some fun pics...

the gift of our parents

ephesians 6:1-3 "Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do. Honor your father and mother. this is the first commandment with a promis: if you gonor your father and mother, things will go well for you, and you will have a long life on earth."
God gave you to your parents so that they could raise you. He chose them especially to care for you. The promise in ephesians 6:3 says that if you obey your father and mother, :it may be well with you and you may live long on earth.: also, when you honor the authority that God has put over you and you get his blessing. we who choose to rebel and disobey miss the instructions God has for them through their parents. as a result things won't go so well for those who disobey. You never find an adult who is happy to tell you that they are happy that when they were kids they disobeyed and revolted against there parents.... usually they are ashamed of the way they treated there parents that God has blessed them with. God is in control of all and designed all, his design: obeidience leads to right choices and a good life, but but rebellion leads to guilt in the future.
well i know there have been many times i have disobeyed my aunt and uncle, and i am already ashamed of it, treating those God gave me as if i were better than them or i know more. well we are told by God to put ourselves below others. the verse tells us to put ALL above us including our parents.
more verses on topic:
-Proverbs 15:31,32
-colosians 3:20

Do You Love me

this is a great poem to read multiple times.....


One day, I woke early in the morning to watch the sunrise. Ah! ... the beauty of God's creation is beyond description. As I watched, I praised God for His beautiful work. As I sat there, I felt the Lord's presence with me. He asked me, "Do you love me?" I answered, "Of course, God! You are my Lord and Saviour!"

Then He asked, "If you were physically handicapped, would you still love me?"

I was perplexed. I looked down upon my arms, legs and the rest of my body and wondered how many things I wouldn't be able to do and thought about the things that I take for granted. I answered, "It would be tough Lord, but I would still love You."

Then the Lord said, "If you were blind, would you still love my creation?"

How could I love something without being able to see it? Then I thought of all the blind people in the world and how many of them still loved God and His creation. So I answered, "It's hard to think of it, but I would still love you."

The Lord then asked me, "If you were deaf, would you still listen to my word?"

How could I listen to anything being deaf? Then I understood. Listening to God's Word is not merely using our ears, but our hearts. I answered, "It would be tough, but I would still listen to Your word."


The Lord then asked, "If you were mute, would you still praise My Name?"

How could I praise without a voice? Then it occurred to me, God wants us to sing from our very hearts and souls. It never matters what we sound like. And praising God is not always with a song, but when we are persecuted, we give God praise with our words of thanks. So I answered, "Though I could not physically sing, I would still praise Your Name."

And the Lord asked, "Do you really love Me?"

With courage and a strong conviction, I answered boldly, "Yes Lord! I love You because You are the one and true God!"

I thought I had answered well, but God asked, "Then why do you sin?"

I answered, "Because I am only human. I am not perfect."

"Then why in times of peace do you stray the furthest? Why only in times of trouble do you pray the earnest?"

I had no answers ... only tears.


The Lord continued. "Why only sing at fellowships and retreats? Why seek Me only in times of worship? Why ask things so selfishly? Why ask things so unfaithfully?"

The tears continued to roll down my cheeks. "Why are you ashamed of Me? Why are you not spreading the good news? Why in times of persecution, you cry to others when I offer My shoulder to cry on? Why make excuses when I give you opportunities to serve in My Name?"
"You are blessed with life. I made you not to throw this gift away. I have blessed you with talents to serve Me, but you continue to turn away. I have revealed My Word to you, but you do not gain in knowledge. I have spoken to you but your ears were closed. I have shown My blessings to you, but your eyes were turned away. I have heard your prayers and I have answered them all. Do you truly love me?

I could not answer. How could I? I was embarrassed beyond belief. I had no excuse. What could I say to this? When my heart had cried out and the tears had flowed, I said, "Please forgive me Lord. I am unworthy to be Your child."

The Lord answered, "That is My Grace, My child."

I asked, "Then why do you continue to forgive me? Why do You love me so?"

The Lord answered, " Because you are My creation. You are my child. I will never abandon you. When you cry, I will have compassion and cry with you. When you shout with joy, I will laugh with you. When you are down, I will encourage you. When you fall, I will raise you up. When you are tired, I will carry you. I will be with you until the end of days, and I will love you forever."

Never had I cried so hard before. How could I have been so cold? How could I have hurt God as I had done? I asked God, "How much do You love me?"

The Lord stretched out His arms, and I saw His nail-pierced hands. I bowed down at the feet of Christ, my Savior. And for the first time, I truly prayed.

In This Life

IN THIS LIFE

In This Life,
You'll have days of bright and blue
with good friends and laughter....enough to see you through.

In This Life,
There will be misery and doubt
things you scratch your head at....and just can't figure out.

In This Life,
You'll have dreams that reach the sky
and passion to move you.... until the day you die.

In This Life,
There will be days of pain and loss
and times when your only comfort is The Man upon The Cross.

In This Life,
You'll imagine what could be
and think the world is yours for all eternity.

