Jonahh..Mahh style :)

THE BOOK OF JONAH..my style. :)

So basically, at the beginning of this book God's like, Jonah, go to Ninevah and preach against it, because it's wickedness keeps coming up before me.

But Jonah was like, nuh-uh man! I'm not doing that! Lemme go down to Joppa and get a boat to take me to Tarshish so I can GET AWAY. Cuz I'd really rather not go to Ninevah.

But then, once Jonah was traveling on that ship such an enormous storm came that the boat was going to break. All of the sailors called out to THEIR OWN DIFFERENT GOD (note that. THEIR OWN GOD.) to spare them. And then they started throwing things off of the ship to lighten the load. But Jonah, yeah, our man Jonah? He was OUT. He was in a DEEP sleep. And the captain, he was like, man, WHAT THE HECK?! What're you doing?! Go call on your God so maybe he'll spare us!! How in the WORLD are you sleeping?!

But then the sailors, they were like, HEY. We should cast lots to find out figure out who's responsible for the storm!!! So they cast lots (I always think of drawing straws, personally.), and it all fell on Jonah...(dun dun dunnnn!)

So all of the sailors, they were like, man, where are you from, what did you do that made all of this come upon us, who is this from???

And Jonah was like, uhmmmmm...well, I'm a Hebrew, and I worship the Lord, the God of Heaven who created this entire planet..

And he'd already told them that he was running away from his God before, so they started freaking out, and they were like, MAN! What'd you do?! And the sea kept getting worse, and they were like, How can we stop this?!

And Jonah was like..throw me in the sea and the waters will become calm. This is kinda my fault..
But they didn't want to kill him, so they tried to row back to shore (hehe, didn't work.) But eventually they were like, Oh God, please forgive us for killing this man!! And they threw him overboard, and everything got all calm and then they started worshipping the Lord. (see how god works in mysterious ways?)

So God provided a great fish to swallow Jonah (3 days,3 nights) and Jonah had a time of realization and prayer. (If you want to read Jonah's prayer, read jonah 2 )

And then the fish spit Jonah up.

So Jonah went to Ninevah, and delivered this message: "Forty more days and Ninevah shall be overturned." All of them IMMEDIATELY believed God and declared a fast and all of them wore a sackcloth, INCLUDING the king. The king even issued a degree telling everyone to turn from their evil ways and to call on God.

God saw how they had turned and had compassion, and did not bring about the destruction he had threated.

Jonah was ticked.
Jonah was REALLY ticked.

He was like, God, why did I even come?! I already said all of that stuff when I was at home! I know you're compassionate, that you're slow to anger and that you'd really rather not send calamity. Just kill me. I'd rather death than life.

And God was like, Do you really have any reason to be angry?

So Jonah went to a place to sit and see if anything would happen to Ninevah (he'd already built a shelter for some shade). God made a vine grow up around him, to protect him from some more of the sun. And Jonah was pretty happy. But then the next day God provided a worm to eat the vine, and also a scorching east wind, so that Jonah was BURNING in the heat. So again, Jonah was like, why won't you just kill me??

And God was like, Do you really have any right to be angry about the vine? And Jonah was like, Yeah! I'm angry enough to die!!

And God was like, So you've been concerned about this vine even though you didn't tend to it or make it grow or ANYTHING? It just sprang up and then died overnight!! But Ninevah, Ninevah has over 100,000 people, some of them not even having the ability to tell their left hand from their right. And you're saying that I have no right to be concerned about them? (Hey Jonah, have you forgotten that God created them and has provided for them?! OF COURSE he should worry about them! They're his babies!)

And that's the end. Take from it what you will. What did I take from it? The fact that God really does care about EVERYONE despite who you are because YOU ARE HIS CHILD.

the end <3

Blog-able facebook note I wrote..

This year while in Kentucky I learned a lot.
First of which, I've been shadowing God.

I go to a school that's primarily atheist/agnostic. I never had that problem in middle school. In middle school almost EVERYONE was Christian. But when I got to high school it seemed that no one was. Thus beginning my shadowing of Christianity.
See, the people at my school really insult Christians, calling us 'closed minded people who think they're better than everyone else.' That's a bit stereotypical if you ask me. They're being kind of closed minded themselves by putting all Christians in that group.

