"Chosen Bride"

Good evening! If any of you follow me on instagram you saw my post of the short version of this poem last night, but here is the extended, edited version! It's just an outpouring of my heart and a reflection of all God has done for me...and it just so happens to rhyme. Enjoy and have a blessed evening :)

I've got so much more to learn
And so much more to do
But tonight I'm simply grateful
My heart belongs to You.

My heart was worn and weary
Before I let you in.
I'll never forget that precious night
When it would all begin.

All glory and honor belongs to You
Who opened up my eyes.
I am no more a prisoner
to this earth and all its lies.

No longer am I defined
by the mirror or others' thoughts.
Although I pushed and pushed you out,
it was me You persistently sought.

Now that I'm captivated
and have surrendered to You my soul,
in Your greater plan, Oh God,
I'd be honored to play a role.

I've come to learn that life with You
outweighs all other paths.
So away from sin I will run
and towards Your love so vast.

I fail You and I cave in
To the temptations of this earth.
I get wrapped up in past mistakes
I forget all that I'm worth.

But your mercy never changes.
Your love remains Divine.
There's nothing I would rather be,
Sweet Jesus, than your chosen bride.

The rough draft

Here & Now

Good evening! Hope everybody had a fantastic easter and is doing well! Tonight I had a realization/epiphany/reality check/convicting moment that I just had to share so I'm going to cut to the chase right away.

This year has contained so many blessings and so many defining moments and answered prayers and lessons learned and divine opportunities, yet I don't express my gratefulness nearly enough. In fact, for the past few weeks I've been wishing my time away. I've never been much of a patient person, but lately I seem to be struggling more than usual to refrain from rushing through life. At least once a day I find myself saying "I can't wait till summer...or for college...or to get married...or to discover what my career is..."(the list goes on for ages). While that is an average thing for an average high school student to do (wish they were anywhere but high school), I'd rather not be average. Not that I think I'm better than other high school students in any way, just that the average high school student doesn't live like they know the love of Christ because, well, they don't.

So instead of wishing I could just be out of high school where there seems to be a lack of Christ, I should make it my mission to bring Christ into it! I should use my time in high school to seize any opportunity to share what the Lord has done for me with as many lost souls as I can...because I was once one of them. I should team up with all the Christ-lovers around me to reach out to those who don't know about God's love or feel unworthy of it. How selfish is it of me to practically say "okay my first two years of high school I didn't really know God and it sucked, but now that I do I just wanna get out of here. I'll catch all you other lost souls later!" Sounds harsh, but hey conviction ain't always pretty!

In a wonderful book I am currently reading called Sun Stand Still by Steven Furtick, he addresses this whole "rushing through everyday" thing in a chapter called "Ignite the Ordinary." He talks about how God seems to take ordinary people, situations, circumstances, etc., and make them extraordinary. (I am just going to attach a picture of my favorite page from the chapter because his words are a lot more powerful than mine.) Sitting in classrooms all day seems more than ordinary and often seems like one of the least likely places for a divine occurrance to take place. But simply being kind to someone for no reason or maybe just leaving a note with a verse on it on your desk for the next student could make a huge impact. If you feel God compelling you to do something, even if it's a tiny tiny act or even if it might be uncomfortable, be bold and do it because He will most likely make something extraordinary out of it!

So here's my challenges for this week and the rest of life with Christ:

• don't wish away time, but instead seek to glorify God here & now
• look at school or work or any ordinary place with ordinary people as a mission field. People don't have to be starving or poor or far away to need to be shown the love of Jesus.
• don't wait for God to speak to you in some big, extravagant way. Be on the lookout for little clues and subtle opportunities.
• Show how grateful you are for all He has done for you by living to serve Him and His people.
• don't be selfish :)

Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. Proverbs 3:6

Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. Matthew 6:33

The page from Sun Stand Still. (hope this doesn't violate copywright issues)