Questions needed!

Okay everyone - so I'm currently working on a big project focusing around Christian living.

However, there is a minor detail that I can't get passed unless I have your help - don't worry it's simple ;)

Soo here is what I'd like for you to do .....

I would love it if y'all were to send in real life questions for me to answer - told you it was simple :)

The questions can be on anything pertaining to Christian living - I'll even create a new page on here and call it "Ask Alisha" .....

Don't worry - ya'll will know about this project .... e v e n t u a l l y ;) :P

Thank you for your help!!!

In  H I S  grace, Alisha

We have a choice to make

As I stated in my post Predestination vs. Free will, I have been trying to study out the why I believe the way I do.  I don't want to have the faith my parents or my pastor or friends have, I want to have the faith that God wants me to have.

Through this study of mine, I have asked God to give me opportunities to talk about my faith with a friend .., and like always, He faithfully answered :)

As a dear friend of mine was sharing with me a theological discussion (predestination vs. free will) she was having with a friend, through this whole discussion and study, I asked myself this question

"If God hasn't already chosen who He wants to follow Him, then why did the disciples follow Christ after He said 'follow me'?"

So, I got to thinking + praying ... and as I was ironing for Daddy the other night ... God gave me a revelation!!

“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.”

{Matthew 4:19}

This verse clearly shows us that we all  have a choice when it comes to Salvation!  Jesus is constantly holding out His hand to a lost soul saying "follow Me" ... it is our choice to either reach out for that hand or to reject it.

Peter and Andrew didn't have to leave their nets behind and follow Jesus.  They could have stayed in the boat and continued living for themselves.  Because they followed Him, they had the opportunity of a life time.  They were able to be under the teaching of the Lord ... they were able to physically sit at His feet.

Mary, the mother of Jesus, didn't have to believe the angel.  She could have laughed and told him "yeeeah ... you see ... I'm not willing to do this!  I'm betrothed!!!!"  But because she didn't ... through her, we have the hope of a Savior!!

The woman at the well didn't have to believe that the Man speaking to her was indeed the Messiah .. none the less run and tell the townspeople about Him.  She could have laughed at Him and turned her back.  Because she believed, they had the opportunity to tell others about Him.  And because of her belief, the people said to her “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.” {John 4:42}

It all boils down to this .... we have a choice to make!!

We can either choose Heaven or we can choose Hell.

Which will you choose???

In HIS grace, Alisha

Take the survey

Please fill out this survey and send it to me as soon as you can. This survey will help me discover what your interests are, what you want to see on my blog, and most importantly what you don’t like about it. As the author of this blog, I would really like to know what you (my readers) truly think about this blog, what you want to see on my blog, etc.

I would like to see more posts on…

Lessons from your Bible reading

Photography

Moments from your life

all of the above

other:

I really don’t like articles with the topic of…

gossip

true friendship

beauty & character

goals & recaps

As an individual I believe in:

I really don’t like the fact that you won’t allow pictures with young ladies wearing tight pants, tight shirts, etc.

Yes

No

I absolutely love the fact that you encourage young ladies to grow in faith and strive to be the godly young woman God wants them to be.

Yes

No

I would like to see interviews with different young ladies.

Yes

No

I really like the blogoversary & blog parties you have …

Yes

No

I would like to see more monthly challenges …

Yes

No

Looking forward to seeing what y'all have to say :)

In HIS grace, Alisha

       xoxoxox

Beauty vs. Character

In today's society all you ever hear about is “how to make yourself look 10 years younger” or “10 exercise moves that will give you the body you've always dreamed of” or “going gluten/dairy/sugar/fat/carb/sodium/nut free is the way to live a healthy life”. It seems that everywhere you turn, everyone is focused on beauty. Beauty this … beauty that … beauty, beauty, beauty. Don't get me wrong … I love looking/feeling beautiful (most of the time lol), but when emphasis is only on beauty, doesn't it seem that we're making beauty an idol/god?

