Western (or maybe it's eastern...) Colorado's First Snow ~ September 23rd

Part of my back porch



Snow on the railing

The view from my kitchen window

View into the living room onto the deck from the upstairs little hallway thing.

Ok, this has nothing to do with snow, but it started snowing too hard for photography for a little while, so I took photos of my breakfast. Those are "fake" sausages if you couldn't tell. And I like my fried eggs really wet.:P

Front yard - the forest is beautiful, I miss the plains though.

I feel like it's time for Christmas carols...

I took this on a different day - it's blurry because it was raining and we were going like 50 mph.

For Those Tears I Died

One of my favorite hymns to play is "For Those Tears I Died."

You said you'd come and share all my sorrows

You said you'd be there for all my tomorrows

I came so close to sending you away

But just like you promised, you came here to stay

I just had to pray

Chorus

And Jesus said,

"Come to the water, stand by my side

I know you are thirsty, you won't be denied

I felt every tear drop, when in darkness you cried

And I strove to remind you,

It's for those tears I died"

Your goodness so great, I can't understand it

And dear Lord I know now that all this was planned

I know You're here now and always will be

Your love loosened my chains, and in You I'm free

But Jesus why me?

Chorus

And Jesus said,

"Come to the water, stand by my side

I know you are thirsty, you won't be denied

I felt every tear drop, when in darkness you cried

And I strove to remind you,

It's for those tears I died"

Jesus I give You, my heart and my soul

I know now without God, I'll never be whole

Savior, You opened all the right doors

And I thank You and praise You from earth's humble shores

Take me I'm Yours!

Chorus

And Jesus said,

"Come to the water, stand by my side

I know you are thirsty, you won't be denied

I felt every tear drop, when in darkness you cried

And I strove to remind you,

It's for those tears I died"

Principle #2: Love is Action - Not Just Words

Chosen Generation~

Realizing that love is an act leads to the fact that love is an action, and not just words. How simple life and consanguinity would be if love was just words.

But – at the same time how barren our subsistence would be.

You see, just as any child will eventually get sick of candy and long for casserole (as the Bible puts it – we will tire of milk and yearn for meat), so will you.

This is true of both our spiritual and of our physical relationships – anyone can “talk the talk,” but only the committed will truly “walk the walk.” Commitment cannot be defined as a one time decision, but as a life long pursuance.

True love takes the time to do the work necessary. True love will joyfully accept the required action, no matter how strenuous, or how tiring.

1 John 3: 18 explains how Christians are charged to love:

“My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth."

As I gaze around at the people engaged in my life, my poisoned brain thinks only of what I can get out of them, and not what I can give them. But as one prays for renewing of the mind God will open their eyes, and they will see that every single person – whether it be family, friends, or someone at Wal-mart – gives them an opportunity to serve through love.

            The work clothes of pure and selfless love may not be your favorite to wear, but the Lord promises that they will never go out of style when the season changes.

To you, dressing in love may seem tedious, maybe even disgusting – but love works in a way such that the more often you put on that outfit and purposefully endeavor to truly love, the more beautiful it will become on you. The Love of Christ is an outfit that doesn’t look better depending on your hair or on your makeup – but on your heart.

True love is not tricked by appearances.

Impossible is Nothing~

-Be a World Changer-

Credits: A Young Woman's Wak With God, Elisabeth George, http://biblegateway.com

I'm not looking forward to class tomorrow, because I miss Credo.
And you Credo girls (because the boys are LAME - and if you guys read this, no offese - but talking once in a while would help) should comment and tell me how boring class is without the class clown.... or whatever I am. The smart class clown? The Killer of the Innocent? The Most Creative Writer Ever regarding Strange Subjects? Did you know that Neutrogena contains ox bile? This is why you need me. A fact you will never use again, yet it will be ingrained and irk your mind for the next twenty years.


Sarah to the Third Power
"Forgath," "You there!," and "Hey," works also.

