it's chapstick and chapped lips and things like..biology?

"Your illustrations always point out just what's wrong with me.  It's chapstick and chapped lips and things like chemistry..." - Relient K

Now you may find this lyric as complete and utter gibberish (another amazing RK song -- just sayin').  I, however, think it surpasses witty and right into the you-understand-teenagers-perfectly category.  Why?

1. I can never find any chapstick when I need it.  Instead, I find it when my lips are moisturized and it's of absolutely no use to me.

2. I have chapped lips all throughout winter.  The nasty kind that bleed when you accidently bite down too hard on them.  Yeah.  Ow.  Not looking forward to it.

And 3. In the song they're talking about chemistry, I know.  The kind of chemistry in relationships, not the class.  Yeahyeahyeah.  But right now, I'm hating biology.  So I just inserted it where chemistry is supposed to be.  I'm making an 87 in there right now, which isn't too thrilling when you're normally used to 96s and 97s.  And your teacher kind of creeping you out doesn't help much either.

But the funny thing is, all these annoyances don't seem to matter to me anymore.  Ever since I found Ephesians 6:15, God's been showing me all the little things.  As of late those include: beasting at my volleyball game last night, my crush sitting by me at church *blushes*, and a zucchini muffin from my best friend yesterday morning.  Sorry guys, I went off chasing butterflies for a moment.  Little things are worth the chasing, though :)

Back to the everyday annoyances.  They just roll off my back now.  It's like I could care less what people think of me anymore.  I mean, the worst they can do is call me a name.  Make fun of my faith.  Tell me I don't know how to have fun and that I'm a total geek.  The point is, we all have faults.  We could always point out something wrong with someone else.  And ourselves.  Maybe our mistakes are what make us beautiful.  Beautiful messes, cleaned up by The Janitor, name-tag reading, "Jesus". Now if we can only learn to look past the mess part and see the beautiful.

"I don't want to be perceived the way I am, I just want to be perceived the way I am."

day eight: a thank you letter to someone who has changed your life.

Since Jesus would be the obvious choice, I'm going with something totally opposite.  See, there was this girl who was really mean to me in the seventh grade.  But she (well, God used her...but still) helped me find something I would have never found on my own.  Courage.

Dear [Her name here],

Thank you for all the times you put me down behind my back or purposefully ran me into the lockers.  I see now that it was all a test.  That God wanted me to learn to stand up for myself.  I learned being a peace-keeper doesn't mean being a doormat.  It means keeping things at ease when necessary, but to stand up for what's right when you need to.  You also showed me who my true friends were, which made me realize just how much I needed God.  So I just wanna say thanks.  For making me a stronger person, and for pushing me further towards Him.

Sincerely,
Me

well burst my bubble.

So. Today in Sunday school we talked about finding passion.

And I was like, "Umm, I'm a freshman in high school. I have no earthly idea what I want to do with my life and you're telling me I need a passion?! Hold up, rewind, and take a step back."

But then I got to thinking. This makes sense.

Ya know, I've been told all my life God created me with a purpose. Well I figured out something today. Purpose = passion. Really though. Think about it. God created you with a purpose. And you'll have a passion for whatever that purpose is.

*Sighs* I'm still not sure what my passion is. Not at alllll. I love to sing, but, eh, I'm not sure that's what God has in store for my future. But, hey, it very possibly could be.

But I also found out something else. To find my passion, I've gotta burst my bubble. Get out of my own little world and see what's happening around me. See what I care for most deeply. See what God's want for me. What He wants from me.

Sam (a very cool college kid I don't know very well but seems super sweet) loves Gypsie kids. It's her passion. My cousin, Ashley loves to teach. That's her thing.

So now I'm asking God to burst my bubble. I want to see the hurt, the pain, and everything else in the world. I wanna see what breaks my heart. I want to find my purpose. MY PASSION.

beyond these beautiful lies.

Sorry 'bout earlier, Scott asked to see my computer and I was on my blog. He clicked on 'new post' and (obviously!) posted. He's a goofball like that :) But he's a great friend and pretty much just a good 'ol boy.

Anyway, back to the real post...

I've got two songs stuck in my head at the moment - "Automatic" and "Eyes" - both by *laughs* Stellar Kart. I mean, who else, right? ;)

Anyway, they're both fun, really catchy, and have great message, but I'm gonna focus in on "Eyes", 'cause it kinda deals with the situation I'm in right now.

