Short & Sweet

I'm a little busy with finals right now, hence there being no updates for the past week. Sorry! A few things to share...

• God is pretty dang good!
• I got bangs. They're not half bad. They're growing on me (this can be meant two ways...and both apply).
• I'm so ready for July 30th!! This is the day after the bulk of my work is due. Come on..hurry up!
• I need to manage my time better and stop procrastinating. Seriously gonna work on that...later. :)
• I love you! If you are reading this I want you to know how much I appreciate you being in my life. I'm blessed to have such awesome family and friends. I'm not sure I could make life work without you! Maybe I could, but it wouldn't be neeaaarrr as much fun!

XOXO

Stephanie

Bangs

I want to get bangs! I'm very boring with my hairstyles and really want to spice it up! What do ya think...would this look good on me?? Comments welcome...please.

Break My Heart

Heal my heart and make it clean 


Open up my eyes to the things unseen


Show me how to love like you have loved me



Break my heart for what breaks yours


Everything I am for your kingdoms cause


As I go from earth into eternity

What awesome words!?! These lines alone make Hosanna by Hillsong my favorite contemporary Christian song. They definitely capture the very cry of my heart. These few lines encompass what living a life fully devoted to following Christ is about. Most importantly, it first addresses that we can be of no spiritual benefit to others if we are a complete mess ourselves. It is important as Christians to remain diligent in our walk in order fulfill His ultimate mission and be a blessing to others. The third line sounds so easy, especially as a woman, but to love like God loves is an arduous undertaking for anyone. To love others like He has loved me requires a great deal of patience, understanding and graciousness; far more than I am capable of having. Isn’t it great that we don’t have try with our own might to be these things, though? We just have to be a willing vessel and allow God to make the changes. This is a difficult pill to swallow for me. I often forget that is not by my own doing that anything good comes from me, but by His choosing to act in my life. Romans 7 may be confusing, but it illustrates this perfectly.

The next line is what brings me to tears every time I sing this song in church. “Break my heart for what breaks Yours.” Wow. I would love to say these words touch me because I am so deeply broken for the lost, but unfortunately it is because I am so often not. I WANT those words to be true in my life. I want the idea of hell to become a reality to me instead of a fictional place. Why is it that I can imagine good but not bad, heaven but no hell? I know God is a just God. I KNOW hell exists in my head…just not in my heart. To think of the people I love experience eternity apart from God should create in me a desire for nothing else but to see them come to Christ. I generally think of myself as an empathetic person, but I wish these words were truer for me. I PRAY these words become truer for me. It could make a difference between life and death.

Lord, break my heart for what breaks yours!

My Prayer

My soul is consumed with longing for You. For Your direction & will; Your guidance & strength. Your word says,

“Whether you turn to right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it.’” Isaiah 30:21

Make this real in my life. Silence the distractions of my human mind and overwhelm me with the assurance that I am following after You. Remove fear from my life because I know fear does not come from You. For You are love and perfect love casts out all fear. For where there is love there is trust and where there is trust there is obedience. This is my cry: that I would be confident in Your love and so in tune with Your spirit that I may follow, without question, Your good and perfect will.

Celebrating our Independence

I spent my 4th of July holiday at my grandparents in Small Town, USA...or should I say Hickville, Alabama. I kid you not, the town's festivities included riding lawn mower races!! Talk about people watching! Airport "people watching" is a thing of the past. Just find a small town's street party, wait for "Sweet Home Alabama" to play, and watch the crazy girls cut loose! Oh, it was an eye full! In all seriousness, though, we had so much fun! It was a weekend filled with family, games, bicycling, red lipstick, red shoes, and, of course, lots and lots of eating. I love our family meals! They always include homemade pickles, both sweet green and red hot flavored, and black olives...my favorite! Yeah, yeah, say what you want...they're delish! My Papaw is a great gardner, so we always have the best fruit & vegetables and, of course, homemade ice cream always tops off the meal nicely. We have a pastor in the family, so we even get to have church on the back porch (in our pajamas). Family gatherings are the best! I have included a few pictures to document our fun times!

Playing Rook. A family tradition.

My aunt and I lost miserably, if I remember correctly.

My grandparents house.

We have a big family!

My Papaw's garden.

The bench my Papaw made.

The classy lawn mower race.

My mode of transportation for the weekend.

I look frustrated because my mom wouldn't stop taking

pictures...typical mother behavior I guess.

We cousins all wore red shoes...so we just had to take a picture!

I hope your 4th was as enjoyable and relaxing as mine!

If I Could Write a Letter to Me

I love following other people’s blogs, as well as randomly searching blogs hoping to find something insightful and inspiring. I ran across such a blog the other day. In this particular blog, the writer wrote letters to herself at various significant ages. How many times do we wish we could go back in time and do things differently, knowing what we know now. I know I do. The particular age to which I wish I could return is 14. So…in the words of Brad Paisley, “If I could write a letter to me:”

Dear Stephanie,

The day is January 15, 2000 and you will soon become what you have dreamed of for the past two years: John Doe’s girlfriend. As soon as you moved to town, you singled him out as your “crush”. Even though you knew you couldn’t date until you were 15, it didn’t stop you from hanging out with him at every opportunity. Well, the time is near. He will ask you out and your mom will approve (what the heck, Mom!). Say NO! Don’t do it. You will avoid a prom that wasn’t fun, a first kiss that was laughable…literally, and an “I love you” that meant absolutely nothing. Dodge that bullet and remember that you don’t need a boy’s attention and approval to validate who you are! Remember what your mom always says, “Remember who and Whose you are!” In fact, just don’t date until you go to college. This will save you a lot of unnecessary heartbreak and baggage. And while we’re on that subject, when your mom gives you the book I Kissed Dating Goodbye AND makes you suffer through an entire conference with Joshua Harris, LISTEN. You don’t have to agree and abide by everything the book says, but value the knowledge and advice of others. Most importantly, just because your mom did something, doesn’t make it okay for you. I know she’s a great mom (and still is) and seems to have it all together, but she’s trying to protect you from heartache and regret. Listen to her and heed her advice. That makes me realize I can sum up this letter in three words:

“Mind your mother!”

Love,

Me