In Christ Alone!

A Scene of Salvation

Hello my friends,

Thank you to those who read and commented on my last entry. I know it was long.  And thank you to those who have been praying for me. It has been needed and is extremely appreciated.

I feel like saying something profound and thought provoking, but I'm seriously to tired to come up with anything. So I'm just going to say what is in my mind and heart this very moment.

I wish I could explain how I feel right now. I am in physical pain, I'm exhausted, I'm stressed, I'm tired, I'm behind financially, I'm a tad gloomy thanks to the last week of cloudy days . . . . . . but inside I couldn't be happier. It's like I have a true calm & satisfied spirit about me that is unexplainable. Almost as if I'm in love and all else doesn't matter. But who could satisfy ME? There is only One who can. And He is!

Standing all alone, in an open field, my toes dig roughly into the barren hard ground. Dry dirt catches the wind and stings my sleepless eyes, causing cold tears to stream my pale cheeks. All alone, yet surrounded by stress I gasp for a breath of fresh air. I cough. The air is dry and dusty. The wind begins to pull at the clothes on my sore body, whisking my hair past the depressed expression on my dirty face. As I gaze helplessly towards the sky I realize I'm in the center of an ever-growing fierce tornado of Life. Everything around me makes me frustrated. The bills, lack of time, and procrastinated assignments swirl closer and closer to my conscience. I fall to my knees, exhausted from standing in the same spot for weeks. As the wind and dust pick up I close my mouth and close my eyes. The smell is bitter with hypocrisy. I raise my chapped hands to the swirling skies and cry out with all that is left in me. Begging for someone to hear me, find me, help me. Suddenly, I am pelted with hard cold drops of rain. To sore to move and having no where to run for shelter I remain still. Slowly, the dust starts to settle. The sound of rain falling in sheets to the hard ground is loud yet soothing. The smell sweetens with hope. Dripping wet the rain finally lets up. The wind ceases and the clouds part, revealing blinding rays of sun. My heart fills with peace. I am still surrounded with Life, but now the Comforter fulfills my deepest longing. A smile sneaks onto my flushed cheeks and my sore body stands in Praise of the One who heard my cry.

Yup, that pretty much sums it up. Surrounded with tribulations of Life, I am satisfied and full of hope, but only because of Christ! God Bless~

Just Some Last Minute 19 YR OLD Random Thoughts

Hello Darling Friends,

If I may call you all darling. haha My birthday is tomorrow and I'm attempting to be in my bestest mood. *sigh* Yes, it was another long day/week AGAIN, but such is MY life. hehe

On a flat note (to get it out of the way) I haven't been feeling well. It's not like I'm sick, I'm just more "sick and tired." If you know what I mean. Sick and tired of a lot of things. I don't know if I could point them all out however. Lack of finances, procrastination and too many interruptions resulting in being late on my third writing assignment, coming in contact with people that take advantage of you, insecure & immature teenagers, lack of guitar practice..... those are just a few that come to mind. But I'd rather not dwell on such depressing stuff right now. I have an hour til my Birthday DAY starts. And as many of you probably know, my favorite days of the year are my, and other people's birthdays. hehe Ok... moving on.

Speaking of birthdays there have been a TON this month! On the 25th, Saturday, one of my best friends turned 18. She is so great! Anyway, her awesome brother who is.... 22 now I think.... for a birthday present to his sister, took her flying (along with their other sister, 20)! How cool is that? Having your brother take you flying day of your 18th birthday? Anyway, he let her hold the wheel and all for a while, she said it was a bit scary but a lot of fun. Then he played around with them (his sisters) ...... flying it up at a rapid speed then doing something that shut off the engines (or something, can't remember exactly) that caused the plane to give the roller-coaster effect.... and immediately the plane began going almost straight down. Her brother said she freaked out and was like slapping him and screaming, he said it was great! haha

Another best friend of mine (Kezi) had her birthday on Sunday, the 26th. She turned 20 also!!! Whoo Hoo! Monday, we (Me, Kez, & another Stephanie.... who is another best friend of mine) ate out at a beautiful Tea Room to celebrate mine and Kezi's birthdays. (They paid for my meal..... THANKS!!!) It was so awesome. I took pictures and I'll try to post some later, but I'm to tired to worry about that now. It was great fun! We went to the all-so-famous Walmart afterwards and did what girls do best. (If you don't know already, it's for your own good. HAHA)

Then yesterday was another guy's 22nd birthday. I forgot to call him, but it's ok. I haven't actually seen him in...... too long. (All the more reason to wish him a happy B-day I suppose, but.... oh well.) There have been more..... my sister was the 5th, uncle was on the 4th, another best friend on the 10th, another awesome lady on the 9th, another wacky lady on the 24th, and another guy's 20th birthday on the 31st! Whoo.... it's time for some CAKE! haha

All who vote the year 1986 is the BEST!!!! Say Aye!
"AYE!" said me.

