I was lucky enough to get to spend time with one of my favey besties last Saturday - Miss Annie Laine. One of the first things Annie did was look out my window to the pool and ask, "Annie fim? Pease?" and I told her it was too cold but we could put our feeties in. She happened to have her Elmo swim ring with her that she brought along with her toys. (I am wondering if it is possible she remembered when she was over last time that she had asked to go swimming and I said, "Maybe another time,"...) Anyway, here are some precious pics of that baby girl on her way to the pool and at the pool at my apartment. Thanks Missy & Jady for trusting me with her! She is so sweet and well-behaved and y'all are such shining examples of diligent Christian parenting.
ALM + ALS= BFF! :)
P.S. It was of her own volition that she put the swim ring on so that made it extra precious.
Ashley, we well be thinking about you tomorrow and praying that everything goes well. Mark and Sarah will keep us updated. Hope you're up and around quick so you can come for another visit soon!
Hope you're doing well. We've been praying for you. In Annie's prayer last night, among other things, she thanked God for you and Sarah, and for you to be healthy. Some, if not all of that, was not prompted.
I've been reading about your surgery, and am praying that it fixed the problem and is a complete success. It sounds like you have quite a support group there!
Pay upwards of $10 for a book? No thanks! I just got back from Half-Priced Books and had quite a time there. I stick to the clearance section and search high and low, left to right and try to find books (fiction usually) that have characters and plots I can learn from and that are cleverly and poignantly written; however, I am occasionally a sucker for something significantly more shallow like some chick-lit or even sci-fi. I had some great finds today and every book I purchased was $1 each!
Another reason I love HPB (Half-Priced Books for the layman) is that most of the books have been already read or cherished or even hated by someone else. I like thinking about why they bought a certain book, whether for entertainment or for a class or if it was a gift. I actually came across a book today signed by the author with a heartfelt dedication to the owner - for a $1. I kinda wanted to buy it just for that or maybe even so the author wouldn't stumble across it, hehe! Also, sometimes you can find receipts in the books or grocery lists or other miscellaneous items as bookmarks. It's neat to see that book has been in another state or city or that a certain household might need more toilet paper and laundry detergent.
I love me some bargains! Don't even get me started on what designers I have found at Goodwill for some crazy awesome prices! Don't even get me started. :)
Looking forward to Bible study tonight and am so pleased by the idea and worksheet put together for the lesson- boy, does our Church have some great leaders, preachers and women that support and help them. And they all have one great God to obey and trust in as do we all. Thanks to everyone and all of my brothers and sisters in Christ for teaching by example and with your words in classes and studies (and not to mention outside of them as well). It is more helpful and edifying than you can imagine. :)
The above image was made possible by Chris T. and his similar shared penchant for discarded gifts from loved ones. Thanks! :)
Thank you so much!! I am glad we have brave soldiers as well! This country wouldn't be the same without them. The week is finally slowing down! I have a group paper due tomorrow and a test in the morning. But Saturday, I am doing absolutely nothing for school and I can't wait!! I hope your week is going well!
oh! i thought you said it was next week, sorry about that! well i hope it goes well when it comes! will you let me know what day it is on when it comes sooner!
i made an A!!!! She graded it real quick...which made me feel like I worked 4 hrs for her to grade it in 30 secs. but oh well! :) I had fun too! thanks for helping! Love you too!!! ♥
Haha! Thank you! You know me and my pro-activ... I just can't get enough for my acne, besides... What Vahnessah Weeyams don' know wohn't hert herh!! Have a terriff week yourself!
Golightly and i went by and saw him today and he seemed to be doing just fine. The doctor even told him that he could put as much weight on it as he could stand and hes thinking about preaching sunday.
"Thou shalt love the Lord they God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all they mind; and thy neighbor as thyself." Luke 10:37
How do you love the Lord with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind? Loving your neighbor seems a bit more concrete although I understand there are more dimensions to it than just being kind to others, but it is seemingly less difficult than loving the Lord with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind. So, how do you do it? I understand the idea of having Him as the utmost priority and a desire to know Him and His word more but how do you make the emotional aspect click? How do you know you are loving Him with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind? Thanks for sharing. :) And caring.
That is a loaded, but amazing question. I don't know that there is one answer. For me, I identify my love for the Lord when I make Him a part of every aspect of my life. With my relationships, the Lord is the center, the decisions I make, the words I speak, the places I go all revolve around the Lord and His Word. When I think of the word heart I immediately think of love, convictions and conscience. If I am loving the Lord with all my heart, my conscience will be clear and my love evident by my actions. When I think of soul I think of Heaven and therefore the connection I have with God which leads me to prayer, am I spending enough time talking to Him? Strength embodies a number of things. As Christians we are faced with persecutions and hardships but we are equipped with strength that comes from knowledge 2Cor. 6:5-7. This allows us strength to endure, fueled by the love we have for Christ. And finally (after I've written a novel) the mind. Philippians 4:8 gives us a list of things to meditate on. If we are consistantly considering righteous things in our lives, our Love for God will be evident in our lives. That's just my two cents miss ashley.
well i am by no means an expert, but i do know that whenever we serve others and love them, we are serving and loving God. I can't think of the verse, but the Bible teaches that by loving others we are ultimately loving God. There is also the example that Jesus gave about seeing someone in need and providing for that need. If we help someone, Jesus said we are ultimately helping him. That's all I have for now, but if I think of something else, I will post. :D I hope this was helpful...
