For Everything There Is A Season

November 2013 - Mr. Noah Irish, my boyfriend of 3 years, proposed marriage, and I bought a wedding dress with my momma and sister.
December 2013 - graduated from Northwest University with my Bachelor's of Arts in General Studies and moved my 21-year-old self to Kirkland.
January 2014 - brought in the new year with 5 men (Noah included), broken guitars, and mortars in the fire place.
February 2014 - started a new job, only to give my two weeks notice three weeks later.
March 2014 - started at Starbucks as a fresh face with no experience.
April 2014 - transferred to another store and made approximately 20 new friends.
May 2014 - walked across a stage and received my diploma from the university president and hung out with my family and my soon-to-be family at lunch.
June 2014 - went home to Oregon to be showered by family and friends in honor of my wedding.
July 2014 - watched and stood next to one of my very best friends as she married her very best adventure buddy.
August 2014 - finalized all of the plans for our wedding with the help of my beautiful mother and sister, was taken out by two wonderful friends for my bachelorette party, saw one of my best friends come back from London, married my best friend, provider, and confidant on the 23rd, and started a new job 5 days later.
September 2014 - hit the six month mark at Starbucks and became a barista trainer.
October 2014 - turned 22, and lost a friend to cancer.
November 2014 - my parents celebrated 25 years of marriage, we signed a lease for a 104 year old apartment and will move in on the first of December, I gave my two weeks notice at a job I have had for 1 year and 4 months, and I cooked my first Thanksgiving dinner last night.

This past year has certainly been filled with ups and downs, highs and lows, lefts and rights, and all that good directional stuff. It's been a tough year as well as a very...developing year. I'm reminded of all of God's promises to prosper us (Jeremiah 29:11), love us (John 3:16), and guide/restore us (Psalm 23:2). He's so faithful and so good to us. And this Thanksgiving, while I am working and giving wonderful people the caffeine needed to pep them up for family get-togethers or going to work themselves and my husband is doing the same, I'd like to leave you with this reminder:

"Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth! Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people and the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations" (Psalm 100).

Where To Begin

Hello, faithful blog followers. It's been awhile. Allow me to update you on the current state of my life:

Work:
. I've been working more hours at Starbucks getting ready to start paying back my loans
. Recently, my supervisors have been asking me to supervise beginners while they make drinks which is a huge compliment to me!
. My six month review is in two more months, and I am hoping to become a barista trainer - I've always loved to teach!
. The transition to a new store was difficult at first, but now I love my store and fellow partners!

School:
. I finished Microbiology and learned from the experience that as much as I love to learn about and practice science, I'm not sure that I see it as a life career for me
. On that note, after much prayer and consideration, I've been told to wait to go back to school as I am currently making a big transition into becoming a wife!
. I am going to go pick up my diploma from NU on Monday, and finally get to see (on paper) the fruits of my labor

Church:
. I love teaching Beloved and it is going well so far! I faithfully have about seven girls who attend and we are making our way through Hebrews (that is a whole other blog post in itself!)
. Noah and I have been youth leaders for one year and four months and its going pretty well! We've graduated three kids and have been continuing to learn about the other kids and grow to love them more and more
. We are also continuing to grow more and more in the community/body of the church and we feel so at home at Calvary Monroe

Home:
. My wonderful roommate Rylie is getting married next weekend!!! Which means that she is officially moving out on Monday. She was my pseudo roommate for four years, and then my actual roommate for seven months and I have loved getting to know her and continuing to grow into the bosom buddies that we've become.
. Noah and I will be living here, where I currently live, beginning August 23rd, for no more than six months (at least that is the plan as of now).
. My house is currently in a state of disarray as I have not had time to sit down and put everything away!

Love:
. Noah and I get married in 50 days! After over 1350 days of dating, we are tying the knot and I can count the number of weeks on two hands ;)
. The past two weeks, I have been terribly homesick and really missing my family in Oregon. It would appear that the next time I go home, I will be a married woman and that has been a major adjustment to process through.
. My oldest nephew turned fifteen one week ago and I can hardly believe that! To top it off, my youngest nephew is turning five in five days! Let me remind you that he did not walk or talk when I left for college!
. I have been a fairly absentee daughter/sister/aunt to my family in Oregon - no excuses here - and I feel awful about that. Distance makes the heart grow fonder, and in my lackluster communication skills via technology, I've learned to be in prayer for my family every time they cross my mind. So, they are constantly being prayed for!

