Shadows

life is full of light and shadows.

a silhouette of one thing or another. the part that is not tangible with our own hands. but seen with our eyes. and felt when we stand in them. shadows are hidden pictures. bringing coolness. rest. refuge. a covered area not damaged by the sun. but kept aside. its a place where we can see more clearly. a beautiful collision of grace. for a shadow to fall, an object must cast it from the light. therefore, its between the radiance of light and the place it falls. to receive and experience the shadow. one must step into it. not be afraid. but realize it's there for a purpose.

the cross of christ is casting a shadow on us. he is the object. the person. the one who is standing in the gap between us and his father. who is the magnificent glorious light. in that shadow there is hope. our eyes are opened. to see the great love the father had and still has for us. our God views us through his son. not seeing our dark hearts or sin. but seeing one who is purified. cleansed. restored. redeemed. all through his son's death on the cross - burial - and powerful resurrection. what inexpressible joy we have in him who has saved us. the shadow of the cross is where i am found.

i recently came across a song sung by the david crowder band. it's titled shadows (reason for this post). what new meaning it brought forth.

Chorus:

when shadows/darkenss fall on us.

we will not fear. we will remember.

we will remember the cost.

we are resting in the shadow of the cross.

In sickness & in health

Last weekend I went home to help with Mom and Dad. As you all know, my precious Mom broke her arm and continues adjusting with only one good arm for the time being. Up to this point, she has been Dad's full-time caretaker in making sure he is up on his meds and food intake. With Mom not 100%, my siblings and I have been taking shifts at being home. Mom has enjoyed the company, plus also the extra help with meals and basic chores around that house.

Dad helping Mom get her ice

machine adjusted on her arm.

Mom didn't want me to take

this picture but I did anyways! :)

*Keep praying for both Mom and Dad as they both heal in specific ways...Mom : for her shoulder, the bone gragh to take, swelling to go down, and overall recovery....Dad : for him to eat more, allow time to rest, increase of his strength and energy level, and overall weight gain.

Winter Park, CO

Madeline and I

Kailey, Me, Jordan, & Madeline

(some of my small group girls)

Us again...

Down town Winter Park eating dinner

Lauren, Madeline, and Me

Simply Gorgeous!!

In fast forward

Again, it's been two weeks almost since my last post. I really can't believe how fast the days go by. Even though there is craziness in my life, I love every moment. Not one of them is a surprise from the Lord.

To catch you up on the past events:

March 5: I headed to Austin, Tx to watch my camper, Sally, play in the semi-finals at the 2A State Basketball tournament. I met up with 2 of my friends from Kanakuk, Tanya Beardsley and Bethann Boitmann. God graciously blessed my time down in Austin to visit and catch up on life! It refreshed me in so many ways to see them and Sally. I also made an extra stop on my way out of town to see one of my best friends, Sarah. Such a fun day!!

March 9: Started the Believing God Bible Study with 15 high schoolers! God has been so good in blessing our time together. We have met 2 times already and I am blown away at how God moves and enriches our fellowship! Each week as we move deeper into the study, pray that God would penetrate even more in every heart and draw us to a greater understanding of who God is!

March 12-17: I had a volleyball tournament down in Houston and then spent the beginning of this week in Colorado with part of the youth group from First Baptist Hurst. Some of my girls in my small group were on that trip and I was able to spend more time with them. We had a blast skiing in Winter Park and making fun memories! With going on trips like this, I believe God has called all of us to truly live life with others. To walk alongside one another, encouraging, sharpening, and pushing them closer to Jesus Christ.

**Unexpected turn of events: Saturday, March 13 my sweet Mom, Dad, and brother were riding horses on the ranch as usual. However, during a normal day, the horse my mom was riding was spooked and jolted quickly. Mom was thrown off, hitting the ground hard and landing on rocks. She landed on her RIGHT shoulder which we came to find out she had broken her humerus bone in multiple places. My Dad and brother rushed her to the hospital and she ended up having surgery the next day. The doctors had to put in 12 screws, a plate, and a bone graft. She is RIGHT handed so this will be a new adventure for her to begin learning to do things with her left hand as she is healing. She was released from the hospital Tuesday (March 16) and has been adjusting to the "new normal" with Dad trying to take care of her. Please be praying for the bone graft to take, quick healing, the next several months as she is recovering and in physical therapy. And also keep praying for Dad as well. Pray for him to continue to have strength and energy as he is enduring this with Mom.

I am heading home for the weekend to be with Mom and Dad! I'm praying that it will be refreshing for all of us!! We continue to look to the Lord and plead His blood. We are believing and trusting God's purposes are true and right. May He be glorified in all of this!!

time is flying

i can't believe it's been a week since i posted last. not many things have been happening, but just busy with everything else. last weekend my volleyball team had a tournament. we ended up finishing 2nd which is pretty good. we haven't finished that high in a tournament yet, so we were thrilled with our accomplishment.

one of my favorite things that happened last weekend was on saturday night. after i finished day one of my tournament, i got to hang out with a few senior girls in my small group. i had been talking to them about Baylor Sing so we busted out the dvd's i had. it was so fun to laugh, talk about memories, and watch all the different acts. theses girls are awesome and i feel so privileged that God has allowed me to cross paths with them. they are all going to be a part of the bible study we are lauching next tuesday! i'm so excited about that!!

the majority of this week has been filled with babysitting, volleyball practice, preparing for the upcoming bible study, a tournament this weekend, and going to austin, tx to watch yet again my camper, sally higgins, play in the state tournament. i don't normally do spontaneous and spur of the moment trips, but i figured this will be the last time to see her play in high school. it's going to be a crazy next 36 hours, but well worth every minute! she plays tomorrow morning at 10am!! :)

please be praying over the bible study many of the juniors and seniors from church have signed up to commit to. we are doing beth moore's believing God study. i did this study exactly 3 years ago this same time. pray that God would move heavily in the hearts of the girls. that we all would see, know, understand, and experience the love of Christ in a deeper way. also, pray that God would annoint my mouth with His words and that it would be Him speaking and not me. pray that i would continue to move myself out of the way so that Jesus can be clearly seen. we have 10 weeks ahead of us that will be one incredible journey.

for the glory of HIS name.
joy