Friday, December 29, 2006

I am Blessed

I am Blessed, I am Blessed, when I rise up in the morning, till I lay my head to rest, Your always near me, You hold me when I'm weary, Lord, for all the worst and all the the best, I am Blessed!

Tuesday, December 26, 2006

Interesting Facts

I was checking out a web site and found this information:

> California has issued 6 drivers licenses to people named "Jesus Christ."

> In Utah, it is illegal to swear in front of a dead person

> Arizona was the last of the 48 adjoining continental states to enter the Union.
> Wyoming was the first state to give women the right to vote in 1869. - go Wyoming!!

> Austin, Texas has the highest percentage of college graduates, 31 percent. Newark, New Jersey has the lowest, 6 percent. - would've never thought

> No matter where you stand in Michigan, you are never more than 85 miles from a Great Lake

> In 1997, Michigan became the 16th state to allow the blind to hunt. - beware, beware!!

> The Pentagon, in Arlington, Virginia, has twice as many bathrooms as needed because when it was built the state of Virginia still had segregation laws. - never thought of that...

> In Frackville, Pennsylvania a woman filed for divorce because her husband insisted on "shooting tin cans off of her head with a slingshot."

> Canadian researchers have found that Einstein's brain was 15% wider than normal. - never underestimate the larger head people!!

> Walt Disney was afraid of mice. - M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E, Mickey Mouse - talk about getting over your fears!

> Sir Isaac Newton was only 23 years old when he discovered the law of universal gravitation. - let no man despise your youth!!

> The average life of a taste bud is 10 days.

> Relative to size, the strongest muscle in the body is the tongue. - James 3

> Right handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left handed people do. - ACK!! I'm left handed!!

> It takes the stomach an hour to break down cow milk. - is that good or bad?

> During a 24-hour period, the average human will breathe 23,040 times.

> Human blood travels 60,000 miles (96,540 km) per day on its journey through the body.

> Mosquito repellents don't repel. They hide you. The spray blocks the mosquito's sensors so they don't know you're there. - not for me, so I don't use it at all

> Dentists have recommended that a toothbrush be kept at least 6 feet (2 m) away from a toilet to avoid airborne particles resulting from the flush. - ewww!

> It is possible to drown and not die. Technically the term "drowning" refers to the process of taking water into the lungs, not to death caused by that process.

> Diet Coke was only invented in 1982.

> The liquid inside young coconuts can be used as substitute for blood plasma.

> The shortest war in history was between Zanzibar an England in 1896. Zanzibar surrendered after 38 minutes. - wish all wars could be this short

> Oak trees do not produce acorns until they are fifty years of age or older. - talk about producing fruit in your old age!

> Apples, not caffeine, are more efficient at waking you up in the morning - AMEN, try it next time you need to stay awake for that long drive!

> If you lock your knee while standing long enough, you will pass out - Ushers beware!

> The first owner of the Marlboro company died of lung cancer. - does this say anything

> According to the Guiness Book, the fastest restaurant in the world serves the client's food within 13 seconds after the order is made. The name of the restaurant is Karne Garibaldi and is located in Guadalajara, Mexico.

> Most people have an IQ in the 90 - 109 range. You're considered a genius if your IQ is 132 or above. Chris Langan has an IQ of 195, the highest known IQ in the US. He started talking at 6 months and by age 4 could read and comprehend books. His IQ puts him in the same class as Sir Isaac Newton and Michelangelo. He's in his mid-forties, and he works as a part-time bouncer at a bar and lives in a one-room house on $6,000 a year.
> William James Sidis had the highest ever known IQ estimated at between 250 and 300. At eighteen months he could read The New York Times, at two he taught himself Latin, at three he learned Greek. By the time he was an adult, he could speak more than 40 languages and dialects. He spent most of his life wandering from one menial job to another. - what does that tell us...time to read Ecclesiaties(sp?)

> The largest number of children born to one woman is recorded at 69. From 1725-1765, a Russian peasant woman gave birth to 16 sets of twins, 7 sets of triplets, and 4 sets of quadruplets. - WHAT!!!

I don't know how much of this stuff is actual fact...but it certianly is interesting!

Tuesday, December 12, 2006

Showing the Love of God

Saturday's trip to PACIFIC GARDEN MISSION was SUCH A BLESSING!!! I really enjoyed myself and was greatly encouraged and inspired! The work that they are doing at Pacific Garden Mission is extraodinary. You know we never know what God will do when we take one small step of faith to do what HE is telling us!! We won't know how many souls we will reach unless we just start walking (that was a message at two years ago MC fellowship - wasn't it?)!!!

The UNSHACKLED program was exactly what our group needed to hear, GOD must of designed it that way. It is to air between the weeks of May 8-22, it was part 1 of a 2 part series. It was about this man who had grown up around church, wasn't an extremely BAD child, but needed to be saved. He finally got saved at 17. After that point he lived his Christian life, but not really putting in too much extra effort or going out of himself. He became a high school English teacher and it was suggested to him that he start at Bible study at the school. God blessed the work and souls got saved... You know I won't tell the whole story but it was a GREAT blessing to some of us that went.