So before Kentucky I was trying to hide all evidence of me being a Christian. Someone would ask about my summer plans? 'Oh, I'm going to Kentucky.' I wouldn't say why I would be in Kentucky, and I would hope that no one would ask. Whenever my atheist friends would say anything about religion I would pretend I couldn't hear them or try to change the subject. I felt awful about it. Sometimes God would push me to say something, but I'd ignore him. I'd tell him that I'd do it later, that I had plenty of opportunities. That's not really the way we should be working.

But in Kentucky I learned that everything you do has an impact on someone's life. That those little kids at the carnival would remember how we played with them and would someday ask, "Why?'

I also realized that being a Christian can't just be a part of you. It needs to BE you. You NEED to be known by it. I can't hide behind a mask anymore. You know how everyone says that if you act nice and well, like a Christian SHOULD act, people will ask why? I didn't want them to ask why. But now I do. I WANT them to ask why. I want Christ to live THROUGH me. I want to love ALL people. I want to be obedient. I want to live without fear, knowing that God is on MY side.

"Our God is greater,
Our God is stronger,
God you are higher than any other
Our God is healer,
Awesome in power,
Our God, Our God...

And if our God is for us, then who could ever stop us?
And if our God is with us, then what could stand against?
And if our God is for us, then who could ever stop us?
And if our God is with us, then what could stand against?
What could stand against?"

"When I am afraid,
I will trust in you.
In God, whose word I praise,
in God I trust; I will not be afraid.
What can mortal man do to me?"
Psalm 56: 3-4

Kentucky

Kentucky was great(: Kentucky was absolutely fabulous. I met a ton of really really nice people. I had really nice life chats. We had really good church services. I drew pictures for old people. I helped clear graveyards; restoring dignity to those families. I got to play with little kids at a carnival, saw the joy on their faces, saw how thankful the parents were. We went to the state park- walked like six miles- but we all had a really great time. We helped clear out a ravine (FIRST GIRLS EVER), and we had a tooon of fun. We went to a hoedown, we danced with the older people, and it was crazy fun :) We were in a van for like 9 hours, had a hannah montana dance party, then we all crashed.

Kentucky was fun (:

Ain't it perty??

I changed the background..ain't it beautimous??

Anyway...all I did todayy was win mario and dance. :)
I think I've totally given up on gymnastics..but I'm working on a dance to Not ready to make nice and it's reallllyy fun(:
I love that song(:

"Forgive...sounds good..forget, I'm not sure I could..they say, time heals everything..but I'm still waiting..I'm through..with doubt..there's nothin' left for me..to figure out..I've paid..A price..and I'm still paying..I'm not ready to make nice, I'm not ready to back down..I'm still mad as hell and I don't have time to go round and round."

That totally explains everything about everything that's been happening.
I want to forgive. But I don't know if I can forget. Time..isn't helping. There really isn't anything left to FIGURE OUT, per se...and yeah, I've paid a price. I'm not ready to make nice just yet, and I'm not going to just back down. Because I'm mad. I'm extremely mad. And nothing's getting anywhere. I'm just going in circles.


Yes. I'm TRYING. But I'm not GETTING anywhere and it's FRUSTRATING. And the more disappointments...just makes everything worse. SO much worse. I can't believe everything's turning out like this, but no, I'm not backing down. I'm not changing anything. For once, YOU make the decision. YOU do it. Just...!!







Um..wow. Oops.
So..onto..other..things..um..going to Kentuckyy on Sunday and I'm pretty nervous. I hate new things, but once I experience it, I'll probably wish it had never ended(:

That's just how things happen in my world.




.....
the end.. O.o
--faithhh

Mm..life.

It's like one in the morning. I'm aware. I'm at the lake right now, so, ya know. It's all good. Leigh and I went tubing today and...of course, I fell off twice. (: Lovelyy.

So. I'm exhausted. COMPLETELY exhausted. And I wouldn't really be updating this right now if I weren't being nagged..cough cough.

