Kaila's Blog

The Good and the Bad...Little Habits

2011-02-21T13:43:00.000-08:00

Just some random thoughgts going through my head today.... :)

We all got those little habits in our life. In fact they are so little that sometimes we don't even recognize them or think they are a big deal. But like most things in life...the little things become a big thing.

If they are good habits, then we have nothing to worry about. But if they are bad habits we need to be on our guard and continually fight them, or else these seemingly harmless things become a big problem and will take over our lives and consume us.

When we form these habits we often don't realize what they will become...it may start out as a harmless lie, or a careless decision....but it leads us deeper and deeper into it's trap, unnoticed by our blinded eyes. Before we know it, they consume us and even define us.

The bad habits don't take work, our carnal flesh leads us into them easily. It's the good habits that take work to form. So how do we overcome the bad habits? By developing and working on good habits. It may start out small, and seem pointless. In the end though the good habits grow and they eventually consume us, pushing out the bad ones. You fight and destroy those bad little things in your life, by nourishing and developing the good little things!

God's Love - Kenny Anderson

2011-02-15T14:39:00.000-08:00

The four dimensions of God's love:

Breadth: John 3:16 "For God so loved the world..." It's a love wide enough to cover the whole earth!
Length: 1 Cor. 13:8 "Love never ends..." It's a love long enough that it never ends!
Height: Heb 12:22-23 "But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God..." A love which is high enough to reach us from earth and bring us into the heavens.
Depth: Phil. 2:8 "And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. " A love which is deep enough to take Christ form His throne, to the very depths, to reach the lowest of the lowest sinners.

These four dimensions describe an infinite and incomprehensible love!

A.W. Tozer- "Because God is self-existent, His love had no beginning; because He is eternal, His love can have no end; because He is infinite, it has no limit; because He is holy, it is the quintessence of all spotless purity; because He is immense, His love is an incomprehensibly vast, bottomless, shoreless sea..."

Being Strong in Him

2010-04-29T19:39:00.000-07:00

Growing up, I have learned many lessons, had hard times, been through struggles, and fallen into sin. There have been many times when I have fallen into temptations and sin, and I find myself stuck. So I would get myself out of trouble, only to fall and do it all over again. I can’t even count how many times I went through this cycle in my life. I always wondered what was wrong with me, why can’t I just stop whatever I was doing. I always tried so hard, I was a strong Christian girl and yet I kept doing the same thing over and over again.

The problem was that I would try and get out on my own. I was being very independent and self-assured. I thought I could be the strong one and stop. I would do it on my own. I would try and stop the cycle because I was strong enough. But I would go about it all wrong.

One time, awhile ago, when I had really screwed up, and I was lying in my bed, trying to figure out how I could make it right, it hit me! I was trying to fix things by myself, instead of going to Christ. I had never cried out to God, asking for His strength to help me, I had always relied on my own power.

This is all too often a belief in our culture as well, and it has deeply taken root in the Church. We have so many self-help programs, books, and motivational speakers. So many leaders in our culture continually push us to believe in the strength of ourselves. They teach stuff about becoming a better you. They try to build our self-esteem, so that we can find our own power to help us. Instead of going to the Higher power, we look within our fallen, depraved self’s. On occasion one does quit their ugly cycle of alcoholism, drugs, or whatever it is they are enslaved to. But they still have the tendency to fall right back into it, because they are only relying on their own strength to help them. Then they may get back out of it because someone, some preacher, or TV talk show host, told them they can do it if they only find the power within themselves. Instead of everything being Christ-centered, it has become a man-centered gospel of help and forgiveness.

Instead of seeking our own strength to help us, we need to cry out to the Lord, ask Him for His strength and guidance to get us through the tough times. Acting like we can do it ourselves only digs us deeper into sin. “The Lord is the strength of His people...” (Ps. 28:8) “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart.” (Ps. 73:26) “I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (IS. 41:10)

When we come to God, with a humble and contrite heart, He promises to be our strength, to send His Helper and fill us. “A broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.” (Ps. 51:17) “This is the one to whom I (God) will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit.” (Is. 66:2) Recognizing our sin and incapability to turn from it on our own is the first step to turning around. Depending on God’s strength and the presence of the Holy Spirit is what will turn us around fully and put us on the path of sanctification.

Even after I realized all this, I still had a hard time turning around. As fallen man, we will still continually fall, all the way up to judgment day. We all still make mistakes, and wrong choices. But we know that when we do fall, there is One who forgives and picks us back up again. Our own strength isn’t enough, knowing this is important. He gives us the strength and help that we need, knowing this is even more important!

Life and Lessons

2010-02-24T20:15:00.000-08:00

It's been awhile since I've written here. A lot has been happening, and there have been many lessons that I've learned as of late, that I wish I would have written down when they were fresh on my mind. Lessons in love, life, priorities, managing time wisely etc... Recently I've been thinking a lot about priorities. Realizing that we all need to figure out what matters most in life, and what our criteria should be for the important decisions that we have to make.

We all face different phases of our lives and we have to decided what is the most important thing for us to accomplish in the different stages of life. As a child, we may have to decide whether it is more important that we play or do our school. As teenagers we need to decide whether our independence or honoring our parents is more important . Once we graduate we have to decide what we want to do, what is most important to accomplish. And all of the answers to these questions depends upon where our priorities are and what they are based upon. Are our priorities based upon what God has called us to do through His Word, or are they selfish ambitions? Do we want to follow the Biblical plan that God has given us, or just have a good time? Have we set before us a high standard that we want to follow through life? Are the priorities that we do have, too shallow? Do they follow a Biblical principle? These are just some questions that have been swirling around in my head, that I thought I would share with you so that you could ask yourself.

Some life examples that we can apply these questions to are: what are my priorities when trying to find a spouse? Or what are my priorities in the relationship that I am in? What are my priorities in my education or the education of my children? These are crucial questions of life, and we need to know what is most important...what is Biblical.

Recently I've been thinking about this a lot. Trying to figure out what God wants me to do to further grow and glorify His kingdom. What are my priorities, and standards about the different stages of life. Constantly I need to be looking at these and decide whether they are biblical or selfish desires. Evaluating them according to scripture. I would just challenge you to do the same. :)

Treasure Them

2009-12-31T12:05:00.000-08:00

As the year draws to an end, I start thinking about all that has happened and what I have learned. There have been many events, times to grow and learn. There has been times for rejoicing, times for weeping, a time to make peace and times for war, and time of death and time for life. But through it all I have learned a very big lesson- life is short, precious and very unexpected. As I reflect over the past I realize a very good lesson that has hung over me and which I have tried to contemplate over more and more. When life is so short and unexpected, we don't have time for meaningless quarrels and complications. We don't have time to take advantage of one another, or take each other for granted. We need to treasure every little thing, for we know not what is around the bend.

It's hard to write down the mistakes I have made, but one huge one is that I never try hard enough to get along with other people, I continually take them for granted and take advantage of them. Many times we have conflicts with those in the family or close friends and it's hard to forgive.Many times we just don't get along because of personality conflict or we just can't stand the way they do something. And so we go through life not treasuring the person God has created and put in your life. I know I have done this. If I don't get along with someone, I'll distant myself from them and never get too close to them.

But know, because of the past years events, I have learned that life is short so treasure them. One never knows when you may lose them, permanently or just temporarily. I have learned to stop wasting precious moments over meaningless conflicts and treasure every moment. Learn to love what you didn't like about them. It's the conflicts that you have but overcome that make life interesting.

Treasure the conflicts, treasure the hard times and the good times. Treasure the people in your life for you know not how long they will be with you. God has sovereignly placed you with the people you are with because He knows you need them, even when it's hard to get along.We should go out of our way to be with those people for then we will learn to love them or see that personality which we couldn't understand before as just a part of who they are and we still can get along with them.

Every moment spent together, every moment lived is a precious memory that we need to hold onto. Treasure them all!

Merry Christmas

2009-12-25T11:12:00.000-08:00

May you have a Merry Christmas, and may the next year bring Him more glory!
Love ya all!!!

This is one of my favorite Christmas songs- "I Celebrate The Day" by Reliant K

Anderson Kids '09

2009-11-18T09:59:00.000-08:00

A tragic story without an ending...

2009-10-15T14:53:00.000-07:00

This morning, on my mad rush to get to work on time, I past a cat who met it's last days on earth. As usual I grieved a little, but then I noticed something...it moved! Immediately I pulled over to check on it...maybe it was still alive and only injured...maybe I would be able to help it, but I did not expect what I saw.

As I drew near to the poor cat I realized that it was not the dead cat that moved, but a poor helpless little kitten that was snuggled up to it. The poor dear was trying to nurse it's mother. I tried to pick it up...but it scrambled away. For the next 10 minutes if you happened to be in a car passing by, you would have seen me dashing across the street countless times, fumbling my way through bushes and falling into the ditch...but at last I caught it.

I looked at my surroundings and noticed a near by house. So I walked over there...the lady at the door informed me that the mother had been a stray cat in the area for a while and that she wanted nothing to do with the kitten. What could I do? I held the adorable little girl kitten in my arms and brought her home.

She is a small, helpless, orphan. She is so cute..she's black with a white nose and paws..and she is still very little. What is to be her fate I know not yet...can you give her a home?

It's a Grand Night

2009-10-07T20:32:00.000-07:00

Bring the whole family for-

It's A Grand Night for Singing!!!

A musical review the whole family will enjoy!

Where: Grants Pass, 111 Evelyn Theater (New Song Church) between 6th and 7th street, across from Barnstormers

When: October-
9th: 7pm,
10th: 2pm and 7pm,
16th: 7pm,
17th: 2pm and 7pm.
Admission: Adults- $6, Children 4-12 $4, Children 3 and under are Free

Paul in Prison Pt. 2

2009-09-30T14:25:00.000-07:00

Throughout Philippians, Paul gives us many reasons why and how we can endure trials and tribulations. Paul wishes to encourage the new Church not just by words but by example as well. While sitting in his cell, chained to the wall he says “even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial alter of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. Likewise you also should rejoice with me.” (Phil. 2:17-18). Paul rejoices in his present situation, no matter the agony, the pain, and the unjustness of it all, he is content to endure it for the sake of his follower’s faith, for the sake of the gospel, so as to be an example.

Not only is he enduring it with the contentment and joy that comes only from Christ. But he also considers it an honor. He takes honor and pride in being in prison.In Phil. 1:29-30 he says "For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in Him but also suffer for His sake, engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have." Paul is most likely rotting away in a cell with the festering wounds of a whip still unattended upon his back, and yet he considers at an honor that he is sharing in the sufferings of Christ, suffering for the One who gave His life. It is our joy, our pleasure, and honor to suffer for Him who saved us from eternal hell.