There's no reason this should have a subject

Things I did or learned today:

1. Roman history is interesting - at least the war parts. But then, that's most of it, so it is interesting.

2. My mom prefers helping my elementary aged siblings more. Must be because it's easier.

3. I'm hungry, it's 3:40, I haven't eaten lunch. But I usually don't manage to eat lunch till 5pm anyway. So that's normal.

4. I shut off my phone alarm this morning, and thus didn't get up till 9:30....which wasn't a good deal. Why do I use my phone alarm? Because my mom stole my real one, and it’s just so much fun to wake up to my little sister banging on my locked door in the morning begging (screaming works also) me to turn Déjà Vu off. She’ll have to deal, because she’s the one who doesn’t wake to the alarm right next to her head. Seriously - I’m a deep sleeper and I woke up to her’s and shut it off.

5. Math is cool, and boring.

7. I really do abhor science, and I haven’t even done it yet today.

8. I started writing this at 3:40, but somehow it’s not 6:09 because I went to eat. Rise/bean/salsa/beef burrito = so good, and I’m really full.

9. I've decided I'll recharge my blog every month. I'm cool like that.

10. I want a left-handed guitar. I found a beautiful purple one, but it’s Daisy Rock, and I can’t afford it right now. I want Fender…. But they only come in the normal colors.

11. If you actually payed attention to the things I just said, you hopefully noticed that there was no #6. Anyway.

12. Right now you should be questioning why you spent time reading this.

Your answer?:P

Love - Emotional or Mental?

Chosen Generation~

I'm studying the fruit of the Spirit right now, and am working through love.

Last night I noticed several things that I've either overlooked, or just never noticed about love.

Have you ever noticed how many times the word "love" is used in both the New and the Old Testaments? I tried looking up how many, but ostensibly, people seem to have very different counts, so I couldn't trust any as truly reliable sources.

One of the first questions about love is how we are to love. To a Christian that answer may seem blatant, but it requires deeper searching to truly define such an amazing thing. But, as a basis, what is that unmitigated answer?

That, "as a child of God, we are to love others in the way that we see it modeled by God and His Son (A Young Woman's Walk with God, Elizabeth George)."

In search of passages that "prove" this truth, I find it repeated over and over again. Usually, when God repeats something - that means it's important. Just thought you'd like to know.

Ephesians 5:2: And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.

John 15:12: This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.

Matthew 22:39: And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’

Luke 6:27: “But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you..."

So, in a nutshell, we are to love as Christ loves, love how we ourselves wish to be loved, and be forgiving.

In short, Christ-like love is nothing like what we see modeled in this world.

Many people consider themselves in love merely because of fleeting fancies, one time glimpses, and "love at first sight." But real love takes work. It takes effort, not just eyes. Jesus was and is the greatest Lover of all time, yet for some reason I doubt that He would be one you would immediately pick out from a crowd and declare undying faithfulness to.

Love doesn't happen.

Love grows, like a plant. The more you care and work with a plant, the stronger and healthier it will become. I don't know the percentage, but for most of those people who experience "love at first sight" - that love fails within a matter of months, weeks, maybe even minutes. You can be angry I said that, it's okay with me if you are. But deep inside, you too know that to experience a good result in any one thing, whether it be school, life, or relationships - one must work and “put his hand to the plow.” As the old adage goes, "good things never come easy."

I've established that love takes work, now realize that love is an act of the will.

Love.

What part of speech is it?

A verb.

Yes, but what kind?

An action verb…

Exactly.

Love takes action - work is action, and will is action. But, keep in mind that I'm not only referring to erotas, but also to agape, philia, storge, etc (if you don't know the meaning's of these words, go here).

As this book reiterates, it's hard to love under stressful conditions, yet that's where most of life occurs. Joy, you say. But it's time to face facts, so grow up (don't worry - I'm more immature than anyone reading this, that I can assure you). Anyway, it's at these times that love is most important, not the receiving of love, but the giving of it.

What, you say. I'm tired, my body aches, my stomach is in pain, my head hurts - and I'm supposed to continue to give?

