God's Amazing Power

power - to be able, ability to act or produce an effect, possession of control, authority or influence over others

The Power of God: God creates and controls everything. He is not only powerful, but all-powerful. There is not one created being more powerful than God. God wants the best for our lives and has the power to accomplish it. Isn't great to know that we serve a God who has the power to do anything? And that no situation is out of His control?

Mark 10:27 - And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.

Isaiah 40:28-29 - Hast thou not known? hast though not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of His understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might He increaseth strength.

Psalm 33:8-9 - Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. For He spake, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast.

Best Friends

I've come to the conclusion that best friends are one of the greatest things on earth. They act all kinds of crazy with you (you would not BELIEVE some of the looks we've gotten), they stay up until 4 in the morning with you when you're both supposed to be getting up a little before 6, we both laugh like crazy when our (okay, her's and my mom's) phones die at the same time at 10 something at night. But the thing that makes it the best? Knowing that she has a relationship with the awesome God that I serve, will pray for me if I ask her to, and we can talk about ANYTHING. I mean, how many friends do you come accross that your conversation can range from the many flavors in Dr Pepper to talking about what God has done for us that week, or what we've been learning about God? I'm blessed to have some amazing friends!

Pictures from the WILDS, Summer '09 (b/c I forgot, be warned that there's lots of them.)

4 weeks in.....

So I'm 4 weeks into my senior year........and absolutely loving it!! When I was little I never even thought I'd get to the 7th grade, much less be a senior. Now I'm wondering where all the time in between went........amazing how our thinking changes, isn't it? Although I was perfectly happy this year to change gears in math from geometry and algebra to business and refresher math. ;) And right now, I've already figured out one thing that I positively will NOT miss about school......my teachers dog barking his head off! (which he's doing at this exact moment in time lol). Other than that......I haven't really made up ,y mind on what I won't miss. Partially b/c when I go to college, I'll be going right back to doing english, math, and several other things........including some classes I really don't want to take! Like speech class......eww......lol You'd think that with as big a mouth as I have I'd have no problem making speeches, right? But no! I HATE making speeches. So that should be a wonderful class........listen to me....already annoyed about classes in college and I'm not even done with this year yet! Not that there's a whole lot to occupy me lol, I've got all easy classes this year! So there is a glimpse into my life of late, and my thinking.......you just really wanted to know these things right? ;)

Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.

Joshua 1:9 KJV

(one of my favorite verses!)

Philippians 1

A friends church (well, okay, it's a third mine! lol) Has been doing a teen bible study on wednesday nights. We worked our way through 2 Timothy and are now working on Philippians. :) And I was encouraged by someone to share this with other people......so here goes!

Philippians 1:29 "For unto you it is given on behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake." (and here comes what I was thinking) It's not enough to just believe in Christ. In James 2:19 it talk about even the devils believe in Christ! Yes, we ARE called to believe in Christ, but we're also called to so much MORE! How much do you love someone if you're not willing to suffer, even a little bit, for them? The same rule applies here! Love is not JUST a feeling, but an action as well. And our actions b/c of our love for Christ might lead us to suffering. But as Paul put it in vs. 21 "For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." (see, I snuck in 2 verses from our chapter! lol) I was thinking (yes, it's dangerous, I might make my brain explode) that while I get something different from each of the verses I discuss (with myself or the group) they all lead back to how we live. So here comes rounds 2 and 3!

Philippians 1:27-28 "Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind, striving together for the faith of the gospel; And in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God." What I got out of these is quite simple, live like and for Christ , no matter who's watching or what they might do. It brought to my mind Hebrews 13:5-6. Read it and you'll see why it did. :)

Philippians 1:14 "And many of the brethren of the Lord, waxing confident in my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear." For me this verse was one of encouragement. Living our lives as Christ would have us to, especially when suffering, in pain, or faced with hard choices, can give others the strength, desire, and courage to live their lives for Christ and speak out for him as well. Aside from the obvious reason of it pleases God, it was giving me a reason to live my life well for others to see and be encouraged by. I hope anyway....... :)

