Share the well

In less than a week I will be embarking on a journey to New Delhi, India. I will be spending the beginning of 2009 in INDIA! Wow!! In my heart I am thrilled. Honestly, I have no expectations. I have several friends who have been to India and I have heard of their adventures but I do not know what to expect. I am thankful for this opportunity and chance of a lifetime to go. I am thankful to be apart of the first international mission team Highland
Christian Church is sending out. I know God has divinely put together the team he has going.
If you read this and would join me in prayer for our team I would love it. We will be flying out on Monday, January 5th and will be returning January 19th.

Also, if you enjoy movies I recommend this film: Slumdog Millionaire. I have posted the movie trailer. Another recommendation is an album by Caedmon's Call it is called Share the Well. The songs are inspired from India.

Two sets of Jones'

I don't have time to maintain these regrets when I think about the way He loves us!

running over boulders and fires in the oven!!

Just a little note to explain the title of today's post. First is running over boulders. Well, over the past two months i have ran over 2 huge rocks in two different driveways/yards! I am incredibly thankful that my car was not harmed or a tire busted! (my track record with tires is not clean!)
Secondly fires in the OVEN! Well, yesterday was the bring your favorite food to fight club. Alicia and I were making a strawberry cake...in this bunny shaped pan(just to be silly.) We filled the pan to much and the batter overflowed in the oven....causing it to burn...causing it to catch on fire! Oh my gosh!! there were small flames in the oven!! It was insane! but don't worry it was put out quickly! So yes to start this post off....I am thankful for all of my crazy crazy times and memories!!

Pre-thanksgiving thankfulness...
50 things/people I am thankful for in no particular order:
1. Asheville, North Carolina and all of the uniqueness that comes with it

2. The prayer gallery (i was just there tonight...so it's fresh in my thankfulness file)

3. Candles in the prayer gallery

4. friends who are my sisters!!

5. Lacy (my best friend since 4th grade)

6. Hailey (my BFF/sister friend)

7. Hope (my soulmate best friend....who has a unique way of making me laugh)

8. Tory (my best friend who I am so so thankful we have only gotten closer over the past
several years and we met b/c our parents forgot us at school)

9. Becca (my best friend who no matter how much time passes in between us talking or seeing each other....we instantly pick right up and fill each other in on life)

10. Christy (the best mentor in the world!!/another best friend/2nd mom/older sister...who always listens to me share my heart and then shares her heart with me)

11. Basically instant communication through technology

12. Modes of transportation

13. Jesus' great commission

14. Highland Christian Church

15. Jason and Doreen Garris and Zeke and Jude Garris (Zeke is possibly the cutest/funniest 2 year old I have ever met.

16. The Highland staff

17. my new friend Megan Coss(who I am really thankful for and know that a special friendship is
forming)

18. My semester in Colorado

19. My two friends who I discovered LOST with

20. Savannah

21. Elise

22. The TV show LOST

23. The new kids and people I am building relationships with at Highland.

24. My favorite kids in the world who live in Nashville, Haylee and Jack Gold, they my unbiological little sister and brother!!

25. The precious little girls who dance in the front of the orange peel each sunday morning. They are so purely worshiping Jesus!

26. My time with Youth With A Mission

27. Hononlulu Hawaii

28. My DTS family

29. My outreach team

30. The 2 1/2 month adventure that outreach was in Fiji and Vanuatu!

31. My mom and dad (who I know I am only going to appreciate and love more as I get older) I
love them and their unconditional love for me is such an amazing picture of Jesus' love for me.

32. My nana

33. My grandad

34. My grandma

35 My Pa

36. My Ma(great grandmother)

37. My Papa(great grandfather)

38. Kelsey (who I seriously can not imagine my life without her! She is such a great cousin! I am
thankful for all of our time together!)

39. Chloe and her cheerful HELLO when she answers the phone

40. basically all of my family and all of our crazy memories!

41. The Father

42. Jesus

43. Holy Spirit

44. The freedom that only comes from JESUS!!

45. God's living and active WORD!

46. Different weather seasons

47. Snow

48. Snowboarding!!

49. Family Vacations

50. Growing up going out on the lake, knee boarding, tubing, and wake boarding.

51. one additional thankful thing...my job at starbucks

traffic traffic

I must say working at Starbucks is bringing out my inner freak a person out enthusiasm. When meeting new people sometimes in my mind when I am going through the very first introductions I am thinking "okay Brittney calm it down a few notches you are probably freaking this person out." The person I am meeting is probably like "whoa okay back off." Tonight I learned when I am behind that counter and a person walks in...'I am the one to take the initiative and go for it!" The more I freak them out with enthusiasm the better.

