Westridge Elementary

Today was my second day at Westridge Elementary. I love it.

I love being with the kids. They say some of the funniest things.

Here are a couple of my favorites:

Me: "What sounds do you hear in the word 'race'?"

Child: "Vroom, vroom." 

Child: "You have pretty eyes."

Me: "What words rhyme with mutt, but, shut?"

Child: (hand cupped over her mouth as she gasps)

"You're not allowed to say that word."

Me: "What word do the sounds p/o/t make?"

Child: One time there was a frog who was jumping away from an eagle

because the eagle was going to eat the frog."

I. Love. It.

A Novel. In a Sea of Magazines.

Everything you do makes me want you.

You are a novel in a sea of magazines.

You make me nervous. You make my heart beat.

You are red in a sea of black and white.

You are fire. You are dynamite.

I love you, Matthew Jared.

Grace

"May the grace of the Lord Jesus be with all the saints."

Revelation 22:21

I love how these are the last words of God's Word.

May we humbly receive the grace of Jesus Christ.

May we be strengthened by His unfailing grace.

May we know that we are saved by His grace.

May we remember we are not bound by the law, but rest in the grace of Him.

May we know that His grace is sufficient for us.

May we feel His grace everyday. His mercies are new every morning.

Never

Dr. Ogle taught me to never use the word "never" when talking to someone.

For example, "You never do ______."

I now know why...

It's hurts when someone you love says, "You are never kind to me."

Stories

Something I have realized from being home away from my friends

is that I love listening to people's stories.

I have always known that I love to listen,

but never have I realized that I long to know what is going on in someone's life.

The other day my brother, David, had a Quest reunion.

For two weeks he went to Washington with a group from the church he goes to.

It is a time for them to get away from the busyness of life and really listen to what God has for them.

During the reunion, the leader, Jim Bailey, spoke Truth into each individual that went.

I teared up at least 5 times. I wanted to bawl, but I didn't. 

I loved hearing about what God had taught them and what He is continually doing in their lives.

I wanted to cry, mostly because of how redeeming God is, but also because I was reminded of the many times my best friends poured into my heart and how often we shared our stories with each other of what God was doing. 

Don't get me wrong, this still happens. Just not as much.

The thing is. I took spending 24/7 with my friends for granted.

I miss it. A lot.

I miss walking into our farm house and running obnoxiously upstairs to see my friends.

I miss laying in their beds (sometimes farting in them. hehe) and cuddling.

I miss having the opportunity to talk about life ALL the TIME!!

I guess what I am trying to say is that I love stories.

I love hearing what God is doing in anyone's life.

I need to be more intentional.