“Thanksgiving is more than eating, Chuck.” - A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving

It’s a week from the thanksgiving that I didn’t get to celebrate but I’m still grateful.

Even though I was not able to celebrate Thanksgiving the way I normally do, I’m glad I was given a chance to celebrate it in a new way. There was no turkey on the table, no game on the tv and certainly no excitement to participate in the craziness that was Black Friday - sadly, Australia doesn’t recognize these awesome customs. However, in the absence of those things it dawned on me that I can still give thanks for the life I have and all the trappings that come along with it.

I could give thanks that Thursday was just like any other day, which is seriously nothing to complain about. I work at a job I truly appreciate; I’m able spend time with family that I absolutely adore and friends who are basically family; and I didn’t get a turkey but I still get to chow down on good ol’ regular food. Finally I can give thanks for and to a God who has graciously provided all of this for me.

So that’s what I did. I gave thanks and in doing so it made me even more joyful. The Thanksgiving holiday only comes once a year but the heart of it should be something we put into practice everyday, with or without he food. In doing that we become more grateful for all the big and little things as well as all the things in between.

-Give thanks we will for life is sweet for sure!

God Wants Me To Be Unclean

I’ve been sitting here in my bed for the last half hour or so as I just continue to stare out into my room. My clothes are strewn about. Socks lay next to my boots instead of the hamper that’s only a few inches away. The bag of paper trash is more than full. Jackets are falling off hangers and I lay in a bed that still remains to be unmade. If I can say so myself, I’ve come a long way since high school.

I am no longer that girl who could not have people in her room for too long without the fear of it becoming messy or the person in the house who hated the sight of food left out on the table. I still take pleasure in being early to events and meetings but arriving ridiculously so is an old habit to me now. And among many other things, having a few unplanned extra things in my day doesn’t leave me at my wit’s end.

It’s amazing the things God does to you and for you when you take the time to pray about it.

It was about a year ago that I noticed how a bit overly dramatic I was when it came to having things done my way. If I didn’t complain about it, I sure was silently stressing about it. It was never a real problem to me though because I found joy in the sense of control I had. Unfortunately that bubble burst after I realized how little the amount I actually had after my sister got married (In the Nigerian culture, as well as probably hundreds of others, after the older sibling settles down everyone in and outside of your family turns to you to find out when your wedding will be. I’m sure they meant well but it still left me with a lot to think about). When the time eventually comes for me to get married what if my husband is great in all areas except cleanliness? What if he leaves the cereal bag inside the box unraveled? What if he he’s the type to leave his clean clothes in the dryer for days after they’re done. What if he leaves the toilet paper roll facing up not down? (Okay my need for clean wasn’t as cray as the direction of toilet paper but still) My head was processing a thousand What ifs per second?

Using all the faith I had, I prayed that God would start working on him now. That he would go through a series of life events that would make him turn into the clean man I needed. However, like most things in life, God always has a different plan. Maybe it was the fact that I was so intent on what I wanted that I failed to realize until a few months later that God said:

"You need to allow room for more dirt in your life."

And to that I replied, “God say whaaaat?!” I mean isn’t there an old saying that goes cleanliness is next to Godliness?

You see, what I have now come to realize is that it was never about being clean but an extreme way to control things. A way to make myself feel better about myself. A way to make myself feel better than others. When God told me to “get dirty” He didn’t actually mean become a slob. He was trying to show me that things were not in my power to control because that was and still is His job. He also wanted to show me just how much I needed Him to make me even better than the standards I had for myself. Additionally, while all that was going on, getting rid of these overly zealous ideals allowed more room for new and older relationships to grow. Just because some people were not as organized as I would like them to be didn’t mean they were bad friends, co-workers, or family members. Who was I to judge? I was a clean freak and look how I terribly I thought of other people.

Anyway, long story short, I began to understand what God was doing, who He was trying to turn me into. After that I then began to pray for the opposite. Instead of making my husband cleaner, I asked Him to allow me to accept things that do not go my way. Allow my heart to be content with situations, people, and yes, happily welcome “dirt” into my life.

It’s such a relieving feeling to relinquish control because I know something greater than me has my best interest at hand and also has the power to do far more than I ever thought possible.

PS. I’m not going to leave my room in the current state I just described - I will clean it up...eventually ;)

Music of The Month

1.Birds of Tokyo - Lanterns

2. Every Nation Music - We Will Go

3. Darlene Zschech -  In Jesus’ Name

4. Ellie Goulding - Burn

5. Hillsong Young and Free - Alive*

6. Natalie Grant - Your Great Name

*I got to attend the live musical recording for this! Moving to Sydney has its perks.

