The Brain

I just think this is fascinating. To think about how just sitting down and reading Scripture actually affects the neurological pathways and synaptic pathways (and other terms I hope to learn) in the brain!  Our brains are so powerful! The imagination is the key to all healing, all change! Self-expression wooooooooo. How I love it!


"There are few people today who would deny that the brain is the primary organ of psychological experience. While we can debate the place of the soul, the brain’s involvement in how we live and have our being is undeniable. The brain is constantly changing in response to what it is being given to process. The things that we see, smell, hear, taste, touch, and experience throughout our day affect it and modify it. The brain’s ability to be modified—to learn—helps us process information and integrate these experiences with our memories in order to choose appropriate responses. The brain integrates what it is being fed into memories, making sense of the world, and developing our sense of self. If the brain is being fed Scripture, it should come as no surprise that it sees the world through the lens of Scripture. If it is being fed images of political conspiracies or violent sexuality, it should not come as any surprise that it begins to see the world through a filter of politics, depravity, or sensuality. For some, this view of the brain’s role is a relief; it helps them understand depression, anxiety, or addiction as a wiring problem. It is a fundamental part of how they are put together and can be extraordinarily helpful in understanding why they struggle. For others that knowledge leads to a fatalist view, or a “my-brain-made-me-do-it” defense, when they sin or act out. Because the human brain is the biological anchor of our psychological experience, it is helpful to understand how it operates. Knowing how it is wired together and where it is sensitive can help us understand why pornography affects people the way it does. The plasticity of the beautiful, complex brain can be a blessing or a curse. While the brain is malleable, it typically follows a set of rules in performing its functions. These rules govern how connections are made, how images are processed, how behaviors are executed, and how emotions are triggered."

Friends

You know why friends get so upset when they see that their friends like a guy who's just so a scumbag?
because they can see the REAL YOU. The beautiful you that is not being treasured honored and held high in the eyes of a guy. And they can see how amazing you are even when you can't.

So trust your friends. Listen to them. Let them help you see what you don't always see in the mirror.

Because you are awesome. you are beautiful. You are sweeeeeeeeeeeeettttt!!! Pun intended ; )

Trust

Let worship flow from our lips.

No more mourning, no more pain.

Our Lord is good, and he redeems all heartache.

Worship heals the wounds left in wake of sin.

Worship, praise, thankfulness, gratitude.

Thank The Lord for redemption because his love is so deep so deep and so great!!!!

We are never lost, never beyond repair, but loved so loved!

We can trust and we can give all ourselves because He is beautiful and He loves.

He can be trusted. : )

Back in the park where I used to play.

Where I used to climb jungle gyms and ride on merry go rounds, and run around playing frisbee or letting moms braid my hair! It's so nice to understand and remember all the phases of life that have made me who I am, a girl that I love : ) it's so nice remembering how silly I was and how many crushes I had and how many little things that seemed SO huge at the time but now I see it's all okay. It helps to give perspective that whatever we go through, in a little while it will not seem so big, it will not seem so insurmountable. But instead, we can know that it made us who we are. Beautiful people with such value and worth before God. We are loved and we are free.

My Dad

My mom this morning said...
"We're about to lose your dad."
Me: "What?"
Mom: "It's hunting season."
Me: "Oh."
Mom: "We'll see him again in April."

What is grace?

Coming to understand this more than ever before. Grace is something I wish I had known since I was a child. To be able to fail would have saved me so much heart hurt. But I must come to terms with myself: a sinner. So where do I go from here? I think Ann Voskamp offers real wisdom the way to go is to give thanks. That instead of dwelling on our sin and sinfulness, those chains, we must instead fix our eyes on Jesus, our lover who loves us with all compassion for all our sin! He loves us so whole heartedly fully knowing we would run from him to sin! Yet we are worth so much to him, so so much, that he runs oh after us. Oh thank youLord, thank you thank you Lord, for saying I am worthy enough to be sought! Our Lord and his love are absolutely amazing. I hope to know this more and more and more. 

Goal # 19 & 24!!!!!!!!!

Even when I'm not actively trying to accomplish goals, they just happen...

