every moment is a chance to live, to love, and to walk with You

Grace and Stuff :)

2010-06-12T14:38:00.000-07:00

God's grace is free!! It's soo incredible and amazing and His love that goes along with that blows me away. Now along with this grace comes a new identity, an identity in Christ. And in Christ we are: holy, blameless, without condemnation, free of guilt and shame, righteous, free, completely loved, whole, full of the fruit of the spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), and complete. What I think people (most definitely including myself) fall in to though is not being aware of their identity and when reading things that speak of faith being full of deeds, they believe that by doing these deeds they will gain acceptance. The thing is that in Christ you have already been completely accepted!!! There is nothing that we can do to gain God's love-because it is already ours! How amazing is it that the love and acceptance of our forgiving Father who created the heavens and the earth is ours! I think as we come to know and rest in our new identity in Christ our faith will make itself evident through works. Look at Jesus-our sweet Savior-he lived fully human, living completely dependent upon the Father and his life was full of action! I think it's so neat to know that it's not up to me to do great and wondrous works for the Father, but rather Christ in me-as I rest in my new nature does works to glorify Him and love on those around so that they may taste and know the love of Abba.

Just some thoughts as I go through the day. Hope all is well in everyone's world and I pray that you will come to know and rest in your new identity in Him and allow Christ to express himself in your life! It is so incredible to see, and I must say I am so thankful for all those around me who I get to feel, see, and hear God's love from everyday!!

Predictable....

2010-06-07T11:51:00.000-07:00

It's funny and almost a little sad how predictable my life tends to be, during the school year I have pretty much the same routine everyday which includes going nonstop from six in the morning till ten at night. Now that sweet summertime is here everything gets a little thrown off, and sometimes it gets thrown off a lot! It's sad to say, but I have a hard time doing nothing-that is being lazy and just not doing a stinkin thing. Let's just say I'll never be known as one of the "Pirates Who Don't Do Anything" (who ironically sing the song, so they really do something), anyways, Papa's been kinda changin things up on me and I tend to react not all that splendidly. I find it hard to not have a schedule, not impossible, but a little more difficult. But I know that God knows what's goin on-it's actually kind of exciting to be in a position "when you come to the end of all the light you know, and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things will happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on or you will be taught how to fly" (Edward Teller) So I guess today I'm ready to fly! I don't know what Papa has in store for me this summer, but I'm sooo excited to see what that is, to fall deeper in love with Him, and enjoy the fellowship of my sweet friends and family-laughing the long summer nights away!

"For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord, "plans to prosper you not to hurt you. Plans to give you a future and a hope!" Thank you Daddy for these sweet words and the promise that I am held in Your hands!

"Timing is Everything"

2010-01-14T10:30:00.000-08:00

Wow! It's been a crazy year so far, definitely dropped the A-ball on writing; but here I am now, writing. :D Quick update, had an awesome Thanksgiving and Christmas; although, both were postponed due to illness. Had lots of fun on our new years hike with the fam, everyone was actually healthy! That's definitely a big wow! Swim season is coming to a close by the end of this month. It's been loads of fun, but I think it will be nice to not have practice everyday. Life in general has been great, spending lots of time with friends and doing homework, wish I didn't have to spend so much time on the latter. Anyways, I guess I could get to the whole "timing is everything" idea now.

I've found myself more and more in awe with God's incredible timing. I sent my Christmas gifts out last week (yeah, I know three weeks late), but I received a text from one of my gift recipients (wow that sounded fancy), letting me know that God had greatly encouraged her through my gift. She had recently had a death in the family and my simple gift remindedher of how loved she was. I found myself sitting in absolute awe of God and his timing. I had been trying to send out those gifts for weeks and just hadn't found the time.

Wow, God is incredible! Only He could ever use the fact that I sent my Christmas gifts out three weeks late to glorify Him. It just reminds me that it all comes back to Jesus. I've found myself calling these little "God-cidences", my little hugs and kisses from Papa. It's so incredible to be kissed by Papa, to have Him whisper, "I'm here my beloved child, and I love YOU!!"

Despite how in awe I am of my Papa, I find myself so easily distracted by the world and all it doesn't have to offer. My ears become filled with nonsense and my head full of fears and worries. It's when I realize how unaware I am of Him that I realize my absolute desire and thirst for Him and His love. In times like this I am amazed by God's patience. However long it takes for me to wake up and realize it's all about Him (not me) and all about His love, He waits. He is patient. When I finally open my eyes and ears to him I am flabbergasted by His beauty, His beauty that He desires to flow out of me in all that I do, in every single one of my actions, however small they may seem.

