First off, I want to start out by saying that since February when I started this blog, my life has changed dramatically. I have had surgery, I have transferred schools, I have moved in to my own house and I pay my own bills, I no longer play basketball, I have two jobs, and my walk with Christ has grown into something that I, for the first time in my life, am extremely proud of. But just like every other good thing in your life, you have to nurture it for it to truly grow. You have to pour into the good to make it great, and pour into the great to make it excellent, and so on. So with all of that being said, A Love So Loud is moving locations. Not only is it moving locations, it's moving from a blog to a non profit organization. Let me tell you what we are all about.
Like I said, A Love So Loud is a nonprofit organization. Our goal is to amplify God's love above everything else in this world. We believe that through all things, love is the most important part of our lives, and we find that love through Christ first. We believe that there is a generation that "missed it", and unfortunately, we are a part of the generation. We are teenagers and young adults that have grown up with heavy influences from media and social networking. We live in a time where our peers pressure us to turn away from God and do whatever we want because it's fun or more satisfying. We believe that through the struggle of what the world wants us to be and what God calls us to be, that we have listened to God's voice and we have chosen to love when the world says to hate. We have chosen to create when the world says destroy. So what do we plan on doing with A Love So Loud? We plan on becoming a traveling team of kids who love Jesus, speaking to other kids who might have missed it, or need a little push to see what this "Jesus thing"is all about. We understand that we are not perfect, and we sin every single day but we are choosing to follow the direction that we feel God is leading us. What makes us different? We understand where you're coming from because we have made mistakes and we do mess up, but we understand that we live for a God that is greater than anything we have ever done, and we want you to understand that, too. We understand that we serve a God that saves us with His unending love, and that is what A Love So Loud is all about. So with that being said, why would you want us to come speak to you? We feel that we can be positive influences and role models to the rising generation. We believe that we press the importance of faith and not of materialism. Basically, we are two twenty year old kids trying to make the world see that there is more to life than the way that we live. We have been called to love, we all are the greatest commandment.
I keep saying "we", who is the other person you might ask? Well every once in a while, you run into someone that feels the same way about something that you do..so allow me to introduce my partner through all of this, Zach Hill. Zach is currently a student at EKU and one of the most amazing followers of Christ I have ever met. Through Zach and his connections, I truly believe that A Love So Loud is going to be something greater than I had ever envisioned. He is a blessing in every single bit of the word and there are very few people I know that I would trust with my life, he is one of them. So to my blog readers, I know you will feel the same way about him that I do and I hope that you accept him into his very huge role of a Co-founder of A Love So Loud.
This is the last post that will be put on this website..from now on, we will be using www.ALoveSoLoud.com - A website being made and designed by the wonderful Bryan Minear, another huge contributor to the A Love So Loud dream. He also designed all of the awesome logos you will see if you go check out our twitter.
So with that being said, thank you to every single one of you that have read this blog. Thank you for inspiring me to step outside of myself and create something bigger. Thank you for your support, for your endless love and for so much more than that. We can change this generation, we can make this A Love So Loud. But we still need your help. We are a non profit organization, so every single bit of the money that is donated goes back into the organization for things like the website, bracelets, tshirts, travel (when we get to it) and etc. We are asking you to open up your heart to us and help with the cost of some of these things. Bracelets are being sold right now for 3 dollars a piece. We are thankful for all donations and we will be sure to make sure you stay up to date with the things happening with our organization.
We are excited for the things to come and we are excited for the chance that God has given us to be a voice of this generation. Rise Up. Get Ready. We are about to make God's love, A Love So Loud.
Need to Contact Us?
Twitter:
@ALoveSoLoud
@kellermenke
@ZCHill
Facebook is coming soon!
Email:
keller@ALoveSoLoud.com
zach@ALoveSoLoud.com
Friday, November 9, 2012
Thursday, October 4, 2012
A Love So Loud- Give.
I want you to take a look around you right now..what do you see? A phone? Your computer? How about a refrigerator? And do you have any type of food in your cabinets? Now I want you to take a look inside you, clear your heart, clear your head and listen to what I have to say for just a moment.
This post is far different than anything else I've ever posted, but it needs to be said. It comes to my attention more and more every day how selfish most of us Americans are with our money. How entitled we feel to these little pieces of paper and these coins that come and go with no second thought. I want you to ask yourself where your money is going. Is it going into fast food because you're too busy or tired to cook for your family at night? Is it going to the new name brand fall clothes that you can't wait to get because last seasons are so well, last season? Make a list if you have to..where is your money going? Now I bet you're wondering where this post is going. And before you click that little x in the corner, let me give you a few shocking statistics.
-More than 16 million, or almost one in five, American children are at risk of hunger. Each child facing hunger potentially goes to bed hungry at some point in the year due to a lack of household resources to secure an adequate food supply. (http://www.conagrafoodsfoundation.org/child-hunger/child-hunger-statistics.jsp)
-There are 15 million children that die every year from hunger.
-33% of the world's population is considered to be starving.
-3.6 seconds is the amount of time between deaths of people who die from hunger.
-There are 800 million people in the would who suffer from hunger and malnutrition.
-936 million people do not have enough to eat.
-There will be over 2 million people that die this year from hunger, over 20,000 that die today.
(http://www.statisticbrain.com/world-hunger-statistics/)
-More than 3.4 million people die each year from water, sanitation, and hygiene-related causes. Nearly all deaths, 99 percent, occur in the developing world.
-780 million people lack access to an improved water source; approximately one in nine people
-An American taking a five-minute shower uses more water than the average person in a developing country slum uses for an entire day.
-More people have a mobile phone than a toilet.
(http://water.org/water-crisis/water-facts/water/)
Now, look back at what you have in your house. Tell me something that is worth millions of people dying for. Tell me that you can't cut back on a few fast food meals a week to help a child in need. Tell me that this isn't a serious issue in the world and in America. You can't tell me, because it is. I'm not asking you to drop everything you're doing and run to your nearest food bank and drop off 100 cases of green beans and corn, i'm not asking you to pay for the homeless man's meal, i'm not really asking you to do anything but consider the facts, open your eyes.
With that being said, I would like you to meet my sponsored child, Norris. Norris was born on June 28th, 2006 in the Philippines. With my payment on 35 dollars a month through World Vision, I am able to help supply him, his brother and his parents with clean water, school uniforms and medicine to aid against deadly disease. It also helps with agricultural programs, and activities like Vacation Bible School. So my question to you today is, is that extra meal at mcdonalds or taco bell worth it? Invest in something bigger than yourself, invest in someone else.
Want more information on world vision? visit their website at-
http://www.worldvision.org/
Want to talk about the benefits of sponsoring a child?
@kellermenke
@alovesoloud
facebook- Keller Hayden Menke
or you can email me at-
kellermenke_10@hotmail.com
No one ever became poor from giving. -Anne Frank
This post is far different than anything else I've ever posted, but it needs to be said. It comes to my attention more and more every day how selfish most of us Americans are with our money. How entitled we feel to these little pieces of paper and these coins that come and go with no second thought. I want you to ask yourself where your money is going. Is it going into fast food because you're too busy or tired to cook for your family at night? Is it going to the new name brand fall clothes that you can't wait to get because last seasons are so well, last season? Make a list if you have to..where is your money going? Now I bet you're wondering where this post is going. And before you click that little x in the corner, let me give you a few shocking statistics.
-More than 16 million, or almost one in five, American children are at risk of hunger. Each child facing hunger potentially goes to bed hungry at some point in the year due to a lack of household resources to secure an adequate food supply. (http://www.conagrafoodsfoundation.org/child-hunger/child-hunger-statistics.jsp)
-There are 15 million children that die every year from hunger.
-33% of the world's population is considered to be starving.
-3.6 seconds is the amount of time between deaths of people who die from hunger.
-There are 800 million people in the would who suffer from hunger and malnutrition.
-936 million people do not have enough to eat.
-There will be over 2 million people that die this year from hunger, over 20,000 that die today.
(http://www.statisticbrain.com/world-hunger-statistics/)
-More than 3.4 million people die each year from water, sanitation, and hygiene-related causes. Nearly all deaths, 99 percent, occur in the developing world.
-780 million people lack access to an improved water source; approximately one in nine people
-An American taking a five-minute shower uses more water than the average person in a developing country slum uses for an entire day.
-More people have a mobile phone than a toilet.
(http://water.org/water-crisis/water-facts/water/)
Now, look back at what you have in your house. Tell me something that is worth millions of people dying for. Tell me that you can't cut back on a few fast food meals a week to help a child in need. Tell me that this isn't a serious issue in the world and in America. You can't tell me, because it is. I'm not asking you to drop everything you're doing and run to your nearest food bank and drop off 100 cases of green beans and corn, i'm not asking you to pay for the homeless man's meal, i'm not really asking you to do anything but consider the facts, open your eyes.