I like know so many awesome friends born that year. It is so sweet! And cool! And fun! And awesome! And ...... it just makes me smile! haha I'm so obsessed with the love of birthdays. I can't wait to have a family of my own, then I'll have a husband's birthday and lots of beautiful children to add to my Birthday collection! HAHA I'm waking up... oh dear.

Speaking of children, I wish I could have some while I'm still young. But, that requires (according to my standards and beliefs) a husband first. And before he's my husband he'll be my fiance'. And before he's my fiance' he'll be my very Best Friend! And before he's that ...... well I have absolutely NO idea! haha I die to know every day who it is. Crazy? I'm sorry. I just want to marry early, have a bunch of kids at a young age, and then raise them and finish growing up with them. My Mom and I are so close I KNOW we share a brain. Neither of us function well without the other in some way or another. LOL And I want my daughters (and sons, gotta love the boys too) to be very close to me. And to love and respect and honor me like I do my Mother Dear.

But dwelling on THAT everyday isn't exactly what God has in mind for me, I know. So patience gets well used day after day after "lonely" day. I can't really say lonely. Like I mentioned above, I have more interruptions by darling siblings than I can count! It's bitter-sweet. hehe

So alas, I never thought it would be, but I'm about to be a 20 year old single young lady. haha Without even a single prospect. I'm too picky. That's what I keep telling myself. Then I think .... No! .... There IS someone out there that is waiting for me, and someday we'll meet and ....... ahhh! haha (If you're laughing, be quiet. A girl has a right to dream a little. ) Anyways, I'm blessed with many friends and family that have kept me from being the pitiful lonely single young adult many become. And Praise God for filling the emptiness in my heart, daily. Without Him in my life, I know I would go crazy! "Thank you, Jesus!"

Hmm, I'm guessing this is getting pretty long. And I'll be surprised if anyone reads all of it and actually gives me a worth while comment afterwards, but these are my last words and thoughts being 19. I'll probably end up submitting this after midnight, and I started a while ago, but I'm just having fun writing this in a slow, thoughtful, dreamy state.

I wonder if I'll get any birthday emails, or cards, or phone calls, or even if someone will message me tonight/tomorrow? How much do my friends love me? j/k Just because I'm obsessed with birthdays doesn't mean YOU have to be. But returned favors always mean more to the person who gave it in the first place. (in my opinion)

I love music. I am so obsessed with music. I watch people sing well and I just get excited. I watch people perform instruments (mainly... guitar, keyboard, bass, drums, & violins) well, and I get even MORE excited. I used to cry when we sang as a family for people, or as a church special or something. But now? Wow have I escaped my once oh-so-shy box. I LOVE singing! In front of people, I don't care. Last Sunday I was in charge of the whole music side of the service because Pastor was ill. It was so sweet! Anyway, amongst other heart touching songs that our ensemble did and that we led ect. me and my sister Anna (16) did a duet special just before the service. We sang the song "Breathe" and I played my acoustic guitar. It was SOOOO Lovely! We'd barely practiced so it was pretty natural, but being sisters we did awesome. I was so excited. Standing there, singing for the glory of God, with my sister, playing my guitar, seeing the smiling faces of my mom and other dear friends and church family members...... Ahhhhh!!!! I must marry a man in love with music as well. That is a must that I have yet to find in so many guys I meet. *sigh*

I suppose I should stop writing now. I will be utterly shocked, surprised, and thrilled if anyone has made it to reading it this far. haha

Hmm.... I'm not sure what my very last words should be. No pressure though, 20 hopefully won't hit me TOO hard. All my "already 20" friends say it's pretty much no different. But, for me it's going to be different. 20 is half of 40 ya know. (Thanks to one of my youngest siblings pointing that out for me.) My brother wrote "Steph's 20... OLD MAID" on his calendar. How nice and considerate he is, isn't he? LOL *I'll just keep laughing*

Ok. By the grace of God I will live til I'm 100, and this is only a fifth of my lifetime. And by the patience and love of Christ I will grow into the best Christian .... follower of Christ .... that I can be in the rest of my lifetime. And by the love, support, prayer, encouragement, and kindness of all my friends....... I will become an even better single young lady throughout this next year of my life. Hopefully I will leave all sources of procrastination behind me and focus hard on what is solely important in my life. God! Family! Friends! Music! Income! Writer/Author/Published! and many more.