So today I pray for whoever may read this that you will realize God knows exactly where you are, and He's not telling you to "hurry up!", He's right beside through it all saying, "My child, take my hand, I want to give you a hug today"

Lots of love in Him,
Kyleigh

Thank You

2009-09-29T15:57:00.000-07:00

Wow, what a day. It began not too great and didn't get any better. "Life is hard", as I thought these words I was immediately reminded of the lyrics to a song that go like this, "You never said the road would be easy, but you said that you would never leave" How comforting! Papa knew that life was going to get difficult, but He is always there. He knows our pains and our struggles. He understands us even when we don't seem to understand ourselves. That's something that blows my mind, but brings me so much peace. He made our inward parts and fashioned and formed us in our mother's womb. He saw this day before it even happened, he knew all of the things that were going to happen to me and how I would react to them. He knew all of that before even the earth was created. So in these days that I feel weary, overwhelmed, and sore from the beatings I have taken, I am reminded that He will never leave me or forsake me. He is always there. "Neither height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:39 His love is with us always, how incredible!! His love, the love that baffles me with it's vastness, it's mercy, it's compassion, it's completeness; this love is with me always. No matter what situations I have been in He is, was, and always will be there, with me, every single step of the way.
Praise Abba for His love that he showers over us with great joy. It's so incredible to think that He beams with joy saying, "that's my child!" Wow, right?! He is with me always, but not only that He is beaming with pride that He is my Heavenly Father who I adore and love, and who adores and loves me back!!
Praise Him for He is good! Praise Him for He is love! Praise Him for He is JOY!!

Ahhh!!!

2009-08-24T08:18:00.001-07:00

First Day of School!! Golly, I'm sitting in Busines Image Management and Multimedia (BIMM). Emily says Hi!! Hee-hee! Well, wow so much amazing stuff happened this summer and I'm so excited to share it. Anyways, crazy day school is crazy!

Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the presence of their Heavenly Papa! I'm continuely amazed by my Abba's incredible love for me! A love that longs to have a relationship with me and loves me soo much more then I could ever imagine! Enjoy His love today!!

Lots of CRAZY love in Him,
Kyleigh

Leaving for Camp!!

2009-07-04T07:29:00.000-07:00

Hey so, today I'm leaving for camp today and I'm super excited. I'm working on core team which is sort of the in between of counselor and camper. Please be prayin this week for me and all the girls out at camp. Pray that the Lord will use us in amazing ways to reach and touch the hearts of the girls that are going to be at camp. Hope you all have a great week! See ya when I get back on Thursday!!
Be blessed,
Kyleigh

This Crazy Life

2009-06-30T10:21:00.000-07:00

So as evidenced by the title life has been a bit crazy. This week especially. I've started working two times a week and then on top of that I have swim practice four times a week and I babysit. So, I think I'm able to say that life's crazy. But in all honesty I wouldn't trade it for the world. I'm tired at the end of the day and sometimes it's hard to get up in the morning, but I'm alive! I have to keep reminding myself of how blessed I am. I have an amazing family that loves and supports me. I can swim and I'm actually pretty good at it. I've been blessed with a means of earning some money this summer, and I get to go to camp this saturday! I am continually amazed by God's deliverance in every situation and his undying presence that whispers I did this for you, because I love you and want to have a relationship with you. I love my God for that. My Abba loves me so much, in those moments that I fall into my flesh and study my "insufficiencies" or look at what I don't have and want, my Abba wraps his arms around me and reminds me that he is all I'll ever really need. I don't need anything in this life. I don't need anything from this world. I am not of this world. I am my Abba's Kyleigh and no one, nothing, no cirsumstance, no thought, no tradegy could ever take that away or change that truth. So, even though life gets crazy and I can get caught up in so many little things and the stress of this life, my Abba's always there for me and always will be. Always whispering gently, "I love you, you're my Kyleigh and nothing will ever change that."

...

2009-06-09T09:29:00.000-07:00

so once again I sorta fail at the whole write every day thing, but we can't do everything perfect right? Ha-ha, well I already had swim practice this morning and I'm now babysitting the little brothers, Cobi and Elijah. Who, unfortunately are sick. But that just makes everything more interesting..right? Just be prayin that they get better as well as for my dad who is going to get another pain shot for his back today.