With that being said, I would like you to meet my sponsored child, Norris. Norris was born on June 28th, 2006 in the Philippines. With my payment on 35 dollars a month through World Vision, I am able to help supply him, his brother and his parents with clean water, school uniforms and medicine to aid against deadly disease. It also helps with agricultural programs, and activities like Vacation Bible School. So my question to you today is, is that extra meal at mcdonalds or taco bell worth it? Invest in something bigger than yourself, invest in someone else.
Want more information on world vision? visit their website at-
http://www.worldvision.org/
Want to talk about the benefits of sponsoring a child?
@kellermenke
@alovesoloud
facebook- Keller Hayden Menke
or you can email me at-
kellermenke_10@hotmail.com
No one ever became poor from giving. -Anne Frank
Thursday, September 6, 2012
A Love So Loud- His shoes.
Sunday at church i heard an amazing sermon preached by the amazing Tammy Conrad..the kind of sermon that penetrates your heart so deep that you know God intentionally made sure, despite all odds, that you were at church that morning to hear it. I know that this was the case because i woke up at 10:06..giving me approximately 20 minutes to get ready. She said so many amazing things, but what I want to touch on that hit me the hardest is she kind of called all of us out for being selfish. For saying things like "What about me?" or "You don't know how hard I work." It immediately got the gears turning inside of my head..how many times have I said something so self centered? Something that I didn't even realize I was saying. How many times have I been upset because I pour myself into someone so that they can leave me disappointed? How many times have I dared someone to take a walk in my shoes, and see how they like it.
Suddenly I'm drowning in this huge pool of emotions. How on earth did I ever think that I wasn't a selfish person? Just when I thought I was content in my character, God smacks me in the face again and tells me to wake up. You see, when things get hard in my life, I think of literally every single bad thing that has ever happened to me and it all piles up until I can't handle it anymore. If you ask me, I can be somewhat of a baby..in fact, i think we all can be. But in that moment, I thought about Jesus. I know Jesus seems pretty appropriate to think about during church, but I thought about Him and how much He gave up for me to be sitting where I was in that very moment. I thought about all of the blessings He has given me that I don't even begin to deserve, and i'm overwhelmed by my self righteousness. I'm overwhelmed by the fact that I think I DESERVE to have more than i do. I'm overwhelmed by the fact that any of us think we deserve what we're given. Cause we don't.
I want you to think of the person you love the most in the entire world. Mom, Dad, brother, sister, boyfriend, girlfriend, best friend, anyone. Now, pick the sin you struggle with the most. Got it? Now picture that person being nailed to a cross, suffering and dying because of that one thing you do and can't stop. And if you had just stopped, that person wouldn't have had to die. I bet you can't picture that..I bet right now in your mind you are thinking Come on Keller, if I had to pick between a sin and someone I love dying..i would pick to get rid of the sin. Right? Wrong. I think we choose to forget about Jesus when we're having fun. I think we forget about Jesus when we're sinning. Because we want to. Because we're selfish. And you know the worst part of it all? He knew we would forget Him but He died with us in mind.
You might think i'm rambling, you might not see where I'm going with anything I just said, so let me put it in simpler terms. We have one opportunity to live our lives. We have one shot at forever. We can blame our poor circumstances, our bad attitudes, our could have, would have and should haves on everyone else in the world. But when it comes down to it, we don't deserve anything we do have. My challenge for you is to think of whatever selfish desire you're struggling with and trash it..give it to Jesus because He knows your heart better than you do. His stopped beating so that yours could. And before you tell anyone else to take a walk in your shoes..why don't you take a walk in His.
Suddenly I'm drowning in this huge pool of emotions. How on earth did I ever think that I wasn't a selfish person? Just when I thought I was content in my character, God smacks me in the face again and tells me to wake up. You see, when things get hard in my life, I think of literally every single bad thing that has ever happened to me and it all piles up until I can't handle it anymore. If you ask me, I can be somewhat of a baby..in fact, i think we all can be. But in that moment, I thought about Jesus. I know Jesus seems pretty appropriate to think about during church, but I thought about Him and how much He gave up for me to be sitting where I was in that very moment. I thought about all of the blessings He has given me that I don't even begin to deserve, and i'm overwhelmed by my self righteousness. I'm overwhelmed by the fact that I think I DESERVE to have more than i do. I'm overwhelmed by the fact that any of us think we deserve what we're given. Cause we don't.
I want you to think of the person you love the most in the entire world. Mom, Dad, brother, sister, boyfriend, girlfriend, best friend, anyone. Now, pick the sin you struggle with the most. Got it? Now picture that person being nailed to a cross, suffering and dying because of that one thing you do and can't stop. And if you had just stopped, that person wouldn't have had to die. I bet you can't picture that..I bet right now in your mind you are thinking Come on Keller, if I had to pick between a sin and someone I love dying..i would pick to get rid of the sin. Right? Wrong. I think we choose to forget about Jesus when we're having fun. I think we forget about Jesus when we're sinning. Because we want to. Because we're selfish. And you know the worst part of it all? He knew we would forget Him but He died with us in mind.
You might think i'm rambling, you might not see where I'm going with anything I just said, so let me put it in simpler terms. We have one opportunity to live our lives. We have one shot at forever. We can blame our poor circumstances, our bad attitudes, our could have, would have and should haves on everyone else in the world. But when it comes down to it, we don't deserve anything we do have. My challenge for you is to think of whatever selfish desire you're struggling with and trash it..give it to Jesus because He knows your heart better than you do. His stopped beating so that yours could. And before you tell anyone else to take a walk in your shoes..why don't you take a walk in His.
Sunday, July 15, 2012
A Love So Loud- Here's to Us.
I've been meaning to write this post for a while now. Adults, I'm sorry but this isn't directed to you as much as it is directed to us teenagers. I check my twitter on a daily basis, and the things that I see on my TimeLine sometimes are absolutely awful. Written by people my age or people younger, things that aren't meant to be said by people like us, people who haven't even seen half of what the world has to offer. This post isn't going to be judgmental, that's not my intention. But I realized something now more than ever..we need a voice for our generation.
It's crazy to me because we hit age thirteen and suddenly everything we used to know feels a whole lot bigger. We start seeing the evil that consumes our world and we search for a light that helps make it all seem a whole lot brighter. We have big dreams of becoming amazing and they're crushed by a fist full of broken promises. They leave us sitting in an empty room full of what used to be. We get told who to be, what to wear, how to fit in and how to look. We get told that if you aren't stick thin, you're fat. If you're wearing glasses, you're a nerd. Braces? What a loser. This ride we call life is becoming a lot more like a stroll down the judgmental cat walk.
And that's where this voice I was talking about comes in. I need you to know something, teenagers, (since I will soon leave you all for the age of 20 haha.) but seriously, listen to me for just a second. It's okay to be different. And this isn't one of those quotes like "you were born an original, don't die a copy." this is a serious, serious statement. And there are so many I know that Keller, moments in my blog. But I feel like we need to talk about where I'm going with this.
Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity. 1 Timothy 4:12
That's where I'm going. I need you all to cling to this verse while you still have your innocence. While your mistakes are still so insignificant. While it seems so hard but is still so easy and so pure. Because in the next few years, you're going to hear someone tell you that you can't. You need to know you can. You're going to hear someone tell you who to be, don't let them. Be like a word in a dictionary, people can try to tell you what you are..but in the end you are whatever your creator made you to be. You are already defined through Christ, and no one can take that from you.
So talk to others with the same words you would use if you were talking to God. Make a difference. Don't think that because we are teenagers we can't make a wave in the worlds' ocean. Be bold and be passionate about anything and everything your heart desires. And cling to what is good around you in a not so good world. Stay faithful to the wife or husband you haven't met yet..because true love will wait. Set the example for others that no one else has. Be respectful and be polite. Be kind and be courageous. Try building someone up instead of tearing them down. Live by 1 Timothy 4:12. Take on the world with your voice, God's love, a bible and the ability to be heard. Here's to us, here's to making a change. And remember Romans 8:31- if God is for us, who can ever be against us?
It's crazy to me because we hit age thirteen and suddenly everything we used to know feels a whole lot bigger. We start seeing the evil that consumes our world and we search for a light that helps make it all seem a whole lot brighter. We have big dreams of becoming amazing and they're crushed by a fist full of broken promises. They leave us sitting in an empty room full of what used to be. We get told who to be, what to wear, how to fit in and how to look. We get told that if you aren't stick thin, you're fat. If you're wearing glasses, you're a nerd. Braces? What a loser. This ride we call life is becoming a lot more like a stroll down the judgmental cat walk.