Also, this is another note:
ABOUT 6 WEEKS TILL I GO TO INDIA!!!
The closer it gets the more excited I become. Especially when talking to Hope and Tory who have already been there! Oh Jesus THANK YOU for the the chance to go!!!! My heart is so so exicted and ready!

Four generations in ONE house??

In my heart I really long and desire to live in constant community with people. I am praying and asking God to make this dream and desire of living in community with others a reality. I know I have talked to several people who have the same desire and in my mind I am like "why can't this just happen now!! Let's find some land buy it and start building!! or shoot even bust out tents! (well scratch the tent idea the winter month's are ahead...and it's cold)"
When I was little and even now sometimes I tell my dad I wish everyone I love, all of my friends and family could live together. And He would tell me "I know I used to wish we could have a big hotel and everyone live there together." Okay, well I guess having every single friend and family member living in one place is never going to be a reality because we are not all called to live in the same part of the world. But the idea of living in an intentional community with others where ever I am can be very real. When I was in Hawaii doing my DTS with YWAM I lived in a house with about 20 other girls. It was so great! It was so simple. I am experiencing an amazing community with my church family at Highland Christian Church and it is wonderful. But I long for more.
Anyways...i just wanted to do a post about this b/c it is something that has been on my mind for a while.

I tried to get this song on here but it wouldn't work. If you want to listen to it you can look it up, but I really like the last several verses of this song.

Every Minute by Sara Groves
I am long on staying.I am slow to leave,
Especially when it comes to you my friend
You have taught me to slow down,
And to prop up my feet.
It's the fine art of being who I am.

And I can't figure out why you want me around.
I'm not the smartest person I have ever met.
But somehow that doesn't matter,
No it really never mattered to you at all.

And at the risk of wearing out my welcome.
At the risk of self-discovery,
I'll take every moment,
And every minute that you give me.

And I can think of a time when families all lived together,
Four generations in one house.
And the table was filled with good food,
And friends and neighbors.
That's not how we like it now.

'Cause if you sit at home you're a loser,
Couldn't you find anything better to do?
Well, no, I couldn't think of one thing
I would rather waste my time on than
Sitting here with you.

And at the risk of wearing out my welcome.
At the risk of self-discovery,
I'll take every moment,
And every minute that you give me.

(Instrumental)

And I wish all the people I love the most
Could gather in one place,
And know each other and love each other well.
And I wish we could all go camping,
And lay beneath the stars,
And have nothing to do and stories to tell.

We'd sit around the campfire
And we'd make each other laugh,
Remembering when...
And you're the first one I'm inviting.
Always know that you're invited, my friend.

And at the risk of wearing out my welcome.
At the risk of self-discovery,
I'll take every moment,
And every minute that you give me.
Every moment, and every minute that you give me.
Every moment, and every minute that you give me.
Every minute...

**if you don't have any of Sara Groves music I highly recommend it. Her lyrics are really creative and genuine.

Just do it....come on....do it.

Round One

1. Who did you spend at least two hours with today?
Tania, Sue, and Julie....we spontaneously went to see a movie for a dollar!!! Momma Mia!

2. What do you look forward to most in the next six weeks?
general psych class ending, the potential chance of snow....which means the potential chance of snowboarding!!!, Jesus' Birthday Celebration!!!!!!!!!!!! The next 3 Sundays at Highland, The Secret Place series
3. Who was the last person you called?
my mom

4. What were you doing at 12am last night?
talking on the phone to one of my best friends Tory

5. What did you fear was going to get you as a child?
Seriously every time I would take a shower I was always conscious of the drain. B/c for some reason I thought something would get me. So I would not get close to it at all.