Christ was the perfect and only Son of God, greatly cherished and loved. In contrast man was rebellious, ungrateful, and separated from God. We are alienated from the perfect judge of the world, and there is nothing we can do to reconcile ourselves to Him. Yet this perfect Judge gave His most beloved Son in our stead! Jesus Christ had to degrade Himself and take on flesh. He came to earth only to suffer unjustly at the hands of those whom He came to save. He took on all our sins, nailed then to the cross, and endured the wrath of His heavenly Father for our transgressions. Jesus Christ reconciled us back to God, payed our debt, and offers us eternal life with Him and the Father.

It is because of all of this, that Paul rejoices to be able to suffer, but a little, for his Savior. Christ payed the biggest debt we could ever owe, and we have no way of paying Him back. Sharing in His suffering is way of saying our thanks, of showing our gratitude for what Christ and the Father did for us. This is why Paul considers it an honor, and calls all of us to take joy in our suffering. The Savior gave His life, we can but live and suffer for Him!

We as the elect, chosen, and saved, should rejoice in the opportunity to suffer for the sake of Christ. No one promises it will be easy, or without pain and tears, but we are promised to be given the strength of Christ, to make us content in whatever our situation is. We should be honored to suffer for the One who gave His life for us!

Paul in Prison

2009-09-24T16:43:00.000-07:00

Many a times the disciples of Christ and the great writers of the New Testament faced whippings, stones, chains, and prison on countless occasions, all for the advancement of the gospel. While in prison in Rome, Paul writes a letter to the believers in Philippi, which is recorded in Philippians.

I have always loved many of the key verses in Philippians, but as I read through the whole book and understood the context, it opened up a whole new meaning for many of those verses. I was able to understand the situation and attitude from which Paul was writing.

In Phil. 1:12-15, Paul writes "I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me (being imprisoned) has really served to advance the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the Word, without fear..."

Here is a man who has been thrown in prison unjustly, and the prisons back then mostly consisted of being underground with no light, and no way of letting out the horrid smells...you shared your bed of straw with who knows how many other earthly creatures, and yet this is the situational in which he finds himself and he rejoices. Paul sees something positive about it.
He is glad because the advancement of the gospel is taking place. He is content to be there, because Christ is being shard.

Even further on in my reading, Paul confirms this when he says "I am hard pressed between the two (living or dying). My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account.." (Phil. 1:23) Paul would love to be united with His Savior, but instead of choosing deliverance, he would rather endure so as to share Christ with the lost and to direct the new found sheep.

Just before saying this, Paul states, "Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If am to live in the flesh that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell." (Phil. 1:20b-22). I have always loved this passage, but knowing it came from a man who is content in prison, gives it a whole new perspective. Paul is showing us that living for Christ can mean many hardships and trails, but it is worth it, as long as you get to share Christ with others. But once we pass from this life there is but more gain and treasure...we have a living hope.

This all also relates to Paul's earlier statement in Phil. 1:6-"And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ." Paul is encouraging his brethren, while he is in prison! Paul knows that God has given us the treasure of a living hope, the promise of being resurrected and conformed into the perfect image of His Son.

Paul displays someone who is perfectly content in whatever situation he finds himself. But how can he? How can Paul be content and rejoicing in his present situation, sitting in a dingy, dark and smelly cell? He tells us later on in his letter...

Phil. 4:13 says "I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." Many times we take this passage out of context, interpreting it to mean that we can do anything with Jesus on our side...we can win any battle, or achieve a financial goal, or any goal that we have set for ourselves. But if we look at the context of the passage, it's meaning is that we can be content in whatever situation we are, because of Christ.

Going back two verses it says "For I have learned in whatever situation to be content...I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." Paul is content in his cell, because Christ has given him the strength to be so.

It matters not what our situation is, as long as our eyes are fixed on Christ and our strength comes from Him, we can be perfectly content! It was when Peter looked at the waves around him that they started to consume him. But when our eyes are fixed on Christ, the waves are oblivious to us, it's not that they are gone, we just don't notice them because Christ is our all in all, and we are eventually able to conquer the waves because of Christ!

Paul is writing this to all of us while he is in prison. He is content because of Christ's strength. He is rejoicing because the gospel is being shared. No matter our situation, Christ gives us the strength to be content!

More to come....

Making Memories

2009-08-10T17:49:00.000-07:00

Life is precious and unexpected. We never know what the future may hold. We never know what may happen to us, and to those around us. Every day is a gift, and should be a memory. Memories never leave us, they are with us for every day that we spend on this earth. Loved ones and precious tokens may perish and leave us, but the memories of those things never leave. We should always be looking for opportunities to make a memory.

Last night was a memory making moment. Karissa, Destiny and I were at Grandpa and Grandma's, sitting in their living room contentedly sipping organic hot chocolate and looking through thier wedding album, listening to all the details and the story of their lives. Grandma sure had a nice wedding and it was so much fun hearing about it. We learned stories we had never heard before, we loved learning stuff from Grandma.

It was indeed a memory making moment. Every know and again we need to remember to make a memory!

How Should We Live...

2009-07-31T19:17:00.000-07:00

What does it mean to live like a christian? What does it mean to be set apart? So many people today bear the title "christian" but their life style says other wise. Christians, instead of standing out, try desperately to just fit in. Instead of being a city on a hill, we join the common crowd.

This past week there has been a song that is constantly playing in the house, ( I won't say who keeps playing it:)), but we all sort of like. The beat is very catchy and fun, so we sing along. But today instead of just dancing and singing to it I actually listened to the words and they set me thinking on this subject. Here is the chorus:

"Don't let your lights go down.
Don't let your fire burn out.
Somewhere somebody needs a reason to believe.
Don't be afraid to stand out...
That's how the lost get found."
-Britt Nicole

Christians today, especially the young group, have been pressured into thinking that we need to fit in. In order for us to be able to reach out, we need to be like them. I'm not saying that this is bad, God calls His people out of darkness through so many ways, what I'm trying to say, is that our life style needs to be different from the lost. We can't be afraid to be different. We can't be scared of standing out, because that's how the lost get found.

Scripture calls us the salt of the earth, the city on a hill, the light on a candle stick. As the elect chosen of God, we need to stand out, we need to be the light of a dark world, we need to show the world that we have been chosen and set apart unto holiness.

Matt. 5:16- "...let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven."

We don't win the world over by being like them, but rather by standing apart from them. Why would they want to come to Christianity if it looks no different than the life they already live?

The world can't see Christ in us if we're just like them. They can only see Christ if we're like Him, and He was a man who stood out and left His mark on this earth. Yes, He did mix with the commoners, but He did not try to fit in with them, by dressing like them, acting like them, doing the same things they did, He ministered to them, out of love, by being different from them.

How should we live? We can't be afraid to stand out, because that's how the lost get found.

At the County Fair!

2009-07-28T13:54:00.001-07:00

Last Saturday, Mom, took us all to the fair, plus Destiny, so that we could see what place we got in all the different stuff that we entered. Plus we happened to be there the same time that the Emmons Sisters were playing :). Anyways we had fun walking around looking at stuff, eating samples, trying on nail polish, and buying $20 flip-flops (I really needed them :)...Good memories!

An Eight Year-Olds Perspective on Woman

2009-07-27T11:57:00.000-07:00

The other night I was watching good old "Pride and Prejudice" with the younger siblings, while everyone else was at a lesson or some sort. My little bro, Levi, was playing a game, when he popped his head up and said "All girls ever do is laugh or cry, nothing else." Just like that he had made a very profound statement which is uncannily true. Throught out the rest of the movie he would point out "see, now they're crying" or "now they are laughing".

I thought it was pretty fun, seeing that he is growing up with five sisters and already has his take on woman.

"All girls ever do is laugh or cry."

Freinds, Music, and Ice Cream!

2009-07-18T12:13:00.000-07:00

There are many combination's in this world...cookies and cream, peanut butter and jelly, cake and ice cream etc...but no combination compares to the combination of friends, music, and ice cream. It is because of our friends we are able to play and hear great music, and compare our ice cream flavors (like the one of fries dipped in vanilla) :)

Last night was just great! We had a fun time performing "A Night of Music" with all our friends involved and some watching...and then we had a fun time fellowshiping in the parking lot of Mickey D's!

So in conclusion nothing beats the combination of friends, music and ice cream!

The Goldman Family

2009-07-18T11:52:00.000-07:00

You're Invited!

2009-06-30T17:01:00.001-07:00

Me and many of my cousins shall be participating in this...mark your calendars!!

A Night of Music!

July 17th at 7pm

A Day with Esther at the Park

2009-06-05T16:51:00.000-07:00

The other day, me and Esther went to pick up some milk, since we were a little early, we decided to walk around this little private park and I shot some pictures! I just want to say that it was a special time with a wonderful sis, and I only hope that I can enjoy and appreciate my siblings more, because they are pretty cool!

Being Pruned

2009-06-03T16:41:00.000-07:00

Today, during my Bible reading time, I came across John 15:2 and it really kind of stuck out at me.

"Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He take away; every branch that does bear fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit."

At first I just passed over it, but then when I read it again I started thinking about pruning. What exactly is pruning? Well I thought back to my Uncle Hugh, and how he would come and cut back all our rose bushes saying he was pruning them, so that when Spring came they would bloom even better than they had in the past. After that, I was thinking about the plant that was being pruned and what was going through their minds. I mean, image if you were a full grown bush, you had just reached your pinnacle and all was good. You were fully grown and had just reached a nice size, and then comes along this gardener and he hacks away all your branches, everything that you had just spent all your time to grow!

Sounds pretty depressing, but that's was God does to His elect, for a reason. When we face trials and tribulations, what God is really doing is He's pruning us. He cuts us back, gets rid of everything that we had stored up and makes us start over.

But there's a reason to all this pruning. The verse goes on to say "that it may bear more fruit". God prunes us so that we can learn from our experience and grow back twice as strong and productive. So that we can become better fruit bearers for Christ, and be better witnesses for the kingdom of God.

1 Peter 1:6-8 says- "In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ."

We go through trials, only to be strengthened. We go through hard times only to find that our faith is stronger. We're pruned because we're loved!

So as children of God, expect to be pruned, but also expected to bear more fruit, and to be strengthened by Christ.

Don't complain when God's got the scissors...He's pruning you, so that when the next season arrives (or the next trial), you'll be ready!

2009-06-01T12:07:00.000-07:00

Tired of the same old studio look? Your kids are growing, and you just can't seem to keep up with the pictures? Can't afford the studio prices? Want those precious memories to last forever? I would love to capture those moments for you!

kailaphotography.com

Meet Zorro!

2009-05-23T15:52:00.000-07:00

Last night, around 8:30 Mom had to make a quick trip to the grocery store...mysterious? Well not to me, I just figured she had to get something right before bed time. At around 9:30pm I was ready to go to bed, but Dad wouldn't let me...he said we were going to have a little graduation party for me...Mom had gotten a few little gifts. I was totally not expecting anything that big, as I told my parents I really didn't need anything :)

Well, in walks Karissa with a gift bag. I noticed that she was holding it a little weird, I just figured maybe it was glass or something. When I opened the gift, to my utter surprise and astonishment, there lay the cutest little Chihuahua! I had NEVER in my wildest dreams expected that! I have always loved and wanted one, but Dad has vowed that we would never get a Chihuahua, and Mom most defiantly didn't want another dog....so I never expected such a gift, though I really wanted one.

