A man died for my sins. A man gave his life so that I could be free. A man was wrapped in cloth and placed in a tomb to cleanse me. This man was the son of God and he was raised from the dead.
Tomorrow we will celebrate the power and the glory of our God.
The candy is great.
Hunting for eggs is entertaining.
Gifts from...the easter bunny...are welcomed.
But the true meaning of Easter is the highlight of Spring.
Happy Easter!
God Bless.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
How Time Flies
It's crazy to look back at your life.
1990: I was born.
1990-2007: Elementary School- when the hardest part of my day was deciding which lunch line to stand in and who to sit by. Junior High and High School- The most dramatic time of my life. The time when every young persons' hormones are racing and rubbing up against the boy you liked in the hallway gave you butterflies in your stomach...I gained many friends and grew apart from many friends.
Summer 2008 - my last year of youth camp. Oh, that summer was great...until I got home. My mother told me that while I was gone, my father had overdosed on his medications. He was still alive, but my spirit was broken. I began to imagine a life without my dad and I couldn't handle it. My dad and I talked about it, a lot. Our relationship, one that had never really existed, began to flourish that summer. I told him everything and talked to him every day. He was the person I trusted the most in the world.
October 7, 2008- the worst day of my life. This was the night I came home from work to discover that my father was not there. At 11:12 PM the police shared with us where they had found him. My mom, my brother and I huddled in a circle in the living room and cried. This day changed my life in ways I couldn't have imagined. It tore my life apart, but yet, it built it up.
2009-2010: I graduated from high school and moved away from mom's house. I started college and a brand new life. My mom got married in November of 2009. 2010 started off wonderfully. I started dating a wonderful guy and my roommates were the best people you could imagine. Things were perfect...until they broke my heart.
April 2010: It is so hard to think that this was one year ago. A year ago, I sat in my room, heartbroken and alone. The four people that were the most important in my life no longer felt the same. He left me for his ex-girlfriend, and my 3 best friends pushed me away. I spent that entire month completely alone. If it weren't for the grace of God and Krystal Stroud, I don't know where I would be. That angel gave me the strength and the direction to move on from the "terrible four".
From then to now: The last year of my life has truly tested me. I am so thankful for the way things have turned out. I hate that I had to go through the heartache, but honestly, I think you have to face some heartache before you can truly be happy. I am at such a wonderful point in my life. I miss my father every day of my life and I am not happy that he is gone. But I am thankful for the time we did have together and for all the things he has instilled in me. I am a strong, smart, beautiful, thoughtful, honest, hardworking woman. I have my mother and my father to thank for that. Working through the obstacles in your life is what makes you strong and it is what makes the final destination so much better. Just being handed a wonderful life is not rewarding, but realizing what you had to overcome to get there is the best feeling in the world.
Time really does fly by. There are horrible times, and there are wonderful times. There are times that you wish you could go through again because they were so much fun, and there are times that you wish you could go through again so things would turn out differently. But no matter what times you have had in your life, you have been built up. Look at the person you are and be thankful for those who got you to that point.
1990: I was born.
1990-2007: Elementary School- when the hardest part of my day was deciding which lunch line to stand in and who to sit by. Junior High and High School- The most dramatic time of my life. The time when every young persons' hormones are racing and rubbing up against the boy you liked in the hallway gave you butterflies in your stomach...I gained many friends and grew apart from many friends.
Summer 2008 - my last year of youth camp. Oh, that summer was great...until I got home. My mother told me that while I was gone, my father had overdosed on his medications. He was still alive, but my spirit was broken. I began to imagine a life without my dad and I couldn't handle it. My dad and I talked about it, a lot. Our relationship, one that had never really existed, began to flourish that summer. I told him everything and talked to him every day. He was the person I trusted the most in the world.
October 7, 2008- the worst day of my life. This was the night I came home from work to discover that my father was not there. At 11:12 PM the police shared with us where they had found him. My mom, my brother and I huddled in a circle in the living room and cried. This day changed my life in ways I couldn't have imagined. It tore my life apart, but yet, it built it up.
2009-2010: I graduated from high school and moved away from mom's house. I started college and a brand new life. My mom got married in November of 2009. 2010 started off wonderfully. I started dating a wonderful guy and my roommates were the best people you could imagine. Things were perfect...until they broke my heart.