The other thing that was greatly encouraging during the weekend was that God showed me that despite what I am going through it helps to get out of yourself. This is what I mean: Sometimes our problems seem SO SO SO Big and we want answers and the situations solved right away. Being saved we know that we MUST go through trials so we just keep it before God in prayer (which we should do). When I am going through trials is to stop thinking or dwelling on myself and situation but start to think, pray or do for somebody else. And though I know this to be true, but when I get right in the situation it sometimes is not easy to remember. This weekend, through a variety of events, including the one mentioned above, has caused me to remember it for my current trial (which is truly a light affliction). So consider today to pray or do something for someone else that you would not normally do, get out of your comfort zone. Get out of yourself and show the love of God.

Saturday, December 09, 2006

UNSHACKLED

Today some of the YP are going to tour Pacific Garden Mission and sit in on a taping of "UNSHACKLED". I have been wanting to go for years...I think I was 11 or 12 when the YP went last (I was too young then).

For those who don't know, Pacific Garden Mission is one of Chicago oldest missions serving the Chicago downtown area. The started back in 1860 and have been going strong ever since! They also produce a radio show called "UNSHACKLED" which dramatizes testimonies of souls brought to Christ. I remember every Tuesday and Friday on the way to church (our commute was usually 45 min - 1 hr) listening to "UNSHACKLED". I wanted to hear a saint's testimony on it...maybe one day there will be. But the stories are very touching and inspiring. Check out the link, you can listen online too!

http://www.pgm.org/index.html

In other news...today is supposed to get all the way up to 40!! Seeing it's been in the teens for the past week (with windshields in the single digits or below 0) it will probably feel quite warm today!! Yahoo!!

Monday, December 04, 2006

Life

You know I don't have much to say today. As I was reading my last blog I noticed that I didn't put how old I turned. I turned 26...

On Friday after work I was talking to my sister on the phone. I told her that it snowed up here, she was really excited. It wasn't the excited like "I want to be there" but the excited like "it really happened". See it seems like in past years it really doesn't do much snowing (and sticking)until Jan or Feb. But it snowed heavy and it is sticking. Now we are in FRIGID COLD conditions...and it is going to get colder...BRRR. She said it gets "cold" (50s or 60s) down there at night now...hmmm I think I could take some of that "cold" up here.

I am looking forward to the holiday coming up...get TWO days off work this year!! Yahoo! Only one day for New years though...I DO plan, LW, to go to MC fellowship this year, looking forward to it! Maybe God will bless and I will be able to get off Friday!

We have the COG camp dinner coming up!! I am getting pretty excited about it! I hope it ALL works out as planned. We must keep praying. Hopefully some of the old campers will come and we can reminisce about the "old days" Like...

Sleeping in tents around the campfire
Taking a midnight run down to the lakefront (Lake Michigan)
Sitting in Sunday services on the HOT basketball court
Riding he "Blue Goose" or the other bus
Going to ride go carts and bumper boats
Being "on security"
Singing "Bells are Ringing, ringing, ringing and they seem to say, we must work for JESUS..."
Having night hikes
Having water fights -- which usually ended being MORE than just water
Singing pep rallies
Funny closing skits
Just plain, honest to goodness, sincere, clean, great, awesome, all out and out FUN!!

I do truly MISS the days of being a camper...it is not the same (though it is STILL FUN) being a staff. CAMPERS---totally enjoy your days as a camper, don't try to leave them before you have to. There is a temptation to grow up and leave camper age early but it was worth ALL 10 or more years I was a CAMPER at camp (even before COG camp). Well I guess I will finish my spill on camp. I wish I could put up some old pictures up. Saturday I saw some REAL old pictures from camp...Twinkee, Lee Lee and I (someone else was also in the picture) were(running)racing...I think Lee Lee was winning! Good times, good times.

Friday, December 01, 2006

Holiday, Birthday and Snow

Thanksgiving was wonderful (as it normally is!) I was able to eat most (if not all) of the food I was looking forward to! I am thankful!

I also had a birthday on Saturday the 25th. Another year older, I am thankful for the life God has given me! I am still looking for greater and better things in my future than have been in my past!

So last night it snowed! It's great packing snow too!! Time to get out the sledding gear. Get out the gloves to make the perfect snowballs (I can't throw very well but I like to try!) Time to build snow forts and go ice skating! Well, maybe not the snow forts but I am going to try to do all the other before the season is out! I actually sound like I ENJOY the cold! Maybe only for a little bit...did I REALLY say that!! Ugh..."playing" in th snow and cold is fun for about 30min to 1 hour than there needs to be a change.

Driving in the snow is another thing...I guess I am used to it so I don't really mind it but, it can be treachous. This morning I saw 7 cars in the ditch or off the road. One of them spinned out right in front of me. Thankfully I was far enough away to slow down and watch it without being in danger. It started sliding and hit the guard rail it slid back onto the highway and was able to pull to the side of the road...thank God for His mercy! No other cars were in its path. It rained freezing rain before it snowed so it was slippery...and the visability was bad too. Ahhh...winter in Chicago!