So, hm, my thoughts on life right now??
Well, I was at the gym yesterday and I saw a sign that said, "Your abs only develop when you aren't working them, so make sure you take breaks. Try to only work them out 2 to 3 days a week."

And you know, I hadn't really thought about that before. The only way that things will build up is if you leave them alone for a while. It's the same way with life. You have to stop and take a breather. Relax for a bit. Distract yourself.

So yep, those are my thoughts from the gym :)
Kentucky, here I come...

<3 faithyyy

Honestly? I wish I knew.

During english we were talking about whether or not we would want to know our futures.

I said no.
Honestly? I don't want to know when I'm going to die! Um, no.

But some parts? I wish I knew. I wish I knew the outcome of certain events so I could make smarter decisions.


Currently, I am extremely tired. I've had a...bad week. Readjusting to the whole school thing..more difficult than I expected.

But, as I said, I'm tired, so I'm going to wrap this up.

Chowwww(: And yeah, I mean chow DOWN!

BALTIMORE....

Kay, I know you people that didn't get to go to Baltimore are sick of us talking about it....


BUT I DON'T CARE. IT. WAS. AMAZINGGGGGG!


You see that picture at the top?? THAT WAS OUR AMAZING GROUP. :D WE WERE SO COOL. WE ARE cool. Like, seriously, the six of us that went off and got hats *well...I mean, David eventually joined us...so I suppose it was seven*...WE ARE THE AWESOME HAT CLUB! woooooooo!!!

The dolphin show was a bit of a fail though...'DOLPHINS have skin. HUMANS have skin. OMG!'

But the hat dude, at the mall...he was awesome. And the sunglasses dude, at the mall...he was awesome. And the creepers...at the mall...tehehehehehehehehehehe. xDD

Blonde creeper: Who are YOU looking at??
Devoo: Not at you!


XDDDDD FUNFUNFUN(:

And I'd say that bridge was pretty awesome too. And the three random people we made take our picture XDD

I love baltimore.

So it was funnnn....ESPECIALLY the random wandering(:


lovooozz!

BLog TeSts!

Okay, so one of the things that I do when I'm bored is go onto
blogthings.com and take random tests....

and sometimes the results are SCARY accurate!

Test: Are you an optimist or a pessimist?

Result:
You Are a Realist
You don't see the glass as half empty or half full. You see what's
exactly in the glass.
You never try to make a bad situation seem better than it is...
But you also never sabotage any good things you have going on.
You are brutally honest in your assessments of situations - and this
always seems to help you cope.

Dude, it totally helps me cope to see what's happening.

Test: How do you think?

Result:
You Think Emotionally
Your brain works best when you are able to really get passionate about
something.
You like to feel connected to whatever project you are working on. You
crave meaning

Test: How do you communicate?

You Communicate With Your Ears
You love conversations, both as a listener and a talker.
What people say is important to you, and you're often most affected by
words, not actions.
You love to hear complements from others. And when you're upset, you
often talk to yourself.
Music is very important to you. It's difficult to find you without your
iPod.

DUDEDUDEDUDE. That is like, SCARY accurate. Ohhhhhmmmmgeeeee.

Test: What's your best trait?

Your Best Trait is Creativity
You may seem like you're a bit flaky or flighty, but you're really just
deep in thought.
You are the artistic type, no doubt. However, you are also highly
analytical and logical.
You are able to solve problems in unique and interesting ways. Your
ideas are unpredictable, but they always end up making sense.
You are picky and sometimes downright critical. You expect the best of
yourself, but others are not prepared for your exacting standards. 

The first sentence????

memememememememe!!

love youzz!!
faithh

I think too much.

As the title says, I think too much. Waaaaaaay too much. And apparently, according to others, you can tell how I feel about my thoughts because my face gives it away.

Like yesterday, I was told that I looked annoyed. I was thinking about something that really annoyed me too.

And then all the time I'm told I look mad or sad. It's all because of what I'm thinking about. But occasionally, I lie and say I'm tired, just so no one questions my thoughts. Because I mean, seriously? Do I really want to spill out all of my thoughts to random people? No. I'd really rather not. And I mean, when you're annoyed, you REALLY don't want to. So sometimes I'll just say I'm tired. But there are times when I really am tired too, so I'm not always covering something up.