How do you think our Lord Jesus felt on the cross, with nails in His hands and feet, blood dripping like you would never imagine?

Christian love is an act of will, a deliberate effort that we can make only by the grace of God.

As A Young Woman’s Walk with God states,

"so we choose to:

- give love when we want to withhold,

-reach out to others when we are tired and want to rest,

-serve when we want to be served, and

-help others when we ourselves are hurting."

A tall order? Of course, but with Jesus, impossible is nothing.

This kind of love comes only from our dear Savior, without Him we are nothing, and have no ability to even understand love.

In conclusion, love is not emotional, but an act of the will. A very important difference.

Well, I should go to bed, tomorrow I'll talk about Principle #2: Love is action, not just words.

By the way, did you know that there's a word called "antediluvian"? *shakes head in wonder* Just in case you'll ever have use for it, here's the definition for your arsenal:" 1 : of or relating to the period before the flood described in the Bible

2 a : made, evolved, or developed a long time ago." (Merriam-Webster)

It was first used in 1646, so I’m hoping someone’s heard of it…

Now that you can write a better paragraph, unlike the ones I just quickly scribbled, I can go to bed in peace.:P

Impossible is Nothing

Be a World Changer

In the Light

Chosen Generation~~~

So - I have a nice long post I'm working on (I really truly am), because I got a wonderful idea while photographing my sister's dead roses. Morbid? Not really. But you may feel so after you've read it... which would be after I write it. Anyways...

I wanted to share the following, because I think it's pretty much amazing - and if you could tell, I didn't write it.:)

Thanks Maresa for letting me use it.

In The Light

city lights ignite some fire at night, and i feel alive. the clock reads 10:44 and i realize that it's only an hour and sixteen minutes away.

that we'll have made it.and there are lots of things to say, but none of them really sum it up.
and all i can feel is grace, and love, and hope, and i swear its almost tangible.
one minute at a time, one hour at a time, one day at a time.
and we are still here and our breaths still come out clear and my heart is still beating, strong and fast.
and tonight that is enough.
it's enough to just breathe. it's enough to just live. to be. to feel overwhelmed with love and joy andhope and change and growth. and pride.

and fear. a big amount of fear.but tonight, and tomorrow, i can let that go. i can breathe.
we can breathe. breathe grace, healing, love, redemption, freedom, laughter, inspiration, hope, change, and feeling.
tonight i am reminded that we were made for more. that it is okay to mourn, but it is also okay to dance. and tomorrow it will be okay to laugh and live and recount and rejoice together.
tomorrow, like we have for the past several months, we trade pain for healing, secrets for truth, and death for life.
and there's a big part of me that believes that as we party here on earth, Jesus and all of His angels are celebrating up in heaven, too. and it is the best feeling.
so. thank you. for reminding me that i never walk alone. for being there. for rescuing me, for being the physical hands of Christ in my life.

the city lights are bright tonight, and i'm reminded that life, too, can be bright. in the little things that provide solitary moments of joy. in the smaller bits that make up the big picture. in grace, in love, in redemption. i believe it tonight.
i hope you believe it too.

Well, I have

a lot of Chem to go do, for which I'm seven minutes late.:)

~IiN~

-Be a World-Changer-

Redo

Like the new look?

I want to thank one of my good friends, *the very cute* Jessica McKinney for messing around and making it amazing yesterday.

You can visit her family's blog (that she also designed) at http://mckinneycattlecompany.blogspot.com.

Jess - awesome choice of music.

Oh, and also, Jessica just completed her 2008-2009 reign as Douglas County's Fair Princess, check her out:

~ImpossibleisNothing~

-Be a World-Changer-

S.L.

Crazy Me....

So I just followed 47 blogs with interests similar to my own, in the hope that you'll enjoy my blog, learn something from it and grow closer to God.

So if you were like, "I don't know this person....." You don't.

The End.

SarahLydia needs to sleep.

Sugar Stick Junk?