He is a smaller type of Chihuahua, and most adorable! I decided to call him Zorro, because of the dominant black on him :) He is like 10 weeks old right now and was born around Easter. He is tiny and fits right in my hand and in one of Dad's shirt pockets :)

I am forever grateful for this WONDERFUL present! Today, Zorro went with me to my guitar lesson, then we went shopping for a carrier for him! He just slept in my arms as I roomed the stores today.

When we got home, I introduced him to Phineas, who just adored Zorro! They are going to be great buds :)

On top of all this Grandma took me shopping yesterday for my birthday, so I also now have a bunch of new clothes! She is a wonderful Grandma, and is getting good at finding stuff that I like :)

My blessings are abundant!

p.s. sorry the picture is blurry...he doesn't like to stay still :)

Class of 2009!

2009-05-22T09:41:00.000-07:00

T.E.A.C.H Graduating Class of 2009!

Moving the Tassel :)

Giving my speech

The Whole Gang!

With my wonderful family!

With Mom and Daddy

Me and Nat-Nat

I don't what it is about the guys, always having to look funny in a picture :)

Big Day, Tomorrow

2009-05-18T23:06:00.000-07:00

Life is moving on...Tomorrow is my official graduating day, the big ceremony! My life up to this point has been one of the greatest learning adventures ever, and I hope to continue learning. God has worked in my life in so many ways through so many different means, and I hope to continue to following Him and His will.

Life is moving on....

p.s. stay tuned for my graduating "speech"

Photoshoot Time with Cousins!

2009-05-01T19:41:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I was able to take Destiny, David, Alex and my sis, Karissa, out for some photoshooting. I'm trying to compile some pictures for my portfolio for when I start a photography business! They were so wonderful and did a great job smiling, posing and whatever I asked them to do. These are just a few of the 600 pictures that I took. I posted some more on my facebook page, so you are more than welcome to go there and look at them...just click here

All in all we had a fun time and made some good memories!

The '08-09 Speech season is over

2009-05-01T09:07:00.000-07:00

Well, as we enter the glorious summer season, it does present a some what downfall...the end of the Clarion Club weekly meetings...so sad.

Last Tuesday, Clarion had it's annual end of the year banquet. All the seniors this year got up and ran some very fun and silly activities, organized by our lovely Mrs. Deems! After that we gave our thankful quotes and talks to everyone who has made Clarion club possible.

When the banquet was over, we all just had to go to Mickey D's (McDonalds) for ice cream, as is tradition! In the end we ended up dancing the Virginia reel in their parking lot till midnight...great times!

Now we get to look forward to the '09-2010 season!

Dancing in the parking lot :)

Quotes- Struggles

2009-04-28T10:20:00.000-07:00

"God never promises to remove us from our struggles. He does promise, however, to change the way we look at them."
Max Lucado

"Smooth seas don't make skillful sailors." Proverb

Colorado and Campfires!

2009-04-13T20:57:00.000-07:00

Life goes so fast! It seems like I was just getting over with last years Regional Tournament in Seattle, and now here I am packing to head off to Colorado for Regionals! So yeah, instead of sitting here I should be packing, but I am just tired of trying on clothes and meditating over what to wear. I am so excited and ready to compete! I shall be missing all my friends that won't be able to make it, but I will probably be calling them everyday, just so I can talk :)

This may sound weired but the thing that I am most excited about is to finally be able to sleep in a bed! You see for the last 4 months I have been sleeping on the living room couch, and am now so elated about the prospect of sleeping in a bed! Okay, so that sounded very weired, but I am excited about it :) My plan is to make Karissa and Desting share the sofa bed, while I lounge in the big queen sized bed (that probably won't happen, but I can dream about it).

Tonight we had a camp fire with hot dogs and smores! I love my family, and we have some fun times together! I shall miss them.

Anyways, tomorrow we fly! I had better go and make sure my ipod is charged for the plane ride. Love you all and shall keep you updated!

An Exhilarating Day

2009-04-11T19:00:00.000-07:00

WOW! Over the past month I have discovered the immense pleasure of jogging on end. Today was Medford, OR biggest athletic event (that's the language that they used), the Pear Blossom Run. A couple of weeks ago I decided to enter the 10 mile run along with some other friends. It was great! I had expected to come out of it felling half dead, but instead I was all pumped, exhilarated and ready for more (well maybe not). The weather was perfect and the countryside beautiful, plus there was great support from practically everyone. Granted about 3 miles into it I was tired, but after I hit 5 miles I got my second-wind!

It was great and everyone did a great job! Even though some us had a cold, others multiple blisters and another had his arm in a sling we had great finishes. After we finished, some us enjoyed a free barbecue and ice cream sandwiches, provided by a friend :)! What a day...it was awesome! You should all start to jog a little everyday, it really does make you feel better!

Senior Photoshoot Day

2009-04-01T13:07:00.000-07:00

An Announcement

2009-04-01T09:13:00.000-07:00

Hey Everyone, I have some bad news.
As you all know today is "White Rabbit" day,
well the white rabbit is dead...

April Fools!!!!

Senior Pictures with Freinds!

2009-03-31T08:25:00.000-07:00

Dylan, Aaron, Tait, Natalie and me

Well the past weeks have been full of lovely sunshine, with a little rain. I have been busy working at Grandpa and Grandma's, and working on speech, because in two weeks I leave to Colorado for Regionals!!!

Next Saturday, I shall most likely kill myself in a ten mile run...I've been jogging everyday so I think I shall survive...hopefully :)

Last Saturday I got together with some friends to take some pictures for our senior year...yup we're all graduating this year!! God has blessed me with some wonderful friends...I am forever thankful for them all.

God is good...what more is there to say :)

p.s. more pictures to come on my Facebook page

Birthdays!

2009-03-26T21:05:00.000-07:00

Last week were the birthdays of two very important people in my life-

My wonderful brother, Kolten! He has turned into a big 15 year old...scary to think that he could get his permit, I sure hope he doesn't take driving lessons form me :) Kolten is the coolest brother ever...and I mean THE one and only coolest brother ever (besides my tow other bothers, they too are pretty cool). Kolten is funny, charming, witty, has a sweet dispensation, and all around lovable, especially when he does his little grin :) There is something about him where he can't stop smiling, I guess he just loves life! I love my brother very very very much....
Natalie, my dearest of dear friends! Natalie has been such a wonderful, loving and caring friend since I have known her! She has set before me a great example of a godly woman and I only hope that I could be more like her!

I love you two very much!

This is a little slideshow I made of the great time we had taking Natalie out to ice cream for her birthday!

A Day in Jacksonville!

2009-03-14T18:59:00.000-07:00

On a gloriously sunny Friday, I met up with some of the Emmon's so Victoria could take mine and Natalie's senior pictures. Destiny and Karissa came along to make fun of me posing :) It was such a fun memory. It was so funny that me and Natalie ended up practically matching without even knowing it...she's such a kindred spirit!

These are just some of the fun pictures that we took!

We got in trouble for matching :)

Time to relax

The "Stragglers"

Hey...we weren't the only ones in blue!

The End...

There will be more pictures on my facebook page.

Doctor Operating on Womans Brain Tumor Finds Live Worm In Brain

2009-03-08T21:31:00.000-07:00

Maybe there's a reason God said "And the pig... is unclean to you." (Lev.11:7)

Clarion Tournament of 2009

2009-02-23T10:53:00.000-08:00

Okay, here they are, pictures from the Clarion Tournament of 2009!

"Is this really how I look?"

Such dear friends :)

The Debater- Tait Deems

The "girls" arrive!!

Me and Natalie, attempting to play chess :)

Dylan, Alex, and Aaron

The famous "signs" game, played at like all the tournaments, all the time :)

Alexa, Stephanie, Mrs. Deems and me

Yeah! I got 4th place out of like 30 people in Apologetics!

Christian Covenant Kruse

2009-02-10T10:28:00.000-08:00

As many of you know, our families went through a very tough week with the birth of a still born child. On January 31st, we held a funeral service for this precious child from God. There were many friends and family that came to mourn with us and comfort the Kruse family. On Monday Feb. 2nd there was a burial service for the family to attend. This may have been the hardest time for the Kruses because they finally had to let Christian go. It was also very comforting to know that Christian is in the arms of Jesus. Because of the covenantal promise given to generations, we can have assurance to one day see Christian Kruse all healthy and well, and all our tears will be wiped away. Thank God for that promise!

Winter Wonderland

2009-02-10T10:00:00.000-08:00

Yes, we did it...we moved and we are already snowed in! But it is so beautiful. We now have 10 acres and a brand new house. God has indeed blessed us! Here are some pics of our new house-

Katrina, in front of our hill.

This pictures show what is our property, we pretty much own the one side of a hill.

This picture is the view that we get from our patio and the back of our house.

God sure knows how to paint a picture with His creation! What do you think? Come visit us some time :)

Life in Death

2009-01-26T12:41:00.000-08:00

How strong is your faith? Do you truly have faith in all the attributes of God? I was challenged with these questions on the last day of our Medford tournament. When the news arrived that Jodi had lost her baby, I was crushed. I knew how much the Kruses wanted that child. They had nearly given up on the hope of ever having another baby, but God had blessed them and she became pregnant. But then God took that child away, three weeks before it was about the enter the world.

I was angry. Why had God done this to them? What was His plan? Could I even believe that this was His plan? I was deeply challenged, and mad. Then when I got into my round, and saw that I had to talk on the grace of God, it came to me, as like a voice in my head. God said "can you trust in Me, even when your emotions tell you not too?" God wanted to see how much I believed in His grace. Yeah, sure, I was able to study it and talk about it, but did I truly trust in it? Could I talk about even when I was being challenged in it?

It was then that I realized that God's grace was clearly seen in it all. God had given them this child. He had allowed them to build a relationship with this child for eight months. All of this was God's grace towards the Kruse family. While I talked about it in my round, there was this voice in my head that kept saying "praise Me for the child, it was by My grace that they spent eight months with it in the womb, praise Me."

God took this little child, this child that no one had yet seen, and built all of our faiths up through it. God wanted to see how much we really believed what we were saying. Right then and there I finally came to realize the full meaning of His grace, sovereignty and holiness, like I never had before.

Now we all thank God for what He did through this little child. Our tournament took on a different aspect based on the work God did through this child. Jodi's prayer had always been that her children would further the kingdom of God, and even this child, that would never live to see this world, changed the lives of so many people. We became a closer body of Christ. We had each other to cry with, and to pray for, and I thank God for that!

Even in the death of this beloved child, we saw a new aspect of life!