Guess what I finally learned yesterday??

A press handstand!! Yayz! I'd been working on that for FOREVERRRRRR. But I finally got it.

I know, I'm writing about nothing. But ze blog was looking a bit empty, ya know?

Luvv ya

Faithh

blahbadabadoo(:

Isn't that a beautiful title? It doesn't relate at all to anything I'm going to write, but I thought it would be amazingly fun to say(:

So my new year's resolution was to trust, as I stated a few posts earlier...so I thought, that as I said that, and I've had a month of practice, I should trust my beautimous blog readers.

1. I love to feel loved. It's one of those cravings I have. Which is why it sometimes seems like I just want attention. It's completely not true, I just want to feel loved. Which is also the reason I don't like hugs. I do like hugs, I just don't like them when they're unnecessary. Because then they feel...wasted. But when I'm feeling really down, I just want a hug.

2. I have a miserable temper. Things set me off really easily. But I can't hold a grudge. Sometimes I wish I could, but every time I try...it never works. I just can't do it.

3. I don't trust people, as you could tell by my resolution. I only have three people I actually, honestly trust. Well, four, I must count God, seeing as I trust him the most out of everyone(:

4. I've recently really started to like prayer. Like, I used to not to, because I doubted it for so long. But...after...um...was it 4 months? Yes, I do believe it was four months of praying for the same thing, my prayer was addressed in ways I could never have imagined. But really, if it had been answered sooner, some things might have turned out worse, so I'm glad it was late. It's all in the plan people, all in the plan...

5. I only really became a Christian in May. Shocking to some of those who have read blog posts from months ago? Probably. But see, I had always thought I was Christian. I went through all of the 'act' of it...but there was something totally different inside of me when I actually...cared. I cried for like, an hour because I was so sorry for everything I had done. But it was all so cleansing...so refreshing...

6. I am not as peppy as I often seem. I'm just very good at hiding my feelings. Like, apparently I'm amazing at it. So if you want to know how I'm really feeling, you have to ask, because another thing about me, is that I don't lie. Scratch that. I lie to avoid getting in trouble occasionally. But really, I truly don't lie very often. So if you ask me how I am, and I respond with something other than 'good' that means I'm not good. Just saying.

7. I don't express my feelings verbally very well. Like, not at all. Whatsoever. Urghh. I hate that. Sometimes I'm itching to say something, but I can't because I know it'll come out wrong. Urghh.

8. I don't get why I keep a blog. I really don't. I get why I have one, but not why I've actually kept it. Because I don't stay with projects very long. I get side-tracked rather easily.

9. Biggest fear?? Loneliness/Abandonment. Part of the reason I don't trust people. Because I'm scared they'll eventually leave me. And then...I don't want to be left alone...scared, vulnerable..ehh. I don't want to be abandoned, and I am absolutely miserable when I feel that way...

10. I like being trusted. I loooove it. I hate being lied to, because I can always tell when something's up. I'm actually REALLY observant. But only to people, not my surroundings. But in people, I can tell their likes, dislikes, needs, wants, moods...I can tell a lot of things....


Okay, so new favorite website! praywithme.org It. Is. AMAZING. It totally suits my new love of prayer too(: YAY!

*sighhs* I have song lyrics stuck in my head. They've been stuck in my head for hours....

"I will worship you for who you are,
I will worship you for who you are,
I will worship you for who you are,
Jesus..." you can find it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IU7D369avGI

But see, me with my weird thoughts, took this another way.

It's so easy for us to accept us for who he is. I mean, he's perfect. We know this. It's easy to accept a perfect person

But he will accept us for who we are too, which is something we don't always understand/ accept for some reason. We think, "How could someone accept ME? After everything I've done..." But he really doesn't care about our flaws. We're still amazing in his eyes. He still has a plan for us. He still loves us.

So let's change those lyrics for a second. *even though I love them as they are*

"He will still love you for who you are
He will still love you for who you are
He will still love you for who you are
Jesus...."

