A Personal Guide

Well, I have no idea if anyone even reads my blog anymore, but I'm going to keep writing on it. This is one of the few places I feel free to share my thoughts. So here it goes. :o)

These are the verses I read this morning in my devotional/journal.
But I'll take the hand of those who don't know the way,
who can't see where they're going.
I'll be a personal guide to them,
directing them through unknown country.
I'll be right there to show them what roads to take,
make sure they don't fall into the ditch.
These are the things I'll be doing for them—
sticking with them, not leaving them for a minute."
Isaiah 42:16 (from The Message)

Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying,
"This is the way; walk in it."
Isaiah 30:21 (NIV)

We can make our plans,
but the Lord determines our steps.
Proverbs 16:9 (NLT)

(These verses apply to my life so much right now. I love it when the Lord gives you exactly what you need to hear in your quiet time.)

I'm at this age where things seem very uncertain. (I'm sure that age is a very large span or ages, but it seems to have hit me pretty hard this year) It began with the decision to stay in SoCal or return to NorCal. Again I'm wonder where God is leading me. Am I supposed to stay here? Or go somewhere else? Do I stick with the job I love or try to find something that pays better? It stresses me out. But when I remember that God is leading me and guiding me I breathe a sigh of relief. God is in control!! He has plans for me and He will lead me in the direction of those plans. He is my guide.

I'm reminded of Psalm 139. I can not hide from God. But not only that, His hand will hold me steady. He will steady me as I walk along the path He has for me. There is always the great illustration from the poem "Footprints." When things get hard God does not leave us He carries us through it.

What would I do without my personal guide? No matter what gets thrown my way my Heavenly Father is with me guiding me through it.

The Road Ahead

"My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end.... But I believe that the desire to please You does in fact please You. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this, You will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust You always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for You are ever with me. And You will never leave me to face my perils alone."
I found this quote by Thomas Merton in a journal I have been using lately. It says pretty clearly how I have been feeling lately. I want so badly to know what is going to happen next in my life. But that is something that God is in control of and He has decided not to fill me in ahead of time. (Sometimes that just drives me nuts!) But it is so great to remember that He is in control and that He won't leave me, even if I am in the shadow of death.
I am so thankful for my wonderful Savior!!

Praying for Troy

Hello friends,
I just wanted to write a quick note asking you to pray for my cousin Troy. I just found out that he is battling depression pretty harshly. My sister has been receiving emails from my aunt and she seems pretty worried about him. He has been attempting to hurt himself and refuses to see a counselor or any sorts saying they don't know anything. Please be praying for him. It is especially hard for my aunt. I'm sure as a parent there is the thought of "what did I do wrong". Pray that she will find strength and hope in the Lord. My sister is trying to give her a lot of encouragement seeing that she went through a lot of the same situations that Troy is going through now.
Thank you for your prayers.

Jamie

Friday Fave Five

I skipped a week, but I'm going to try to keep this up.

1. Watching tv with a puppy sleeping on my lap. I've been house sitting and thier dachsund puppy likes to take naps on your lap while you watch tv. So relaxing.
2. "When the Little Baby Boy was Born" - I sang a solo with my church choir on Sunday. It was such a fun solo! I love singing!
3. Queen Jamie (has a nice ring to it) - Today I was the Queen at the Pre-K and Kindergarten wedding for Q and U. It was quite the event. We even had a pastor say the opening prayer.
4. Danika's smile. It is so fun getting home in the afternoon. She always has a big smile on her face when I walk through the door. I love that little girl!
5. Psalm 103:11-12 - "As high as the heaven is above the earth, so great is His lovingkindness to those who fear Him. As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us." I am so thankful that the Lord loves me so much greater than I can even imagine. I totally don't deserve it.
   

Peet's Coffee

Now that Wolfe Coffee is no more :o( We all went to Peet's this morning.

Very nice atmosphere, but a little busy.

Dad was there too, but he was too busy reading the paper to take any pictures. :o)

Friday's Fave Five

A while back I was looking at blogs and saw this idea. I don't even know the person who did this, but I liked it so I thought I'd try it. Every Friday (hopefully) I will be looking back at the week and reflecting on the great things that happened. I think it will be a great way to be thankful for what the Lord is doing in my life on a regular basis.
So here it goes!

