Being a grasshopper

It's been about two weeks since I have updated.  Things have been busy and stressful.  But all the while, I'm learning to trust in my Savior more and more.  Last weekend I went to a Beth Moore conference with my mom & her best friend.  We learned about bitterness and about how God is our kinsmen-redeemer--how He redeems ALL of us.  We are a shattered plate that the Lord sweeps up every single piece of.  There may be extra pieces of dirt or dust that is swept up with our pieces of glass.  The Lord picks that out--he seperates the good from the bad and makes us whole again.  How awesome it is to know that our Redeemer lives!
 
Things definitely haven't been smooth sailing these past couple weeks.  Things with my family seem to keep going downhill.  My dad still hasn't found a job and tensions are rising in our house.  Through all of this, I have spent more and more time in the Word and seeking out My Savior.  In the past few days, I have been reminded that no matter the situation, God is always there.  No matter how down and out I feel, He is right by my side, even if I can't "feel" Him.  Life is not always going to be easy, but that's when we need to cling to our Lord the most. 
 
Our theme verse for our Bible Study this summer is Isaiah 40:22...

"He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and it's people are like grasshoppers.  He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in." 

This verse has been such a reminder to me of how big my God is.  He will take care of me.  Last week at BS we were talking about this verse and then I came home and started reading this new book I got, Attributes of God by Arthur Pink (thanks to Marion).  I was reading the first chapter and it was all about how great God is and how He doesn't need us to glorify Him--He chose to create us, out of His love.  Then the author quoted Isaiah 40:22.  That was exciting in itself because I have never come across that verse before this summer.  So I go to sleep thinking about how huge my God is and how He is perfect in all that He does.  When I woke up yesterday morning, there was a grasshopper on my floor.  Mind you, it was dead, but I didn't care.  It was the principle of it all.  It was one of those "that's so God" moments that you want to share with everyone.  It was just exciting to me because I have been so drained emotionally and then God placed His little reminder that He's in control of it all.  Good stuff.

 

Yesterday after work, I drove to Columbia to hang out with my Mom, Cameron, & Devin (my mom is keeping the boys this week).  It was so nice just to spend time with those kids--I will always have a special attachment to them.  I just love how spending time with kids refreshes you & makes you look at life in a different way.  We went to Chuck E. Cheese and had a blast.  Cameron wanted me to spend the night, but of course I had to come home and come back to the reality of working at the post office this morning.  Some days I just miss spending time with kids so much.  Then this afternoon I got a call from the nursery director at Westminster because I signed Matt & I up to work in the fall.  That was exciting.  I can't wait to meet more kids & spend time with more people at Westminster.  I am looking forward to getting involved there. 

 

Joce moved in with KAD on Sunday.  It's so nice having her back in the Thrill.  I've been spending lots of time with her & Kelly this week.  How nice it is to have wonderful friends who live around the corner--even if they do burn the brownies!  I love my girls in the Pink Palace!

 

Matt comes home in 9 days.  Wow!  How freakin' excited is Mackey?!?!  REAL EXCITED!!!

 

Sorry this is such a long post.  I've just been thinking and learning a lot lately. 

It's Friday!

It's finally Friday!  I wish you all could see me & Darlene do the "Friday dance" at work. 
 
I have been extremely busy lately, that's my excuse for my lack of updating.  I've been working, hanging out with Kelly, doing BS, spending time with my family, & working on some stuff for CRU this semester.  Yesterday Kelly & I hit the road & headed to Spartanburg to visit Joce.  It was nice to spend some time with her.  Kelly & I had some major laughs, even though I did annoy her by talking about Matt and Jessica & Ashlee Simpson the whole time. 
 
I tell ya, I am so spoiled at work.  These ladies treat me so wonderfully--especially Darlene.  She treats me like I'm her daughter.  She gave me her car (and said I didn't have to pay her for it, although I am), brings me presents, & treats me to meals.  She is the most generous person I have ever met in my life.  I'm learning a lot from her.
 
22 days until Matthew comes home.  I'm really excited, but this time apart has been wonderful for both of us.  We have learned how to focus our relationship on God & not eachother.  It is so wonderful to have a boyfriend that wants to pray with you & for you every time you talk.  I am so blessed. 
 
Guess that's it for now, hopefully I'll update again soon.  Sorry I'm such a slacker. 

An eventful week

Wow--lots has happened this week! Thursday was a crazy day. First of all, it was mine and Matt's 2 month anniversary! Yay! So, Darlene from work decided she was going to get a new truck and wanted to sell me her old car. It was such a random decision, but I have a car now! Holler! It's a 2-door bright red Plymouth Sundance. And that wasn't all the excitement for the day. Thursday afternoon, I put some Hartz flea treatment on my baby Baxter, not knowing the treatment is toxic and can kill cats. A few hours later Bethany (who was staying with me for a couple days) noticed he was acting really sluggish and he threw up. I went to go check on him and he was shaking really bad. My mom told me to take him to the vet. By this time it was after 8 pm and we could only find one vet in Rock Hill that was open. So we took Baxter there and they rushed him in and gave him two shots of Valium. It was pretty scary! The vet said they see this all the time though, that they should take this medication off the market because it kills cats. Well, they don't have overnight staff at that vet and they were worried that he needed special care, so they referred us to the emergency animal hospital in Charlotte. We drove to Charlotte and dropped my baby off and they gave him an IV and all kinds of medicine and monitored him overnight. The doctor called me in the morning and said he was doing so well I could take him home. Now Baxter is home and back to normal bouncing around the house. He definitely gave me a scare though!

I was going through some old journals and notebooks and found this quote from my favorite author, Brennan Manning...

"Jesus comes not for the super-spiritual but for the wobbly and weak-kneed who know they don't have it all together, and who are not too proud to accept the handout of amazin' grace."

I was just thinking about that and realizing how grateful I am that Jesus came for me--a sin-scarred girl who continues to mess up every single day. Sometimes I feel so unworthy of God's grace, but that's the whole point to Christ. None of us is worthy to receive His grace, that's what makes Christ's death so amazing. Anyway, that's just my little thought.