6. When did you last see your mom?
sometime in October i think

7. What are you wearing right now?
A t-shirt and jeans

8. Where is your favorite place to be?
okay i can't pick one so i am going to list several favorite places to be...b/c i love to think and dream about each
-the beaches in Hawaii laying in the sand and soaking up the sun
-snowboarding in powder snow
-Old Hickory Lake after being out all day and feeling kind of sun burnt but not too....and it being about sun set....and the water is so calm. And your getting in the last few wakeboard and tub runs in for the day
-The Orange Peel on a Sunday morning
-In other countries
-In my friend Nastinka's living room with her and Hope and her daughter Simene
-In my 2nd families living room watching sports and spending time together
-With my whole family:(mom,dad, grandma, pa, vonda, greg, kelsey, chloe, fudgie & kristie) together in Destin,Florida all laughing and telling stories...we have told tons of times, but still are funny every time we tell it

9. Where is your least favorite place to be?
school

10. Where would you go if you could go anywhere?
I am not sure at the moment.....some where in the 10/40 window. Maybe some really really remote village, but I am not sure in what country.

11. Where do you think you’ll be in 10 years?
There is no telling!

12. What was the last thing that really made you laugh?
a movie

13. What cities/towns/villages have you lived in?
In order from birth to now
Lebanon, TN
Columbia, TN
Nashville/Old Hickory/Mt. Juliet TN
Honolulu Hawaii
Fiji
Vanuatu
Denver, Colorado
Asheville, North Carolina

14. Are you a social person?
very much so

15. What do you like about winter?
Snowboarding
Snowboarding
Snowboarding

Celebrating the Birth of my Savior Jesus Christ

Round Two -
Unconscious Mutterings:

I say … and you think … ?

Coverage :: clothes....is good
Cynical :: people
Gust :: a boy that I knew in elementary school named gus
Improvised :: any speech i have done
V :: is for Vendetta
Guests :: Be OUR
Brutal :: really really really cold wind and snow
Grant :: money
Pull :: tug of war
Streaming :: popping a squat and peeing in a parking lot.....and then trying to avoid it getting onto your feet

Starbucks community...

Today was my first day of training at Starbucks Coffee Company. Soon and very soon I will have become a coffee expert, or at least will be spending a lot of time around fellow partners who know a ton of information about the lovely coffee, so many of us intake. I am excited about the new job. I will be able to meet a lot of people who visit our store on a regular basis. I am looking forward to the new friendships with the other employees and with the Christmas season coming up an ample amount of time will be spent behind the counter serving frantic shoppers, who desperately need their caffeine fix for the moment.

Pray for the Persecuted NOVEMBER 9th]

The International Day of Prayer (IDOP) for the persecuted church is this Sunday 9th November*. Please join us and hundreds of thousand of others to intercede on behalf of those who live in nations which are restricted and hostile towards the gospel.

The time that we spend in prayer has an eternal impact on the lives of people throughout the world. Through prayer, circumstances change, closed doors are opened, resistant people are made receptive and leaders are installed or removed.

Please pray:

The Lord will give courage to His people who are enduring persecution for His Name

The Lord will place His restraining hand on those who seek to harm His people

Churches facing government opposition will stand firm in their ministry

Christians will have opportunities to reach out with the Gospel without fear of intimidation or harassment

Servants of the Lord will be able to deliver Bibles and Christian literature to places where they are most needed

Christians who have been left without pastors and teachers may be kept strong in their faith

Christians who have been imprisoned for their faith will be released safely

The Lord will restrain the callousness and brutality of prison guards in their treatment of Christians in prison

Pray against the increasing problem of young Christian girls being kidnapped, raped and forced to marry

Those who have lost loved ones by martyrdom will be comforted and strengthened by God during their grief

Christian pastors will be kept from danger and strengthened in their faith as they care for the people of God

New converts may be protected and provided for should their family turn against them.

The current laws in many restricted nations forbidding evangelism, missionary activity and religious instruction, will be repealed


"In the death camps I knew that there were people praying for me. It gave me the spiritual strength I needed to live as a Christian and to trust God. It is the same for everyone in the camps and prisons today." Underground Church pastor, Cambodia

