I can't believe it has been almost 5 years since I've posted on here. So much has happened in my life and I can't begin to tell you how much God's hand has been seen throughout all of it. First things first, I have been going to college for a year and a half. I am now in nursing school and have just completed my first semester! A music major did not turn out to be what God had in store for me...perhaps a music minor in the future. We'll see. I have always felt God's calling in my life to be a nurse...and I have never felt it as strong as those moments during clinical when I am with my patients. It's hard. It's CRAZY hard. There were so many moments of wanting to give up throughout this past semester and so many times where I would begin to doubt whether I was really cut out for this kind of career. It takes so much skill, knowledge, intuition, courage, confidence, energy, and PRAYER. But, God helped me through my first semester...so I know He'll continue to do so. Nursing school is now my life and there's really not much else going on now. Thankfully (at the moment) I am enjoying an amazing Christmas break with my family and close friends. That's all for now. Merry Christmas everyone!! And remember....JESUS IS THE REASON FOR THE SEASON. God bless.

Last Day At The Hospital

Well, this day has been full of mixed emotions. It's my very last day at the hospital. Just the thought of it makes me a little sick in my stomach to be honest. It's so hard to believe how fast the summer has gone by. I just hugged good-bye to two of my fellow workers before they left a few minutes ago. They were telling me to make sure I found out where they are working next summer so I can be with them. They are going to be GREATLY missed. Thank you Lord for this awesome opportunity I've had here at the hospital! Watch over my friends here and bless them for their friendship they've given me. In an hour and a half - my volunteering at the hospital will be over.

Forgiving Like God Forgave

Lately I have been struggling to forgive someone. I won't go into any details, but I have been hurt - and it's very hard to forgive them for what they have done to me. But in God's word, I am reminded to be forgiving because He forgave me for all my sins. The bible says, "Be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another. Even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." That says it all right there.
Just a couple nights ago, I told the Lord that I'd finally forgiven that person, because we are all sinners. I sin just as much. It took a lot of faith to do that, but I know it was the right thing to do. It's very hard, so I am asking God for his strength and love to help me through it.
If you are having second thoughts about forgiving a specific person - or it could even be more than one person...remember this....God forgave you for every single sin you have committed, so why can't you forgive someone for just a few sins they have committed against you? Take my advice. Forgive them. If you don't, you will feel miserable because you will always be thinking about the bad things they have done toward you. Here's a thought. Dwell on the good things they have done and are doing. We are to strive to be more like our Father every day. If we can't forgive like He forgave us, then we WON'T be doing what God has called us to do.

Results Of Camp 2010!

I'M BACK!!!! Yes, camp is over and I am outrageously exhausted!! I don't have any clue where to begin! I guess I'll just start out by saying that these past two weeks have been a blast, a great learning experience, and a true blessing.
First off...last week I made an AWESOME friend whose name is Tiffany - I can't tell you how much I felt like the Lord used me in her life. I won't give any of her background info however since it's private. I will just say that she's had a difficult life and still is going through a hard time, but she's coming around and has been saved by the grace of God. Just last week however she recommitted herself to the Lord- of which I encouraged her to do! Like I said, I won't go into any details, but I encouraged her A LOT about spiritual things - I hope she'll never forget the things I shared. I know without a doubt that she was the reason God put me in teen camp this year. He answered my prayers - I wanted to be an encouragement to someone so badly...and my Father gave me that opportunity!!
On Friday I left teen camp very excited but very tired. So I spent a couple days resting and regaining my strength for the following week of which I knew I would need it.
Monday came and off I went back to camp to be a junior cabin leader. When I arrived I found out I was placed in Girls Cabin #1 with all the little girls! I love taking care of 8, 9, and 10 years olds because I seem to be really good with them - so I was really hoping I'd be put with that age group...and what do you know?! I was!
We had a meeting for all the leaders and then the week began. Eight little girls were in my cabin along with the cabin leader and another junior cabin leader - eleven of us all together. The girls names were Hayley, Heaven, Carly, Kirstie, Jalynn, Shania, Bailey, and Michelle. The very first night after campfire, Hayley wanted to talk with me. So I sat down, talked with her a little, and found out that she wanted to recommit. So I prayed with her, and then she prayed silently, with me closing again in prayer. She was very quiet and didn't open up a whole lot to me at first, so I naturally thought that she had just recommitted herself to God - that's what she told me. It turns out however, later on in the week the camp director talked with me and said that he thought she had gotten saved. I told him of course that she told me she recommitted. Thinking that there was some confusion going on, he gave me a track to explain to her the plan of salvation, just in case. So I did. I asked her if she got saved that night - and she said yes! I made sure she understood everything, gave her the track and that was that. Still to this day, I really have no idea what went wrong! All I know is that she accepted Jesus as her Savior sometime during the week and that's enough for me!
On Wednesday night - the very last night - Carly wanted to talk with me. So we sat down on the stony/grassy ground next to our cabin and discussed what salvation meant and why it was important. Thankfully, Carly had already asked Jesus to come into her heart a year or two before. But since she was so young, she just wasn't sure if she understood it all. After I talked with her however, she did. I prayed with her that night as she recommitted her life to God her Father in Heaven! God had allowed me to help two more people! What an amazing blessing it was to me and I pray it was a blessing to all of them as well!
Camp 2010 was outstanding, and I NEVER will regret going!!