As I was writing this post this song came up-

Blessed be Your Name

Blessed be Your name in the land that is plentiful
Where Your streams of abundance flow
Blessed be Your name
And blessed be Your name when I'm found in the desert place
Though I walk through the wilderness
Blessed be Your name

Every blessing You pour out I'll
turn back to praise
And when the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say


Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name

VERSE 2:
Blessed be Your name when the sun's shining down on me
When the world's "all as it should be"
Blessed be Your name
And blessed be Your name on the road marked with suffering
Though there's pain in the offering
Blessed be Your name


You give and take away
You give and take away
My heart will choose to say
Lord, blessed be Your name

What Have You Suffered?

2009-01-10T21:24:00.000-08:00

We do not know who it was who had this dream, quoted in the Presbyterian Survey. But the unknown dreamer could be any one of us, could it not?

I saw in a dream that I was in the Celestial City—though when and how I got there I could not tell. I was one of a great multitude which no man could number, from all countries and peoples and times and ages. Somehow I found that the saint who stood next to me had been in Heaven more than 1,860 years.

“Who are you?” I said to him.

“I,” said he, “was a Roman Christian; I lived in the days of the Apostle Paul, I was one of those who died in Nero’s persecutions. I was covered with pitch and fastened to a stake and set on fire to light up Nero’s gardens.”

“How awful!” I exclaimed.

“No,” he said, “I was glad to do something for Jesus. He died on the cross for me.”

The man on the other side then spoke: “I have been in Heaven only a few hundred years. I came from an island in the South Seas—Erromanga. John Williams, a missionary, came and told me about Jesus, and I too learned to love Him. My fellow-countrymen killed the missionary, and they caught and bound me. I was beaten until I fainted and they thought I was dead, but I revived. Then next day they knocked me on the head, cooked and ate me.”

“How terrible!” I said.

“No,” he answered, “I was glad to die as a Christian. You see the missionaries had told me that Jesus was scourged and crowned with thorns for me.”

Then they both turned to me and said, “What did you suffer for Him? Or did you sell what you had for the money which sent men like John Williams to tell the heathen about Jesus?”

And I was speechless. And while they both were looking at me with sorrowful eyes, I awoke, and it was a dream! But I lay on my soft bed awake for hours, thinking of the money I had wasted on my own pleasures; or my extra clothing, and costly car, and many luxuries; and I realized that I did not know what the words of Jesus meant: “If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me” (Mark 8:34).

Now, with the New Year, make your life more productive for Christ!

The '08 Christmas Season

2009-01-08T10:58:00.000-08:00

This past year we had a most wonderful Christmas season. God has enriched my life with such a wonderful, loving and caring family. The joy to be able to spend time together in one another company, without any strife or degree of separation, but to be able to soak in the unity, and godly fellowship with each other was such a blessing.

On Christmas Eve, my mom made a delicious dinner for our family and Grandpa Ken and Grandma Dot joined us. Then we opened presents and enjoyed some hot cider.

We had a wonderful time getting together on Christmas day, sharing a potluck meal, exchanging gifts, and playing a wild game of "White Elephant"! Dad gave an awesome mini sermon on the song "Joy to the World" and then we all sang it together.

Then on the following week, my family traveled down to northern Cali, to share Christmas with Mummu and Papa Dean. We had the most scrumptious dinner, and then we opened presents!

All-in all, it was a fun-filled Christmas week.
And in it all I was continually reminded to look back at the meaning of it all. The fact that "Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross." (Phil.2:8)

Christ came to earth, so that He could become the perfect sacrifice in order to accomplish the redemption of Adam's fallen seed, and this is what we were celebrating!

Jesus and Santa

2008-12-12T12:15:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving Celebration

2008-11-30T18:41:00.000-08:00

I had a wonderful time getting together with our families. All the Goldman's, Kruses, and my family gathered at Grandpa and Grandma's house, with some other people, there was a total of 39 people! At 1pm, on Thanksgiving day we all arrived at the house with turkeys and lots of other food. We ate, then we talked, then we ate dessert, then we started the annual AGK talent show! When that was over, we ate some more, and we talked some more, and we played some more. Then there was clean up time...fun...fun...fun :) God has blessed me with so many blessings, among them was the fellowship that we all enjoyed, the talents that we watched, the abundant food, and so much more.

"The Fiddlin Twins!"

Mummu and Karissa

"Hmmm"

Someone got very tired

Why does Karissa have two plates?

Karissa, me, Anna, and Katrina

Levi and Jared, the hippy pilgrims

Thanksgiving Blessings

2008-11-26T09:17:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday, Dad (Pastor Kenny Anderson) gave a sermon on "The 7 "S's" We Should be Thankful For"...I just thought I would post them so that you too can be thankful for the wonderful blessings God has given us, as 2 Cor. 9:15 says- "Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!"

Salvation- What more is there to be thankful for, than the redeeming work of Christ. Without His coming, His death and His resurrection, without the Father choosing to save His elect and sending His Son to take on His wrath and justice, we would all be condemned to pay the penalty for our sins. But instead there has been provided a path of forgiveness, a way unto salvation. Be thankful, all of you, the elect, for the salvation provided to us by the blood of our Lord and Savior. "For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly." Rom.5:6 "But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Cor. 15:57. Thank God for saving you, in spite of you!

The Sovereignty of God- So many people say that they believe in the sovereignty of God, but do they trust in it? And are they thankful for it? 1 Peter 5:6-7 says "Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you." We need to be emounsly grateful for the fact that we serve a sovereign, all just, and loving God! "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Phil. 4:6-7. We as believers should believe in the comforting confidence of God's sovereignty, so that we may be at peace in the Lord.

Spankings- We get to thank God for the sufferings that He gives us, and they will only be appreciated when we understand the sovereignty of God. Prov. 13: 24 shows us that love is displayed in discipline, for it reads "Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him." When you are being disciplined, when things are hard and life isn't easy (the pilgrims sure didn't have it easy), it all goes to show that you are a son or daughter of God, and that you are loved by God. 1 Peter 4:12-13- "Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed." We are to expect hard times, to not be surprised when we are challenged, and when those times come, we should rejoice that we got to share in the sufferings of Christ! Be thankful for the hard times, for the spankings!

Scripture- The Word of God is living and powerful, over the blood of many martyrs, we can now read it in our own language. It is a gift for which we should be thankful. David showed His delight for the Word of God in Ps. 119, where he calls is sweeter than honey, a delight, a light, and a path unto righteousness. God has given us His Word, so that we may know His plan for our lives, so that we may know His laws and precepts, so that we may walk in the path of light and not stumble in the darkness. Through the Word of God, we can read about the salvation provided unto us through Jesus Christ. It is a precious jewel, for which we need to show our gratefulness!

Sanctuary- Not only has God given us salvation, shown His love through spankings, and given us His Word, but He has also given us His Church, His body of people. Ps.35:18- "I will thank you in the great congregation;in the mighty throng I will praise you." 1 Peter 2:2-6 "Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation—if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." We as a body are the Church,we are members. one of another, and we should be thankful for one another, we should be thankful for our cooperate worship!

The Supper- As we come to the Thanksgiving table, we should remember the ultimate meal- the King's Table! God has provided His Son as the bread and wine, He has invited us to enter His heavenly home and to sit at His table! Matt. 26:26-28 "Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, 28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins." Just as Christ gave thanks, so we should be thankful for the invitation to eat at His Table, the ultimate Thanksgiving meal!

The Spirit- after Christ ascended to sit once again at the right hand of God, He did not leave us unequipped, but He gave us His Spirit, so that we may proclaim the gospel and conquer the world with His truths! "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Acts 1:8

These are just a few of the great blessings that God has graciously bestowed upon us. Remeber the Lord and His works, not just on Thanksgiving, but throughtout the whole of your life!
"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." 1 Thess. 5:16-18

Happy Birthday Destiny

2008-11-21T08:33:00.000-08:00

Today is the birthday of a very special young lady. On this day, fifteen years ago, God blessed us with Destiny Jane. All who know her cannot deny what a joy it is to be around her. I have been blessed to be able to have her as a dear friend. She has taught me so much over the years. She is always honoring her parents, loving her siblings, and is so patient and loving towards others. Whenever she is around other people she always makes things so much funner...and never thinks about herself but rather what the other person wants!

She has made some very fun memories over the years with us! Whenever Destiny and Karissa are in the car with me, you can be sure of two things...first is that we probably look like a bunch of silly girls, for all we do is laugh and laugh and we have no idea at what we are laughing! Secondly, you can be sure that we will most likely stop at a Dutch Bros. for a smoothie, even if we have to dig up ever cent that we can find! Oh...and one other thing, you can be sure to see Destiny in the back seat either rummaging through my purse (for whatever reason, I have no idea), or stealing my makeup! Also her and Karissa, take pleasure in jumping on me, right when I am dozing off to sleep after talking to them till 1am! Yeah...those are great memories :)

Destiny is such a remarkable woman. She never ever seems stressed out at about anything, but at all things she brings laughter into them. Like what it says about the Prov. 31 woman- " Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come."
Destiny's love for her Lord and family, shine through all that she does. God does indeed have a truly wonderful plan for such a wonderful woman!
I love you Des, and pray that you shall continue to prosper in the work of the Lord, and His plan for your life!

Happy Birthday!

Another Anderson!!!

2008-11-11T12:16:00.000-08:00

What joy that I am yet another older cousin. Uncle Troy, Aunt Heather and the rest of the Troy Anderson family welcomed Ethan Chase Anderson into their family on Nov. 8th, 2008, as do we all. God has blessed us once again with another one of His miracles. Image...I am now the oldest cousin of 31! And there are still more to come... What a joy indeed!

"I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well."
Ps. 139:14

It's Fall!

2008-11-01T15:37:00.000-07:00

"Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God." 1 John 4:7

For Your Pure Pleasure

2008-10-31T17:35:00.001-07:00

This post is for your own pleasure, I have absolutely no reason why I am posting it other than that.

This evening, I had the sole delight to cut out a chicken's backbone! Have you ever done that? It was quite the experience :) Note the following dialog-

Kaila-"Hey Mom, I'm suppose to cut out the chickens backbone for this recipe. How am I suppose to do that?"

Mom-"I don't know. Just get a knife and cut it out, but watch out for your fingers (I have a bad reputation of cutting myself)."

Kaila-"Okay...here goes nothing."

10 minutes later, Mom walks into the kitchen only to find me still sawing away at this little 5lb chicken.

Kaila-"I think I hit a bone and am stuck on it."

Mom-"Just cut through it...but watch your fingers."

Kaila (2 min. later)-"I did it!(swinging the bone around) I just cut out the whole backbone of a chicken...how cool is that!"

Mom (thinking to herself) -"She's got some problems."

So if ever you come across a recipe that requires you to cut out a backbone...just give me a call...I know exactly how it goes...NOT :)

It was fun!