In This Life,
There are trials you must face
and days when the world leaves you lost without a trace.

In This Life,
We are called to help the poor
to leave the cushy comfort that rests behind our door.

In This Life,
You’ll be astounded at how quickly years go by
and look back at memories that often make you cry.

In This Life,
You'll taste both victory and defeat
and make mistakes that wisdom won't allow you to repeat.

In This Life,
You'll find answers to the questions you hold dear
and live for Him who'll take away your worries and your fear.

By Mike Hall

A New Start

This last week i was at Lake Isabella with 100 people some christians, some not, and some who thought they were. We spent the week learning bible verses (matthew 19:16-30) and we learned the books of the bible in order.
a typical day started getting ready for breakfast at 8:00 am and talking with others, then we would break off and go play games and get out some energy. Rooting for whatever team we happened to be on. After that was over and only few were injured we went to praise the Lord through worship and devotions with smaller groups. sharing testemonies and getting to know who we really were. we would then go eat a fabulous lunch and have hours of free time where we got to hang with our friends, make new ones or go off and read the bible or something. Butt when we got back we new it was time to really start thinking and focusing on Gods word through pastor Mike. which all of the messages were convicting and helped me grow closer to the Lord. then we would have snack and come back for games. Which is when we lost most of our voices...cough...sweet feet, madison, and brooke..:) but every time we would gather with our groups Bobby would ask who wants it more and he would also after that say prove it... which when it comes down to it we need to do that with our relationship with Christ. yea we can say were a christian but...anyone can say it prove it through your actions, works, and everything else. Pastor Mike's messages were on how hard it is to be a christian and those who gave there lives to the Lord know that they need to count the cost and know that life won't go on the same as when they weren't a christian. Also on this trip i really learned what picking up your cross meant. Jesus had his cross with him because he suffered on this earth and was put through tons of pain and was put to death on a cross....and we will have hard times on this earth but we need to know that the Lord is always with us and this world will pass.
I thank all of you who put Revival together and i can't wait for next years!!!

a week in the life

well this past week i was on a mission trip to Mexico. i wasn't sure what to expect what i was going to do, or even what i was going to eat. so i went in to this mission trip being nervous and so finally when it came the day to leave i was outside looking around at everyone who was going to see who i would most likely spend most my time with so i figured i would hangout with Brooke, matt, chewy, and curren. Not knowing that when i would get to know everyone and not even have not to think about that. so we starsted to head up to mexico and in my van was Ty, kaitlynn, heather, matt, curren, nakieta, mikaela, zac, josh, joe, and paul. I knew some of the people and got to know the rest of them on the way up....we were having fun laughing at pauls "fun facts and serious facts" ( if only you could have heard them) so once we crossed the boarder we stopped to eat at a Mc Donalds and then we had to change a lot of things about us we couldn't have the water, ice and from that moment on purell hand sanitizer became like a best friend. the moment i stepped out of the van i saw a stray dog and i knew that it was going to be hard for me to not cry because i have a passionate love for animals and seeing animals in those conditions is very deppressing to me but anyways we headed for the orphanage again and when we got there we unloaded and went to bed. we stayed in a room with ten sets of bunkbeds and all the beds were full so once we got through the frist night we got into a patern of worship and chapel int the morning then work on projects and eat lunch then we would play with the kids untill dinner when we would hangout and fellowship as we worshipped and had another chappel. we did several outreaches. giving salvation bracelets out to anyone and everyone and we gave food to families. but the outreached that seemed to help most of all was our fiesta. plenty of families came and matt gave a message that was translated to them and curren gave a message in spanish. they seemed to enjoy it and it was a great time to see those in need and serve them. but now that it is all over i will have to say that it is awkward to spend a week with the people who went and then go back to where you see them about once a week...so i can't wait for revival 07' and how that will change my life as well....

p.s. i already miss all of you who went to the mission trip :(

quote

hey this quote below was my favorite quote last year before i was a christian and i would like to know what you think about it. so let me know what you think.

"if a guy makes you cry he isn't worth your tears

and the only one who is wouldn't have made you

cry in the first place."

by the way for those of you who go to aliso i put that as my favorite quote in my success book for Mr. Millers class....Mr. Miller is such a cool teacher.

"LOVE"

love, isn't that a word used abundantly these days. Some researchers say that in french it is the most used four letter word. Are we really using it properly though? i will walk around my high school campus and i hear girls telling girls they love them, and girls telling there boyfriend they love them and the other way around, but with in a week they aren't together anymore. I don't think they really loved each other.

when highschoolers go in to a relationship do they plan on getting married to the person they are going to be involved with or are they looking for a fun time, someone who they are compatible with or are they just bored of being alone. that is the excuse from most highschoolers, and why they become involved in a romantic relationship. but what you really need to go into a relationship thinking is can i see myself marrying this person, or is there even a possibility of me marrying this person if not why even bother starting a relationship: so you can break the other persons heart, or get what you can out of the other person what a waste of time. God thinks of breaking up as he thinks of divorce... he HATES it. Two of his creations hurting eachother mentally. why would God want to see that, and why risk the chance of getting you heart broken in the first place if you know you will never marry the person you are with.

so next time you think you are bored of being alone, and just need someone by your side always know you have the Lord with you every step of the way on this earth and you also have brothers n' sisters in christ. So instead of becoming romantically involved with someone go spend time fellowshipping with friends or spend the time getting to know God and trust the lifestyle he has provided for you and pray you will use the lifestyle to the fullest.

