God is still enthroned

“The Lord sits enthroned over the flood; the Lord sits enthroned as king forever. May the Lord give strength to his people! May the Lord bless his people with peace!”
Psalm 29:10-11

"When the sea rages violently on and the mountains tremble, God is still enthroned. When the tears fall like rain and the grief seems to suffocate, God is still enthroned. And when the regret of what has been and the anxiety of the not yet keeps you awake at night, God is still enthroned." ~ Emily Chapman

What more is there to say? Though at times I'm confused and I don't know which way to go, God is still on the throne. God is in control. The devil will do his best to make me think I have to be in control. But God is still enthroned! Even when I come to a crossroad and I don't know which direction to go. God is enthroned! Even when all my plans fall apart and I can't tell which end is up anymore. God is enthroned! Even when I feel like I'm fumbling around in the dark and I'm afraid to make a move. God is enthroned! Even when I don't know what to do. Even while I sit and wait for an answer, even when it seems like that answer will never come. God is still on the throne, God is in control! What do I have to fear? How great is our God!

Waiting

I've mentioned before how songs are one of the ways that I am ministered to. There's just something about music and words blending together that speaks to my heart. Lately I have had a certain song stuck in my mind and every time I hear it it brings tears to my eyes.
I watched the movie Fireproof the other day, very good movie by the way, but in the movie there was a song that they played called While I'm Waiting by John Waller. The words just touched my heart. Waiting is one of the hardest things for me to do. I'm not the most patient person in the world. I may not plan weekend activities but I'm very good at planning out my future. And when I hit a snag, it throws me off. "What do I do now? What's my next step? If only I knew something. If only I could know the next step, I'm not asking for much, I'm just asking what to do next" These are some things that run through my mind. I can't wait! I can't just sit and do nothing. That's were my first mistake comes in. Just because I'm in a waiting period doesn't mean I have to sit and do nothing. "I will serve You while I'm waiting. I will worship while I'm waiting. While I'm waiting I will not faint. I'll be running the race even while I wait." So many times, when I find myself waiting once again for an answer, I also find myself on the verge of giving up. "Maybe God's not going to answer. Maybe I should just go ahead and make a move. Maybe..."
"I'm waiting on You, Lord, though it is painful but patiently I will wait...I'm waiting on You, Lord, though it's not easy, but faithfully I will wait." It's not easy to wait, and yes sometimes it can be down right painful, but we must choose to be faithful to God and continue to wait. And while we are waiting we can continue to run the race by serving and worshiping God.
I'm waiting on You, Lord!

You Wouldn't Cry

I heard a new song today by Mandisa called "You Wouldn't Cry." It's a beautiful song and it has an awesome story behind it. I posted the video clip, it's kind of long but very good. The words reminded me of when my grandmother died. And as much as I miss her there is no way I could ever wish for her to be returned. You see she is in a much better place and I'm sure if she could she would say, "If you could see me and see the place that I am in, you wouldn't cry." It is truly an amazing song. Hope you enjoy it.

You Wouldnt Cry (Andrew’s Song) - Mandisa

Red Skelton Wisdom

Lately I've been on this kick of watching old television shows, I Love Lucy, Bewitched, Sanford & Son, I Dream of Genie, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, The Red Skelton Show, etc. The Red Skelton Show and I Love Lucy tie for first.
Red Skelton always ended his shows with "Good night and God bless." I was curious so I looked up his biography and found a few quotes of his that astounded me. One I had heard before, his explanation of the Pledge of Allegiance. The other was about his character Freddy the Freeloader.

"I get asked all the time; Where did you get the idea for Freddie the Freeloader, and who is Freddie really?

Well, I guess you might say that Freddie the Freeloader is a little bit of you, and a little bit of me, a little bit of all of us, you know.
He’s found out what love means. He knows the value of time. He knows that time is a glutton. We say we don’t have time to do this or do that. There’s plenty of time. The trick is to apply it. The greatest disease in the world today is procrastination.

And Freddie knows about all these things. And so do you.
He doesn’t ask anybody to provide for him, because it would be taken away from you. He doesn’t ask for equal rights if it’s going to give up some of yours.
And he knows one thing ... that patriotism is more powerful than guns.

He’s nice to everybody because he was taught that man is made in God’s image. He’s never met God in person and the next fella just might be him.

I would say that Freddie is a little bit of all of us."

I think the world would be a much better place if we all had that outlook on life. It reminded me of Matt. 25:34-40

Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

Here's him reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.


Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did!