My Utmost for His Highest November 3

A BOND-SLAVE OF JESUS
"I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me." Galatians 2:20 These words mean the breaking of my independence with my own hand and surrendering to the supremacy of the Lord Jesus. No one can do this for me, I must do it myself. God may bring me up to the point three hundred and sixty-five times a year, but He cannot put me through it. It means breaking the husk of my individual independence of God, and the emancipating of my personality into oneness with Himself, not for my own ideas, but for absolute loyalty to Jesus. There is no possibility of dispute when once I am there. Very few of us know anything about loyalty to Christ - "For My sake." It is that which makes the iron saint. Has that break come? All the rest is pious fraud. The one point to decide is - Will I give up, will I surrender to Jesus Christ, and make no conditions whatever as to how the break comes? I must be broken from my self-realization, and immediately that point is reached, the reality of the supernatural identification takes place at once, and the witness of the Spirit of God is unmistakable - "I have been crucified with Christ." The passion of Christianity is that I deliberately sign away my own rights and become a bond-slave of Jesus Christ. Until I do that, I do not begin to be a saint. One student a year who hears God's call would be sufficient for God to have called this College into existence. This College as an organization is not worth anything, it is not academic; it is for nothing else but for God to help Himself to lives. Is He going to help Himself to us, or are we taken up with our conception of what we are going to be? Wow, I think lately I have been taken up with my conception of what I am going to be. Sometimes I am so quick to forget God is in total control of my life. He has directed me every step of the way. I tend to play the what if game. What if I would have gone here, done this, stayed here....so on and so on. This journey I am on with Jesus is unique and it's about walking daily with HIM! I am constantly reminded to turn my eyes back to Jesus. It is like he gently reaches for my face and directs my eyes and gaze back to him. I am thankful that it is Christ who lives in me. Like the verse Galatians 2:20 "nevertheless I live; yet not I, But Christ liveth in me." Thank you Jesus that the pressure is not on me.

Come on in and sit right down....If you want to just get up and shout.....yeah...yeah...yeah...come on down! (yaya for the Kid's moment song)

I just want to say how thankful I am to be apart of the body of Christ. Today at Highland it was a simple message from Shannon along with several people sharing their heart about service, gel groups, and fostering children. My heart is so full to know that at Highland Christian Church I am journeying alongside a team of Christ followers whose hearts are on the same page. I am so thankful one of our key goals is to pass on the baton of faith and leadership from one generation to the next. I am thankful to be a part of a non compartmentalized church. It is powerful and life giving to be in a group with children to senior adults sharing their hearts with one another. I am thankful for the creative arts used to worship Jesus each week, whether it be video, drama, the dancers, or a special song. I am thankful for the freedom to worship Jesus!

Jesus thank you thank you thank you for allowing me to be apart of your precious beloved, Highland Christian Church. Thank you for the diverse group of people you bring through the doors of the Orange Peel each Sunday morning. Thank you for the smaller more intimate groups that meet in homes throughout the week to encourage and support one another. Thank you that in your name, Jesus, we can gather to worship you. You are our King! Thank you for your love, loyalty, and friendship.

Rocky Top you'll always be home sweet home to me.....good ole' Rocky Top.....whaaaaooo Rocky Top Tennessee!

This weekend was fun! Although the big orange let us down...it's still great to be a Tennessee Vol!!! The football game was fun. It was my first time going to a game at Neyland Stadium. My mom and dad and grandma and I all sat in the same section. If you notice in the picture of my mom and I my dad's bunny ears are up!! Ha..ha...
So yes this weekend was full of excitement! I met up with everyone in Gatlinburg and we ate dinner at the one and only Apple Barn. I don't really like that place. I think in my mind it is better than it actually is. I feel like I always am looking forward to eating there but then leave thinking "hmm....that wasn't that good." I mean don' t get me wrong...the apple butter stuff and little bread things are good. But for the rest of the food it's ehhh okay. Friday night around 12:30PM my dad, mom, kelsey and I went to the best arcade EVER!! The jukebox one! If you've ever been to Gatlinburg you know which one I'm talking about! It wouldn't be a trip to Gatlinburg if we didn't do the late night arcade run!!
Saturday morning we went and ate breakfast at the Old Mill...a great place that we found a while back on a camping adventure to Gatlinburg...so now we go there every visit. Then after breakfast we hit the outlet malls before loading up and heading to K-town! Let me just tell you the venture to knoxville was just that an adventure, as is EVERYTHING with my family! We ALL, as in 10 of us, packed into the Tahoe and headed to the game. It's more of a bonding experience if we are all together in one car!! Overall it was a good family weekend of fun in Gatlinburg and Knoxville!

Am I foolish enough accoding to the world??