1. Walking with Stephanie. Steph and I have decided to go walking twice a week together. Yesterday we found a great place to go walking. It was so relaxing.
2. The time I spent with the Lord. Recently I've felt that my time with the Lord daily has been lacking. I'm working really hard at being consistently in the Word. This week I have had some wonderful mornings spend with my Savior.
   
3. Danika's "talking". I love hearing Danika "talk." She really just jabbers away sometimes and it is so sweet.
4. 5th grade art class. The 5th grade class is the hardest one to teach for me. But this week there were a few students who really put a lot of effort into the work they were doing during my class and I really appreciated it.
   
5. Isaiah 41:10 - "Do not fear, for I am with you. Do not look anxiously about you for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you. Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." The verse I am working on memorizing right now.
   

There is none like you

"Helpless children are safe in Your arms.
There is none like you."

Right now (I wrote this on Friday) I am sitting in the Sacramento convention center drinking a white mocha and listening to my ipod, I would be in a seminar right now, but my throat is killing me and I am afraid I will fall asleep while listening to the speaker (not that the speaker is boring :o).
I'm sitting here listening to Shane & Shane, one of my favorite Christian groups. Just now the song "There is none like you" came on. I love their version of the song. This one line really rang out to me as I was listening to it. "Helpless children are safe in Your arms." I don't know about you, but I have times when I feel helpless. Maybe I feel alone, or the world is against me, or I am trying to do things by my own strength (which doesn't work). What a great reminder that even if I am feeling helpless I am safe in the arms of my Savior. I can turn to Him and have peace because there is no one like Him.
I am so thankful for the one who sent His Son to die so that I may be able to spend eternity with Him. I am thankful for those arms that surround and protect me from harm.

Thank you, Lord, for loving me.

i forgot it

Well, I wrote something to put on my blog while I was at the Teacher's Convention yesterday and I don't have it with me. So I'll just have to post it another day. Today I'll just tell you about the convention.
I was so excited to go to this convention. I have wanted to go to the teacher's convention since I was in high school. I am such a nerd. But oh well. I had a great time. I was able to go to some great seminars and come up with some new ideas to use in the classroom. The whole trip started out on the wrong foot for me, but it didn't ruin my time. We left at 5:30 am on Thursday and wouldn't you know...that would be the day my alarm clock decided not to work. Yeah, go figure. But I dashed around the house and was ready when they came to pick me up for the second time.
There was a family that led worship in the general sessions at the conference. They were so good. They were called the Annie Moses Band. What a fun group to listen to and worship with. They have a Celtic feel to their music and it was fantastic. I was amazed at how much energy they had on the stage. It made me tired just to watch them.
Well, you will hear from me soon. As soon as I find the paper I had been writing on. :o) Hope you are having a great weekend!

PUMPKINS!

Yay for Fall!

I love fall. I love the colors. I love the weather. I love the warmer clothes I can wear. I just love it all!! A group of us headed out to the pumpkin patch over the weekend. This picture is post-corn maze. Praise the Lord we made it out. :o) It was a lot of fun.

Even though it was tons of fun at the pumpkin patch it made me miss the friends I have in So Cal. I was remembering the pumpkin patch I went to last year. I miss you Michelle, Ryan, Jack and Lindsay!! I thank the Lord for all of the friends He has given to me, both far away and near by. God is so good.

My pumpkin as of tonight. :o) I haven't carved a pumpkin in years. It was fun.

My art blog

I've decided to start another blog. I will still be blogging here, but I wanted to start one about the art classes I am teaching. So check it out sometime. www.1sttimeartteacher.blogspot.com
Right now there isn't much to it, but I plan on adding to it soon. :) Hope you are having a great weekend!

Give Me Jesus

In a couple of weeks my church choir is going to be singing this song. Unfortunately I will not be there that Sunday. I am so disappointed. This is such a moving song. Reading the lyrics does not do the song credit. The music is extremely beautiful and I feel convicted everytime I sing or hear it. I recommend finding this arrangement on itunes or somewhere else. (arranged and orchestrated by Robert Sterling)

In the morning when I rise, give me Jesus.
You can have all this world, but give me Jesus.
And when I am alone, give me Jesus.
You can have all this world, but give me Jesus.
And when I come to die, give me Jesus.
You can have all this world, but give me Jesus.

What a great reminder that Jesus is so much more wonderful than anything this world can offer us.