Chasing Lions and Setting Fires

I absolutely love this song called "I want to Set the World on Fire by Britt Nichole! My dad and I were talking the other day about how it is so easy to talk the the talk, but when it comes to actually walking the walk you end up backing down. I am so tired of talking. I am so ready to actually do something for the Lord. I want to get out there and "set the world on fire" and watch it burn bright for the Lord. I want to be used.
I am so nervous about this summer, I really don't know what to expect and I have never been away from home for two months without being able to come home for a visit at least once or twice. But I cannot let fear be the only reason for me not to go. I have been reading this amazing book called In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day by Mark Batterson. It talks about facing your fears and how that your most memorable times are your scariest times. He even says at one point that "when we don't have the guts to step out in faith and chase lions, then God is robbed of the glory that rightfully belongs to Him." I feel this is what God wants me to do right now, and honestly, as scared as I am, I am so ready. I feel so restless right now, I'm just ready to get out there and go. But if I were to not go because I was afraid, then I would be missing out on the opportunity of a lifetime. Life is an adventure, it would be so boring if we knew everything that was going to happen. I want to live a life that is worth telling about. I love to tell stories and make people laugh, but if I don't take chances and overcome my fears, what do I have to tell about? The time I ran away from an opportunity because I was afraid? Yeah, I can hear that one years down the road. "Oh, I remember this time that I almost ran into this very scary situation, but I was able to avoid. Man was that a close call!" No! I want a life that is full of adventure and stories of times that I was afraid but God helped me overcome that fear. I want to set the world of fire! But first I must be set on fire and I feel that I am. I can't wait to do something! I'm not sure what that "something" is yet, but I know I can't wait to do it. I may be scared but our "greatest moments double as our scariest moments". The name of the book comes from a verse in 2 Samuel.

2 Samuel 20:20 "Benaiah son of Jehoiada was a a valiant fighter from Kabzeel, who performed great exploits. He struck down two of Maob's best men. He also went down into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion."

Benaiah later became a bodyguard for Kind David, and eventually the Commander in Chief of the army. This is one of the things he is known for, chasing a lion into a pit on a snowy day and killing it. If Benaiah would have ran from that lion, we may never have heard of him. But he faced a fear. Our lions, are our fears. I am tired of being afraid. One of my biggest fears, is the fear of looking foolish. But, as Mark Batterson puts it, "faith is the willingness to look foolish", foolish in the eyes of the world. Look at many of our Bible heroes. Noah, Joshua, David, and many more. Noah built an ark for 120 years with no sign of a flood, he was made fun of, but he was willing to look foolish in the eyes of the world. Joshua and the children of Israel marched around Jericho for a week and then blew trumpets and screamed. How foolish do you think they looked? I can just imagine the guards on the walls laughing, saying, "What do you think your doing? There is no way your going to bring these walls down! You fools, just give up and go home." Or what about David, Goliath laughed at him. He said, "What do you think I am, a dog that you come at me with a stick." But look who won that fight. And Benaiah? I'm sure when he told that story people said, "What were you thinking? You're supposed to run away from lions, not chase them." But look where that got him, it landed him a job working in the palace. Who woulda thunk? "The greatest breakthroughs, miracles, and turning points in Scripture can be traced back to someone who was willing to look foolish." I want to be used by God and I don't want fear to hinder that. I have dreams, goals and ambitions, but they can go no where without the help of God. I want to set the world on fire for God, but I can't do that if I am afraid. I want to be a lion chaser, I want to chase my fears instead of running from them. It's not that I will never be afraid, I will probably always be afraid of something, I've just decided that I will not let that fear stop me from doing God's will. I want to chase lions and set fires! Now that's what I call adventure.