And that's where this voice I was talking about comes in. I need you to know something, teenagers, (since I will soon leave you all for the age of 20 haha.) but seriously, listen to me for just a second. It's okay to be different. And this isn't one of those quotes like "you were born an original, don't die a copy." this is a serious, serious statement. And there are so many I know that Keller, moments in my blog. But I feel like we need to talk about where I'm going with this.
Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity. 1 Timothy 4:12
That's where I'm going. I need you all to cling to this verse while you still have your innocence. While your mistakes are still so insignificant. While it seems so hard but is still so easy and so pure. Because in the next few years, you're going to hear someone tell you that you can't. You need to know you can. You're going to hear someone tell you who to be, don't let them. Be like a word in a dictionary, people can try to tell you what you are..but in the end you are whatever your creator made you to be. You are already defined through Christ, and no one can take that from you.
So talk to others with the same words you would use if you were talking to God. Make a difference. Don't think that because we are teenagers we can't make a wave in the worlds' ocean. Be bold and be passionate about anything and everything your heart desires. And cling to what is good around you in a not so good world. Stay faithful to the wife or husband you haven't met yet..because true love will wait. Set the example for others that no one else has. Be respectful and be polite. Be kind and be courageous. Try building someone up instead of tearing them down. Live by 1 Timothy 4:12. Take on the world with your voice, God's love, a bible and the ability to be heard. Here's to us, here's to making a change. And remember Romans 8:31- if God is for us, who can ever be against us?
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
A Love So Loud- Believe in Me.
My goal now is to write every single day, even if it is just a little something..to help keep me on the right path. Not everything I write will be posted, but- I'll be writing. You all know I write blog posts..but I actually grew up writing poems every night before I went to bed and they would help me go to sleep, I was never really sure why until recently.
So last night, I wrote a poem. In the sixth grade we had an assignment called "Believe in Me" and we either had to write a poem or a paper or something, but Believe in me was the focus of the project. In sixth grade I wrote a pretty awesome poem about believing in God that I still remember most of. But last night, I put a new spin on the project that we had in the sixth grade and I thought I should share it with you all and switch it up a little bit.
She got home from work today,
Slammed the keys on the counter, barely got paid.
The kids are crying, there's not much to eat,
How are they ever going to get to sleep.
She kneels by her bedside, tears stream from her cheek,
Lord, I'm begging, believe in me.
He steps up to the line, knocks down two.
Time's running down and there's not much else to do.
Ten seconds left, down by three.
Asking- hey coach, believe in me.
It's finally here, it is the big day.
the interview is soon, she's well on her way.
before she walks in her phone vibrates, she sees..
A text from Mom, she believes in me.
Bullied at school, comes home to chores.
With a fist in the air- I can't do this anymore.
Life is too hard why can't anyone see?
He yells at the wall- someone please believe in me.
At the end of the day, its all the same.
Our circumstances are hard, we look for someone else to blame.
I think if we open our eyes we'd probably understand,
That in this world we will struggle while we're surrounded by man.
But the positive thing is for those who believe,
There's more to this life than just what we see.
To the mom that struggles to barely get by,
The kid that has the big game on the line.
The girl that's about to embark on something new,
The kid who doesn't know what to do.
It's bigger than what you're going through,
And most of the people around you are struggling too.
But in the midst of the troubles and the raging sea,
Stay calm and hear the voice saying believe in Me.
Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. -John 14:1
So last night, I wrote a poem. In the sixth grade we had an assignment called "Believe in Me" and we either had to write a poem or a paper or something, but Believe in me was the focus of the project. In sixth grade I wrote a pretty awesome poem about believing in God that I still remember most of. But last night, I put a new spin on the project that we had in the sixth grade and I thought I should share it with you all and switch it up a little bit.
She got home from work today,
Slammed the keys on the counter, barely got paid.
The kids are crying, there's not much to eat,
How are they ever going to get to sleep.
She kneels by her bedside, tears stream from her cheek,
Lord, I'm begging, believe in me.
He steps up to the line, knocks down two.
Time's running down and there's not much else to do.
Ten seconds left, down by three.
Asking- hey coach, believe in me.
It's finally here, it is the big day.
the interview is soon, she's well on her way.
before she walks in her phone vibrates, she sees..
A text from Mom, she believes in me.
Bullied at school, comes home to chores.
With a fist in the air- I can't do this anymore.
Life is too hard why can't anyone see?
He yells at the wall- someone please believe in me.
At the end of the day, its all the same.
Our circumstances are hard, we look for someone else to blame.
I think if we open our eyes we'd probably understand,
That in this world we will struggle while we're surrounded by man.
But the positive thing is for those who believe,
There's more to this life than just what we see.
To the mom that struggles to barely get by,
The kid that has the big game on the line.
The girl that's about to embark on something new,
The kid who doesn't know what to do.
It's bigger than what you're going through,
And most of the people around you are struggling too.
But in the midst of the troubles and the raging sea,
Stay calm and hear the voice saying believe in Me.
Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. -John 14:1
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
A Love So Loud- How are YOU?
Its been a while since I've written, a long while. And it seems like that's how almost all of my posts lately have started out, and there is absolutely no excuse. With that being said, I have a twitter account that is specific to my blog (@ALoveSoLoud). It will feature when my new posts come out, and a lot of other pretty neat things that will hopefully hold me accountable for writing more but most importantly, try and bring us all a little closer to God.
I want to switch it up a little bit today. I want you to take the time and examine your heart. I want you to ask yourself how you are doing. Why? Because you matter. You matter to others, yourself, and most importantly you matter to God. I've been thinking about how easy it is to lose yourself in the hustle of every day life. Especially if you have a job, children, a husband, obligations..anything that can completely steer yourself away from, well..you. And I've come to the conclusion that no matter how ridiculous it may sound, it is important to sit down sometimes and ask yourself how you're doing. And this, is why.
1. You are the best version of yourself when you are happy. That seems like a pretty obvious statement, I know. But it's also one of those that we often overlook. Happiness means so many different things to each of us..so make an attempt to find what makes you smile. Cause you know what they say "Happiness is a journey, not a destination."
2. Despite what anyone tells you, you matter. I want you to think about all of the things that wouldn't be possible if you didn't exist. For mothers, you wouldn't have been able to bless the world with your children- who will one day mean the world to someone else. For teenagers, think about all that you are for your best friend, or boyfriend or girlfriend, or siblings. For those who feel like they don't matter, I guarantee you have made someones day before, and you'll make it again. There is a reason you're here.
3. And the most important reason I have for you today is, it keeps your relationship with Jesus number one in your life. And I'm sure some of you are wondering where on earth I'm going with this..so let me explain. I don't claim to be a preacher, I haven't read the whole bible..but I have a relationship with my Savior that grows, in some way, every day. And a really big part of that is this step. Like I said, it's easy to get lost in the crazy of life, but it's easier to land in the arms of The One who gives it meaning.
So when you go to lay down tonight..or if you're just sitting around letting your mind wander; ask yourself how you're doing. Have a heart to heart with Jesus if you haven't in a while. Let Him know where you fall short. Let Him know where you stand and where you wish to be. Allow Him to work through your heart. Because in the end..
1. Jesus is your journey to happiness, and your destination.
2. You will never mean more to anyone than you do to Him. I mean, He did die to give us a life.
3. And sometimes, the one who doesn't directly talk back, is the very best listener.
Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in Me. John 15:4 (NLT)
I want to switch it up a little bit today. I want you to take the time and examine your heart. I want you to ask yourself how you are doing. Why? Because you matter. You matter to others, yourself, and most importantly you matter to God. I've been thinking about how easy it is to lose yourself in the hustle of every day life. Especially if you have a job, children, a husband, obligations..anything that can completely steer yourself away from, well..you. And I've come to the conclusion that no matter how ridiculous it may sound, it is important to sit down sometimes and ask yourself how you're doing. And this, is why.
1. You are the best version of yourself when you are happy. That seems like a pretty obvious statement, I know. But it's also one of those that we often overlook. Happiness means so many different things to each of us..so make an attempt to find what makes you smile. Cause you know what they say "Happiness is a journey, not a destination."
2. Despite what anyone tells you, you matter. I want you to think about all of the things that wouldn't be possible if you didn't exist. For mothers, you wouldn't have been able to bless the world with your children- who will one day mean the world to someone else. For teenagers, think about all that you are for your best friend, or boyfriend or girlfriend, or siblings. For those who feel like they don't matter, I guarantee you have made someones day before, and you'll make it again. There is a reason you're here.
3. And the most important reason I have for you today is, it keeps your relationship with Jesus number one in your life. And I'm sure some of you are wondering where on earth I'm going with this..so let me explain. I don't claim to be a preacher, I haven't read the whole bible..but I have a relationship with my Savior that grows, in some way, every day. And a really big part of that is this step. Like I said, it's easy to get lost in the crazy of life, but it's easier to land in the arms of The One who gives it meaning.