Gone Until July 15

Just want to really quickly let all of you know that I WILL NOT be posting anything until after July 15. I am heading to camp this week, and I will be a junior cabin leader next week - so I am busy! Be praying for me though. Pray that God would use me to encourage someone either in their walk with Christ or someone to begin a walk with Christ - can't wait to see what the Lord is going to do! I just hope that I am prepared enough to share scripture and truths in the bible - I know the truths, I just haven't exactly memorized the verses that prove the truths I believe...this is something I am going to have to work on! Pray that all of us at camp will be safe, have fun, and be encouraged by the word of God! CAMP 2010 HERE I COME!!

One Nation Under GOD

 Getting ready for a wonderful night of food, fellowship, and fireworks! And then tomorrow I am heading off to spend a week at camp!
But for a few moments I really want to stress something. This nation that we live in was founded by Biblical principles. You can argue with me all you want - but IT'S A FACT. No question about it. Our founders WERE NOT ATHEISTS! They were true Christians who believed in Jesus Christ the Son of God!!
But now our nation is straying from God and crumbling right before our eyes. WE CHRISTIANS ARE NOT DOING OUR PART. The world seems to think we are all hypocrites - and for some, it's true. But do you want to be a hypocrite? Why don't we all stand for God and witness to people we are with every single day - if we did that, I have no doubt in my mind that America would be a better place. Too often, we sit back and are lazy. Sometimes you have to leave your comfort zone to do what the Lord has called you to do. The United States will just get worse if we don't reach out to the unbelievers. Be sincere and honest with them. We are not perfect, we all sin, but God loves us so much and died for us! Even witnessing to every person you see every day could never repay what He did for you and I.
Our nation used to be UNDER GOD. But it's not any more! And God's judgement will come soon if we don't plead with Him to hold it off just a little longer, so that we can reach more people with the gospel.  We need to go back to the principles that began this wonderful nation. WE NEED TO BE A NATION UNDER GOD ONCE AGAIN. But it won't happen if we Christians don't stand up and start sharing the gospel with everyone around us.
On this Independence Day, we need to celebrate the freedoms we have - of which we will soon loose if we're not careful, we need to praise God for making the U.S.A. such a strong and powerful nation, but we need to plead with God that He would heal our land and that he would give us the courage to rise up and become witnesses on fire for Him! Our nation is bleeding, and it's straying far from God. He can lift His hand of blessing from this nation any time He wants. And to be honest, we deserve it. But plead with God that He won't, and be a witness for Him in this amazing country we live! GOD BLESS THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

Trust In Your Father

Lately I've been really having to trust in God. I have different things going on in my life that are just really bothering me and I can't exactly tell how everything is going to turn out. Thus, I get frustrated. But thankfully I am not alone, because I have the Lord by my side ALL the time no matter what. And what a relief that is!! It seems like every day I've read my bible recently, he's always telling me to trust in Him and have faith, because every thing will work out for the good. I've had to be constantly reminded of that - and it's such a wonderful truth!
When times like this come into your life, it's always a really good idea to be in God's word. That's the best way for the Lord to talk to you and encourage you to do what's right. Just lay your burdens down before Him, because we can't fix our problems by ourselves anyway!
I know I have covered this topic numerous times on this blog, but I just feel like it is one of the most important principles to having a good Christian walk with God. If you can't trust Him, then how can you say that you love Him? It just would not make any sense. God is in control of everything and He desires for us to have faith in Him. If he takes care of creation, He will SURELY take care of you! Trust in your Father who created you and loves you more than anyone else ever will!!!

Volunteering...Nurse or Music Major?