Life's great! These summer days are long and relaxing, and I don't think the realization that it's summer has completely set in quite yet, but I'm sure it will. Looking forward to a lot this summer. I get to work at Stillwater Sportscamp as a core team member. Swimming continues with meets every monday. And of course the usual summer stuff, going to the lake, hanging out with friends, and just plain relaxing. Soo, I hope your enjoying your summer too!
Toodles!!
Ky

Summer has begun!!

2009-06-06T15:46:00.001-07:00

Well, I gotta say I'm not all that great at posting something new here everyday....obviously. Life's been pretty good. I'm on the summer swim team and absolutely loving it. There's really no way to describe the joy I feel each time I get to go swimming. I keep thanking God for creating water. Isn't it amazing? I mean think about. He could have just made us so all we would need was air, but instead he created us with a need for water as well. And water is so much, it soaks dry ground, it refreshes, it's something to enjoy, something we need to live. There's nothing on earth that compares to it. I continually thank God for water and how amazing it is!

I have a prayer request as well. Last Friday my friend Emily's younger brother Brian (12) was diagnosed with Hodgkin's cancer. He had his first chemo treatment on Monday and was able to come home for the first time yesterday. He's an awesome, active kid. (He was playing golf today:D) If you could just keep Brian, Emily, and their family in your prayers that would be great!

Summer is here and I'm so glad. I've already enjoyed it sooo much. I hope every one's enjoying their summer as well. Hopefully I'll post more often, but no promises :D.
Love in Him,
Kyleigh

On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as^a]">[a] the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him. John 7:37-38

Last Day of School!!!!!!!!!!

2009-05-29T07:24:00.000-07:00

Well, I am super excited because this is my last day of school!!! It's crazy but my head's already reeling from the craziness that has occurred already this morning. I'm excited though because I get to spend the weekend with Megan and Emily, just doin girl stuff. Which should be good.

I'm sorta finding myself asking God why lately and he keeps whispering to me "I know what's going on it's okay." I had my first timings yesterday in swimming and did less than fabulous, but something one of the mom's told me kept repeating in my head, "It doesn't matter who's in front of you and who's behind because God's with you the whole way." I thought that was really cool and something I need to remember not only in swimming. Well I better go...gotta make the most out of my last day of school!!!
Prayin,
Kyleigh

SUMMER!!!

2009-05-25T14:50:00.000-07:00

Summer is almost here and I'm super excited. I only have three and a half days of school left which mainly consist of final exams, and I exempt out of most of them, so basically my summer starts wednesday! How exciting is that? I'm sorta geeked about it if you hadn't noticed. I hope to be able to write more about my summer happenings. But, you know sometimes it's hard to write everything down when everything keeps happening. But I'll try! Well, gotta go yummy dinner and dessert here I come!!

What I Want....

2009-05-03T15:05:00.000-07:00

I can still remember going through the store when I was little saying, "Mommy, I need this toy", and my mom's response would always be, "Honey, don't say "I need" this, say, "I would like this"'. Well, to this day there are many things "I would like"...perfect weather, no more bad hair days, no fights, no more achy necks, and stressful days, but I really don't see those goin away, and I guess that's fine with me.
There was something that stuck out to me today as I was lookin back through notes I had taken during church and at retreats. A couple of weeks a go I had written down something my pastor said, "We may know what we want, but God always knows what we need." How amazing is that?! No matter how many things I think I want, or would like to have, God will always know what I need. Where I will never truly know all that I need, God knows exactly what I need and when. There are times when I pray for things that I think I need, and in turn God will give me something completely different, then in my humanness I look at it going "Why do I need this?". And he answers me whether it be through the words of someone else, scripture, or a softly spoken word, and I realize what he gave me was exactly what I needed in that situation. God provides. That's simply it, in every circumstance and situation, God will provide, and no matter what we think we want, God will always give us exactly what we need.

Sick...

2009-04-28T14:11:00.000-07:00

I had the lovely opportunity to stay home today-sick. I have to say I am NOT a huge fan of it at all. I did get to make this really cool page for my bible study group though. I will attempt to put it on here but no promises. Anyways, the day has been long and all I've eaten is cereal which was okay with me, cuz I'm a big breakfast food junkie! :) In all my free time I discovered an artist I really like, her name is Brooke Fraser. She has a beautiful voice and her songs are great. Especially "Albertine". So, if you happen to have free time, I'd recommend checking her out. Well, I gotta skedaddle, homework.....
Lots of love in Him,
Kyleigh

RAIN!!!