April 2010: It is so hard to think that this was one year ago. A year ago, I sat in my room, heartbroken and alone. The four people that were the most important in my life no longer felt the same. He left me for his ex-girlfriend, and my 3 best friends pushed me away. I spent that entire month completely alone. If it weren't for the grace of God and Krystal Stroud, I don't know where I would be. That angel gave me the strength and the direction to move on from the "terrible four".
From then to now: The last year of my life has truly tested me. I am so thankful for the way things have turned out. I hate that I had to go through the heartache, but honestly, I think you have to face some heartache before you can truly be happy. I am at such a wonderful point in my life. I miss my father every day of my life and I am not happy that he is gone. But I am thankful for the time we did have together and for all the things he has instilled in me. I am a strong, smart, beautiful, thoughtful, honest, hardworking woman. I have my mother and my father to thank for that. Working through the obstacles in your life is what makes you strong and it is what makes the final destination so much better. Just being handed a wonderful life is not rewarding, but realizing what you had to overcome to get there is the best feeling in the world.
Time really does fly by. There are horrible times, and there are wonderful times. There are times that you wish you could go through again because they were so much fun, and there are times that you wish you could go through again so things would turn out differently. But no matter what times you have had in your life, you have been built up. Look at the person you are and be thankful for those who got you to that point.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Luck
Is there really such a thing? We use this word a lot. Think about it.
* You're so lucky that you found the man of your dreams.
* You're so lucky that you passed that test even though you didn't study.
* You're so lucky you got that job.
* You're so lucky to have wonderful friends.
I don't believe that luck is necessarily the reason for most things. Yes, it's commonly what we chalk our fortunes up to, but there's more to it. Look under the surface.
*The man of your dreams is hard to find, but it's not luck that brings him to you. It's patience and faith. You deserve someone as great as him, you aren't just lucky.
*Sure, you passed your test, but more than likely it's because you listened in class and did your assignments. You know the material - you didn't get lucky.
*They finally called you back for an interview and you got the job. I bet that had something to do with your job experience and wonderful report in your interview. And your job history and incredible recommendations probably helped. Not your "luck".
*Friends are so important in life and yours are amazing. You feel so lucky to have them. They're in your life because you are a wonderful person and you treat them the way they want to be treated. They love you and want to stick around. You didn't luck into getting great friends, you earned them and you keep them.
Sorry if I sound like a Debbie Downer, I just don't necessarily think luck plays a huge part in my life. I think, at least for me, anything that people may think was "lucky" was actually a result of hard work or dedication or faith or strength or fate. It bothers me when people say "you're so lucky..." as if they aren't. I work hard for the things I have and I didn't luck into getting them.
* You're so lucky that you found the man of your dreams.
* You're so lucky that you passed that test even though you didn't study.
* You're so lucky you got that job.
* You're so lucky to have wonderful friends.
I don't believe that luck is necessarily the reason for most things. Yes, it's commonly what we chalk our fortunes up to, but there's more to it. Look under the surface.
*The man of your dreams is hard to find, but it's not luck that brings him to you. It's patience and faith. You deserve someone as great as him, you aren't just lucky.
*Sure, you passed your test, but more than likely it's because you listened in class and did your assignments. You know the material - you didn't get lucky.
*They finally called you back for an interview and you got the job. I bet that had something to do with your job experience and wonderful report in your interview. And your job history and incredible recommendations probably helped. Not your "luck".
*Friends are so important in life and yours are amazing. You feel so lucky to have them. They're in your life because you are a wonderful person and you treat them the way they want to be treated. They love you and want to stick around. You didn't luck into getting great friends, you earned them and you keep them.
Sorry if I sound like a Debbie Downer, I just don't necessarily think luck plays a huge part in my life. I think, at least for me, anything that people may think was "lucky" was actually a result of hard work or dedication or faith or strength or fate. It bothers me when people say "you're so lucky..." as if they aren't. I work hard for the things I have and I didn't luck into getting them.
***Well, Allison, what about winning the lottery?!Good point. You can't exactly win the lottery using your hard work, intelligence, skills, dedication, or even pulling your shirt down low enough for the clerk behind the counter...perhaps that is luck. Or maybe it's just timing - you happened to get the right ticket at the right time. I don't know. But for the majority of my experiences, luck is not the reason. If you feel so unlucky, try patience and hard work! :)
Thursday, April 7, 2011
When one door closes, another one opens.
My mom has told me this for years. You never want to hear it because you're too preoccupied worrying about the closed door. You feel like there has to be a way to open it again. But the truth is, behind that door lies a part of your past. Whether it's a person, a lifestyle, a job, or an idea, it is not meant to be a part of your future.