Tomorrow I begin volunteering at a hospital for the summer! I am really excited about it because I know God has called me to do this...however, I am kind of nervous. I hardly know what to even expect. I'm just praying that the Lord will give me confidence and peace.
For the past couple weeks I have been going in and out of the hospital for TB tests and readings....which has actually been pretty fun to be honest. Every time I was in the hospital, I just felt like that was where I belong. Almost my entire life I wanted to become a nurse. Of course, every once in a while I would change my mind - later changing my mind again back to being a nurse. It's only been the past year I felt like I was supposed to go into music. Now I am not so sure. I just keep feeling that being a nurse is something I need to do. It really didn't dawn on me until recently that I could always have a minor in music. Because I still feel like I should do something with music. The signs that I needed to go into music that the Lord kept showing me in the fall, now seem to be just that God was telling me I should not give up on my musical abilities, and that I should have a minor at college in music. For some reason I think I took a little too far, by assuming that He wanted me to have a full major. I just don't know yet. Once I start volunteering, I should get a pretty good idea if being a nurse is really something I want to pursue.
Right now I just need to pray and ask for God's wisdom, and that no matter what I decide, He'll still use me this summer at the hospital to encourage people in the Lord and maybe even lead some to salvation in Christ!

My God Is Great

My God is so great!! Yesterday I gave my testimony...and He was in it I can say with no doubt. He gave me clarity of thought, peace, joy, and He calmed my nerves...and He also gave me words to say that blessed the girls' hearts. Afterwards, one girl told me that "it was just awesome!"
I'm just so thankful that the Lord used me to encourage some people...praise the Lord! HE IS SO GOOD!!

Giving My Testimony

Well my testimony is officially in two days...and I think the Lord has finally shown me what to speak about. It will still have the theme of living for God now...because He is coming back soon but it is also going to intertwine how our Christian walk won't always be easy. How Satan attacks you sometimes for making decisions for the Lord, and basically how he is totally and wholly against you and God your father.
I also plan to encourage them to not live carelessly and take their precious time thinking that "when they get older, THEN they can serve God"...because you just loose time using that strategy and you may be too late.
My thoughts are coming together and I really think this is what the Lord is leading me to hit home with. If you're a believer in Jesus, I ask you to pray for me. Pray that the Lord would use me in the girls lives and that the Lord would just speak through me. And also that God would calm my nerves. It's never easy getting up in front of almost 80 girls, and giving them your testimony. It's certainly getting out of your comfort zone sometimes, but it's what the Lord wants me to do...AND I'M GOING TO DO IT NO MATTER WHAT. :)
"The Lord is my rock and my refuge..."

"Well Done Thou Good And Faithful Servant!"

Tomorrow my older sister is giving her testimony in front of about 80 girls...talk about nerve-wrecking! I'm praying that the Lord will lead her in what to say. And also that the Lord will use her words to encourage the girls listening. She's done this before, so I have great confidence that she'll do a wonderful job!
Next week is my time to give a testimony...and I still don't know for sure what I'm going to be talking about. The thought that keeps running in my head is the theme on doing as much as you can for the Lord...because time is short. Jesus Christ is coming back very soon! It's seems that this year especially I've been more focused on using my talents for the Lord...mainly singing and playing the piano at my church and other places we are invited. I've suddenly felt this urge to do MORE AND MORE for the Lord, because as I said...I don't have a lot of time! It's either me going to heaven soon or Jesus Christ coming back! Time is short. I strongly encourage you to stop waiting to use your talents for God if you are...use them now! Use them at your church, bible study, or maybe even at work - there are so many possibilities! But time is running out...when you stand in front of Christ, giving Him an accout of your life...will you feel ashamed or will you feel like you did the best you could possibly do for Him? I hope and pray that the Lord will be able to say to you..."Well done thou good and faithful servant. Enter thou into the joy of the Lord!"

My Christian Testimony

Right now I really feel like the Lord is leading me to share my testimony with you. So here it goes...