THE METHOD OF MISSIONS This is today's entry from My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers "Go ye therefore, and teach (disciple) all nations." Matthew 28:19 Jesus Christ did not say - Go and save souls (the salvation of souls is the supernatural work of God), but - "Go and teach," i.e., disciple, "all nations," and you cannot make disciples unless you are a disciple yourself. When the disciples came back from their first mission they were filled with joy because the devils were subject to them, and Jesus said - Don't rejoice in successful service; the great secret of joy is that you are rightly related to Me. The great essential of the missionary is that he remains true to the call of God, and realizes that his one purpose is to disciple men and women to Jesus. There is a passion for souls that does not spring from God, but from the desire to make converts to our point of view. The challenge to the missionary does not come on the line that people are difficult to get saved, that backsliders are difficult to reclaim, that there is a wadge of callous indifference; but along the line of his own personal relationship to Jesus Christ. "Believe ye that I am able to do this?" Our Lord puts that question steadily, it faces us in every individual case we meet. The one great challenge is - Do I know my Risen Lord? Do I know the power of His indwelling Spirit? Am I wise enough in God's sight, and foolish enough according to the world, to bank on what Jesus Christ has said, or am I abandoning the great supernatural position, which is the only call for a missionary, viz., boundless confidence in Christ Jesus? If I take up any other method I depart altogether from the methods laid down by Our Lord - "All power is given unto Me . . , therefore go ye."

Colossians 1:28-29 (New International Version)

28We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. 29To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me.

Colossians 1:28-29 (The Message)

26-29This mystery has been kept in the dark for a long time, but now it's out in the open. God wanted everyone, not just Jews, to know this rich and glorious secret inside and out, regardless of their background, regardless of their religious standing. The mystery in a nutshell is just this: Christ is in you, so therefore you can look forward to sharing in God's glory. It's that simple. That is the substance of our Message. We preach Christ, warning people not to add to the Message. We teach in a spirit of profound common sense so that we can bring each person to maturity. To be mature is to be basic. Christ! No more, no less. That's what I'm working so hard at day after day, year after year, doing my best with the energy God so generously gives me.

Colossians 4:5-6 (New International Version)

5Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. 6Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

Colossians 4:5-6 (The Message)

5-6Use your heads as you live and work among outsiders. Don't miss a trick. Make the most of every opportunity. Be gracious in your speech. The goal is to bring out the best in others in a conversation, not put them down, not cut them out.

TGIF!! (remember on abc TGIF...i don't really remember the show line up...but i think family matters was in there somewhere)

Today I am meeting up with my family, which consists of my mom and dad, aunt and uncle, cousins kelsey and chloe, and grandparents....for a fun time in Gatlinburg. And then Saturday we are going to knoxville to go to the UT/Bama game.....
Then back to Asheville for church...which i anticipate each week! I love sunday mornings!

Today I also got a job at Starbucks! I am a barista now! I'm excited!

I feel like listing 10 things that I love or guess things that make my heart excited and happy!
1. sweet gifts from Jesus/when He is like here you go...this is just for you! He takes my breath away sometimes!

2. Dancing and singing and jumping and spinning around with little kids for Jesus! It is so freeing. B/c my lack of rhythm doesn't matter in the eyes of Jesus nor little kids!

3. Laughing until tears come out of my eyes and my stomach hurts....laughing uncontrollably but at appropriate times....b/c most of the time the uncontrollable laughter comes at inappropriate times!

4. Notes/letters of encouragement from friends.

5. God giving me words of encouragement for notes for friends.

6. Spending time with my cousin Kelsey! which i am going to get to do this weekend!

7. Giving and receiving hugs where i can just feel Jesus in my heart!

8. For instance last night i was like...okay i am for real going to India!! so thinking about India and getting really pumped about it! I love being in other countries! It's so fun!

9. Also last night I was thinking about my journey with Jesus so far.....wow it's been a ride!!! JESUS is so so so good! He is faithful! I love him! He has my heart and I am safe in him. Safe to be myself!

10. Seeing students and people get it......get Jesus....and being like okay I'm following Him. It's not gonna be easy and i don't know what the heck to do but I am HIS! It is so good to be here in Asheville and meeting and building relationships/community with people who are like okay Jesus it's you and me! I LOVE IT!!!! JESUS, I LOVE HIM!!!