So when you go to lay down tonight..or if you're just sitting around letting your mind wander; ask yourself how you're doing. Have a heart to heart with Jesus if you haven't in a while. Let Him know where you fall short. Let Him know where you stand and where you wish to be. Allow Him to work through your heart. Because in the end..
1. Jesus is your journey to happiness, and your destination.
2. You will never mean more to anyone than you do to Him. I mean, He did die to give us a life.
3. And sometimes, the one who doesn't directly talk back, is the very best listener.
Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in Me. John 15:4 (NLT)
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
A Love So Loud- The Motions.
For those of you who listen to Christian music, there is a song that was written by a gentleman that goes by the name of Matthew West called "The Motions." If you don't know it, I'm going to post some of the lyrics (I highly recommend you listen to the song as well) and that's what is going to get this post rolling for me on this Tuesday night.
This might hurt, It’s not safe
But I know that I’ve gotta make a change.
I don’t care If I break,
At least I’ll be feeling something.
‘Cause just okay is not enough,
Help me fight through the nothingness of life.
This might hurt, It’s not safe
But I know that I’ve gotta make a change.
I don’t care If I break,
At least I’ll be feeling something.
‘Cause just okay is not enough,
Help me fight through the nothingness of life.
I think we all grow accustomed to a routine. We do the same things every single day, then we get to the end of the day and wonder where it went. I'm pretty sure I've mentioned that before. But if we think about how we spent it, most of the time we'll realize it was on useless things. We spent twenty-four hours of the life we only get to live once, doing nothing. Going through the motions. Lately, I've gotten in my routine. That's why I'm not writing as much, that's why I don't feel as whole as I used to. The things that shouldn't matter, do. The things that should matter the most, are slowly creeping further and further down my to-do list. For example, I'm going on vacation in July so I need to get my body in tip top shape. I am transferring colleges so I need to make sure my transcripts are sent in and everything is taken care of. I have to make sure I am taking care of my body properly and as my doctor says "listening to it when it says to quit." I just got a new job and I'm stressed about money. That nothingness of life? It has caught up to me. It's kicking my butt. And I'm to the point that I need to break, I need to change, I need to feel something. Because Matthew West says it best-
I don’t wanna go through the motions,
I don’t wanna go one more day,
Without Your all consuming passion inside of me.
I don’t wanna spend my whole life asking,
What if I had given everything?
Instead of going through the motions.
I don’t wanna go one more day,
Without Your all consuming passion inside of me.
I don’t wanna spend my whole life asking,
What if I had given everything?
Instead of going through the motions.
It's really an amazing thing when you have people in your life that love God. It's an even more amazing thing when they can come together to talk about how much they do. My best friend, Kristen Stainback, held a bible study last night that I attended, as well as a few other girls. The topic of the discussion was the Samaritan woman at the well. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the story, Jesus was a Jew, Jews didn't associate with Samaritans, yet Jesus came up to this woman at the well. You can read the story in John chapter 4. The part of the story that hit me the hardest was when Jesus told the woman that anyone who drank from the water of the well would become thirsty again, but those who drink from the water He gives will no longer thirst. If I lied to you all, I wouldn't write this blog, so I'll be honest. I have been extremely "thirsty" lately..and not the kind of thirsty that the people around my age use the word for (I know what you kids are thinking lol). But I'm just missing something. And the more I talked last night, the more it hit me. I'm thirsty because I keep trying to invest myself in people, in things, in activities..and each time I leave feeling disappointed. Each time I'm left longing for more. But then I read this story, of this promise that Jesus said- that if we drink the water He gives us, we will no longer thirst.
No regrets, not this time,
I’m gonna let my heart defeat my mind.
Let Your love make me whole,
I think I’m finally feeling something.
I’m gonna let my heart defeat my mind.
Let Your love make me whole,
I think I’m finally feeling something.
It's really an unfortunate thing how easy it is to get sidetracked. It's absolutely mind blowing how quickly we can just forget things that matter and move on to other, less important, things. Not this time, I'm gonna let my heart defeat my mind. If we truly soul search, If we examine our hearts through the eyes of Christ, our priorities will quickly change. We will realize what's important, we will realize how fulfilling it is when we drink from the word of God. How satisfying it is to indulge into His plan for our lives. And how time and time again, He forgives us when we search the world for the feeling that we can only get when we're diving head first into Jesus. Let's make it our promise this week to not go through the motions, to not spend another day without the fire of God burning through our hearts and setting our lips soaring with praise.
I don’t wanna spend my whole life asking,
What if I had given everything?
Instead of going through the motions.
What if I had given everything?
Instead of going through the motions.
Friday, May 25, 2012
A Love So Loud- Selfishness.
So many people have been asking me why I haven't written a new post lately. And my answer has been the same every single time..I can't find the inspiration that I need to write a heartfelt post. And while telling that to my best friend just now, I found my inspiration. Selfishness.
The reason I've been so uninspired is my selfishness. I remember my preacher said something one Sunday about how it seems like we have to keep having things happen in our lives to stay truly on fire for God. Like all that He does and all that He has made isn't enough? How is it that we are so selfish as human beings that we can't walk outside and just be inspired by the beautiful world? How is it that we are so selfish as human beings that we can't be inspired by a smile from a stranger? Who empowered us to believe that we are the ones who deserve to be inspired by things greater than what's typical in our day? Like it will only take a miracle or a job promotion or the big break you've been waiting for- to truly be happy.
I'm guilty of this lately. I had surgery and I've been irritated about the fact that it has, and will continue to, change a lot of little things in my life. I donated my hair, my hair was my favorite thing in the world, and I'm sad that it's gone. WHAT? Is that living like Christ? Am I doing all I can be to bless the people around me with a Christ-like attitude? No. Not if I'm sitting around pouting about the pain I'm in and how short my hair is. I'm selfish. We are all selfish. And it took me reading Job to realize how absolutely ridiculous I can be when I let my human nature completely consume my heart. Because I can cry over how bad it hurts to move my legs, but at least I have them. And I can cry over how short my hair is but I couldn't imagine being the person on the other end of the donation.
Because ya see, I felt that God was pushing me away. I thought that God was testing me and trying to tear me down with all of the tiny things that kept building up in my life. But God is the same today as He was yesterday and as He will be tomorrow. And our God is so good. He isn't the one who changes, we are the ones who change. He doesn't ever go away. He's there while you turn your mess into your message. He's there when you feel like you have no hope. And He's there when your selfishness is too. He's there to show you that your problems aren't that bad. That your world really isn't caving in. And to show you that you're never alone. Cause even in your darkest hour, even on the days you can't find inspiration- God will wake you up. He will show you the beauty of the world, He will show you the kindness of a stranger. He will prove to you that you are loved. Because you are. We just have to stop being so selfish, and realize all that God inspires us with if we just take a step back and take the time to see it- cause life isn't all that stinkin' bad after all when we serve a God like ours. A God that showed the greatest act of selflessness by giving His only Son to die so that we, in all of our sin and selfishness, could have an opportunity at an eternal life. I think the challenge this week is for all of us to think before we pout about something selfish..because imagine what our world would be like if God had been.
"He must become greater; I must become less.” John 3:30
The reason I've been so uninspired is my selfishness. I remember my preacher said something one Sunday about how it seems like we have to keep having things happen in our lives to stay truly on fire for God. Like all that He does and all that He has made isn't enough? How is it that we are so selfish as human beings that we can't walk outside and just be inspired by the beautiful world? How is it that we are so selfish as human beings that we can't be inspired by a smile from a stranger? Who empowered us to believe that we are the ones who deserve to be inspired by things greater than what's typical in our day? Like it will only take a miracle or a job promotion or the big break you've been waiting for- to truly be happy.
I'm guilty of this lately. I had surgery and I've been irritated about the fact that it has, and will continue to, change a lot of little things in my life. I donated my hair, my hair was my favorite thing in the world, and I'm sad that it's gone. WHAT? Is that living like Christ? Am I doing all I can be to bless the people around me with a Christ-like attitude? No. Not if I'm sitting around pouting about the pain I'm in and how short my hair is. I'm selfish. We are all selfish. And it took me reading Job to realize how absolutely ridiculous I can be when I let my human nature completely consume my heart. Because I can cry over how bad it hurts to move my legs, but at least I have them. And I can cry over how short my hair is but I couldn't imagine being the person on the other end of the donation.
