Praise Is Due Him...

So, it's been a rough, frustrating week. Class is coming to an end, which means finals. Work is always hectic, apparently the world would stop if there were no greeting cards. And school is chaotic for the next month, preparing children for kindergarten is not as easy as you think and, as crazy as it sounds, 4-year-olds have bad weeks sometimes! Needless to say, I have been stressed and, to make matters worse, I met with my department head Wednesday and found out some news I was not expecting to hear regarding my academic plans. With that said, I was grateful to wake up this morning and know that I was 24 hours away from the weekend. A much needed break from life.

Then, while dwelling in my self-pity and pondering my horrible week, this song came on. It's called I Will Sing and it is on my choir tour cd. Yeah, God uses some pretty random things to remind us that He is still on His throne and in charge of life, no matter how bad (that's a relative term) things are. I was brought to tears as I sat in my car and sang the chorus. God is bigger than my bad weeks and He has a plan for my life. He doesn't owe me any answers for why things happen the way they do. Life will never seem fair or make sense to me, but God sees the whole puzzle already put together, I don't. My response to Him should not change with my circumstances. I owe Him praise, not because of what He does, but for what He did and who He is. He is worthy! Pray for me! God is so good... :)

Lord You are good and I will sing

Your mercy endures, it's everlasting

Lord You are good and I will sing

A song of worship

Lord You are worthy to receive

Dominion and power honor and majesty

Lord You are good and I will sing

Of Your great love

Certain Uncertainty...

The heart of man plans his way,

but the Lord establishes his steps.

Proverbs 16:9

As I approach the end of this semester and begin the upward climb into my senior year (!!!!!) of college, I have gotten alot of questions about my future lately. And to be quite honest, that word (senior) and those questions, they SCARE me big time! For me to be so close to the end, I don't feel like I know any more about my future than I did when I started a few years ago. So, needless to say, I feel somewhat anxious and overwhelmed when I get questions like "What are your plans after graduation?" and "How long have you been interested in this field as a career?" And honestly, I don't know exactly how to answer questions like that, which I think may be the cause of my anxiety.

For those of you who know me, you know that all I have ever wanted for my life was a family. I want to be a wife and submit to and serve my husband. I want to be a mom and serve and teach my children. I want my husband to be a man of great integrity and known in our town as a man of incredible faith and discipline in the Word of God. I want the next great wave of preachers and missionaries to come from my home. I want my home to a place of worship, all hours of the day. I want the world to look upon my family and not see me or my husband or my children, but to see our pursuit to be more like Christ. May they look at us and see the cross that offers grace and hope and peace. I want my family to be a living, breathing representation of the power of Jesus Christ to save! Those are my plans after graduation.

But did you catch that all-important word in the last sentence you read? That is what I want. But at what point in Scripture does Jesus Christ ask my opinion about what I want? Oh that's right...NEVER! So, for now, I am learning how to wait. I am learning how to focus all of my attention on the cross and throne of Christ and waiting for Him to lead me in the right direction. I am learning how to trust the Lord with ALL my heart. I am learning how to be content with being single. I am learning how to apply the Word of God to my life now, so that when the time comes for me to be and do all of those things that I listed above, I will know how to do it from a Biblical, God-centered, Christ-exalting standpoint. I am learning how to be more like Jesus, which in turn will allow me to be the "wife of noble character" that I so desire to be. I am just me, just learning, just trusting, just loving, just waiting, just allowing Jesus to prepare me for the next season of life. Jenn Stinn once said, "The best way to be prepared for what God has for you in the future, is to be walking with the Lord today!" That pretty much sums it up! I am just trying to allow the Lord to prepare my heart for the plans He has for me after graduation. Pray for me! God is so good... :)

Happy Easter...

Oh death, where is your victory?

Oh death, where is your sting?

1 Corinthians 15:55

This song, How Deep The Father's Love For Us, paints any incredible picture of what Easter is all about. Forget the rabbits and eggs, the big dinners and candy, focus on the cross of Christ. This season stands as a reminder of the great price that was paid for us. Let us not blaspheme this time with our own silly traditions and distractions. It's all about the persecution, death, burial, and resurrection of our SAVIOR!! God is soo good... :)

How deep the Father's love for us

How vast beyond all measure

That He should give His only Son

To make a wretch His treasure

How great the pain of searing loss

The Father turns His face away

As wounds which mar the Chosen One

Bring many sons to glory

Behold the man upon a cross
My sin upon His shoulders
Ashamed I hear my mocking voice
Call out among the scoffers
It was my sin that held Him there
Until it was accomplished
His dying breath has brought me life
I know that it is finished
I will not boast in anything
No gifts, no power, no wisdom
But I will boast in Jesus Christ
His death and resurrection
Why should I gain from His reward
I cannot give an answer
But this I know with all my heart
His wounds have paid my ransom