That is a summary of my life as of late. Some of the nitty-gritty information was not transferred onto this post via my fingertips because it is too long to write about and this is an update ;) But, through all of the changes I have been experiencing, the Lord has constantly been reminding me that He alone is enough and that He alone is the lifter of my head and the sustainer of my life. And, He's also allowed me moments like this, where I am able to reflect back on all that He has brought me to and through in the past years, and be truly blessed by how well He knows me and is continuing to shape the woman I am becoming.

Well, dear reader, that is all for now! How blessed we are with the technology to be able to keep up with one another even from hundreds of miles apart!

I Failed Another Resolution

4 months and 14 days in, and I will be the first to take the walk of shame down the "I have failed yet another New Year's resolution to lose weight" path.

In all fairness, I'm not sure the ever faithful "I will lose ___  pounds this year" has ever truly stuck with me. There have definitely been years that I've said, "I'm just not going to have a resolution this year. That way, when I don't keep it, I won't be letting myself down." Bleh. Talk about an easy out!

Well, today is the beginning of my new year

Ha. Just kidding. This is what has really been happening.

I'm getting married in 19 weeks. Whoa! How it snuck up on me that fast I will never know. Regardless, it's happening, and I am so excited! Noah and I have been together for three and a half years today. I'm not even going to begin the expansive list of things that I love about him or all of the lessons I've learned. Just know, dear reader, that there are many and I am madly in love. But, in the spectrum of a lifetime, a brief moment at a (Lord willing) beautiful wedding, wearing a (truthfully) beautiful dress, should not be motivation to stick to a commitment. I believe it should be something bigger. Let's try the next recent event.

I started working at Starbucks one month and 4 days ago. For those who are curious, I absolutely love it and am so thankful for the opportunity to work there, and yes, I have a favorite drink to make, consume, and encourage others to try. Unbeknownst to the common coffee shop goer, there is a lot of manual labor that happens at Starbucks; both behind the counter, as well as behind the swinging door to the mysterious "back" we tell you we will check when you ask for a pastry not visible in the display case. Being out of shape and performing said manual labor has not yet been too terribly challenging, but there have been a few bumps and bruises that may not have otherwise happened. However, in the grand scheme of things, lifting heavy boxes and running around filling ice containers, making delicious beverages, or moving refrigerators is not a fantastic reason to recommit to a New Year's resolution. So, what is?

Well, I will tell you what it is for me personally (everyone has their own motivation, but I've begun to see reasons to change my lackluster commitment in a new light).

You and I are made in the image of God. I know, it may seem a silly or trivial reason to commit to taking better care of myself, but really. If you had the opportunity to "Freaky Friday" with your favorite actor or actress, you'd want to treat them with respect, and probably glam it up a bit. Well, you're made in the image of God daily. It is unchanging. And what's better is that He is unchanging. He looked at you and me and the rest of Creation, and saw that it was good. If that is not motivation enough, let me add the cross to the mix. God saw that it was good (Genesis 1:31) and wanted to spend the rest of eternity with us. So, in order for that to happen, he sent his one and only Son (check out John 3:16) to save us. Save us from what? From eternal separation from the very Being who created us. From Hell. And from pain and suffering for all of eternity. If I knew that someone loved me so wildly and romantically as to sacrifice their LIFE for me, then I would do everything I could to find him and tell him how much I loved and appreciated him. Well, I have done that by starting a personal relationship with Jesus. And let me tell you, the hope I have in Him (Hebrews 6:19) is something to rejoice about!

All this to say, that the way I treat myself, reflects how I treat the work of my Savior's hands. And thus far, I've been doing a pretty lousy job. It's not about a New Year's resolution, it's about the fact that I am made in the image of God. I am loved by the one and only true God, and I believe that He wants what is best for me. I don't plan on becoming super skinny and only eating kale, but I do plan on putting effort forth to respect God's creation; myself and others included. This isn't just a self-respecting thing. This is looking at the work of the Savior's hands and seeing the love He has for us. Just yesterday, it dawned on me all of the people who don't know or don't want to know the love of God. Dang. I only wish that I was able to adequately express how heavy that realization was.

Anyway, this post is not a slam to people who feel overweight or out of shape, and just haven't done anything to change that. I dig. Up until 2.5 hours ago, I hadn't done anything either. But then I walked and jogged. It was hard and I am still slowly recovering, but it was done. Please, dear reader, don't get down on yourself because one more blogger is talking about putting forth effort to get into shape. Instead, realize that you are loved, that Jesus died for you, and that if you never put on running shoes, those facts will never change. You are 100% loved and cared for by your Savior. If you have yet to meet Him, I really encourage you to do so!