Music of The Month

1.Birds of Tokyo - Lanterns

2. Every Nation Music - We Will Go

3. Darlene Zschech -  In Jesus’ Name

4. Ellie Goulding - Burn

5. Hillsong Young and Free - Alive*

6. Natalie Grant - Your Great Name

*I got to attend the live musical recording for this! Moving to Sydney has its perks.

Music of The Month

1.Birds of Tokyo - Lanterns

2. Every Nation Music - We Will Go

3. Darlene Zschech -  In Jesus’ Name

4. Ellie Goulding - Burn

5. Hillsong Young and Free - Alive*

6. Natalie Grant - Your Great Name

*I got to attend the live musical recording for this! Moving to Sydney has its perks.

Music of The Month

1.Birds of Tokyo - Lanterns

2. Every Nation Music - We Will Go

3. Darlene Zschech -  In Jesus’ Name

4. Ellie Goulding - Burn

5. Hillsong Young and Free - Alive*

6. Natalie Grant - Your Great Name

*I got to attend the live musical recording for this! Moving to Sydney has its perks.

Guest Blogger: August

Here are a few random things I enjoy: I love waterfalls because the very presence of them says “peace”. My favorite flowers are sunflowers not only because they are bright, bold and beautiful but also because they also have purpose, their seeds are used for food and for oils. I truly adore being at the beach at night; ocean waves overwhelm and bewilder me because of their depth and captivating ferociousness. I’m not a huge wilderness person but I truly enjoy walks in the park or mountain top views. I am constantly asking myself the same question whenever I am surrounded or in the midst of nature. What is it about nature that we are just enthralled with? We can sit for hours and talk about the colors in a sunset or sunrise, the beauty of the way the stars trickle themselves like freckles across a sky, and compliment over and over on the various types of flowers that we see. But when someone asks us what our favorite physical attribute is about ourselves we take forever to answer them back. This baffles me, even though I do it all the time. I am a huge advocate for “beauty”, I think I have secretly made it my personal goal to make sure that every women I come in counter with will know that they are beautiful inside and out, created so intricately and with a purpose. But when it comes to myself, I sometimes come up short in this area. I am quick to compliment one of my friends or affirm someone in their physical attributes but once it comes back to me I shut it down or deny it. I know I can’t be alone in this, why do we do it? Nature astounds us because the beauty we find there is simple yet breathtaking, it is not tainted by everything around it trying to compare beauties, it just is beautiful and that’s that. Nature reminds us that we are small and maybe sometimes a seeming insignificant part of a big story. Nature seems not only bigger but also better than us. But it’s not. All things have purpose; I would dare to say that we as human beings have one of the biggest purposes. We were created to bear the image of Christ here on earth… good gosh THAT’S HUGE.

Let’s take a quick look back through the creation story, shall we?

Genesis 1:9 says, “And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so. God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good.”

Genesis 1:12 says, “The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.”

Genesis 1:21 says, “So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.”

Genesis 1:25 says, “God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.”

Lastly Genesis 1:27-31 says, “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so. God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.

Do we not realize that God created the ENTIRE WORLD, universes, galaxies, waters and dry lands, animals, insects and us, the human race. It was good, it was good, it was good and then finally it was VERY good. WE are the very good. These creations that he created are so minuscule in comparison to US who were made in the IMAGE OF HIM. We are the only creation made in the image of God WHAT?! How awesome is that?! We as human beings are majestic; we were created with set aside and diligent time, and the breath life from our very creator. We stare in awe of his creations; waterfalls, flowers, beaches, mountains and forget that we too are his beautiful, handcrafted, breathtaking creation. Let us rejoice in that today.

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Every last Thursday of the month I invite different bloggers to write their own pieces specifically for you guys, my readers! This month I have the incredible honor to host guest blogger, Arielle Estoria Wilburn. She runs the blog Chronicles of a Lioness so after you read her heart-warming post here, go check out her page for even more amazing stuff.

Certain words are like fireworks or grenades in your life. People will tell you something and they will either come back to set off something magnificent or they will be timed modes of destruction. Luckily I’ve hard a lot more of the former and less of the latter in my life.

Anchors n Oceans

According to Plan

I didn’t read my bible today, oh no…not. More like big whoop.

