Pursuit: experiencing God in great ways and strengthening friendships while testing my patience on extremely long car rides back to Minnesota in the wee hours of the morning.
Old testament Bible studies: This has been neat, to really dig in to the OT and learn more about the Jewish culture to better understand the context of the New Testament and how they would have understood the new things happening once Jesus showed up.
The Stars: Laying out on a wam summer's eve in northern MN...wait....i meant warm....haha that made me laugh :)....anyways....the stars are just so dang bright up here in Meadowlands! You can't miss them! I love just laying out in the middle of my driveway in a sleeping bag (because you can lie on the roads out in the middle of nowhere, they're dirt and no one drives by :) ), listening to some chill tunes and just staring up into the twinkling awesomeness.
They other night I lay out (yes, I do believe lay can be used in the past tense just as it is....I've pondered this quite a bit until it made sense..... and then it didn't make sense anymore....... so I just have faith that it made sense at one point....anyways....) I lay out under the stars and the northern lights were out!!! How amazing! I have to believe that God just loves to put on a show for us and himself to enjoy! To me, that is just the joy of the Lord dancing across the heavens! Simply wonderful!
Also, while I lay out (with no mosquitoes! weird, but I'm not complaining!!) I heard the crickets and the frogs. This reminded me of a verse I studied at Pursuit, Psalm 96 , specifically vs 11-13 where it speaks of nature praising him! I think God created the crickets and the frogs just to sing His praises while we sleep, I mean, someone's gotta do it, right?!
Nature in General: Apart from the stars, nature has really been speaking to me the greatness of our God! His amazing creativity and genuine beauty is astounding. Wow.
Also, while I lay out (with no mosquitoes! weird, but I'm not complaining!!) I heard the crickets and the frogs. This reminded me of a verse I studied at Pursuit, Psalm 96 , specifically vs 11-13 where it speaks of nature praising him! I think God created the crickets and the frogs just to sing His praises while we sleep, I mean, someone's gotta do it, right?!
Nature in General: Apart from the stars, nature has really been speaking to me the greatness of our God! His amazing creativity and genuine beauty is astounding. Wow.
Look at wildflowers! how beautiful! It's like they were planted right there just to make me happy! Next time you sit down in the grass, pluck a clover and pull out the purple (or white) pats and take a nice good look .The perfection is amazing!
Loot that the giant redwoods and how they uniquely use fog as their source of mositure as they tower up to the sky in awesome grandure.
Loot that the giant redwoods and how they uniquely use fog as their source of mositure as they tower up to the sky in awesome grandure.
Peel apart your orange and examine how each little part holds the juicy sweetness in it's own separate sac, yet clings all together in a convenient way to all hold together!
And don't forget sunrises and sunsets! God decides to start and end a day like that!? Okay, and we call people like Picasso great artists but there isn't a good enough adjective to describe His artistry! And there is so much more that you can't even fit it all in one post!
The Rain: Friday and Saturday were days of the Ol' time Fiddle Fest in Cotton. This was the 30th year they have had the festival, and my first time ever going! Since my little sister Alaura plays viola ( she started on the violin) I wanted to take her! She had her heart set on playing but maybe next year she can. Saturday I went to the festival and helped out a bit with the youth center fundraiser and then Steph and I were on a volleyball team for the tourney....in the rain! I've not played in the rain in much to long of a time! By the end of it we were soaked and full of sand and dirt, but it was such a blast! Alaura and I also danced in the rain to the fiddle music! :) we waltzed and swinged each other around...I sure do love that kid! And last but definitely not least of all, we did splash in puddles too. :) I just realized every sentence but that last one ended in an exclamation point... I definitely had a good time. Oh, and thunder and lightning....well,enough said.
Laying in my Hammock: I never had a hammock growing up, but I wanted one, so I bought one. And though I've only got the chance to use it twice so far, those two times were immensely relaxing and utterly lovely. I slung it up using my slacklining gear and I read. I hope I get to do this again before summer is through.
Prayer: I've been absolutely loving our prayer nights at the Dillon house. Talk about a God experience! You can't go there and not be touched by the Holy Spirit! There's just so much that goes on you just have to come and experience it to understand. May I know God even fuller and be able to share Him and His word like they do! Plus, there's Jay's brownies. Delish. (that spelling makes no sense, but whatever, thats how it sounds...)
Dresses: I love wearing dresses. That's all.
Friends: From making new friends at work, seeing old friends, spending time with my friends at the youth center in cotton, kayaking with my best college friend Steph, and just plain fun with friends in general, this has absolutely been great.
Learning Guitar: I can actually play a few songs! Hopefully one day I can know enough to play in a worship team for IV at CSS soon! I even strung my first guitar this summer! can't wait for my class in the fall.
Old People: The snow birds are so cute at Scholastica! they are always so friendly and they tell some pretty neat stories! One of my favorite old people I've met this summer were an adorable old couple at the church in cotton one Sunday. This petite, white haired elderly lady came right up to us and showed us a finger trick ( you'd have to see it to understand) and then proceeded to tell us a secret.
She told us "Me and my husband," as she pointed back to a cute little old man in a pew behind us, "we've been married for 67 years. You know how we do it? Every morning, before we go on with our day, we read God's word. And then we pray. We pray for God to lead us through the trials, tasks, and joys of the day and that we trust Him through it all. Without that we wouldn't have made it."
Wow. I pray I have the blessing of a marriage like that someday!
Then she told us "I try to laugh as much as I can. Better to laugh than cry, I always say!" I wish this lady was my third grandma!
Old folks have just lived such neat lives! They have so many amazing stories and they are quite wise. And wrinkles. I love wrinkles. I hope I get to have wrinkles when I'm older because I think they have such character! I will have earned every single one. Plus I can't wait to be a grandma and embarrass my grand children haha! I will also garden in a wonderful, big hat.
Small-town Church: It seems I've done a bit of church hopping this summer! From being at my "home" church here in Meadowlands, to venturing over to the cotton church for regular service and the teen challenge service, to just today where I went to the Kelsey community church where friends were leading the worship. I love the feel of a small congregation that truly loves and cares for one another and the Lord with such genuiness. I pray for blessings financially and spiritually for these churches, may God provide all they need and more, not to just carry on, but to thrive and spread the love of God to all the small towns around here! And for good potlucks. Everyone loves a good potluck.
And last for now, Journaling: I've bought a journal. I never thought I could keep up with one, and I've only had it for a couple days now haha, but I've enjoyed it so far! This one is perfect. It's small. Made from brown leather and has a strap that wraps around precisely two and a half times. The paper is old looking, and handmade. Just what I was looking for. We shall see how well I do!
I will leave you with some words to a LeeAnn Womack song, I hope you dance :
I hope you never lose your sense of wonder
You get your fill to eat
But always keep that hunger
May you never take one single breath for granted
God forbid love ever leave you empty handed
I hope you still feel small
When you stand by the ocean
Whenever one door closes, I hope one more opens
Promise me you'll give faith a fighting chance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
I hope you dance
I hope you dance
I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance
Never settle for the path of least resistance
Living might mean taking chances
But they're worth taking
Lovin' might be a mistake
But it's worth making
Don't let some hell bent heart
Leave you bitter
When you come close to selling out
Reconsider
Give the heavens above
More than just a passing glance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
I hope you dance (in the rain :) )
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