Upcoming tests

I have worked so hard this week to finish all my homework in advance, make my payments for the Powell trip on time, and make sure everything is aligned to go for this weekend. I feel exhausted. I am on the verge of getting sick... honestly, who willingly goes to sleep in sand while getting sick? I guess that's going to be me. This is my senior year, my LAST semester, most importantly--- these are my friends, I am going.

Last night we kicked off LoveASU's 35 days of 24hr prayer... it was an intense night of worship, testimonies, and of course prayer. Tonight (if I have enough energy to go, since I didn't go to work today...) my girls group will be starting our study on Wide Awake. Just reading the description of the book makes me excited!

An old friend just called me from The Honor Academy, he needed some financial help... so what do friends do? We help. He ended up praying for me being sick, and a few other things going on in my life. It was good to hear from you Amelio, I know God has blessed you in so many ways, the way your life has changed can be seen by everyone!

Alright, I am going to pack for Lake Powell, then probably take another nap...

I can't focus...

So I have officially been sitting here (kitchen table) for an hour, previously I was in the living room for around 3hrs, before that my bedroom... what can I say I've accomplished in that time? Nothing. Now that is not entirely true, but I have yet to complete an assignment that is due this coming week, they are all in the 15-25% completed range. Procrastination anyone? The worst thing about it is that I WANT to be finished with it, I just cannot focus. ugh.

I do have some exciting news from the past week that I would like to share:
1) Quinn is now an uncle, his sister had her baby boy Noah on Monday Sept. 15th. Aren't they adorable together?!
2) My friend Andy has had a vision to start a ministry for the past two years, I am happy to say that this week his vision has started to become a reality! Check it out: Crash4Christ
3) I finally feel like I fit into XA and have found "my place" for a lack of better description words. It does sadden me that I'll be leaving in January, but like I always say... if you get too comfortable, you aren't being productive! Plus, I know that I can keep in touch with the friends I've made there! Life is full of changes, it's about making them work in your favor. I do fear the changes that are to come, but in a strange way I desire them as well.

Okay, so I really better finish at least one assignment. XA's annual Lake Powell trip is this coming Fri-Sun, I NEED to finish all this homework ASAP. I hope you all have a great week =)

Roller Coaster Week

I am not going to even attempt to describe all the events that took place this past week, let's just say I hit a very low point and am now climbing out. God is the only reason for this, thank you for all your prayers!

Last night I attended the 9/11 Memorial Healing Field's Candlelight Vigil Ceremony. It was very touching, there were beautiful poems and stories read. 104th floor survivor Joe Dittmar shared his experience during the attack, the choir sang "God Bless America," bringing me to tears, the Young Marines did the flag folding ceremony, and then the Tempe Police Bag Pipe Bang played "Taps," once again bringing me to tears. Each Flag (almost 3,000) featured a personalized card with the name of the victim, their profession, age, hometown, and place they died. It also had a yellow ribbon, and each child had a stuffed animal attached to the bottom.

The Young Marines narrated their folding ceremony and after the vigil I asked their Commanding Officer if there was a way I could obtain the meaning that was read. She e-mailed it to me last night:

The first fold of our flag is a symbol of life.

The second fold is a symbol of our belief in the eternal life.

The third fold is made in honor and remembrance of the veteran departing our ranks who gave a portion of life for the defense of our country to attain a peace throughout the world.

The fourth fold represents our weaker nature, for as American citizens trusting in God, it is to Him we turn in times of peace as well as in times of war for His divine guidance.

The fifth fold is a tribute to our country, for in the words of Stephen Decatur, “Our country, in dealing with other countries, may she always be right; but it is still our country, right or wrong.

The sixth fold is for where our hearts lie. It is with our heart that we pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

The seventh fold is a tribute to our Armed Forces, for it is through the Armed Forces that we protect our country and our flag against all her enemies, whether they be found within or without the boundaries of our republic.

The eighth fold is a tribute to the one who entered in to the valley of the shadow of death, that we might see the light of day, and to honor mother, for whom it flies on Mothers day.

The ninth fold is a tribute to womanhood; for it has been through their faith, love, loyalty and devotion that the character of men and women who have made this country great have been molded.

The tenth fold is a tribute to father, for he, too, has given his sons and daughters for the defense of our country since they were first born.

The eleventh fold, in the eyes of a Hebrew citizen, represents the lower portion of the seal of King David and King Solomon, and glorifies, in their eyes, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

The twelfth fold, in the eyes of a Christian citizen, represents an emblem of eternity and glorifies, in their eyes, God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.

When the flag is completely folded, the stars are uppermost, reminding us of our national motto, “In God we Trust”.

