I found this video today. Some of you probably have already seen it, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to share it and hopefully brighten your day. I hope you have an amazing Thursday. Love you!
Why did Jesus fold the linen burial cloth after His resurrection? I never noticed this....
The Gospel of John (20:7) tells us that the napkin, which was placed over the face of Jesus, was not just thrown aside like the grave clothes.
The Bible takes an entire verse to tell us that the napkin was neatly folded, and was placed separate from the grave clothes.
Early Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved. She said, 'They have taken the Lord's body out of the tomb, and I don't know where they have put him!'
Peter and the other disciple ran to the tomb to see... The other disciple outran Peter and got there first. He stooped and looked in and saw the linen cloth lying there, but he didn't go in.
Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside. He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there, while the cloth that had covered Jesus' head was folded up and lying to the side.
Was that important? Absolutely!
Is it really significant? Yes! In order to understand the significance of the folded napkin, you have to understand a little bit about Hebrew tradition of that day. The folded napkin had to do with the Master and Servant, and every Jewish boy knew this tradition.
When the servant set the dinner table for the master, he made sure that it was exactly the way the master wanted it.
The table was furnished perfectly, and then the servant would wait, just out of sight, until the master had finished eating, and the servant would not dare touch that table, until the master was finished.
Now if the master were done eating, he would rise from the table, wipe his fingers, his mouth, and clean his beard, and would wad up that napkin and toss it onto the table. The servant would then know to clear the table. For in those days, the wadded napkin meant, 'I'm done'.
But if the master got up from the table, and folded his napkin, and laid it beside his plate, the servant would not dare touch the table, because the folded napkin meant, 'I'm coming back!
"Why me?" is a useless question, for in the end, it solves nothing. The right question, the one put forth by Christ Himself is, "What now?" When we ask "What now?" we shift our focus from ourselves to God and what He is up to in our lives.
This past weekend, I had a briefing in Chapel Hill, North Carolina for my Argentina trip. All the teams go overseas with Campus Crusade met here to go over how to love the people we will meet, how to share the Gospel, how to adjust to a new culture, and everything else in between!
The best part of the weekend was getting to meet everyone I would be going to Argentina with! Let me just say that they are all some amazing people :)
There is about 37 of us including staff members going over there. We are all from different parts and different schools from the Mid-South Region. Even though this was the first time most of us had ever met, I felt like we all really connected as a team and bonded as a family. I really feel a connection with the people I got to hang out with over the weekend. Because there are 37 people on our team, I really did not get a chance to spend time with everyone, but I am looking forward to doing so over the next few weeks and during Summer Project.
This weekend ignited my excitement for Argentina even more! I have an idea of what will be going on in Argentina and what we will be doing, but I still haven't grasped it all. God is going to do some amazing things this summer!
A few of us on the team decided that if we could, we would leave today to go to Argentina. Thanks to everyone who are making this trip possible for me. God bless!
Here is a more in-depth description of what is going on with my journey to Argentina:
Yesterday, I had to have at least $2500 raised. On Tuesday, I had this amount. Thank goodness!
However, I started worrying a little bit. I am still receiving checks in the mail, but they are coming in slowly. I KNOW if this is where God wants me to go for six weeks over the summer, then He will provide. I need to give my doubts over to Him and constantly remind myself that HE WILL PROVIDE.
On Wednesday, (just a day later!) I received a check that put my total to $4000! I am completely overwhelmed STILL by the love and support from the person/people/family. I would love to go into more detail about the situation and this generous gift, but I am really unable to because of confidentiality of the person/people/family that gave it to me. It is definitely a special gift to me because of who I received it from.
God continues to show His Faithfulness. He continues to show how He is in control of this situation and He will always provide in some way or another. Not only He growing me to trust in Him more but he is showing me how to be patient with this situation. I am ready to be in Argentina! I am so excited for the experiences God is going to put before me. I love how He is taking these little opportunities and building them into one big challenge and experience.
Please continue praying and supporting me during this adventure. I am excited about what God is doing and I continue looking forward to sharing my experiences with you.
For you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. James 1:3-4
Do all things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world.
WARNING: THIS WILL BE AN EXTREMELY SAPPY POST. YOU ARE FOREWARNED. YOU CAN TURN BACK NOW WHILE YOU STILL HAVE THE CHANCE.