What Single Girls/Woman Can Learn From "Fireproof"

2008-10-13T00:56:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago, we were blessed to go see the latest movie produced by Christians. Fireproof, was a movie based on saving your marriage. Caleb (Kirk Cameron) is a firefighter who (as the movie puts is) is a hero to everyone except his own wife. When they finally decided to get a divorce, his father steps in and challenges Caleb to put it off for forty-days in order to go through the "Love Dare", a journal that calls one to do certain acts of kindness towards the other spouse. When it seems that all is failing, Caleb is brought to Christ, in order to understand the true meaning of love.
In the end Caleb eventually wins back the heart of his wife, and they continue to strive to make their marriage fireproof!

Though the movie was more geared towards married couples, I, as a single girl, still gained a great lesson from it. Throughout the movie, we are introduced to a co-worker of Caleb's wife, Dr. Gavin , who sets out to win the heart of Caleb's wife. She in turn responds positively, and we are left with the picture of her giving her heart away to man who is not her husband.

As single girls, we need to guarded our hearts and not let them be easily stolen. The picture that was portrayed by Caleb's wife giving her heart away is a perfect picture of what it looks like when we give our hearts away to someone whom we do not plan to marry, or when we are not even ready for marriage. When we give our hearts away, it is almost like adultery in God's eyes for He has already picked out our future spouse, and when we give away our hearts to someone He has not chosen, then there is nothing left to give to the man that we do marry. We as single girls, need to learn to guard our hearts, so that when we do meet the man we are going to marry we can then fully give him our whole hearts. If we go through life falling in love with the next cute boy, by the time we meet our true prince charming, we will have noting left to give to him.

This is such an important lesson that most girls these days do not understand. They think that we have to "try out" different guys through the dating system. That we have to find our own prince charming. We must remember that God has a man picked out just for you and me, all we have to do is wait till He brings him into our lives, and prepare for that special moment when we can give our hearts to the man that God has chosen, in His good time!

Ellie and Anna

2008-10-09T12:04:00.000-07:00

Brian Regan - Cooking Shows

2008-09-26T22:53:00.000-07:00

"Blessed are the Uncool" pt.2

2008-09-18T19:13:00.000-07:00

Chapter 2- Rebellion on Stage

Without an audience there simply is no cool. If you take aways it’s audience cool disappears into thin air because cool is both a mood and an attitude-- though in a slightly different sense from everyday language.

Mood- "the social environment in which perception, emotions and thoughts may occur." It is basically via a mood that we relate to our surroundings.
Attitude- If cool requires a receptive audience, the main piece of performance is attitude- 'a projection of mastery over the entire environment. Cool glories in the spotlight saying, "I'm better than you. I am an individual, you are just a clone."

One of the primary vehicles cool performance is rebellion. Cool rebels can't build a new society because their commitment to the cause is surpassed by their commitment to rebellion. The "revolution" of cool rebellion is an individual affair.

Not all rebellion is wrong, and not all individual rebelling is about being cool. There is a kind of rebellion practiced by the prophets. Prophets are messengers from God, messengers who are against wrong doing in a government or society. Prophets are almost always universally rejected. The most famous case of a prophet’s loneliness is Elijah's complaint to God in 1 Kings 19.

But there is a big difference between the lonely rebellion of a prophet and the rebellion for rebellions sake of the hipster. Prophets stand alone against evil, at first, but their greatest hope is for everyone else to soon join them. Cool rebels, on the other hand, don’t want to be joined by the world; that will just make them want to find another way to stand out and apart from others.

Loneliness is a very serious matter for God. God expects us all to live in community. Human nature is communal, because we are made in the image of God, and God is love. Christianity is a radically relational and historical faith. Cool lives in the here and now, but the beloved community is focused on a moment in space and time, the moment of Immanuel, God-with-us. We can survive the loss of our cool because our faith is rooted in the compassion of the God, who is Immanuel. The loneliness of cool rebellion is met by the Church in the gift of reconciliation.

"Blessed are the Uncool"
-Paul Grant

Happy (belated) Birthday Karissa!

2008-08-30T16:34:00.000-07:00

Even though Karissa's birthday was a couple of weeks ago, I still want to do a post about her.
When Karissa was born, little did I know that she would become my best friend, but God knew. He gave me the greatest sister that there could ever be. Karissa is always there to encourage me to be a better woman, she is always there for me to talk too (for I talk a lot!), she is always guiding me in any decision and she shows me the fault of my actions in the most loving and gentle manner as any could.

They say that the greatest friend listens. At night when the day is all done and gone, I lie in my bed and me and Karissa have a long chat, but now that I look back at those nights, I realize that I did most the talking. She is always there to listen to my griefs, my joys, my sorrows and my plans for the future, and yet she guides and directs my fiery nature. She rebukes me in a most loving and kind way. The greatest leaders are servants...and that is Karissa.

I thank God for the gift that He has given me in my sister, Karissa. I pray that our friendship shall continue to grow through all the upcoming years of our lives.
I love you Karissa!

Happy 16th Birthday, Sis!

You're Invited!

2008-08-15T15:44:00.000-07:00

Centennial Play

On the twenty third of August at 6:30 p.m, at the Roxy Ann Grange in Medford, there is going to be a stage production on the War for Independence, put on by your local homeschool students. This play is focused on the time that America became a free nation and is written by a home schooled senior, Kaila Anderson.

The story is about a young man and woman, who live in Virginia in the year of 1776. It is the story of a nation, that is struggling to regain her freedom that she once had, and of the people who believe in their country and are willing to make sacrifices for her freedom. It is about families who face hardships together, and who rely on the strength of God. Come see a story of love, loss, joy, hardships and eventually victory!

All this is to take place on the twenty third of August, at the Roxy Ann Grange in Medford (1850 Spring St. Medford OR). The evening shall begin at 6:30pm, and following it shall be a dessert social. There is an admission fee of $2 per person, or $5 a family. For more information contact Kaila Anderson- (541) 665-5238.

Anderson Clan

2008-08-02T09:16:00.000-07:00

All the Cousins

"Dress Up"

2008-07-24T18:20:00.000-07:00

This picture got first at the Jackson County Fair,
in the black and white division

A Day at the Park

2008-07-23T12:29:00.000-07:00

This picture got 2nd at the Jackson County Fair!

The other day, our family went the park and I had a lot of fun taking shots of Katrina and Levi. They are so funny...continually they just wanted to play around in the grass and make funny faces, but I got a few good pictures out of it all.

Life has been busy as of late. There has been a lot going on and so I haven't found the time for all that I have wanted to do...like post every day. Thanks to "me" (whoever that may be) I decided to get back into it :)

I did enter some pictures in the fair and I got 1st in the black and white division, and 2nd in the candid people division!

Church Website

2008-07-23T12:24:00.001-07:00

Want to hear some great sermons.
Sermons on the Ten Commandments, motherhood and fatherhood, marriage and dating?
All of these and lots more, you can learn about. These sermons give helpful insights and biblical principles on all the topics of the Bible, and they are all by my awesome dad- Pastor Kenny Anderson.
The website is - christcovenantsermons.com

God Bless!

Devin

2008-06-21T10:02:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Devin Fredrick

I have seen Devin mature into one of the most serving, godly and considerate young man that there ever was. Why just yesterday, he was over here helping the kids clean out our pool (which is a messy job). He didn't play or anything, just served us all! He is always there to give you a massage, or an encouraging word to lift your spirits. Wherever we go, everyone knows who Devin is and have been touched by his friendship. Not only is he a servant to those around him, but also a servant unto God. Devin continually strives to serve and honor God in all his actions, I say this because I have seen him do just that. I am so thankful to God for blessing me with Devin as a dear cousin. I pray that he may still mature and grow in the grace of God, that his servant attitude shall bless others, and may he always strive to serve God above all!

Happy Birthday Devin, and thanks for being one of the greatest cousin any one can ask for!

"Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen." 2 Peter 3:18

The Anderson Legacy

2008-06-15T11:22:00.000-07:00

This is in honor of Grandpa and Grandma's 40th anniversary.
I'm blessed, beyond words, to be a part of their godly legacy!

And, this is for all the people who just can't seem to get our families straight :)

Always There For Your Daughter

2008-06-15T08:55:00.000-07:00

Every day the whole year through,
I feel grateful you are my father.
Some fathers don't have time for their kids,
But for you I'm never a bother.You always make the effort to listen and share;
You're always there when you're needed.
It warms me to know how much you care,
And with that knowledge my worries are defeated.Daddy, you are truly admired and adored,
And as your daughter, I hope that you know,
These sentiments fill me each day of the year,
And my love for you continues to grow.Happy Fathers Day!

-By Joanna Fuchs

This truly is what my Daddy is to me!
I love you so much Daddy,
Happy Father's Day!

The Cutest Cutie

2008-06-11T20:47:00.000-07:00

Look at that smirk :)

He gets a lot of kisses

Here are just a few pictures of the cutest little boy around -Noah Kaden!
Nicknamed by me as "Kaden Boy" :)

The Spirit of Cool

2008-05-31T13:11:00.000-07:00

Admit it, you want to be cool. We all do, me especially. Recently I have been reading this book called "Blessed are the Uncool" by Paul Grant, "Living Authentically in a World of Show". There is so many good things I want to share with you about this book about cool, but I'll just tell about the first half of the first chapter.

We all try to be cool, in what we wear, how we act and what we do. Cool is not innocent, though. It can alienate us from community, family and God. We're so attuned to cool we can hardly imagine life without it. But what we need to understand is that cool doesn't reside in objects or people; it is a tool that can be wielded, but more than often it wields us. This book, he says, is an attempt to image life without cool: it is a search for a better way, an uncool we can live with; an uncool that will free us up to live healthy, authentic and God-fearing lives.

Paul Grant defines cool as -"cool is the private performance of rebellion for rebellions sake."

Cool is private- it is individualistic from beginning to end. Membership to it is less about faithful friendship and more about excluding outsiders.
Cool is performance- cool exists to show off to an uncool crowd. It doesn't care about the past or future, only the present, since performance is always immediate.
Cool is rebellion- cool communicates categorical disrespect for authority. Cool accepts no limits, no ethics, instead it insists on individual authority.
Cools rebellion for it's own sake- normal rebellion ends when the conflict is resolved. Not so with cool: cool shows universal contempt for authority, extending across all space and time. Cool is never done being cool.

Grant ends the chapter with saying that Christians are far richer than the empty bravado behind cool because our story is a great story: a God dies to give us life in abundance. And once we begin to live uncool, our story will get even sweeter!

To Glorify God?

2008-05-20T10:53:00.001-07:00

Of late, I have been thinking about what it means to glorify God. My life's goal has always been to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. When anyone asks me what I live for, or what is speech club, and other things I do, all about I say- "To glorify God".
It has become my life's goal without ever really being there. What I mean is- "am I doing all that I do for the glory of God?" I say it, but do I really do it. What does it mean to glorify God in all that I do?

Psamls 86:12- "I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart, and I will glorify your name forever." Glorify God forever...just think about it. How can we glorify Him? Do we glorify Him?

"May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God." Rom. 16:5-7.
As a church we are to welcome each-other as Christ did us so that we may glorify God. Unbelievers see God through us, we as a Church, as believers in Christ, are to show God and glorify Him to the unbeliever.