I was born and raised in a Christian home, so I've really always known about God and how he died for my sins on the cross. Until I was about 5 years old however, I had not accepted Him as my Savior. So when that special day came, I was in my bed, ready for my mom to put my sister and I to sleep. The holy spirit prompted me to ask my mom if I could be saved, so she she prayed with me that night...and this began my christian journey.
For about eight years after that wonderful day, I really was not living for God the way I should have been. Yes, I was saved...but I didn't seem to take my walk with God seriously. I regret that very much as I could have been a wonderful encouragement to more people and possibly might have lead some of my friends to Christ. I have no excuse for the way I was then.
One night, about eight years after my salvation, my family and I were gathered together in a room. That year we had been facing many trials and enemy attacks because of certain ministries we served in. So we were doing a "popcorn" prayer where each of us prayed to God for guidance and help. I remember feeling the Lord moving in that room. I could just feel my whole self saying..."Stop now! It's enough! Stop living the way you are! Get right with God tonight!". After the prayer we all went to bed. As I lay there under the covers, I didn't wait one more minute. With tears streaming down my face I asked for God's forgiveness, and devoted my life to the Lord. I will never forget that night, I felt so relieved when I was finished. I knew I was finally right with God. What an amazing feeling it was!
And upon my word, the VERY next day my sister and I were asked to accompany a christian friend of ours to help lead a children's program in a different city that would be held in 2-3 months! God was already at work! He knew I would be asked to do this, and thank the Lord for his grace...I got things settled with Him just barely in time! And it wasn't just this great opportunity...MANY others came up as well, not too long after my heart got right with my Father. One was that I became a small group leader in a bible study I serve, which was so honoring and I took this opportunity God gave me under my wings immediately!
But the most outstanding opportunity my GREAT Lord gave me...was leading my younger cousin to Christ. Yes, the Lord allowed me to lead my seven year old cousin to God!! I still find it hard to believe. But here's the story how it happened...
It was close to Thanksgiving, a time when my family and I all head to another city for a big family reunion. Before the trip I had felt that the Lord was possibly leading me to witness to one of my cousins who happened to be a year older. So I brought an extra bible with me that I had had for a few years as a gift from a my teacher. I thought it would be a nice thing to give to her if the Lord allowed the opportunity.
When we got to the city, the next day me and a whole lot of family members gathered together in a little building we had rented out for our reunion. It was a very nice time, but I never got the opportunity to talk to this one particular cousin I "thought" the Lord wanted me to witness to. Instead, God had other plans. That night while many of us were all still there one of my younger cousins whom I had never met before in my life until that Thanksgiving came up to me and started asking questions about Satan and things that had to do with that spirit world. The Lord was about to do something amazing not only in hers, but in my own. Once I had answered her questions as best as I could she ran off with her other cousins into "the corner" as we always refer to it as. It's a place where all the cousins love to eat, talk, and play together. A couple minutes later I felt the holy spirit moving me to go back there in the corner and talk with them or just to see what they were doing. So I did.
For some odd reason I can't remember how the conversation really started about salvation, but through exchange of words I began witnessing to her. It seemed like a dream I was living in, I had only imagined myself leading someone to Christ! I told her the gospel, of which she seemed to embrace very quickly and was practically ready to ask Jesus in her heart before I was even finished! I was amazed at how recessive she was. I made sure she understood salvation and why she needed it, and also what she needed to do after she accepted Christ (read bible, pray, be baptized, live for God). And in a few short minutes we bowed our heads while she prayed to ask Jesus Christ to be her Savior! I was so emotional afterwards, it is such a hard feeling to explain because I have never felt that happy before in my life! I hugged her with tear filled eyes as she was smiling. I had just lead my seven year old cousin to the Lord...ME! I remember going into the room where all the adults were and quietly telling my mom and sister the wonderful news. They were so surprised and I couldn't keep my tears back any longer...I  had to let them all out! And of course I ran to the bathroom to take care of the rest of my emotions. But I know that angels were singing heavenly praises to God the moment my cousin finished her salvation prayer. I will never EVER forget that day. And I solidly encourage you to take every opportunity you have to witness to someone...you will not regret it. I do remember asking her if she had a bible...and what do you know! She didn't. So the next day I brought her that bible, of which she took with great care and joy! I could see the happiness she had in her eyes...it still makes me feel so honored that the Lord would allow me of all sinners to lead this little girl to Christ. I am so humbled and full of joy and thankfulness!
Since that day my confidence grew in what I believed and in WHO I believed. Christ has been so good to me! Yes, I am not perfect. I am just a sinner saved by grace through Jesus. But I do know where my home is...it's in heaven. I hope your's is there too.

Praise Him No Matter What

"Praise ye the Lord. O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever."   
                                                                  Psalm 106:1

Today has had a lot of good and a lot of bad in it. I got a wonderful grade on that test I was talking about yesterday...of which I am still thanking the Lord over and over again! But, sadly this evening another one of our does kidded - prematurely. The babies had around a month left to go before they were supposed to enter this world. But they came anyway...and they died. They were just too young. My heart is still aching that somehow the Lord would have allowed them to wait until their due date. It is very hard to praise God during hard times. I have to admit, I was having a little trouble with that when this happened. However, I'm slowly accepting it now. But God has still been so good to us. As I have said more than once on this blog...there is a reason for the hard time you are going through right now. It's obviously His will and we need to learn to accept it. PRAISE HIM NO MATTER WHAT. He knows what's good for you. He has something good that's just waiting to come out of this trial you're facing. To tie this series of "how to handle trials" posts...Trust in God and Don't give up on Him! HE KNOWS BEST.