11. one last thing.....i love all of my little girls or shall i say girls b/c they aren't so little some of them.....but my girls who Jesus has put in my life that I get to be friends with and love and just be a big sister too! They make my heart really happy and excited!!

Time waster....

10 WHAT'S:

1. What was the first thing you thought about when you woke up?
I could sleep forever in my bed....it's so comfortable.

2. What did you do last night?
Nothing too exciting...watched an episode of the office.

3. What is the most important part of your life?
Loving Jesus with all of my heart soul mind and strength and loving others.


4. What would you rather be doing right now?
Sitting in a room with all of my friends and family who I love.....having a huge party with them!

5. What did you last cry over?
A friend

6. What always makes you feel better when you're upset?
Usually crying about it and venting to someone...


7. What's the most important thing you look for in a significant other?
Jesus' love


8. What are you worried about?
Anatomy and Physiology lab

9. What are you looking forward to most in this week?
Going to Gatlinburg and Knoxville and meeting up with the family!


10. What are you thinking about right now?
how I am kind of wasting time but it's okay...and that tomorrow is Thursday.....and the next day is Friday and I just love Fridays b/c it's that means the weekend!!


NINE HAVE YOU’S:

1. Have you ever won anything?
Umm as far as contests i don't think so...but sports games...like basketball...tennis....yes


2. Have you ever had a broken heart?
yes

3. Have you ever been out of the country?
Yes i have
Fiji
Vanuatu
Africa
Rome
Greece
Turkey
4. Have you ever done something outrageously dumb?
umm yeah....all the time

5. Have you ever been back stabbed by a friend?
i don't think so

6. Have you ever had the cops called on you?
ha...ha.....um i must say yes....my family and I were in destin for spring break and let me just tell you we were getting pretty wild with a friendly game of SPOONS!!! and i guess someone below us complained and said it sounded like we were having a huge party. So we recieved a knock at the door and it was a cop......we were all sitting around the table with cards and spoons. It was pretty funny. Apparently the moving around on the tile floor sounds really loud...aka like a mad party.

7. Have you ever dated someone younger than you?
nope


8. Have you ever read an entire book in one day?
yeah

9. Have you ever sang to someone personally?
umm yeah nothing too serious

SEVEN WHEN’S:

1. When was your last shower?
like 45 minutes ago

2. When did you last see your mom?
about 3 weeks ago

3. When was your last time you saw your dad?
about 3 weeks ago

4. When did you last dress up?
wow.....it's been awhile...

5. When was the last time you cried?
yesterday

6. When did you last go to the movies and with who?
it was a while back to see The Rocker with my friend krista

7. When did you last listen to music?
right now

SIX WHERE’S:

1. Where does your best friend(s) live?
Nashville, Birmingham, Memphis, Tuscaloosa, Knoxville

2. Where did you last go?
To my friend Alicia's house

3. Where did you last hang out?
At my house...watching heroes
4. Where do you go to school?
umm presently AB Tech

5. Where is your favorite place to be?
On the lake...

6. Where did you sleep last night?
In my bed....which is so soft...I LOVE IT

FIVE DO'S/DOES:

1. Do you like someone right now?
I don't know

2. Do they like you too?
I don't know

3. Do you ever wish you were someone else?
no not really

4. Do you know the muffin man?
uhh heck yes

5. Does the future scare you?
no

**FOUR WHY’S:

1. Why are you best friends with your best friends?
B/c they listen to me and i listen to them....and they get me and know me!

2. Why did you start your blog?
B/c my friend did it and i wanted to do one too.

3. Why did your parents give you the name you have?
My mom liked the name Brittney and then she told my dad he could pick the middle name...so he wanted Michelle b/c that is my mom's name...sweet i know!


4. Why are you doing this survey?
i don't know...just wanted to....it is kind of taking me back to junior high days when the surveys like this was where it was at!

**THREE IF’S:

1. If you could have one superpower, what would it be? Teleportation

2. If you could go back in time and change one thing, would you?
yeah

3. If you were stranded on a deserted island and could bring one thing what would it be?
for real my bible

**TWO WOULD-YOU-EVER’S:

1. Would you ever get back together with any of your ex’s if they asked you?
no BECAUSE i don't have any ex's!


2. Would you ever shave your head to save someone you love?
Heck yes....i think it would be cool to have a shaved head just for fun....who knows maybe one day i will shave my head


**ONE WISH:

1. What would it be?
That air fare was free!

Get out while you can; get out of this sick and stupid culture!