Ways we may do this is in our dress. How we look outwardly.
"For do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body." 1 Cor. 6:20.
In the morning, when you get ready for the day, do you look at what you are wearing and ask yourself "does this outfit glorify God, or me?" Does how we look show the world that we are Christians? Do our clothes show that we are set apart, a distinct, chosen people of God? Do they reflect Christ through us? All these questions are what we need to be asking ourselves. We may say we want to glorify God, but do we look it?

Another way is in our speech-
"Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." Phil. 2:9-11.
Does our speech, and the way we talk, show that we confess Christ as our Lord to the glory of the Father?

Prov. 4:24 says- "Put away from you crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you." And Prov 19 says- "Better is a poor person who walks in his integrity than one who is crooked in speech."
This is not just talking about speech club and how we talk in front of the judges, but rather how we talk on the street, with our friends. Do our words come from self-exaltation or for the glory of God? Does what we say show that we are Christians, and wish to profess Christ as Lord? Do we watch what comes out of our mouths?

The tongue is a powerful thing as James describes. It can either build up or tear down. James 3:9 - "With it (the tongue) we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God." Do you profess the Lord with your tongue, yet not glorify His name when you talk to man? We need to think before we speak.

Let me close with this last verse, 1 Cor. 10:31- "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."
Whatever we do, it is to be for God and His glory.
We cannot just say that we will do all to the glory of God, we must practice it on a daily basis. Saying it isn't going to get us anymore, we have to do it!

Laminin

2008-05-03T20:58:00.000-07:00

Col 1:15-17

"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together."

I'm a proud older Cousin!

2008-04-27T17:35:00.000-07:00

Yup...the little Goldman was born this morning. Adorable Jebediah Victor Goldman has officially entered the world, safe and sound, and I, once again, am an older cousin! I know that God will use this young boy to His purposes and I pray that I may be a godly example, always portraying the Creator of this gift in my every action.

Jebediah has been blessed to enter the Goldman family. For they are a God-fearing family who will train and love him, following God's example with us. The Goldman's are a wonderful family who serve God and seek out His will in all that they do. Their children are their legacy, a living, godly legacy.
Jebediah is indeed a blessed child!

p.s. Pictures to come

Life is good!

2008-04-24T14:57:00.000-07:00

God is good, and that makes life great!

So we went to the Regional Speech Tournament last week, and had a blast! Destiny Jane will be going to Nationals in her Dramatic Interp on Lady Jane...it's a really sad and inspiring story.
I learned that if you want to get anywhere you have to put your ALL into it! I also had a lot of fun learning from others and hanging out with them.

Sunday, after the tournament was over, Grandma took us all to the Seattle Aquarium with the Sleadds, and we had a very relaxing time. After that we went on a boat cruise, with drinks and everything (that is what the pictures are from).

Thank you Grandpa Ken and Grandma Dot for paying for everyone and everything! We love you both sooooo much and are forever in debt for all that you have done for us!

Now, life continues, and all is good. Omnibus is going to start up next week and that means I'll have a lot of reading! I think I'm ready for it though :)

See you all later!

"For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake." 2 Cor. 4:5
- Sola Chritus

Should Christians be friends with non-Christians?

2008-04-13T09:09:00.000-07:00

One of the greatest dilemmas for a Christian is the matter of non-Christian friends. Should they continue in a bond or back away? How does this apply with “in the world, but not of it”? How can we evangelize to the unregenerate? All these are questions that many struggle with and I hope to present before you a balance.

First let me lay the foundation for why we shouldn’t have non-Christian friends. 2 Tim. 3 gives description of the ungodly and of them Paul says to “avoid such people… For among them are those who creep into households”. Why? Proverbs says the “companion of fools will be destroyed”. Friendships cause us to be vulnerable, to follow and be influenced by the companion there of. As Christians we cannot serve two masters at once. We have to give Christ are all in all, and being influenced by the ungodly will cause us to stumble.

But how, many ask, are we too evangelize to the non-Christian if we are not to become acquainted with them? Many people today think that in order to get through to such kind we must first learn to relate and become associated with them. Many in the church have fallen into this idea of becoming friendly and ministering through that. But by doing this we are bringing ourselves down to the unregenerate state, and this is exactly what Paul and Solomon are warning against. We are bringing ourselves down to their level not following in the path of Christ, which leads to glorification. We have to be like a city on a hill, a light in the darkness. We need to be different and show the non-Christian that the Christian life-style is different from theirs. We can’t do this by bringing ourselves down to their level in order to relate to them.

So where is the balance? How are we to minister and evangelize if we shouldn’t become close friends? The balance is found in the Word of God, love and compassion. To who we show compassion is different than to whom we become friends. When we look at the non-Christian we should have compassion for them and minister to them without forming some great bond, as Jesus did when He looked out upon the crowds, He looked and had compassion. By living a different life we become a light in the darkness and that city upon a hill. Friendships should be formed with care and should affect others with love. We should correct what is wrong with compassion and love, without bring ourselves down to their level and developing any serious friendships. We needn’t become friends in order to evangelize, that will be becoming unequally yoked. Rather we should minister out of love and compassion, as Christ did for His lost sheep.

It was a Beautiful day

2008-03-21T21:51:00.000-07:00

Today was so beautiful, the sun just wouldn't stop shining. When a day like this happens, I fell like doing something new and adventurous.
This morning my family and the Deems went to 3 homes for the Elder, and we did a mini church service. After that I returned home and set to yard work. While cleaning up debris and such, Katrina comes and hands me a tennis ball...so I throw it and she go's and finds it, then brings it back, only to have the same process repeated. It was quite funny, she seemed to never get tired of chasing the ball :) Afterwards I took her and did a couple shots, but it was too bright and she wouldn't stop squinting. But what do you think...which do you like better?

Now I have been sewing and sewing and sewing some more....and it drives me crazy!!! But it will be worth it in the end :)
I just have to keep remembering the verse-
"Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with (my family always added an all) your might..."
Sleep tight !

Birthdays

2008-03-19T22:21:00.000-07:00

Natalie Emmons- 17
Ever since I have had the pleasure of getting to know Natalie more, I have seen what a true godly young woman is to be. Her gentle and loving spirit has impacted me beyond measure and I can't thank her enough. Her love for the Lord and desire to follow His will shines forth from her face and seems to grow on those around her. I thank God every day for the blessing of Natalie!

Kolten Anderson- 14
My little brother is little no more. He has grown into one of the most godliest men of my acquaintance. All my life I have not appreciated the jewel God has set before, enough. He is always trying to make some joke and lift the atmosphere of those around him. Yet at the same he shows forth the glory of God and continually preaches forth His word in some way or another. I can't thank the Lord enough for His blessing in my brother, Kolten Anderson. I love him so very much, and hope that I show my appreciation for his funny character and godly example!

Happy Birthday you two!
I love you.

The Rainmakers Tournament

2008-03-17T17:46:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2008-03-17T17:15:00.000-07:00

Over six hundred years ago, God raised up a man named Patrick, to take the gospel of Christ to the people of Ireland. Seldom in church history has any missionary been blessed with a more fruitful ministry. The preaching of Patrick was used by God to transform many of the Irish people from idol worshiping pagans into servants of the one true God of Scripture. May his story encourage twenty-first century Christians to be faithful to the Great Commission of Christ: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit..."

Taken from the book- Saint Patrick by Michael McHugh

The Beauty of Spring

2008-03-10T20:53:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited! The warm weather has returned, and our flowers have decided to bloom (a little)!

We just got back from the tournament. It was so much fun and I learned a lot. Being with so many kids, who share the same goal of glorifying God in all that they do, is a breathe of fresh air...I feel even more pumped in my walk with God. Everyone was so encouraging and loving, we all seemed like one big happy family! I can't wait to see and hear from everyone again!

Now my life is about getting back into the gear of school...except now I have to get ready for the junior tournament (being the director and all) and help my younger siblings with their speeches!! It never stops!!! I love it :)

See ya later!
-Kaila

I took Katrina (my ever ready model) out and did a couple shots...
isn't she just the cutest thing? :)

We're Off!

2008-03-06T08:25:00.000-08:00

In a couple or so hours we will be driving to Portland for the Rainmakers Speech Tournament.
Grandma Dot is the one who made all this possible...and has blessed us greatly!
Please pray for us and I'll post the results later!

"But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;" 1 Peter 3:15

Life and Law

2008-02-21T17:49:00.000-08:00

On September 11^th, 2001 over 3500 lives were destroyed when two planes crashed into the World Trade Center. This was a great calamity and we mourned for our loss. Yet the very next day, and every single day afterwards, 4000 innocent babies were tortured and murdered legally in America and by America, and we did nothing. 4000 babies every day - 28,000 every week - 112,000 every month and 1,460,000 every year. This makes a total of 4 million dead babies since the Supreme Court handed down their infamous decision in Roe v. Wade making abortion on demand a legal reality, and yet America still remains proud of her country and ignores the blood on her hands.

Why is America not repentant of her sin? Why have we not turned from our wicked ways and bowed before God? Why is the pro-life movement not making enough progress? Doug Wilson said- “The pro-life movement has been often driven by the sorrow of sentimentalism rather than a zeal for biblical righteousness…” This is our problem and I wish to address it, and then show you what needs to be done to change it.

The battle cry for the pro-life movement has always been the sanctity of life. We base our opposition to abortion upon the fact that all life is sacred. Our testimony against the evil has been mixed. Christians have wanted to think biblically about opposing abortion, but we have been using secular and humanist absolutes. Humanist absolutes like: “all life is sacred period”. For example, if we were consistent with the non-qualified sanctity of human life theory we would have to be against capital punishment. Instead of getting to the heart of the matter we have just stuck to the surface. We have been going about this whole “pro-life” thing with the wrong foundation.

Then how, you ask, are we to stop abortion if we don’t tell people they are killing something that is sacred? What is the right answer to abortion? This leads me to my second point, what we need to do to stop it all.

We all know that man is made in the image of God, and that image is a shield against all lawless bloodshed. The real issue, is not the sanctity of life, it is the sanctity of God's law and the consequential dignity of human life. Doug Wilson explains it like this, “…while having great dignity, human life is not sacred. When we speak as though it is, we leave the distinct impression that the foundation of our humanity is the source of our law, and thus the source of our protest. This is how much of our pro-life involvement has become humanistic instead of biblical. Human life has become a god instead of a gift, an idol instead of a valuable creature.”

Sanctity of life is not to be our foundation. The reason why we ought to oppose abortion is because taking an innocent human life violates the moral law of God. The law gets to the root of everything not just the surface. There’s more to life, then just life. We have to get to the bottom of all evil, and that is the violation of God’s law. We have removed and broken God’s laws, and our country will only repent once it has been broken and shown the true fault of her sin. “Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith” Gal. 3:24. The law of God leads us to Christ and in order to bring our country back to Him, we must first bring back His laws!