Because ya see, I felt that God was pushing me away. I thought that God was testing me and trying to tear me down with all of the tiny things that kept building up in my life. But God is the same today as He was yesterday and as He will be tomorrow. And our God is so good. He isn't the one who changes, we are the ones who change. He doesn't ever go away. He's there while you turn your mess into your message. He's there when you feel like you have no hope. And He's there when your selfishness is too. He's there to show you that your problems aren't that bad. That your world really isn't caving in. And to show you that you're never alone. Cause even in your darkest hour, even on the days you can't find inspiration- God will wake you up. He will show you the beauty of the world, He will show you the kindness of a stranger. He will prove to you that you are loved. Because you are. We just have to stop being so selfish, and realize all that God inspires us with if we just take a step back and take the time to see it- cause life isn't all that stinkin' bad after all when we serve a God like ours. A God that showed the greatest act of selflessness by giving His only Son to die so that we, in all of our sin and selfishness, could have an opportunity at an eternal life. I think the challenge this week is for all of us to think before we pout about something selfish..because imagine what our world would be like if God had been.
"He must become greater; I must become less.” John 3:30
Monday, May 14, 2012
A Love So Loud- Mackenzie's Testimony
My name is Mackenzie King and this is my testimony.
When I was ten years old my mother was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. Multiple Sclerosis is a neurological disorder, which means it affects the brain and its functions. This disorder has several effects but they all link back to legions on the brain. Some people who have MS may not be able to walk sometimes or move certain limbs of their body, and some people may get really bad headaches and stress out so bad they just have to be alone in quiet to ease the pain. The latter is the type of MS that my mother has.
The past couple of months haven’t been the greatest and I’ve taken on a lot of responsibility. I have gone back and forth from home, to my grandparents, to my aunt and uncle’s dozens of times in the span of about a month. I’ve tried very hard to make sure my 14 year old brother is doing what homework he has, is transported to sports practices, youth group, and wherever else he needs to go, while making sure he has everything he needs. Between gas, food, transportation, etc, it got kind of expensive. I have a job but I make minimum wage and only get paid every two weeks.
More importantly, I had become very stressed and tired. I started to have headaches about as frequently as my mom. A lot of stress/strain was put on our relationship. I was trying to balance school, work, musical practices, time with friends, getting ready for prom, and taking care of my little brother and it had gotten difficult. But at the same time, I was leaning on God more than I ever had. I began to pray and read my Bible more than I ever had. This really began to ease the distress I had been feeling. But I still felt a little discontent.
My mom had always told me about tithing, or giving money to the church’s offering, and how God always rewards people who do that. Luke 6:38 says "Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap.” I was unaware of this verse exactly at the time, but I began to do so, and blessings were definitely “poured into [my] lap.”
One week, I decided I would start tithing. I put about $4 in the offering that Sunday (10% of what I had) and prayed that God would use it. I felt like this was a necessary step and it is. A school week had gone by and I continued taking care of my brother, driving back and forth to his football practice, work, and practices of my own. I had almost forgotten that I had even given money in our offering, when Friday I was called to the office just as I was leaving school. I entered the office of our attendance clerk and without looking up she handed me a sealed envelope labeled “Makenzie King.” “Someone left this for you,” she said. I walked out of the office carrying this mysterious envelope and as I looked at it, I saw a twenty dollar bill. Strange. I opened it up and to my surprise found $30 entitled to me. I was amazed. The very week I started tithing I spontaneously receive money and I didn’t even know who it was from. I left school with a huge smile on my face and feeling blessed as ever.
But it only gets crazier. The following Sunday, I tithed again, this time about $7 (10% of what I had). I didn’t expect anything else to happen and I was pretty content with the $30 I had received the week earlier. But boy, was I ever wrong. That Tuesday, I was called out of my second period class to report to the office again. I made my way down there without the thought of what happened the week earlier even crossing my mind. I entered the attendance clerk’s office and again she handed me another envelope labeled “Makenzie King” in the same penmanship as the one I had received the week earlier. “Who is leaving me these!?” I asked, absolutely stunned. She shook her head, looking just as astonished as I, “I have no idea. I went to the bathroom and when I came back it was just laying on my desk.” I shook my head in amazement and left the office. I had gotten about halfway up hall 1 when I realized I hadn’t even checked the envelope out. I stopped in my tracks and began to unseal it. My jaw dropped and my hand immediately covered my mouth when I saws the first hundred dollar bill; yes, first. I took the contents out of the envelope and to my surprise had been given $400. Tears immediately began to well in my eyes as I started to cry. Amazement, thankfulness, gratefulness, comfort, and absolute awe were just a few emotions running through me, but confusion was not one. This was a God thing.
God promises to always stay true to His word. When he says he’s going to always take care of us, that’s exactly what He means. I received a text message this past week saying that someone had anonymously ordered and paid for graduation invitations as well as name cards for me. Is it from the same person? I’m not sure. I’m not sure who any of it is from. No one had seen me put money in the offering at church or really had any idea of what I had been going through. But were they sent by God? Absolutely. This is without a doubt a miracle and has taught me that even through hard times God is there taking care of us. I know I can always trust God and because of this I will forever put my full faith in Him and know that there’s hope. Sometimes, mercies really do come in disguise.
When I was ten years old my mother was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. Multiple Sclerosis is a neurological disorder, which means it affects the brain and its functions. This disorder has several effects but they all link back to legions on the brain. Some people who have MS may not be able to walk sometimes or move certain limbs of their body, and some people may get really bad headaches and stress out so bad they just have to be alone in quiet to ease the pain. The latter is the type of MS that my mother has.
The past couple of months haven’t been the greatest and I’ve taken on a lot of responsibility. I have gone back and forth from home, to my grandparents, to my aunt and uncle’s dozens of times in the span of about a month. I’ve tried very hard to make sure my 14 year old brother is doing what homework he has, is transported to sports practices, youth group, and wherever else he needs to go, while making sure he has everything he needs. Between gas, food, transportation, etc, it got kind of expensive. I have a job but I make minimum wage and only get paid every two weeks.
More importantly, I had become very stressed and tired. I started to have headaches about as frequently as my mom. A lot of stress/strain was put on our relationship. I was trying to balance school, work, musical practices, time with friends, getting ready for prom, and taking care of my little brother and it had gotten difficult. But at the same time, I was leaning on God more than I ever had. I began to pray and read my Bible more than I ever had. This really began to ease the distress I had been feeling. But I still felt a little discontent.
My mom had always told me about tithing, or giving money to the church’s offering, and how God always rewards people who do that. Luke 6:38 says "Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap.” I was unaware of this verse exactly at the time, but I began to do so, and blessings were definitely “poured into [my] lap.”
One week, I decided I would start tithing. I put about $4 in the offering that Sunday (10% of what I had) and prayed that God would use it. I felt like this was a necessary step and it is. A school week had gone by and I continued taking care of my brother, driving back and forth to his football practice, work, and practices of my own. I had almost forgotten that I had even given money in our offering, when Friday I was called to the office just as I was leaving school. I entered the office of our attendance clerk and without looking up she handed me a sealed envelope labeled “Makenzie King.” “Someone left this for you,” she said. I walked out of the office carrying this mysterious envelope and as I looked at it, I saw a twenty dollar bill. Strange. I opened it up and to my surprise found $30 entitled to me. I was amazed. The very week I started tithing I spontaneously receive money and I didn’t even know who it was from. I left school with a huge smile on my face and feeling blessed as ever.
But it only gets crazier. The following Sunday, I tithed again, this time about $7 (10% of what I had). I didn’t expect anything else to happen and I was pretty content with the $30 I had received the week earlier. But boy, was I ever wrong. That Tuesday, I was called out of my second period class to report to the office again. I made my way down there without the thought of what happened the week earlier even crossing my mind. I entered the attendance clerk’s office and again she handed me another envelope labeled “Makenzie King” in the same penmanship as the one I had received the week earlier. “Who is leaving me these!?” I asked, absolutely stunned. She shook her head, looking just as astonished as I, “I have no idea. I went to the bathroom and when I came back it was just laying on my desk.” I shook my head in amazement and left the office. I had gotten about halfway up hall 1 when I realized I hadn’t even checked the envelope out. I stopped in my tracks and began to unseal it. My jaw dropped and my hand immediately covered my mouth when I saws the first hundred dollar bill; yes, first. I took the contents out of the envelope and to my surprise had been given $400. Tears immediately began to well in my eyes as I started to cry. Amazement, thankfulness, gratefulness, comfort, and absolute awe were just a few emotions running through me, but confusion was not one. This was a God thing.
God promises to always stay true to His word. When he says he’s going to always take care of us, that’s exactly what He means. I received a text message this past week saying that someone had anonymously ordered and paid for graduation invitations as well as name cards for me. Is it from the same person? I’m not sure. I’m not sure who any of it is from. No one had seen me put money in the offering at church or really had any idea of what I had been going through. But were they sent by God? Absolutely. This is without a doubt a miracle and has taught me that even through hard times God is there taking care of us. I know I can always trust God and because of this I will forever put my full faith in Him and know that there’s hope. Sometimes, mercies really do come in disguise.
Sunday, May 6, 2012
A Love So Loud- Plans.