19) Find what is beautiful about Jackson
24) learn how to take care of my car

19)
This morning my dad and I went to church at Redeemer Presbyterian Church which is a church that actively seeks to bridge diverse communities in Jackson.  I've realized in the past few weeks, that I do not follow my own philosophy when it comes to fighting for racial reconciliation. I have failed to CELEBRATE! And celebration is the key to growth. So I've decided that I am actively going to look for ways that Jackson, a place with a deeply entrenched history of racial segregation and tense race relations, has made strides toward racial reconciliation. Because really and truly there is beautiful work happening here, beautiful work rising from the ashes of this community! And that is something worth recognizing. Church this morning was beautiful. Seeing people of different races stand beside one another in the choir makes my heart sing. Seeing families from different communities shake hands and exchange information is what should be happening in the church!!!!!!!!!!!!  So it was good, and I am glad to know this church is growing in Jackson. 

2 Corinthians 5:17-21
^"17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! ¹⁸ All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: ¹⁹ that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. ²⁰ We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. ²¹ God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."

24)
When my dad and I returned to my car, the cup of oatmeal I had left in the car was swarming with ants. It turns out there is an ant colony living in the car. What? My dad said that they probably found their way in while I was in Evanston, and I said, "When the car was parking in a parking garage?" Ha not likely. Whatever the case, there are ants making their home in my car. So my dad and I proceeded to vaccum all the carpets in the car as well as take it through the carwash. Now I highly doubt the vacuuming scared the ants away, but my carpets are now clean!!!!!!!!!!!
     Anyway, I realized today that anything you care about, you will work hard to keep it safe, protected, clean, and good as new. This is how God feels about us. When we get dirty, he makes us clean! He washes us clean. Wonderful.
1 Corinthians 6:11  "And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God."

Brothers

I can't believe I've never blogged about this before, but I just want to say I have an overwhelming amount of gratitude for my brothers in Christ. God has been so good to me bringing such good friends into my life these past four years at Northwestern. And all I can say is thank you. Thank you brothers. Thank you for respecting us women, and for being yourselves, and for pursuing the Lord. It helps us remember that there really are guys who believe we are valuable because they know how much Jesus loves us.

Three boys I'm particularly thankful for are dating some pretty amazing ladies. And it brings me smiles to see their relationships progress so healthily, holy, and wholesome. A lovely portrait for every single girl to know what she deserves. So thank you Adam Dominick. thank you David Young. thank you Clay Burrows. I wasn't aware of what a gift it was to know you, but now looking back I see that all of you were exactly the gift God intended to place in my life.

I'm thankful for my real brother. As I get to know him more and more, I realize how amazing God has made him. He is so wise, thoughtful, kind, gracious and I am so thankful for my relationship with him. He's probably the only guy, other than my dad, who can understand me completely, because he KNOWS all my faults. Tonight I said, "William, you know my pride is about as big as this house right?" And he said, "Yes. I know."

That's a brother for ya. Loves you for who you are.
He also gave me this quote:
"There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind." C.S. Lewis

I love C.S. Lewis, Tolkien, George MacDonald. It makes me smile that someday, I will be their sister in heaven. How cool is that??? I'm gonna to hang out with J.R.R. Tolkien!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can't even handle that thought. Seriously, the writer who wrote Eowyn??? And the whole story? And all those characters? And the eutragedy during the beginning of post-modernism? Not possible! But it IS.
--eutragedy is a tragedy in which the story turns hopeful at the very last possible moment. So he simultaneously managed to portray the brokenness and depravity of the human condition, that is so evident in the writings of Hemingway and such, and yet he managed to show how hope remains. He is pretty high on the list of men that I would consider marrying if he were my age. Just sayin. But alas in heaven we will all be brothers and sisters. There will be no marriage! And so I rejoice to know my amazing brothers in Christ. All of you.

A sad story.  A friend of mine recently posted this on facebook:
"I hate every man in the world right now. Except my dad. And my brother. And my roommates. And the gay ones. And Obama."  It makes me terribly sad that she would say this, because I can only imagine the harmful behavior that would have led her to say something like this publicly.  It hurts me that she only knows guys who act that way, and that fact indicates that she might only believe she is worth that type of guy. Not true. Not true. I wish for every girl like her to know, that there are great guys in existence. They might seem like they don't exist, but they do. Or they might get there someday. It's just important to know that bad behavior is never condonable. Women have no responsibility to say yes to dating a guy to boost his ego. We spoke with the 9th graders about the myth that if a guy asks you to homecoming, it is rude to say no. "Oh he has get up the courage to ask me out, so poor guy." I'm not gonna say a cuss word, but I probably would say one if I did that. My point is, NO. You have no obligation to make a guy feel good about himself. If he needs you to affirm his worth, he's got some issues. And you're best to walk in the opposite direction. Cause you ain't gonna make him really know his value, unless he finds his value in God.  So when I see posts like that, or hear friends talk about the mistreatment in their lives, all I think is why? if anyone can offer a good answer you can write my blog for me. This is the question I've been seeking to answer and will continue to look for an answer to as I hopefully continue in the field of women's empowerment. I guess if I had to take a gander, the answer would be, we don't know our value, unless we know Christ.