Let me end with these two verses,

". . . for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, AND all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus" (Romans 3:23-24).

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9).

There you go dear reader. Ask questions. Read the verses mentioned for yourself. See that the Lord is good.

Every Thursday Night

Typically, when people ask me what Beloved is all about, I just say "Jesus." He is the focus. The reason why we meet every Thursday night is to learn about His love for us and to understand that via the Bible. 

However, Beloved has become so much more than a Bible study. 

Every Thursday night, I have the privilege of meeting with 7-10 of my sisters. 

Every Thursday night, I find out that even though I studied in order to actually teach and lead, my girls always have so much to teach me.

Every Thursday night, I see the growth that has taken place since July, as girls - some who hardly knew one another - come together and genuinely care.

Every Thursday night, these beautiful young women share their concerns, struggles, and joys with one another.

Every Thursday night, I am challenged as a leader to shut my mouth and allow the Lord to speak through me.

And every Thursday night, I see a small glimpse of what God had in mind when He said that we are to be one body. 

Beloved is made up of young women who go to different churches, different schools, work at different places, are different ages, have their own opinions, and are by no means perfect. But, the one absolute common ground is that we want to know more about our Savior. Whether someone comes to the group with vast knowledge, or no knowledge of Jesus at all, we want to know more! We want to be able to grasp His Word and share it with others. And most of all, we want to be able to love like Jesus. 

"For by the grace given to me [Paul] I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another" 

(Romans 12:3-5 ESV),

Draw Near

I sat down to prepare for Beloved yesterday and realized that I only had three verses to study. Mildly concerned I would not have enough material, I prayed and began the journey (cliche, but more gripping than other beginnings). 

I read through Hebrews 4:14-16 and was fairly amazed. In short, the love of God is just so much bigger than I can fathom - but, I already knew that about myself. However, verse 16 quite literally took my breath away. It is written out below:

"Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need."

Draw near - what a powerful thought. What does that mean? Well, at the risk of my small group girls reading this before I am able to share it with them in person, I would love to tell you! 

This type of "draw near" is like one would do to come before a king or highly regarded leader. One would not simply waltz up to Obama and say, "Hey bro, I've got this wicked speeding ticket. Uh, fix it!" Of course not! I would hope, with no political agenda to be discussed, that anyone would approach the president with honor and respect. He is in a position of authority that, by nature, demands respect. He is leading an entire country! 

Now, imagine God. The Almighty, Alpha and Omega, I Am, Jehovah. Using the example above, one would not do this with God either. There would be respect, admiration, and honor given. He is our Creator; and while Obama leads a nation, God created the Earth and all who are on it! It would almost seem that God is unapproachable. But that is where the "throne of grace" mentioned in the verse comes into play!

By the blood of Jesus, we are saved from our sins. By the blood of Jesus, are we able to come before God. Why? Don't think you're worthy? Think you're too bad for God? Well, truth be told, we are all born sinners. But, with the promise of John 3:16 (for God so LOVED the WORLD that He GAVE His one and only SON that WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT PERISH but have ETERNAL LIFE) in mind, we are covered in grace. When God sees us, He sees the atoning sacrifice of Jesus and welcomes us into His presence. 

So, why is this so important? Because it reminds us of the true and genuine love of our Savior. Love that is so pure, strong, and captivating. This is a love that no one should miss out on! If you don't know Jesus, or think you are too unworthy, pray! It is so simple. And if it is terrifying to think of even attempting to come before God, remember that He wrote the words "draw near" in the Bible for all to see for all eternity. They were written for me, and they were written for you. I needed the reminder that He loves me and that I am welcome. And with that, I am safe in the watchful eye of my Savior who rules mightily, seated on a throne of grace.

Course Code: LIFE2014

I had the great privilege today of being reminded of what God has called me to.

The woman I have the blessing of being a caregiver for has been ill lately. Today, I came in and she was absolutely awful; IV hanging, nauseous, tired, and not eating. I had been sitting with her for awhile and asked her how she was feeling. Her reply, "I feel better when you are here." 

Recently, my beautiful friend and mother reminded me of the call that I responded to when I first came to Washington. She encouraged me to remove myself from the disappointment of not completing nursing school and press on. Essentially, she encouraged me to remember what Paul wrote in Philippians 3:12-16:

"12 Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 15 Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you.16 Only let us hold true to what we have attained" (ESV).