2009-04-27T15:07:00.000-07:00

I don't know if I've ever mentioned this, but I LOVE THE RAIN!!!!! It is one of God's creations that always amazes me, no matter how many times I've experienced it. Now, I'm not just talking the little drizzly rain that makes you feel sticky-eww! I'm talking the hard, cold downpour that I got to experience today. I love everything that has to do with rain, the smell, the feel, the look, the sound! Everything changes when it rains, thunder roars, lighting lights up the sky with beauty, and everything gets a refreshing soak.
I don't know if you've ever noticed, but there's this amazing smell the rain makes. The best is right before and right after it rains. You can't really describe it. I know Bath & Body Works has tried to recreate the smell for a lotion, but you really can't. It's simply indescribable. Now rain has this refreshing quality. When you feel all the little raindrops hit your skin it's like God's repetitive whispering of "I love you and this is for you!". That's so cool!! The feeling of cool raindrops on you skin isn't just surface, it's sort of penetrating and it sends little shivers all over your body! Rain looks sort of like a huge curtain that covers everything for the time it's there and then it slowly fades away. It gives everything a sort of hazy look, fuzzy-like, sort of like you can't be sure of what you're looking at when you're looking into rain.
Finally, my absolute, favorite thing about rain, is the sound! Nothing compares to the sound of rain on a tin roof! The way it makes it's own music as it patters, or thunders, down on the roof and hits the ground, it's incredible. Whenever, I hear rain, I just sit in amazement of God and all he is and all he's given me and all of his creation. It's magical and indescribable, much like God himself. Praise the Lord for love! Praise the Lord for sun! And especially Praise the Lord for RAIN!!

It's Friday!!!

2009-04-24T11:44:00.000-07:00

So, it's friday and I'm super glad!! I have the pleasure of watching The Parent Trap and The Wizard of Oz (which I've never seen, but I've been told I haven't lived till I see it). Hopefully, the movies will be good, I'm sure they will be especially because I'll be with Em and Meg, and they always make things fun! I hope everyone has a restful weekend. Basking in the love of the our heavenly Papa!
Bye...Ky

Gracie!!

2009-04-18T14:49:00.001-07:00

Well, we have a new addition to the family! An adorable chihuahua mix puppy named Gracie Mae. She soooo cute and a lot of work, but we still love her :D. Here's a picture of her and a short video of her playing....

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T14:00:00.000-07:00

Hope you have a Happy Easter and remember that Jesus showed his love by dying for you on the cross!
Love in Him,
Ky :)

146 days down, 34 1/2 left...

2009-04-07T16:09:00.000-07:00

School, I'm getting sick of it, but on the bright I only have 34 1/2 days left!! Now, to many this seems like a lot, it's just over a month. I do realize this, but compared to the 146 days I've already been through it's nothin'. So, if you could be prayin' for me cuz it's goin take some endurance to get through these last few days. And in celebration of Easter we have this Friday off!! (My favorite holiday!!) Well, I gotta scoot, dinner's waiting and I still would like to attempt at getting to bed early. (Probably not goin happen)
In Him,
Ky :)

What's in the Name?

2009-04-06T10:16:00.000-07:00

What's in the name? Seriously, while riding the bus this morning I had the random question pop in my head. How did popsicles get the name popsicle? If you have any idea's on this, I'd love to hear them because I'm startin to get bothered by it a bit...well Bye!

My Saturday...

2009-04-04T08:35:00.000-07:00

So, I just finished eating my breakfast, and now I will proceed to move my room around. Which should be interesting because I have quite a bit of furniture and no one to help me, but I've done it before, so I should be okay. Now, I don't know if it's just one of my weird quirks, but I can't stand having my room stay the same for long periods of time. It drives me crazy to have all of my furniture in the exact same position for a while, but I guess once you look at the rest of my house you can tell that it's probably genetic because my mom's the exact same way. Like mother, like daughter...or however the little saying goes. Well I better go, pray that I don't throw out my back or something (that runs in the family too!)
Toodles!!

What's Up

2009-04-03T17:56:00.000-07:00

It's Friday, and I'm sooo excited. This week has been crazy and I can honestly say I'm happy it's over. So here's a list of what's up with me...

