I am so excited that the weather is changing already and that fall is here! That means cuter clothes (hehe), football games, lots of family birthdays, Thanksgiving, and the most beautiful scenery as the leaves change. I am looking forward to all the new and fun things I get to experience this fall with Jimmy and my family and his family. So fun! (By the way, I realized this morning that’s we have been dating for two months….it is crazy because it feels like it’s been so much longer!…in a good way! lol)

On Saturday, Jimmy’s family and my family are going to be meeting for the first time! I’m so excited and a little nervous…but more just excited! I think we are going to be meeting in Commerce for dinner…so that should be fun. I will give a report after Saturday.

Only two more weeks of school and then I get a two week break! Next thursday we are hosting a fashion/hair show at the school. We have a lot to do still to get ready for this. We went last night and watched the day-time cosmetology class do their hair show….and…..let’s just say, we hope and pray that ours turns out better! Fingers crossed!

Well, as I eat my oatmeal…and try to not freeze my tail off in this office….I am going to go get some work done! Peace!

Wow….how things change…

God has been so good to me and is so faithful to His word! So, what all has happened in the last months of my life since I’ve written on here? Hmmm…oh so stinkin much!

I am in my third quarter of cosmetology school at North Metro Tech…I am loving it. The hours are crazy but I love those girls so much and I am thankful to be getting trained and licensed so that I can do one of the things that I love so much. I will be done in March of next year!

Before I started writing this  morning, I went back and read some of my older posts and it just makes me smile. I have written so much about waiting on the man who God has for me, etc. Well, people….guess what….God has brought him to me! It’s so amazing and exciting and humbling and crazy and so many other emotions. James Douglas McFarlin is his name…:) Our friend Brooke started trying to bring us together somehow at the beginning of last year! So this random guy from Boiling Springs, SC starts talking to me…and we got to know each other as friends for a long time! We didn’t actually meet until January of this year….and let’s just say….it was just not the right time for us to be anything other than just friends. But a little over two months ago, God started laying me on Jimmy’s heart again…and it’s all history from there. He pursued me like a godly man should and things have been wonderful since day 1. God has confirmed it in both of our hearts that this is His will for us. We could not be more excited. He is the most amazing man I have ever met…God knew exactly what I wanted and needed…He is so faithful…and He is probably in heaven saying “I TOLD YOU SO!!!”

My focus now is just trying to stay focused on the here and now…and on the One who has brought this all together. I do not ever want to forsake my first love! Praise HIM for it all and may HE receive ALL the glory and honor! I am so in love with my Savior! God is helping me to put it all into perspective…and helping me fit all the puzzle pieces where they belong.

Today’s weather is awesome…but not when you have to get up and go to work. I would love to be sitting in bed under the covers with a nice cup of coffee, watching a movie or something. Ahhhh….lol.

And….. moving on to the real world…:)

I will be driving BACK to Athens on Friday to celebrate my dad’s birthday. This will be the 3rd weekend in a row that I have done that. Am I crazy?? Maybe. But sometimes you have to make sacrifices for your family and they are worth it. I will be coming back Saturday though because I do not want to miss another Sunday at Freedom!

So…am I the only one that goes back and reads my old blogs? I don’t know…it’s so much fun to me though to see how much has changed in such a short amount of time! So this morning I was doing that and I read one of my mushy gushy ones and it made me smile…haha. Sorry – I’m weird – I know this. But it’s of course about the future and the one that God has for me. I want to post a paragraph I wrote – again - because I still feel that way and have been more encouraged than discouraged by God lately in how He has been speaking to me about this. So here it is and then I’ll talk a bit about where I am now:

‘Can I just get mushy and girly for a second….? I don’t know why now of all times in my life, but I have just really felt the need and desire to pray for my husband lately. It’s funny how much you can love someone that you don’t even know yet. But my heart has just been so heavy for him and desiring to meet him. I cannot wait to have someone to love, serve with and take care of….yes take care of – cook for, clean for, rub his feet, show respect to :-) ….that is how much I love him….and I don’t even know who it is yet! lol Obviously I am a true romantic and I love thinking about these things anyways…it’s just so cool to me that God cares about the specific little things. He knows exactly what I need and loved me enough to already pick that perfect person out for me before I was even born. How incredible!’