So to my brothers in Christ who are so good to the friends and the significant others. I thank you. And women all over the world should thank you because you have the strength and the character to help us really understand our full value before Christ.  So in case ya didn't know how great ya are, give yourself a pat on the back, and keep it up. Some girls notice, they really do.

Read THIS!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2013/08/12/40-maps-that-explain-the-world/

2. Makes me glad to be from the US. But Canada is friendlier to outsiders.

6. The amount of emotion people feel correlates to the country they are from? That's fascinating. Why would the least emotional people live in Russia?

7. Ugh colonialism.

8. Hm. the U.S. is relatively tolerant of racial diversity.

9. The U.S. is less ethnically diverse than I would have thought.

11. ha ha ha ha ha The Texas Republic. They wish.

12. So not a lot of countries hate America. But a few do. China seems ambivalent to it.

15. Makes me sad. Death penalty for homosexuality?

18. Russia also has a cigarette problem? WHO WOULD WANT TO LIVE THERE WITH SIBERIAN TIGERS AND FROSTBITE?

19. Okay, so what are Canada, Australia, a bunch of countries in the EU, and countries I'd have to look up in the Middle East doing so right that America can't figure out? In terms of Economic Inequality.

20. Shame.

22. if I have kids, i'm moving to Canada. it is also better than the US in terms of places to be a mother.

25. This is embarrassing but I don't know the difference between civil law and common law. should look that up...

26. eeeeeek to live in Israel would be scary

27. The US seems safe except for Alaska...NOOOOOOOOO! Don't get KODIAK!

28 is pretty atrocious. The Child Poverty Rate in America is at 20-25%, the most significant percentage of developed nations.

30. is pretty funny. Only Great Britain thinks pretty badly of the European Union.

34. China feels pretty good about the national economy.

35. Makes my brain hurt. Performance Studies major. Not Poli Sci.

36. Fascinating. 40-49.9% of Chinese people label themselves atheists.

37. Hm Muslims in Russia are not so much in favor of democratic leadership. Wonder why that is?

39. Honor killings exist? Killing someone for sleeping around out of wedlock? Rough.

40. Woah

I just learned more about the world, economics, political science, religion, and whodawhatnots than in my entire FOUR YEARS at Northwestern. Here's to reading online news. Once I left Medill, I went downhill. No longer!

Trinity

Tim Keller podcast: Imitating the Incarnation, Feb. 1, 2013

Augustan said that if the Trinity did not exist, God would be an imperfect God. Because if there were no Trinity, Father-Son-Holy Spirit, God would have never loved until creating angels and human beings. Therefore God would have created these beings to fill a need for love. But instead, the Trinity was already complete in love and created human beings not to take but to give love.

Amazing.

Father

My father is pretty adorable. He took a trip to China and brought back some gifts. 

See the creepy little doll? It squirts water at you. Surprise surprise. Trickster!

He also brought back a stamp that writes my name. I was born in the year of the horse. I guess my spirit animal would be a wild stallion. Once I run, no one can keep up. 

He also has a special relationship with animals. He can even hold my car like that and she doesn't squirm! She can be finicky so that's a feat.

What a gift to have a father like mine. But an even better gift is our Heavenly Father. Sometimes I feel bad that friends fathers are not as gracious and caring to them as mine. Or that friends have lost their fathers. But we all have a Heavenly Father who loves us as precious sons and daughters. Who also gives weird gifts!!! They might not exactly be odd Chinese toys, but he does give good gifts! Matthew 7:11

That's nature

Another family day, lot of funny moments. Too much fun when you know people really well and can predict all their quirks.

I am especially enjoying spending time with Reid, my sisters new husband. He will listen to me gab without any indication that I should stop talking! Cool theological discussion while hiking with him & my dad. New family is a gift! 

