30 Hour Famine

I participated in my first 30 hour famine over the past couple days! It was not easy to not eat for a little more than 30 hours but I did successfully manage it. Friday I realized I tend to eat out of boredom and since I couldn't do that I was very productive! I got a ton of laundry done, including all my horse stuff and I tidied up my room.

Once at the Church it was fun to do all the different games, even running around freezing cold in the rain for a half an hour looking for flags. We watched a really touching video about a guy and his group of friends who went to Ethiopia and they told the story about a little boy who's mother was dying from AIDS. Totally brought me to tears. Then right after it was my turn to spend a half an hour in the prayer room. Candles were lit all over a table with a list of the devastating things going on in our world. I brought in my IPod and prayed and worshiped. It went by all too fast.

During that time I again got the strong pulling that I need to go to Africa as soon as I can. Maybe I can start saving up over the summer and go on a trip over Christmas break with Mocha Club. Last year they offered trips at that time and it would be the best timing. Please pray for me that I will do God's will whatever it might be and go wherever it might take me.

Benefit Concert

Breakpoint Worship Team

Just Passing Thru

Step Out in Faith

CRAZY LOVE
What in your life requires faith?
-normally something that scares you

*we tend to try to set our lives up so we don't need to have faith (play it safe)

Earth is temporary. Life is temporary.
Why as Christians do we want to stay here?

Heaven is our real home.

Our material possesions here don't matter, the relationships do.
-material possesions sin but can be silly

What do I keep to myself?
~plans --> my future

Matthew 25:
-Whatever you didn't do for the least of my brothers you didn't do for me

What are our priorities? we only have so much time.

After coming back to school from youth group I was talking to Alina and she gave me a new perspective on things. We were talking about Drew and what I had just heard and how we shouldn't want to stay here when Heaven is so beyond amazing. Then Alina said that as a Christian Earth should really be the only Hell we experience. I immediately went wow! In all reality how cool is that?!

Nocturnal Nightmare

Yay for an all nighter right before a volleyball game! lol. We went out to camp Leibenzell, which is not too far away from the barn. Set up was a basketball court, food and a dance party in the loft. There were about 20 kids there and right off the bat it was time for Fear Factor! The first round was dog food and milk. The second, cow tongue. The third, anchovies and sardine smoothies and the fourth and final round was pigs feet!

Then people played basketball, soccer, rock band, and sang karaoke the night away! After I was done working my shifts at the food table and outside I was way tired. It was like 4 in the morning and I had to get to sleep! I had to wake up at 7 in the morning to leave for our game.

Yummy!

Paula, Simon & Randy

Contagious Truth!

Keith & I.

Octoball!

Revival of the Basics

Pastor Bart Young

How can I get control of my life all the time?
~Joshua 22:5

*God never commands you to do something that is impossible or unreasonable.

TO LOVE THE LORD:
-Deuteronomy 6:5
+ in the n.t. they added "your mind"

<3
but your emotions are all over the place
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
God is the same yesterday, today and forever!
-------------------------

your soul = when you aren't trying
your strength = with all you have
your mind = your thoughts

you can't just pick one - you will be renewed when you use all

GRACE -> our motivation
when you just have salvation you are missing out on more that God has for you
~serving God is a way to get closer to Him

I have salvation & forgiveness of sins. Why do I need to do anything else?
-you don't have to but once we fully understand what God has done we should want to

1. Put God first
2. Take out the trash (change)
~Romans 12:2
3. Take some responsibility for your life
4. Have a plan
This week *Finish my devotional and start my new one*
If you have a plan, its ok for it to change, but at least you are going somewhere and doing something
5. Do something
~Proverbs 24:30-34

God will meet you where you are if we take that first step

God goes with Ice Cream

I had a great time at youth group tonight! I really do like it there, everyone is so welcoming and I like being able to remove myself from school and really focus on God. Before we got started with the message there was a relay race lol in giant underwear!

Here are my notes from the topic tonight:

Crazy Love
~ The world sees two types of people; the followers of Christ - those who live radically for Christ and the Christians - you are saved and will go to Heaven but you don't really have to change much
~ Is there such a thing as a Luke-warm Christian?
Luke-warm: going through the motions ("church") but no sacrifice

There is still always going to be sin but you always get back on the horse
We don't need to be perfect. That's been covered!
~ If Christianity was all about perfection then it wouldn't even be
Solutions for the Luke-warm Christian:
The answer is NOT try harder it is to fall madly in love with God!
"It all comes down to a heart issue." D.T. ;)

You should want to change and be noticeably different
To be a true follower of Christ it is a lifestyle *Like running up the down escalator*
Sometimes we have to go against the grain in order to see a difference

Nothing in this life will matter unless it's about loving God and others
-They will know we are Christians by our LOVE

On my way home everything just felt so peacefully great that the Dairy Queen I pass on my way home was totally calling to me so I just had to stop. They're having this special that has oreos and cookie dough all in one! So thats exactly what I had to get. And to make it better they don't scrape the top off, the guy gave it to me with inches of ice cream sticking out the top!

Yum!