I'm Back

Well it has been a very long time since I have posted anything. I've had so many things to blog about and very little time to do it. For now I just thought I'd update everyone on what is going on with me. I moved back to Santa Rosa in May. It is nice to be home and with my family. The summer went by so fast. It was full of Summer Day Camp, several weddings, family reunion in Wisconsin (picture below), and my niece Danika of course. :o) I was hired at Rincon Valley Christian School as the new elementary art teacher and kindergarten aid. School has been in session for just over a month. So far so good. Teaching is a very tiring job, but I love it. One of the big challenges I have is my voice. I have lost my voice every week, so if you think of me please pray that I will learn how to use it properly.
Just this last week the students painted banners for the school's Walk-a-thon. I designed them and the kids painted them. (I'll put pictures of these up soon) They turned out so well. The kids loved them and I got a lot of possitive feedback. It was so encouraging.
Well, there is my update. I'm sure I missed a few things, but I'll try to post new stuff more often.
Happy Friday!! And have a wonderful weekend!! I know I'm looking forward to it. :o)

(My family at the lake in Wisconsin)

How Deep

I sang this song in church this morning and the words are just so wonderful that I thought I would share them with you. Sovereign Grace Music has some wonderful songs that you can buy online.
I am so thankful that the Lord loves me!

How Deep
You were broken that I might be healed
You were cast off that I might draw near
You were thirsty that I might come drink
Cried out in anguish that I might sing

How deep is Your love
How high and how wide is Your mercy
How deep is Your grace
Our hearts overflow with praise
To You

You knew darkness that I might know light
Wept great tears that mine might be dried
Stripped of glory that I might be clothed
Crushed by Your Father to call me Your own

How deep is Your love
How high and how wide is Your mercy
How deep is Your grace
Our hearts overflow with praise
To You

Only Women Understand

I found this on the Girl Talk blog. I thought it was funny. 

Top Ten Things Only Women Understand

10. Cats' facial expressions.
9. The need for the same style of shoes in different colors.
8. Why bean sprouts aren't just weeds.
7. Fat clothes.
6. Taking a car trip without trying to beat your best time.
5. The difference between beige, ecru, cream, off-white, and eggshell.
4. Cutting your hair to make it grow.
3. Eyelash curlers.
2. The inaccuracy of every bathroom scale ever made.

And, the Number One thing only women understand:

Other Women

Sad but true

The story you are about to read is true (but with a little exaggeration) the names have been omitted to decrease the embarrassment of those involved.

*clearing throat*

OK here we go....

There once was a young woman who loved working with children. She loved kids so much that she spent her entire summer working with kids. She had so much fun. (Do you get to point? It was fun) Anyway, every week she would go with the kids on a field trip. Some weeks they would not need her help, but on this particular week it was decided that this lovely young woman would go with the kids on the field trip. Unknown to everyone, except the Lord, this field trip would cause this lovely young woman a great deal of pain.

It was a field trip they went on every summer, rollerskating. This young woman really enjoyed rollerskating with the kids and was excited to go on the field trip. The rollerskating started out wonderfully. The young woman skated with the younger kids to help them around the skating rink and was doing a great job staying on her feet (or skates) the entire time. Her arm muscles were getting a tremendous workout with two young girls on either side of her. That is until the disastrous event occurred.

One of the older kids was having a great deal of difficulty staying up on her skates and she was very much ready to get off the rink so I (I mean the young woman) skated toward her to help her off the rink. As they were getting near the exit the young girl fell. Her fall would have been just a minor detail to this story were it not for the fact that her skates collided with the lovely young woman's skates. The lovely young woman crashed to the floor landing mostly on her left hand. As the lovely young woman was attempting to get up she realized that moving her left hand hurt quite a bit. Needless to say the lovely young woman did not continue on the field trip. She went to a doctor and discovered that her left wrist was actually broken.

And typing this story does not feel very good on that wrist at this moment, so this story is coming to an end. As you have probably discovered the lovely young woman is me (Jamie in case you didn't know). I have a fractured distal radius. Thankfully it is not too bad and I only need to wear a brace. God is good. I am thankful that it is my left wrist instead of my right.

I have so many more things I need to blog about so I'm sure you will see another blog soon!!

The goodbyes have begun

I hate saying goodbye to people. And the decision I made to move back to Santa Rosa is causing a lot of sad goodbyes for me. Don't misunderstand, I really am excited to move back to Santa Rosa. It will be nice to be home, but at the same time I am going to miss the people I have gotten to know in Santa Clarita.