Skating For Christ

Skating For Christ also known as SFC is a great way for all skaters to get involved with a church oriented group of christians who have two goals when they go to skate the main goal is to praise the Lord when you skate don't just go out there to have fun go out there to spread the word that Jesus Christ is king and the second most important thing to do when you go out and skate with them is to have fun fellowshipping with other believers.

to find out more about SFC ( where they meet when and how to find them then) link on to it from my blog.

i'll never forget

"I'll never forget" is a poem i wrote in the eighth grade and just resently i thought about it and how it shows that God has done work in my life.

i'll never forget

i'll never forget the day

it's so fresh in my mind

my whole life was about to change

hadn't got much sleep that night

didn't even have my own bed

used to sleep on the floor

broken glass and more

i hate remembering those days

i'd go to the fridge

squirt and milk that is all there would be

one meal a day

i'll have to wait till dinner to see

over and over i prayed

for a new better life for me

would God hear my prayer

will see will see

all of a sudden my mom shows up

she finds out dad was taken away

problems at home horrible fighting going on

moms unable to take us away

panicked she calls my aunt and uncle

and asks if they can help

open up there home

for my brother and i to stay

no idea how long

but i new i'd be safe

had only minutes to pack

oh God what do i take

over and over i prayed

for a new better life for me

would God hear my prayer

will see will see

my aunt picked us up

took us to our new home

i got my own room

a huge bed for me

feel scared but excited all at once

tons of food all new clothes and a bird for me

finally can get some rest

no more bugs, glass, or fear for me

courts have decided this is the safest place for me

i never thought it would happen

but God surely heard my plea.

That poem you just read is all true and one of the biggest memories in my life which has helped mold me into the person i am and i am glad that the Lord placed me in the home with many struggles in my life because with him by my side i can be anywhere praising his holy name. in that poem i wrote i wrote things i wish i didn't. i realized i don't hate thinking of the days i lived in Santa Ana, i think God has used it to make me a stronger person and i could use it as proof that it doesn't matter where or who you are you can have drastic changes to your life if you believe in Jesus Christ and put all your trust in him and not in this world, anything can happen.

how do you act?

do you like hanging out with friends, but also go to church or just have to be around adults at times. think about this how do you act when you are around your friends is it the same as when you are hanging out with people at church or adults. probably not.

From what i have seen and gone through i didn't act the same when i was at church, i always felt it to be wrong if i acted the way i acted at school. I used to have two sides to me the one who acts polite when she is around adults and at church, and the one when i was at school or just hanging out with my friends. I am sure you are aware that when you are with your friends you are most likely doing things you shouldn't; cussing, gossiping, and doing who knows what. I bet it isn't hard to think of things that aren't right or proper for you to be doing when you are unsupervised. You are always supervised to some extent though. If you are a christian you know the Lord is always watching. The only difference is the Lord won't punish you right now he will wait for the day of judegment, when his wrath come you will be judeged he will show you all your wrongs and rights. He will seperate the sheep from the goats, and i hope you know where you will be.

have you ever had a teacher who knew they were going to have a sub the next day. I am almost positive the teacher said "ok class be on your best behavior" so even they know we we act differently when we are around certain people or places. The teacher shoulndn't have to say that, you should always be on your best behavior.

so next time you are hanging out with your friends i hope you remember not to be two-sided but to do what is right and bring glory to God.

the average day "language"

now days anywhere and everywhere you go, i am sure you here many people around you using profound language that seems to grow on you. You don't seem to notice it as much but you know it is there. I think the language that people are deciding to use is showing a lack of vocabulary and also it shows what type of a person that is. If every other word that comes out of there mouth is a cuss word then you know that they either think they are cool because they are saying it like, i have seen 6th graders walking around and when ever they say a word they shouldn't and you look at there face you can see that they think they are cool for there choice of words. At my high school on an average day i hear about 20 cuss words and it feels like it stings my body when i hear them. It stings me because i have come to know the bible and how using these words is a sin and causing those around me to stumble.

"do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only is helpful for building others up according to there needs, that it may benefit those who listen."
- ephesians 4: 29

we should know that we can bring sorrow to the holy spirit by the way we live. Paul warns us against unwholesome language, bitterness, improper use of anger, harsh words, slander, and bad attitudes towards others. Instead we should be forgiving as God has forgiven us.

so you should take time to sort out the words you are going to say before you speak, and know you might be causing those around you to stumble.