It's purging time

I like clothes... like a lot. Oh and I also like shoes and purses... a lot. Throughout the years I have managed to accumulate way to much stuff. Between a packed closet and plastic bins filled with purses I'm on material overload. I have been feeling really convicted about the amount of stuff I have, so last night when I got home from work I decided it was time to purge. Time to purge things I hadn't worn... time to purge things that weren't as modest as they should be... time to purge the excess. I started to clear out my closet, and with each item I took out I felt a little better, which motivated me to take out another item, and another item. It was liberating to clear away the clutter piece by piece. Somehow it felt I was doing more than just making room in my closet. It felt like it was the beginning of a simpler life with less stuff. The purging was the easy part. Now comes the tough part... not adding double what I just took out.

Here's the pile of clothes I cleared out... and that pile is only going to continue to grow! The more I clean out, the better I feel. Once I collect it all I'm going to take everything that is in good shape to good will so that my clothes can have a second life with someone who might need them more than I did! Have you ever purged your closet? I strongly suggest you try it... it's a pretty awesome feeling! 

A challenge

I have a challenge for you guys (and myself). I challege you to not complain at all for a week, not even to "vent". Lately I've been really convicted about the amount of time I complain in my conversations, sometimes calling it "venting", but the bible says, "Do everything without complaining or arguing". I'm not saying this will be easy, and I will probably slip up, but I'm going to make it a priority to bring all my thoughts to God to keep myself from grumbling about the little things in life. Do you think you could go a week without "grumbling"?

Tattoos

Its that time of year again... time for a new tattoo. What they say is true, once you get one you keep wanting more! I have a few ideas for what I want I'm just not sure which one to go with first. Here are the two that I've narrowed it down to:

This would be on my right upper arm

This would be on my right shoulder... and would obv be a different font



Obviously I'm not very artistically talented, but these are general ideas of what I want... what do you think?

Here's to awesome weekends

I'd say this weekend was one for the books! It started with sweet frog ( a local frozen yogurt place ) and some bro sis time and then add an awesome downtown farmers market and my favorite coffee shop into the mix, ending it all with a fantastic church service and small group leaders meeting and I'd say it was simply perfect.

Also, here's some shout outs to some ballin companies, making a difference in our world! Their initiative and heart for others excites me!

Project 7

Hello Somebody

TOMS shoes and eye wear

Last but not least, this is a non profit owned my friend Kevin... it's pretty ballin! He loves people... like a lot!

Impact Georgia

Why?

I do this thing where I constantly question why God does things... I'm a pretty inquisitive person and that includes my interactions with Abba. I seem to put Him in a box and limit Him and His capabilities to my own understanding. If I don't get it than it can't be so... I always seem to be asking God to explain. But you know what, I'm not always going to know why, and neither will you. I'm reading "Erasing Hell" by Francis Chan and while a large portion of the book talks about Hell's existence and how long people go there for, the chapter I'm reading now talks about how just because we don't understand how or why God could do something doesn't mean that God couldn't do it. Like I personally don't completely understand how my kind, loving, merciful God could send anyone to Hell, but I know that He does. We don't have to understand, we just have to know that God, at the very center of who He is, is good and just and we just have to trust that. We won't always know the answer to why, but we can always count on God being who He says He is. Nothing is too difficult or impossible for Him! "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."(Isaiah 55:9)

Virginia Sunsets

Two of my favorite parts of God's creation... Sunsets and Mountains

And I get to see this view everyday... talk about blessed!! : )

LOVE

I.Am.Single. 21 years old, and not a man in sight, but you know what? That's ok with me. Don't get me wrong there are time when I struggle with being single... and going to a Christian university where the mantra for young females is "ring by spring" doesn't help my situation, but I am confident that in this time and place being single is right. But if I'm being honest, I can't wait to be married, I pray that this is a part of God's plan for me. I long for that more than traveling or career success or any other dream I might have. One of the deepest desires of my heart is to be married... to be a Godly wife to a Godly man. And to add insult to injury almost every one of my closest friend is either dating someone, engaged or married and there are days when I feel like the lone wolf... for some reason the summer was tough with this. But lately I have been feeling so rejuvenated... and I'm rediscovering my purpose... I had lost it for a little while. God is reminding me that in this time of singleness I can give him more than I ever have before. I can take the focus off of myself, and off of feeling sorry for myself and give my focus completely to God and others. My church's slogan is "Love God, Love People" and I want to adopt that as my own. This life isn't about me... it isn't about my struggles or even your struggles. Life is about love... "if I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging symbol... these three remain, faith, hope, and love, but the greatest of these is love". Love God and Love People.

Quote I like

Here's a quote from Captivating that I really liked... it rang true for me, I hope it does the same for you.

"... our negative emotions can become indulgences. When we camp our hearts in self-doubt, condemning thoughts or even shame because those emotions have become familiar and cofortable, we are faithlessly indulging rather than allowing our deep ache to draw us to God."
-Captivating

Also, this is my verse for the semester... "See I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up, do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland."-Isaiah 43:19. I see the beginnings of what God has in store for this year... and it's new and exciting and I can't wait to see what He does!!

worn shoes...

these are my first pair of TOMS...