Faced with getting into a new routine this morning I underestimated the time it would take for me to get a “its a school day so I want to look casual and still remain put together” look. Although I had a general idea of what I wanted to wear the night before I think that only added to my stress of actually getting dressed. Besides that plan - which failed - I had also mentally written out how my morning was going to go:

-530 Wake up and take a few minutes to grudgingly get out of bed
-540 Shower and the be dressed and ready by 630.
-630 I knew I had to be out of the house by 7 so that meant 30 good, solid minutes to spend in the word with the Big Guy upstairs.

Reality:
530 My alarm rings
545 Let’s see how many more times I can hit snooze today
550-605 Man, the warmth of that shower was too hard to depart
605 Five minutes behind schedule but I can make up for it because I know what I want to wear.
610 Outfit is on, now to hair and face. Wait a minute… ew. Who died and made me stylist of the year? This outfit is not cute. Safe to say that multiple shoe changes and shirt alterations later it is now 635 and I still have not done my hair or makeup.
640 Ahhhh God Im so sorry. Ill be with you in just a second. All I have to do is a simple ‘do and apply eyeliner. Ill be right there.
645 and that “right there moment” is finally here… Only to have my cousin tell me that we need to leave earlier than expected.

Long story story short, my day is a few moments away from being done and I have yet complete my daily devotionals.

If my situation sounds familiar it’s probably because you’ve been through something like it yourself. However the point of this is not to sit around and reminisce with each other on how we’ve failed to put God first but to remind us that mistakes happen but grace abounds.

We are humans, yes. We will make mistakes but don’t let that stop you from coming back to the heart of worship. God knows our hearts - each and every one of them personally. He knows that it’s not intentional when we slip up and fall down. With that said, come tomorrow and I will get right back at it and continue doing my daily devos.

This is how we should address every situation. It may be difficult to grasp because no other being has ever been -or will ever be- as forgiving as He is but once we understand God’s unyielding and unconditional love for us it also becomes a humbling experience. Just looking back on today I noticed how He was still with me in every single moment - bible study or not.

Don’t allow room for your slip-ups to continually slip you up. Know that He has already forgiven you. All He wants you to do with your mistakes is to grow from them.

He Created The Lions, and Tigers, and Bears

Happy Friday everyone! 

Yes, these pictures are about a week old but who’s counting? Last week my friends and I went to Toronga Zoo and had such a blast! I haven’t been to one in years  and quite frankly, that is a little too long for me. Taking stroller bag full of goodies and snacks (sadly those snacks were finished earlier than expected and didn’t even make it to the picnic we had planned after) we hopped on a ferry that took us to zoo and made a day of it. We saw so many animals. Way more than the pictures you see above. 

Out of all the animals there though the baby giraffe was my favorite. He was so adorable I just couldn’t get over it. Seeing him reminded me of just how creative and astounding God is. To think He created all animals - even the gross green frog - from nothing but His thoughts is just mind blowing. 

Anyway, whatever your plans are for this weekend, I hope they are fun, productive, relaxing, and above all blessed. 

Spoken Word

My new-found love for spoken word brought me to these videos. The words were gorgeously and articulately written and I commend them for having the boldness to stand before so many viewers to speak on their truth, stories, and views.
Take a few moments to watch them. They may not be your exact story but maybe you can relate to one or get advice from another. Anyway, here they are.

Spoken Word Testimony - Sheena Starks

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I Love You More - Lance Devore

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31 To Be Exact - 31 Status

Got That Mad Luv.

  I have so much love for my church. I love the fact that you can come in and put a name to every face you see. I love the fact that church members have such a strong relationship with the pastors that asking them for a ride home is never considered out of the question. I love that while there are distinct areas and ministries in the church no one is ever too proud to help out or unwilling to lend a hand in an area they’ve never dealt with before. With all that said, what I love the most about my church is the commitment every single person puts into making the church what it is – it’s a commitment that is unfailing and unwavering.
    While we may not have a large building or even up to 200 people, one would think otherwise with all the love, time, and consideration put into our services. Every Sunday and even on the days between I see a work ethic that is nothing short of inspiring. You yourself cannot help but be impacted by it. Members, pastors, and volunteers make an effort to put on something that will personally touch the lives of the people who make it out each weekend.
    What I have learned over the last seven months of being here is that fame does not matter, and neither does size. I have been a part of bigger churches - churches that have their own CDs, stations, and PR team. Don’t get me wrong, I sincerely root for those churches too because I believe in spreading the gospel in any and all ways possible. However, the church I go to does not have that, they are of a modest size but one with the heart of ten giants. They believe that even if only four people show up those four people are everything.  Those four people ought to be cared for and shown that no matter who they are,  no matter where they come from or what denomination they are a part of that they matter to the church and to God. I believe that that right there is the epitome of attention to detail. It is no gimmick, rouse, facade or embellishment on who they are -what you see is honestly what you get.
    Which reminds me, I was at a business seminar a few weeks back and the keynote speaker brought up church. He said, whatever church you go to surely you must consider it to be the best one out there otherwise you wouldn’t go to it. How true is that? If I didn’t think my church was the best I would have looked for another one already. I must say, because of the work and care put into this church so much light shines out  and that light is what draws me close.  I am so blessed by the people that make up this body of Christ-followers and so grateful that God has continued to bless me with their company and presence in my life.