You have to simply change direction and look for a new opening. Like a parent with their child, God would never trap you in a room and risk your life with no way out. The thing is, sometimes we feel like that is exactly what is happening.
When that "relationship" door closes, we wander around looking for another door. But honestly, when do we ever find what we're looking for? It's when we stop looking! It's in a place you wouldn't expect, a place you thought you had already looked. Then you meet that guy at work who makes you smile like a school girl. Good thing that crappy "energy company working - ex girlfriend loving - empty nothingness of a future" boyfriend closed the door.
Sometimes the door is like an entry to a casino- BRIGHT LIGHTS, big doors, and tons of people flowing through it. No question about it, you know where to go! Sometimes it's more like the hole that those pesky bugs get through- you just can't find it anywhere! But there IS a door. Or a window. Or at least a little peep hole that you can peer through while you're waiting for God to finish building the stupid door you're looking for. Either way, there is a way out. When the time is right, you will find it, it will open, and you will discover something glorious. Now we just have to work on finding the patience we need to wait for that time.
I'm done reflecting now. Time to get some sleep because I have a door opening in the morning and I can't wait to see the person on the other side! :):)
You have to simply change direction and look for a new opening. Like a parent with their child, God would never trap you in a room and risk your life with no way out. The thing is, sometimes we feel like that is exactly what is happening.
...Our boyfriend dumps us and the world comes to a STOP. Our life cannot continue if he is not sitting next to us holding our hand and giving us a shoulder to cry on. COME ON LADIES, think this through. Think about the ex-boyfriend that you cried over. Where is he now? Who is he dating? What is his job? Most of the time, his future is looking pretty bleak. Now, is that the future you want for yourself? Personally, I don't want a boyfriend who is hooked on his ex-girlfriend, working for some crappy energy company driving a car around all day and coming home smelling like sweat and death, heading in a direction with no education and no purpose...
When that "relationship" door closes, we wander around looking for another door. But honestly, when do we ever find what we're looking for? It's when we stop looking! It's in a place you wouldn't expect, a place you thought you had already looked. Then you meet that guy at work who makes you smile like a school girl. Good thing that crappy "energy company working - ex girlfriend loving - empty nothingness of a future" boyfriend closed the door.
Sometimes the door is like an entry to a casino- BRIGHT LIGHTS, big doors, and tons of people flowing through it. No question about it, you know where to go! Sometimes it's more like the hole that those pesky bugs get through- you just can't find it anywhere! But there IS a door. Or a window. Or at least a little peep hole that you can peer through while you're waiting for God to finish building the stupid door you're looking for. Either way, there is a way out. When the time is right, you will find it, it will open, and you will discover something glorious. Now we just have to work on finding the patience we need to wait for that time.
I'm done reflecting now. Time to get some sleep because I have a door opening in the morning and I can't wait to see the person on the other side! :):)
Friday, April 1, 2011
Short and Sweet.
Sometimes a little alone time does the soul good.
I wrote a song tonight.
I started learning piano when I was about 10 years old.
I loved it.
I think most of the reason was because I had an amazing teacher!
Her family and our family really bonded.
I babysat her daughter and I used to spend the night with them and eat pizza and watch movies.
It was altogether a wonderful experience.
Now, playing piano is an escape.
My fingers just flow across the keys and the music fills my ears.
It brings a smile to my heart.
More recently, I have had a lot of time to sit and practice and reminisce.
My emotions flow through my body and come out of the tips of my fingers.
It is such a refreshing feeling to let them out in a productive way.
I'm no Whitney Houston or Adele, but I can sing when I want to.
My heart is softer tonight as I sing at the top of my lungs with no one around to hear.
<3
I wrote a song tonight.
I started learning piano when I was about 10 years old.
I loved it.
I think most of the reason was because I had an amazing teacher!
Her family and our family really bonded.
I babysat her daughter and I used to spend the night with them and eat pizza and watch movies.
It was altogether a wonderful experience.
Now, playing piano is an escape.
My fingers just flow across the keys and the music fills my ears.
It brings a smile to my heart.
More recently, I have had a lot of time to sit and practice and reminisce.
My emotions flow through my body and come out of the tips of my fingers.
It is such a refreshing feeling to let them out in a productive way.
I'm no Whitney Houston or Adele, but I can sing when I want to.
My heart is softer tonight as I sing at the top of my lungs with no one around to hear.
<3
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