Once again, I'm back

Okay, I'm REALLY, REALLY SORRY that I haven't posted lately. Part of it is due to my home computer being way too slow right now and the other part is totally laziness by me. ;) I got home Saturday from the Wilds, and I had an absolutely AMAZING week! God showed me so much that I need to do to grow in Him, but also showed me that He'll be there for every step of the way. I had the most amazing counselor in the world named Jana Matthews, who got sick on the last day but it doesn't matter b/c we love her anyway! She encouraged me so much this past week, if in no other things than to push me to do things I never thought I could or would do. So I finished last, and? I tried and did my best, and that's all that God asks. One of the things that I'm really working on now is letting God have control of my life. Now, I don't really like having someone else plan out what I'm going to do with the rest of my life, but when that someone else is God why should I object? He has things planned out more wonderfully than I can imagine! The other main thing I'm working on right now is doing my devo EVERY DAY before I get started doing everything else. I managed it today, and I plan on doing it tomorrow. One day at a time, and I'll get this! So that's an overview of some things that's been going on in the past week, more might come later with some pictures.....we'll see. ;)

16th Birthday!

My 16th birthday was most definitely NOT the most planned out birthday ever, but ya know what? I enjoyed it anyway! I'm pretty sure it's impossible not to have fun at a table with Ms Barbara, Mrs Julie, Mr Duane, and SaraBeth and Ginny of course! My morning was spent helping my mom shelve books, but a good chunk of the afternoon was spent at the PAWS picnic (with the people mentioned above). I think that's as close to a birthday party as I've actually gotten.......this is going to be completely random, but I just remembered something. I forgot to get my mom to get the stuff for my birthday cake last night........oops. I'll get my cake later. :D And my brain is fried (being 16 definitely hasn't made me any wiser), so I'm off to go shelve books once more. Although I doubt it will help the condition of my brain..........

Oops.....

Sorry for not posting lately......I've been a little busy......and my normal computer is being resurrected right now so it's not in working order. And the other computer is WAY to slow to work on a blog with (it's a Windows98 if that tells you anything.) I've created something else of late....a website! B/c I was bored and me and pictures don't always get along on here. AND I can have a forum, which I tend to enjoy more than just commenting on my blog or someone else's. I like having a common ground that everybody can annoy each other on......ANYWAY, if you're interested the web address for it it's http://claranut.webs.com And now I'm off to do my real job........and then a concert.

Breaking and Entering ;)

I did something yesterday that I hope never to have to do again. I climbed through my bedroom window. Now to give some background the REASON for climbing through the window was b/c my mom had locked the keys in the house. My dad wasn't home yet. What's a girl to do but climb through the window? Now getting the window raised from outside is a task,, but getting up there is even more of a task for a short(ish) person. To top it all off I was in my Easter sunday clothes. Climbing through a window is now on my "Don't really care to do this again" list. But climbing through modestly should give me points against being booked with breaking and entering, right? Not that I really broke anything. ;) Just thought I'd share the most interesting part of my sunday with you. :) Or maybe just the most odd.........

Spiritual Definitions #5

Decisiveness - The ability to finalize difficult decisions based on the will and ways of God

Hebrews 11:24-25 - "By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter; Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;"

James 1:5 - "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him."

Psalm 18:30 - "As for God, his way is perfect: the word of the Lord is tried: He is a buckler (shield) to all those that trust him."

Do we have decisiveness? Moses had enough to depart from EVERYTHING he had been raised to be. Imagine being part of the royal family, but to do what's right, you become a slave. Doesn't sound too great, but God honored Moses for it. And while he isn't mentioned in the verses above, I can think of someone else in the Old Testament who had decisiveness. Joseph! As an adult we see him go from slave to ruler of Egypt (kinda the reverse of Moses). But no matter where he was his decisions were based on God's will for his life. And even when his brothers sold him as a slave, or when he was put in prison on false accusations from Potiphar's wife, he still followed God's ways. Do we have the courage to live like these men of God and make decisive decisions?

My Photography

Since I was kinda bored (and I've shelved all my books) I thought I'd share some of my photos. :)

Spiritual Definitions #4

Discretion - The ability to avoid words, actions, and attitudes which could result in undesirable consequences.

Proverbs 21:23 - "Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles."

Proverbs 22:3 - "A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished."