I love you God for that and love you church for you are and what you do.

*I’m not here to advertise to or persuade anyone on religion, that’s a choice you have to make yourself.  Nonetheless, if you ever do find yourself questioning or considering, in need of a prayer, or just wanna talk, come to Every Nation. Our doors are always open.

Here Is To...

Many of my girlfriends have recently become engaged and/or gotten married. While I am happy for them it makes me all the more excited for myself. It’s a bit crazy to think that whoever and wherever he is God created him just for me. I’m excited for the adventures, the laughs, the joy, and growth. Similarly I’m also expectant of the disagreements and opposing opinions but I’m willing to take them in stride if it means I get to spend the rest of my life with a great guy.

Inspired by my friends who have recently changed their last names, reading through a number of mommy-blogs, and a few talks with God I made a list of a few things I’m looking forward to sharing with Mr. Future when the time comes (Might just have to print them and place them in large format frames to hang on the walls later).

So whether you are single, dating, engaged, or married, what are some of the things you guys are looking forward to in the future or have enjoyed so far?

Leave your replies here! (bottom of the post) I’d love to hear your stories.

Ihe Neme (Things Are Happening)

• You’re thinking of plans on how to entertain the kids.
• Setting your alarm clock for an  earlier time to squeeze more things on your schedule.
• Considering how your currently terrible situation can be used as a testimony.
• Praying for others more than you pray for yourself.
• Writing down a reminder to buy thank you cards for the volunteer workers.
• Learning that the choosing your battles have become a part of your nature.
• Seeing the cool in what you’re even 2-years-younger self would have found embarrassing.
• Making a little extra dinner for your roommate out of want rather than obligation
• Simply deciding not to get a manicure because you’re on dish duty the next day and you’re okay with it.
• Calling your relatives because they would like to talk to you even though the feeling may not be fully mutual.
• Finding joy in eating alone once in a while rather than fearing it.

Call it whatever you wish, maturity, growing up, life, what have you. All I know is that it is here and although I didn’t even know when it hit realizing how it has slowly altered my everyday actions has made me more appreciative of the life given me. 

Still The Same (kinda)

While this blog is now called Anchors ‘n’ Oceans nothing has really changed - well except for the layout and a new comment box below! Although the name is no longer 20 And Some Change (20asc) I’ll still be posting some of the same content. In the time to come there will be a few new additions like more every-day stuff, guest bloggers, advice, and a little more creative content.

As for the name change, the reason for that was because I was looking for something a bit more… refreshing. I started blogging when I was 20 and a few months old, hence the name 20asc. Now that I am a bit older I decided it was the perfect time to go with the “out with the old and in with the new” motto. The name Anchors ‘n’ Oceans comes from my love for all things nautical and even more so my love for God. In my life I’ve moved around quite a bit but it was through all of that I realized He is my one and true constant - He is my anchor. When places change, people come and go, time rolls on, He holds me down with out ever holding me back. I guess you can say this then is an ode to Him.

So, without further adieu, welcome again. Stick around, check it out, subscribe down below (blue button underneath the archives) or press the follow button up above.

Happy readings,
Teniola.

    Funny how no one really reads the old testament but if they did they would notice how much the stories of Moses, Samson, Rebecca, or Ruth actually relate to our lives. I remember this time last year -well I think it was around this time last year- when I had finally realized who my core group of friends were. I remember that day because I cried during church service. That moment of realization had been a long time coming. However, it was not long after that moment did I then realize that I would soon be moving half way around the world without my friends for school - it hit me hard. Here I was, the end of a 4-year wait for great friends only to start another wait all over again. 
  