Our country already holds life as sacred, as we saw when 9/11 hit. What we don’t seem to recognize is that taking a baby’s life is against God’s moral Law. We have a duty to raise the standard of God’s Law so that our nation will see the true nature of abortion. We pro-lifers need to stop focusing only on the sanctity of life and rediscover the sanctity of God’s law; this is the first step in turning our country back to God.

Thank You

Please!

2008-02-21T17:00:00.000-08:00

I know the next post will look very long, but I'd really appreciate it if you read it and gave me some feed back!
Thanks :)

The 1st Commandment

2008-02-06T19:54:00.000-08:00

“You shall have no other gods before me.” Ex.20:3
Man is made to worship…the question is what do we worship? God put this commandment first because all others stand or fall under it.

There are many idols in this world and yet there is but one true living God.
“Therefore, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that “an idol has no real existence,” and that “there is no God but one.” For although there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords” yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.” 1Cor. 8:4-6
Do you worship a god, or the one and only God?
The biggest idol ever worshiped, and it’s worshiped by all, is the idol of "I" (noticed how “idol” begins with “I”). All other idols are an expression of self.

1 John 2:15-17 –“For all that is in the world -- the desires of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world.” This is the trinity of the god “self”, which are categorized in the following.
The three “P” gods-

Pleasure – “the desires of the flesh”. James 1:13-15 tells us that we are not tempted by others, or God, but by our own lusts. We become addicted to sin, we are controlled by it. We worship it, it’s our god, our life, our everything, it’s us.
Position- “pride of life”. Today everything is about self-esteem, and becoming someone. Just watch any show on the Disney channel, and you will learn all about loving yourself. Later that accumulates into having a great career, being a big hot shot…all we want is position! Eve, when she ate the forbidden fruit, wanted to be equal, the serpent knew that he could win her using that argument, she wanted position. But the first step towards salvation is to be humble, to realize who you are compared to God. James 4:1-6 says that “God opposes the proud”. Position is indeed a god.
Possession- “lust of the eyes”. Our world is covered in materialism; we all fall into this trap. Then this trap will lead us to covenanting, we’ll want what we don’t own. Matt. 6:24 shows us that we cannot serve God and money. But people today will worship their business, so that they can make more to buy more. If getting is your god, then you will never get enough.

We need to remember what Paul said in Phil.1:21- “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” We all need to stop worshiping our idol of self and make Christ our life, our all in all.

-Kenny Anderson
(my notes from his sermon)

Busy...Busy!

2008-02-06T19:35:00.000-08:00

Hello,
I guess life's just to busy to post...for me that is.
Last weekend Dad took all us omnibus kids up to Salem for a conference by Worldview academy. That was so awesome! I learned so many new things, I wish every day was as fruitful as those days. I'll probably post some of my notes from it later on...if I find the time to type them up.

After that I took on the task of writing an essay for the pro-life contest...that will be coming in a future post. It was really nice because I had my Dad's notes from a sermon he did a while back on that subject.
So there's a little summary of the past week :)

May the following days be fruitful, and may we represent Christ's name as we go into the world!

Going on a walk

2008-01-25T10:44:00.001-08:00

The other day was so beautiful that I couldn't pass up the chance to go on a walk. Eventually I talked all the kids into joining me so I could take a couple pics. Unfortunately the sun was setting so I didn't have the right lighting for good pics. Providentially (I wanted to say "luckily", but knew that wasn't true) we all enjoyed ourselves and God blessed us with a refreshing, exhilarating, and joyful time!

You should all take the time to go for a nice walk at the coming of dusk...it really is beautiful!

Tournament Results and Slideshow!

2008-01-20T19:24:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow's the big day!

2008-01-18T20:43:00.000-08:00

Today was the last day of regular rounds, tomorrow we find out if we break to the final rounds and what we place!!!

I think that we all did a lot better today then yesterday. My first apologetics round was my favorite card..."the image if God"...so I was really happy. Then I went to my impromptu round and talked about the word "gift"...in that I brought out the different gifts in the movie "The Ultimate Gift" and then I talked about Jesus...who was the best gift ever!!! All the other kids feel good about what they did, but I'll let them tell you about their day.

Thank you everyone for your prayers of support and love, they were really appreciated! I hope all is well with you past days.

I just can't wait till tomorrow!
Good Night...

It Starts!

2008-01-17T06:37:00.000-08:00

We are off to the Tournament! Please pray for us...we can use it :)
I'll post pics and results later...
God Bless!

Dad and Mom, we miss you!

2008-01-15T09:59:00.000-08:00

We all miss you, Dad and Mom. We miss the way Dad would come from his office singing and dancing, making us all crack up. We miss how the dinner table was full of laughter from Dad's jokes, and his always teaching us something about God.
We miss Mom's good cooking. Her loving and patient ways with us all. Her seeing to our every need, and her love for the Lord that rubs off on us.
We miss Noah's little smile, and his ever wish to be held :).

We can't wait till your return.
Love ya!

Tournament Prep!

2008-01-15T09:48:00.000-08:00

Sunday Dad and Mom, with Noah, left to Hawaii, leaving us kids with Mummu, our Grandma. Things have been going good, we are just getting ready for the Tournament this week. Thing's are really starting to wined down...with the tournament staring in two days!! I had better stop posting and finish memorizing my Dramatic Interpretation.
I'll post the results of it later :)
Please pray that all goes well!
God Bless!

Pictures with New Camera

2008-01-09T17:11:00.000-08:00

This Christmas, Dad gave me his Nikon D70 digital camera, which he rarely used, but really loved (isn't he so kind). Then Grandpa and Grandma got me a 70-300 mm lens...I have been so blessed. Thank you all so much!
The following are a couple pics I took. Click on them and look at them bigger. What do you think...which is better? Any tips, suggestions?

10 Commandments pt.1

2008-01-08T12:54:00.000-08:00

The Preamble-

“And God spoke all these words, saying, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.” Ex. 20:1-2
God said this right before He started naming the Ten Commandments. This was the preamble (introduction) to the laws of God.

Many people think that laws are given to enslave us, to hold us down. Laws are nothing but tyrannical decrees, especially God’s. I mean look at how many there are, how can we ever obey so many? They only burden us. This is the mindset of so many people.

Well these commandments are not tyrannical laws, which we should be afraid of. They were given out of grace. They are not separate from grace, but rather a work of grace from God. In this verse God contrast His laws with slavery. He freed Israel from slavery so that they may receive these laws and worship Him alone. Israel was taken out of Egypt, not because they were obeying them, but rather so that they could receive them. We know when grace is reigning in ones life when righteousness is (Rom.5), and God's Law is our schoolmaster to lead us to Christ.

The laws of God and His grace are not separate. We need to regain the lost love for the laws of God.

-Kenny Anderson...notes from sermon

Cooking

2008-01-06T10:55:00.000-08:00

Two days ago I went over to the Deems to help cook food for the tournament, the Sleadds and Emmons came too. Me and Natalie were partners, so we had a lot of fun coming up with our own chili recipe...we now have a secret ingredient to use :) Cooking is always fun when you have people around you who are fun! Well since me and Natalie were done first, we went to help the lasagna crew...which seemed to be making a few mistakes in the layering part, and boy did Tait not like that, luckily Victoria was there to cool him off. After it was all done and cleaned up we went up to the barn and took out the instruments...that was fun! They all played for about an hour, then I decided to get a guitar and join.
It was a sweet time!!!
God has enriched my life greatly with such wonderful, godly, caring, and fun friends.

Dylan Deems

Creighton Deems

Victoria Emmons

Natalie Emmons

Tait Deems

Aaron Sleadd

Christina Emmons

Tess Deems, Stephanie Emmons, and Alexa Sleadd

Upcoming posts etc...

2008-01-06T10:33:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone,

Some anonymous person (hope they reveal themselves) told me to post. So last night I stayed up typing out my notes from Dad's Ten Commandment series, which I know you'll enjoy, since you can't be there personally :). The follow posts will be a series from his sermons.

Lately I have been getting ready for our speech/debate tournament, which will be Jan. 17, 18 and 19. It has been a lot of work and still will be!! But it's always fun :) And if you would consider being a judge, that would be really appreciated...no experience necessary. Just contact me for further details.

Christmas was awesome!! I got so many wonderful gifts, from everyone. Thank you so much for all that you gave me.

Now that it's the New Year, I realize how fast time is, it seems I was just wishing for summer, then... bang... it was over and a new summer will be here.
I hope this year will be filled with more fun times, and most of all, I hope that all I do will bring praise and honor to God's name!

See you all later!
God Bless...

Christmas '07

2008-01-05T10:10:00.000-08:00

This is a little slideshow I made of our Christmas this year.

Christmas Eve- Everyone did last minute shopping. I stayed home and watched some of the little ones (well not home...I was really in Eureka Ca. Mummu's house.) Uncle Ryan then took me, Kolten and Ellie to the beach, which was really beautiful!

We all had a big dinner, which Mummu prepared, she's an awesome cook! Then we opened presents and went to bed at mid-night.

Christmas Day- We had a big brunch, prepared by Mummu again :) Opened stockings and played with all our new toys. Around 4pm Dad took all us kids to see National Treasure 2. For dinner we had snack foods.

Dec. 26- Left for home. At home we ordered pizza and opened our presents from mom and dad and each other, Grandpa and Grandma came and watched.

Dec.27- It snowed!!!!!! We went up to Grandpa and Grandma's and had Christmas with them and the Kruses...that was a lot of fun with so many of us. Then we all went to a Mexican restaurant for dinner.

That was our Christmas this year...with so many family we have to have a few of them!

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-22T19:53:00.001-08:00

"Tis the season to be jolly
Fal-la-la-la-la-la"

We're getting ready to leave to Mummu's, for Christmas.
It's so exciting. All the little secrets behind locked doors. Wraping and bows everywhere (I mean EVERYWHERE)!!
Trying to get it all packed into our van, which doesn't have much trunk space, just seats, which are practically all taken :)
And last minute cleaning...what a way to spoil it :) JK

Hope you all have a very Merry Christmas...and I can't wait to hear what you did!!!

P.S. Like my little, new, pink tree? I know, I'm weired...but it's so cute, just needs a few more ornaments :)

To Atone The Lost

2007-12-18T22:01:00.000-08:00

With Christmas in a week, I’m sure you’re busy with last minute things- shopping, wrapping, baking and travel preparations. All these things draw us from our daily goings, we seem to be caught up in the rush with everyone else, and we forget what it’s all about-the birth of Christ-the Incarnation. We need to take time to remember the reason for the season- Christ’s birth. I wish to express the joy and meaning of the Incarnation in these three points- 1. The Story of the Incarnation. 2. Why the need for it. 3. The significance of it.

The gospel of Luke tells us of a young betrothed virgin named Mary, who becomes God chosen one to bear His only Son (“And the angel said to her, “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.”” Luke 1:31) She was conceived of the Holy Spirit (“And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy--the Son of God.” Luke 1:35). When Joseph, her betrothed, saw that she was with child, and did not know of the angels visit, he had doubts. Just when he was going to divorce her, an angel visited him and told that she was conceived of the Holy Spirit. He believed, and they were wed.