Don't think you aren't worthy of his love, that you've done too much wrong, that you're completely undeserving. You haven't done too much wrong and he will always accept you. You can tell him anything, and he'll still love you. ANYTHING. I'm not just saying a few things. I'm talkin' everything. He's the expert of loving AND forgive and forget, remember, he wrote the manual!

So my message for today is, why not have a let go time? Maybe even right now. You might do this often, but it's oh so refreshing, and he will still accept you after, despite what you say. He loves you. A lot.

luvvvvvvs...

faithh

blehh

I'm really really confused right now...about...a lot of things. I'm confused about my own feelings on certain subjects, and I don't like it...

blehh.

I need to figure a few things out...

byezz...
faithh

Resolution

It might be a bit late to write about this, but I'm going to anyways.

My new year's resolution is to trust. If you know me, you know that I keep a lot to myself. Well, I keep the important stuff to myself. So my word for the year is trust.

Now. Don't think I'm going to tell everyone everything about me. Nooooo. But a few people, yes. Because even those I do trust I have either, A: not told some key fact or B: it still takes me too long to say some things to.

So I'm going to try it. Some things, I know, are going to take MONTHS for me to let out. But from experience, I know everything's a heck of a lot less stressful once you do.

What was your resolution?

luvvsss
faithh

My G's...

 

This is a collage of me with my best friends, Kathryn and Elizabeth. These two are always there for me through everything, and I love them to pieces. If I didn't have them, I don't know where I'd be, so I'm glad I have great friends like them.

WHAM. Thank you!

If you ever need something, don't hesitate to ask. There is no shame
in asking God for help. I mean, he already knows what you need, and
he's going to provide it, but it makes him feel good to be asked. It
really does.

Like, a few weeks ago I needed COMFORT. Majorly. So I prayed for some
comfort. The next week WHAM! I got my comfort. I was soo happy :] Then
I did happy prayers :]

I also do lots and lots and lots of safety prayers. Before I go
anywhere I'm like, 'please keep us safe on our way to the *fill in the
blank*'

I loove noticing when my prayers are answered. They always ARE
answered, but I don't always notice. But when I do notice....it's a
great feeling :]

g'bye now!

luvvvvsss...

My thoughts on....Karma *for monica :]*

Karma.

To put it in simple terms: for every good thing you do you recieve
something good, and for every bad thing you do you recieve something
bad.

Simple enough, right?

Well, Karma is one of the biggest parts of Hinduism. They believe that
you will be reborn until you reach enlightenment, or perfect
understanding of, well, everything. And when you are reborn, your
karma decides what kind of family/ body you are born into. If you have
good karma, and have done lots of good things then you might be born
into a wealthy family. But if you have bad karma and have done lots of
bad things then you might be reborn a peasant or even a beetle. And
this cycle of rebirth continues until you reach enlightenment. *Which
doesn't make any sense to me, how are there new people/ an increase in
population if the same people are coming back? And why can't anyone
seem to remember a previous life?*

The Hindus also have one God consisted of many Gods. They have
thousands of Gods that all make up their one big God, Brahman. And
according to Hinduism, once you have that one final death after
enlightenment you become part of Brahman.

So where am I going with this? Well, their God, Brahman, is said to
have this perfect karma. They say he's never done anything wrong or
bad, so nothing bad will ever happen to him.

But then you think, Jesus never did anything wrong either. He lived a
perfect, sinless life and look how he ended up. He had a 'perfect
karma' too, but something terrible happened to him. He was murdered
for no reason other than telling the truth.

So guys, karma isn't real. Sure, you may have something good happen to
you after doing right by someone else, but it isn't because of karma.
If anything, it's because of God's love.

luvssss....
faith

I'm here...

Hello my darlings :)

I'm sorry I haven't posted for the past week, but I've been writing a
bunch of devotionals for people at church and it's been taking up
quite a bit of time.

One of the devos I wrote I liked a lot. It was based on a different
devotional (ish) book called 'His Princess'.