“The desire of a man is his kindness: and a poor man is better than a liar.”

Proverbs 19:22

Girls, there is only so much we can do outwardly, there is a great deal more we can do inwardly! Instead of “improving” ourselves outwardly, how are we improving ourselves inwardly (our character)?

“Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised.”

Proverbs 31:30

is vain = does not last.

If beauty doesn't last, then why is there so much emphasis being put into it? I mean really … what's more important: how beautiful we are or how beautiful our character is? If you think about, once you've been dead for about 3-6 months (or even a year), people won't remember how beautiful you made yourself look. What they'll remember is how kind + generous + compassionate + humble you were. If you are focused on who you are in Christ and attempt to fear the Lord (as Proverbs 31:30 says), then you will leave behind an absolutely beautiful legacy. What kind of legacy will you leave behind?

“But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD looketh on the heart.”

1 Samuel 16:7

Okay this verse is very blunt! When God judges us for what we do, He judges our works and our character … not our outward appearance. While we spend hours on end trying to enhance ourselves outwardly, we should spend even longer to develop our inward character. What is more attractive: your outward appearance or your character?

So what will you start putting more emphasis in : your beauty or your character?  I know for me, I will be working on putting more emphasis in my character!

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Did you find this post helpful and encouraging and inspiring? Leave a comment and let me know ;)

Any thoughts on this topic?  Leave a comment and let me know ;)

Is there a topic you would like me to post about? Leave a comment and let me know think ;)

In HIS grace, Alisha

       xoxoxoxox

Don't get comfortable

I need to admit something.

I have always *ahem* envied those who have stayed in the same church all their life, have lived in the house they were born in, and have even lived in the same state/town in which they were born.

Why do I envy people in those areas?  Because those are areas in which I never had the opportunity to live.  Those people display a certain "comfort" that I have never had .... a certain "comfort" in knowing that their life never really "changed" (please don't get offended ... I will expound on this in a bit).

Two Sunday's ago, we had a missionary to the Phillipines come to our church to speak/preach (I wasn't able to hear his first sermon, due to the fact that I have a role in the upcoming Christmas program).  However Mom shared with me an illustration from his sermon.

In his sermon, he gave an illustration on a frog:

image from Pinterest

Mr. Frog was very content!  He had a lovely puddle with a quite a few bugs.  As he looked around he said "ahhh, I'm never leaving this puddle ... I'm comfortable right where I am!"  That night, a flood came, and Mr. Frog was washed away.  When he woke up, he found himself in a pond, he was startled, but then he started to take in the view. He could see trees (he hadn't seen trees at his puddle), a lot more bugs, and wait what is that ... [gasp] very pretty lady frogs.  As Mr. Frog looked around he said "ahhh, I'm never leaving this pond ... I'm comfortable right where I am!"  That night, a flood came, and Mr. Frog was washed away.  When he woke up, he found himself in a lake, he was startled, but then he started to take in the view.  There was water as far as the eye could see, an abundance of bugs, and a lot of lady frogs.  As he looked around he said "ahhh, I'm never leaving this puddle ... I'm comfortable right where I am!"

The point with this illustration is that, we cannot say "I'm comfortable" because when we're comfortable, we may limit the work God wants us to do.  When Mom told me gave me the illustration and then told me the point I just shared with you, I immediately tried to apply it to my life.

Then it happened .... God burst open my box, and let's just say ... I um ... didn't take it to well!

For the past five months my family and I have been going through a hard time ...... Dad was in the "running" to be preacher at the little mountain church in which we attend (you can read about it here).  Ever since I can remember, Dad has always had the call of ministry (being a preacher) on his heart.  Last Wednesday, it was announced that Dad would not be the preacher .... and to be honest, I was mad!  Not at the church, and not at Daddy .... I was mad at God.  

image from Pinterest

I needed to talk to someone.  I needed encouragement.  I needed someone to talk some sense in to me.  I texted my dear friend Toria ... venting on how mad I was at God for allowing this to happen.  I told her that all I wanted was to finally have a church to call "home" for the next 40+ years.  What she told me, confirmed to me that God was trying to teach me a lesson.