Matt 25:31-46... I think. And, this really is a great question. Practical application, for me, is when that precept becomes your principles. John 14:15 “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” Although we are tempted to sin and stray, we build in a love for God by making His ways a part of us. You look forward to worship services because you're going to worship God. You feel fed from reading His Word daily and empty when it's neglected. You feel embraced and comforted by speaking to Him in prayer and incomplete and lonely when left undone. He is Who you think of in the morning when you wake up and praise Him for His creation and the last Person you speak to before you go to bed. You let Him become your everything. He shields you against the rough storms of life, the throbbing temptations of Satan and He hides you in the hallow of His hand. "What are miles across the ocean to the heart that's going home," one song asks. For the soul that loves God, they are nothing. We find joy (not the same as happiness) in this life because of Him. When we love serving Him in all kinds of ways, and think of Him first in how we talk, what we do, etc. I then believe the emotional connection is forged and strengthened. The second command is thus like the first. I think 1 John 4:19 sums up well when it says, "We love, because He first loved us." Love comes from God. What else could we do but return that love and share it with others. “God is love!” (1 John 4:16).
Good question! I must admit it's not a terribly easy answer to give. I would turn to John 14:15, and/or 1 Cor. 13. There is also the point made in 2 Cor. 10:5 regarding bringing every thought into obedience. Regarding the emotional tie...the main concept is that we must do our very best, and only you can know if something is truly your best. But when you are giving God your best every moment, then you are loving Him as John likened love to obedience.
Paul writes in Phil. 2 that we must have the attitude of Christ, that as He submitted Himself to the Father, so we too, should be willing give up anything in service to God, or vice versa, i.e. - do (or not do) anything that is pleasing (or not pleasing) to Him. Of course, this is fairly generic. Truly loving God in more of an feeling way has to do with willingly giving up all of yourself to do His will, in that sense, actually replacing your will with His will (of course His will is found in Scripture). That still doesn't address exactly address your question fully though...my thought on that particular passage has always been simply that we can hold nothing back..."every fiber of our existence" needs to be given to His service. My understanding of love and feelings really is not well developed on an emotional side, at least in my mind, but in actuality, I suppose it is perfectly alright to have a more formal conceptual understanding, i.e. the Scriptural definition. To put it in terms of emotion, even though it is regarding emotion, seems inseparable for me, or at least indescribable...or maybe that's because I don't really see my actions as specific acts of love, rather more as intuition, or it simply is "the right thing to do", as a result of training myself in righteousness, studying and looking to God's Word.
Hey Ashley! I just wanted to tell you I love watching you grown into a Christian. And how eager you are to learn and know more about our Father. You are such a great example of how we should be always. Keep on yearning for Him! Love ya!
Howdy pod'nahs! Hope everyone is ready to have a terrif weekend!
A heartfelt thank you to everyone who has been thinkin of me and my family. I really appreciate the prayers and thoughtfulness. My mom is doing okay right now.
As many of you know, she had been in and out of the hospital in Austin and at Baylor Medical Center for gastrointestinal problems and pancreatitis for the past several months. She was getting better after they removed a small mass and stented a bilary duct that had been blocked. However, recently she had been feeling crummy again and we saw a wonderful and experienced doc here in Austin who was able to answer all of our questions after reviewing all her medical history. Basically, she has PSC, or Primary Schlerosing Cholangitis, which is a disease of the liver that attacks your immune system. Pretty much, you just have to be vigilant in getting screened for cancer and make sure blockages don't build up again. She is doing well but has been worrying a lot and it makes me wish so bad that she was a Christian so we could BOTH have a strong foundation to lean upon. But she will be fine and is doing fine! :) And when she stops worrying so much, she will be doing great! We will probably be looking at a liver transplant 8-10 years down the road, but for now, keepin a healthy diet full of veggies and fruits, taking the right drugs, getting tested and screened often and living day to day is the best thing to do! So that is what's been goin' on! No worries - you know old people - sooo much maintenance. :) Only kidding!
Thanks again so much for the concern and prayers. We really appreciate them.
I'll prob be here til early next week b/c my mum has a scan on Monday. I went to Northwest Church of Christ Wednesday and it was great - Mr. Hendrix is a wonderful teacher and Miss Emily C. was there and was so sweet and encouraging. I look forward to going there again on Sunday and being surrounded by brethren and learning more! Hope the singing was edifying! Have a lovely weekend! See all my homies soon. :)
I miss you Ashley. I finally move back and then you have to be gone, how sad. I've been praying for your mom and you, of course. I hope everything continues to go well. Come home soon, if you can. :-)
