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3 more days.... until I get to go to my FAVORITE camp in the entire world! I'm ever so excited, especially going in the Winter... with some of my best friends! It'll be a great weekend to have some fun, fellowship with other youth groups, Chapels in the morning & evening, late night talks with my girls, and the ENDLESS amounts of hot chocolate or coffee I'll need this entire weekend. :)
I love Barakel so much, and it is my place of quiet and stillness... somewhere I know that I can't be distracted because of Facebook, texting, etc. It's my place to hide from the world (or just people), to journal my thoughts to God, to read through my Bible while looking out at the nature that He created... It's amazing, and absolutely breathtaking!
This picture is amazing... I absolutely love it. It's a picture that kind of portrays my mornings here at my house, every day. I hope to be able to do this every morning of this weekend, and not have distractions that keep me from reading God's Word each day. Some days I just don't want to read it and I feel absolutely terrible and guilty about that, but I know I need to... God's Word will help me to start my day right! I've had that mindset for half a year and hope that my motivation will always stay the same and get stronger... To encourage myself to read His Word, even when I don't want to get up early and do it... It's good for me!
I hope to get encouraged more this weekend and to memorize lots of Scripture passages... And that through the speaker we have this weekend, I will have a boat load of things to think about! God knows what He wants the speaker to say to all of us teens and I can't wait to see what's going to happen! :)
Here's an awesome Scripture passage:
Ephesians 6:10-20, "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that endkeep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which Iam an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak."
Love & God Bless,
~Megan
Since October 2010, I've been a slightly different person. That year wasn't great for me and did a lot of things that I really look back on now and think, "How could I have done something SO ridiculous?!" So, I wanted to be different, and show people that I was different. I decided to start reading my Bible more.
Around New Years Eve in 2010 almost 2011, I made New Year's Resolutions to be FEARLESS, POSITIVE, and to read my Bible more. That entire year, I tried working at being a better Christian. I accomplished my goals because my family and friends told me how much I inspired them to read the Bible more, and that they noticed a change in me. I can't explain how amazing that made me feel! It was a drastic change, a 360 degree turn in my life... And it was all because of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!!!
Ever since that drastic change, I've been the HAPPIEST in my life. I realized that when I was pushing God away, He would hold on to me even tighter! Also, that He had a plan for everything that happened in my life. I regret the months in 2010 that went by and was questioning whether or not God really existed, or if He was the Lord of my life. He did have a plan for me to have a hard time in life and to get through/learn from my mistakes, and I did. I pulled through, and now, I look to Christ! I still have my ups & downs with my family and friends, but... through Christ I learn from my mistakes! It's amazing what Christ can do!
The night of October 9, 2011, something inside me just made me feel like I needed to read my Bible the whole way through. I felt that if I did, it would help me with a lot more things in life. And, it has! I have SUCCESSFULLY gotten through the entire New Testament, and my dedication has definitely helped with that. Without Christ nudging me to do it or my dedication to do it, I wouldn't have gotten through it. Christ has made me a different person, and I am SO thankful for that.
One of my good friends (who will remain anonymous) once wrote a status that has stuck with me: "Don't ask God why he did something... Ask Him, "What are you trying to teach me through this?" Since then, I've been asking God that when hardships come. I REALLY like that quote! It's amazing, and something that is so true. <3
God is so amazing and faithful, and He has His way of doing things... I may not know what He will do in my life, but I do know that He has a plan... A wonderful, perfect plan!
Jeremiah 29:11- "For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord, "plan to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a hope and a future."
Romans 1:16-"For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes. . . ."
1 John 1: 7-10- "But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us."
Ephesians 4:22-24- "to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness."
I absolutely *LOVE* reading Scripture, since I started reading it more and more. Although, memorizing Scripture is my weak spot, I hope to learn some more verses to add to my long list of "favorites". :)
I hope you enjoyed reading this, and some of my favorite verses!
Love & God Bless,
~Megan
Hola!!! :) I haven't written for a weeks or more, because I was in COLOMBIA! :-D Got back Tuesday morning at 2am. Yikes! But other than that, it was a fantastic trip! It was an amazing experience and God helped me realize things that I've taken for granted. It really sunk in to me while I was there, that here in the US I am living in a complete luxury! I live in a somewhat "big" house while at the orphanage/boarding school, they live in a house half as big as mine, and twenty-five people are living in theirs. Five people live at my house. Now, that doesn't sound right, does it?! Plus, our culture against South America's cultures are very different; the way they dress, not doing a lot of laundry, etc. The list goes on and on.
God has changed my perspective on things; not to be wasteful, be thankful that I get all the food that I get, the clothes and shoes I have & wear, the bed I sleep on, showering in hot water, etc. Because kids there in Colombia and other places don't get all the stuff I get; their own laptops, TVs, iPods, or expensive items like these. It's crazy how excited they got with just punch balloons and neon glow bracelets! I thought it was incredible that for so little they got, they were totally excited. It warmed my heart, and seeing them smile and have a good time, made my trip even all the more worth it to me. :)
I realized the reason the kids were always hanging on me and just trying to have my attention is because they needed someone to love them, and wanted to feel loved. All week, they wanted me to take pictures of them or take pictures with me, and were always tugging on my arms to play ball with them. It was cute, tiring, and definitely worth my time! I fell in love with all the kids all week, and it broke my heart to leave them! I couldn't believe I had to part from them, because they consumed all my time, energy, and love for the past week! I was torn and so were the kids when we left, and watching the tears stream down their faces, took all I had in me not to jump out the window of the car I was driving away in, and just stay there.
I know for now that part of my heart will always be left in Santa Marta, Colombia and that I will never forget my time spent there; how much I did change and there is still so much more I want to change! :)
Hope you enjoyed reading, because I loved writing about it!! :) If you would like to know more about my trip in detail, shoot me an email, and I'd be happy to tell you anything :) Thanks!
Love and God Bless,
~Megan