Thank you all, I love you all, God Bless you all, and have a great week! (I may not post for the rest of this one.) Adios! Ciao! See-ya!

BEWARE: Suspicious Subject Spotted Again!

Thank God we have such a large family, someone is always at home, and Praise the Lord he has and continues to protect us, all of us, everyday!

Almost home, only half a mile away, distracted with the text message I had just sent her, Mom saw him. All of the sudden, unexpectedly, when she looked back at the road she saw the suspicious man, in dark clothing, walking in the direction she was coming from. She thought he was carrying a large object, but was uncertain due to his sudden appearance. A little freaked out, she tells us about him when she got home. Immediately, we all start talking. (This is at 9:30 PM.) We soon realize that each of us, at different times, has seen this suspicious man, in dark clothes, hooded jacked, in the blackness of night, alone. Once walking south, away from our home; once walking north, directly in front of our property; another time through our front yard and in our apple trees.

We decide to call 911 (since we couldn't find the correct dispatch number to call.) They said they would send out a few people to look for our suspicious looking man, walking alone, in the dark, on the side of the road. We also called a few of our other friends/neighbors who are or have connections, (scanners, inside info thanks to volunteer work w/ the FD, ect.) We found out that someone living nearby has had thousands of dollars worth of stuff stolen from them in the last month or two also. I KNOW that this guy is the culprit!

The night Josh and I saw him, a few weeks ago, Mom and Dad were gone. Caleb, Anna, and Rebekah were at play practice. And we were on our way home from a joy ride of sorts with the rest of our younger siblings. We were shocked when we saw him as we went over the last hill, not 10 seconds from our home, boom there he was! We saw the back of him, walking on the right side of the road, hood covering his head and face. He didn't pause for a moment, didn't even glance as we drove by. We pulled into our driveway, hurried the kids inside, and locked the doors. We watched as he walked past the house on the road. Josh felt so uneasy about the suspicious character he made sure ALL the doors were locked (himself), the lights were on, and Dad's 9MM (I think that's what it was) was hidden, but "ready." I didn't even know about the gun part til tonight, but you know this man is bad when my big brother gets freaked out. Praise God he kept his cool on the outside... who knows what I'd have done if I saw him get worked up.

Eventually several cop cars drove past our house, looking for the creep. But I fear they were to late and he had made his escape yet again. Someday "we" will catch him, but until then... Keep your eyes and ears open, doors locked, guns "ready," and your prayers for protection updated!

This is Night-Watch 713 -- Over and Out!

Spring is Here!!!

~!~ DREAMS ~!~

Hey Guys,

Got a question for you. Do you guys have dreams? Not like "what do you want for your future" dreams (although I COULD talk about that), but like dreams that you have when you're sleeping.

I seem to have been having a lot of weird dreams lately. It's kind of surprising me. Yesterday morning I woke up then fell back asleep. And it was during that second sleep that I had a dream. The odd part of it was that I'd dreamt the exact same thing another time. I don't remember when but it was a while ago. Now, I've had repetitious dreams before, but they were always just the same thing and nothing changed. But in THIS dream I could remember what was going to happen next just before it happened, and I was able to change things. I stopped bad things from happening. I acted differently around certain characters to produce different results. And so on. Is that strange or what?

Then this morning I had another weird dream. But this time the dream is what woke me up. It was interesting. I can't remember the details but after a long scene of events someone was after me. I ended up running into this one room to hide  and it was then my dream shifted. As I entered the room I entered a whole different century. That last part of my dream was very pleasant, and that is when I woke up. LOL I tried to go back to sleep to see where the pleasant dream would end up but I just ended up wasting another two hours of my day. (oops)

What do dreams mean? Are they simply ideas that you've had over the last week mixed with your many emotions and a load of imagination, displayed like a realistic piece of life? Or are they signs, warnings, promptings, that you are intended to incorporate into your real life?  After I wake up, should I dwell on the dreams, good or bad, or should I disregard them and take no more thought about any of it?