We all know that God is the king of everything, right? And that God is
also our father? Well if our father is a king, then we are princes/
princesses and we are royalty! Isn't that an amazing feeling?

Now, if you have read a lot of this blog, you will notice that the
vast majority of what I write about comes from Matthew. Well, it's
time for that to change....

1 John is a book that is completely devoted to love. The first time I
completely understood why God wants us to love everyone was after
reading this verse.

"For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot
love God, whom he has not seen." 1 John 4:20

It really just makes sense. If you can't love someone you have a
chance at understanding, how can you love someone you can't even see?

"God is love." 1 John 4:16

One of the shortest verses, yet one of the most descriptive, in a way.
It tells you who God is, and that he always has good intentions. And
it also tells you that someone who does not really know God can never
truly recieve love. Because the most loving thing that has ever
happened is Jesus dying on the cross for us.

"As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love."
2 John 6

--
*fAiTh*

Hahaha, that's funny...

I just read something funny. Here's what it says...

"The book of Jonah is one of the most ridiculed books of the bible,
because it tells a seemingly impossible tale of a man getting eaten by
a whale and suriving."

hahahaha! Isn't that hilarious? This book is doubted because it shows
God performing miracles. Don't all of the other books show this as
well? Of course they do! God performs the impossible! If you can dream
it, he can do it. Even if you CAN'T dream it he can do it. Because
he's awesome like that. And he can do ANYTHING.

So never say I can't. Because since God is a part of you, saying that
is basically saying God can't. Say 'With God's help ANYTHING is
possible.' Because it's true :]

luvsssss...
faith

If you truly seek his love you will find it. It may not be automatic,
but it's worth it.

I'm amazed.

I love how God works in unexpected ways. He is so amazing.

I've been feeling really disconnected from God lately. If you haven't
noticed, all of my recent posts have been more...forced than usual.

Once again I had fear. I knew I needed Jesus back. So tonight, he
reassured me of how loved I am.

I went to an amazing service tonight. The main point I got from it
was: 'Know God, and love is yours.'

1 Chronicles 22:19
Now devote your heart and soul to seeking the lord your God.

Never feel as though you've learned enough and that you are perfectly
ready for him. Because in all truth, you by yourself will NEVER be
ready. No matter how much you read, how much you pray you ALONE will
NEVER be ready. You have to keep learning, growing reaching. You can
never come to a stopping point. But if you ask him to help you, ask
him to guide you, when your time comes you will be saved. He will help
you.

Never lose faith. The words 'I can't?' should not be in your
vocabulary. Because Jesus said 'If you can? Everything is possible for
him who believes!' Mark 9:23

Everything is possible with Christ on your side! Never doubt him.
Never let others get you into the mind set that some things 'just
aren't possible.' Jesus can perform MIRACLES! He can save lives! Pray
for those you want to be healed, because the best doctor is God.

God makes me laugh. God makes me cry. But God is with me always,
always he is there.

God, thank you for all you have done today. Thank you for restoring
all faith I had lost. Thank you for taking away my fear, for showing
me anything is possible! God, I love you.
Amen

,.-'+'-.,

So you know how I randomly open my bible sometimes? Just to see what I
find? Well today I got a message, which seemed to be specifically for
me...

*iSaIaH 35:4*
Say to those with fearful hearts, 'Be strong, do not fear; your God will come.

I just thought I'd share that comforting verse with you.

So, I'm supposing that we've all heard about loving our enemies and
yada yada yada....right?

*MaTtHeW 5: 47*

"And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than
others. Do not even pagans do that?"

So in my opinion this is saying "Be different. Be like Christ. Don't
do things ordinarily, do things extraordinarily!"

You are awesome! You are in essence, trying to tell others about God's
love and trying to help change their lives, correct? Well how can you
do this if you can't demonstrate how God's love can change! How his
love can heal!

Soothing words
Comforting hugs
These a demonstration
Of the good Lord above

The gift of happiness, peace
You are amazing, his precious one
And through you my friend
All of his work can be done

Spreading joy
Showing all his power
Saving their eternity
By sharing one small hour

God's love is great
God's love is pure
God's love can heal
God's love can cure

luvssss...