So last night I was thinking and praying about what it would look like for lost teenage girls...who are caught up in everything but Jesus to let go of it all and experience true life in JESUS. I was reading my Bible in the book of Acts at Pentecost and umm 3 thousand souls were added to the Kingdom of Heaven in one gathering.
Here is just a little of the scripture from Acts 2

Cut to the quick, those who were there listening asked Peter and the other apostles, "Brothers! Brothers! So now what do we do?"

Peter said, "Change your life. Turn to God and be baptized, each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, so your sins are forgiven. Receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is targeted to you and your children, but also to all who are far away—whomever, in fact, our Master God invites."

He went on in this vein for a long time, urging them over and over, "Get out while you can; get out of this sick and stupid culture!"(Acts 2 37-41The Message)

In my mind and my heart I ponder and dream about the sight of multitudes of young girls whose hearts are broken and wounded by the enemy radically experiencing healing through Jesus Christ. The message that Paul was preaching the "Get out while you can: get out of this sick and stupid culture" I want express to girls here in Asheville. I imagine girls who feel so alone and trapped in their sin...openly repenting and allowing the Light into the darkest part of their lives.

When one girl gets enough courage to speak out and share her secret struggles with sin then another girl begins to get really nervous because in her heart she is feeling and thinking "holy crap....i struggle with the same thing....I thought I was the only one..."then that girl gets enough courage to repent of her sin. And it is a huge domino effect of girls experiencing FREEDOM from darkness and secret lives of sin! It is the simple but oh so powerful message of :"Change your life. Turn to God and be baptized, each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, so your sins are forgiven." Turning from our sin and repenting and turning to JESUS.

Jesus I pray that your light would somehow get to the darkest places in the schools of Asheville. That girls who laugh at the thought of you would begin to question and wonder about you Jesus. May girls somehow experience your satisfying unfailing unconditional love. Jesus rescue lost hearts.

get body smart while listening to pandora

The Skeletal System...it is kind of crazy that every single human living on earth has pretty much the same skeletal system. I mean there are those who have different things going on...like maybe missing something...or a deformity...or something but we all have the same bones...connected to each other and everything. It's kind of crazy that we all have these bodies that we depend on daily but do not really have any clue as to how the anatomy and physiology of the human body works. Or at least I sure as heck didn't but you know what...by taking one simple(well not too simple) class I am learning or have the opportunity to learn how this body of mine works. It is pretty amazing. My best friend Lacy who is a nursing major told me that all of this gets easier as you keep looking at it and going over it. You know what she is right. It is by no means easy...but I am beginning to see how everything within our body builds on each other. Anyways...i will stop rambling on and on...i just figured i would take a little break from the all night er I am pulling to make up for my habitual procrastination when it comes to studying....also i want to give a shout out to a helpful website I have spent the past several hours on....www.getbodysmart.com

yeah....thanks to the creators of that site whoever you are....i am getting body smart...that's for sure...

also one more shout out to a wonderful website....www.pandora.com(thank you pandora for providing me with great music to go along with the skeletal system...)

for those of you that do not know what pandora.com is...well it is a website that has a radio thing that creates a play list for you. All you do is type in an artist or song and then Pandora plays songs and artist similar to the one you typed in.....it is pretty sweet!! i enjoy it.

can i also just put in a sigh of relief...b/c i clicked on the back arrow and really thought i lost this post...but thankfully it was saved as a draft....so i didn't loose it. i really hate when you spend time typing out something....such as a blog...or an email and then it disapears.....kind of frusrtrating huh....okay well this break has been long enough...back to studying....my lab practical is at 8:30 in the morning and it's a little after 1 right now.....so a little over 6 hours....till test time....ohh the joys of school....but for real today i was like aww i kind of like this.....

India...sweet India

So I will be going to India January 4th-21st 2009!!! I am going with 5 other individuals and can NOT wait. It is a very short trip only two weeks but I believe it is going to be an incredible experience. I am excited to see this part of the world. I knew God was going to take me to India sometime in the future b/c this past summer two of my best friends spent their summer break in India. I could have gone with them but it was not the right time for me. When I decided not to go with them, I felt the Lord telling me, "it's okay, you will be going there sometime in the future."
So that time is coming up in less than 3 months! I love other countries! It is such an exciting time. I love all of the unfamiliar sights, sounds, tastes, modes of transportation,...i guess really the whole unfamiliar way of living.
Something I have realized through traveling in other countries and meeting new friends. Is that we all have the same heart. No matter what nation or part of the world you live in deep down you were created to love and be loved. It is so beautiful to look past the differences and see into people's hearts. I mean isn't that what Jesus has done for each of us? He loved and loves us before we even knew/know Him. So whether it's in Asheville or India I long to love people as Jesus loves me.