Proverbs 2:11 - "Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee:"

Okay, answer this question honestly, how often has your mouth gotten you in trouble? For me, the list would be pretty extensive. And so often, if I had just thought about what I was going to say, I would have saved myself a LOT of trouble. As I've grown older, I've learned to keep more of a chain on my tongue (sometimes). But there are days when I just want to let certain people have a piece of my mind. Would it help my testimony? No. Would it make me feel better? Yes. Would it get me in lots of trouble? YES. One thing I've learned though is that to keep from blowing up on a person if a situation happens again (which would be a major LACK of discretion), I go find someone who understands the situation, and I vent. Good friends come in very handy when that happens. :) While having discretion is not ALL about watching you mouth, a lot of it is. Proverbs 21:23 refers specifically to your mouth and tongue. So I guess more people than just me have a problem with their mouths. :D

Once again, technically challenged *bangs head*

Why is it that every time I try to edit my blog I either (A) Mess it up, or (B) Can't get it to work AT ALL. I keep trying to add a playlist to my blog and every time I try it won't let me. Or I've stuck it in the wrong place or something. Plus I don't want to mess up the template I already have, b/c do you know how long it took me to get the maidens for modesty button on there again? And it still technically isn't in the right spot.......oh well. Any ideas for the technically challenged person? :)

Spiritual Definitions #3

Love- Giving to others' basic needs without expecting anything in return

John 15:12-13 - "This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than to lay down his life for his friends."

1 Corinthians 13:3 - "And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity (love), it profiteth me nothing."

John 13:35 - "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another."

It's a tall order to love others as God loves us, but that's what He asks. And He didn't specify it to say "That ye love the people you like and know", He said "One another." In essence, everybody! From your mom and dad to that person that really grates on your nerves. Love is our way of showing others we care. And if we're supposed to be representatives of Christ, why should they think God cares about them if we don't? Just some food for thought.......

Things that happen

Becky (one of my co-workers) is officially dubbed "Pizza Pirate". We were taking our break and I just happened to still have some pizza rolls in the freezer. Now Becky loves pizza, so I'm her bestest friend when I bring pizza and share. But last night she made this "arggh" noise at the pizza (b/c it was still very hot and she wanted to eat it) and it sounded so much like a pirate I couldn't resist. So now Becky's the Pizza Pirate. And one of these days she'll come up with a nick name for me. :S lol And I officially hate having to call out the names of the notes for all my inversions on piano. Especially in C flat (thank you Mrs Wilson). But she paid me a compliment that I've never had before yesterday. She told me that I play one of my pieces better than she could. Now if she practiced it, she'd sound better of course. But being able to play it better than her when she just sits down and plays is still pretty cool. :)

God's Timing (Spiritual Definitions #2)

Since these 2 both have to do with God's timing I thought I'd post them together. :)

Wisdom - Seeing and responding to life situations from God's frame of reference

Proverbs 9:10 - "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the is understanding."

James 3:17 - "But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy."

The definition and verses make you think don't they? Thinking about a situation purely and without partiality is hard when you're the one IN the situation. We think of some things as just something to try our patience. And we think "God, why is this happening to ME?" But if we look from His view point it's helping us learn to put our faith in Him. Do I have wisdom? Only when I'm willing to put all my trust in Him. Does that always happen? No, I'm human, and I have a stubbornness for wanting to try things my way first. Remembering His way is best AND should be FIRST is a big challenge. Are you willing to try it?



Patience - Accepting a difficult situation from God without giving Him a deadline to remove it

Romans 5:3-4 - "And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope:"

James 1:3-4 - "Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing."

Psalm 37:7 - "Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass."

So many times I find myself thinking "God, can you hurry this up? I'm tired of this." We all have difficult situations, but what do we do with them? Do we wait patiently for God's timing, or do we try to hurry it up? I have a situation right now that I would love if He "hurried it up", but that may not happen. My timing is "I want this fixed NOW!" Evidently His isn't. Therefore I'm learning to have some patience. He has His reasons for making me wait, but there are just some days I get so exasperated with it that I want it done and over NOW. Can you tell I need some more patience? :) While patience may be a virtue, I'm pretty sure it's one of the hardest to attain.

Spiritual Definitions

Joyfulness - The uninhibited expression of delight in what God has done for me

Proverbs 15:13 - "A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance: but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken."

Proverbs 29:6 - "In the transgression of an evil man there is a snare: but the righteous doth sing and rejoice."

Psalm 16:11 - "Thou wilt show me the path of life: in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasure's forever more."