Once I had a dream,  and to make this really short,  this man who was sitting next to me in church tried to kill me by poisoning me through something he had touched. It was one of the most real dreams I've ever had. And after running from him wildly I woke up in a panic. Not three hours later Mom read on the news via the Internet that a guy had poisoned three people somehow by touching them. He had made a point to shake their hands after his court case and later that day all three were very sick. That kind of freaked me out.

Dreams are talked about a lot in the Bible. And are dreams and visions the same thing? Can we create our own dreams and visions or must they come on their own? If it is without us, then do they all have significant meanings? Do Christians and non-Christians have different dreams? Should a Christian take more serious action concerning his/her dream verses a non-Christian?

I'm sorry, I'm asking way to many questions than you'll probably want to comment on and answer. But, they are going through my head so I decided to type them. hehe

Ok. I'm stopping. That is plenty to think about for now. And if anyone at all has any helpful advice, suggestions, Bible verses, or even opinions, please comment. Email works too!  Good day and God bless you all!

Giving Your 100%

Here is something a friend emailed me. I found it quite intriguing and thought I'd share it with y'all. Have a blessed day!

A Thought for the Day From a strictly mathematical viewpoint:

What Equals 100%? What does it mean to give MORE than 100%?
Ever wonder about those people who say they are giving more than 100%?
We have all been in situations where someone wants you to give over 100%.
How about achieving 101%? What equals 100% in life?

Here's a little mathematical formula that might help you
answer these questions:
If: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Is represented as:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26.

Then:
H-A-R-D-W-O-R- K
8+1+18+4+23+15+18+11 = 98%

and
K-N-O-W-L-E-D-G-E
11+14+15+23+12+5+4+7+5 = 96%

But,
A-T-T-I-T-U-D-E
1+20+20+9+20+21+4+5 = 100%

AND, look how far the love of God will take you

L-O-V-E-O-F-G-O-D
12+15+22+5+15+6+7+15+4 = 101%

Therefore, one can conclude with mathematical certainty that:
While Hard work and Knowledge will get you close,
and Attitude will get you there,
it's the Love of God that will put you over the top!

Author unknown to me

What do you choose? / The foreign phone call!

Alas Dear Friends,

I dare say it is time for another post. How art thou all? I am doing wonderfully. I have many things I could complain about, such as: my cold, the right side of my jaw, my left ear, and.......
But you know what? I choose today not to focus on my illness, or my conflicts, or my uncomfortable situations. BECAUSE! I have so much to be thankful for. I have been so blessed! TODAY, I choose to be cheerful, and in good spirits, and have a great attitude about life, because Christ has given me way more than I deserve.

          He has given me:

• the opportunity to spend eternity with the Lord and Creator of Life itself.

• a Proverbs 31 woman for a mother, whom any daughter would be proud to call her friend.

• a Dad with a heart and true passion for living out the Will of God in his life and helping his children to do the same.

• 9 brothers and sisters with multiple characteristics that keep me humble and keep me going.

• a warm home, cold as it gets sometimes, it is warm.

• a soft bed, a place to rest my head.

• friends that encourage me when I'm frustrated or depressed, and that I encourage when they are having a rough time.

• a church that I can minister to by utilizing and developing my talents week after week.

The list could go on and on. But these are just a couple of the things that I am truly truly thankful for. I am so blessed, and I don't want to ever forget it or take any of it for granted.

Do you ever get odd phone calls? Of course you do. Well, we got one the other day. Yesterday maybe, I can't remember. It came up on the caller ID as "Unknown Caller" and the phone number was 172-300-1100. How weird is that? Mom answered, and since I was sitting close to the phone I could hear the man on the other end. She answered, "Hello?" The foreign non-American voice repeated, "Hello?" She said again, "Hello?" Then he proceeded to say "Hello" again and again and again. A little differently each time, as if he was asking 'hello' then sad to say 'hello' then excited to say 'hello' then confused about 'hello' and so on. Mom asked, "Hello?" once more then hung up with, "That was weird!" I agreed. She then went on the Internet and after a lot of looking around, we realized that that number was from Gonabad Kavous, IRAN!!!!! AHHH!!!!! We got a call from some guy in Iran?!!!?!!! Terrorist maybe? Did he randomly dial our number? How and why in the world would someone from Iran call us like that? Rather mind boggling.