I fell in love with the game of basketball when I was in the sixth grade. It consumed every single part of my life. I woke up thinking about it and I went to sleep knowing how excited I would be to play again the next day..basketball was my life. Some of you reading this might know just a little bit about my career, but for those who don't- I really grew into my role as a leader and a teammate my Junior year of high school when three of the greatest players in Lady Royals history, graduated. And because of that, I had to come up with some sort of a plan to keep winning. I had to figure out how to make my team better, how to make me better, and most of all I had to figure out some way to get me into college to play this game that I had grown to love so much. And to those of you reading that know anything about how my Junior year went, you know that my plan didn't work..we won 8 games total- I knew it was time to reevaluate. I had to think of some other way. I started to work harder, and I started to become a better player, a better teammate, and we became a better team my Senior year. In October of that year, I got my first offer to play college basketball- and at the time I don't think I had ever been that happy. I remember exactly what I was thinking, where I was standing, what I was doing, and I remember how pumped I was to even have an offer. I remember how good it felt knowing that someone truly believed in me. I signed to play college basketball for St Catharine College in November. I was entering a program full of amazing people who I had just met, I was playing for a coach who would become a lot more like a part of my family and I knew that I fit. I knew that this was the plan, and it felt good.
August came flying in and before I knew it I was off to college, I was so excited to start reaching my full potential as a player and I couldn't wait to see all that was in store for my life. Conditioning was the worst thing that I had ever gone through, but I pushed on, I worked hard because that was where I wanted to be. October came again, and one day during the very first drill in practice, I took a bad step. The pain immediately began, and it wasn't a typical injury. My knees felt good, so did my hamstrings, but my groin and everything central to my body was on fire. Athletes get hurt, it's a part of it..but this was different, something was really wrong..of course I kept on going. It took me a while to fit into my role in college, but like I said earlier, when I found it, I knew that I fit. I played with this same intense pain from October to December, I began to develop a limp, I took four ibuprofen before practice and games and during the day to try to kill some of the pain but nothing worked. I knew it was time to go to the doctor, I knew that this was more than just a tweak that would heal. The first three doctors I visited told me that I hadOsteitis Pubis, which I have mentioned before, and that it was chronic, there was nothing I could do. I was devastated because I was comfortable and I fit..and then my plan had to change. I quit basketball last summer, I didn't want to disappoint anyone by being a player that couldn't produce, I didn't want to be a waste of money or a waste of time. I went to the community college for a semester, but I constantly found myself wondering how things were going at St Catharine, how the team was, how my coach was. I missed it, I missed it a lot. Like I said in my first post, I was blessed enough to be able to go back this past semester because my coach and I came up with a plan. I got to pick a basketball back up for about three weeks before I realized I couldn't do it anymore, I had to be a redshirt and I hated every single second of it. So now that the background has been laid down, let's get to the point of this post.
I don't know if you all have noticed the common theme, but every single time it was my plan that failed. I thought I had it figured out and God smacked me in my face and put me on my butt and I wonder how I could ever think that my plan would actually work, because it won't. We get so torn up about things that don't work out because we invest our hearts and our time into them, like I did with basketball, and most of the time they don't end up how we had planned them to. The awesome thing about all of this though, is that God's plan for us are so much greater than our plans for us. I can always reference back to Romans 8:28 or Jeremiah 29:11, but we all know those verses. We know that God has a plan not to harm us, we know that all things will work together for good for those who love Him. We know that. So why don't we put that into action? Why don't we ever just fully trust and submerge ourselves into the ocean of God's unending love? Because we're scared. We're scared of not having our plan.
On Monday, April 30th, I went to meet with a surgeon about my injury. He told me I could have surgery, he told me I would be better with a lot of rest and a lot of hope- and that I was going to be okay, it would just take time. Time, that I knew, I didn't really have when it came to basketball. And my plan, once again, had to change. I had been praying a lot about my future, I needed to know what God had in store for me, I needed to know what I should do. I came to the conclusion this past Wednesday when I drove away from St Catharine for the last time as a student with tears streaming down my face. Because ya see, God has a bigger plan for me than basketball. He has the whole time. And He was patient in letting me keep choosing to do what I wanted to do. He made my body weak so that my faith could soar, He made my muscles tired so that my hope could be renewed. He made my heart strong, so that I could be okay with the decision I had to make.
Because plans change, but our God never will. Our plans fail, but our God has never failed us. And even after losing something I loved so much, I know that it's all part of His plan..and His plans for me make mine look pretty small. His plans for all of us who believe in Him, go far beyond anything we could imagine. So if you are struggling today because things aren't going the way you thought they would- look up. Smile at your Creator, and know that there are better things coming your way..because there are.
"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyesnot on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." 2 Corinthians 4:16-18
August came flying in and before I knew it I was off to college, I was so excited to start reaching my full potential as a player and I couldn't wait to see all that was in store for my life. Conditioning was the worst thing that I had ever gone through, but I pushed on, I worked hard because that was where I wanted to be. October came again, and one day during the very first drill in practice, I took a bad step. The pain immediately began, and it wasn't a typical injury. My knees felt good, so did my hamstrings, but my groin and everything central to my body was on fire. Athletes get hurt, it's a part of it..but this was different, something was really wrong..of course I kept on going. It took me a while to fit into my role in college, but like I said earlier, when I found it, I knew that I fit. I played with this same intense pain from October to December, I began to develop a limp, I took four ibuprofen before practice and games and during the day to try to kill some of the pain but nothing worked. I knew it was time to go to the doctor, I knew that this was more than just a tweak that would heal. The first three doctors I visited told me that I had
I don't know if you all have noticed the common theme, but every single time it was my plan that failed. I thought I had it figured out and God smacked me in my face and put me on my butt and I wonder how I could ever think that my plan would actually work, because it won't. We get so torn up about things that don't work out because we invest our hearts and our time into them, like I did with basketball, and most of the time they don't end up how we had planned them to. The awesome thing about all of this though, is that God's plan for us are so much greater than our plans for us. I can always reference back to Romans 8:28 or Jeremiah 29:11, but we all know those verses. We know that God has a plan not to harm us, we know that all things will work together for good for those who love Him. We know that. So why don't we put that into action? Why don't we ever just fully trust and submerge ourselves into the ocean of God's unending love? Because we're scared. We're scared of not having our plan.
On Monday, April 30th, I went to meet with a surgeon about my injury. He told me I could have surgery, he told me I would be better with a lot of rest and a lot of hope- and that I was going to be okay, it would just take time. Time, that I knew, I didn't really have when it came to basketball. And my plan, once again, had to change. I had been praying a lot about my future, I needed to know what God had in store for me, I needed to know what I should do. I came to the conclusion this past Wednesday when I drove away from St Catharine for the last time as a student with tears streaming down my face. Because ya see, God has a bigger plan for me than basketball. He has the whole time. And He was patient in letting me keep choosing to do what I wanted to do. He made my body weak so that my faith could soar, He made my muscles tired so that my hope could be renewed. He made my heart strong, so that I could be okay with the decision I had to make.
Because plans change, but our God never will. Our plans fail, but our God has never failed us. And even after losing something I loved so much, I know that it's all part of His plan..and His plans for me make mine look pretty small. His plans for all of us who believe in Him, go far beyond anything we could imagine. So if you are struggling today because things aren't going the way you thought they would- look up. Smile at your Creator, and know that there are better things coming your way..because there are.
"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
A Love So Loud- Testimony Pt. 2
My name is Kenton Murphy, and this part two of my two part testimony.
The unknown.
Everyone reads that and it is probably one of our greatest fears
in life. What lies ahead in the next minute, day, week, month, or year? Even
though we question “the unknown” we still expect better days with no troubles
or worries, but that’s not the case. In my last post I wrote about my
experience with cancer, but what I experienced after my battle with cancer has
also had a large affect my life.
With the unknown, comes death. We don’t like it and we all fight
it everyday, but unfortunately we eventually come face to face with this
phenomena with people we least expect.
For me, the unknown hit me hard with the loss of my dad on
February 7, 2011.
*For those doing the math from my
last post...yes, my dad died 364 days after I found out I had cancer*
I’m at a weird spot with the acceptance of what comes with death.
On a daily basis I smile and think how lucky I was to able to get to experience
19 years with my dad, but on the same days I feel remorse and at one time,
anger. Remorse in the fact that it was ONLY 19, and not 20+. I think about how
much my dad will miss out on and how much I still needed to learn from him.
Everyday I come to terms with the loss because it is a continuous growing
process that will probably last my entire lifespan.