With that being said, I can talk about my new favorite love song. I think it might be a little more than a favorite. I think it has become a slight obsession. In case you didn't know, I am all about some lovey-dovey songs and recently, I heard a new one on the radio.
I hope I am not building the suspense of the song too much ;)
New favorite song: Train - "Marry Me"
(If and when you listen to it, make sure to read along with the lyrics)
Forever can never be long enough for me
To feel like I've had long enough with you
Forget the world now we won't let them see
But there's one thing left to do
Now that the weight has lifted
Love has surely shifted my way
Marry Me
Today and every day
Marry Me
If I ever get the nerve to say "Hello" in this cafe
Say you will
Together can never be close enough for me
Feel like I am close enough to you
You wear white and I'll wear out the words I love you
And you're beautiful
Now that the wait is over
And love and has finally shown her my way
Marry me
Today and every day
Marry me
If I ever get the nerve to say "Hello" in this cafe
Say you will
Promise me
You'll always be
Happy by my side
I promise to
Sing to you
When all the music dies
And marry me
Today and everyday
Marry me
If I ever get the nerve to say "Hello" in this cafe
Say you will
Marry me
Hopefully, you can understand why I absolutely love this song. It is beautiful.
I used to share with others so much of my dreams of my wedding and marriage. I don't really anymore. It is not that I have loss hope in it (I certainly have not!!), but I think I am finally letting go of that self-created "perfect" image of what my marriage should look like and instead allowing God to create it for me. I still dream about it of course. I feel like it is an inborn desire for a lady to dream about this.
I know God is preparing a fellow for me right now. I am thankful for this time to grow and to allow God to prepare me for him and our marriage. And hopefully, one day I will find the guy that will get the nerve to say hello and will wear out the words, "I love you"....
Last night, my friend, Stephanie and I went and saw a movie.
We saw Justin Bieber: Never Say Never.
I thought it was going to be completely ridiculous and extremely corny. Nope! It was awesome! The movie went through the challenges and successes he had throughout his life up until this point. It was really cool to see how he became so famous through social networks (youtube, etc).
My favorite parts were the hysterical girls just BAWLING over Mr. Bieber. They were all fired up and in loooove with this fella. Now I know I used to be a HUGE Backstreet Boys and Nsync fan, but I DON'T remember ever being this crazy. Haha.
It was definitely an enjoyable movie and I felt like a little teenager singing along to his music. It doesn't get old :)
I hope you all have an amazing weekend. It's supposed to be B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L in Charleston this weekend, so hopefully the sun and I can have some QT (quality time) together enjoying each other's company ;)
On Tuesday, I got to do something that I haven't really done in quite some time.
Here is a little clue....
Yes, I went swimming! I definitely did not look at cute as this little girl does swimming. I do need to purchase some goggles like that though :)
I have been trying to run more to prepare for the Cooper River Bridge run, but unfortunately, I pushed myself too hard, and the doctor told me it would be best to find other outlets for working out. My parents keep hounding encouraging me to stop running so much and do something else. I finally listened to them after I hurt myself. I have wanted to swim for awhile now, but just haven't gotten the nerve to go to the pool in the student center on campus. Well, on Tuesday, I finally did and I am glad I did! I enjoyed it so much. I forgot how much I love the water and swimming. I am planning on making it a weekly (if not more than once a week) routine to swim a few laps.
I keep hearing how good it is for your body because it's low impact. I am just hoping that I can get the affect that I was with jogging/running.
Just in case you aren't sure what "Lent Challenge" is, please check out my blog post about it.
Wednesdays are a little crazy for me and I kind of overslept too. Oops!
Have a great day!
For whatever was written in former days was written for our
instruction, that by steadfastness and by the encouragement
of the scriptures we might have hope. May the God of
steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live in such
harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus.
But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is thy faithfulness. "The Lord is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I will hope in him."
Garen's 18th Birthday was this past Wednesday. I was fortunate enough to be on Spring Break and was home to celebrate with him and the family!
My dad and I got up early to go over to Garen's high school and paint the school rock:
Some of Garen's friends came over the night before his birthday and painted his car:
Garen requested a "cookie" cake for his birthday. Basically, I just made regular cookie dough, greased a baking sheet, evenly spread the cookie dough on the sheet, and baked it at its normal temperature. I think I shortened the bake time some, but I tried to stay in the kitchen until the edges were evenly browned (crunchy on the outer edges and chewy in the middle...best kind!)
