It's a nice day for a white wedding

One of my very best friends was married this weekend. Every little detail was blissfully perfect. Kendra married her best friend and soulmate, Andrew. They, like Dillon and me, were high school sweethearts.

Kendrew (my new nickname for their union) gathered at a quaint outdoor venue on a beautiful fall day. They exchanged their vows, took communion and danced the night away. I have never been to a wedding so full of love and life.

Things I learned being a bridesmaid:
1.) all that matters is the couple
2.) it is not about the wedding, but the marriage
3.) the bride deserves the very best, and if it means stomping up bleachers to shut off the PA of a peewee football game next door: do it.
4.) bring dancing shoes
5.) have good posture, you never know when your photo is being taken and better to look good candid than look a slob
6.) don't assume you're strong enough not to cry, chances are you will and it won't be pretty - embrace it.

Here's the the beautiful wife, Mrs. Andrew Donahoo - what a stunning bride you were, and I am so thrilled you will be spending the rest of your life with such a catch!

When.

Learn it. Live it. Love it.

Being left in the rain

A couple weeks ago I left my puppy in the rain. It wasn't intentional, of course, I merely forgot to check the weather one sunny morning and alas he was drenched way before I could commit to making it home.

Gibson obviously wasn't thrilled about the situation, but he got over it quickly upon sight of his mother returning home. I genuinely think that it wasn't the fact I was there to rescue him from the wetness that Gibson was happy to see me. It wasn't that he was finally going to get warm, or that I would soon dry him off. No, Gibson was simply happy to see the human for which his tail wags the most for - me.

When it comes to Christ how often do we seek Him for the rewards and all the benefits He gives us? Surely we will be blessed with a fantastic home when we leave Earth, but isn't there more to Christianity than the ultimate satisfaction of Heaven? I choose not to follow Jesus because he will open the golden gates for me when the time comes...

I choose to follow Jesus because my life on this planet would be worthless without Him.

I choose Jesus. I choose Him because He is the only good thing in this rain of the world. I don't choose Him to just be rescued from the storm, but to be lead me in the path that I might lead His people. I choose Jesus.

I don't choose Jesus only for the reward of Heaven. I want Jesus. I want Him more than I want to be intimate with my future husband, I want Jesus more than I want to give into everyday temptations. I want God more than I want all the success and riches of this world.

If there was no benefit of Heaven at the end of this life, I still want what my God has to offer here and now. Whether this be serving in a church, communicating for a nonprofit or even ministering in Africa... I want His presence, His love, His Holy Spirit. I don't follow Christ for the finish line, but also for the race.

Christianity isn't just about the rescue from the rain, but the experience during the storm. We need to sing praise to our Father for life, for blessings for hardships. God doesn't need to be only pulled out in times of need, but in all situations. We are given this day, this adventure to live in.

What are you doing today that makes a difference in your running of the raise? Are you running the race to reach the end, or are you running for the bigger prize? The prize of winning souls to Christ not because you want them to be "normal," but because you don't want them to keep missing out on such a glorious gift. And selfishly you can't imagine partying in Heaven without them by your side.

Start running the race. Start enjoying the everyday happenings. There is more to this day than getting dried off. So don't just sit back and wait to be rescued, God is here. Now. Start loving to live in His marvelous name. Shine in the storm.

Crash. Boom. Bang.

My computer has died. Or, at least the hard drive has decided that it doesn't want to work anymore. Joy. While that could be an excellent excuse for my lack of writing lately... It isn't.

Honestly, I haven't felt the need to put energy into my blog. I am graduating in December, I'm getting married in March and I am attempting to strive at my career without failing. And more often than not, I feel like this blog is something I do for myself that gets lost in a cyberland where no one cares. But, that's no excuse.

When you approach someone or something and you begin to feel defeated does that make you give up? Hopefully not. In our walk with Christ we often engage ourselves in relationships or experiences that are way over our head sometimes, but with the unimaginable help from our Savior, we always seem to get through it. Everyday. Day by day. Minute by minute. Step by step. We make it.

"Your Father knows that you need these things. His Kingdom, and these things will be added to you. Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom." Luke 12:30-32

So, I will chose not to give up. I chose not to die out like my MacBook did. Instead, I will drive my blog - full force - and experience life with you (let's pretend I have readers.)

So, I encourage you to stay posted. I just got engaged, you know :) and I have stories to tell, oh boy, do I have stories to tell!



Ps: thanks to my encouraging commenter who reminded me of what I started here.

I haven't lived

Clearly.

Look how incredibly fantastic Karolina these Kate Spade shoes are. Ohh, if only I were rich and frivolous. These shoes would never leave my feet.

Smitten

I am engaged!! My weekend was exciting, memorable and love-filled. Stay updated with the blog to soft through my wedding planning experiences.

We are thrilled and I will post details soon!

The Greatest Adventure

This is something I made for our Children's Ministry at church. While intended for children, I don't think it is limited to them. Live life with God - live life with adventure.

Yeehaw

Cowboy Church.

Have you ever heard of it? It's a celebration of Jesus while being surrounded by God's incredible creatures: horses.

Last weekend I had the pleasure of dress shopping for the perfect attire to go with my worn-down cowboy boots. Yes, that's right... My handsome boyfriend took me on a date to cowboy church.

To start our blazin' hot evening (I mean that in the sense of mother nature, of course - 100 degrees) we drove approximately 55 miles outside of town to a small barn in the middle of no where. We were greeted by stables of friendly horses and cheerful people. We ate salsa, mingled and made good friends with a freakishly tall horse named Domingo. I've decided horses are like big dogs, they all have personalities and crave attention.

After about an hour of snacking, befriending, and sweating the sermon finally began. We listened as flies swarmed the barn and were taught on scripture about prosperity, and - of course - horses.

Following our service the church put on a hoedown. It was such a delight! An old lady taught everyone to square dance, and giggled and boogied till it was past my bedtime!

I highly encourage everyone to be adventurous. What a blessing it is to be able to cherish such memorable and magical moments. Plus, it doesn't hurt I have a stud of a boyfriend to share my life with. 

And most of all: Let your Light shine☀

Excuses, excuses.

I have been busy, and distracted and completely procrastinating about posting on here. But, as my grandma says: Enough is enough. (Ok, I lied, my grandma doesn't really say that..)

With summer school well on its way to becoming overwhelming, I am still making time to enjoy my summer. The sunshine is brighter than before, the sweating more intense, but what goodness it is to be able to enjoy late nights, friends coming home, and eating veggie burgers on the grill.

I haven't taken the time to mention details of my INCREDIBLE trip to Africa, but one of the many things that changed me when I returned home was my eating habit. I no longer am eating meat! Surprisingly it is actually going quite well, and as I explore the ins and outs of this lifestyle I will share some recipes that have worked well for me. Starting with my veggie burger dish from last night!

Dillon and I headed to our local Whole Foods market, bought eggplant and black bean packaged burgers, tomatoes, avocados, buns, brown eggs, and onions. We fried the eggs, cheesed and grilled the burgers, sautéed the onions, spread the toasted buns with avocado, layered the tomatoes.

Best. Burger. Ever.

I highly recommend substituting your meat one day this week with one of these. Yum!

The patty I ate was made from gardenburger, black bean chipotle flavor.

Have you had a veggie burger? If so, what was your thought? If not, try it and please tell me how you liked it in comparison!

Let your light shine.

Africa

I am home from Zimbabwe! What a beautiful experience it was - here are a few captured moments :)

Also, never forget how enormously magnificent our God is. We are beyond blessed.