He Finally Said Yes!

I have some very exciting news everyone!

I interviewed for a camp about a month ago, and they called me late last night.

They offered me a job this Summer!!

I couldn't believe it.

I am officially going to be a Camp Counselor at Pine Cove Christian Camps at the Ranch for the first half of the Summer :)

All year God has been telling me, "Daughter, be patient. I will give to you when you are ready."

Those words from God were so hard to take. I wanted things to happen instantly.

I wanted good friends. I wanted to find a home church. I wanted to work at Pine Cove. I wanted to make an impact on the world, etc.

I wanted and wanted and wanted things to happen, but God said to wait.

So, I waited patiently upon the Lord. I prayed constantly. I told Him if it's His plan for me to work there, then let it be.

AND HE FINALLY SAID YES!!

God listens to our prayers.

His plan for your life is so much greater. Remember to trust Him with everything.

Give up your plan because God's is far greater.

When you are worried or struggling or confused, Look to the Father. He listens intently. He is the One you go to with your struggles and hardships. He is always there.

So, remember to wait patiently. Time is in God's hands and His timing is PERFECT :)

Love to all!

And God Bless.

Worrying OH Worrying

I go to this worship time every Tuesday called Shiloh.

And every single time I leave, my mind is so crazy.

Thoughts just running through my head.

Right about now I should be studying for my HUGE Biology test, but I just can't because my mind keeps running.

I have learned recently that I am a Worrier.

Here are just a few things running through my head:

-What should I do with my life?

-I wonder if I will get a job at Pine Cove Summer Camps or not?

-Should I go on a mission trip this Summer?

-Are my grades going to be good enough to get in the Nursing Program? Should I keep striving to be a nurse?

-Are the friends I am making now, friends who will be life-long and always there for me through the bad times and good?

-Is my brother doing okay? I miss him.

-How are my Africa friends doing?

-I'm interested in a boy, but is he interested in me?

-Am I invisible to certain people?

-Why can't I trust God with EVERYTHING?

-Why am I thinking so much?

-Why do I keep worrying?

So, these are only the few things running through my head...I know it's a lot.

Do you ever feel like all you do is think and worry about your life.

Why do we do this?

Because we aren't trusting God with out lives.

We have to fully give ourselves over to Him.

Why is this so hard? Because we want to control our lives. We love plans. We love the power.

STOP WORRYING and Do something awesome for the Kingdom.

Think that way.

"Trust STEADILY, Hope UNSWERVINGLY, Love EXTRAVAGANTLY." 1 Corinthians 13:13

Struggling

Trust is a very hard thing.

I'm obviously still learning.

Today was just not my day.

I had not been worrying about my future for weeks. Letting God take care of it all because His plan is better than mine.

But today, my trust in the Lord was tested beyond belief.

At Samford this morning we had to sign-up for classes for Spring Semester. I woke up at approximately 5:45am. At 6:00am the registration crashed. I preceded to wait until 7:20am to sign-up for my classes. BUT, some students got to put in all there classes and get there teachers at 6am because it didn't crash for them.

I was not lucky enough to enjoy that precious moment.

I waited and refreshed my computer page over 100 times until it was finally my turn to sign-up for my classes. I clicked Submit, and saw the dreaded news.

Out of 4 classes that I needed, I only received one class. I had to go back and pick different teachers at random times that was not what I had planned. It was just awful!

I still can't get into an Anatomy class that I REALLY NEED!

I sat in astonishment.

I couldn't believe it.

Why was my plan not working? I had my days planned to a T. It was going to be pure BLISS.

But now, I have miserable classes.

I had to rush to Biology class at 8am and then right after I called my mom.

Man, do I miss her!!

She can't help me since I am now independent and on my own. I am okay with that, but all I wanted was a hug from her. She let me know that it would be alright. God is in control.

Really?!

God is in control?!

What is He doing? I had a plan. It was perfect.

But, that's not what He had in mind.

I keep asking myself, "Lord, what do you want me to do?"