"Ali, but just think at how much you have grown over the past couple years.  Comfort equals complacency.  If you are comfortable, then you won't want to move when God wants you to."

Today, during my morning Bible reading, I was thinking about all of this.  How can I give God all the glory through the current circumstances?  How have these circumstances changed my life?

*I have to remember that through a closed door, God will open a window

*While I still desire for my me and my family to stay in the same church, I can't say "I'm comfortable .. I'm gonna stay right here".  Here's why ... what if in 2015 God calls me into the mission field?  If I'm comfortable, then I won't want to move where God wants me to.

*Through all these circumstances, I have learned/am still learning that while others may have similar beilefs, I can't look down on them when they don't share the same exact beliefs as me.

*Through these circumstances, I have learned that there is a fine line between Law and grace, and if you pass the line either way, you get into a life of legalism.

So .... in order to end this post, I have a question for y'all:

Are you comfortable where God has you right now?  If He were to call you to move to a different place in life, are you too comfortable to move?

Here are three words of advice to you:  don't get comfortable

In HIS grace, Alisha

      xoxoxoxox

Blessings, puppy love, projects, and sister smiles

I know I know .... what kind of blog title is that, right?  I didn't know what else to title this post ... and the current title entitles everything that this post contains haha.

Blessings:

This morning when I looked out my window ... this is what I saw:

an absolutely beautiful blanket of snow

isn't this a wonderful start to Thanksgiving?

sorry this picture was sooo dark - it's was 7am when I took it {not to mention I took it with my phone}

the view from our kitchen window ..... 

sidenote: I'm not a country girl nor will I ever be one.  I'm what you would call the average small town girl.  However, today was one of the days I could step back and say "Wow I'm glad I live in the country ... it's soooo beautiful in the winter time!!"

Puppy love:

If you haven't read my mom's blog, then allow me to introduce you to Nickerson.  However if you were to visit you would rarely hear him being called "Nickerson".  Around here he affectionatlely goes by the following:

*Nickerbopers

*Nickers-o-muffin

*Nickertocks

*Bopers

 ...... and the list could go on hahah!

Anyway ..... he is our cute little 5 month old Husky/lab (oh yeah - we also call him huskador lol).  We all enjoy him so much .....

 He is quite the poser - oh and yes ... he was on my bed (in fact he is quite fond of being on my bed)

Nickerson is quite the love bug!  He loves being up really close to you, but he loves it even better if he can sit in your lap (no joke).  He also loves to give you kisses, sniff/lick your ears (he loves ears for some reason -  idk why lol).  But do not get down on the floor - once your down at his level ... well I have five words for you:

get . ready . to . be . pounced!

Projects:

Today I finished sewing an infinity scarf :)

Sidenote: you can finish an infinity scarf in less than an hour .... but I ran out of time yesterday =/

I sewed an infinity scarf for Rhey's American Girl doll :)

Yesterday I made about three doll size infinity scarves .... yaaay to getting projects started and finished ;)

Toria has introduced me to a new form of creativity - typography!

I have found that it's the best way to end my morning Bible reading ;)

Do you like typography?

Sister smiles:

Ya know ... the past year or two, Rhey and I have grown so close.  Before I always looked at her as just my little sister.  Nothing more and nothing less.  I always used our age difference (6.5 years) as an excuse.  I was so concerned because I wouldn't be able to tell my kids stories about me and my best friend going out for coffee/tea/hot cocoa, sharing what books we're going thru in our Bibles and what we have learned, going shopping, going out for lunch, etc.  

Then God made me realize that I don't need to be concerned about having a best friend (like Mom had) ... I had Rhey.  The best friend I had been wanting/looking for was who I once shared a room with, still get caught committing "a crime" with (yes ... Rhey and I are partner's in crime haha), who comes up and gives me a big hug .... even when I don't want a hug at that exact moment.

