thanksgiving

I suppose it's appropriate to blog about the things I am thankful for on such a day as this.

When I think, "What am I thankful to God for?" some obvious things pop in my mind that are very important to me:

1. My mommy, Ruth Ann, the best mommy in the whole world. I have been so thankful to hug her whenever I want for the past day, and I look forward to spending more days with her over this break and hearing about her trip to Israel. Besides being thankful for her awesome qualities as a mom and friend, I am also thankful for her good cooking during this holiday season. :) I love you, mommy!!

2. My entire family, being awesome and sweet and funny and encouraging, etc. They are the bomb.com, and I am thankful to see the ones that are in town now, looking forward to seeing the ones that aren't here, soon. I thank God that He gave me such funny relatives. hehe

3. My beautiful roommates, Mary and Annie. Not only are they my roommates, but they are my best friends and accountability partners. I cannot express with my words how thankful I am that God has allowed me to have such incredible friendships with these amazing women, and I look forward to how He continues to grow our friendships. Thank you, my beautiful friends, for being so wonderful and encouraging all the time. I love you both.

4. My sweet friends from home, Kristy, Jess, Sara, Skylar, etc. I am so glad to have such a strong support system here in Monroe that has helped me to grow in my relationship with Christ. I am thankful that the Lord has put these women in my life to show Himself to me. Love you, chicas!

5. Jordy and our Freshman Family Group. mmm... it's good. Thank you, Lord, for teaching us.

6. W. you know. :)

7. Home. One of my favorite places on earth to be is here in my home in Monroe, sleeping with my mommy at night, and smelling the homey smells. Thank you, Lord, for a home You have provided for me to come back to.

There are also some "smaller" things that happen every day I am thankful for:

1. That the Lord is guiding me to a church in Baton Rouge. :)

2. The 6 darling children I pick up from school 5 days a week.

3. Almost an A in Spanish.

4. Homemade cinnamon rolls.

5. Seeing the stars tonight and last night.

6. The beautiful weather.

7. The heater my mom just turned on to thaw out my ice-cube-like feet. hehe

I know that being thankful for things doesn't need to just happen one day of the year. But I am thankful that there is a special day when I can get with my family and talk about the things I am thankful for. Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.

But above all, I am most thankful that Jesus has made a way for me to know God. And I am forever grateful for His unending love and mercy, even though I do not deserve it. Thank you, powerful, almighty God, for Your grace. I want to walk in a manner worthy; live for You.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Hello, fall. So nice to see you again.

I'm 100% sure that autumn is my favorite season of the year. Something about the colors. Something about the sky. Something about the crisp, cool air. Something about scarves and hot chocolate. mmm... And although fall has arrived a little later than I expected, it has not failed me in the least. The colors, sky, air, etc. have brought joy to me every day; just another one of God's ways of showing me His glory.

Though fall is wonderful, and I praise the Lord for showing me His beauty, I can't help but think that fall means end-of-the-year. REALLY?! End-of-the-year already!? I feel like this semester has flown by. God has made many changes in my life and in my heart over the course of these past 3-ish months. Through reading and discussion with my friends (some of His solid disciples), He has taught/is teaching me to treasure His Word. To write it on my heart. To obey it, and to live it. His Word says, 

"How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to Your Word. With my whole heart I seek You; let me not wander from Your commandments! I have stored up Your Word in my heart, that I might not sin against You." 

-Psalm 119: 9-11

"The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple; the precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes; the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the Lord are true, and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward." 

-Psalm 19:7-11

"If you abide in My Word, you are truly My disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free... Truly, Truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My Word, he will never see death." 

-John 8: 31-32, 51

"If you abide in Me and My Words abide in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you... If you keep My commandments you will abide in My love as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love." 

-John 15:7, 10

"sanctify them in the truth; Your Word is truth." 

-John 17:17

"Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And in whatever you do, whether in word or in deed, do it all the the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him." 

-Colossians 3:16-17

"All scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work."

 -2 Timothy 3:16-17

And I know He says a lot more about keeping His Word. So that's what I am working on. And through it, I am changing. I desire to know Him more. Which has compelled me to love His Word and His people more than I have before. And in a different way. I am humbled as He changes my heart. 