The Vision

The Vision - by Pete Greig

So this guy comes up to me and says:

“What’s the vision? What’s the big idea?”

I open my mouth and words come out like this:

The vision?

The vision is JESUS – obsessively, dangerously, undeniably Jesus.

The vision is an army of young people.
You see bones? I see an army.
And they are FREE from materialism.

They laugh at 9-5 little prisons.
They could eat caviar on Monday and crusts on Tuesday.
They wouldn’t even notice.
They know the meaning of the Matrix, the way the west was won.

They are mobile like the wind, they belong to the nations.
They need no passport.
People write their addresses in pencil and wonder at their strange existence.
They are free yet they are slaves of the hurting and dirty and dying.

What is the vision ?

The vision is holiness that hurts the eyes.
It makes children laugh and adults angry.
It gave up the game of minimum integrity long ago to reach for the stars.
It scorns the good and strains for the best.
It is dangerously pure.

Light flickers from every secret motive, every private conversation.
It loves people away from their suicide leaps, their Satan games.
This is an army that will lay down its life for the cause.
A million times a day its soldiers choose to loose,
that they might one day win
the great ‘Well done’ of faithful sons and daughters.

Such heroes are as radical on Monday morning as Sunday night. They don’t need fame from names. Instead they grin quietly upwards and hear the crowds chanting again and again: “COME ON!”

And this is the sound of the underground
The whisper of history in the making
Foundations shaking
Revolutionaries dreaming once again
Mystery is scheming in whispers
Conspiracy is breathing…
This is the sound of the underground

And the army is discipl(in)ed.
Young people who beat their bodies into submission.
Every soldier would take a bullet for his comrade at arms.
The tattoo on their back boasts “for me to live is Christ and to die is gain”.

Sacrifice fuels the fire of victory in their upward eyes.
Winners. Martyrs.
Who can stop them ?
Can hormones hold them back?
Can failure succeed?
Can fear scare them or death kill them ?

And the generation prays

like a dying man
with groans beyond talking,
with warrior cries, sulphuric tears and
with great barrow loads of laughter!
Waiting. Watching: 24 – 7 – 365.

Whatever it takes they will give: Breaking the rules. Shaking mediocrity from its cosy little hide. Laying down their rights and their precious little wrongs, laughing at labels, fasting essentials. The advertisers cannot mould them. Hollywood cannot hold them. Peer-pressure is powerless to shake their resolve at late night parties before the cockerel cries.

They are incredibly cool, dangerously attractive

Inside.

On the outside? They hardly care.
They wear clothes like costumes to communicate and celebrate but never to hide.
Would they surrender their image or their popularity?
They would lay down their very lives - swap seats with the man on death row - guilty as hell. A throne for an electric chair.

With blood and sweat and many tears, with sleepless nights and fruitless days,
they pray as if it all depends on God and live as if it all depends on them.

Their DNA chooses JESUS. (He breathes out, they breathe in.)
Their subconscious sings. They had a blood transfusion with Jesus.
Their words make demons scream in shopping centres.

Don’t you hear them coming?

Herald the weirdo’s! Summon the losers and the freaks.
Here come the frightened and forgotten with fire in their eyes.
They walk tall and trees applaud, skyscrapers bow, mountains are dwarfed by these children of another dimension.
Their prayers summon the hounds of heaven and invoke the ancient dream of Eden.

And this vision will be.
It will come to pass;
it will come easily;
it will come soon.

How do I know?

Because this is the longing of creation itself,
the groaning of the Spirit,
the very dream of God.

My tomorrow is his today.
My distant hope is his 3D.
And my feeble, whispered, faithless prayer invokes a thunderous, resounding, bone-shaking great ‘Amen!’ from countless angels, from hero’s of the faith, from Christ himself. And he is the original dreamer, the ultimate winner.

Guaranteed.