My Lord made me realize that no I wont be able to tell my kids about a best friend like Mom had, instead when my kids ask me what my best friend's name was ... I can say "my best friend is your Aunt Rhey" ... what a testimony/legacy that will be for my kids and for Rhey's kids.

Rhey and I have yet to go out for coffe/hot cocoa (maybe I'll take her so she can try Starbuck's signature hot chocolate ;).  But we have enjoyed shopping together, going out for lunch and dinner, satisfying our cravings for frozen yogurt, and much more.

Okay ..... i'm done rambling haha ... here are the pictures ;)

love this girl!!!!

sister selfie out in the FREEEEZING COLD

Sidenote : this was after we played in the snow with Nickerson ;)

>>What projects have you started/accomplished?

>>Do you enjoy typography?

>>How's do you invest in your sister's life?

I would love to know what your answers to these questions are ;)

Until next time ...... Happy Thanksgiving y'all!!

In HIS grace, Alisha

     xoxoxoxoxox

Outward beauty vs. inner beauty : the constant battle

I have a question for you:

Is outward beauty more important that inner beauty?

I have been asking myself for a little over a month now ... why?  Perhaps it's because I see people around me taking more care in how they look, rather than what the state of their heart is.  Perhaps it's because I witness people around me entering into relationships only because the other is extremely handsome or extremely beautiful.  What ever the reason is, the question still remains, which is more important?

Before I reveal the answer, why don't we a little study on what inner beauty is shall we.  Then we will see what the Bible says about inner beauty, and that should tell us which one is important.  Let's begin ;)

What is inner beauty?

This is a question that I have always stumbled on in answering .... am I the only one?  If you were to have asked my friend's little sister (which I didn't intend to do when she was 5) you will get an answer like this (the young girl took the question literally):

"Ali, a person can't be beautiful on the inside... the inside of a person is just plain ugly!"

I have to be honest ... I have never been able to come up with a good explanation of inner beauty, so here is what the Urban Dictionary defines inner beauty as:

Inner beauty basically means being a generally good person. Being kind, honest, etc.

Many people think inner beauty is just a phrase "used for ugly people to make them feel better about themselves." People who think that are sorely mistaken.

Not all people who have inner beauty are "ugly," in fact, many people with inner beauty also have outer beauty. So you can't just look at someone and know if they have inner beauty, you have to get to know them first.

Ever heard the phrase, "It's what's on the inside that counts"? It's true.

She doesn't have any inner beauty, the only thing she has is her looks.

This is how I've always thought of inner beauty as, but have always been afraid (I guess you could say) of pubicly sharing it as such (not to mention, it sounded better than mine haha :P)

What does the Bible say about inner beauty?

So we know that inner beauty is basically about our attitude, how we treat others, etc.  Here are a few verses that talk about inner beauty.

"Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised." 

Proverbs 31:30

~ Is it wrong to desire to look our best?  Absolutely not!  It is wrong however, if you spend two hours in front of the mirror, making sure your hair is absolutley perfect, and your make-up is absolutley perfect, etc.  Remember, we won't be praised for how "perfect" we make ourselves ... we will be praised by our fear of the Lord!

"But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” 

1 Samuel 16:7

~ If you aren't familiar with the story, Samuel went to the house of Jesse in order to anoint the next king of Israel.  Samuel was about to anoint a young man who was tall and handsome (just like Saul, who had recently died), and the Lord commanded Samuel with the above verse.  Samuel then asked Jesse if he had any more sons, and Jesse brought in David who was "ruddy, and withal o fa beautiful countenance, and goodly to look to" ... right then the Lord commanded Samuel to anoint David as the next king of Israel.

The most important thing to take from this verse is this: God looks at the heart, therefore, we should look at the heart too.  

>> If that means that a couple waits to go further in their relationship because they need to really see what they are like on the inside, then great!

