed it off. It seemed to set off my morning in a funny way.  Church starts and almost everything I speak to the kids is all jumbled up. I couldn't seem to get my words in the right order. (Slightly funny) The best part though is when you don't even catch yourself until after you say it all, then you think oh Jeesh I mixed those two words up and that made no sense. I chose to laugh my way through those silly things this morning.
 In Kidz 4 Christ we have been and will be for the next few weeks talking about Jonah.  The book of Jonah has only four chapters and is a very well known story. You hear the word Jonah you immediately think man swallowed by whale. When we think of it more than a story we know and heard when we were five you can learn a lot  of the small book of Jonah.  I enjoy the fact that such a  common well known story is being disected and we are learning so much more than Joanh was disobedient and got eaten by a large fish. (whale)
All the things we read in the bible are so much more than stories they are about poeple just like you and me. When I was explaing things to the kids today I realized we may not get eaten by a fish but we have alot in common with Joanh. I love that as I am teaching the kids these life lessons from the bible they also become more real to me. "Choices" The subject of our lesson today in church. I told about my funny morning because I chose to not let the way things were going ruin what God wanted to do. Sometimes we need to laugh about it, and let it go and this morning was one of those times. We all  have choices everyday and I pray the same thing for me that I explained to the kids, that God will help me everyday to make the right choices in all that I do.

Dr. Phil

Last night Josh worked overtime so he didn't get home until 2 am. I had an awful time sleeping and i sure felt the effects today. After lunch i decided to stay home nap and rest."  In a world of talk only one person will listen and that is Dr. Phil" This is what I hear when I wake up. Instantly in my head I'm like no way you can't tell me that Dr.Phil (who is smart but i don't agree with alot) is the only person who listens to us, troubled people.  The way that they put it just troubled me. Yes i do believe he helps alot of people, but in no way shape or form is he the only one who listens.
My God not only listens but he never leaves me and he has the best advice that anyone could ever give.  I just want anyone who doesn't think there isn't anyone out there listening or cares that there is. His name is Jesus Christ and all you have to do is talk to him and ask him for his help and for his love to come into your life.  Jesus Christ can give you what Dr.Phil and ANYONE else can't give you.

free and flying

Friday Josh had off work and we had the opportunity to spend the day with some of his family in Holmes county. Oh what a beautiful place it is there. We ate homemade Amish pie and lots of cheese. Yummy! Saw lots of cows and goats and horses. The farm life was amazing and it is just cool to see.  So After a long fun day of exploring we went back to his Aunts Lake house. it is in the woods and so beautiful. there was so much wildlife and nature. They decided we should take a ride in the Miada and tour the place. Now for those of you who do not know a Miada is a car..I of course did not know this. it is a two seater but I got to sit on the back:) This car's top was down and the sun was shiny and it was a nice cool evening.
 We went down death hill ( sounds scary) which was a very steep hill. We are going down and put my arms out and I pretended like I  was flying. we all did this as kids I am sure and yes I still do things like this. it was so fun and freeing. I could not hear the conversation going on between the others in the car it was just me and my hair blowing in the wind as free as could be.
As i was having the time of my life i thought if only life could be as freeing as this. But really it is..you see if we block out all the things in our head sometimes and just spend time with God it is freeing. Just as i couldn't tell what the conversation was in the car with the others God wants us to do that in life. He wants us to make it so it is just us and him, and to feel free..the kind of freedom where we know without a doubt we can do anything. We can face any problem and take down any evil villain(fleas in our small apartment) I loved that feeling..the wind blowing, the nature and feeling like a child again. lets go back and be childlike and let God free us. :)

August

This month plays a significant role in our life. Last year at this time Josh was about to propose to me. So crazy that a year has gone by and now we are married. So many things have happend in the past year. So many things that we can thank God for. In the past year we have both had steady jobs that were able to pay for our wedding and  are able to pay for bills. We are married and live a good life. Next August we will look back and think again on all the changes and how far we have come.
 Everyday is a new day.  A new day to change and to look at all the changes around you and how far we have come. No matter how hard life is I will thank God for where we are and where he is taking us. August is a significant month not only because we got engaged, but Josh got his first gift from me. He got a new pair of shoes for his birthday. Last year we sat in this same apartment as he opened that gift, and now sitting in here in this office that used to be a spare bedroom and thinking of Josh spending his upcoming birthday at whirlpool, I thank God for his Job and for how far we have come. The Lord truly has blessed me with a wonderful husband, and he has blessed us with love.