The world seems to have a lot to offer-"love", "beauty", "happiness." Doesn't seem too bad, eh? I didn't think so either. But while Christians are supposed to be all about God, our society revolves around me, myself, and I. And it shouldn't work like that. Hence the quotation marks ;) And that's kind of what this song is about. To see past the fake beauty, to see what God sees. Which means seeing past the outside and looking at the heart.

Ya see, I struggle with stereotyping, so it really got to me.

Open my eyes

I wanna see what you see

Beyond these beautiful lies

Open my eyes

To find what lasts forever

Look to the soul that's inside

Open my eyes

So, I want God to open my eyes. To the people who need love. To the people who need Him.

Blessings always & forever,

anna :)

PS - "Eyes" is on my blogPod, so you can listen to it right here! :D

my own little world.

i live in my own little world.

i rarely step out of it.

'cause that means stepping out of my comfort zone.

and that means risk.

taking risks? me? HA!

but there are people hurting.

people crying.

people dying.

people who are scared and alone.

people without love.

people without Christ.

so why am i still in my own little world.

all hunky-dory.

happy go-lucky.

loving life.

when people need me.

when people need JESUS.

i'm living in my own little world.

with Him.

when people are without Him.

my own little world is not where i need to be.

heroes that don't wear capes.

You never how far a little kindness can go. I know it sounds cheesy and elementary, but it's true. I see it now more than ever. High school is a lot...different than middle school. It's bigger and meaner and um, yeah, scarier. I was really scared on the first day that someone was gonna knock my books out of my hands like in the movies, but I'm over that now :) Anyway, kids are cruel. That's life. But you don't have to be. You SHOULDN'T be. You're a Christian, a Christ-follower. He lives in you. And if you make fun of someone (to their face OR behind their back), you're giving Christ a bad name. You're giving your fellow Christ-followers a bad name. So yeah. Be kind. You're kindness might bring a smile to someone's face. Kindness might get someone to thinking. Kindness might save someone's life. That's what heroes do. Save people's days and save people's lives. You don't have to wear a cape. You don't have to have superpowers. You just have to have Christ. And let Him shine through you.

{You could be a hero, heroes do what's right. You could be a hero, you might save a life...}

-Superchic[k]

It's on my blogPod if you haven't heard it. I heart it :)

Till whenever,

anna :)

send HIM on.

These are some commericials put on by The Foundation for a Better Life. They pretty much display what us Christians should do on a daily basis. Christ died for us. The least we can do is reach out to others & show them how much He loves them. Send HIM on.

for my life skills project :)

Sorry girls! This has nothing to do with anything, but I needed an easy link to this video for my LS (life skills) project, so I decided to post it on my blog. It's supposed to show all the different cliques--the band geeks, the jocks, the populars...ya know. But anyway, I'll be trying out "randomness friday" for the first time this week, so stay tuned!

LYLASITS,
anna :)

wash feet: set His example.

Okay, so my mom works at a chiropractic office and they offer foot baths. I’m not sure how much they cost, but lots of people pay to get their feet cleaned by this foot bath-thing that’s supposed to get rid of all the toxins and bacteria in/on your feet. The results make you want to puke. Ya see, I was going to post a picture of what it ends up looking like, but I decided to do you (and me) a favor. I put a picture of a cute little rubber ducky floating in bath water instead. Usually, the water is like really dark brown or almost black. Or as Zoey Davis would say, “Double ew!” (that was for my Kickin’ It readers :) ) But seriously, it ends up resembling car oil or tar or something rather than water with a little bit of dirt in it.

You’re probably like “Anna, where are you going with all this?” Don’t worry, I’m getting there. Jesus washed the feet of the disciples, remember? And think about how nasty their feet would be. The people that come to my mom’s office don’t walk dust roads in sandals for their livelihood. So let’s just say the disciples feet were triple ew. Jesus still washed their feet without any complaining. Peter tried to stop him. I mean, since he is the Son of God and everything.

Jesus replied, “Unless I wash you, you won’t belong to me.”
Peter exclaimed, “Then wash my hands and head as well, Lord, not just my feet!”
After washing their feet, he put on his robe again and sat down and asked, “Do you understand what I was doing? You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord’, and you are right, because that’s what I am. And since I, you Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each others feet.”


So...are you gonna set His example? Wash feet. Paint toenails. Give pedicures. Love others.

LYLASITS,
anna :)