So yeah – I always feel like I have to apologize for talking about this but I’m not going to this time. I’m excited! I am not anxious anymore…just excited! I cannot wait to be able to serve God alongside this man and follow his spiritual leadership! I cannot wait to speak encouragement into his life and support him as he pursues what he knows God has called him to do. I could go on and on…lol. I was listening to Pastor Steven Furtick preach one of his more recent series on relationships and I was so encouraged by the awesome example he and his wife Holly are in the way that they are with each other. So anyways, until then…I am just praying hard core for him – for his protection, purity, and passion for God! The main thing God has reminded me of lately though is that before, during and especially once I get married – no matter when – my focus should ALWAYS be on Him!

I’m sitting here drinking my wonderful white mocha…mmm….wishing that I had some profound or deep thoughts…but I don’t. lol

The last couple of weeks have been extremely prayer filled because I have been in constant need to refocus my thoughts or my desires…it’s hard! I think the main thing God has been teaching me is that no matter what all goes on around me…it is up to me to choose how I react and whether or not I will choose to have a reaction that is pleasing to God. Naturally my reactions are not always so – therefore I just have to pray myself through each situation and let God change my heart – my attitude – my desires – my everything. Here’s a few instances lately where I have had to really really be intentional about letting God mold my heart:

1. When Obama was elected…I wish I could say that my natural instinct was ‘well no matter what i just need to respect and pray for my president’ – it wasn’t. But through hearing more and more of my spiritual leaders encourage me to feel that way – I have just had to pray for God to make my heart a little more respectful and trusting of His will…and He is and has been faithful.

2. When people in my office treat me like crap because I’m the admin – I have had to pray a lot lately that God would help me to love them despite that…it’s hard…especially when I really just would like to be rude right back…or….ya know…punch them in the face…jk! lol I have to pray through my reaction and let God calm me down and change my heart.

3. When I think I might have found a person who I could potentially be interested in – I have to ask God to stop me right there so that I don’t go too far with my thoughts and hopes – I find myself saying over and over again as I’m praying – ‘May your will be done – no matter what!’ I have to pray for God to slow me down and help me to be patient – even in how I react when people talk to me about that person! I’m a girl – it’s hard!

So – reactions are important! They say a lot about the heart! I just pray that my heart would be honoring to God and that I would let God make me more and more like the woman He created me to be. That is my desire.

Sitting in class right now - bored out of my mind because it’s ridiculously easy. So I decided I needed to blog again since it’s been a while…

God has been teaching me a lot about praying for our leaders. I was reading in Psalms the other day and it was a prayer of David and he was praying hard core for Solomon. I mean…it was a praying-the-stars-down prayer! It really reminded me how much I need to be praying for the leaders in my life. This brings up the most obvious point – praying for our president…or soon to be. Honestly, I am TERRIFIED of what will happen if Obama becomes president. There will be change alright…

I won’t go off on a tangent about that but I feel now more than ever that I just need to start praying hard core for God’s will to be done in who is elected as our next president. And then that no matter who it is, that God will protect our country and us as individuals!

More directly, it reminded me how much I need to be praying for my pastor -Pastor JR. Being the pastor of a church that is involved in such a huge work of God, he is going to face so much if not more attack than any of us. It is our responsibility as a church body to bathe our pastor in prayer daily!

I would just encourage you all to start praying daily for your leaders – whether it be your pastor, president, husband, father, teacher, etc. etc.      Let us honor those who are put above us – not only in front of them and others but in even our most private times of prayer.

My weekend was a blast for the most part!