The Lord is really testing my Trust in Him. He keeps saying, "Beautiful Daughter, Look to me for guidance. Seek after Me alone. Trust in my Love, daughter."

You have to give up your own plan. give up your own thoughts. Give it up.

Let the Lord have your worries, your plans, your life. Because, He is so much better.

So, this week I will be working on Trusting Him.

Please send a prayer my way. And I will be praying for you too.

Love to all.

God Bless!

Take the Time

I've learned over the past few weeks that you have to take the time to be alone every once in a while.

Isolation is not my forte...

I am a people person.

An Extrovert to be exact.

Hence, I am NOT good at being alone.

BUT, God put me in a place of aloneness. He said, "daughter, you need to learn how to be alone with me."

I kept asking people to hangout or get lunch or coffee, but people seemed to be busy. I'm pretty sure God was just yelling at me saying, "Hello! Daughter, come be with Me. Stop thinking about others and spend some time with Me!"

He put me in a place where all I had was Him.

The Lord commands our time.

I spent hours on the quad these past few weeks just chattin it up with God. Praying. Journaling. Reading His Word.

We need to make sure we have that precious quiet time with just Him. Because He wants you to be in His presence. To spend some time talking with Him.

He rejoices over us when we call on His name.

I picture Him looking down on me saying, "Daughter, tell me your life. Show me your needs. Tell me everything. Don't skip a thing, because I love you."

How Precious is Our God that HE WANTS TO SPEND TIME WITH US!

How Beautiful is that?!

So, this week when you are feeling alone, isolated from the world, or discontent, LOOK TO THE FATHER. He will always be there to listen. He will always be there to comfort you.

Our God is Sovereign.

SEEK HIS FACE.

God Bless.

Blessings Galore

Let's be honest, I was terrified coming to college.

"Was I going to make friends? Lifelong friends? Was I going to fail all my classes? Will I become lukewarm in my faith?"

I was frantically worrying.

BUT, through prayer God has blessed me abundantly.

Here's a quicklist of amazing things God has done in my life so far in college.

1) He has blessed me with a great hall! 4th EASTLOVE. I am able to just walk into my friend's rooms and get encouragement, pray with them, and love on them. God is good.

2) I struggled with my Biology class at first, but as of right now I have a B! There were times of sitting on the steps of Pittman just crying my eyes out because I felt I couldn't do it anymore, BUT the Lord said, "NO daughter of mine will fail." And now I'm getting it! God is good.

3) I am blessed with amazing sisters all around me. I am in a sorority called AOII (Alpha Omicron Pi) and loving it. I wasn't sure at first, but God said, "Daughter, this is where I want you. Be a light and spread My Love to your new sisters." And I am ecstatic that He has placed me here. Sisters in AOII and Sisters in Christ! God is good.

4) I am blessed with a really wonderful friend named, Christina Lynn Rickman. She is my Big Sister in AOII. She is such a blessing in my life! God knew what He was doing when He put us together. I love her and hope we are friends for a lifetime. God is good.

5) My family is so precious to me. I have cried three times so far being away from home. I love my mom and dad and brother so much. They are precious blessings in my life. My mom is so wise. What a role model she is for me in my life. She has gotten me through so much in college like reminding me that God is going to use me in so many ways this year, to be a light for people, to read my Bible daily, to pray constantly, to be open to change, to love on others unconditionally, and she has also gotten me a great Biology tutor, reminded me that God speak to us through His Word, and I just LOVE my mom so much! God is good!

6) I am blessed by my new friend, Kaitlyn Teem. I am so happy to be able to call her my Sister (AOII). She has really been there for me even into the late hours of the night when I just need someone to talk to. She is there. We both tell eachother what's going on in our lives and we pray for eachother. She even prayed over me one time when I had an awful day. I think that is love right there, to place your physical hands on someone and pray wholeheartedly over them. That is love. She has brought so much JOY into my life this year. God is good.