An Amazing God

Well, it's been a while since I lasted posted anything. Some exciting things have happened recently, and of course, I will probably end up giving you the long version; I hope you don't mind.
Where should I start?
As some of you may know, I am planning on going to Indiana this summer for an internship position working on a campaign. I will be leaving the middle of May. I'm excited and nervous at the same time, but like I told my dad, fear cannot be the only reason for me not to go. I'm really more excited than I am afraid, I just don't know what to expect when I get there. But, then again, that's the fun part, not knowing. It's an adventure. Things would be pretty boring if you always knew what to expect, right? Anyways, an intern position is not a paid position and usually you have to provide your own housing and meals, but this position will be providing my room and board, all I need is some spending money. I have been working at H & R Block two days a week since February. That's kind of a funny story too.
God is so good to me! After Christmas, I was once again without a job, the job I had before Christmas was just seasonal. A week or so after New Years I told my mom that I thought I might take a few days to look for a job, my only concern was I wasn't sure anyone would be willing to hire me if they knew I would be leaving in May. Well, I never ended up having to go looking for a job, the job came to me. The following Sunday, my pastor's daughter approached me and asked if I would be interested in a job working at H & R Block. It would only be seasonal, since they just needed people for the tax season. Is that an answer to prayer or what!?! So now I'm working at H & R Block two days a week. But the closer it got to May the more I began to worry. Not only did I need money to take with me this summer, but I also needed to have money to buy the things I would need for this summer. Then I had a few unexpected expenses thrown in as well. I started to feel a little stressed about it, then I thought well, worst case scenario I'll see if I can borrow the money, but of course that wasn't ideal either. I had thought about applying part time at the Centre Cafe where my mom worked, but I wasn't sure if they would want to hire me with me leaving in a few months. So I didn't pursue it. Well, a few weeks ago my mom's boss approached me and asked if I would be interested in working at the Cafe a few days a week. Of course, I said, "Yes." So we set up an interview for last Wednesday, and Friday I was officially hired. I start tomorrow. They didn't mind that I was leaving in May as long as I promised to come back to work for them when I returned. Which means, that I have a job lined up for the school year already. Isn't God amazing!?! So I was getting stressed out about nothing. Isn't that how it usually goes? So that's what's been happening in my world. I learned a long time ago that when I make a decision with God's will in mind, He will not let me make a mistake. As long as you seek God's will, He will bless you.

Thankful for Donuts!

I know it's kind of a strange thing to be thankful for, but I promise there is a story behind it.

Yesterday I was running late for work. I always set my alarm for about 15 minutes earlier than what I need to, because I always hit the snooze. Then when it goes off the second time I get up. Well, my alarm never went off the second time, so, needless to say, I woke up with a start and had to rush around to get ready. Well, I was on time to work, but I didn't have time to eat breakfast. I thought, well maybe I will be able to stop at the bakery a few doors down from work first, but, of course, I didn't have time. When I got to work, I was told it was one of the days that the manager was going to be in for the day, and that on her days at our office she always gets a dozen donuts from the bakery. I said, "Great, because I didn't have breakfast." So there I was eating my Long John cream filled donut with chocolate icing, my favorite, and it dawned on me, was this an act of God? I know it sounds crazy, but here it is, I didn't have breakfast, I can't really go without breakfast or I start to feel kind of sick, I had to buy lunch that day and had just enough money to get lunch, and I didn't have time to grab something as I headed out the door and I show up at work just to find that breakfast, my favorite donuts, are there waiting for me. It did make me wonder. But you know it's not really that crazy of an idea. God loves us and cares about every aspect of our lives. Why wouldn't He care whether I got breakfast or not? Well, anyhow, sitting there eating my donut, I quickly bowed my head and thanked God...for my donut.

Songs of Blessing

I have always been one who was ministered to through music. The songs I have on my playlist I just accidentally came across and they touched me. I strongly urge you to not only listen to these songs but to find the lyrics and read them, they are very powerful. The first one is "Orphans of God". It talks about how we can never be considered an orphan of God's. There is another song that I love but I couldn't find it to add it to my playlist, but it is called "Jesus Doesn't Care". The chorus says, "Jesus doesn't care what you've done before, how you rebelled or slammed the door. No matter how far you've gone or how long you have been untrue, Jesus Doesn't care he still offers forgiveness to you". That's kind of the concept of "Orphans of God." No matter what we do, we are still God's child and He will always welcome us back into His family. You can never go beyond the love of God. Never! I just love that thought!!! There are no orphans of God!
The second song that touched me was "You Have Been Good." It talks about how even if we never have another answer to prayer, if we never receive another blessing, even if we never get to see a loved one again, we would still have to say "Father, you have been good," because "I know all too well what I am deserving". We don't deserve God's love yet He still gives it to us. Yet, when things go wrong, I find myself quick to blame God, but if I were to look back I would have to say, "God you have been good."
The next song is "Sometimes He Calms the Storm." In the chorus it says, "He can settle any sea, but it doesn't mean He will...Sometimes He calms the storm and other times He calms His child." Just because God isn't calming the storms in your life, doesn't mean He has abandoned you, maybe it just means there is a lesson for you to learn, and if you will allow Him, He will hold you until the storm passes. In my devotions lately I have been reading about darkness, and how that going through a dark time in life is not necessarily bad. If you read the Bible, you can see that it was in dark times that God would speak. If we are quiet during those dark times, don't complain or feel sorry for ourselves, just be quiet, then can God speak. That is kind of what the song, "In the Calm", talks about. It says, "In the calm, in the quiet, I am listening Lord". Take advantage of those dark, quiet times to listen and see if you hear the voice of God.
Other times, those dark periods happen just before a blessing. Have you ever noticed the temporary blindness that occurs when you step out into a particularly bright day? It's because it is so bright outside your eyes go dark until they can adjust to the brightness. So maybe when your going through a dark time you should be excited, because it just might mean that something extraordinary is about to happen, you just have to wait until you've adjusted to be able to see it. Sometimes He calms the storm and sometimes He calms the child, but either way, He still brings peace.