I also said anger. I can’t deny that right after he passed away
that a little part of me was hurt by what God was putting me through again a
year later. I kept questioning why this was happening to me and what was the
point in trying so hard if the world is going to be ripped right from
underneath you. Please don’t read that as me giving up on God or my faith
because that isn’t the case at all. I was questioning what was happening,
something NOBODY should do. Questioning what God has in His plans is not for us
because we need to realize the bigger picture of life. We have to continue into
the unknown, without fearing or worrying about it. Us fearing the unknown is us
questioning what God is doing for us and His ultimate plans for us.
Through my dad’s death I learned a valuable life lesson that I’m
sure that God wanted me to learn. Make a difference. Every breath we take is an
opportunity to make a difference, but most of us are to busy wasting it on
questioning the unknown. I’ve been guilty of this all my life, but it hit home
when I lost my dad. The unknown was right in front of me and I was still
questioning. This isn’t what God wants us to do. He wants us to live in the now
and make a difference in the world. I was able to get a grip on this concept days
after my dad’s death because I was able to see the impact that he’d had on so
many lives on his time on Earth.
Remember, quit worrying about the unknown and put all your trust
and love into God and He won’t lead you wrong.
One last thing...have you made a difference today?
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
A Love So Loud- The Pool.
I've never had a blog post rant. This is a blog post rant. So fasten your seat belt folks, cause I'm going 0-100 in .2.
I need to know the answer to some of life's questions. I need someone to tell me. This isn't judgmental, this isn't me condemning you, this is an attempt at understanding you and and attempt at examining myself. I NEED to understand, it won't leave my mind, I have to get this out.
I have mentioned so many times that in our lives we are searching for something. We are searching for the truth in a world full of lies. We are searching for love in a world full of lust. We are searching for comfort in a world that brings us down. We are searching for solutions in a world that gives us problems. I could go on and on, but I don't need to. I need to know why we do this. See, as humans we complain that we don't know what is going to happen. We complain that love hasn't found us. We complain that we're always down in the dumps. We complain about everything. So let's back up and figure this thing out together..ready for it?
Why are we searching for truth instead of knowing The Truth? Why are we searching for love instead of getting lost in His love? Why are we searching for comfort, when His arms are outstretched holding us? Why are we searching for a solution when we have The Answer? I was just talking to my best friend about a part of this, and that's what sparked this post. We need to examine ourselves from the inside, out.. and we need to start now. See, we can complain about all of this- all of these things that aren't going right and all of the stuff that makes us unhappy but like I just said in the post before..our problems are typically self made.
This might come off a little hard, and I hope that no one stops reading because of some of the things that I've said so far..but someone needs to say it and I feel like it has been put on my heart. We hate change, but we should hate who we are without Christ, more. We should hate that so much that we are willing to accept the changes that need to be made in our life. We need to become a pack of Jesus Freaks. We need to be the change in our generation..because let's face it, things aren't getting any better. And we want to complain about it, but we don't want to fix it.
You know those days, because I know we've all had them..it's scolding hot, middle of the summer, and there is a huge pool awaiting your arrival somewhere. You finally get there, you see the pool, you get pumped about it- and then we do that thing..you know? Where you put your toe or your finger in the water and you think that it's way too cold to get in. It doesn't matter how beautiful it is outside or how inviting that pool looks, you choose to go in because of how uncomfortable that water will make you..air conditioning is just so much easier.
Don't you get it? WHO CARES if it is cold. WHO CARES if it's uncomfortable. It's life! And it's supposed to be cold, and it's supposed to be uncomfortable but it eventually feels normal, it feels like it's what you're supposed to be doing. The possibility of being uncomfortable shouldn't keep us from doing a cannon ball right into the deep end. Because like I said, we want to complain about all of these unknowns in the world, but do you realize all the signs we are given? We have a book FULL of answers and all you have to do is open it up? It's like seeing that big pool right in front of you, and going inside? Why? Dive in! Do a stinkin' cannon ball! Don't sit in the AC because it's easy..because the thing about AC, is that it comes at a pretty high cost.
The point is- unless you enjoy being lost and searching for something more..it's time to surrender to the One who makes it all make sense. It's time to be more than what this world wants you to be. It's time to stop letting things define you. It's time to define yourself through Him.
Come close to God and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. - James 4:8
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
A Love So Loud- Letting Go.
I'm going to do my best not to take things from the heart break post and add them to this one, but I received a text from a friend a few days ago and she needed to read something to help her move on and help her let go. So I guess this is kind of a post for all of you who are stuck. You're close to moving on, but you can't quite get there yet. You feel it on the tip of your fingers, but you don't want to reach out and grab it.
Just like I've said in so many other posts, we are all very much human..and sometimes it's hard to trade in memories. It's so hard to just forget and be okay. My question for you today though- is it worth losing your happiness? How many times are you going to have to have your heart broken? How many times is he or she going to have to leave you for you to get that this isn't the way things are supposed to be? That you deserve more? Because you do, and you'll find it..but part of letting go is believing that. It's believing that you're going to be okay even when you're at your lowest point. It's trusting that God is holding your heart, that He doesn't want to see you hurting anymore. That you're "safe in His arms".
And even to those of you who aren't struggling with a relationship..those of you who are angry at your boss for making you stay late for work. Those of you that are in a fight with one of your closest friends and you don't know how you'll ever forgive them. Us college kids who can't seem to find the time to breathe and be happy between finals and last minute homework. We have to learn to let go of all of this negativity that consumes our life. I know it's hard to be happy all of the time, I'm not. I know it's hard to see the positive in every situation, I don't. But we have to try. Because what's the point in harvesting all of the bad. No one reading this can tell me that they LOVE the way it feels to be mad or discouraged, because we don't, yet we bring it upon ourselves and we let the emotions linger.
I realize that this is a short post, but I don't think there's much else that needs to be said. Letting go is such a personal decision and I can't hammer anything into your head. But I think all that really needs to be said is what I tell myself every single day- when old memories come flooding back into my head, when I realize that I'm being negative and I can't find my happiness..and that is;
1. Trust that God has a bigger plan.
2. Trust that God is for you.
3. Trust that God won't give you any pain that you can't handle.
4. Learn to love what is good for you.
5. Get better, not bitter.
6. Is this really worth it?
7. Being negative won't help you make progress.
8. Most of our problems are self made problems.
9. When you hit rock bottom, you can only go up.
10. You. Will. Be. Okay.
So hey you, yes you. If you're having a bad day, let it go and turn it around. If you can't get over your ex, let them go and wait for the one who was meant for you. If your boss is on your very last nerve, let it go because you don't know what they're going through either. Life is better when you see the good in it. But you can't see the good until you let go of all of that that keeps you down.
"But forget all that-- it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do something new.." -Isaiah 43:18-19 (NLT)
Just like I've said in so many other posts, we are all very much human..and sometimes it's hard to trade in memories. It's so hard to just forget and be okay. My question for you today though- is it worth losing your happiness? How many times are you going to have to have your heart broken? How many times is he or she going to have to leave you for you to get that this isn't the way things are supposed to be? That you deserve more? Because you do, and you'll find it..but part of letting go is believing that. It's believing that you're going to be okay even when you're at your lowest point. It's trusting that God is holding your heart, that He doesn't want to see you hurting anymore. That you're "safe in His arms".
And even to those of you who aren't struggling with a relationship..those of you who are angry at your boss for making you stay late for work. Those of you that are in a fight with one of your closest friends and you don't know how you'll ever forgive them. Us college kids who can't seem to find the time to breathe and be happy between finals and last minute homework. We have to learn to let go of all of this negativity that consumes our life. I know it's hard to be happy all of the time, I'm not. I know it's hard to see the positive in every situation, I don't. But we have to try. Because what's the point in harvesting all of the bad. No one reading this can tell me that they LOVE the way it feels to be mad or discouraged, because we don't, yet we bring it upon ourselves and we let the emotions linger.
I realize that this is a short post, but I don't think there's much else that needs to be said. Letting go is such a personal decision and I can't hammer anything into your head. But I think all that really needs to be said is what I tell myself every single day- when old memories come flooding back into my head, when I realize that I'm being negative and I can't find my happiness..and that is;
1. Trust that God has a bigger plan.
2. Trust that God is for you.
3. Trust that God won't give you any pain that you can't handle.
4. Learn to love what is good for you.
5. Get better, not bitter.
6. Is this really worth it?
7. Being negative won't help you make progress.
8. Most of our problems are self made problems.
9. When you hit rock bottom, you can only go up.
10. You. Will. Be. Okay.
So hey you, yes you. If you're having a bad day, let it go and turn it around. If you can't get over your ex, let them go and wait for the one who was meant for you. If your boss is on your very last nerve, let it go because you don't know what they're going through either. Life is better when you see the good in it. But you can't see the good until you let go of all of that that keeps you down.
"But forget all that-- it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do something new.." -Isaiah 43:18-19 (NLT)
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
A Love So Loud- Testimony.
My name is Kenton Murphy, and this is Part 1 of my two part testimony.
