Disciple NOW 2017 - {RENEW}

photo courtesy of fb

 

Goodness. Have you ever walked away from a weekend with your body so amazingly tired, but your spirit so full of life?? We spent this past weekend with several teenagers, adults, staffers, God-loving folks through our Disciple Now event that was held at our church. And it was EPIC.

 

For those who don't know, Hunter and I absolutely love teenagers. I know, weird. But we do and we love that God has called us to that ministry to be able to love on them, do life with them, and hopefully pass on some valuable life lessons. It's easy for folks to disregard teenagers as the "problem with our society" but I can honestly tell you from years of being around teenagers (and being one myself at one time), they are not the problem. Teenagers go through so many hormones, emotions, feelings, things... It's crazy.

 

Anywho, the weekend's focus was RENEWing your heart, mind, soul, strength and to surrender everything to God for His glory. There were so many Gospel-driven points discussed throughout the weekend but the one thing that stood out to me the most and I want to share with this bloggity blog was this:

 

This life is NOT about you. PERIOD.

 

I'm guilty of forgetting why I'm here day in and day out because let's be honest, life gets BUSY. Life gets hard sometimes and there are days where I'm like, "Let me just get through this day." But that's not how we should look at each day. I really would have to do several posts about all that was talked about this past weekend but I want to leave you with this.... Where is your heart with God right now? Is it even with God?

 

If you have any questions or need prayers, please don't hesitate to contact me. I'm one of those awkward people that will grab you and pray with you in the midst of everything going on around you. 

Each day is a {NEW} page

I love that each day comes without any real, concrete proof as for how that day will go. Sure, you can make plans to see a friend for dinner or vow that you will vacuum the house when you get home from work. Those moments can be planned, sometimes they come unexpectedly, but either way it can make for a great day.

 

There are those days where the unexpected, unplanned things come about. Maybe you run out of gas (knock on wood, I've never ran out of gas) or your hair goes flat in the Florida humidity. Sometimes a day ends with unwanted news that impacts your life in bigger ways. Those things can kind of make a day pretty crummy.

 

Regardless, each day is a new page in your chapter book of life. And how glorious is that??

 

For the last several weeks, my sweet boy has been working tirelessly to reach a goal he had set out before him. He took the necessary steps of paperwork, testing, questioning department heads, etc. and all to the come to a head just this past Monday. Monday came as a planned day to hopefully complete the final step in obtaining his goal... And he succeeded!

 

photo courtesy of the hubby

 

My husband hangs out in the woods all day for his job. Part of his hanging out includes conducting prescribed burns and he was finally able to obtain his certification to add to his resume. So many long days with physically exhausting demands on his body has allowed him to reach this goal with such certainty. I honestly could not be more proud of him and all the hard work he has put in to provide for our little family.

 

Hunter, this past Monday was a new page in your exciting book of life. I'm humbled to be married to you and excited to experience many more new pages turned in our lives together.

Angels {AMONGST} Us

via

 

This past weekend was one of those weekends where you wake up on Monday morning thinking, "Where did that weekend go?? Did we even have a weekend??" I usually take that as a good sign that the time was well spent and not a minute was wasted.

 

I woke up this morning in a particularly good mood (with it being a Monday and all) as I reminisced on this past weekend, thanking God for His angels that He brings into our lives. Hunter and I have some of the most genuine, kind, loving, realest friends I think anybody could ever have. Their generosity towards us is beyond humbling and reminds us so much of Jesus' love for us.

 

When I think of all of our dear friends and as I thank God for them, my mind always goes to the story of when Jesus washed His disciples' feet. That selfless, simple act has so much weight tied to it and some major life application lessons that can be applied by each and every one of us. I love how Jesus just taught a life lesson, in the middle of a bunch of dudes (who were arguing about their level of placement in heaven, mind you), without even batting an eye. At least that's how I picture the scenario. Total drop mic moment.

 

Hunter and I strive to be like Jesus every day by "washing the feet" of our friends. We strive to be kind, loving, servant-leaders, placing others before us, etc. So when a friend (or friends) do the very same thing in return to us, it always just sweeps us away. Kindness can be hard to come by in a world this dark, angry, and overran by sin. When you experience kindness, it reminds you of the love God showed His people through sending His only son, Jesus.

 

Thank you, God, for placing people in our lives that have shown Hunter, myself, and our family so much love. Thank you, God, for placing angels amongst us.