I'm still on a sugar buzz after consuming three brownies, four cookies, and one Hazelnut Java chiller from sonic. (yeah a bit of caffiene too)
My mom ordered my driver's ed stuff, so I can finally work on getting my permit. Yay!!
Connected to the last one...I'm sorta hoping to get a babysitting job or somethin soon, so I can start saving for a car. (That's kinda crazy to think I'm starting to save for a car. I'm having one of those parent moments where they say, "Where'd the years go, she grew up so fast" :D)
I'm currently listening to Lady Antebellum's "Run to You" which I was introduced to by Meg.
This is the first weekend I haven't had any plan's and I'm perfectly okay with that.
The luncheon FCA hosted today went smoothly, trust me that's amazing!

All in all, I'm ready for the weekend and I hope I'm able to relax. I hope you do too! Well, I better run, I'm missin' some of Flashpoint.
Toodles!! :D

Indecisiveness over for now...i hope...

2009-04-02T18:22:00.000-07:00

So, as you can tell I picked a new background. Thanks Emily for helping make the VERY difficult decision. :) I hope to write somethin a little longer then this soon, but I've had a lot goin on. We had to put our doggie Dixie down on Monday, which was pretty tough. And this whole week, I've just basically felt exhausted, so I'm definitely looking forward to a relaxing weekend. Well, I gotta run. I'm gettin ready for bed, so maybe I'll actually get to bed on time and sleep well. Night!!

Indecisive....

2009-04-02T17:26:00.000-07:00

I don't know if you know this about me, but I am very indecisive and this is one of the many occurrences. I need to choose a new blog background and I've got it down to two, so here they are...

Good Song...

2009-03-28T14:57:00.000-07:00

I recently saw this music video and really liked it. Hope you do too!!
Here's the link...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ww0kqkX4vXQ

80's Project!!!

2009-03-06T10:28:00.000-08:00

Hey! This week I had an English project due. Here's what we had to do: translate a scene from Shakespeare, create props, and dress in costumes from that era (all day!). I was in a group with my friends Meg and Grace and our time era was the 80's!! It was really cool and we did a pretty good job. Here's a movie I put together with our pictures....

(there's a little note I wrote to Meg and Grace at the end, so disreguard that! :D)

cRazY Morning!

2009-02-24T10:17:00.001-08:00

In short, this morning was crazy! Not the everything went wrong crazy or the strange music video that no one understands crazy, but the wow I couldn't imagine all of this happening THIS MORNING crazy. So here's how it went...
I woke up and went through my usual routine (I won't bore you with the details), and was sitting at the table eating my breakfast and reading a "A Walk to Remember". My mom was talking on the phone, so basically no one was paying attention to the time. I happened to realize it was already 7:40 and I should have left at 7:30, so calmly I tell my mom that we need to go and we climb into the car. We start to drive and once we'd gone on the back road to our house (and entered the no phone service zone) we started to hear a very strange sound coming from my side of the car. So, my mom pulls to the side of the road and I climb out to discover a flat tire. This wasn't just a leaking tire that was only partially flat. This was whopping whole in the side of the tire and rim dragging on the ground flat. Sooo.....yeah that stunk, but we drove back home (very slowly mind you) and swapped out cars. We drove into town and my mom dropped me off at the coffee shop on main. I was late for bible study and still hadn't had any coffee, and in my mad dash to get to my friends that were waiting I realized that sugar offsets the coffee if you pour a large amount in a cup that is already full of coffee and creamer, well lets say it kinda spills. So there I was standing in my coffee-covered glory in the middle of a coffee shop. Yep that's me. Anyways, that was all pretty random and in the midst of it all I had to thank God. I realized I have come to know that God is my peace and rest and I can come to him amidst my troubles. Even is that's just saying, "Lord I trust you to be my peace right know because with out you I'm going to be freaked-out and stressed-out". It was funny how in all that happened to me this morning God used that to show me that he is there all the time, and the amazing thing for me was realizing that and experiencing that peace this morning. It was pretty amazing and I hope that you will also come to know that God loves you SOOOO much and he IS your everything and you can turn to him in times of trial. Anyways, we'll see how the rest of the day goes! ;) Toodles!

Weekend of Warriors!!