I did have some "helpers" in the kitchen, while I was making the cookie cake:
James (cat) was "helping" me by repeatedly attacking my apron strings and clawing at my legs and Daisy (dog) was "helping" me by cleaning up the floor just in case I dropped any food ;)
I decorated Garen's cake using buttercream icing. The idea to draw a pair of "Ray Ban" sunglasses popped into my head randomly, and I decided to go with it. Garen loves his Ray Ban's! The black icing came out a little gray, but I wanted the icing to still have good flavor (the more dye, the less it tastes good). I used a gel food coloring for the lense part of the sunglasses. I am pretty satisified with how it turned out. It tasted good too!
I hope you had a great birthday, Garen. I love youuu!
For those who haven't been reading my blog for very long, click here to view my first Sunday Song Post.
This week I am dedicating my post to my wonderful, older brother, Adam.
Adam is older than me by 3 years, four months, and 6 days.We have been pretty close throughout my entire life. In elementary school, we would ride the bus home together and then spend the rest of the time until our parents go home watching VH1. I spefically remember Adam and I switching off between who got to watch what during every thirty minute intervals. For example, I would get to choose what to watch from 3 until 3:30 and he would get to choose what to watch from 3:30 to 4. However, if the Top Ten Countdown or Pop-Up Video was on, then we would be sure to be watching it! During the summer of 1997, I remember watching the Top Ten Countdown with Aerosmith's "Don't Want to Miss a Thing" and Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On" were in the race for the number one stop. I would always root for Celine's, but Aerosmith always go it. Love me some Celine :)
Another memory I have about Adam is car rides to school. From seventh grade until 9th grade, I rode to school with Adam. I LOVED his music selection. My favorite times were after school and we would ride home with the windows down with the music blaring. Good times.
Below are songs that remind me of Adam and the good times we have had:
I was going through my email and came across an email from a LONG time ago (like 8 years!). It was relevant to me then and is still relevant today. I hope you enjoy it. People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime. When you figure out which one it is, you will know what to do for each person.
When someone is in your life for a REASON. . . It is usually to meet a need you have expressed. They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you with guidance and support, to aid you physically, emotionally, or spiritually. They may seem like a godsend, and they are! They are there for the reason you need them to be. Then, without any wrongdoing on your part, or at an inconvenient time, this person will say or do something to bring the relationship to an end. Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away. Sometimes they act up and force you to take a stand. What we must realize is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled, their work is done. The prayer you sent up has been answered. And now it is time to move on.
Then people come into your life for a SEASON. Because your turn has come to share, grow, or learn. They bring you an experience of peace, or make you laugh. They may teach you something you have never done. They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy. Believe it! It is real! But, only for a season. LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons: things you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation. Your job is to accept the lesson, love the person, and put what you have learned to use in all other relationships and areas of your life. It is said that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.
It is amazing to look back on my friendships I have experienced and see the impact each person has had on my life. God has provided me with so many friendships that have affected me and have challenged me. Each friendship and person has touched my life in some way, and I hope I am able to do the same for other.
Until next time, K
As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. (Proverbs 27:17)
This past Tuesday, I went to a dance class with my brother, my daddy, and my friend, Garrett. We learned the FOXTROT!
Surprisingly, it is very simple and only has three, basic steps to it. I was going to post a video of the Foxtrot, but the only good ones I could find was from Dancing with the Stars, and let's just say, they don't make the dance look very basic. Haha.
In case you didn't already know, I love dancing. I think it so much fun, it is a great workout routine, and it is definitely a good date idea (**hint hint to all your fellas out there trying to impress the ladies!).
I would love to take dance classes to learn more of the basic steps of class dances (Waltz, Foxtrot, Shag, Swing, Salsa, etc). There is so much that can be done with dancing. There are no limitations. I wouldn't mind taking some class here in Charleston, but I stay so busy it is hard to find the time for it. Once I graduate, I hope to take dance classes regularly. It will be a fun past time and definitely a great way for me to de-stress after being with a bunch of adolescents all day!
Everytime I go dancing, there is ALWAYS one or two older couples there. I want to be that when I am old!! I want to still be active and dancing with my sweetie :) I guess now, I just need to find my sweet/dance partner. He is probably working on dancing to get ready for me. Haha.
