I Can't Express Enough Thanks-- Such A Blessed Life

November 16th:  I'm sooooo incredibly thankful for the nine years of friends and fun and community and safety and happiness and learning and healing in Salem, Missouri.  I'd never have made it, had I been forced to grow up in a big city.  Being a small-town girl, I thrived and I'm so thankful to have that chance.  God knew right where I needed to be to be the very best me.

November 17th:  I'm thankful for every single adorable wonderful perfect sweet child at SCC Preschool and Daycare.  I was blessed enough to have the chance to spend three years of my life with these babies and I love them all so much. I think of them daily.  My visits with them are one of the best parts of my visits home.  Kids: Please stop growing! :)

November 18th:  I'm thankful for my pretty blue-purple car named Sally.  She gets me everywhere I need to go and I'm aware that lots of people have to go without.  I'm one of the lucky ones.  Without my car, I couldn't get to HU and back and I love to be at both places so she's a vital part of my college life.

Thank you, Lord for my life!

More Thank You, Thank Yous

Novemeber 11th:  Thank God for out Veterans.  You are the bravest people ever!  I take the liberties that your service has given to me and it's a terrible way to be.  I'm truly grateful for all you've done.

November 12th:  I'm sooooo thankful for my Kendall 3rd floor girls! These ladies are too funny and full of drama. I love living here in all the craziness haha.

November 13th:  Thank God for the sunshine.  Just try to imagine life without it! Even in the middle of November, God has granted us beautiful, bright, warm, weather to enjoy outside.

November 14th:  Thank God for my feet! It may sound silly, but I had the best run of my life, and I'm lucky to get the opportunity to get out my stresses in this way.  There are so many in the world less fortunate than I am.

November 15th:  Thank God for the rain.  It's pouring here, and I am terrified of the rain... BUT I know that it's a blessing, that we need it, and that God will always provide.  He knows what is best for us, even if we consider it inconvenient or scary. I love you, Lord.

Still So Thankful

More thankful moments from my Month of Thanks!!

November 8th::  Thank the Lord for my sweet sweet sweet little brother bear.  How boring my life would be without him!  His giggles calm me down with nothing else can and his snuggles keep me going when I just wanna stay in my bed.  He is such a wonderful boy and I don't deserve him, but luckily, God let's me keep him anyway.  I miss him so much while I'm away at school.  I can't wait to see what a great guy he turns into one day.  I love you, Jess!

November 9th:  Thank God for America.  There a lot of common negative things about the United States and the people who live there, but the folks who say things like this are just forgetting that we, as Americans, are among the most fortunate people in the world!  We can not imagine what it is like to wake up in the morning and wonder if we will get any food at all to eat today.  It just isn't the life God gave us to live.  By allowing us to be born in America, God actually gave us too much and now we struggle with remembering how desperately we NEED Him to survive.  What a wonderful land God has placed me in!

November 10th:  Today I want to thank my Lord for my shelter.  There has been some small crime near my home in Searcy recently and I am so glad to have the security of a locked door.  I am able to sleep peacefully without worry, because God is kind enough to look out for me and bless me with a secure environment to live.  Also, my shelter protects me from the weather.  I don't suppose I would get very good sleep if God allowed all the rain we've had to pour into my room during the night.  I love the way God takes care of us.  He thought of every little thing.

Trying Not To Get Too Behind

November 5th is the day I'm thankful for my mom.  Why??  Because she's my MOM.  She's the best and she's a superhero.  No other mom could ever be able to put up with me, or anyone else in the family.  She's perfect for the job.

November 6th goes out to my daddy.  My very best buddy and the guy that loves me the most of anyone in this world.  I can only hope one day to be have as smart as he is.  I'm so much like him, and he knows it, and this is how we understand each other like nobody else.  I miss him every day.

November 7th I'm thankful for the season of Fall.  It's the prettiest and the most impressive to me and it's just easily my favorite.  This year, Fall has made my long drive home to Salem on the weekends beautiful and pleasing and it's helped me to remember to be in awe of God.  What a wonderful artist he is!

4th of November

For day number four of my thankfulness journey I want to say thanks to my God and Father for the wonderful place I get to go to school:  Harding University.  I am so crazy happy here in Searcy, Arkansas and I know this is the perfect place for me to learn and grow in the Lord and for the Lord.  I can't believe how blessed I am to get to study here and meet so many truly delightful people.  Even when I committed to this school, deciding that it was the best choice for me, I had no idea how awesome the school really was and no clue about how will I would fit here.  I'm having a blast right now, and I'm extremely excited for a bright future in which I have the privilege to glorify the God of all creation with my life and my works.  Thank you, Lord.  I am completely undeserving.

