Tribute to my Little Sister

One of the most powerful moments in my relationship with my sister Haley was right before I left for Olivet.  The two of us were sitting in the scrapbook room and she says, "Cana, I have something that I need to tell you."

My family isn't always the best at being sentimental or admitting things to each other without being awkward, so in order to picture this scene, picture me sitting on a stool looking down, and Haley across from my spinning on an office chair.

Anyway, I look up at her and say, "What is it?".  She then looks at me and then abashedly says, "I forgive you".

That moment was very powerful, for more than just one reason.  Not only was it powerful because the concept of forgiveness is powerful, but it helped me realize how much a mistake I had made impacted my little sister.

It also helped me realize how much I long to be a good role model for my sister! I have made my fair share of mistakes yet she is willing to forgive me and look up to me still! How awesome is that!

I want to be someone that my sister can look up to and not only learn from my mistakes, but also learn from the things that I do right.  I've been realizing more and more how much everything I do can affect my family in some way.

I am SO proud of her, and the young woman she has become.  I can see evidence of her growing in her faith and in maturity whenever I am able to talk to her.  She is very smart and has an extremely bright future!  Also, she is incredibly beautiful inside and out.

I know this is the 'typical' verse that women use to encourage each other, but I still want to encourage Haley with this verse.

"Your beauty should not come from outward adornment such as braided hair and wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes.  Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight.  For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful."

1 Peter 3:3-5

I love you Haley!

Interesting Night

A few weeks ago I signed up to be a part of a ministry called Youth for Christ.  Youth for Christ is a mentorship program that they offer in the Kankakee Junior High, where kids can sign up for a mentor.  As a mentor, I will be going into the Junior High once a week to meet with my mentee and talk to her.  Although we cannot directly bring up and share Christ while we are at the school, we are able to invite them to events outside of the school where we can share Christ with them.

Tonight was supposed to be the night in which I met my mentee at an event at Perry Farm.  However, only about 4 of the students showed up to the event out of about 40.  My mentee didn't show up, so I was a bit bummed, but the night turned out to be an interesting experience.

The event was a parent and student dinner so the Youth for Christ center had a whole bunch of food left over. Because we did not want this food to go to waste, we went out into the streets and asked people if they wanted any of it.  A few people came into the center to grab a free meal, but we still had a bunch of food left.  So, we decided to make up plates of food and drive to a place in Kankakee that is known to have a lot of people around that need food.  We were able to get rid of all of the food by going into a bar.  Like I said, it was an interesting experience.

Anyway, I just think it's cool that although the ministry we had planned to do didn't work out, we were still able to use what we had to go and minister to people.  It was so great to see people switch gears and go out and do something that they would have never expected to do tonight.

Set Your Mind on Things Above

Today has been such an interesting day.  I've been realizing lately how trivial things are in life when compared to the big picture.  I've also been realizing how much I have dwelt on those trivial things, and how hard it is not to.  Although some of the things that I think about are not directly sinful to think about, it is still such a waste of time that I could be spending focused on Christ.

How would my life be different if I eliminated the pattern of dwelling on trivial thoughts from my life?  I feel like it would cause so much room for growth! This is what I am going to be working on.

Application Verse: Colossians 3:1-4: "Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.  Set our minds on things above, not on earthly things.  For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.  When then you also will appear with him in glory."

Colorful Paper Chains

A pattern that I have noticed in my walk with God over the past few years is that every time I begin to feel content, He adds something to my life to spice it up and make it more interesting.  He doesn't always add something that makes life more interesting in an enjoyable way, but it is always for the good.

Tonight, over dinner with a friend, I was looking back and noticing how God adds and uses these things in an overlapping fashion.  I also noticed that because they overlap, I have never been unprepared for any of the curve balls that have been thrown at me.  Although it is sometimes very hard, I can definitely look back and say that with God's help, I have successfully overcome the trials that have come along with the changes that have made my life interesting.

I kind of feel like life is like a colorful paper chain.  A colorful paper chain is made up with a bunch of different colors that are all connected.  Each of the colors represent a different season of life.  The links in the chain are all different colors, yet they are all connected to the colors around them.  Also, by looking at the chain of colors, you can see how they all come together to make something beautiful.  By looking at the chain of seasons in our life, it is easy to look back and see how they all came together to make something beautiful.  I know this isn't the best analogy, but it popped into my head as I was writing this blog post. ;)  Oh! Also, the different links in the chain can also work together to make the chain stronger.  Just like how we come out stronger after the seasons in our lives.  (I'm not sure if my analogy is working, but it works for me!)

Now that I have come up with this analogy, I can visualize the chain of seasons that I have been through in life.  I think that currently in my life, I am working on the beginning of a brand new link in my chain.  This excites me! I can't wait to see what God does in my life during this new season.  I know It's going to be great, and that I'm going to come out stronger yet!

For everything there is a season,
a time for every activity under heaven.
A time to be born and a time to die.
A time to plant and a time to harvest.
A time to kill and a time to heal.
A time to tear down and a time to build up.
A time to cry and a time to laugh.
A time to grieve and a time to dance.
A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones.
A time to embrace and a time to turn away.
A time to search and a time to quit searching.
A time to keep and a time to throw away.
A time to tear and a time to mend.
A time to be quiet and a time to speak.
A time to love and a time to hate.
A time for war and a time for peace. — Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 (NLT)

For everything there is a season, another color; or link in the chain of our lives.

Cana <3