merry christmas

The Son of God became a man to
enable men to become the sons of God.
CS Lewis

Amazed at God's love to send His only Son for us in the form of a humble babe, to save us from our sins. How kind, how wondrous, how divine! Christ came out of love, love has filled my Christmas time.

we give thanks

today, all across america families and friends gather around the food and give thanks. well, so did we. i'm thankful for so much today! i'm thankful for my mom & dad. chelsea, mary, belle, and garrett. jap, rach, em, laura, alyssa, mel, rachel, beau, jake, joey. the hughes. katie & sean. the johns, the smiths, j'nelle & katy & brooklynn & giselle. and so many other people. i'm thankful my dad has a job. i'm thankful i can go to odu. i'm thankful for our house and cars. i'm thankful that my family loves each other. i'm SO thankful for sgc. i'm thankful for my new camera, and beautiful weather. but most of all i'm thankful for a bit of knowledge. i'm thankful i know who i should give my thanks to. God Almighty deserves all thanks and praise on this day, for it is from His Hand that i have received all of these blessings. i'm sososososososo thankful that Jesus Christ died on the cross for my sins and made a way for me to spend eternity w/ Him forever. happy thanksgiving!

how in the world do you deal with missing someone that's not ever going to come back? praying for you Mag as you try to continue on with life while missing your mom who is already in Heaven. my heart's heavy for you and the many others i know who have lost someone they loved.

in a better land

Mr.Johns went home to be with Ryan last night around 12, what an awful glorious night. It's sad to be on this side of death, but brings peace to know one day we will all be together worshipping our sweet Savior. Reminds me of Papa and makes me wonder more about Heaven. I can't wait to go there! There will be no pain, no sickness, no cancer, no disease. No tears or sadness, anger or bitterness. No missing those we love. No more sin. What a glorious day it will be when we meet our Savior face to face and can worship Him for all Eternity. Praying for those left behind who loved him dearly



We say goodbye to those we love
With faith and hope in a sovereign Lord
For we know His will is good
And his love will be there for the life to come

Goodbye for a little while
We'll meet again
Goodbye it is a hard farewell
To say my friend but we'll meet again
In a better land

The tears we cry are of grief and joy
For though we hurt they hurt no more
Because they lived for their eternal home
So we too, are living for the life to come

Lord take this pain and use it for your glory
Lord bring your hope and put it in our hearts







I have a friend who just turned eighty-eight
and she just shared with me that she's afraid of dying.
I sit here years from her experience
and try to bring her comfort.
I try to bring her comfort
But what do I know? What do I know?
She grew up singing about the glory land,
and she would testify how Jesus changed her life.
It was easy to have faith when she was thirty-four,
but now her friends are dying, and death is at her door.
And what do I know? What do I know?

Well,I don't know that there are harps in heaven,
Or the process for earning your wings.
I don't know of bright lights at the ends of tunnels,
Or any of these things.

She lost her husband after sixty years,
and as he slipped away she still had things to say.
Death can be so inconvenient.
You try to live and love. It comes and interrupts.
And what do I know? What do I know?

Well,I don't know that there are harps in heaven,
Or the process for earning your wings.
And I don't know of bright lights at the ends of tunnels,
Or any of these things.

But I know to be absent from this body is to be present with the Lord,
and from what I know of him, that must be pretty good.
Oh, I know to be absent from this body is to be present with the Lord,
and from what I know of him, that must be very good

Honey you are a rock
Upon which I stand
And I come here to talk
I hope you understand

That green eyes, yeah the spotlight, shines upon you
And how could, anybody, deny you

I came here with a load
And it feels so much lighter, now I’ve met you
And honey you should know, that I could never go on without you

Green eyes

Honey you are the sea
Upon which I float
And I came here to talk
I think you should know

That green eyes, you’re the one that I wanted to find
And anyone who, tried to deny you must be out of their mind

Cause I came here with a load
And it feels so much lighter, since I met you
Honey you should know, that I could never go on without you

"Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!...Worthy are You, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created." Rev 4:8&11

"For you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God." 5:9

"He who sits on the throne will shelter them with His presence. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes." 7:15-17

When in the midst of a conflict I hope to desire a God glorifying resolution and peace instead of proving I'm right.

-Just one of those things I've been thinking about and asking God for help with

friends for a visit

We had the Bartows stay with us Sunday evening through Monday morning. We'd always hoped one day they might visit, but until this past week had never actually known how much fun it would be. IT WAS AN ABSOLUTE BLAST!