Surely you have been discouraged before; this world is not exactly the most encouraging place at all times. Shortcomings occur, pain ensues, and traps for failure are set. But, there is so much hope in the blood of Jesus Christ which has covered all of our sins! And the wondrous work of the Lord is that while he is saddened when we sin, he never stops loving us! 

When you feel that you have fallen, and the Lord is no longer guiding you, just remember that the only one down on the ground is you. He is patiently waiting to take your hand and continue to guide you.

"A man's heart plans his ways,

but the Lord directs his steps."

- Proverbs 16:9 (NKJV)

Galatians 5:16-26

I am happy to report that this is not an update on my life post, but a Jesus post. Yesterday I taught on Galatians 5:16-26. It was so radical, and actually is what caused me to want to write this! May you be blessed as much as I was!  
I should preface by saying that I use a commentary by David Guzak for my studies. This commentary is easily accessible to the general public via www.blueletterbible.org - I would encourage you to type in your search and study the Word for yourself, too!

16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 

• This verse is one that we can take at face value. The term, "walk" means to pattern our lives after. It's not just a once-in-a-while thing when we live in the Spirit, it is a constant thing. We should: 1) acknowledge that when we accept Christ, the Spirit dwells in us, 2) be open and sensitive to the Spirit, and 3) pattern our life after the Spirit. In response to this, the Spirit will: 1) reveal His will through the Bible, 2) use others who are living in the Spirit to influence us, and 3) mature us in our faith in order to give us direction and understanding. *John 16:13-15 tells us how we know the works of the Spirit

17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. 

• This is a BATTLE. Straight up conflict is what we can see here. We know from Ephesians 6:10-18 that we must put on the full armor of God. This verse here demonstrates to us why it is called "armor." A good modern day analogy is this: you open up your closet in the morning to find shoes. You see black Converse and yellow Converse. You own both of them, but you can only wear one pair. You don't have 4 feet, so you can't put on both pairs, and wearing one of one color and one of the other color won't work. So, you must choose. Similarly, we have the flesh and we have the Spirit. We must choose one. We own them both, but we can't put them on at the same time. 
• Q: What is flesh?
• A: Boice defines the the Greek word, "sarx" as follows: "All the evil that man is and is capable of apart from the intervention of God's grace in his life." So, the very Christianese word "flesh" does not mean your epidermis, it is all of the things we are capable of (that will destroy us) outside of the grace of God.
• The wonderful thing is that we have the opportunity to put on the Spirit of God, and the armor of God and fight against the flesh that dwells within us.
• Matthew 6:24 confirms the idea that we cannot put on both the flesh and the Spirit. 

18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. 

• Another wonderful verse that be taken exactly how it sounds. We have grace! We don't need to live under the 613 commands of the Law of Moses. He have the grace of God and we should write it on our hearts. *Jeremiah 31:33 confirms this. (It is important to note that the grace of God does not decommission the Law of Moses; rather, the grace of God allows us to be saved by grace rather than by our own works). 

19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions,divisions, 21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 

• This section is pretty famous - all of the major "do not's" of a Christian life in the Spirit.
• There are 4 sin categories: 
•  Sensual sins
• fornication (a.k.a. sexual immorality): this comes from the Greek word "pornia" which is where we also get the term "pornography." This is a wide variety of sexual sins. Whether dating or married, single or mingling, this terms applies to all of us. It can range from looking at porn, lusting with your eyes or your thoughts, self-driven sexual sins, adultery, etc. 
• impurity (a.k.a. uncleanliness): this is related to sexual immorality. It's the idea that you "didn't go all the way" or "porn isn't bad because I'm not doing it with anyone" or "I only cuss when I'm angry." To my understanding, impurity relates to excuses. It is very general and broad. If you spill coffee on yourself, you would say your shirt is dirty. Sure, the stain might come out later, but when you spill, the shirt is deemed unclean. Similarly, when you sin sexually, it is an unclean sin.
• sensuality (a.k.a. lewdness): the Greek term for this is "aselgeia," meaning you don't care how much you shock the world with your sins, as long as your needs are met, you're fine. This is a dangerous state, because at this point, you no longer have shame for your sin. In my own experiences, shame from sexual sins is convicting; it draws me back to my knees before the Lord asking for forgiveness and desiring to turn from my sin.
• Religious sins
• idolatry: anything that we worship more than God. It doesn't have to be a tiny wooden statue, or gold calf. It can be the TV, money, a girlfriend or boyfriend, a book. ANYTHING that takes your heart away from the Lord.
• sorcery (a.k.a. witchcraft): anything that alters your state of mind. Hallucinatory drugs, spells, potions, etc. In this, you are putting your mindset and pleasing yourself in that way above serving the Lord.
• People sins: 
• hatred: Greek "ekthra" for an attitude of the heart that causes an inner motivation for the ill-treatment of others.
• contentions (a.k.a. strife): combative and argumentative spirit
• jealousy: Greek "zelos" means a desire to have what someone else has - this is pretty similar to envy.
• Social sins
• drunkenness: we know that Jesus made water into wine (John 2:1-11). To our understanding, wine was a sign of joy and celebration. However, too much wine was destructive. This notion is very similar today.
• orgies: sex between a husband and wife, within the confines of the marriage covenant and commit is a beautiful thing. However, when sex is taken from the marriage bed, involving more people, etc., it becomes destructive and has severe consequences.
• those who DO such things - Greek "prassontes" means those who make a practice of doing, or pattern their lives. Like the previous section states that we should pattern our lives after the Spirit, the idea Paul relates here is that people who pattern their lives after these sins will not inherit the kingdom of Heaven. It's a heart thing. Our outward conduct indicates our inward status.