moving forward

There is a time in life to move forward in every aspect.  This is just what me and Josh are doing starting this week. Now yes, it does sound easier than it will be. We have some things to get done in our life. After four months of marriage we still have not gone to the social security office and gotten all the official stuff done, nor have I gotten my license. there are many more things but these are the biggest. With work schedules and our lack of time it in all reality will be hard to move forward. Being still kinda newlyweds we are still figuring alot of things out. Moving forward and gettign things done is a decision we have made. I mean hey it has to be done sometime.
Moving forward in all aspects of life also goes for our spiritual life. I find myself being way more emotional than usual. Not just about normal things but about God things. I know God has a plan and he is working and doing things that we don't see. To think of that amazes me and brings me to tears. Moving forward with God one day at a time is exciting. Like I tell the kids every Sunday it's not easy..We have to wake up and ask God for the strength and the Joy.  I say that to the kids knowing that I have to say that alot.
Moving forward doesnt mean that we zip right through it, but that we will wait. we will move in babysteps and God will give us strength. Weither it is getting my license as a 22 year old or trusting in him with finances. Everyday God will see us and he walk beside us. Jesus moves forward with us everyday:)

getting rid of fleas

We have yes been dealing with a flea problem. Never had to try and take care of it myslef. By that I mean my own house and not being in my paretns house where they take care of all that stuff. yesterday we had a fun day of cleaning and bathing Zoe. (dog) Today we  decided to have fun family time at parents house while we bombed the house to get rid of the fleas. See we had to cover everything up, and leave for a few hours. We came back to open windows and air out the hosue and to uncover everything. After all of this I am seriously hoping that we are rid of fleas.
 You see as i think about today and the events that have taken place lately I realized that we need God to de flea us..haha Ok so we do not have fleas, but we have things in our life that we need to get out. There comes a time when we have to get fed up with it and let God take care of it. This could be a long process.  So this morning in church I ask God to please take all the things from my heart that i don't want there. I have slowly throughout the day been feeling the windows of my heart open up and God push his love and all of his qualities that I want, inside me. 
  Maybe you don't see the comparisson of fleas and me, but as I was getting more fed up with the fleas I realized this morning that i was getting so fed up with me. The feelings I was having and just not being christlike at all..I can't live in my house and relax with fleas and God can not live in me and do what he needs to do with ugly things in my heart.

traveling pants, getting older, and living a life that counts

Well the title of the blog is yes rather strange but a mixture of a few things that are just jumbled in my mind. My favorite book series is and always will be Sisterhood of the traveling pants. The author has just finsihed the fifth book and it is now 10 years later. The characters are now reaching the age of 30, and are still discovering who they are and their purpose.  they are lost i must say..they have no Jesus.  They are running, searching, crying out, and asking all the wrong people. (trying nto to give it all away)
   Life indeed is harder and I am realizing everyday it gets a little harder. I don't understand most things in life, but yet i have this joy and peace everyday. Somedays it doesnt come as easy..Jesus makes my life worthwhile, and although i find myself sometimes just wandering in circles I find hope in my Jesus.
   truth is, without God we run and search and scream for answers..and really i still do that but the differnece is my God he pulls me back in.  He wraps me in his love and lets me cry and even scream if i want..it is so reasuring and amazing that he has a plan for our lives.  All we have to do is live a life for him and trust in him.  Simple..wake up in the morning give your day to him and claim that your day is gonna rock!
  Like this book series my life has progressed and I have grown up. (I still have a way to go..) I started these books at the age of 15 and now being 22 I still love them and each of them takes me back. This last book is about change, change, and more change..my life is about change but my God is about staying forever and EVER!!

Blessings of marriage

 God is doing new things in our lives everyday. The blessings of marriage get better everyday.  It is still so hard to beleive that i have married the man of my dreams, and it has been 3 months. We have new adventures everyday it seems with things that you don't think about before marriage. I cook way more than i ever had before, I constantly make sure the door is locked, i enjoy cleaning and making my house look nice, and i enjoy doing anything for him. I love packing his lunch, making breakfast(does not happen much anymore) making our meals even if i only use the microwave..haha. Just thinking about how blessed I am makes me tear up.
Only 3 months and it seems like longer..There is still so much i know we will go through, but as long as we put God first i know we will be good :) God has a plan and as a line from a song says " you hold the universe You hold everyoen on earth" He does he holds us all, in our troubles and our fears, and in our best days. I am so excited for our future and everything God has for our lives.  Right now though i will not miss all the fun little things in our life. I love everything we have right now and everything we do from watchin tv shows on netflix  to taking a day trip out of town. Everything is fun when it is together, and we always keep this love that we have.