Anyway, I hope you all are having a great day.

Keep the Sabbath day Holy and God bless!

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!!

Hey Everyone!

How have you guys been? It's been forever since I actually wrote something new, huh? I promised some friends that I'd post various different things, and I have yet to get around to it. (Sorry Myklin) I will get around to it sometime.

Last night was so awesome! But to give you a tad bit of exciting context here I go. LOL Our family loves to sing right? Well, last Christmas we were asked to sing for like three different Christmas events. That was so awesome. We worked up a little grouping of songs and then did them at each "concert." Then we sang about four other times last year for people. This year however... starting before Christmas, we have been singing quite regularly! I'm so thrilled! We did several Christmas events, some stuff in between, and starting last night we have several Valentine's Day concerts to do. Wow! It was so much fun. We did a great variety of songs. Some were just our trio, some a quartet w/ keyboard, some guitars/drums/contemporary, some slow country with acoustic guitar/violins ect..... it was just so cool! I was having doubts about our performance two hours before we sang. So I got down on my knees, prayed for a while, then I visualized us doing a perfect job! It worked! I love my God so much!!!!

At the place settings for the dinner preceding the concert, everyone got a little 'sweetheart' candy on their little jello dessert. REALLY CUTE!!! And guess what mine said? It was so appropriate.... it said, "EMAIL ME!" How cute huh? So I took that advise and emailed someone.  hehe No more about that though. LOL

Let me think.... Well, I've decided to search the scriptures as fine silver, or for hidden treasures. I've never actually done that before, so I'm excited. I've started a notebook to jot down my findings as well. I am going to get wisdom and understanding. I am also going to obtain the faith that Jesus taught his disciples about. I can't wait! I used to have great faith as a child. And I do truly believe that is why Jesus said, "I would that you were like these little children..." Kids have faith! I used to, and I am going to get it once again. We had an awesome week last week at a convention. Sunday was the best of all of them though. One man, whom we've known for a bit, told us how he asked God to show him all of the miracles Jesus performed in the Bible. So far he has seen or done several of them. Wow! Goose bumps! Chills! But it shouldn't be uncommon for us who are Christ's children should it??? Nope! I am truly learning and growing! YEEEEE HAWWW!!! lol

Ok, Well, I really need to go. May God's will be done, God Bless, and Good-day!!!

~His Truly~

Stephanie

HAPPINESS IS THE WAY - / - CONTENTMENT

Hello Friends (or whoever reads this),

I haven't posted for a very long time. I have been busy, and my computer still isn't back up and running. *not going there* I am surprised at how unusually stressed and almost depressed I have been recently. There is no REAL reason to be, so today, I'm happy. And for good reason. Look at all the things I have to be happy about. No more bad attitudes and stressfulness for this girl, oh no!

I am learning to instead of "make time for God, and bring Him into my life" to actually, "live life for God, and thank Him for letting me be a part of His Kingdom!" What a paradiem (sp?) shift. But it's true isn't it? I told that to our Pastor in Sunday School last Sunday, and he incoorperated that statement into his sermon. That was neat, but it's so true.

This past Sunday's sermon was about Contentment. I just wanted to share the notes that I took so you (if you allow yourself to be a part of his Kingdom long enough to read them) can have more contentment in your life too. (And just to clarify, I'm preaching to myself on that one!)

CONTENTMENT

Philippians 4:11

Luke 3:14

Proverbs 15:16 "Better is little with the fear of the Lord..."

Hebrews 13:5-6

1 Timothy 6:6-8 "But godliness with contentment is great gain..."

Proverbs 14:14

Proverbs 16:8 "Better is little with righteousness..."

Ecclesiastes 5:10

CONTENTMENT IS:  Kingdom Based

     Destroyer #1 Believing that "xyz" will make your life complete

     Destroyer #2 Frustrated when others get blessed

~ Kingdom Based, Lordship of Christ, Brought to Pavement of every day life.

~ Long Term View, not Short Term (think about how your actions will impact tomorrow and the rest of your life, good and bad)

~ We don't decide on our feelings. I do decide upon my actions towards them. (this was huge for me)

~ Own the feelings and realize "I am OK" ... I am not my feelings. I am, who I am in Christ. (owning the feelings, *sigh* I have several areas that I need to own my feelings and move on... Pray for me!)

