...My Beloved...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5o_C86EhW8

You're my beloved, you're my bride
To sing over you is my delight
Come away with me my love

Under my mercy come and wait
Till we are standing face to face
I see no stain on you my child

You're beautiful to me
So beautiful to me

I sing over you my song of peace
Cast all your care down at my feet
Come and find your rest in me

I'll breathe my life inside of you
I'll bear you up on eagle's wings
And hide you in the shadow of my strength

I'll take you to my quiet waters
I'll restore your soul
Come rest in me and be made whole

You're my beloved, you're my bride
To sing over you is my delight
Come away with me my love

I just realized today

how much you can TRULY impact another person, or even many, many people.

I think of others often...but until someone tells you how you have affected them, sometimes it's hard to notice that you make a difference in their lives.

I'm just very thankful for the Lord today and His presence and what He has placed on my heart.

I'm also thankful for the words of wisdom from Billy Hornsby...what a beautiful man that I wish I had the chance to meet. I'm also so very thankful for my family as well as the people placed so perfectly in my life. I just feel like there is so much within me that I've been holding back recently; that needs to change. I'm going to give my all, especially to God.

This evening I did something that I really needed to simply do...Spend time reflecting on who I am as an individual...my morals, goals, who I am in Christ. It's crazy to think of how fast time flies by and how everything changes so quickly. I'm so thankful that the Lord has crafted me into who I am. I cannot believe that I am about to go off to college, leave what and who I have known for so long. The craziest part is that right now when I think about it, I'm content. I'm okay with something outside of my comfort zone. I believe that great things are in store for me in my future and that being so far away from what I've known for so long will help me grow in so many ways. I'm not scared or really even afraid at all because I have faith. I know I'll miss a lot of things -- amazing people and the beautiful relationships I have created with many, the home and family that has shown me tender love & care, helping mold me into the young woman I am, being surrounded by community, love, and South Carolina in general. I'm ready to spread my wings...for change...to make a difference. I'm ready for so much more that the future has to bring. It excites me.
I was on this website (www.values.com, check it out) earlier and my mind began to wonder off & think about all sorts of different things. I stumbled upon this quote...“We must not, in trying to think about how we can make a big difference, ignore the small daily differences we can make which, over time, add up to big differences that we often cannot foresee.”

Marian Wright EdelmanLately, I have honestly been entirely too caught up with just the bore of life...the everyday motions and plainly being tired of it all. I needed to reflect on life, who I am, and most importantly, God and where He is leading me. This quote made me think about my purpose. I have put aside many important things lately, mainly because of laziness that I forget to focus. I forget to remind myself of the big picture. I am to plant seeds so that others will prosper, to be a light so that others will see, to leave a path so that others may follow, to make the slightest impact that will eventually make a big difference...somehow. Right now I'm just so thankful, so blessed. Sometimes, it truly is the little things that mean the most.
“The invariable mark of wisdom is to see the miraculous in the common.” ~Emerson

free to shine

I catch a glimpse of Your perfect holiness

casting down upon me

in gleams of light from the sky.

I spread my arms and feel Your warmth,

my heart dances with joy

as you hold it in your hands.

Your light rests within me,

It surrounds me;

You show me what true Love is.

I can spread my wings.

You set me free,

and so I can fly,

faithfully.

I open my eyes to what can be...of you, and of me.

If I could tell you what I would want my future to look like twenty years from now, from the the bottom of my heart...

Truthfully, it wouldn't be in a house on a nice piece of land, surrounded by a picket fence with a family consisting of a hard-working, handsome husband, two dogs and six kids. That is what I USED to imagine. Yes, I really love and want children of my own, but possibly in a different aspect.

From the bottom of my heart, I would want my future to be the opposite. I would love to take on missionary work, move away to a foreign country where poor doesn't even describe their living conditions and those some consider "unlovable"....yet they are so rich in hope and genuine love. I would love to love them, share my faith with them, help them. I would love to have a family of my own there, being surrounded by children that I could love as if they were really my own. I would love to teach them, to understand them, to worship with them, to somehow create possible change...to give them a life that they deserve. Somtimes I think about stuff like this. I invision becoming a doctor or nurse then moving away and building hospitals and shelters. Sometimes I feel like maybe it is impossible or even crazy to think that I could do such a thing or make the slightest impact. Maybe I can not do so alone. Then sometimes I think of Mother Theresa, Jane Goodall or most importantly, Jesus Christ. I yearn to be HIS hands and feet, to be like Him, to do as He did. I have this whole life ahead of me with so much time to do something...so why not make it something important? My life is for the Lord, so why not dedicate it to Him completely, wholeheartedly, with everything?! Maybe thinking like this is crazy, or maybe this mind-set is what the world needs. This generation can make an impact, create change, or even change the world. It's always on my heart.