On a lighter note, you see this girl in the picture below? Her name is Avery Michael Canevari. She's 12 years old, in the 7th grade and the University Lab School, and tomorrow I am taking her and 2 of her friends to the mall. I cannot even begin to describe the potential she has for the Lord. She's amazing. And, it "just so happens" that I came to know Christ when I was 13 while experiencing some of the exact same life-situations that she is facing right now. I spend 5/7 days of the week with her, and I love her more than I can say with words. I am praying for her, and will keep you faithful blog-readers updated on how the Holy Spirit works in her life. I thank God that I get to be a part of this. I pray that He would use me however He wishes. Fully, not just halfway. 

One more thing I cannot forget to mention: I have the best mom in the world! She is currently on her way back from Israel, and I cannot wait to see her/hug her/hear her voice and her stories. Also, I go to OXFORD next weekend to see my long-lost Peru teammates! mmmm.. :) mmmmmmmm. 

ok, chau for now!

best job ever

It's official. The Lord has given me the opportunity to keep the cutest kids in all of Baton Rouge as a JOB. And I am so thankful/blessed. So basically I pick up 6 children (from 3 different families) after school at U-high, and I bring them home Monday through Thursday. We do homework, eat snacks (healthy), and play until 6. They call me "Reboosh" for some unknown reason, and they bless my heart SO much. Here's a sample of what I get to look at every day:

This is Nick Canevari. He is in the fourth grade, and he CRACKS me up. A very smart young fellow that has dreams of playing MLB, just like his father. SUCH a cutie. (ps- that is gogurt on his mouth. probably his 2nd or 3rd that day: he is a bottomless pit!)

This is Avery Canevari. She is the oldest of the kids I keep, just starting her 7th grade year. Avery LOVES her dog. His name is Roscoe (an LSU name, for you Tiger fans), and he is HUGE. The kids normally call him "muttly" -- I don't know why -- and Avery loves him WAY more than her little brother. haha. She also has her first junior high school dance tonight, and she is so excited to wear her cute new dress! :) I am sure I will hear stories on Monday.

This is Taylor Bush. Cute, sweet little Taylor. She is undefinable. Although only 7 years old, she has more personality than all six of the kiddos combined. She literally goes 90 to nothing 24/7. And I love her SO SO SO much. Her voice is loud, she is bossy, attention is what she craves (she even fake cries sometimes to get it), but there is something about her little spirit that just stole my heart the first day I met her. This is us taking silly pictures. hehe- she's good at it.

Week one of best-job-ever was incredible, and I am looking forward to spending more time with these adorable children. (I will post more pictures of the rest of them: Maddy, Hannah Grace, and Jacob). But I want to leave you with a story:

Friday I was not supposed to work, but the parents really needed me, and I had nothing better to do. So I picked them up. It was a CRAZY afternoon: all the freshman had just moved in the dorms, traffic was TERRIBLE, it was raining, rush was happening, and we were on the verge of running out of gas while sitting in traffic for 30 minutes ON campus. When we finally got home, after an escapade of yelling in the car between the kids, I was in a frenzy. ps, Friday = no homework. So the craziness was even more than "normal." ha. After Maddy and Hannah Grace went home and the boys went to watch TV in the bedroom, I was playing with Taylor and Avery. We were taking pics (as shown above). I was flipping through some of the pictures on my camera, and I ran across the Haiti pics. The girls were like, "Who are all those cute black kids? Where are you? What is all of that? Where are their clothes?" So I was able to share with them that I went to Haiti and the tremendous need there is in that country. The girls were so shocked. They started saying comments like, "Why don't they have food? Why don't they have toys? We have SO MUCH STUFF here. We are so rich compared to them. And they don't have anything." After looking at every Haiti pic on my camera, they were sure that they needed to do something to help Haiti. Taylor and Avery, a 7 and 12 year old, had compassion on these kids like Michelda, Dioshalmet, Fed, Gina, Weeden, and Vivi and THEY WANT TO GO TO HAITI! Wow- I still don't have words. I was then able to share with them that while they do have so many physical needs, ultimately they need Jesus, just like we do. I told them that He is the ultimate provider and satisfaction. They just thought that was SO cool. I am looking forward to more conversations like this throughout the semester. mmm....

“Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.” Then he took the children in his arms and placed his hands on their heads and blessed them.

- Mark 10: 14a-16

Life = ministry. I am working on this. And I am excited about the ministry opportunities the Lord is putting in my life. :) This is going to be good.

I would also like to add that I have the BEST, most BEAUTIFUL roommates ever that are going to hate me for posting this pic. :) I love these women, and I am excited to live with them. We are really focusing right now on Romans 12, "OUTDOING each other in showing honor to one another," and "always being eager to practice hospitality." And all the rest that goes along with Paul's writing there. I love these women. The Lord is truly blessing me.