Taylor: Directions

Thoughtful Thursdays: Directions.

As time goes on, we think to ourselves 'What am I going to be when I grow up?' most of us don't know the answer. Some of us already have it planned out when we're younger. Not to worry, God is watching us and he has already planned out our life. He has had our lives planned out since the day we were born. He shows us in the right direction, he shows us the light at the end of the tunnel. He is always there to guide us on our feet. 'The lord says, "I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you." John 16:13

Have a blessed week, everyone.

Thoughtful Thursdays: Benjamin Breedlove.

From Taylor:

A lot of us take things for granted when given them. We complain when things get difficult, or when life isn’t going the way we want it to, because we want to go our way. For Benjamin Breedlove, he lived his young life to the fullest, Ben was born on August 8th, 1993 in Dallas, Texas, and to the parents of Deanne and Shawn Breedlove; he had an older sister named Ally and a younger brother named Jake. At a young age, Ben was diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, which is a muscle heart disease. As he grew older, he had learned that the condition he had was a lot more serious and dangerous. Ben’s heart had given out four times. The first time when he was just four years old, he had a life threatening seizure, remembering being rolled down ...a hallway on a stretcher, and seeing a bright light above him. He tells his mom, “Look at that bright light,” and points up, she replies with, “I don’t see anything,” he knew that someone was watching over him, he said would never forget that day. On May 3rd, 2009, Ben had a pacemaker put into his heart to control it.

The third time, on December 6th, 2011. He was at school, with EMS around him. They were doing CPR. He had a vision/dream with the same feeling he got when he was four years old, he had asked a simple question, “Do you believe in God or Angels?” and said, “I do,” to both of the questions. Being at peace with himself and everything around him, he knew that everything was going to be all right, even if it meant leaving. He was a big believer in God, and attended church weekly.

On Christmas night, Ben passed away from Cardiac Arrest, at the age of eighteen. The doctors were unable to bring him back. Our hearts go out to Ben and his family, please keep them in your thoughts and prayers for this hard and difficult time. Rest in Peace, Benjamin Breedlove, you are gone, but will never be forgotten. You have inspired so many people with your story, and they are going into the world and telling their’s. We love you.

To learn more about Ben and his story, click on the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmlTHfVaU9o

Recharge

Hey all =) Pirate party pics are up on the Foundry page.

ALSO! It seems that we are all super-busy with school/sick/friends/family committments... even very good things can drain you, and a lot of people feel like a car running on empty. But I want to encourage you - Take a moment to breathe!

UNPLUG from the things that drain you and let God fill you up and charge your battery for the things you are called to do.

PRIORITIZE time with God - draw near to Him and He will draw near to you [James 4] =)

Encouragement

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbOTjDub3kU


Greetings!


I am writing this letter to you as a way to share some of the encouragement I myself have received from the parts of some of the letters that the apostle Paul wrote to his fellow Christians at the time, but in a way also to each one of us. While reading them, I've used the handy "stats" page at the beginning of each book or letter in my Bible which gives an overview of who wrote that particular letter, when/why it was written, who it was written to, etc. to gain more of an understanding of the people of that time period and what God was telling them through the messages that Paul sent. Encouragement seems to be a recurring theme throughout Paul's writings, though the word "encouragement" itself is a bit vague, as it can take on many forms. In his letters Paul talks about many things, from the armor of God to sexual purity, to staying focused on what's important to how to find true joy, among many other topics. Simply put, Paul covers a lot of ground. But in doing so, he motivated his contemporaries to do their best in every part of their lives, and now we, generations later, also have the ability to encourage and be encouraged as we learn and grow in Christ.
"This letter is from Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus. I am writing to all of God's holy people in Philippi who belong to Christ Jesus, including the elders and deacons. May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God. Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy, for you have been my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ from the time you first heard it until now. And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. So it is right that I should feel as I do about all of you, for you have a special place in my heart. You share with me the special favor of God, both in my imprisonment and in defending and confirming the truth of the Good News. God knows how much I love you and long for you with the tender compassion of Christ Jesus. I pray that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding. For I want you to understand what really matters, so that you may live pure and blameless lives until the day of Christ's return. May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation-the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ-for this will bring much glory and praise to God." Philippians 1:1-11.

Paul's encouragement showed a deep concern and caring for others, and for their spiritual lives. How can we similarly encourage each other?

On a lighter note, one advantage this letter has that letters in Paul's day did not is the ability to attatch a link :) So, taking advantage of this modern-day technology, the link included will take you to a youtube video of a song that I've always found to be uber encouraging. Don't worry about watching it if you don't want to, it's a picture slideshow someone put together. Mostly, just listen to the music and be encouraged!
I'm praying for y'all and hope this letter encourages you as well. Also, I highly recommend reading some of Paul's letters for yourselves, because although they were originally written for people long ago, they're for us too!
p.s. I apologize for any weird typos, rambliness or other annoyances that may appear throughout this letter...it's 3 hrs. later in FL. and I'm admittedly not fully awake at present.
Blessings!
~Aubrey

Haiti

Hey guys and gals =)



The Haiti serve trip has been OFFICIALLY locked in for spring break 2012!

Be in prayer about whether you are called to join this team for a life-changing week of service!!!

Deadline to reserve your spot is August 31st, so be talking with parents and friends who might be interested and work on your decision.

Things to help your discernment process:
- Visit the REAL Life Exhibit in Tigard.
- Talk with someone who's been on a similar trip about their experience (Christian and Lisa have been and are going again next month)
- Write a letter to our sponsor student.
- Pray about what God is calling you to do.
- Call me with any questions you or your parents may have.

ALSO~ once we have our trip team together, we will reschedule the Famine for Haiti event =)