After the flag is completely folded and tucked in, it takes on the appearance of a cocked hat, ever reminding us of the soldiers who served under General George Washington and the sailors and marines who served under Captain John Paul Jones who followed by their comrades and shipmates in the Armed Forces of the United States, preserving for us the rights, privileges, and freedoms we enjoy today.

-------------------------------
Current Blessings:
Stephen is back from Iraq!
Today is my sister's 19th birthday, and my cousin Kelsie's 8th birthday!
Quinn and I are figuring things out =)

For those who wait...

I almost feel as though I am standing still and the entire world is rushing past. I know that's not true but between last weekend (Welcome weekend events with XA) and last week I feel behind, and I'm not sure why. Last Monday I had that "Oh, wow...this is my LAST FIRST day of school" revelation. Everyone says, "Well it doesn't have to be, there's always graduate school." Sure, that's there...but aside from the money I honestly don't know if I can be in school for two more years right now. I've been doing school since I was 5! Maybe later...

All of my classes are 300-400 levels, all of them are going to require huge time commitments, and lots of reading and reports. Yay! I am also involved in PRSA, TTSA, my professors are strongly hinting at MPI, and then just this last week I decided to join the XA Core Team and I got a morning job. What was I thinking?

Run down on the M-Th Schedule:
7:30am-12pm Work
2:30pm Leave for PHX
3-5pm Gym/Last Min Homework/SA Meetings (Rock Climbing on W)
5:40-8:30pm Class (XA on W) (4:40-7:30 on Th)

I think Friday's are going to be reserved for sleep and homework.

Anyway... during all this I was prayerfully waiting on a lot of things. Decisions for the student associations I will continue be involved in, meetings with professors I must have, the decision about being on the Chi Alpha Core team, finding a morning job in order to pay for gas and XA trips. There are a few things I am still waiting on, but God has definitely been answering prayers!

Regarding waiting the following is from "Sex and the City Uncovered" a book by Marian Jordan; whom I had the priveledge to attend a forum she hosted and loved the blunt and up-front attitude she had. The section was titled: Susannah---A Lady Who Waited pg. 129-131. I found it very positive and decided to share it.
----------------------------------------------------------
Growing up, if I heard it once, I heard it a thousand times: "What looks like rejection is God's protection." It was my mom's answer to every formal I wasn't asked to (including my senior prom), every dance I didn't dance, every cute guy who looked once and never looked back again. But looking back, after five years of marriage to the most incredible man I know, Mom was right.

She was right when I didn't want her to be right. She was right when it hurt to be right. She was right because every time a guy said "no" to me because I wasn't the sex object he wanted, by following God's design for sex, he was saving me for my future husband and, most significantly, for Himself.

When I met my husband, I was twenty-three years old; he was twenty-nine. Both of us were virgins, and when I say virgins, I mean virgins. "First base" (a.k.a. kissing) was as far as either of us had ever been, and throughout our two years of dating, that's as far as we ever went. Why? Was it because my husband was less of a man than other men? No. What it because he was unattractive? No; far from it. He is one of the most handsome men I know. It was because we both took God at His word, and when He said, "Wait. Abstain. Forgo pleasure now for pleasure later," we believed Him.

And God was right. If you've never seen the most recent film version of Jane Austen's novel Pride and Prejudice, go rent it. It's worth every penny. During one of the last scenes in the movie, the heroine, Elizabeth Bennett, is miserable in her waiting. She has spent a sleepless night seeing if Mr. Darcy, the man she loves, still loves her. She greets the dawn outside in the cold morning mist, and as the mist parts, she looks up to see Mr. Darcy striding through the fields coming to claim her as a bride.

That, my friends, is what sex feels like on your wedding night and throughout marriage when you have waited. Pure Passion. Unimaginable Beauty. Sacred Ground. There are no regrets when the only sexual partner either of you has ever had is each other. There are no imaginations of the other women he has been with or the other men who have shared your bed. There is no fear of "the morning after." When I go to bed, my husband is there. When I wake up in the morning, he is there. There is no shame. No comparison of our bodies to others. No regret. No remorse. We are free--free to enjoy one another without the chains of past wounds, past hurts, past sexual emotional bondage.
----------------------------------------------------------

Her account goes on for another page, telling how the struggle was hard. How saying "no" when their bodies said "yes" was a fight. How she knows her husband will wait, how she doesn't have to worry when he or she is gone. As soon as her story ends though, Marian picks up saying that all women are a treasure worth waiting for. Even if you haven't waited, it's never too late. There's no such thing as being too late with Jesus... "Jesus wants to heal the emotional wounds and physical destruction you endured from sex outside of God's design" (133).