They are wonderful and comfortable and have holes in the toes. I think that the most worn things are the most loved. Like a bible with bent pages and frayed edges... or my favorite pair of TOMS. Worn things are used a lot and loved a lot... sometimes worn=best. I think I'll wear these until they fall off my feet! : )

New school year... new start... newish blog

So I'm not really sure if anyone still reads this, but I've decided to revamp it a lil bit! For a year I wrote in this blog almost every day, sharing what God was teaching me and how I was applying what I was learning. It was almost like a journal for... a way to gauge how far I had come and how far I still needed to go. Now a little over a year later, I'm going to start expanding what I write about. Instead of it just being lessons I'm learning, I want it to be a place for me to share anything and everything... whether it be a yummy recipe, a cool picture, a song lyric, or a story I want to share the joy of the Lord on this blog. A relationship with God isn't all about lessons... there is freedom and joy in Him!! I'm ready to embrace life and find the joy and magic in each small moment! : )

Grace

Recently my parents were royally screwed over by someone they thought was a close friend. He was someone they loved and trusted and he took that love and trust and threw it back in their faces. It seems to have broken both my parents hearts, but I think more so my dad. He feels like somehow he's the one to blame for the whole mess, and he doesn't really like to talk about. It seems like everyday they find out another way this guy hurt them... but the emotion my dad has been choosing is not the one I often do... aka anger. Instead he has been defending this man, and showing him this incredible amount of grace. Instead of concentrating on the bad that was done, my amazing father is choosing to see the good that he did. My automatic reaction is to want justice... but in my dad's eyes the bill is already paid in full. This love reminds me of the love my heavenly father gives to me. Even when I forget Him and ignore Him and put other "gods" before Him, He still loves me and heaps grace on me. How lucky am I that I get two daddies that extend grace even when it is undeserved.

Journey Day 407

I just love that verse I posted last night. First off... "see I am doing a new thing." I love the idea that God can take the bad things in our life, or the unfortunate circumstances and make them into something new that He can use. I know that when I'm going through a valley there is nothing better than remembering that even in that moment God is doing a new thing in my life. Then God gives a little bit more hope for us... "I am making a way in the desert, and streams in the wasteland." In our dry periods... in the time when God's voice is more faint He is still making a way for us, a stream in the figurative wasteland of our life. We can always depend on the lover of our soul to do a new and exciting thing in our life. It might not be easy, or what we expected but it will be what's best for us! It will be our way in the desert.

Journey Day 406

I decided to go home to my parents house for the last two weeks of summer. I needed some refreshment and some perspective. I couldn't seem to shake my depression in Lburg and I needed to pry myself out of my funk and hopefully hear God a little clearer. I was a little nervous about going home for so long because I haven't kept in contact with a lot of people so I spend much of my visit sitting around my parents house. But I knew I needed my family and so I packed my bags and drove the 6.75 hours home. I love that drive because it gives one a large chunk of time to talk to God and clear your head. Needless to say it was the perfect start to my period of refreshment. Since day one of being home I have felt myself being renewed. I may not have a lot of friends in the Poconos, but luckily I come from a big family so there is always something to do. For example, today I got to sit in the middle of a big grass field and watch my little brother's soccer practice. He was adorable in his bright orange jersey that came past his knees, and I never felt so proud of him. I sat there journaling, reading and watching and I didn't feel an ounce of depression. It melted away, and all that remained was me... optimistic, happy Sarah. I've missed her, and slowly but surely I can feel her coming back and I'm loving every minute of it.

"See I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up, do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland." -Isaiah 43:19

Journey Day 404

I want to be a part of something bigger than myself. I want to be a part of a revolution. I want to have to give of myself... I want to sacrifice. I want to be filled with compassion and love. I want to be different, I want to be filled with Christ. I want to be far from who I used to be and closer to who God created me to be. Now I just have to figure out how to get there.

Journey Day 401

Today, as I was driving to PA to visit my family, God poured a healing truth into my heart. You see lately I have been struggling with my singleness and lack of absolute direction in my life. Sometimes I get mad at God, blaming him for my sadness, and accusing Him of wanting to keep the desires of my heart from me. "God don't you know how much I want to be in a relationship? Don't you want me to be happy? Jesus why isn't my life overflowing with new opportunities? Don't you want me to be successful? Where are you in my fear, and depression. Where are you in my loneliness and longings?" But as I was driving and listening to music, God answered all those questions. First off, there is only one direction and one type of success that really matters. The most important direction in our lives is following Christ, seeking after Him more and more each day. The success that God desires for us is more kingdom minded. Am I showing Jesus to people through my life? Am I loving others as Jesus would? Am I being His hands and feet? The success barometer the world uses is irrelevant to God. He measures in His own way. The more important truth for me though was this: God wants to give good things to me. He's not keeping a relationship from me to torture me, or make me unhappy. He's not trying to keep good things from me. His timing and will are perfect. When God doesn't give us what we want, when we want it, it isn't to make us miserable or keep us from something awesome. It's for a reason and a purpose. It's what's best for us and it is because God doesn't just want good things for us, He wants the best. Sometimes we are incapable of being objective and knowing what is the best for us, and so we are willing to settle for "just ok" or "pretty good". All the while, God is just hoping that we will wait patiently for what He has for us... for the absolute best... for the good thing that He has for our future. "For I know the plans I have for you." declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."