Bridalveil Falls, Yosemite National Park.
For those of you viewing with dial-up, I apologize, because I’m sure these pictures are making the page load very slowly!
I took about 20 pictures of these falls, and this is my favorite. Most of the pictures that I have posted will be entered in the Tehama County Fair this fall, in hopes of winning another 1st place prize for my photography. 🙂 I hope you enjoy these pictures!
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Today was day one of being a morning person…and I like it a lot!! I seriously am shocked at the amount of self-discipline I have been able to have lately! I believe the Lord is really blessing my efforts in this area, which is SO helpful! So, we’ll see how long I can carry out this morning thing.
Many things have changed in my life in the past 17 days…many unexpected!
However, one of the changes was absolutely shocking to me, more than any other…
I have begun to realize that I could stay in California, at least for a few more years…
Why the sudden change? And why is this so shocking? Well, after living on the East Coast for 8 months, I realized that I loved it there, and that I wanted to live there…and part of me definitely still does. I had begun to see California through different eyes, and realized that it didn’t necessarily suit me anymore…that’s why this is shocking to me (and to my family!)…
(Note: This is not an essay on the “supremacy of California” or any such thing. I know that a few of you will take it that way–please don’t! That’s not what I’m trying to say.)
1–Most of my family lives here, or in the Western United States…
not the East Coast.
After my family reunion, and the extended time with my immediate family, I realized how much they all mean to me…and how hard it would be to not be close by. I thought about January, and how when my Grandmother had a quadruple bypass, I was able to fly up there to be with them–and many of them traveled quite a bit to get there as well…but if I were on the East Coast, that might not be possible. Also, my grandparents are getting older, and I want as much time with them as possible. My whole family is VERY close, and I’d hate to miss reunions and family events.
2–California is beautiful.
After being in Yosemite this month, I realized that California is a breathtakingly beautiful state. Granted, of course there are areas that are not the prettiest (the Central Valley in the summer, for instance…700 miles of brown grass…not exciting!). But, we have the Pacific Ocean, many gorgeous lakes, hundreds of miles of mountain ranges, majestic redwoods, etc. And I realized that even though I also believe that Pennsylvania is beautiful, I don’t know how I would handle living in a “landlocked” state (which it is, but just barely)…California also is so diverse in its terrain–desert, ocean, mountains, valleys, etc…cities and open spaces…everything!
There are several Southern Baptist seminaries across the nation, but the one that would be the best fit for me would be Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary, north of San Francisco.
These are just some of the things that I have realized over the past 17 days…who knows what will happen, but it looks as if I won’t be leaving the Golden State as soon as I thought…if ever. Amazing how things can change! Just wanted to share these thoughts with y’all!
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*”A Baptist association is a group of churches, usually in a geographic area, that work together in the areas of evangelism, ministry and missions. Associations exist to provide resources and establish churches that can provide for the religious needs of its members and the community at large.An association is one way that churches collectively can engage in activities beyond their capabilities. The association provides a means of communication between local churches and the denomination as a whole. In California, there are 32 associations of churches, ranging in size from just a few, to more than 200.” –taken from the California Southern Baptist Convention website.
For those who know me at all, you probably know that mail (or handwritten letters in general) mean SO much to me. Such a simple thing brings SO much joy to my heart!
My mailbox has been empty, even of junk mail or bills, for the past 3 days…and it was so discouraging!
Well, I received a letter today, from an old friend, and it made me SO happy!! 🙂 YAY for mail!
Just wanted to share!
So, I went to the dentist this morning…in Orange County…everything was great–my teeth are healthy and strong…I love having my teeth cleaned! 🙂
However…the real reason for going was to see if the cause of my ear/jaw pain was indeed from my wisdom teeth…my suspicions were proved correct.
Let’s just say that I have a consultation with an oral surgeon tomorrow…
Thankfully, I only have two, on top, which is the best place to have them I’ve heard. And, since they haven’t surfaced yet, I can go under general anesthesia, because they will have to be cut out…yeah…not looking forward to that! I’m going to try to put it off until the last week in August, unless they can’t get an appointment then.
I have a friend who has offered to come take care of me, but I know that a huge motivating factor in the trip down here is to see me unable to talk for awhile…LOL…:) Oh well. I’ll enjoy the company, nonetheless!
Other than that, I have decided that I actually like mornings…after getting up at 5:45am for this dental appointment today, and 7 am the day before, I have realized that I like the freshness, the stillness of the morning. So, I am going to start coming into work earlier, before the libary even opens, so that I can enjoy the beauty of the morning.
Inspiration Point, Yosemite National Park
Today, rather than post about everything that the Lord is teaching me today, I want to just post a couple of pictures of His wondrous creation…I was in awe while at Yosemite, and I am so thankful for the 80+ pictures that I have now to constantly remind me of how big and how awesome the Lord truly is.
Enjoy the pictures…
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Majestic cliffs, Yosemite National Park
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The Missions Group at Youth Camp…I love these kids!! 🙂
I couldn’t help it…I just had to put this up here–because these kids mean so much to me! You guys are great! Keep seeking the Lord!
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Two articles about APU’s three olympians…updated! I’m so excited!
Athens: Is it in them?
Clay Punches Ticket
“God seems to have a delightful way of upsetting the plans we have made, when we have not taken Him into account. We get ourselves into circumstances that were not chosen by God, and suddenly we realize that we have been making our plans without Him–that we have not even considered Him to be a vital, living factor in the planning of our lives. And yet the only thing that will keep us from even the possibility of worrying is to bring God in as the greatest factor in all our planning…” (July 5th)
Today was my first Sunday back at my church here in Glendora in three weeks (because of traveling, I was at my home church for those weeks). I was really looking forward to it, because I love the church and my church family…and I was not disappointed.
It was so awesome to be back up on worship team, and not because I was singing (though, of course, I do love to do that as well). I love being up there, watching the congregation worship the Lord, and during the greeting times I love to watch the love and the fellowship that takes place. My church is truly a FAMILY…which is more than I could have asked for in a church! There are no age barriers–the elderly interact with the young, the young love to spend time with those who are both older and younger…it is so great.
I realized today just how blessed I have been by this church body…though it is fairly good sized, most people had noticed that I had been gone and came to talk to me and welcome me back. We always have a time in the service for praises and prayer requests, and today the time was given to the team that just returned from a week on a Navajo Reservation in Arizona…hearing their amazing stories of God at work in the lives there was so encouraging…and hearing about the conditions they lived in (monsoon rain, primitive housing, etc), I was even more amazed by the amount of people who go back each year (this was the 12th year going there).
A few days ago I posted about being at a crossroads of sorts, where the Lord was calling me to pray and consider some major life decisions that were completely unexpected. Well, I never said what those were.
More and more I am realizing just how much I would love to be in youth ministry full-time. Each day, the idea of seminary is becoming more appealing…and exciting…and it is still so strange to me, because prior to my long drive on July 5th, I would have told anyone that I was NOT going to graduate school, because I am so tired of being in school…but the Lord works in mysterious ways. That driving experience was the beginning of some intense changes in my life that the Lord is calling me to. Youth ministry is calling my name, while I thought all this time that I was going to be involved in politics…and, perhaps I still will be! At this point, I have NO idea where the Lord is leading me. And I am content with that, because I am learning more each day that it is best to just let Him handle things, while I follow His lead.
So, yeah. My church is an incredible group of (of course, imperfect) people, dedicated to serving the Lord with the gifts they have been given…and I love that.
Even So, Joy 