Calmer of my storms. ♥

Who is Jesus to you? Other than your Savior and Redeemer, Who is He in your heart?

Lately, He's been the One Who calms my storms... Life throws some hard balls sometimes, and I've been trying to have a better attitude about it these last few weeks. I'm tired of complaining about the hard stuff. So, I'm trying to be more focused on looking at God instead of myself when things go wrong. One of the best parts of it is that even when I'm upset or something really pressing is staring me down, just worshiping God can turn it all around. Worshiping Him and praying whole-heartedly turns my perspective away from myself and just lets me focus on the Lord. It sounds like I'm just ignoring my problems instead of facing them, but, in reality, when I look at my problems after I've had time with God, they're suddenly so much more simple. He guides us to make wiser decisions when we make sure we're walking by His side. It's wonderful.

I decided to write this post because I just read Luke 8:22-25. It's the story of when Jesus calmed the storm in the Sea of Galilee. When He says to the disciples, "Where is your faith?", it always smacks me... 'Cause every time something bad happens, it's easy for me to lose my grip and just wallow. But, if I am exercising my faith, then I'll just be focused on God, trusting Him to do what He needs to through the situation. It's hard, but I learn lessons through this.

Anyways, I hope somebody got something from this. Haha.

~Natalie

Such a blessing.

This message from Kari Jobe.... Was amazing. And exactly just what I needed tonight. I'm so thankful for this, Lord. It is such an awesome reminder to really seek out Your presence and get there, on a regular, daily basis. Thank You!

I know some of my readers here may or may not agree with this message, but if you have 40 minutes, please watch all three videos. You should be able to find the next two from this first one. Kari preaches from a charismatic, maybe even pentecostal, point of view, and if you're more conservative, just take the major points into your heart anyways. Her message is just so wonderful, and really important for anyone who needs a fresh perspective on worship. It really touched me, and I'm so excited to get to lead worship tomorrow now. So thankful for this! I hope some of you get to watch these videos. Such a blessing.

♥

I'm feeling super thankful right now. I've finally gotten back on track and right with God lately. I was in pretty rough shape after New Year's, not really sure why. Something just changed in me, and it was for the worse. But I'm back at it now. I'm so grateful for my Salvation, and for the provisions of my wonderful Father. It's so wonderful to have food to eat, clothes to wear, a heated home, and a comfortable bed. A computer to blog from. Friends who pray for and support me when they know I need it most. Family that loves me in spite of my bad habits and my bad moods. People who stick with me no matter what, and help me through the rough spots. I'm so very blessed.

God's been working on me to change my heart. I read Luke 6:43-45 today, and verse 45 really punched me in the face, ha ha. It was like God saying, "Do you hear the things that come out of your mouth? The attitudes you have? Here's where it's coming from!". So, I know I need to change what's in my heart. I've embraced poor behavior lately and I have no excuses for it. Sure, watching not-so-wholesome t.v. shows doesn't help, but it's not like I'm being forced to watch them and talk like the people in them. It's my choice. And a poor choice. I need to re-evaluate my life and everything I do, choose what is pleasing to God, not to the world.

Another thing I've been realizing is my need to please people. I'm tired of being a people-pleaser. It causes me to compromise what I believe, and it needs to stop. Just because people don't agree with me and I want to keep the peace. There's a way to keep things peaceful and still stand firm, and I need to seek it out, instead of just being, like, whateverrr. Jesus said that we would be persecuted. In America, our only persecution for the faith is being disagreed with and maybe losing some friends. Is that anywhere near as bad as the people in countries where Christianity is outlawed? No. We're not being killed or tortured. Nobody is coming into our churches and threatening our lives. And even if that were the case, we are still called to stand firm in the faith. As long as God is with us and for us, what else do we really need in this life? We have a better one awaiting! We're perfectly okay, and we know it. So, tell the Devil to shut up and leave you alone when he's trying to convince you that it's too much of a risk to talk about Christ. We have hardly any risk at all here. Matthew 10:28 says, "Don't be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul. Fear only God, who can destroy both body and soul in hell." We have no reason to fear man, and turn our backs on God. Turn your back on man, and fear God alone! So stand up for Him. You never know what an impact it will make on others!

So, yeah, that's what's been on my mind today. Oh, and I finished my schoolwork today! Ha ha ha. I'm usually a total slacker, so this is a pretty big accomplishment. : ) Don't judge me! : P

Peace and love,
Natalie :)
SHALOM!

Silence is golden.

I have now officially learned how to keep my cool and shut my mouth when what I want to say is completely destructive.

Feels pretty good to slap that old tongue in the face and be, like, BOOM. Ya do what I say.

Resolutions:)

#1 - Run a lot more. I'm not going to set a specific goal, but I definitely need to commit to more cardio and get my quads back!

#2 - Make more music.

#3 - Get down to 127 and stop hating on my imageee!

#4 - Hang out with friends more, be more social, go to parties. You know. I finish school this year, I will have no excuses!

#5 - Get a job and mooooove outtttt. It's great living with parents and all, and I love mine, but I just wanna have a few years where I can have fun and just have myself in charge. Not gonna go do anything crazy, but I do wanna have the fun times experience(:

Yay! Excitement!

I'm so pumped! I sorted things out with my friend that the last post was my steam-blower about, haha. So, we're going shopping today, and I finally get to buy a Bible for my friend that I promised to get him for Christmas if I got a job. It's gonna be a late Christmas for him, but he has been honestly seeking out God, so I'm really exciting to be able to equip him with God's infallible Word. :D I'm just so pumped! I'm praying that God will guide me to select the right one for him, and that he'll read it often and seek out the truths held within. I'm so blessed to have the money to do this right now. So many people have given to me the last few days, and I want to give to God's work now that I have this kind of money. And make good on my promises! I'm so so so excited! I also super duper love Bible shopping, anyways, cuz I love books, and what better book than the Bible?! Hahah. So very blessed. I can't wait!

And we have church tonight! I can't wait to see my friends! Yayyy. :)

I also really love this laptop I got for my birthday. I mean, really, I'm so blessed! YEAH!! WOOHOO! Thank You, Lord! ♥

WOWWW

Just got called a bad Christian for telling one of my friends not to date a guy who isn't a Christian. She told me that I was judging him up and down just because she didn't know what his specific religion was. I didn't judge him at all. I don't doubt that he's a really great guy. But if he has a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, then she would know, and then I wouldn't have a problem with it. However, since it's very apparent that he's not, I don't think it's a good idea at all. And calling me a bad Christian for watching out for a friend is kind of one of the worst things you could do.

Sometimes, I feel like even though she says she appreciates all I do for her, she just sits there and destroys our friendship. Like she's trying. I mean, who does that? BLUGH. It's really frustrating and we're all good now, but it's just hurtful and I can't wait to run all this crap off tomorrow. I'm gonna focus on the positives in my life and know that she didn't mean to offend me. (JK, she definitely did. It was her way of slapping me in the face.) But whaaaatever. I have a better life than to dwell on this and blow it up. I just needed to vent it all out. I'll keep praying for and loving on my friends, no matter what happens. And keep running to get rid of the steam, ha ha.