The Greatness of His Might

I was reading today, and while flipping to the page where I'd left off the day before, this verse caught my eye:

"Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these? He who brings out their host by number, calling them all by name, by the greatness of His might; and because He is strong in power, not one is missing." -Isaiah 40:26

That verse is talking about the stars- how there are so many of them, but He knows about every single one of them. It made me think about how, even though I feel so insignificant at times, God made individual plans for me. Even though there are 7 billion other people in the world, He won't forget about me and the things He's called me to do. He has plans to use me for His glory- that's definitely a motivation to listen to what He's telling me and follow through with those plans!

Day off!

Today's gonna be relaxing- nothing happening for a change! :) The last couple weeks have gone by really fast. School is ridiculously easy, and Spanish is always fun. There's more of an emphasis on conversation and stuff so we get to talk.. a lot. Which I like- gotta get those 20,000 words a day in somehow! My favorite thing by far though is hanging out with Chris- I think that's a given! Now that we're busier, the time we do get to hang out is more special:) Work is going great, too. A lot of the chicks quit to go back to college, so I feel like one of the more experienced people now that there's all these new people working with me! I've gotten some weekday hours too, not just weekends. So much easier... I'm scheduled to close on Monday, though. Kinda ironic that I'm gonna be working on Labor Day! Lol. The week after this one should be fun though. We're going to Florida..yay! We're driving, so thank goodness for MP3 players! (5 people in a Buick for a day and a half makes for an interesting drive!) I get to drive some of the way too, so that should be an adventure. I can't wait to get to the beach! Well, that's about it for what's been happening lately. I think I'm gonna get my laundry done today. And maybe clean out the scary mess that I call my closet. Lol. So I'll see ya'll later!

Lately...

Wow it's been a while since my last blog! During the summer I lose track of time so easily... maybe because I don't have much of a schedule to follow! I'm in for a shock when school starts in a few weeks- Senior Year!! Woo-hoo!!! :) I keep thinking about how crazy it's gonna be. Balancing school, work, time with God, Chris, Church, and personal time should be quite a challenge- not to mention possible extra classes at SCC! Whoa buddy...

The year's gonna go by so fast. I can't wait to finish "growing up" but there's still a small part of me that wishes I could stay this age for a while longer. Well, make that a very small part. Not having a curfew would be nice. :P But after this year I'll be a college kid.. oh man. Leaving the high school phase is gonna be exciting. And college could potentially go by quick if I can test out of some classes. (Yay for beating the system!) Wow, I'm getting ahead of myself! But this is the kind of stuff I think about when I get bored during the slow summer months. For now I'm just lovin' relaxing, spending time with Chris, hanging out with the Church, and getting back into the habit of being with God. Sounds like a good time, huh? :)

cheerful faces and boredom

I went to church today at its main campus to see Rachel sing at the end. It was the first time going there since our Training last weekend, and proved to be drastically different from True Vine, and not just because I don't like big crowds. But I knew it would be; that wasn't the shock.

As I took my seat in the balcony with my family, watching the band play the intro to the service, my eyes began to wander. Scanning the crowd, I saw so much superficiality. It really bugs me how everyone puts on their "church" face to seem all cheerful. Seeing all these "perfect" people made me feel like an outcast, like I was the only one with problems. I realized, that's why everyone acts so fake. Everyone feels the same way, and puts on a facade to conform to the other faces in the crowd. What would it be like if nobody felt pressured to be perfect, if they could go and talk with other people without fear of rejection?

During "worship" I saw so little of the enthusiasm to Worship that comes from awe of God. The vocal team and crowd just stood there motionless as they sang; the band looked completely bored, except for one guy whose guitar wasn't even turned up. That's how I used to think worship went- and I was bored stiff! I wish other people knew what a joy it is to really Worship God. I can't wait for next week, when I lead worship in the Jr. and Sr. High services. I'll be praying that God spreads that enthusiasm and desire to Worship through me. For once I'm actually looking forward to it! (Now I just have to learn to beat those stupid nerves...)

beginnings

So this is my first blog..but I guess that's kind of obvious. :) I figured this way, I can stay in touch with my True Vine family and get my thoughts written out!

My blog title explains where I am right now. I've been waiting for the last 16 years for God to surprise me, to challenge me and change me into the person He wants me to be. Over the last 2 weekends of Training, He finally did. I saw Him move and work more over those few days than in my whole life combined. I was thinking the other day, "Why didn't I experience this sooner?" I guess the answer to that is, because I never opened myself up to Him enough for Him to amaze me! And wow, when I let Him take over, He didn't disappoint me. It was so incredible to be completely transformed by my God. After a lifetime of mountain-top highs and having a mediocre relationship with the One who saved me, it's so awesome to feel connected to Him. He's no longer the "story book" God that Sunday school curriculums attempt to portray. He's my Daddy- my tangible, living God.

One other thing- I'll be the first to admit that I'm human. I need you guys to help keep me accountable and on track. And correct me if I'm wrong or confused... which could happen a lot. :)