~ YOU ARE NOT WHAT YOU FEEL (read that about five more times)

~ You are Kingdom Based--> Goal is Servanthood, to be where he utilizes you.

I hope that helps and encourages you in some way. I think I'll be rereading that all throughout this week.  Anyway, this last thing that I am going to post is something my friend has posted in his house as a daily motivater for himself. I'm glad he shared it, because it seems to fit so appropriately for me this week.

Dance Like No One’s Watching

We convince ourselves that life will be better after we get married, have a baby, then another.  Then we are frustrated that the kids aren’t old enough and we’ll be more content when they are.  After that we’re frustrated that we have teenagers to deal with.  We will certainly be happy when they are out of that stage.

We tell ourselves that our life will be complete when our spouse gets his or her act together, when we get a nicer car, are able to go on a nice vacation, when we retire.  If not now, when?

Your life will always be filled with challenges.  It’s best to admit this to yourself and decide to be happy anyway.  One of my favorite quotes comes from Alfred D. Souza.  He said, “For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin – real life.  But there was always some obstacle in the way, something to be gotten through first, some unfinished business, time still to be served, a debt to be paid.  Then life would begin.  At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life.”

This perspective has helped me to see that there is no way to happiness.  Happiness is the way.  So, treasure every moment you have.  And treasure it more because you shared it with someone special, special enough to spend time with. 

So stop waiting until you finish school, until you go back to school, until you loose ten pounds until you gain ten pounds, until you have kids, until the kids leave the house, until you start work, until you retire, until you get married, until you get divorced, until Friday night, until Sunday morning, until you get a new car or home, until your car or home is paid off, until the spring, until fall, until winter, until the first or the fifteenth, until you’ve had a drink, until you’ve sobered up, until you die - decide that there is no better time than right now to be happy…Happiness is a journey, not a destination.

Thought for the day:
Work like you don’t need the money,
Love like you’ve never been hurt,
And dance like no one’s watching.

Author – Crystal Boyd

Neat huh? Ok, I hope I'm not making this too long. Sometimes it's better to post a little each day, and not a lot all at once. But it's whenever ya have time time in my case. *hugs* for everyone.

God Bless~

Stephanie

Waiting on the Lord / Called by God

Hello Friends,

I am so glad that God is patient and kind and loving and forgiving everlastingly. I have been testing it today, and for the past week at least. My computer, that I love (maybe a bit to much), that I spent my graduation money on.... GOT A VIRUS!!!!   It was the new one that went around right after Christmas and through New Years Day. I fretted and worried and stressed horribly over it. And for some stupid reason I let those emotions take control of me instead of trusting in the Lord and remembering to read my instruction manual or calling tech support.

Saturday, I finally DID something about it. I took it to a computer geek friend of mine and he reformated it, and reinstalled windows for me, (thinking I had the driver CD's available.) At first I thought he knew what he was doing completely (which he did) and that everything would be fine after that. (Would have had I had the CD's.) I got it home and turned it on to find basically nothing but the recyling bin icon. Talk about depressing! I had saved all my important documents, music, and pictures, but I hadn't backed up any of the actual important hard drive information. (I now know better.)

It was after that disheartening discovery that I FINALLY decided to get out my Product Information Guide.... to find a piece of cardboard shaped like a cd that said that I didn't receive (or need) an operating system CD or drivers CD's. Because.... all I had to do was go here, click on this, that, and the other thing, and boda-bing I could've restored it to it's settings previous to my virus and everything would have been fine. I think I slumped into depression really fast. I feel so bad for my family having to put up with my attitude today.

Anyway, after almost crying a gazillion times, I decided to look up some alternative information on the net (using Mom's comptuer.) I maybe could have found what I was looking for had I visited long enough, but I just decided to chat with the Dell Technical Support people and see if they could solve my mistakes quicker than I could on my own. After about ten min. of waiting someone became available. And considering there were 40+ people ahead of me, I didn't think that was too bad. After a simple conversation and a willing techy, I will receive my Driver and Application CD's in the next 24 hours. Wow! I was so relieved. How simple it turned out to be too. Why couldn't I just Wait upon the Lord??? and have reduced my depression/stress level drastically.

So, tomorrow I will be reinstalling the neccessary drivers and what not, and then my computer will be back to "normal" minus some stuff that I will have to add later. What a breath of relief, and a HUGE learning experience.