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

• Fruit of the Spirit! The way this is written indicates that the fruit is singular - or universal! Once in the Spirit, this is the evidence! Fruit by nature is fragile (if you threw and apple on the ground, it would most likely split), nourishing, attractive, self-reproducing (meaning that if we are able to love unconditionally, there is a good likelihood that the people who receive our love, will be able to love in return), and birthed by abiding. So too is the fruit of a Christian!! How wonderful! 
• love: this is God's unconditional love! We sin, he never stops loving us.
• joy: abiding and remaining, not dependent on circumstances. (Acts 16:25 - Paul and Silas are in prison and SINGING!) 
• peace: Greek "chara" meaning tranquility of the heart. When I am on the ocean shore, I feel peace. But, that is peace that I understand. This peace of the Spirit, is have a tranquil heart when life is falling apart. Not being fake and saying that everything is great, but really being at peace, knowing that God knows what He is doing. It truly is incomprehensible.
• patience (a.k.a. long-suffering): Martin Luther says the following of patience: "When the devil finds he cannot overcome certain persons by force, he tries to overcome them in the long run . . . we must patiently wait for the devil to get tired of his game." This is running the good race, not quitting. This also allows us to hold onto love, joy, and peace indefinitely.
• kindness & goodness: we all know what kindness and goodness are! This is a self-explanatory fruit!
• faithfulness: this is both to God and to people. Barclay says it is the "ability to serve God through years and temptations realizing the person who does this is not a hero, but was living in the Spirit." My favorite example of faithfulness is Corrie Ten Boom. A dynamic woman, I would encourage you to learn her story!
• gentleness: this is being teachable and not having a superior attitude. Being able to find rest in Christ and to encourage/strengthen others in that rest that you have found.
• self-control: this will work on behalf of others. This is learning to control your appetite, and mouth, but through the Spirit, it is allowing the Spirit to give you insight, rather than drawing from your own.
• There is no law that compares to this fruit!

24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with it's passions and desires. 25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. 

• This section reminds us a what Jesus did. 
• Matthew 16:24, Romans 6:6, and Galatians 2:20
• Jesus took up his cross just as we are called to do!
• Jesus' death was painful. He was publicly mocked and humiliated, whipped within an inch of his life, stabbed with a spear, had his hands and feet nailed to the cross, and thorns pushed into his scalp. We need to remember that the death of our flesh, is painful. Because our flesh is something that is a part of us, it is painful. 
• It must be dealt with decisively. If you are sinning and are making excuses for why you don't quit - do it! If you're waiting to stop cussing until it becomes more common, stop now! If you are looking at pornography and are waiting to stop once it interferes with your sleep, stop now! Sin needs to be addressed decisively. Jesus asked for the cup to be taken from him (Luke 22:42). Yet, in that same prayer He asked for his Father's will to be done. Because God loves us to radically, his will is that we would not keep living is sin. If we are supposed to pattern our lives after Christ, then when our Father tells us that we must stop sinning, we need to be as decisive as Jesus was, and stop!

26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

• Finally, this verse can be taken at face value. This all comes back to how we treat one another. The first listed fruit of the Spirit is love; and love we must!