   Fast forward to a few Sundays later and Pastor Wes was preaching on Abram. 
Now for those of you who don’t know the story of the first Good Ole Abe, it goes a little something like this: 
                                    

  Abram was a wealthy and well-known man in his town. He had land, money, family and friends - all one could need and more. However a day came when God told him to leave all that behind and travel to a distant land called Canaan. At that point Abram was like ‘Okay, God. That’s really funny but you I don’t think that’s gonna happen.’ (Who could blame him, that’s 500 miles of nothing but walking). Despite Abram’s disapproval God told Abram to trust Him and know that He would never do Abe wrong. With that Abram took his family along with some belongings and set foot for Canaan. Like God always has done, He followed through on His promise and  safely delivered Abe to a new land - the land of many promises.
    I too have to thank God for doing the same. God uprooted me from Oregon to live here in Sydney. You’re probably reading this and thinking, big deal, it’s Australia not social exile. Nonetheless, it was not the destination that was the problem for me. I was apprehensive at first because He was taking me away from everything I had ever known- I would still feel the same about moving to Washington. Fortunately, I have a God who provides no matter where I go and that is what He did. So if you took away all the good things that people love about Sydney at the end of the day I would still I feel extremely and utterly blessed to call this place my new home. I left Oregon not to let go of old but to gain a new - friends, memories, experience, and to follow the calling He has put before me.

To any of you who read this, I want you all to know that our God will never take you out to leave you. Trust in Him when He calls you because He’s calling you for greater. No doubt the transition will be a little difficult but that does not make it any less worth it.

    Funny how no one really reads the old testament but if they did they would notice how much the stories of Moses, Samson, Rebecca, or Ruth actually relate to our lives. I remember this time last year -well I think it was around this time last year- when I had finally realized who my core group of friends were. I remember that day because I cried during church service. That moment of realization had been a long time coming. However, it was not long after that moment did I then realize that I would soon be moving half way around the world without my friends for school - it hit me hard. Here I was, the end of a 4-year wait for great friends only to start another wait all over again. 
  

   Fast forward to a few Sundays later and Pastor Wes was preaching on Abram. 
Now for those of you who don’t know the story of the first Good Ole Abe, it goes a little something like this: 
                                    

  Abram was a wealthy and well-known man in his town. He had land, money, family and friends - all one could need and more. However a day came when God told him to leave all that behind and travel to a distant land called Canaan. At that point Abram was like ‘Okay, God. That’s really funny but you I don’t think that’s gonna happen.’ (Who could blame him, that’s 500 miles of nothing but walking). Despite Abram’s disapproval God told Abram to trust Him and know that He would never do Abe wrong. With that Abram took his family along with some belongings and set foot for Canaan. Like God always has done, He followed through on His promise and  safely delivered Abe to a new land - the land of many promises.
    I too have to thank God for doing the same. God uprooted me from Oregon to live here in Sydney. You’re probably reading this and thinking, big deal, it’s Australia not social exile. Nonetheless, it was not the destination that was the problem for me. I was apprehensive at first because He was taking me away from everything I had ever known- I would still feel the same about moving to Washington. Fortunately, I have a God who provides no matter where I go and that is what He did. So if you took away all the good things that people love about Sydney at the end of the day I would still I feel extremely and utterly blessed to call this place my new home. I left Oregon not to let go of old but to gain a new - friends, memories, experience, and to follow the calling He has put before me.

To any of you who read this, I want you all to know that our God will never take you out to leave you. Trust in Him when He calls you because He’s calling you for greater. No doubt the transition will be a little difficult but that does not make it any less worth it.

    Funny how no one really reads the old testament but if they did they would notice how much the stories of Moses, Samson, Rebecca, or Ruth actually relate to our lives. I remember this time last year -well I think it was around this time last year- when I had finally realized who my core group of friends were. I remember that day because I cried during church service. That moment of realization had been a long time coming. However, it was not long after that moment did I then realize that I would soon be moving half way around the world without my friends for school - it hit me hard. Here I was, the end of a 4-year wait for great friends only to start another wait all over again. 
  