If that means that you end up only being aquaintances with someone who is beautiful/handsome, only because inwardly they are (in the 5 year olds words) "ugly", then good for you!

>>Don't base all your decisions on what the outside looks like .... you could get yourself into a lot of trouble ... truuuust me!

"Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious." 

1 Peter 3:3-4

~ Here are a couple more characteristics of inner beauty: a gentle and quiet spirit.

Instead of adorning yourself to "enhance" your outward beauty, focus on "enhancing" your inner beauty.

>>One thing I admire about the Amish ... they don't exhert all their energy in the latest fashion trends, make-up secrets, making sure their hair is "perfect", making sure their shoes math their outfit, just so they can be outwardly beautiful.  They exhert that energy elsewhere, and focus on being simple and plain, so others will be drawn to them by their character (inner beauty).

"So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day." 

2 Corinthians 4:16

~I don't know why, but I have always loved this verse.  Perhaps it's because it mentions that while outward beauty wastes away, our inner beauty is being renewed (meaning it will never waste away).  I truly think believe that that's why I love the verse so much.

>>This verse has caused me to think about what my grandpa once told me:

"When we die, eventually our loved ones, our friends, our co-workers, etc., will forget what we looked like, what we wore, how we wore our hair, how we wore our make-up, if our shoes matched every outfit, etc.  But they will never forget how we were kind/unkind, selfless/selfish, caring/careless, etc.  No matter how much emphasis we put into how we look, the only thing that will matter in the end is what we say, think, or do."

(ps. the link on my grandpa was from my very first blog - which I have never been able to get back into haha)

So ... which one is more important?  Outward beauty or inner beauty?

If you answered inner beauty, then congratulations (I'm very sorry, but there is no prize for you, the lucky winner haha).

I pray this post was of help to any of you and that y'all have a great night!!!

In HIS grace, Alisha

     xoxoxoxox

Being in full surrender

Growing up, I heard all of our pastors say, “in order to get the most out of your faith, you need to be in full surrender” and that's where they would stop. They wouldn't explain what it meant to be in full surrender. They didn't explain why I needed to be in full surrender. I was just left on my own, to figure the rest out, and if I find it … great, and if not … oh well, at least I tried, right?

This was one topic (out of quite a few) that I decided that I wouldn't ask God to reveal to my what it meant to be in full surrender, and why it was important. I simply figured …. “if God wants me to learn what it means and why it's important, then He'll reveal it to me on His own. He doesn't need me to ask Him.”

[pause for a moment]

I know, I know … what kind of mindset is that?

To be honest … as of lately, I have been having a hard time coping with a “trial” my family and I have been going through. This “trial” has really put a damper on my faith … like a lot, thankfully we serve a God of restoration and mercy, so my faith is being restored!! [more on this in another post]

[okay back to the post]

About three weeks ago (I think my time frame is right), I was praying before I started my morning Bible reading. During that prayer, I prayed that the Lord would show me what it means to be in full surrender to Him, and why it was important … I also prayed for my time to be encouraging + edifying. I was quite disappointed when none of the verses I read that morning, didn't mention being in surrender to Him. Ready to give up, I felt as if I needed to read chapter 2 in“Sacred Singleness” by Leslie Ludy … I couldn't understand why I felt that way, but I felt it … and I read the chapter.

[side note]

I have had the book “Sacred Singleness” for about three years now, and I haven't even finished it once. It isn't a book that I see on my shelf and think to myself “I really need to finish that book”. Instead, it's one that I see on the shelf and think “oh yeah … I haven't finished that have I? Maybe I should send it to a friend … I'll never get around to reading it!”