Recently, I watched "Invisible Children". Three young boys went to Sudan/Northern Uganda to document the lives of the children there. They are living in poverty, without any family, abducted and taken hostage...trained and forced to kill. It seriously broke my heart. I wish I could just help them in some way, taking them away from a life like that. The title "Invisible Children" kind of stood out to me. Sometimes the world is blind, or maybe careless, or maybe the world just feels helpless. But I think it is possible to help, that people in the world need to take a stand and recognize situations such as this. In my eyes, how can we not?

Anyway, I have no idea how my life will be ten years from now, or even a few years from now, or even next month. I don't know. Then again, it's not my place to know...only God does. I trust in Him and I know that He will guide me. Wherever I end up, I know that is where I am meant to be.

I believe that those who truly want to change the world WILL. As many have said before..."believing is achieving." Maybe we all need to have hope, and faith...and believe. Lately, I have been struggling with believing in myself, being too doubtful. I have to give it to God and know that HE can do anything through me. And I believe that with God, nothing is impossible (Matt. 19:26) and impossible is nothing.

http://www.invisiblechildren.com/home

maybe this is wishful thinking,

or maybe it will be a dream come true...

maybe it's time for us all to spread our wings.

Someday, now

Random rant...enjoy. ;)



I am a girl filled with an urgency to reach out, with this never-ending want to love and help others. I am flawed and once bruised, but healed. I have witnessed too much, been lied to and trampled on. I have had the life sucked out of me, only to be filled again. I have opened myself up to people, torn apart but revived and strengthened as a result. I have cried myself to sleep, distressed and hopeless; little did I know, immense happiness was right around the corner to mend my sorrows. I have been let down, but I have forgiven. I have let others down, being forgiven. I have seen pain, addiction, anger, sadness and loss. But I have also seen love, comfort, joy, peace and gained so much from it all. I do believe that everything happens for a reason and that we go through whatever it may be to become wiser, stronger...to learn and grow...There are always lessons in life, whether it be yours or someone else, there is so much meaning to everything that happens. I believe that because God spoke the earth into being, everything He created has meaning, a purpose, even if some don't know it yet. I have walked in darkness. I have been saved, lifted from my old life...transformed from a heart of stone to a heart of flesh...filled with a new spirit, one that shines so brightly. I was lost, now I am found. I am a seeker, a giver, a child, a servant. I am young, vivacious, ambitious and curious. I am indecisive, caring, trustworthy, and unusual. I am faithful and understanding. I am a sister, a friend, a daughter, a lover. I am constantly learning, finding more about myself, about everything. I adore nature, spending time soaking in it's beauty. I adore stillness. I enjoy solitude almost as much as I enjoy being sociable. I wish I could fly like a bird so I could travel everywhere, on a mission. I hope to make the slightest impact on others throughout my life. I hope to always notice the good, rather than the bad. I hope I never loose myself or conform to the ways of the world. I hope I never forget to rest, taking time to cherish the good things in life, the simple things. I hope i never forget how to love or what it feels like to be in love. I hope I always remember my Savior, each and every day...worshiping Him in all that I do...remembering God's greatness, glorifying, speaking from my soul, hearing and thanking Him for numerous blessings. I hope in my times of trial, hardships and rocky roads that I know who strengthens me...that I am not alone, that I can do anything. I hope to look back on my life and smile, seeing my past filled with smiles...worriless and free. Constantly reminding myself of how great life really is, although it is hard and filled with struggles, but nothing that cannot be overcame. I hope to be successful; not in the sense of wealth or fame necessarily but in finding happiness within myself and others...always seeking God and loving endlessly. I hope to help many others find the Lord, realizing how much he LOVES them. But for now, I'm just me, trying to live a fruitful life.

You never let go of me...

"I can see a light that is coming for the heart that holds, and there will be an end to these troubles, but until that days comes...Still I will praise YOU, still I will praise You!"
<3