Happy 4th of July...

Let Freedom Ring!

"The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,

because the LORD has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners" Isaiah 61:1

2 Corinthians 3:17

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

Galations 5:1 It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh ; rather, serve one another humbly in love. Galations 5:13

Ephesians 3:12 In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.

I am thankful for Freedom in Christ and freedom in the USA to  worshp an follow God.

these are a few of my favoirte thigns...

9 days left here in North Carolina. And I wish so badly that that was not the count down. I want life to *pause* so that I can enjoy a few more months in Wake Forest. I know this has been a very hard 1.5 years of me and I have not always enjoyed WF and many times I cried lonely at home, but I have grown to LOVE IT! It took some time to get used, but thats just normal.

So here are some of my favorite things:
- My Small Group
- My neighbors
- PSSWF
- My apartment, it feels so much like home
- My girls, and sleepovers:)

to be continued.....

Tear, Healing, Hope, Trust...

man life is crazy.

Today i sat at the service of hope which pregnancy support services puts on every mothers day weekend for family that have lost a baby early due to abortion, misscariage, early infant death or still birth. Its a time to come mourn the loss of your baby but also get hope from our Lord Jesus Christ. I sat there and cried and cried.

The first song we sang was desert song. Now that song has had a HUGE impact on my life in the last 3 years. And those lyris were SO beautiful for this service.

This is my prayer in the desertWhen all that's within me feels dryThis is my prayer in my hunger and needMy God is the God who provides

This is my prayer in the fireIn weakness or trial or painThere is a faith provedOf more worth than goldSo refine me Lord through the flame

I will bring praiseI will bring praiseNo weapon formed against me shall remainI will rejoiceI will declareGod is my victory and He is here

This is my prayer in the battle. When triumph is still on its wayI am a conqueror and co-heir with ChristSo firm on His promise I'll stand

All of my lifeIn every seasonYou are still GodI have a reason to singI have a reason to worship

This is my prayer in the harvestWhen favor and providence flowI know I'm filled to be emptied againThe seed I've received I will sow

I LOVE the proclation that GOD is the victor. God has won! In this battle we wage in, I have a reason to sing and to worship. I have healing in Jesus christ. I have redemption in the Lord Jesus. I have a life!

I love *pausing* and remeber, my God is GOOD. No matter what. My God is in control. My God is a healer and can heal any sin that we (I or you) commit.

Toward the end of the service you can go up front light a candle for the baby you lost, and get a rose. I lit a candel in honour of all the woman i have met with who have had an abortion, and a candle in honor of my neice, and a friend's baby. After all the woman went up, Our directors lite the candles for all the babies we have lost at PSSWF. I cried and cried as I watched that. It was so good for me to mourn that. So often I get lost in the work and dont stop to mourn. With every candle that was lit there is a broken heart that needs healing, healing that can ONLY come from God. The devil will try and use this babys life and death for his victory, but tonight at PSSWF we claimed God's promises of these children and their mothers!

I am so thankful. I sat in that church think, my work her is not done. I know that God has called me to this work and I am sooo grateful to be able to work in the work i do. I get to do my dream job:) Wow, that is so awesome.

So yah, I am still scared to death of my future. My flesh can be so strong. My fears,However, I am at peace with truting God with every step. My God is so trustworth, and he has called me and I will go.

"If you say go, I will go, if you say wait,I will wait. If you say step out of on the water, and they say it cant be done, we'll fix our eyes on you and we will go."

That is my heart.

Here are some verses that I was reminded about this week.
Isaiah 43
Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. 2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. 3 For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush[a] and Seba in your stead. 4 Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give people in exchange for you, nations in exchange for your life. 5 Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. 6 I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’ Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth— 7 everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.”
8 Lead out those who have eyes but are blind, who have ears but are deaf. 9 All the nations gather together and the peoples assemble. Which of their gods foretold this and proclaimed to us the former things? Let them bring in their witnesses to prove they were right, so that others may hear and say, “It is true.” 10 “You are my witnesses,” declares the LORD, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. 11 I, even I, am the LORD, and apart from me there is no savior. 12 I have revealed and saved and proclaimed— I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses,” declares the LORD, “that I am God. 13 Yes, and from ancient days I am he. No one can deliver out of my hand. When I act, who can reverse it?”

More riches continue....but wow. what promises.

And then my life verse:
Hebrews 11:8 "By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. 9 By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God."

My home is heaven...not here. I so often forget that.

so...another year. I think its time to look back on reflect on the 25th, quarter year of my life. Back in the day when we lived to be 100, 25 would really be just a quarter of life. But if you think about it..i did ALOT in my first 25.

Was born, learned my primary language, learned to walk, finished 18 years of school, learned what it means to be a friends, starting walking with the Lord, got married. I mean thats alot.

So year 25. What did I do year 25? Year 24 I moved and got married. I guess this year was rather uneventful in appearance.

But then I think...what happend in the 25 year of amanda.

I learned some good lesson. The biggest one would probably be to trust God. Now that sounds simple right? Trust God. Isn't that one of the basics?

But I learned what it means to DEPEND on him. Early on I did our "budget" and decided how much money I need to make to have enough money to make our budget. Simply put, we do not make enough. But EVERY MONTH this year, God has provided!!! Sometimes in random checks in the mail, sometimes surprise donations, sometime a random stranger handing me cash. I learned that scripture is true, it is real, and God knows. I have learned I can trust God with everything. Because he knows my needs, and he will provide my needs. It might not be the way I want, or the way I expect, but it will happend.

We heard a sermon on this earlier last year. And it has really challanged me. I put these verses over our cupboards where the food is.
²⁵ “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷ Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life^[c]?

²⁸ “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹ Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰ If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? ³¹ So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

In the year 25, I made a life in Wake Forest. I finally made real freinds here! I have grown to love our small group soo much. Our small group makes me never want to move. I love the community we have gotten to know here. I love feeling like family in some of the families here. I love having older woman I can be mentored by. God has answered my prayers:)

In the year 25 I have learned alot about marriage. The 1st year of marriage has not been easy. But its been so great. I am more in love with keith than ever. But the thing is, it not the butterflies, its not the overwhelming feeling, its the comfort. We have grown to trust eachother so much. My respect for him has grown so much as I watch him work so hard to provide for us, as I listen to what excites him, as he studies so hard in school, and serves me late at night and early in the morning. Ya we fight, we fight hard, but at the end of the night, we talk, we hug, we love and we forgive. We are best friends and challange eachother closer to Christ.

In my 25 year I've learned God is in control. Moving to NC was not my number 1 decision in life. I had finally my "dream job" just not getting paid (wink), and then it was time to move. I worked job after job here...just working to work. But the thing I always came back to is that God is the one that writes my life. I want him to write it. He sees the whole puzzle, I only see the piece. He sees the painting, I only see the stroke. My life, my story is not done and I have confidence that God is at work. I have loved being able to work at the Ice House, the Census, Grey Stone Kids Camp, and Pregnancy Support Services. I have grown alot in my manager skills and finally feel like I have grown up jobs:)

Here is 12 pictures of the last 12 months: starting with the most recent.










Month 4: July. First double date with the brauns:) Happy 4th of july
Month 3: June. Visiting the fam
Month 2: May. chillin at the ice house!
April

Thankful

I do not always have a thankful spirit. But today I did.

I was driving to work this morning...feeling so lucky, thankful blessed.

I am thankful for:

Being able to work within 15 minutes of where I live:)
the beautiful weather lately.
To have 2 awesome jobs
for my sweet husband who helps me pack my lunch almost every morning:)
for my ammmmmmmmmazing smalll group:)