coffee shops and grace

As a youth ministry staff we are reading through Holiness by Grace by Bryan Chapell. We had to read the introduction and first chapter and write a 1 page response by today, Tuesday. In order to prepare and make sure I actually got it done, I went to a local coffee shop off of Cedar Springs–Buli.  I really love their chai and carmel latte’s and the atmosphere is so chill. To help you better understand why I am laughing right now even as I write this…picture this image… (more…)

numbness

I really do believe that I have it all together. That everything within my little bubble of life is functioning at a steady rate. Life is happy until one of my friends begins to talk to me about the matters of my heart. She begins to call me out on my sin, my complacency, my ‘comfortable Christianity.’ Then it hits me; somewhere along the way my heart grew cold. It grew numb. It became dark. (more…)

an eternal perspective

I often forget about heaven. I so often forget that I am an eternal being. I forget my identity. I forget, at times, who is it that I am truly living for. I forget about heaven. (more…)

the fight

“As they had their pasture, they became satisfied, and being satisfied, their hearts grew proud; therefore, they forgot me.” -Hosea 13:6

This past year has proven how terrible I am at keeping up with my friends who arn’t with me at Covenant. I forget to write, I forget to call, I forget. Largely, due to the fact that I get caught up in the craziness of school, friendships, and life in Lookout Mountain that everything else takes a back seat. Not only do I neglect dear friends from Dallas but I so often neglect to spend time with Jesus…
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we have lost our fascination

I was hanging out with a dear, dear friend of mine today and we were talking about some things when she mentioned (excuse the paraphrasing); we have grown bored of God. we have lost our fascination. (more…)

the black out

Categories: happenings | 2 Comments

i do have a lot to say and a lot of updates however, i felt as though this event warranted its own little space.

I was sitting on the floor in my room, checking out Willow Creek Church and talking to my sister, amanda, about it and if i could come over and eat leftovers at her house for lunch. i got off the phone, stood up, and walked to the bathroom. Right before I got to the bathroom I started getting that feeling of when you get up too fast so I leaned my head up against the left door post and then everything got really dark…

It was kind of hard for me to open my eyes at first but once I started to open them I had no idea where i was or how i got there. i couldn’t tell if i was standing up or sitting down and then i figured out i was laying on the hard wood floor. my head started to throb and i put my hand on the back of my head only to realize that part of my head was hanging off of the stairs. i soon figured out that i was in my house, in texas, and must have blackd out because the last thing i remembered was standing up, leaning against the door post. had i moved to the right at all when i first leaned against the door post, i would have collapsed and fallen down the stairs, unconscious. no one was home and my hands began to shake….

needless to say, i was in a daze when i went to my sisters house and its probably due to a lack of protein …er something. anyways, it was scary and crazy and i’ve never had that kind of an experience before but i hope i don’t collapse and black out again for a while, at least ;o)

like i said, i’ll update ya’ll here in the next day or so. mary kate rolls into dallas some time this afternoon and we’re moving into an apartment tonight down in highland park and our job starts tomorrow. i’m pumped!

something to dwell on

here is a quote from a book I will be studying over the next month or so, Future Grace by John Piper. I’ll be posting in the coming weeks on what I’m learning and also posting my notes. Until then…

The effort to repay God, in the ordinary way we pay creditors, would nullify grace and turn it into a business transaction. If we see acts of obedience as installment payments, we make grace into a mortgage…Let us not say that grace creates debt; let us say that grace pays debt (p. 44). ”

Past grace is glorified by intense and joyful gratitude. Future grace is glorified by intense and joyful confidence. This faith is what frees us and empowers us for venturesome obedience in the cause of Christ (p. 47).”

the emergent conversation

Hey! So, its been a while since I really displayed my inner thoughts for all to see but much to your surprise (i’m sure) I’ve been reading and thinking through a lot. This will be one of many ‘conversations’ to come that I have been having with myself and others. Currently, I am sitting at a little table at the corner bakery in the new development out here in highland village. Its a bit noisy but alas i will give this thing a go…before I get into the topic of the emergent church I will say that I am far from knowledgeable on it but I am learning. So, if you have questions, rebukes, comments, or what have you; I welcome them. Seriously, lets talk about this stuff because it is only getting bigger and it deserves some thought and coffee date outings to discuss it further. (more…)

easy living

i rolled into the drive way around 1:30 am on sunday morning only to be followed by my youngest brother, will, who was coming home from a catering job. it was fun to walk in the door with him and surprise my mom…

i’ve been ‘laying low’ you could say the past few days. getting my car all fixed up and inspected, reading, unpacking and cleaning up my room. i am still in that process however i have unpacked everything only to be met with the fact that i need another book shelf because i have 3 full bags of books and no where to put them. i’ll have a new one by the end of the week, i am told :)

i’m going out for coffee in dallas tomorrow night with a sweet friend and hanging out with another good friend from church whom i havent seen in for-ev-er!

i truly am excited about being in the dallas area for the summer. i forgot how much i truly love this place. work starts on may 20th and im so excited for marykate to get over here from georgi!!

it is finished

Categories: Covenant | 2 Comments

i just finished my last final of my sophomore year. i’m not that tired but i am so glad to be freed from school for the next few months.

this summer promises to bring a lot of healing, learning, and teaching. i’m excited :)

i’ll be home sunday morning around 3am and would love to see those who are privileged enough to live in texas once i get my feet on the ground…

i love ya’ll and look forward to what God is going to do this summer. until then….

…i’m partying it up with my roommats and friends :)