Praise God at all times, praise God for what He has done for you, give Him praise for everything He's given you, praise Him for the life you are living, praise God for the family and friends you have to encourage you to "keep going no matter what!", praise God for dieing on the cross for your sins, praise Him for the forgiveness He's has given you, praise Him that you dont' have to go to hell, praise God for all the people he has allowed you to encourage and possibly lead to Christ, PRAISE GOD!!! Give Him the praise he deserves. 

I pray that in everything you do, God will have the glory and honor, and HE alone will have your praise.  

Fully Trusting

Today I have a very big test I'm taking...and I have to admit - I'm not too excited about it. Namely, because I'm worried I'm going to get a bad grade, which is not good. So I'm just trying to trust that whatever happens with this test, it will work out for the good no matter what. I am just trusting in God.
Do you have those times in your life where you just feel like you can't trust God? Where you just feel like..."He's messed up things before! I can handle this myself.". First of all, if you have...God does NOT mess things up. It's all simply a part of his plan for your life. He has a purpose and a reason. Secondly, you may think you can handle it your self, but in reality...YOU CAN'T HANDLE ANYTHING WITHOUT GOD. Seriously, admit it. When we try to do things by our self without our Father's help...things get extremely messy, and there's also consequences! So next time you think you will be fine without His help, remember this - you wont' be.
Trusting in God requires faith. You can't trust God if you don't have faith in Him. Too many times Christians just flat out forget about having faith in Him. He's the only reason we are here, He gave us what we have, so why wouldn't we have faith in Him? Plus, if we put our faith in anything or anyone else, our lives will be miserable, 100% possitive. So have faith in God, and stop putting other things or people above him on your priority list, because things will only get worse if you do.
The bible says "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not unto thine own understanding". What do you think this says? Well it is basically what I just was talking about a minute ago. We need to stop trying to handle things on our own (leaning on our own understanding) and put our trust in God with our whole heart - not just part of it. That's another thing believers struggle with. Fully trusting in God with your whole heart can be challenging, especially during really hard times in your life. So many times we give him a little bit of our heart, but then hold back the other piece. If you do that, you are basically holding back a burden that the Lord could take from you to give you some peace. But too often we keep holding on and won't let go. The right thing to do is give that other piece of our heart and put it all in the hands of God, because He controls everything anyway.
Trust in God. Don't hold your trust back. He wants your heart and mind fully relying on Him at all times, no matter what the circumstance.

Who Do You Love Most?

As you all know, Valentine's Day is coming up. It's a holiday all about love. And in order to show that person or people your love you give them valentines, chocolates, teddy bears, jewelry...you get my point. It's a very sweet holiday that I do enjoy celebrating. But I just want to encourage you on this Valentine's Day to really think about who it is you love the most. Is it your wife or husband (if you are married), is it your parents, your siblings, your friends - I'm sure you could name off a whole bunch of more people...or is it God? Just think about it. Who do you think you should love the most? God or someone here on earth? Well I'm sure you've already guessed the answer...it's GOD! He should be your number one person you love, and He should be FIRST on your priority list, no questions asked. Yes, there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with loving someone here on earth, that's not what I'm saying. Trust me, I can name off people that I love right now if I wanted to. But who do you personally love most? Be honest. If a person here on earth comes to mind first, don't shove it off. You need to get things straight right now. God died for your sins so that you did not have to pay the punishment for them and so that you could go to heaven when you die! JESUS CHRIST LOVES YOU! It's says in the bible, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him, should not perish but have everlasting life."!  Mark my words, when Christ was on the cross...HE WAS THINKING OF YOU. He knew you would be born, and he already knew his plan and purpose for your life. And he already knew that he wanted to have a personal relationship with you. And he already knew what you would look like...name it - and HE KNEW!

He's the one who gave us what we have today, and He's the one who has given us the people we love....he created them himself! So why wouldn't He be the One you love the most? He should be. And if He is not, it either means you are not a believer or you are a wavering Christian...I URGE you to get things right. He has so much He's just waiting to show you and use you for! We humans just make everything difficult. Living for yourself always ends in heartache....does that sound fun to you?
So I am praying that this Valentine's Day will be a happy one for you but that it would also a be a holiday to get you to think...who do you love most? God or someone else? I'm praying that it's God...HE SO LOVES YOU!