I'm posting this as a reminder to have joy. Sometimes we look at our lives and all we see are the things gone wrong. But how often do we look and see the good things? Or just take some time to delight in the blessings God has given us? There sure are allot of them! :)

25 random things about yours truly

1. My parents made my name up
2. I've been home schooled all my life
3. I've counted all the stairs that we have to climb at the WILDS everyday......and no longer remember EXACTLY how many there are
4. I've played piano since I was 5
5. I've run all the way around a large church in the rain to avoid playing a game
6. I'm not above popping people with a wet bandanna.....if they're the ones who soaked me to begin with :)
7. I throw things at Mr Bob
8. I've chased goats all over my grandparent's yard to try to get them back inside the fence
9. My cousin calls me Fred
10. I've quite a few great friends, but only a few BEST friends
11. I've gotten my permit recently.......VERY recently
12. No matter how much I "grow up".........I'll still throw things at Mr Bob
13. I'm a claranut!
14. I take goofy pictures of myself and my friends (poor Miriam lol)
15. I struggle to do my Quiet Time EVERY DAY
16. I have a boss who goofs off with me (she rocks)
don't let the flattery go to your head Ms Barbara! :D <3
17. I'm running out of random thing already.....
18. I'm planning on being bunk mates with Katherine again this year at camp. look out world!
19. I've been in more red clay/mud throwing wars with my cousins than I can remember
20. My favorite place on my grandparent's property is the waterfall and creek. But only when there aren't any snakes around......
21. I stink at playing pretty much any sport......unless music counts......
22. I've waited over a year to pull a prank back on someone before
23. I used to have hair down to my waist
24. I have more than one scar that's labeled a stupidity scar......there's at least 2.......
25. I've decided to name my possible future car "the Blue Behemoth" It's big and blue, why not?

For the Rendlemans

This is what happens when you tell Aubie "ROLL TIDE!" :)
Signing Autographs
Well......for an Auburn Tiger.........he's alright. :)

For all the Bama fans

Big Al was at the library last friday, so of course we took pictures. :) So I though I'd post a few of them. You Auburn fans will just have to deal with it! :P *grins* My job is NEVER boring. Until I get left to shelve books and sit behind the desk and have nothing else to do that is. :) lol

From wisdom teeth to Spring......welcome to my random mind :)

I've now officially gotten my wisdom teeth out. And have the annoying stitches to remind me of it! You'd think after having that done my dad would keep an eye on me on the way out to the car, right? Think again!I may not have gone goofy from the stuff in the IV but my reflexes were still rather foggy. So here I am walking towards the car, when all of a sudden one of the nurses says "Watch out for that!......" She didn't get to finish. I started turning, but I only missed that concrete column by around 3 inches. It felt like a George-of-the-Jungle moment to me! And to top it all for things to laugh at I dropped by my piano teacher house the day after I had them out to give her something (she'd given me someone else's book) and she looks at me and goes "For someone who had her wisdom teeth out yesterday, you sure are chipper. Are you on drugs?" Once I was out of her house I was laughing. I thought it might be rude to laugh where she could hear me lol. Only three more days until I can play my clarinet again! And changing the subject, has anyone noticed how absolutely beautiful it is outside today? Spring is most definitely here. And so is my Spring Break!

The technically challenged

Well, evidently I am in the number of the people who are technically challenged. I changed the template on my blog and was pasting something into the html code...........and pasted it into not exactly the right place.........so The maidens for modesty button is now on the top of my page, and I'm just going to leave it there. It's not worth stretching this challenged brain even farther today to find exactly the right place. :) It's being stretched enough today with 2 music lessons, school, and work. And trying to figure out why All-State tryouts are at Tuscaloosa Highschool? I just gave up on that. XD

It's now 2009

It's now 2009.......now I have to remember to change the year when I'm writing the date! lol And now school has started back, and most everything else too. :) And this brings us much closer to All-State. And no, I do NOT like my music for All-State. It doesn't like me either *snickers*. Andrew is ready to throw something at me. He's getting tired of me practicing my high notes......I don't LIKE having to pay the G above the staff either! I told him at least all he has to do is listen to it, not try to play it. Of course his main problem is it normally ends in a squeak.......but I'm trying! I think I finally got the fingering for it in my head.......I think I've rambled long enough now. So I'll leave you with a picture from New Year's Eve of one of my other favorite people........Mrs Diana!