[back to the post]

What I read in chapter 2 was aah-maay-zing! Below is a snippet from chapter 2:

¹“When I chose to live in purity 'all the days of my life,' I wasn't making a bargain with God: 'I'll stay pure, and in return I want You to write me a beautiful love story.' Rather, I chose a life of purity because I wanted to love and honor the Prince of my heart, Jesus Christ–even if He never blessed me an earthly love story. When I walked through this process of surrender, God exposed and uprooted every seed of selfishness within my heart. Prior to this season of my life, I had always approached Christ wondering what I could get out of my relationship with Him. Now, He was asking me to lay everything down upon the altar, not expecting anything in return.”

After I read this, I realized that God did want me to learn what full surrender was! After leading me to this, He made it clear to me that I wasn't in full surrender to Him.

As I was about to close the book … satisfied that He had answered my prayer, I noticed that Leslie Ludy used Jim and Elisabeth Elliot's love story as an example of being in full surrender … so I read on.

I was astonished to learn that Jim and Elisabeth, even though they were interested in one another, surrendered everything … their dreams, desires, plans, to the Lord. They were willing to except whatever the Lord had in store for them. If that meant that they would remain single, then great … they wouldn't have a “hinderance” or an “earthly distraction” keeping them from the Lord's work. Or if that meant that they would end up getting married, then great … they would be able to serve the Lord side by side.

It amazed me (and still does to this day) that they were willing/able to lay their love for the other on the altar of the Lord … ready to except whatever was in store for them … even though they were in love with each other.

[oh by the way … I ended up finishing chapters 2 & 3 haha]

Still in amazement, I began asking myself questions:

*have I “surrendered” something to Christ, only expecting something in return?

= the answer is yes … my purity. I have decided to live a life of purity, which is great. But I have expected the same “reward” that Leslie Ludy had expected … an earthly love story written and orchestrated by God.

*am I willing to be in full surrender to God, and not expect anything in return?

=the answer is yes … I want to get the most out of my faith! And if I'm not in full surrender, then I will be doing a disservice to my Lord.

*if I'm in full surrender and not expecting anything in return, will I be okay if God chooses for me to be single until He takes me Home?

=this answer was the hardest for me to answer … because being a wife to a Godly man has always been my desire. So I began really contemplating whether or not I would be okay/content or if I would be worried/discontent. However, I finally came up with the answer … if God sees fit to give me a Godly husband, then great – I will be able to serve Him by my man's side! If He sees fit for me to remain single, that's great too – I will be able to serve Him and worry about the things of the Lord, and not the things of the world (1 Corinthians 7:34).

Were those questions easy to answer? Yes and no

Do I wish I would have been told all of this when I was younger? Kind of … there's a reason God revealed it to me now and not then!

I am soo glad I heeded the Holy Spirit's nudge in reading “Sacred Singleness” … it was just what I had needed!

Oh and by the way … I am still reading the book – I look forward to reading it!

In HIS grace, Alisha

       xoxoxoxox

The time is almost here!

As you all may know – my third blogoversary is coming up ….. quite quickly actually :)  So after much thought and preparation ….. I am pleased to announce the very first annual blogoversary party …..yep that's right ….. a party!!

This will be a one week party ….... with many fun and exciting events!

The categories for this year are:

:: Your Time to Speak << In what ways has the Lord grown your faith? What is your testimony? >> – three openings left!

:: Our Crowning Glory << have any hairstyles you enjoy doing? Then submit a tutorial >> – two openings left!

:: What's Cookin' << What recipes do you love to make? >> – three openings left!

:: Short Story << Do you like writing? Then submit your story >> - three openings left!

:: Giveaway << Are you one who has one too many completed projects and would like to something away? Feel free to contact me and we can discuss a possible giveaway >>

 :: Adorned in Modest Apparel Fashion Show << Do you love wearing modest clothing? We have two categories for the fashion show - “Totally Me” is the everyday casual that you prefer to wear. “Time to get dressy” is what you wear to special outings, church, etc. Feel free to enter your photos for the fashion show. NOTE: We will not accept pictures of inappropriately dressed young women. All entries need to be modestly dressed. >>

If you are interested in submitting anything contact me through the "Contact Me" page and we will go from there :)

So here is the invite :)

You are invited to join me for the 1st annual blogoversary party (even though it's this blog's 3rd anniversary lol)

When: July 8, 2014 - July 15, 2014

Where: Here at Alisha in Progress

RSVP: Just comment and tell me what your are most excited about :)

In HIS grace, Alisha

October goals for this blog

What would y'all like to see posted on this blog?  I'm serious....it seems like all I ever do is post videos, pictures, and more pictures.  I encourage you all to leave a comment and tell me the things you would love to see posted here.