Lesson Learned: BACK UP YOUR DATA PEOPLE..... oh, and READ YOUR MANUALS!!!! . . . But most of all . . . WAIT UPON THE LORD!!!!

Here is something that I got in an email today. Read it!  It's awesome!

(Sorry, I couldn't change the font color, if you highlight it with your mouse it may be easier to read.)

Called By God

I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: ’Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?’ Then I said, ’Here am I! Send me’
—Isaiah 6:8

God did not direct His call to Isaiah— Isaiah overheard God saying, ". . . who will go for Us?" The call of God is not just for a select few but for everyone. Whether I hear God’s call or not depends on the condition of my ears, and exactly what I hear depends upon my spiritual attitude. "Many are called, but few are chosen" ( Matthew 22:14 ). That is, few prove that they are the chosen ones. The chosen ones are those who have come into a relationship with God through Jesus Christ and have had their spiritual condition changed and their ears opened. Then they hear "the voice of the Lord" continually asking, ". . . who will go for Us?" However, God doesn’t single out someone and say, "Now, you go." He did not force His will on Isaiah. Isaiah was in the presence of God, and he overheard the call. His response, performed in complete freedom, could only be to say, "Here am I! Send me."

Remove the thought from your mind of expecting God to come to force you or to plead with you. When our Lord called His disciples, He did it without irresistible pressure from the outside. The quiet, yet passionate, insistence of His "Follow Me" was spoken to men whose every sense was receptive (Matthew 4:19). If we will allow the Holy Spirit to bring us face to face with God, we too will hear what Isaiah heard-"the voice of the Lord." In perfect freedom we too will say, "Here am I! Send me."

Ok... Ya'll have a great day now. God Bless Always~ And Wait upon the Lord .... he WILL renew your strength. (I've proved it.)

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

Hey All who read~

Merry Christmas Eve.... and to save me from having to do this tomorrow.... Merry Christmas Day!!!!  I am so excited! I love Christmas!!! Jesus is the reason for the season. If it wasn't for him we wouldn't even have Christmas. A time to exchange gifts and share love and experience the joy that only Christ could bring! Everyone needs to remember to thank the Lord for sending us his only Son that we may have life, and have it more abundantly, and that we may share His Good News with all those around us! Have a great Christmas season and continue to share His Good News with others... the reason we celebrate!

"Happy Birthday Jesus!!! My Lord and Savior!!!"

Blessings~

Stephanie

~RESPECT FOR THOSE IN UNIFORM~

Hello Again,

The other day as Mom and I were leaving the mall we happened to pass two men well dressed in their army uniforms. As soon as we reached the car and out of earshot of the two, Mom made the comment that she almost felt obligated to salute them. I told her that I had the same unique gut feeling to say something, or shake their hands, or somehow show them how much we appreciate their volunteer efforts for our country.  On the way home we discussed how often it seems that the news brings up all the negative outlooks on the war and our men and women fighting for our country, and significantly less the positive actions and comments that are given and recognized. If the news won't give our men and women in uniform the respect and honor that they deserve, shouldn't we start showing our gratitude by at least saying "thank you" when passing by? Just something I've been pondering the last few days.

Ok, I'm tired. Have a lovely day!

Stephanie

Hello! I'm new! =)

Hello! I'm new.  I don't really have anything to say, but my goodness are those emotions (smileys) cute! Quite the variety. This will be fun.  And since you probably don't know me, one of my most favorite things to do is jam out with my family!  I take care of the  guitar part. My brother Caleb does the drums and Mom does the  keyboard. Occasionally Josh graces our presence with his electric bass guitar, and my sisters Anna and Abigail on their  violins. Oh yes, we have LOTS of fun!

A bit of info on my family (of which I still live at home with) is: I have wonderful parents of whom I love, cherish, and adore. I have four brothers (only one is older than I), and five sisters! I am the second born, and I'm 19 years young. (Why be old when you're not?)

Yesterday I had a friend over and we (my five sisters, Lucy, and I) all baked and decorated over 18 dozen Christmas cookies. That was fun! It's such a wonderful memory that I will forever cherish as well.

And to save you from future nonsence ramblings, I will end this entry. :) Many blessings to all of you.
(And to my Dear friend Myklin Vinson [oh, it's so hard to get used to that last name] I love you girl, you are a huge blessing in my life!)

~God Bless~