2009-02-02T10:23:00.000-08:00

I got to spend the entire weekend at the HEB Foundation Camp in Echo Valley for Stillwater Sports Camp's Weekend of Warriors! Talk about an amazing time! We spent all Saturday playing games and having COMPETITIONS (you had to be there). Anyways, to end the day we had a Krud War (basically a huge food fight where the object is to get the other teams the dirtiest) and ended the activities with a Polar Bear Jump, in the Frio River!!!...ya FREEZING!! Anne and I jumped in twice though, just for the fun of it. (Ya I know we're crazy!) Anyways, we washed up (it takes a little bit to get chocolate and ketchup out of your hair) and then headed to dinner and worship. The worship service was amazing and I learned a lot about God's character and the peace that passes all understanding. Philippians 4:7, "If you do this, you will experience God's peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard you hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus." The crazy thing is the speaker didn't even speak about this. I was sitting there and all of the sudden I felt this overwhelming peace "that passed all understanding". I wasn't worrying about school and grades, friends and family, and everything else I tend to stress and worry about. It was really cool to come to the realization that God's peace is real and he offers it to me freely and wants me to accept it. All and all I had a blast and I got to grow in my relationship not only with God, but with my friend Anne, and my counselors Abby and Nicole. Anyways, I'll talk to y'all later!
Toodles,
Ky ;<)

Pictures!!!

2009-01-23T07:04:00.000-08:00

So here's the pictures I promised...in movie form!! So here's the story, after seeing Bride Wars my friends and I were inspired to dress up as brides ourselves! I know it's sorta goofy, but come on you're never to old to dress up! :)

Hope you enjoyed. I was kinda bummed cause I wanted to add music, but whatever. Hope you have a super day!

Ky ;<)

Besties!!

2009-01-19T10:28:00.000-08:00

I'm on the topic of friends again...so this weekend I saw the movie Bride Wars with a couple of my friends. It was really cute and it made me realize what good friends I have and the precious relationships I have with them. On a whim I ended up calling one of my besties in Michigan and some others to just chat for a little bit. It was really cool to talk with friends and hear what's going on in their lives. So I guess I'm sort of encouraging my readers (the many that I have...ha-ha (: )to get in touch with your besties and let them know what they mean to you.

P.S. I've got some awesome pictures from after we saw Bride Wars coming soon!!

2008-12-08T11:32:00.000-08:00

"True friends are able to comfort you, encourage you, and hold you accountable. But they do more than this; they also shape you." -Redefining Life: My Purpose

It's so neat to have special friends that you can trust and that trust you. I was looking at this quote and I realized that I am soooo blessed with friends. I have a lot of friends that I can trust and I know will comfort me. It's been amazing how God has placed friends in my life, and how they have impacted me. This quote is so cool because it points out the characteristics of a true friend, but it also brings up the point that friends also shape you. Sometimes you don't realize it, but your friends impact you. It's so funny to realize. I've noticed little things that my friends do I have picked up on, and started to do also. Unfortunately friends can impact us both positively and negatively. So many of my friends actions have impacted me to be a better person. One of my close friends is very outgoing and she doesn't really care what others think. She doesn't allow others opinions of her form her into who she is. I greatly admire this quality in my friend and though she might not have realized it she's encouraged me to also live "out loud", and not to place my worth in what others think of me. Unfortunately, people also can affect their friends negatively. There's an illustration that I'd like to use here. Imagine there are two people standing next to one another. One is on a chair and the other is simply on the ground. They are holding hands. Now, is it going to be easier for the friend on the chair to pull their friend up with them, or for the person on the ground to pull their friend on the chair down? When I first heard this illustration it made me stop and think. We have an impact on people every single day whether we realize it or not, and we have an even greater impact on those we spend time with the most-our friends. So I guess I'd just like to encourage you to try to positively impact your friends, and let your friends know that you appreciate that they "comfort you, encourage you, and hold you accountable"! :)

Megan's Birthday

2008-11-25T11:54:00.001-08:00

Here are some awesome pictures from Megan's Birthday....

Happy, Happy Thanksgiving!!

2008-11-25T11:35:00.000-08:00

Well, thanksgiving is right around the corner...what do you think of when you think of Thanksgiving? I immediately think punkin pie! Growing up in Michigan, my Nana use to make the most amazing pie ever. The crust was homemade and always melted in your mouth. We use to pile on the whipped cream and eat every last bit. I seriously would lick the plate clean.

Another tradition at my house for Thanksgiving is the "Thankful Tree". We write something we're thankful for on a leaf and then hang it on the tree. Of course there's the usual: friends, family, a home, food, water, and Jesus. But there's sooo much more we can be thankful for. The fact that you even woke up this morning is a blessing in and of its self. What about living in the U.S., having parents who are truly interested in you and what's goin on in your life, friends who you know will be there for you through thick and thin, and if none of these apply to you remember God loves you soooo much. Words cannot describe how extravagant his love for you is. He sent his son to this earth for you so that you could live an full and eternal life. How awesome is that? So, while your diggin in to that amazing piece of punkin pie remember God loves you and wants you to share his love with all those around you. Now, that's something to be thankful for!