But for the month of October, I will be posting:

* DIY projects

*Lessons of faith - what the Lord has been teaching me

*giveaways - yes that is plural, and yes I will be hosting them.  If you make/create things you would like me to host as the prize for the giveaway....send me an email through the Contact Me page.

*Interviews - I will be interviewing young ladies that live their lives daily for our Father.  If you know of anyone that you feel would be encouraging and lives their life for our Father....send me an email and I will see what I can do :)

*I will post about what's happening in my life...of course ;)

*I may post tutorials - what would you like me to do a tutorial on?  I could use some ideas in this department =P

*Photography posts - these posts may not be from photo sessions, but I will post some photography related items on here....

So how does that sound?  Is there anything you would like me to add?  Leave a comment and let me know :)

Life is fleeting

I found this video on Pinterest and it made me cry...while it spoke truth!!

So many times, we as older siblings push the younger ones away!  Why?  Why do we was older siblings need to be so selfish?  All they want is affirmation, love, and for us to sacrifice a little bit of our time for them! We need to make sure we leave our younger siblings a legacy...how do you want your little brother and/or sister to remember you?  I know I want Sydney to remember me as an older sister in whom she can confide, play with, run to when she needs comfort, etc.

Now I admit...for the past eleven and a half years I have failed miserably...praise God I get a second chance...I pray that God grants me another eleven and a half years to make up for the past.

Anyway...I hope this video speaks to you like it did me!

Jostie Flicks - Love you 

My love be with you all in Christ Jesus,

Alisha

My schedule for today

Today is a very busy day for me...here is what my plans are:

8:30 am: getting ready to go to the gun show

9:40 am: arrive at McDonald's to meet Pastor and two other men from church

10:08-11:00 am: arrive at the Expo and start handing out tracts to others waiting in line.

I thought it was funny that the times I handed out tracts...the tracts were rejected because people would take a look at my long skirt...oh well!  It wasn't me that they rejected, but our LORD Jesus Christ!

11:00 - 12:30 pm: get inside and hand out tracts inside the building, having people comment on what your church shirt says (on the back it says "Jesus Saves")

1:00 pm: head on over to Dominion Outdoors to look at guns

1:30 pm: arrive home after a young man from church and Pastor pick on me about walking home

Luckily they drove me home so I didn't have to walk in the 25-30 degree weather :P

2:00 pm: eat lunch, blog hop, check email, etc

And the rest of the afternoon: help clean the house again, make a German-chocolate cake for tomorrow night's church fellowship, play the piano (I don't have to, but I want to), play the clarinet, play the flute, tidy up my room, and much more :D

I may even make another batch of chocolate chip cookies (I don't recommend making chocolate chip cookies with coconut oil...yuck)!

What do you have planned today?

Serving HIM,
Alisha

Photo editing - which is your fave? part 2

Here is part 2 of my photo editing journey :D  Again I would love to hear what your favorite(s) are :D  So don't be shy and let me know what you like and what you don't like!!  Enjoy :D

 # 1: getting dirty

# 2: strike a pose

 # 3: absolutely beautiful

# 4: dandelion

 # 5: old friend

 # 6: owen

 # 7: it's okay to let your inner child shown!!

 # 8: a smile makes this life worth while (Wissmann Family) 

 # 9: have you talked with your Father today?

 # 10: your sibling will be there when your temporary friends come and go!

Serving HIM,

Alisha