Invincible.
This is a word that all of us see and believe that we possess.
However, we aren’t. In fact, I know first hand how vulnerable we are to this
scary world. During my senior year of high school I was diagnosed with
mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the submandibular gland (or for the non-medical
professionals out there, a tumor in my spit gland). Finding out that I had
cancer was nothing compared to what was down the road for me, as I experienced
some of the most trying times that no teenager should ever have to deal with.
Four different surgeries (two being on my neck), twelve weeks of chemotherapy
(12 treatments), and six weeks of radiation (30 treatments). As I type those
numbers they don’t even seem realistic, but unfortunately they are. Now, you
may feel pity for me..please don’t. I say this in the nicest way possible. I am
100% better now, both medically and in my faith.
Before being diagnosed I had a great relationship with God and my
faith, but there will always be room for improvement in this department in all
of us. We all have flaws which God understands, but we have to strive to be the
better person every time that we open our eyes for a new day. I did just this.
During the six months that I was back in forth from Boston to Lexington to
Maysville I truly learned what it meant to live in my faith and exemplify it in
my actions. Not a single day went by that I ever felt like I was alone. I
always had my family and friends by my side. There were times that I would be
alone receiving a treatment with nobody by my side, but in reality I wasn’t. I
had God right there with me every step of the way cheering me on. My radiation
treatments presented me with the best time to pray, everyday at 3:00 pm. I
looked forward to this time because it was some true alone time that I loved
with God that I could thank him for allowing me to wake up that morning, be
able to attend Prom, being able to attend my Graduation. These times really
gave me the opportunity to live in His word rather than to just hear His word.
Every day we are presented with new challenges and obstacles that
life has to offer. Don’t look at them as a punishment from God, look at them as
an opportunity to grow in your faith and trust in Him that whatever He leads
you to He will lead you through.
Monday, April 16, 2012
A Love So Loud- Stay Kind.
Before I get started on this, I want everyone to know that I think human beings are amazing. Think about all of the things that we've invented with the materials around us. I'm typing on my MacBook Pro and my Apple iPhone because of Steve Jobs. I can see what I'm doing in a dark room thanks to Thomas Edison and his invention of the light bulb. We can talk on the telephone because of Alexander Graham Bell. And then there are people like Blake Mycoskie, the inventor of Toms shoes, who use their talents to give back to people in need. Like I said, people are truly amazing.
I've been thinking about this a lot lately because every single day I'm around people- we all are. And every single day, like I mentioned before- someone is struggling with something..and odds are, you don't know anything about it.
This world will do absolutely everything it can to take the good out of you- to drain the light right from your eyes that allows you to see the beauty of life and the beauty in people and it has the ability to leave you feeling washed up and whittled down to nothing. The world knows how to tempt you and how to try you- how to get you talk about the people around you.
I want you to stop and think about the last time you said something about someone else. Someone you know or someone you don't..and i want you to think about why you did it. Is it because you are that unhappy? Does it really make you feel better? I'll be the first to admit that I used to do those things, and I did them often..and it took me realizing that as a population we underestimate the power that our words hold.
There is a quote that says something like "people will forget what you did, people will forget what you said, but people will never forget the way you made them feel." We need to play a game of trading places. Take yourself out of your own perfect world that you live in and put yourself in someone else's shoes. That girl that you just called ugly, struggles with an eating disorder. The boy you called names, struggles with suicide contemplation every single day.
Open your eyes to the fact that people are hurting all around you and most of the time they are reaching for help. Stop judging, stop hating, love one another. And in the same way that you shouldn't underestimate harsh words- don't underestimate kind ones. Don't underestimate the power of a smile, a compliment to a stranger- and a hug to your best friend when they're having a bad day. We have to work to live more like Jesus, and he made close friends with tax collectors and the worst of sinners..he puts up with us daily and I know just as well as you do- that we don't deserve that kind of love and forgiveness.
So be a light to someone who is in the dark. And in a world that makes it so easy to be mean- stay kind.
"Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you." Ephesians 4:31-32
I've been thinking about this a lot lately because every single day I'm around people- we all are. And every single day, like I mentioned before- someone is struggling with something..and odds are, you don't know anything about it.
This world will do absolutely everything it can to take the good out of you- to drain the light right from your eyes that allows you to see the beauty of life and the beauty in people and it has the ability to leave you feeling washed up and whittled down to nothing. The world knows how to tempt you and how to try you- how to get you talk about the people around you.
I want you to stop and think about the last time you said something about someone else. Someone you know or someone you don't..and i want you to think about why you did it. Is it because you are that unhappy? Does it really make you feel better? I'll be the first to admit that I used to do those things, and I did them often..and it took me realizing that as a population we underestimate the power that our words hold.
There is a quote that says something like "people will forget what you did, people will forget what you said, but people will never forget the way you made them feel." We need to play a game of trading places. Take yourself out of your own perfect world that you live in and put yourself in someone else's shoes. That girl that you just called ugly, struggles with an eating disorder. The boy you called names, struggles with suicide contemplation every single day.
Open your eyes to the fact that people are hurting all around you and most of the time they are reaching for help. Stop judging, stop hating, love one another. And in the same way that you shouldn't underestimate harsh words- don't underestimate kind ones. Don't underestimate the power of a smile, a compliment to a stranger- and a hug to your best friend when they're having a bad day. We have to work to live more like Jesus, and he made close friends with tax collectors and the worst of sinners..he puts up with us daily and I know just as well as you do- that we don't deserve that kind of love and forgiveness.
So be a light to someone who is in the dark. And in a world that makes it so easy to be mean- stay kind.
"Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you." Ephesians 4:31-32
Friday, April 13, 2012
A Love So Loud- Heartbreak.
Ya know, I've mentioned the word heartbreak in a few of my posts since i've started this blog. But I feel like heartbreak is such a real part of our lives that it might just deserve it's own post..especially lately. It seems like everyone close to me is breaking up, or struggling, or barely getting by with being alright. And I think that a lot of us can't get past that achey, lost, hopeless, feeling- the one that causes us to wonder if everything will be okay again.
I've realized, being the sister of three other siblings, that words don't always help when it comes to fixing a problem. Sometimes, words don't do anything but open up the wounds more and more. Sometimes, people don't want to talk about it. Because sometimes, it hurts too much. And like i said earlier, it seems to be more prevalent right now than it usually is. With that being said, if you want to stop reading this because you don't want to think about the pain that a heartbreak has caused you, I honestly don't blame you..because I'm about to get to the point of this post, and if you keep reading- it's important that you take it in.
I think the reason that so many of us get so heart broken is because we are so caught up in what could have been in our relationships. We think about the future before it gets here, we think about the lives we will spend together forever before we focus on the life we are spending together right now. I know this because i've been guilty of it a few times. And then we dwell on that. We dwell on how bad it is hurting right now and how we don't think we will ever move on. But we will. And that hopeless feeling in the pit of your stomach, that ache in your heart- that is there to remind you that you're a human, that not everything is going to be sunshine and butterflies, but it's not supposed to be. Bad things happen so that we learn to appreciate things when they're good. Life hurts sometimes, but every once in a while we catch a glimpse of something that reminds us that everything is okay- because it is. In Genesis, after God flooded the world, He kept a promise with us that it wouldn't happen again by sending us a rainbow..wait for your rainbow, because it is coming..it's just coming on God's time.
Ya see, one of the cool things about believing in God, and having faith like some of you reading do- is that you know deep down that no matter how bad things may seem or how bad things may get- they always get better. Because the God we worship is a God of love and compassion. A God that wouldn't give you anything that you couldn't handle. A God that is full of tests and challenges, a God that seeks to make our hearts strong through Him.
So for the one who is struggling today, or the one who is constantly battling with being okay, "let go and let God." Wait for your rainbow because it is coming, even in the midst of your storm. And I promise you that because God woke you up this morning, He isn't disappointed with you yet. And as always- you're here for a purpose, so don't let anything stop you from fulfilling it. Believe today that things will get better, and start seeing the good unfold around you in this beautiful world.
He heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds. -Psalm 147:3
Ya see, one of the cool things about believing in God, and having faith like some of you reading do- is that you know deep down that no matter how bad things may seem or how bad things may get- they always get better. Because the God we worship is a God of love and compassion. A God that wouldn't give you anything that you couldn't handle. A God that is full of tests and challenges, a God that seeks to make our hearts strong through Him.
So for the one who is struggling today, or the one who is constantly battling with being okay, "let go and let God." Wait for your rainbow because it is coming, even in the midst of your storm. And I promise you that because God woke you up this morning, He isn't disappointed with you yet. And as always- you're here for a purpose, so don't let anything stop you from fulfilling it. Believe today that things will get better, and start seeing the good unfold around you in this beautiful world.
He heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds. -Psalm 147:3
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)