puzzle pieces

"O Lord, you are our Father. 

We are the clay, you are the potter, 

we are all the work of your hand." 

Isaiah 64:8

God is the puzzle maker.  he knows where each piece fits. we are the puzzle, trying to get all our pieces to fit in the right spot. we don't know what the complete picture looks like, so we try this piece here. and that piece there. it doesn't fit. so we keep trying. or we may even give up because we just can't seem to find the right one. we know that the puzzle will be complete when the very last piece is placed, but the journey to completion is long, hard, frustrating, unknown, complicated, overwhelming..yet rewarding!

this is my life right now looking into the remainder of this year. it's a huge puzzle. so many different pieces that i am trying to make them all fit. it gets even harder when you find out that you have an additional piece to somehow find a spot for.

i so wish that i could see everything as a whole instead of individual pieces. every piece is amazing and exciting, but how it all fits...well, i have no idea.

...do i miss this event for another? do i buy the ticket now? or do i keep waiting? do i visit one place and not another? do i go for a couple weeks or 2 months?  do i sell or trade? etc...

those are the constant questions i face daily. i wonder sometimes...do i actively pursue the heck out of it until something happens? or do i wait, be patient and know that all these pieecs will fit. it will just take time to figure out where they fall.

the one thing that gives me hope in the midst of it all is that the Lord knows my story from beginning to end. He wrote my story even before i was born. He is the creator, establisher, and maker. He knows the steps i take and makes them firm.

"If the Lord delights in a man's way, 

He makes his steps firm; 

though he stumble, he will not fall, 

for the Lord upholds him with His hand."

 Psalm 37:23

He puts EVERY piece of the puzzle together at the right time. there are moments where i want to see it all together right now, but i would completely miss the lessons.

i fail daily to understand and see from a greater perspective. i praise God for His timing. i praise Him for gently putting one piece of the puzzle together at a time. it's the journey & the process that matters. what a beautiful picture it will be when the puzzle of life is complete.

may the journey bring even greater Glory to the Lord!

volleyball tournaments & a wedding...

every day seems faster then the day before. i blink and 3 weeks have gone by. it felt like yesterday that i was in baltimore. so here's a very quick recap of the last 3 weeks in pictures.

April 14-17 : Dallas, Tx...Lonestar Qualifier

thought this was a cool picture of the dallas skyline

in between matches..

April 21-24 : Baltimore, Maryland...Northeast Qualifier

on the deck of an old boat in the inner harbor

the inner harbor...beautiful! 

Easter sunrise...HE LIVES!

April 29 : Royal Wedding

this day will be a sweet memory made with my precious mom. we woke up early friday to begin watching the Royal Wedding. while watching one celebratory event, we worked on a project for my brother and soon-to-be sister-in-law. our project was to unwrap the original ozark water bottle wrappers and replace them with the special designed labels. as you can see below, it has a picture of tully & tara and on the back it has their story. LOVE THIS IDEA! anyways, all the guests at the rehearsal dinner were given one as a remnant of the wedding weekend. mom and i we were in full fledge wedding mode to say the least....i look forward to mine one day. the time spent with my mom and sisters is simply priceless!

April 30-31 : Regional Qualifier in Dallas...last tournament until June
(no pictures)

May 4-6 : Decorating for brother's wedding

setting up pavilion for rehearsal dinner

center pieces we made..mom had a great vision for them! 

hanging the birdhouses..by tractor that is...it's how we roll in the country

the rehearsal dinner! perfect night!

May 7 : WEDDING DAY!!!

Bridal Luncheon...future sister-in-law with her mom

first baptist church of cleburne

tully & tara cutting the cake

my sister's amazing groom's cake!!

this week...

we all have been trying to get out of the "post-wedding lull". to be honest, i thought we all would be relieved to be done preparing for wedding events, but it has been the complete opposite feeling. the week leading up to the wedding, and then the day of the wedding itself, were probably the most memorable 2 days with my family. weddings are for celebrations...not only for the couple who are making their commitment to each other, but for everyone involved. the couple is making their covenant promise to the Lord. it is the celebration of God's gift to us, His people. and together as a family, we celebrate together the Lord working in our lives. its another glimpse of His abundant love He has for us.

we actually have one more reception to do...in order to accommodate for all of my parent's friends from throughout the years, they decided to have a 2nd reception. its at the ranch on may 22. again, we get to gather together to celebrate the Lord and His love. looking forward to more memories made!

year 26.

i will always remember my 26th birthday. its is not your typical celebratory day. however, we did celebrate just different then what i was thinking. 

the day before my birthday, april 8, was my dad's surgery to remove his malignant tumor in his adrenal gland. we all arrived at the hospital around 11am. we gathered in the room with dad as we awaited the doctors and nurses to take him back for surgery to begin at 1pm.