Best moment of the day though by far has for to be watching my mom react with horror to the tv show my dad chose to watch? A pack of lions chase down an elephant. Her reaction is just too good. "How can they do that? He's bigger! Stomp them! Kick them with your hind legs!" So much empathy for such a weird recipient. The rest of us are like,"that's nature."

Sandcastle building

I did many cool things today. but One thing I didn't do, is I didn't build a sandcastle.

Southern Adventures

Hung out with my brother and his Ole Miss friends today. So goood to just get to know my brother. We had this running count of the number of times the boys dropped the f bomb. 16. And we kept secretly laughing. Was nice to hear their southern cadences, phrases, even jokes. Reminds me of who I was and where I grew up.

I watched as my bro & the boys jumped off these rocks into freezing water. Were I not vehemently opposed to being cold upon leaving Chicago, I would have jumped too. But it looked sweet.

Then we went in search of ice caves, and found an iceless cave. The best part was maneuvering into a nook and climbing the side of the wall. Williams buddy Jake kept trying to climb it but there really were no cracks to hang on to, but being small I managed to sort of get myself stuck in the nook and crawl up. And it was awesome, I have always loved rock climbing walls and zip lines, and the best part was my mom would have been terrified had she known I was climbing! And my brother kept telling me not to, aw protecting me, but what they don't realize is I am fearless. to a fault. If I set out to do something, I do it. I probably fail, but I go for what I want. and I wanted to climb that cave wall. and I did it. To jakes amazement I will add! He managed to crawl into the nook backwards...how I don't know? But at the top my brother reached out his hand and pulled me up. His grip was so strong and although I think I could have made it, I felt very cared for in that moment. We even made a pact not to tell my mom, but Jake told my mom while we were away from the dinner table...whoops. my mom said she is going to teach me the difference between independence & recklessness. But I was fine! Wasn't being stupid. Maybe a little. But it was fun! Now I want to climb a real mountain.

Anyway Im so proud of the man my brother has become. All into RUF, setting an example in his friend group, level headed, good listener! I am thankful for him.

Brother

My little brother is so cool. I'm glad to become better friends with him. He's funny.

Today my fam went white water rafting, and the guide was saying that there was a 15 year old in our van who was a vegetarian. Now my bro does not support my almost vegetarianism so he decided to make me feel awkward and say, "that's the guy for you!" And I'm like, "not interested in younger folks..." And then he goes, "well it could be a girl," and I'm like "ohhhh perfect for you then!!!" Hahaha. Then we both agree that it would be illegal for either of us to date a 15 year old. Then I say,"let's do something illegal." And he says, "yeah let's smoke marijuana." And then goes, "wait that's legal here" hahaha so much sass and it's awesome.

So I pretty much fail at anything that requires hand-eye coordination. And Reid & Will were playing pool so I decide alright I'll play...but pretty quickly it becomes obvious that I am a lost cause...except that William stopped playing to win and just taught me how to aim & shoot! He made me practice just shooting it. And I got better! I did find it boring, but what I realized while playing frisbee golf is that anything I am bad at I will find boring. Haha so maybe if I practice it will become fun?

the fam went white water rafting and our raft guides were such goofballs. I love the Colorado vibe. Laid-back, outdoorsy, into companionship. Our guide told us that once upon a time, the Yetis mated with human beings and created a race called the Yeebles who speak Yebalese. "They are very shy, don't stare." And he said one of the guides was a Yebalese. So many kooky things came out of his mouth, impressed he could come up with so many jokes!  Also Callie fell in! I think she was simultaneously terrified and laughing.  

Good times with family are something to be tremendously thankful for.

A family day

The best kind of day.

Frisbee golf with Callie, Reid, William, and Dad. I am terrible at throwing a frisbee. And was so bored. But I played to spend time with them. And ya know what, I improved a little and had much laughter! Our frisbees kept flying off and rolling down the mountainside. We had to chase them.

Here was the score:

Everyone else: 45-55

Me: 81

Well it's not my thing, but I am a stellar hula hooper. Went for 10 minutes!

Cal & Reid cooked dinner and we all are on this gigantic Fellowship of the Ring style table. Awkwardly far apart.

Now playing a rousing game of Apples to Apples! All the laughter is goodness.

Also there are so many dogs here. This teddy bear Yorkie at church was the cutest.

We rode a gondola up the mountain and I realized that the views were not as captivating because I didn't have to work to earn them. We don't value what we don't work for. Anything worthwhile is worth the hard work! So a relationship with God is like this? Worth the effort.