We are not orphans, we have not been abandoned; We are God's children and God has been good to us. God is good. Don't you just love Him!!

P.S.

The link below is to a youtube video of a High School Choir performing the song "Orphans of God." It is awesom!!! Especially the part towards the end, right after they turn their backs to the audience. Watch for that part. Hope you enjoy it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ro0TUYb4aBg

Prayer and Blessings!

Have you ever really listened to yourself pray? What do find yourself saying? Its so easy, when you pray, to just ask God for things, but what about thanking Him? I even find that when I start a prayer intending on just giving thanks I some how end up throwing in a few requests as well. Not that that is wrong, but shouldn't we at least set aside one maybe two prayers a week that are just prayers of thanksgiving, no requests just thanks. Its not as easy as it sounds. It seems like a habit, that when we pray we ask for things. We all have needs, and don't get me wrong, we are told to keep asking, but would it really hurt to skip a day or so of asking and just dedicate those days to thanking? We have a lot to ask for but I think if you were to sit down and make a list you would be able to come up with more to be thankful for than things to ask for.

I have a lot to be thankful for. Way too much to be able to fit in this one blog. But I can name a few. Of course there is my family, friends, home, and church. But then there are the little miraculous things that happen that I tend to forget about. As many of you know, I worked for a few months at Kapnicks Orchard. That was just a seasonal job, which ended a few days before Christmas. Meaning that once again I was without a job. I toyed with the idea of maybe taking some classes through Community College for a semester but then I decided that I really needed to find another job and save up some more money. But there really isn't that many places that are hiring right now. I decided that I would just wait until the holidays were over and schools had started back up and then I would go searching for a job. I didn't have to that though. Last week at church, my pastor's daughter approached me and asked if I would be interested in a seasonal job working for H & R Block answering phones during the tax season. Needless to say, I said yes, went to an interview and I started training on Monday. I will be working two to three days a week 10-12 hours a day. It's perfect, especially since it's a seasonal job, because of another, very unexpected, blessing from God.

A few weeks ago, I saw an ad for an intern position in Indiana working on a campaign for the summer. I checked it out and decided to go ahead and apply for it and see what happened. That night I received a call from the campaign. We talked for about an hour and at the end of the conversation I was told that the job was mine if I wanted it. Well, of course I did! So now I will be leaving at the end of May to go to Indiana for the summer. I plan on coming back just in time to start class at Hillsdale. This one really amazed me, because I really wasn't expecting anything. I really had the attitude that whatever happened, whether I got the job or not, that was okay. And it all happened so fast too. I guess that was the part that amazed me the most. So, I thank God for not only my family, friends, home, and church, but also for supplying all my needs and for providing me with my desires. He is not God who only gives us what we need, but He also likes to surprise us every once in a while by giving us something we really want. Isn't God good!!

An update!

Well, I'm back. I haven't fallen off the face of the earth, I just haven't blogged in a while. Sorry everybody! Well, since I hit the deer nothing too exciting has really happened, except for Christmas. We had a wonderful Christmas. My aunt and uncle from Washington were able to make, so that was nice. We had a few people over on Christmas Eve to play a few games then on Christmas Day we had everybody over, all my brothers and their families and my grandpa and Elaine, and my Aunt Brenda and Uncle Bob and Aunt Kathy. I don't think I left anyone out. It was a really fun time.
Then there was New Years. On New Year's Eve we had Michael and RuthAnne over to play a few games, we played Apples to Apples and Imagine If..., it was a lot of fun. Then we watched the ball drop. I think it was around 2 o'clock before we went to bed by the time they left and we had cleaned up. Then on New Years day I went over to Ryan's house in the evening for pizza and a movie night. I think we said we ended up watching 8 hours of movies. We still had another six hours to go but I thought I better get on home. I didn't get home till 3 o'clock, but it was fun.
I finished up my work at Kapnicks Orchard. Now I'm not really sure what I'm going to do. I'm looking at a few options but there isn't anything definite yet. Well, I guess that pretty much gets everyone updated. Sorry it took so long. I don't think I have any pictures this time, but I will definitely have to get some pictures on soon. Hope you all have a wonderful year! I promise I will write on my blog soon!