Monday- We headed over to Reaghan's pool for the afternoon. It rained, thundered, and there was some lightning which kept us on their back porch for part of the time. That night we enjoyed a delish dinner together and watched the movie Emma

Tuesday- We made a run to Michael's to grab some paper & supplies to decorate the cigar boxes my mom and I had previously picked up. We spent the afternoon decorating our boxes and talking together. I ended up giving my box just today to J'Nelle as part of a birthday present. It was fun carrying on the tradition of our moms to do projects and crafty things together.

Wednesday- We traveled to Williamsburg for they day. To begin, we explored Colonial Williamsburg. It was HOT, but we had fun. One of my fav parts was trying to take a pic of some flowers while dodging a sprinkler. The Cheese Shop made for an appetizing lunch, though we had to fight off a company of yellow jackets. After lunch, we moved onto shopping at the outlets. By the end of the day we were all exhausted.

Thursday- Of course Thursday was beach day! We played soccer, enjoyed getting in the water, and sun bathing. That evening we watched the boys' last summer bball game before heading over to Reaghan's to swim again. A lot of people went and I got to spend some time talking with Abigail and girl named Laura.

Friday- We worked out at the Y and then layed out for a few hours. That night we took Abigail and Anna with us to 316.

Saturday- We spent most of the day getting ready to go out to dinner at Cheesecake Factory in Town Center. We all dressed up in sort of coordinating outfits. Dinner was really good and we all felt completely stuffed afterwards. We ended the evening walking down at the boardwalk.

Sunday- We just hung out around the house and ended the night with Skinny Dip. It was sad to see them off the next morning but we're hoping/praying they might be able to move here.



Before journeying to Williamsburg






Mary & Emily







Abigail









Isabel & Anna








Might just be the funniest picture ever









the picture I fought for


Caitlin







Dinner at the factory

Abigail's garden











the cutest little bro and me










on the boardwalk

considering

a new purchase

these summer days...

trees...

i truly love trees. i love almost everything about them. trees are sturdy, rugged, strong, lush, and friendly. they are brave-standing strong through heavy gusts and gales. they are friendly- often providing a shady rest spot. they are classy- decorating the lawns of both the prince and pauper. they are patient- allowing children to climb their muscular limbs. they are timeless- some live to be hundreds of years old, growing more beautiful by the day. i'm simply fascinated and amazed. i wish i could better capture their beauty and the feeling of awe that shoots through me when i gaze yet another leafy looker. God's creativity and kindness when He created trees, mmm i don't know what to say about that. they are simply wonderful.

















these trees are all planted in Williamsburg, VA. my pictures don't do these trees justice

predestined for Christ's glory

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him.
In love He predestined us for adoption through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His Will, to the praise of His glorious grace, with which He has blessed us in the Beloved.
In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of His will, according to His Purpose, which He set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Him, things in Heaven and things in earth.
In Him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His Will so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of His Glory.
In Him you also, when you heard the Word of Truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in Him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of His Glory.


Ephesians 1:3-14

Heavenly Father
You always amaze me
Let your kingdom come
In my world and in my life
You give me the food I need
To live through the day
And forgive me as I forgive
The people that wronged me
Lead me far from temptation
Deliver me from the evil one

I look out the window
The birds are composing
Not a note is out of tune
Or out of place
I look at the meadow
And stare at the flowers
Better dressed than any girl
On her wedding day

So why do I worry?
Why do I freak out?
God knows what I need
You know what I need

Your love is
Your love is
Your love is strong

The kingdom of the heavens
Is now advancing
Invade my heart
Invade this broken town
The kingdom of the heavens
Is buried treasure
Will you sell yourself
To buy the one you've found?

Two things you told me
That you are strong
And you love me
Yes, you love me


Our God in heaven
Hallowed be
Thy name above all names
Your kingdom come
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven
Give us today our daily bread
Forgive us wicked sinners
Lead us far away from our vices
And deliver us from these prisons

Your Love Is Strong by Jon Foreman

I desire that my love for other people would grow to be more like the love God has for me. Unselfish, pure, and deep.

little things...

lately i've been loving the little things in life. so grateful for many wonerful things, and grateful God's helping me enjoy them
-running up to regent with my mom to take pics (40 mins)
-gorgeous trees, i don't remember seeing before in front of that house
-deep pink roses in a cute little vase on our clean kitchen table
-the anticipation of NEXT
-new nail polish
-running Mom a drink at school
-getting to hold little Brookie a few minutes while J'Nelle worked out
-time to sit in the sun and read Hood, a book Eric gave me
-sun tans : )
-water that tastes good
-honey mustard pretzels
-shopping at tj maxx with mom, no place to have to be
-gold diamond earrings
-having nowhere to go and no plans for the night

these are just a few of the little things I've been enjoying these past few days

tues term

due to having absolutely no desire to go hunt down a dictionary right now, I decided to google SAT words and post one of those. So here's my word


blithe: joyous (adj)