Friday night I got to sell merchandise at the Charlie Hall/Eddie Kirkland concert in Athens. For some reason I love doing that! It’s a fun way to get to meet the artists and help them out! Charlie Hall kinda did everything on his own – he set up all his merch and everything. So we got to hang out with him a good bit before the concert which was cool! He is super nice and I was just very impressed. I had actually never heard of Eddie Kirkland but learned that he is one of the guys that leads worship for the North Point churches. He recorded his version of He Loves Us…and did a great job with it! So that was fun! Plus, I got to see a bunch of my old Athens friends!

On Saturday my family and I went and had brunch at one of their favorite ecclectic places in Athens that I had never been to – called The Grit. They have excellent breakfast food! Everyone in there was quite interesting looking though…but I love those weird and unique places…and there are plenty of those in Athens! After that we went to the game – yes, the UGA vs. TN game! My sister and I sat together and then my parents had other seats. But we had so much fun and I am SOOO glad Georgia won!

Lauren and I had to leave a bit early from the game though because I promised her I would go see Fireproof with her. So we went. I knew it was going to be good but I didn’t know how good. It’s hard for people to understand why a movie with the most cheesy acting ever would be so good…but it really was and is so worth going to see! I CRIED MY EYEBALLS OUT! There were grown men in front of us crying their eyeballs out! I mean…it was just GOOD! I encourage anyone and everyone to just GO SEE IT…whether you think you will like it or not….

I have already posted this before but this is my prayer this morning…

Let me be in love with what you love
Let me be more satisfied in you
Forsaking what this world has offered me
I choose to be in love with You

Let me know the peace that’s mine in You
Let me know the joy my heart can see
For I have nothing Lord apart from You
I choose to call on Christ in me

For in the fulness of who You are
I can rest in this place
And giving over this, my journey, Lord
I see nothing but Your face
And i bow down
Humbly i bow down
Humbly i bow down
I bow down

Let me know that You have loved me first
Let me know the weight of my response
For You have long pursued my wandering heart
I choose to glory in the cross

1. Enjoyed babysittin the Lee girls on Friday night. Even more I found it hilarious how determined Pastor JR was to think of someone he could set me up with…keep thinking Pastor…keep thinking…haha!

2. We had an awesome FG small group last night where we dove in a little deeper about what baptism is and why we do it. The most exciting thing to me was realizing that probably 75% of the kids there had gotten baptized that morning!

3. Speaking of…24 ppl were baptized yesterday at Freedom Church! Praise God! I say this so much but seriously I am so blessed to be a part of a church that is actually making a difference for Christ! All the glory goes to God though – not Freedom Church!

4. I am going home this weekend for the GA/TN game and I am also working the merch table for the Charlie Hall concert in Athens. Fun fun!

5. Our office is undergoing an internal audit today…I have everything ready to go…just waiting for them to show up….ugh!

6. I wish more people read my blog.

We had an excellent small group last night! Austin did a great job leading it! We even had two new people which was exciting.

A huge THANK YOU to Madi McEver for making cookies and brownies AND more importantly for expanding our vocabulary.

So after small group, we all went over to Tyler and Austin’s dorm and had a time of praise and worship and communion (for those who wanted to partake). It was an awesome and intimate time for our group to really just let go and be free in our worship. It was just such a sweet time with Jesus -sitting at His feet and praising Him for how AMAZING he is! Oh how He loves us! I don’t think we will ever be able to comprehend the extent to which He loves us. Christ is amazing.

Looking forward to band practice tonight with the boys and then coffee with Ms. McEver.

Time to go back to work and listen to some more Pride and Prejudice soundtrack. Seriously – it’s the most beautiful and relaxing music ever! Go listen!

Tonight I start classes…again…WEIRD! I just have to take one class before I can start Cosmetology school…which I am starting in January! Woohoo! Finally! I have been praying and praying for God to just be clear about what my next step should be with my life. I finally felt like He was giving me the green light to pursue getting my cosmetology license. I really think that God wants to use me in this field to not just do hair and make-up but have an impact on girls’ and womens’ lives for Christ. There is so much crap in this world about what beauty is and what it means…I want to help girls reshape their views of it in some way. God is still showing me in little pieces how this plan will pan out…but I am so excited!