Oatmeal...

2008-10-07T17:07:00.000-07:00

You may have already read my older post about bananas. Well I'm on the food subject again, and this time it's oatmeal! Oatmeal is one of my favorite foods. I got hooked on oatmeal about three years ago on a hiking trip. We had oatmeal for breakfast, and although I had been eating all my life I instantly loved it. I love to eat in the fall and winter especially though. I mean do you seriously hear of people digging into that warm bowl of oatmeal in mid-July. Not really. So therefore, I constitute oatmeal an autumn food. My favorites would have to be Cinnamon Roll and Maple and Brown Sugar. I love the sweetness of them. Now, usually I eat instant oatmeal, but when I decide to actually be patient for once and make the oatmeal in the pan I looove steel cut oats. They have this chewy thing that just makes 'em taste really good. Another absolutely fantabulous oatmeal dish is baked oatmeal. The first time I had it fell in love. It's great. I don't know the recipe, but I'm sure if you google it you'll come up with a bunch of results. So basically I love oatmeal, and I'm now craving a big bowl of it. (Good thing we have some (; ) Anyway, whether you like oatmeal or not (you people are crazy) I hope you're enjoying you're fall.
Signing off,
Ky

Fall is Here!!!

2008-09-28T17:16:00.000-07:00

Hey there,
Sorry I haven't written in quite a while; lots of stuff goin' on. Lets just say school had something to do with it. Anyway, this past Monday was the first day of fall! I love fall! Although, living in Texas it still had been getting up to ninety degrees...it's fall! Fall is my absolutely favorite month. I love to go outside and feel the breeze, look at all the different colored leaves, and especially watch the sunrise in the morning. There's something really beautiful about a sunrise in the fall. It's different from in the summer when it's all hot and you can practically see the heat coming up off of the sun at seven in the morning. But in the fall there's a slight breeze, and the leaves are rustling in the wind, and you're all bundled up in your favorite sweatshirt with a cup of coffee, and the sun begins to rise. There's this place near where I live which is on my bus route, so we go up there every morning. And let me tell you, you have not seen a sunset till' you've seen one here. I live in the hill country, so you see all the hills covered in a cloak of early morning fog, and the sun peeking out around the various hill tops. It shines beautifully all over. Some mornings it's very vibrant oranges and yellows, while other mornings it's deep, vivid reds and purples. That's one of the things I love about fall. I also love being able to just take a walk and not having to worry about the hot sun beating down on you, or your fingers freezing off in the cold. It's so peaceful and perfect.
In the fall is when I experience the most "Texas mornings" too. When I was little before we had moved to Texas we had come on vacation to visit some relatives. When I got up in the morning, first thing, I always use to open the door and take a deep breath and just look around. Well, on this particular morning I woke up and went to the door to smell the air, and the first thing I said was "Mmmm, smells like a Texas morning." I was about four, but ever since then any time I've woken up and gone outside, and smelled that certain smell, I've said, "Smells like a Texas morning." I really don't even know what the smell is or if it's a certain plant, or the air, it's just always been known to me as a "Texas morning". It always makes it extra special in the fall too cause it's my favorite season.
Soo, basically I loooove the fall! It's the month when I get to see all God's beautiful creation magnified, and when I enjoy being outside the most. So, go ahead and wake up early, maybe smell yourself a Texas morning, grab yourself a cup of coffee, and watch God's beautiful creation get highlighted by the sunrise!

Back To School

2008-08-18T15:52:00.000-07:00

Back to school...the three most dreaded words in history. For most kids the sight of school supplies in their local grocery stores makes them scream and run for their lives. Yes, I agree when I saw all the ads, commercials, and posters I did slightly cringe as well. Starting school is always an intimidating time, and for me is sometimes a test of my faith. Yesterday, I found a verse that I found very encouraging and I hope you do to; it is Romans 12:2 which says, "Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will if God." Going back to school can be a little scary and I know for me it's a test of my faith. I seem to get caught up in the drama, clothes, and just, well...school. That is why I want to encourage you to not conform to this world. Don't just go with the flow, go against it; be truly you, an amazing new creation preciously treasured by Christ. Well I hope I've helped you at least a little bit with some of your "back to school jitters", and remember God created you to be you and nothing else. There is no standard we must reach or a group we must get into, you're already God's beloved child and not anyone, not anything could separate you from His unconditional love.