I posted this elsewhere several weeks ago, but would like to share it on here:

"All right. So, at camp we had an amazing speaker who touched some pretty delicate subjects, and some normal ones. He honestly taught me more in one night than I have learned through sitting through church for years. That's my intro....

We were studying James,particularly 1:19, and several points he madestuck out to me, andhow I so easily ignore that. Or wonder what the answer is, when it's right in front of me. So, while this is not entirely my ownwords, it pierced me, and I hope some other hearts here get poked. Italics and underlining is stuff thathit me. The Bible is the perfect law of liberty, which sets you free. It must be acceptedand it must bepracticed.

If the Bible is life, is vital, why are we not reading it?

We have to give up the sugar stick junk - just like a child can't live off candy,a true believer can not grow in his faith through only hearing.

1 Corinthians 1:18

"For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God."

Ok - we've already established that the Bible is life, obvious fact is life is vital - and now we see that it is the power of God. How is it that we take that for granted? We have in our hands, a book, a book written by the Power who spoke this entire world into motion - AND IT IS THE POWER OF GOD. How can we sit and merely think about it and not fall on our faces before Him? The power of God is in our very hands - how is it that we just let it sit on a shelf collecting dust and mothballs? Why is that Power not ripped, torn, and tear-stained from moments of awe, confession, forgiveness, realization, and joy? (ok that part was mine which is why it got crazy for a second there)

There's a quote that says something like "you can bet that a prayerwarrior does not spend as much time on his knees as He does reading the Word of God."You cannot pray if you do not spend time in the Word. The Word of God is a scalpel and God is the surgeon. Every time you read it He opens you up and pulls out more sin.

The Word of God must be practiced:

James 1:22-23, 24
"But be doers of the Word, and not hearers only, decieving yourselves.
For if anyone is a hearer of the Word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediatley forgets what kind of a man he was."

What is a doer? Someone who trains himself and does it. Let's go backto when we were learning what an action verb was - doing. Doing does not mean thinking, contemplating, supposing. Doing is the act of performing or carrying out something. Doing is not

sitting in church listening half-heartedly. Doing is a responsibility, liability, a burden.

On my signature the other day I had the words: La liberté veut dire de choisir votre fardeau -

translated that means Freedom means choosing your burden. Just think on that fact, freedom means choosing your burden.

Now what I say here might go off a little theologically speaking - so I'd like an adult or someone older to correct anything I say that's blantently wrong: So the Bible is life, which is vital, which is the power of God. Salvation gives freedom from the enslavement to sin - but, like Paul says, it doesn't stop there. We are called to be doers - someone who has responsibility, liability or a burden. Because of salvation we have freedom, we are to be doers and not hearers only. We are to choose our responsibility. There are many responsibilities out there, but to be doers we must be in God's Word - we must be actively seeking the will of God.

How can we actively seek the will of God? How can we even know what or where it is?
Many people say prayer -and that is fundamental in seeking the will of God. But to truly pray you must truly read. You must activley open the letters God himself has written to us an

d read, and study, and read, and study. And pray about what you read about which leads us

here:

Knowing His Word reveals His Will
There's the cold hard truth on how to find God's Will: WE MUST KNOW THE WORD
I know that in my personal life I have not read the Bible whole-heartedly, in the desire to learn, I have not actively sook God's Will.
Starting tomorrow morning at 6am I am going to wake up, set my Bible and devotional on my deck, and pray that God will reveal to me what passages I need to learn from and reveal what he wants me to see. Then I'll read and meditate on those passages, and write down my personal thoughts and feelings, then I'll let my heart sing out in praises to God.

Wow, I am so tired. By those last few paragraphes I was falling asleep and tried to untangle my thoughts - so if it's crazy, it's my fault. And I guess most of that turned out be my own thoughts coming from his questions and then building from there

If there's anything in there that anyone objects to the theological validity in it- then please bring it up and comment on it."

___________________________________________

Think on it.

~Impossible is Nothing~

-Be a World-Changer-

SarahLydia