   Fast forward to a few Sundays later and Pastor Wes was preaching on Abram. 
Now for those of you who don’t know the story of the first Good Ole Abe, it goes a little something like this: 
                                    

  Abram was a wealthy and well-known man in his town. He had land, money, family and friends - all one could need and more. However a day came when God told him to leave all that behind and travel to a distant land called Canaan. At that point Abram was like ‘Okay, God. That’s really funny but you I don’t think that’s gonna happen.’ (Who could blame him, that’s 500 miles of nothing but walking). Despite Abram’s disapproval God told Abram to trust Him and know that He would never do Abe wrong. With that Abram took his family along with some belongings and set foot for Canaan. Like God always has done, He followed through on His promise and  safely delivered Abe to a new land - the land of many promises.
    I too have to thank God for doing the same. God uprooted me from Oregon to live here in Sydney. You’re probably reading this and thinking, big deal, it’s Australia not social exile. Nonetheless, it was not the destination that was the problem for me. I was apprehensive at first because He was taking me away from everything I had ever known- I would still feel the same about moving to Washington. Fortunately, I have a God who provides no matter where I go and that is what He did. So if you took away all the good things that people love about Sydney at the end of the day I would still I feel extremely and utterly blessed to call this place my new home. I left Oregon not to let go of old but to gain a new - friends, memories, experience, and to follow the calling He has put before me.

To any of you who read this, I want you all to know that our God will never take you out to leave you. Trust in Him when He calls you because He’s calling you for greater. No doubt the transition will be a little difficult but that does not make it any less worth it.

    Funny how no one really reads the old testament but if they did they would notice how much the stories of Moses, Samson, Rebecca, or Ruth actually relate to our lives. I remember this time last year -well I think it was around this time last year- when I had finally realized who my core group of friends were. I remember that day because I cried during church service. That moment of realization had been a long time coming. However, it was not long after that moment did I then realize that I would soon be moving half way around the world without my friends for school - it hit me hard. Here I was, the end of a 4-year wait for great friends only to start another wait all over again. 
  

   Fast forward to a few Sundays later and Pastor Wes was preaching on Abram. 
Now for those of you who don’t know the story of the first Good Ole Abe, it goes a little something like this: 
                                    

  Abram was a wealthy and well-known man in his town. He had land, money, family and friends - all one could need and more. However a day came when God told him to leave all that behind and travel to a distant land called Canaan. At that point Abram was like ‘Okay, God. That’s really funny but you I don’t think that’s gonna happen.’ (Who could blame him, that’s 500 miles of nothing but walking). Despite Abram’s disapproval God told Abram to trust Him and know that He would never do Abe wrong. With that Abram took his family along with some belongings and set foot for Canaan. Like God always has done, He followed through on His promise and  safely delivered Abe to a new land - the land of many promises.
    I too have to thank God for doing the same. God uprooted me from Oregon to live here in Sydney. You’re probably reading this and thinking, big deal, it’s Australia not social exile. Nonetheless, it was not the destination that was the problem for me. I was apprehensive at first because He was taking me away from everything I had ever known- I would still feel the same about moving to Washington. Fortunately, I have a God who provides no matter where I go and that is what He did. So if you took away all the good things that people love about Sydney at the end of the day I would still I feel extremely and utterly blessed to call this place my new home. I left Oregon not to let go of old but to gain a new - friends, memories, experience, and to follow the calling He has put before me.

To any of you who read this, I want you all to know that our God will never take you out to leave you. Trust in Him when He calls you because He’s calling you for greater. No doubt the transition will be a little difficult but that does not make it any less worth it.

Red Bottoms, Sports, and Jesus

Jesus is like your favorite sports team in the midst of a winning season. For every point they scored you would probably post about it; for every game you attended you would instagram it; and when they finally make it to the championships and win, I bet your twitter feed would be longer than Dick Vitale’s. Your love for the team would probably cause a few of your social media followers to be slightly annoyed but you still wouldn’t care what other people think.

Or maybe Jesus is like buying a pair of Louboutins that were on half-off. Wouldn’t you be so excited you would want  to tell everyone about it? You too would be instagraming and tweeting about those red bottoms as much as possible to the point where anyone that didn’t have a pair would probably find it a bit excessive.

For me, there is no other way to best describe Jesus. I love Him so much that I can’t stop talking about Him. Only this time the chatter is not limited to a good sale or the on-season for whatever team, it expands to all areas of life. Whether I’m catching the train to class; hanging out with my friends; spending time by myself; eating breakfast; watching TV with my family; finding the perfect outfit for the day; whatever have you, I find God’s grace in everything. So it is with everything that I will bring my attention to glorify His name. I am so thankful for my life and all that lies within it because I know that none of it would be possible without Him. Too much good has happened for it to be a mere coincidence. As for the bad, I still find myself rejoicing because I know it’s not the end but a glorious beginning (James 1: 2-4).

So I leave you all with this: Don’t be embarrassed or ashamed to praise Him, to thank Him, or to talk about Him. Doing that is the most normal and natural thing to do to anything or anyone has done you good - it should be no different when it comes to Jesus.