7) I am blessed by my new friend, Lindsey Kelley. What an adorable girl! She is absolutely precious! She is also my new sister in AOII. We love to have long room talks. We go into eachother's rooms and just talk and talk and talk. We also go to get ice cream and run a few red lights..oops! YAY! She is so amazing! Love her! God is good.

8) Okay, Let's just say there are so many wonderful people in my life. Here are a few more: Rebekah Grubbs, Jordan Webb, Nicole Smith, Kristen Minor, Rachel Stokes, Amy Vu, Kelly Geasley, Taylor Pigman, Halley Smith, Jane E, Lauren Windsor, and more. Sorry if I missed you, YOU ARE STILL LOVED! God is good.

9) Also, my friends back home! Lindsay Joy Jones. Ariel Nicole Samuels. Paige Little Sister Hartsfield. Yall get me through life. I love you precious girls. God is good.

10) God has taught me so much. Honestly, I haven't learned this much in a long time. I have learned that JOY is always attainable, Prayer is Powerful, God speaks through His Word, Friendship is a two-way street, You can't keep giving of yourself or else you will burn out, and Earthly love no way compares to the Lord's LOVE. God is good.

God bless all of these people and Praise God for the things He has taught me so far!

God is good!

Love Languages

So, I have come to the conclusion that I now have more than one Love Language.

I might even have three.

Crazy, I know...

But here we go!

Number One: I am OBSESSED with HUGGGSS! I might have a serious problem. I love them so much. I love physical touch. I know it sounds creepy, but it isn't I promise. Let me digress. The feeling of a best friend holding me while I cry on them or you are so ecstatic to see your friend you jump into there arms! I love those moments. I love walking arm and arm with someone. It just brings me Joy!

Number Two: This ones a new one since being at college. I LOVE QUALITY TIME. I am a people person. Shocker right? NOPE! But, I have noticed that whenever I ask my friends to do something and they can't because of schoolwork or they are just plain busy, it makes me somewhat sad. It's not like I want to be with people all the time, but when they say no to things multiple times, it makes me sad. I feel like they don't want to be with me and they don't love me. WHICH I KNOW IS FALSE. It's just a feeling that I need to get over. Sooner rather than later. I will be praying through this.

Number Three: Last but not least. I LOVE ENCOURAGING NOTES! I freak out when I get mail. LITERALLY. I feel so loved because that person who wrote to me had to take time out of there day to write me a note and send it to me. For those moments, they were thinking about me. It just makes you feel so loved. I LOVE MAIL!

So, as of right now I love HUGGGS, HANGING OUT, AND MAIL.

This is so crazzzzyy!

Love Languages are great, but I have to remind myself that GOD'S LOVE IS SO MUCH GREATER THAN ANY HUG, NOTE, FRIEND TIME. His LOVE Conquers ALL. HIS LOVE IS INSANE! And He is truly CRAZY about you! So this week, when you are feeling unloved, feeling alone, feeling discontent, Look to the Father. Seek His Love. Seek His Face.

His Plan not Mine

Learning to listen is the hardest part.

Last weekend, I was struggling with questions like, "God, What do I do with my life? Are you even listening to my prayers? Hello, Do something please?!"

I am still undeclared as my major, and I feel so lost at what to do with my life.

For 3 weeks now I have been praying constantly to God, telling Him I want to do what HE wants me to do. For Him to show me what to do with my life, but no answer.

I became impatient.

I got to the point to where all I could do was cry and cry. I wanted to know so badly.

Should I be a nurse, youth pastor, teacher, counselor..I don't know!

Right after I had my crying session in my bed for 10 minutes, I got a text from my lovely mother. It said, "Lindsay, I know you're struggling with what to do with your life, but remember reading God's Word is the best way to hear from Him."

WHAT?!

I had forgotten that God speaks to us through His Scripture!

For weeks on end I had been praying. praying. praying. AND don't get me wrong. Praying is a very good thing, and He is listening, but you also have to be in the Word.

This week let's focus on DIGGING DEEPER in His Amazing Word.

Be open to what He has to say to you in His Word.

SEEK HIM WITH EVERYTHING YOU HAVE!! Now legggggo!