shorty ;)

it's shorttt! :)

ahh :)

i've been home for almost a week..
it feels good to be home,
but i will say that i do miss being down at LU..
things up here are just different to me now.

we're getting ready to head down to whitehall for the wknd to see the whole fam (which we never really see everyone all together except for at Thanksgiving, so it's different, but i like it).

well, i should be going now... so, adios for now :)

almost.. donee.....!

1 final + 1 final project.
CHECK!

2 finals + 1 memorized speech.
LET'S FINISH THIS!



..and then freshman year is overrr!
can't believe how fast it went :)

Sunny Saturdays & Cool Concerts!

The Jubilee Family Development Center held an event called The Jubilee Jamboree this past weekend. It was an fun-filled day with so many different things to do.

The jamboree was in the parking lot of Thomas Road Baptist Church, while the concert was inside of TRBC. I have never seen that parking lot so full of people and of different activities. It was great!



They had moon bounces and inflatables spread out all around the parking lot, and multiple game booths between them all. It also seemed like they were able to gather the support of a good amount of local restaurants, which was nice to see. A few of the food stations that were there were Chick-fil-A, Sundae Grill and Smoothie King.

Businesses like these are the ones that you want to go to and support!

They also had a 3-on-3 basketball tournament that went on throughout the whole day. There were games going on one right after the other, with hundreds of teams participating in the tournament.

A few of the teams that managed to win in their divisions were:

- Ballin' Bombers
- Dunk-n-Go Nuts
- Leadin' Ladiez
- Dream Street
- Shining Shooters

Each of the winning division teams received $50 gift cards for Dick's Sporting Goods, and were also given a meet and greet session with well-known recording artist, TobyMac.

Toward the end of the evening, there was a concert that featured both TobyMac and other recording artist, Switchfoot. These two groups put on a phenomenal show, and performed with such great energy. The crowd was so into the concert, and was singing along with them the whole way through.

There were so many groups of young people, of college students and of adults and parents who were roaming around at this jubilee. Seeing all of the people, of all ages, coming together and joining The Jubilee Center in raising funds and spreading awareness was definitely a sight.

Not only did the Jubilee Family Development Center benefit greatly from this benefit concert and jubilee fundraiser, but the entire city of Lynchburg did as well. It really brought a sense of unity to the community, and showed the support that is given by the people of Lynchburg.

It is so good to see the benefits that are reaped when everyone joins together to help support such a great local cause!









Word Count: 394

Too Comfortable?

first off, I do not want to take credit for what I am about to write..
(I am only going to summarize and piece together certain parts of the devotional entry)
this is taken from one of my daily devotionals written by R. Blackaby & H. Blackaby.



Comfortable In Our Bondage

It is possible for people to become so accustomed to their bondage that they resist efforts to free them.
Slavery meant that [we] are not free to do God's will or to go where [we want].
When God sets out to free us, there will often be a price we will have to pay. Grief can be a terrible form of bondage, yet we can become comfortable with it. We can grow so comfortable with fear that we don't know how to live without it. As destructive as our sinful habits and lifestyle might be, we may prefer living with the familiar, rather than being freed to experience the unknown. We may recognize the harmful influence of a friend, but choose to reject God's will rather than offend our friend.

Have you been lulled into a comfortable relationship with your bondage?
Do you fear change more than you fear God?
Are you willing to allow God to do what is necessary in order to free you?


:)

the finish line

So.. I realize that it's been a longg while since i've taken time to put down my thoughts, even though they haven't stopped coming to me over the past few months.. there's been a lot that has happened this past semester.... some good, others not so much...

some of the things that have happened have really brought me back to situations that occured last year, and have just added extra stress to my life that I really don't need... but each time that something seems to come into my life and wipe me out, God never fails me, and is always there for me to lean on. He is the only thing that has kept me going through it all, the good and the bad, and I know that He is the only one that I can ever completely depend on. Man will always disappoint you, and fail you at some point or another, no matter how much they may not mean to, or want to. It's because we are human, and we aren't perfect, and can never be perfect.

I believe that God brings friends into your life for a certain reason, for a certain season.

I believe that God surrounds you with people that can build you up and tear you down.

I believe that God allows people to tear you down so that only He can bring you back up.

I believe that God is the only one who will never leave you or disappoint you.

I believe that God can be disappointed in us, but His love for us remains the same.

I believe that God does everything that He does for our benefit, even it if is to teach us a lesson.

but anyways.. moving on......

only 1 day of classes left!!!

& then finals start on friday, but i don't have any til monday.. and my last final's next wed, the 12th. i'm so excited to be finished with my freshman year of college, and for summer to be here! but i can't believe how fast my first year went!! and all of the 'excitement' that it was filled with ;)

I have really made some great friends here that I wouldn't trade for anything! we have so much fun together, and we don't hang out because we're all each other has, but because we choose to, and we want to hang out with each other. we all just have a great time hanging out :) I have friends from everywhere! from buffalo.. syracuse.. indiana & butler, pa.. az.. cali.. florida, canada, russia and new zealand!

God has really shown me who my true friends are, and has blessed my life in so many ways by placing these people in my life.

..and even though i have some amazing friends down here, and this has really become like 'home' to me, I'm ready to be back up in new york and to see some of my close friends there that I haven't seen in quite some time..

I can't wait to see what else that God has in store for my life!

It's all just a mystery to me, but it's one that is soo worth waiting for!

I'm so excited to see all that He's going to continue to reveal to me in His perfect timing.. & not my own!

Truly His..

3 more days of classes left!

2 wks until i'm back up in ny.

3&1/2 months til i'm back down in va.

CRAZYYYY how fast freshman year flewwww by!!

..don't worry, i'll go into it more later :)

but for now, check out this fun video! :)

feat. troy, pat & aaron... & me (you'll see..) haha

(first, make sure to mute or pause the music at the bottom of the page)