The funny thing about life

The funny thing about life is that we will never ever understand it. We will never really understand why we do the things we do or why we feel the way we feel. We go through changes and hard times, and always they are so hard to get through. We leave things behind and pick new things up along the way. people leave us behind and we have to find a new way.
the funny thing about life is that I will never understand it. No matter how hard i try..it will not be understood. Getting through the changes and the hard times is what comes next. Fighting every obstacle and taking every giant leap of oppurtunity. Enjoying every little thing, and smiling when life comes at you fast.
the funny thing about life is the thoughts that fill our head are usually never true, and the true ones we don't listen to. We find our true friends and we keep them..close No matter what we have in life we always need friends. Live life and have fun..young or old. Do the things you wouldn't have thought of be the person you have always wanted to be.
The funny thing about life is that we may never understand it, but fighting those obstacles and taking giant leaps that have never been taken is just we need. I smile when life throws a fast one and try to enjoy the little things with those close to me. these are the things that distract us from the reality that we don't understand life.
The funny thing about life is when i have you and we enjoy the little things when we are young and when we get old I will always be able to be who I have always wanted to be, and remember that life makes more sense with you. :)

a cough a sneeze a halleluigh

Well with the box of tissues near and the headache coming on there seems to be a few things that could bring me down. who gets a cold on the summertime anyway? I certainly never have until now..so way to go! Played with chalk today in the summer sun (with Saijyn)..while sneezing. But I have already told myself this will not get in the way of what this day or weekend may bring. I got all prettied up (not for any particular reason, but because i can) and put on some music to pump me up and make me want to take on the world. Maybe i will dance around the house a bit and let loose..Why not? Who says you can't have a little fun when no one is around..:)
I will act like there is no snot running down my nose..i wil actl like my throat is not itchy and scratchy and i will have JOY! :) haha it's fun that i can thank Jesus for even these things of snot and headaches. ACHOO!

planning for the unplanned

As we all know things in life don't always go as planned. Actually they hardly ever go as we had planned. Sometimes in a bad way and sometimes in a good way. God always has a plan and it is always better than ours.
These past few days a few things have happend that just were not planned. House sitting and locking myself out of that house...(not fun) pets being crazy, and kids (i don't have kids just work with them..hehe)..:) Tonight in class we had a scavenger hunt. To start off i must tell you that i had 4-12 year olds in my class.  (pretty big age diferences) We had chalk and jumpropes and music and fruit. Fruit is my favorite summer snack. :) It was so much fun and really it was unplanned. God knew what he was doing because normally I can't say that having a class this big on a wednesday night is always fun.
Classs was fun- A+
 Emergency happend with my sister in laws mom, and i ended up keeping my oh so sweet nephew for the night. Again not planned but you see God had a plan. Church was fun and stress free which helped me to come home and have fun with saijyn. (He is soo sweet and cute and amazing)
Fun and no stress-A+
God is so awesome and the way he works is crazy. When we have plans and they change it's ok because i know my God has a better plan.  Life is full of surprises and i guess that's what puts the fun in it.

teachable moments

My Wednesday night preschool class was very interesting and exciting last night. We had thunderstorms and tornado warnings, and we were playing with play dough..:) As we were creating animals and food with our dough we hear big thunder and the power goes out...are we scared? I think not! we use this as an oppurtunity to teach the bible to these little ones. I get super excited and ask them if they know the story in the bible about the big storm and the disciples being in the middle of the sea. They get interested and say no. So i tell this story of how there is this crazy storm and the disciples are freaking out, and they wake up Jesus...Nobody likes to get waken up when they are sleeping. I then explained Jesus calmed the storm and we have no worries when storms come because Jesus will calm those too. It was a fun bible story that went right along with what was happening at that moment. I acted it out and had fun while they played with their play dough.
 It was quite enjoyable and i hope to have more of those moments :)
Lets have fun in every moment and remember that the Lord is in control, and lets teach our little ones that as well.