On May 16th, I will be taking a HUGE step of faith. I will be taking a step that I have never done before. A step that I have always had a pull at my heart to do, but never thought it would happen.
I will be going on a mission trip/summer project to Argentina!! I am sure a lot of you already know about this trip, because I have been talking about it soo much. I can't help it though, I am extremely excited.
Right now, on top of being excited, I am a little overwhelmed. There is a lot of preparations that have to be completed before my trip. I need to continue raising support for the trip. I need to work on my testimony. I need to be spiritual prepared, which means allowing God to really take the lead of my preparations in the weeks to come. I need to figure out about my summer course I am planning on take as well. Everything will get taken care of...I KNOW this, but at this point it is a little stressful trying to make sure it gets completed while still having school and other things on my mind.
I can already see God working in this situation, and it is wonderful to see all the blessings being poured out. I am so grateful and overjoyed with His amazing Love.
My next step: continue raising support and trusting in the Lord with the financial aspect of the trip. If this is where God wants me to go, then He will take me.
Below is a picture of Buenos Aires, Argentina, which is where I will be :)
Until next time, K
Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. (Psalm 37:5)
I never really know when Lent starts. I always think it starts the Thursday after Ash Wednesday, but that doesn't make much sense with Tuesday being called "Fat Tuesday". I guess I will be starting all of this on Wednesday then. Giving it up for good for the next 40ish days. Technically, Sundays do not count in Lent so I could get on to Facebook on these days, but I want to try and refrain from it.
Facebook is too much of a distraction for me. I have PLENTY of other things to be doing. There is always something that needs to be completed for school. I just found out this past Thursday that I will be going to Argentina for six weeks this summer (God willing!!), so I have PLENTY of preparations to do for that.
My goal for the next 40ish days is to replace the time I would be spending on Facebook with more productive activities.
I am going to miss not knowing whose birthday is coming up, so I am going to go ahead and wish everyone a HAPPY BIRTHDAY that has one in the next 40ish days. If you want to stay in contact with what's going on in my life, I plan on blogging everyday for the next 40ish days. You can also email me at Kacey2395@hotmail.com or even better, CALL ME :)
I am excited for this challenge. If you decided to give something up for Lent, I pray that the temptation of pursuing it during this time will decrease and that you will be able to refocus your attention on other things. Feel free to email me any prayers requests that you may have. I am here for any kinds of encouragement or support.
Up until last year, I would give up random things without even thinking twice about it. Most of the time it was something insignificant and didn't really matter that I even gave it up.
I was missing the point of Lent. This is a time to take away something that consumes you and distracts you from other things in life. Well last year, I faced the truth: Facebook consumes me. As I am writing this, I have a tab opened for Facebook. I spend way too much time on it. Mainly just going on other people's pages. I don't find it a bad thing to be informed of what's going on in other people's lives, but I end up wasting a lot of time on Facebook in place of doing more important or productive things.
Last year I gave up Facebook because I became envious and jealous of what others had or what they were doing. I became extremely negative towards myself about it. I hate to admit it, but it's true. After I gave up Facebook for Lent, I felt so much better about myself. I realized I didn't need to rely so heavily on Facebook.
This year, I am giving up Facebook...AGAIN, but not for the same reason. I have other things that need to be accomplished throughout my day. Too many things. I want to let go of this huge distraction for a little while.
Some of the things I want to do in place of going on Facebook: 1. Spending time with God 2. Sewing 3. Writing letters 4. Catching up on my reading 5. Blogging
Spending more time with God is definitely the biggest goal for me during this time.
My second goal is to blog more. Since I won't be on Facebook, I want to still be connected with everyone. My goal is to blog about something. ANYTHING for each day of Lent. I am leaving this open to anything. From a deep thought-out post to a picture to a craft to a song to a Bible verse to ...anything. This might change as Lent progresses, but that's where I am at for now.
If you don't know me, I really enjoy challenges. I think this is going to be a good challenge. A fun one too. If you have any suggestions for what I can blog about, please share! I would love suggestions!
Are you giving up anything for Lent? Can I challenge you to purposefully give something up for Lent that will help you grow in your walk with Christ? I pray that whatever you give up, do it wholeheartedly and with the intent of looking to the Lord for guidance throughout that time.
"there is a time for everything a season for every activity under heaven" ~ eccs 3:1...This blog is a glimpse into my life of the journey God has put before me.
