We're off!

I have been meaning to post a blog about our trip all week, but time got away from me, and now I am leaving for the airport in just under two hours. I, along with nine others, will be in Q-ba for the next week working with a camp that trains the student leaders for a bigger youth camp in the summer. God has already revealed Himself in incredible ways in the preparation for this trip and has taught me just how limited my view of Him can sometimes be.

Some unexpected obstacles have arisen over the last few days, and we covet your prayers. Although right now we are not entirely sure what our purpose will be once we get there, we know God has called us to go, so we are going and trusting that He is bigger than any distractions we have here and that He is certainly bigger than any government.

I know I will have amazing stories of God's faithfulness when I return, and I can't wait to be able to share them with you.

Allegory

This is a topic I've been meaning to blog about since the day I started 3M (1 month blog-iversary is coming up!), but I just haven't had the time or energy to delve into it. And clearly, my conference period at the end of the day at the end of a long week is the best time to address it. :P

I took a day off work a few weeks ago--not for any particular reason but just because I had been running myself ragged, and I wanted a little bit of a break. Now, those of you who have known me for any measure of time know that I am not what I like to call "organized" (stop laughing, Amanda Michelle!), so I decided that I would spend the majority of my day off trying to get some cleaning done around my apartment. Usually, "cleaning" for me means taking the majority of the junk that has accumulated in my living area, relocating it to my bedroom or closet, and firmly shutting each of those doors (oh, and scrubbing the toilet and the bathroom sink) because after all, there's no need for people to see what's behind the closed doors. This time, however, was different. As I stood surveying the pit that I had allowed my apartment to become, I decided that I needed to tackle the bedroom.

As I began sorting through the mounds and mounds of laundry that had accumulated on my bedroom floor, I began to notice a spiritual parallel (and because you are so smart, darling readers, I'm sure you're already there). I realized that I so often approach my walk with Christ in the same way that I approach cleaning my apartment. I work hard to make the areas that people see presentable, but I never bother to address the inner areas that are behind closed doors. So often, I feel that many of the things I do that would fall under the heading of being a "good Christian girl," I do because I am seeking the recognition of man rather than doing them as an outpouring of the Holy Spirit living in me.

My prayer is that I would truly seek God's heart in everything that I do. I also pray that He would surround me with people who would keep me accountable and who would force me to do a heart check to ensure that I truly am living to glorify God and not myself.

One More

I just discovered a grammar error in a previous post, and I'm trying to decide if fixing it is a pride issue or not.

Pride or not, I think I have to fix it.

Random Thoughts

I'm so glad English TAKS is over! At least the kids followed the rules...

It's a bad idea to try and open a box of crackers while driving home from the grocery store. I think I will be finding remnants of that mistake in my car for a while.

Amy's brand frozen cheese enchiladas make me ridiculously happy.

I've imposed upon myself a weeknight 10:00 Facebook curfew. I'm hoping more sleep will be a side effect of said curfew.

I got home from small group after 10:00 tonight.

I've kind of got the shakes.

I LOVE my fellow heiresses!

God is showing me a lot of ugliness in myself--not pretty! (This may be explored further in another blog post.)

The Countdown to 30 is not off to a great start, but hope springs eternal. (More about this one later, too.)

Megan's a mommy (again)!! Welcome to the world, Ben!

I got to talk to the BFF today--stupid 9 hours that separate us!

I need to go to bed, and listing more random thoughts won't help me achieve that goal. Good night!

I urge you...

...to rally behind me in my cause to get Carmen to wear the world's most awesome pantsuit to '80s Prom.

(I've been forbidden to post pictures, but take my word for it--this is a very noble cause!)

Demotivators

Because my brain is lacking in creativity and energy tonight, I give you a few anti-motivational posters to ponder.




Yeah, this about sums up the whole 3M experience.


I've often felt that I exist solely to make others feel better about themselves.


This one just made me laugh out loud.

Wake-Up Call

Does anyone else feel the need to look just a little better on Mondays? I figure that Mondays are generally pretty rough, so it helps my mindset a little if I feel pretty. I even had my hair straight today which generally only happens once or maybe twice during the work week.

I realized today, though, that I might want to start putting a little more effort into my appearance at work. While I received several compliments from my students, I also had those that walked in and did a double take when they saw me with the straight hair because they thought that they had a sub. When it gets to the point that people can't recognize me because I look nice, there might be a problem.

Now, if only people that won't get me arrested if I decided to date them would think I looked hot...