You've Got It All!

2008-08-04T11:44:00.000-07:00

Hey there i just wanted to encourage y'all this afternoon. I got an e-mail recently from a guy named Matt Smith. He started Y-LIFE ministries and came on several retreats with my youth group. In the last retreat he taught and in this recent e-mail he brought the same analogy. Imagine your playing go-fish. The idea of the game is that you have the most amount cards so you can get the most sets and win. Well what if you had the whole deck? Why are you still playing? You've already won. When we make the decision to ask God into our hearts and we surrender our lives to Him he gives us everything. He gives us patience, kindness, boldness, joy, anything you could ever imagine! He's given it all to us! So we don't need to ask Him to give us boldness to witness to someone. He's already given it to us we just need to trust that He will provide whatever we need for any situation. This is an amazing truth that I was privileged to hear from Matt and I hope it will also encourage you. Have a great Monday and God bless!

Still Water Sports Camp

2008-07-14T16:39:00.001-07:00

June 29th-July 3rd I went to Still Water Sports Camp, which is a Christian sports camp. This particular camp was a volleyball camp in Columbus, TX. Anyway, while I was there I met some great friends, and was blessed with amazing counselors and mentors. Although, it was hot and we had two hours of sports training in the morning and enjoyed every minute. I made some new friends and was able to really get to now my counselors Tiff and Lisa. Lisa was a spitfire, she knew how to make anyone laugh, and you felt at ease almost immediately around her. Tiff was great, first of all because she loves coffee too, but she also has an amazing love for God. Someone else I met was Molly. I was blessed to be able to hear here testimony and later on talk to her. Overall, I had an amazing time, and enjoyed making new friends and memories.

Zach

2008-07-13T11:33:00.000-07:00

Hey there I just wanted to take a few moments to talk about my "old" youth pastor Zach. Zach was an amazing guy and I had the oppurtunity of being in his youth group for a little under two and a half years. Now, Zach always made anything and everything fun for everyone. We've done some crazy things such as...ice blocking, make crazy videos about random things, go on amazing retreats, playing ultimate frisbee, and take long drives in 15 passenger rental vans. Anyway, Zach was an amazing youth pastor. He taught me that we have freedom in Christ, and it's okay to be spontaneous every once in a while. I've learned through his example to be joyful for the Lord and live in greatful expectancy of what's to come. Zach taught me and so many other's this message, and we were all truly blessed to have him placed in our lives for the period of time he was here. I'm so excited for him and his fiance and this new chapter in their lives. So if you could pray for them. So Zach if your reading this I love ya, and I thank God that you were placed into my life for the time you were.

Going Bananas!

2008-07-11T11:22:00.000-07:00

Hey, well I have nothing really to write about at the moment, so I'm going to pick a random subject to write about. Bananas. As in the yellow boat shaped fruit you buy at the grocery store. Now, I prefer my bananas almost yellow. So they're not quite fully yellow and they have green still around the top. I also like banana bread which is funny because you use very ripe bananas to make it, which is the exact opposite of how I will eat them normally. Oh yeah, and if you would like an amazing breakfast spread peanut butter and honey on toast then cut up a banana on top. Talk about a little piece of heaven! Anyway, I really had no divine inspiration for this post. (As you probably have noticed, since I just yammered on about bananas and how I prefer to eat them.) Anyway, I better go...maybe I'll eat a banana! :)

My First Blog

2008-06-25T13:25:00.000-07:00

Hey there! Well my name is Kyleigh, and I'm new to the whole "blogger thing". (So bear with me!:) ) Anyway, I currently live in a small town in Texas with my family. Which includes, my mom and dad, my brother Cobi (10), my sister Ally (7), and my youngest brother Elijah (4). My family and I moved to Texas four years ago and have really enjoyed it. Actually just about two weeks ago my whole family went back up to Michigan to visit family and friends. I had a great time! I went to my cousin's high school graduation, Binder Park Zoo, my friend's baptism, and Lake Michigan. It was so much fun to hang out with my friend Kat again. I've known her my entire life and we hit it off right away. She and I spent our time together taking an insanely long bike ride to get eggs. But it was all worth it in the end because we saw some adorable kittens. Anyway, we had the most fun at Lake Michigan on my last day there. It was really cool to spend the whole day with her somewhere where we both grew up near. Well I better take off now, I got an amazing Youth Group party to hit. So I'll talk to yall later!
Ky