Day 3 of Thanks

     Today I want to share with you all how thankful I am for my little sister, Anndy.  I chose today as the day to talk about her because today she came to visit me at Harding for the very first time.  I'm so excited to have her here!  She's been a great friend to me, especially recently and she provides me with a totally different outlook on life.  She's so many things that I am not, such as athletic and artistic and she has no idea how much I admire her for those things.  God has blessed her with many many many great gifts and I can't wait to see what she will do with them in her life, at the same time that I do not EVER want her to grow up. I'm thankful for Anndy's love and companionship, but also for the pressure she gives me to be a better person.  I want to be a role model and a great example with my life and she is the inspiration and my motivation.  I hope to make her proud. I love you, Dirt Diver. :)

Quick Quote From 'Radical'

Have you read the book 'Radical' by David Platt?? If you haven't then you should.
Here's a quote I ran into today while reading Radical for a book study tonight.

"Why would we ever want to settle for Christianity according to OUR ability or settle for church according to OUR resources? The power of the One who raised Jesus from the dead is living in us and as a result we have no need to muster up our own might." -David Platt in 'Radical'

30 Days of Being Extra Thankful

     I want to take the entire month of November to be thankful for something in my life each and every day, and I've chosen to do so on this blog right here.  I'm going to share with you only 30 of the many wonderful things in my life.  I haven't thought ahead a whole lot of what and who and how but I'm sure I'm a blessed enough gal to work this out, so I'm gunna try it.  I know today is the 2nd, so today will have 2 items, and don't be alarmed if I miss a day every now and then. I'm a busy girl and I'll make up for it when I blog some more.
     I love you all, my silly readers.
 
November 1st::
Kaley, my roommate.
     I have no idea why or how it happened but some super tall, crazy girl from Texas found be online one day to change my life for the better and be my new best friend.  I can't say enough how glad I am to have her.  I can't imagine living with anyone else and I don't want to try.  She's funny and happy and caring and tidy and smart and creative and beautiful and I love her.  I'm thankful for Kaley every day.

November 2nd::
Jake, my boyfriend.
     Yep, I'm one of THOSE girls who blogs about how her boyfriend is the very best and sweetest and cutest and all that yucky stuff.  It's the truth, ladies.  My boyfriend is the greatest boyfriend in the whole world and I love him to death.  One day, less than 3 months ago, he was there for me before we were even friends.  He didn't owe me anything, but he knew I needed someone and he stepped up to the plate.  I haven't looked at him the same way ever since.  I know I can count on him.  I trust him completely.  I love him more than I knew I could love a guy and I don't care if I'm "just a little kid."  Jake treats me like a princess, even though I don't deserve it and I'm immensely thankful to have him around.  I'll do anything to get to keep him.

Be thankful today, ya'll.  Tell someone you love them for me, okay?

Quite Frequently

     My history professor said once that "some people mess up more frequently."  He went as far as implying that it's in their genetics.  Well, after some careful consideration, I believe he's correct.  And through some crazy luck of the draw or joke from God, I ended up with that gene.  Goodness.
     You know those times where you say something you shouldn't?  Or when you don't say something you should?  These happen to me so often!  Why can't I spit it out or just shut up and why must it be so hard to tell the difference in the moment???  Ugh.  I feel so confused and tired and frustrated right now.  It's exhausting.  To replay that moment over and over in your head, imagining how it went and how you wish it would have gone.  And you can't quit.  It's like a dvd with a deep scratch.  I'm stuck on the same scene.

What's it Worth?

Worth:
 noun
-usefulness or importance, as to the world, a person, or for a purpose
-excellence of character or quality as commanding esteem
-value, as in money
-a quantity of something with a specified value
-wealth, riches, property or possessions, net worth

Hey ya'll. Sooo basically I just can not stop thinking about how often the word Worth is used.
          Is it worth the wait?

          Will it be worth my time?

          How many points is it worth?

And so on.  I'm going nuts here because I can't answer the question.  I don't know what is worth what to whom and who gets to decide that.  It's crazy!

     There are many things that, to me, would be Worth the Wait, that to someone else who's got different interests than I or who just simply does not have the gift of patience would consider a massive waste of time.  Correct?  Well, is one of us mistaken?  Can we both be right?  Is worth not a concept that either Is or Is not?  Because, you see, money has a set worth.  It's worth what it's worth and it costs what it costs but how much a person is worth to you or a special possession or time has Worth to each of us, but varies in amount.
     Goodness.  The more I think about this, the more I don't know.
     It all started when my boyfriend asked me today if some insignificant thing was Worth it.  I instantly had the thought "To me or to you?"  Since then I've been hearing the word used over and over and over again.  I can't get over this puzzle.  Why would I get to choose?
     I'm pretty sure the method I use for measuring my own Worth and the Worth of the things that belong to me or surround me is different from the manner used by anyone else on the planet.  Most likely, we all have our own system.  Is this the solution?  I don't know.  It must be!  But this dilemma has made me seriously reconsider that word and how casually I use it. 
   
     Just a side note, I've always hated words with too many definitions.  I personally think we should all broaden our vocabulary and then choose words that are so much more specific.