Unfortunately Caesar sent out a decree forcing Joseph to journey to Bethlehem. Upon their arrival they find out that the town is full, and must reside in a stable. This is where Christ was born. You know the rest of the story-the Sheppard’s, wise men and so on… Christ was conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary in the little town of Bethlehem. This is the Incarnation.

But why did all this have to happen? Why did God humble Himself to the likeness of man and live among us? For the answer we must go back to the beginning of time. God created all things good and Adam and Eve lived happily in the Garden of Eden, without sin or death. When they were placed in it, they were forbidden to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, if committed they would surly die along with everything else (“And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” Gen.2:16). Foolishly they disobeyed. Sin entered. Death entered. All mankind is now a sinful dying creature.

Being all good and just, God is a natural hater of sin. He is wrathful towards us and demands atonement for all that we have done. God set up a system of sacrifices, but those were not good enough. They were only foreshadows of the true, perfect sacrifice – Jesus Christ. We needed a perfect man to atone for us. Yet because of Adam man is tainted by sin, so He cannot be perfect. Only by God taking the form of man, could there be a perfect man, a perfect sacrifice. This is why Christ had to become a man. This is the reason for the Incarnation.

Why is all this significant? What is most important about it? What can we take from it?
Heb. 2:17-18 “Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. ¹⁸For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.” Christ had to become a man in order to make atonement for the lost sheep, as we talked about. His full humanity is the basis on which it is possible for Him to represent us, indeed take our place in dying for us. Being conceived of the Holy Sprit, born of Mary, Jesus is both truly man and truly God. By this He was the perfect sacrifice for yours and my sins.

This verse also points to the fact that He was tempted like us. Why? So that He can help us get through our temptations. So that He knows how we are, how to sympathies with us. So that He could take on even more the flesh of man. When we fully understand the significance behind the Incarnation, we appreciate more and more what Christ did. Not only did He become a man. Leave His glory at the right hand of God, and humble Himself to our likeness. But He did all for us—to die for us. A spotless innocent lamb, dying for us—dirty, rebellious beings. This is the significance of the Incarnation.

In conclusion, I have told the story of the Incarnation, the reason it had to be done and lastly the significance of it all. Just remember that in the Incarnation, the Son of God took upon Himself human nature and flesh in order to accomplish the redemption of Adam’s fallen seed. This is what the season is about…and we can’t forget it!

Gingerbread Houses

2007-12-16T11:30:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago we went to a gingerbread houses showing with some relatives. It was so wonderful to see all the detail in every house...you'd have to stay at one house for an hour in order to see everything in and on it. I loved it all, because I love that kind of stuff!!

Here are a couple of my favorites-

This one was my favorite

Breanna, Esther, and Savannah

This was a big theater (see if you can find The Phantom of the Opera)

The Three Little Pigs

Front

Back

Extreme Pete - The amazing DOG

2007-12-07T00:19:00.000-08:00

GoFish - It's Called Christmas

2007-12-05T23:59:00.000-08:00

Birthday's

2007-12-02T10:08:00.001-08:00

These are my "Happy Birthdays" to Destiny, Anna, and Mercy!

Thanksgiving Week

2007-11-28T20:12:00.000-08:00

Sunday- Church. Dad gave an awesome sermon on thanksgiving. See later post

Monday- I went to guitar lessons, then me and mom went to the grocery store and got food for the feast! After that I got together with some cousins to practice fro the talent show.

Tuesday- All us girls took Aunt Heather and her girls (and Destiny) to go to the gingerbread houses showing. It was awesome...I'll post on it later. Then we did some more grocery shopping :)
Then off to speech club!

Wednesday- Me, mom, Karissa, Aunt Tami, Jodi and Heather all went out to eat for the birthday girl- Destiny! It was a very delightful meal, we went to the Jacksonville Inn. After that we walked around Jacksonville, looked at all the cute shops. Then mom dropped me, Karissa and Destiny off at Ross and she did more grocery shopping. While there we tried on about 20 different outfits and all I bought was a jacket and sweatshirt. Karissa and Destiny picked out these cute dresses, which they wore at Thanksgiving.

We went home and started the baking. Karissa and Destiny did other stuff and I made Pumpkin Rolls until 11pm! It was a very LONG day...but fun altogether :)

Thursday- Thanksgiving Day! Mom was up at 5 and went to the building to put in her turkey. I made a Pecan Pie then did a post, then got the kids dressed and bathed. Then we were off to the Rogue River Grange (because we had to house to fit us all in). We ate around 3 then started the Talent Show around 5. Which lasted for about two hours and we had dessert then cleaned up. At home, Grandma, Grandpa and Uncle Troy and Dad all had a glass of wine and a good talk. Me and David worked on our duo while Kaleb and Kolten finished their Xbox game. I went to bed around 11 while everyone was still here. So that is a short summary of Thanksgiving Day.

Friday- Went shopping at 11am got home around 7pm.

Saturday- Hung out at home.

*note- not all the Talent show was videoed, so you only get a small taste of what you missed out on :)

Happy Thanksgiving!

2007-11-22T10:16:00.000-08:00

May this day be filled with thanks to God for His many blessings, good eating, and fun family fellowship! I'm hoping to see posts on what everyone did.

First Proclamation After Plymouth

Governor Bradford of Massachusetts made this first Thanksgiving Proclamation three years after the Pilgrims settled at Plymouth:

“Inasmuch as the great Father has given us this year an abundant harvest of Indian corn, wheat, peas, beans, squashes, and garden vegetables, and has made the forests to abound with game and the sea with fish and clams, and inasmuch as He has protected us from the ravages of the savages, has spared us from pestilence and disease, has granted us freedom to worship God according to the dictates of our own conscience.
Now I, your magistrate, do proclaim that all ye Pilgrims, with your wives and ye little ones, do gather at ye meeting house, on ye hill, between the hours of 9 and 12 in the day time, on Thursday, November 29th, of the year of our Lord one thousand six hundred and twenty-three and the third year since ye Pilgrims landed on ye Pilgrim Rock, there to listen to ye pastor and render thanksgiving to ye Almighty God for all His blessings.”

—William Bradford
Ye Governor of Ye Colony

What do You Give a God Who has Everything? –Kenny Anderson

2007-11-19T08:57:00.000-08:00

These are my notes from Dad’s sermon yesterday. He did his sermon by going through Ps.116 and expounding on each verse (you can read the whole passage by clicking on any one of the references below and above). But Verse 12 was his main one. It’s in honor of thanksgiving which is right around the corner!

Ps. 116:12-“What shall I render to the Lord, for all his benefits to me?” What can we give God for all that He has given us? What can we give someone who has everything, who gives all? God gives us everything, what can we give Him that is already not His? Are we grateful for all His benefits?

Let us name a few-

God- the Trinity. We are given the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Covenant- we are blessed to be in a formal relationship with God.
Life- He sustains and gives every breath we take.
Day- The opportunity to live another day.
Family- We normally don’t pick our families. God gives us to them, and if it turns out bad, He may give us another chance. “He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord.” Prov. 18:22. “Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward.” Ps. 127:3. Family is indeed one of the greatest blessings ever given. Limbs- What would we do without our elbows or thumbs?·
Nature- The beauty of creation. God could have made everything grey, but instead He made variety, color and beauty.
Our Five Senses- The ability to taste, smell, see, hear and touch are a great blessing.
Animals- pets and animals to eat…though I prefer pets.
Thought- To be able to process thought, do philosophy and so on, are a great aspect that God has blessed us with.

All these and things and many more, as matter of fact everything is from God! Everything in this world is of God. How can we repay Him? We are only stewards of His stuff. Everything we own is His and is given to us as a blessing, we own nothing that is not His already.

Look at the next verse in the Psalms- “I will lift up the cup of salvation, and call on the name of the Lord.” Ps. 116:13.
We can only take His cup of salvation and be thankful for it. Praise Him for saving us. Salvation is a free gift from God, we did nothing to deserve and can do nothing to earn it. We can only accept it as thanks to all the blessings from God.

Christ needs nothing nor will take anything from us. But we need Him and His cup of salvation. Christ took the cup of wrath and has given us the cup of righteousness. He took the cup we deserved and gave us we we don't deserve.
So take it, lift it up, and honor Him.

Ps.116 is all about being grateful for the grace of God.
Be grateful for the grace of God.

What blessings have you received from the grace of God? Please…tell me :)

I Thank Thee -A poem

2007-11-15T11:05:00.000-08:00

O Thou whose bounty fills my cup,
With every blessing meet!
I give Thee thanks for every drop—
The bitter and the sweet.
I praise Thee for the desert road,
And for the riverside;
For all Thy goodness hath bestowed,
And all Thy grace denied.
I thank Thee for both smile and frown,
And for the gain and loss;
I praise Thee for the future crown And for the present cross.
I thank Thee for both wings of love Which stirred my worldly nest;
And for the stormy clouds which drove Me, trembling, to Thy breast.
I bless Thee for the glad increase,
And for the waning joy;
And for this strange, this settled peace
Which nothing can destroy.

—Christian Victory

I put this on since thanksgiving is coming up.
May it be a season that we be thankful for all the blessings God has bestowed on us out of His rich grace!

Grandma's and Kaylee's Birthday

2007-11-14T10:23:00.001-08:00

She really wanted that doll!

Yes! she got it :)

Tami wrote a song, in place of a card. It was a very beautiful song and Tami has and extraordinary voice.

Lined up to read our cards

Last night we celebrated Grandma's 60th birthday and Kaylee's 1st birthday.

Here's how it went, in my view-

First, after 3 hours of Omnibus school, we got everything set up and decorated. Around 6 people started to arrive, though the birthday girl was 2nd to first, and everyone else a tad bit late. Then everyone just sorta mingled while the mom's got dinner ready, and we Omnibus kids (plus Kaleb) all practiced a little something we're doing for Thanksgiving.

Finally it was time for the presents. Kaylee went first, and boy did she get some adorable clothes. Kaylee is the cutest thing, she reminds me of a doll, such a perfect face.
Then Grandma opened all her presents. First each of her kids read their card to her, and she cried through it all (a happy, loving cry).

After that we did a play I wrote up, for Grandma. It's called "A Saturday with Grandma". You see, she loves to go to yard sales (a lot) so that was the theme of the play :) It was really quite fun and funny (thanks to Dad. He gave me all theses funny idea's).
Then all the grandkids lined up and read their cards to her. She is words of encouragement, so you can guess that through it all the tears where flowing (it shows how much she loves us).

Then we all lined up and got our food, sang birthday songs and enjoyed some homemade ice cream, complements of Uncle Steve, with some lemon muffins, compliments of Mom.
Finally us Omnibus kids (plus Kaleb) closed the day with a worship song.

God has sure blessed me with a wonderful Grandma and a beautiful cousin!