Yes I can...

A few weeks ago my bathroom faucet was leaking very badly.
Other than wasting water it gave off an annoying
drip drip drip drip drip ....
So, rather than waiting for my dad to fix it,
I pulled out a trusty "how-to fix-household-things" book
and went to work with a screwdriver and wrench.
I ended up having to visit Lowes with my dad to get some new parts,
but I did it!
I took it apart and put it back together all by myself.
My dad was pretty impressed and I was too! haha.

All's well

My brother's wedding went really well.
It was beautiful and took my breath away
when I was escorted down the aisle by my groomsman.
My dress fit perfectly and I felt beautiful.

One of Dale's best friends, Micheal and I

Aren't they so giddy with joy!

Walking out

Wedding party

I had to put this one up.
It's my baby cousin Alexis and I .

better

so the other night i unloaded all my stress to my mom and then she told my dad (she always does that), and so my dad talked to me today, telling me that getting a job isn't one of his expectations for me right now, that my job is to go to school. So i'm not worrying about that for right now. i feel really relieved.

the stirring was amazing on sunday. i got an awesome very needed hug from Jordyn, my fave greeter ;) and then Jake did an amazing job of leading us in worship. he inspires me. i sang my heart out.

it's all a bit confusing...

...impossible at best.

I'm a bit overwhelmed at the moment.
Overwhelmed with what college I'm going to transfer to,
looking for a job,
and getting ready for my brother's wedding which is in 17 DAYS!
I am so not ready.

For any of it (mostly the wedding).

College:
1) I fear being far away from all my friends and family and being...alone...with no friends.
2) I'm afraid I'll choose the WRONG college.

Job:
If someone were to just hand me a great job, I'd be happy,
but looking for one stresses me out.

Wedding:
I'm afraid I've gained a few pounds since I last tried on the dress, and I have awful tan lines which don't go well with a strapless dress. I hope it's not selfish to want to look good on my brother's wedding day. I just don't want to look back at photos in a few years and say "EWW!"

I've been feeling down the last few days...all these things running around in my mind. I've been thinking about AHLOT of stuff, wishing I could write it all down but being too lazy cuz it's so much.

On a bright note, my mom gave me this really great devotional, I forget the name, but it's kinda all about how to have a devotional. I feel like I have gotten out of the rhythm of spending time with God and I wasn't really sure where to start again. So it was me praying and journaling. I feel like I'm slowly coming out of my rut.

Will write more soon :D
All Love,
Jamie

In these moments...

I had a weird moment today.
It has happened before.
It was a moment when I was writing my name,
and I started to stare at it and I said it out loud.
Jay-Mee.
And in some surreal way I felt separated from my mind and body,
staring at my name.
This is what I am called,
Jamie.
And in that separated moment it looked so funny
and sounded so weird.
Jay-Mee.
Who is this girl? Or Who is this person?
It's a person?
Who thought of this name, these sounds that you put together to form a word?

***
In that moment I also thought of the person I AM.
The person God created.
With purpose.
A human being existing in this marvelous world He created.
A person out of a gazillion.
He loves me.
He's the God who has all things and still wants ME!

A Jar of Rocks

I was at my Life Group on Thursday and my friend Jordyn was saying that she could never find time to spend with God. She is continually bombarded by homework and chores. This seems to be a common occurrence amongst most people.

What would happen if we stepped out in faith by spending that time with God FIRST, and then trusting Him to help us get, in this case, our homework done?

My good friend Rachel told me of a time last semester at Simpson when she felt God calling her to skip school for one whole day and go up to Whisky Town Lake to spend time with Him. She was afraid to get behind in her studies, but she stepped out in faith and spent all day with Him at the lake. That was a wonderful day for her to be refreshed and replenished by the Lord, and she knew that He would provide her with the time to catch up on her studies.

There is a good metaphor about this, (or time management in general)...

Imagine you have a glass jar, the bigger the size the better.

Now fill it with some fist-sized rocks.
When the jar is full, put a few more in for good measure :D

Is the jar full? You might say yes, but it's not.
Now add some pebbles, shaking the jar to cause the pebbles
to work themselves down into the spaces between the big rocks.

Then, pour in a bunch of sand,
filling all the spaces between the rocks AND the pebbles.
One last thing, grab a pitcher of water and pour it in until the jar is filled to the brim.

The point of this is, if you don't put the big rocks in first, you'll never get them in at all. These big rocks represent our most important priorities. Our most important prioritY should be God, and our time with Him. When we fit Him in first, He makes everything fit in around Him, but not before Him. I hope this helps someone, I know that I need to work on this in MY own life.

Cheers,
Jamie Ann

Finding Beauty in Ugly Things...

I currently have a Tarantula named Penelope living in my room this next week and a half while my good friend Caitlin is off in Hawaii, swimming in crystal clear blue waters and relaxing on soft white sands, soaking in the glorious warm tropical sun.


At her request of me pet sitting I was hesitant, reluctant... but then I thought, how bad could it be? I don't have to hold it, just mist its cage and throw in some crickets (which on a side note are my own personal chirping summer night in a Cool Whip container). I agreed to the task.

Usually when I mist Penelope's cage she retreats further into her log home, but tonight she came out a bit. It was almost as if she was longing for some attention, for the familiar Caitlin hand to lovingly reach out to her. I found myself in awe of her. How could something so hairy with 10 legs be so captivating? You may be cringing and gaging at the thought of this big spider, but I was enthralled by her beauty. Each leg was so carefully placed, one hovering still in the air, waiting.

Waiting? For me? So after much thought and rationalizing, I slowly placed my hand on the bark at the bottom of the cage, inches from her, waiting for her to climb onto my hand.

Unfortunately, my human gut instinct is to pull away from dangerous things (she's not dangerous, but still a spider), so after a few seconds when she suddenly moved her feet forward a HUGE rush of adrenaline poured through my body and I JERKED my hand out of the cage. I had done that without even thinking. My body just reacted.

I never got the courage up to put my hand down again and after a few minutes of gazing at her she retreated into her home.

I'm sorry Penelope, I will try again tomorrow.