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~Adventure of a Lifetime~

As someone who's very easy going, I constantly find myself looking for adventure... and lately I have been learning a lot about what it truly means to live an adventurous life as a Christian.

It takes a lot to shake me up and it also takes a lot to excite me. I am always searching for things that will make me feel alive. I want to live fully and feel fully, whether that means laughing till my abs ache, crying until I can't cry anymore or doing something crazy that totally scares the heck out of me. Whatever it takes, I am always looking for that adrenaline rush, that emotion, that adventure. I have a fear of growing numb to emotion... or just surviving instead of really thriving. I could spend my whole life chasing after thrill and adrenaline.

But recently I came to this realization: a relationship with Christ, in itself, can be the adventure of a lifetime if I run after that with my whole heart. There is no adventure greater than the adventure that comes with giving my whole self to Jesus and letting Him take me to places I would never go alone. With Him, I can feel with my whole heart, I can have fullness of JOY and He will definitely bring me to do things that scare the heck out of me.

I'm learning that God loves when we live fully alive; he delights in his children enjoying life. I'm sure He loves when we climb His mountains and when we parasail high into His sky...and I'm sure He'll love it when I get to skydive one day. ;) But most importantly, He loves it when I surrender myself to Him and His work. I no longer have to chase after temporary pleasures and things to "fill me up." God's desire for me is to live fully alive in Christ, because only there will I find true contentment, true adventure, and true life.

(And the cool thing about it is I don't even have to write out a bucket list for these adventures - he's had them planned for me since before I was born!)

I don't know what God has planned for my life, in fact I don't even know what he has planned for my tomorrow... but what I do know is that whatever it is, it will be full of the thrill, emotion, and adventure that I'm always searching for and my hope can always be found in Christ alone.

"You make known to me the path of life; you fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand." ~Psalm 16:11

Open Your Eyes: My Attempt at a Poem

Oh my darling, open your eyes,

And please get rid of your disguise.

You’re so much more than what they say,

I hope you see this too someday.

Take off the masks you try to wear,

When you are stuck in self-despair.

Remove the chains that hold you tight,

For joy comes with the new daylight.

You’re full of beauty inside and out,

Yes, this is true without a doubt.

Don’t listen to the lies you hear,

You’re more than pain and scars and fear.

Oh my darling, be who you are,

Shine brighter than the brightest star.

You are beautiful, loved and free,

Oh my darling, don’t you see?

A Challenge To All Young Women

     I haven't written a blog post in so long. And to just be completely honest, I have been sitting here for the past few minutes trying to come up with a clever way to start this out that will capture your attention and make you want to keep reading. Obviously, I couldn't come up with anything. I want to really just share some thoughts and hopefully inspire you like God is inspiring me.

     Matthew 5:28 (NIV) says, "But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart." Yeah, this verse on the surface sounds like a challenge only to men, but I personally feel like it puts some responsibility on women too! As a sister to two 13 (almost 14) year old boys, I try to do everything I can to help them protect their eyes and guard their hearts. I pray for my future husband and all my brothers in Christ that God would help them keep their minds, hearts, and bodies pure. Aside from praying for them, we can also do our part as women in making sure we don't cause them to stumble. I challenge you to live with a purpose in mind, not only in what you say and do, but what you wear and what you post on social media. I'm not going to make a list of what you should and should not wear, or what causes guys to stumble and what doesn't. I just want you to be more careful and more aware. One way to show love to our brothers in Christ is by doing everything in our power to help them guard their eyes and minds! 

     One last thought - The world says to girls "If you have a nice body, show it off!" But nooooo! Your body is for your husband! Every other man that looks lustfully at you is someone else's husband/future husband committing adultery with YOU in his heart! Ew! Plus, Modest is Hottest!! 

     There's nothing I can say or do that will fix this worldwide immodesty problem (haha), but I hope and pray that God has maybe inspired you a little through the words he put in me. I'm sorry I couldn't come up with a clever way to grab your attention in the beginning

but if you've made it this far, thank you. :)

Unconditional LOVE.

I feel like people's view these days of unconditional love is so messed up. Our society's idea of "dating" shows us that you can begin a relationship with someone and end it conveniently at anytime - this is the same when it comes to friendships. They show us that when you become dissatisfied, uninterested, or you face any problems, you can just quit and move on. In my mind, this is just not okay... If we just always quit when things get rough, then what's the point of relationships anyway? Friends say things to each other like "I'll always be there for you no matter what," but it's becoming so cliche... Do we really mean it, much less even know what that responsibility entails?? I don't think we fully understand this concept, but I intend to learn from my Savior... He teaches that love is patient, kind, completely selfless... And it NEVER GIVES UP. I think (actually I know full well) that the key to unconditional love is selflessness. As soon as we begin to step out of the mindset of "I want" and "I need" and into the mindset of "they want" and "they need," I feel like the statement "I will always be there for you" will actually become reality. I want to live this out. No matter what happens in a friendship, I want to learn to be patient and kind... Love doesn't get easily angered. Jesus loved us with an unconditional love even when things got REALLY TOUGH for Him. I'm tired of living like relationships are disposable. I'm ready to really truly always be there for my friends and love like Jesus loves me. You feel me?