we had a sweet time of fellowship as a family. we read many cards and letters filled with prayers and words of encouragement written by students from auburn university. we were visited by precious family and friends that brought smiles, laughter, and strength as we were facing the unknown with my dad. 

the hundreds of letters written by students from auburn...

soon after (around 1:30pm), dad was taken down the hall for surgery. as my mom, sisters, and i went to the waiting room, there were about 15 other people there to wait with us. and little did i know, both of my sisters brought a cake and cupcakes to celebrate my birthday. i'll be honest, i didn't expect that at all, but i am so grateful for it. it was the very thing to change the mood of being at the hospital. for the next 3hrs we sat with about 20-25 people (coming & going). we laughed, shared stories, talked about life, and prayed together. it was good for each of our spirits and hearts!  

the yummy cake & cupcakes my beautiful sisters made me

fast forward to the next day...april 9...we arrived at the hospital first thing in the morning to see dad. he managed to make it through the night without any major complications. he had been dealing with nausea and pain. however, he was doing much better and could carry on a conversation with each of us. we were thrilled to see him! so there in his room we made ourselves comfortable knowing it may be a long day. 

dad talking to my sister JJ on the phone...

we had a couple of family friends stop by. 

it lifted dad's spirits to be able to visit with some of his buddies.

(picture below is with his college roommate) 

and then to our surprise and expectations, dad was discharge at 2pm!! that was probably the best gift to receive on my birthday. celebrating life with my daddy. celebrating a successful surgery. and celebrating the Lord in how He continues to show us that He is in this and for us! that He is exalting Himself through every situation! 

dad and me on my birthday!

once we all walked out of the hospital doors we got in our separate cars and headed back home. usually when someone in my family has a birthday we all arrange to go out to dinner together. obviously we had to put a rain-check on dinner plans because of dad; however, my friend jenn came down to hang out with me and my sister's family. we cooked out and enjoyed the beautiful weather. 

i have come to realize every year is different when my birthday rolls around. i never know what i will be doing or where i will be or who i will be with. but when it all comes down to it, all i would want for my birthday is to be with those i love! 

thank you to those who sent me cards, text messages, facebook messages, or left me a voice mail. i cherish each one so much! i am excited about what this 26th year of my life looks like. God continues to blow me away at His goodness and faithfulness. 

i lift His Name up and honor Him for all that He has done! 

He is my praise!

joy

*by the way...dad is doing good. healing and regaining strength. we see the doctor tomorrow morning for post-op consultation! we give thanks to the Giver of Life and continue to look to Him for wisdom! 

PASSION FT WORTH

a week ago i moved in with one of my dear friend for a week to help serve at PASSION Ft Worth. this would be my 2nd passion conference in 2011. i attended PASSION Atlanta in January. probably the most powerful 4 days to date. so this time around, i came as a volunteer to serve the students who would encounter Jesus in a more intimate, yet powerful way.


wednesday & thursday consisted of working on projects in the Go Center/Do Something Now area.

this area is for the students to take a step deeper with putting an action to what Jesus is pressing on their hearts. the heartbeat of Do Something Now is just that. taking action right now to come together as a church body and be a part of what is happening around the world. "Together we are a force for good" is the overarching motto. the thought behind it is that you as an individual can make a difference but what if we all came together? how much greater impact would there be?

the project that i worked on the most was the so-called "paper wall"...a beautifully displayed example of how we can turn blank pages into God's word.

 

beautiful.

anyways, at Passion Ft Worth, there was only one cause to focus in on:

the translation of scripture to an unreached people group...

the Koso people in mali, africa. 

 the goal: $220,350 to fund a 5 year program of scripture translations in the Koso's native tongue

the result....FULLY FUNDED & more!! 

friday through sunday were the days of the conference. as a volunteer, we each were given shirts to wear that have the name "door holders" written on the front. it is based on psalm 84:10.."Better is one day in Your courts than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, then dwell in the tents of the wicked." throughout the weekend i understood more of the heart beat behind passion. to truly hold the door open and usher these students in to experiencing the presence of the Lord. it was beautiful in every sense. i not only had the privilege of seeing so many of my own friends, but i also witness lives being transformed. i saw hearts being stirred. i heard all about what Jesus was teaching them. and to have 9,000+ students pass me every day, the light in their eyes only shined brighter!  


i am grateful to have come alongside passion and stand in the gap for this generation. i am grateful that i now have a responsibility to continue praying over, for, and with this generation. God is moving in all of us! my heart praises Him for all that He has done and is doing! we are here for You, O Lord! You are the desires of our souls. 

"Yes, Lord, walking in the way of Your Truth,
 we wait eagerly for you,for Your Name 
and Your renown are the desires of our souls."

Isaiah 26:8