Tonight I babysat for the Barczaks for the last time. I have been babysitting Weston and Ryan for almost 2 years now and I love watching them. We have such a great time and they are such well behaved little boys (4 and 2). Seriously, I would stop a movie and say it was time for bed and they would run to the bathroom to brush their teeth.

Anyway, when I was putting them to bed tonight Weston (4) looks at me and says, "Jamie, you know what is sad? When I go to college I will have to leave Ryan." So we talked about how that is sad, but he will have a fun time and he still has a long time until he goes to college. Then he says, "But you know what is happy? I will get to see you at college!" So sweet! I nearly broke down. (I have been extremely emotional when saying goodbye to people)

Jen (Weston and Ryan's mom) told me that she remembered the first time I babysat. They were going out with some friends to see a play. They got my number from someone who recommended me so I met them for the first time that night. When they got in the car with their friends they were asked who was watching the boys. "Jamie" was the response. "Jamie who?" Jen and Andy didn't even know my last name. :o) But it all turned out alright. Obviously, since it has been 2 years.

I will definitely miss this family.

The Tongue

Last year while I was still living in the dorms I was in a small group. In this group we were going through an Elizabeth George devotional on the book of James. We didn't get to finish it before school got out and I just picked it up this semester to continue going through it.

The last two lessons I've read were on the tongue. This always a hard thing for me. But Elizabeth George quoted something from the Life Application Bible that I thought was very encouraging.
So here you go!


"If no human being can control the tongue, why bother trying? Because even if we do not achieve perfect control of it in this life, we can still learn enough to control to reduce the damage it can do. It is better to fight a fire than to go around setting new ones! Remember that we are not fighting the tongue's fire in our own strength. The Holy Spirit will give us increasing power to monitor and control what we say. As Christians we are not perfect, but we should never stop growing.... God works to change us from the inside out. As the Holy Spirit purifies our hearts, He also gives us self-control so that we will speak words that please God."

Faith

Doubt sees the obstacles. Faith sees the way.

Doubt sees the darkest night. Faith sees the day.

Doubt dreads to take a step. Faith soars on high.

Doubt questions, "Who believes?" Faith answers, "I."

Very delayed

So my spring break was about a month ago
and I am just now posting about it.
Student teaching has been very busy.
It all started out with a bang as Michelle and I got pedicures! So fun!
The only dilemma was the tip.
We weren't sure what to do and so we just left.
Awkward! But we still had a good time. :o)

After a delicious meal with the Anthony family,
they drove me to the airport. We had a great time listening to
"Boyz in the Sink."Jack entertained by playing
the air bass and singing along.

Home was wonderful. I was definitely in need of some time off and time to spend with my family. Danika was the biggest perk, to be honest. She was adorable. Even when she cried. But I'm her aunt so I'm a tad biased. We did a lot of window shopping and just had a nice time. All of the girls in the fam went to Railroad Square in Santa Rosa just to look at Antique shops and we had such a nice time.

I loved making her smile. And I totally got her giggling really hard. (There is a video of it on my facebook)

I took Dani to the park for the first time (sorry for stealing that first Julie). She didn't really care about it, but it was still fun. Amazing how she didn't mind this swing, but when she is in the swing at home she can't stand it.

Julie and I took Danika over to see Lance and Jill Wallace. Gabe and Emma just wanted to hold her the whole time. We had such a nice time with them.

Julie and I have this silly tradition of taking pictures in the back seat of the car no matter where we are going. Good memories. :o)

It was hard to leave, but I had such a nice time.

So there is my spring break in a nut shell.

Almost a week away from Spring Break!

So I'm in my second week of my new teaching assignment. It is definitely different than my previous one. But the Lord is really challenging me and showing me how I need to trust Him more. I am especially excited because my spring break is coming up really soon! Yay!! I am really excited to be going home for a week. I miss my family, but they all know that I am especially excited to see Danika. She has changed SO much since I last saw her in person. Here is a recent picture of her.

All dressed up for Easter with her mommy. My family just laughs at me because they know a little more of what she is like when she is not smiling like in this picture. But right now I don't care. I just want to be able to hold her and spend time with her and the rest of my family. I am definitely ready for a break. My next post will probably have lots of pictures. :o)

Have a great rest of the week!!