Day 2: My Introduction

Well, two days are down in my forty days of purpose!  I have not finished my studying for tonight but I wanted to go ahead and share my update on what was going on.  I went on a mini-road trip with my cousin today to Columbus to take care of a few errands.  While there, we ran into Lifeway Christian Bookstore.  (For those who don't know me well, I love to read!  Always been a weakness, so this kind of store is sometimes not a great idea!)  While there, I found a couple of new study books to help guide me in studying some of God's Word.  One of the study books is a focus on Romans, which is what I have started with.  (I'm still reading the book about worship and still reading The Purpose-Driven Life book.  Yeah, my reading list is a lot I know!)

Anyway, the Romans book began with studying the first chapter of Romans.  After reading the first eight verses of Romans, I was concerned on where this book was taking me because I was already lost in the wording.  After reading about three different translations it began to make more sense to me.

The first part of the chapter talks about Paul.  Paul writes Romans as a letter to the followers of God in Rome.  He is making his introductions in the first seven verses by explaining who he is.  Then the book I am studying threw a big question at me.  It said "If you could write an introduction like this one about yourself, what would you say about your relationship to Jesus, the gospel, to other people in the world, and to fellow Christians?"  Wow, what a packed question.  I began to really ponder that and finally began to write my own introduction.  I shortened it and rewrote it on my dry-erase board in my bedroom so that I could see it frequently and remind myself of it.

I give you the challenge to sit down tonight and think about that question, and how you could honestly answer it.  Read the introduction that is talked about here in Romans 1:1-7.  Think about what you could write about yourself to make your introduction.  I attached a picture of my board so you all could see what I wrote. (Just click on the picture to make it bigger!)

Excited for another day!  I'm working tomorrow so I hope to carry the joy of Christ into the first grade classroom I get the priviledge to serve in tomorrow.  God bless each of you readers, and prayers are lifted for you tonight.  Have an awesome day and keep checking back in!

Brittney

Day 1 Update

Well, day one has come and gone.  What an incredible day.  I woke up this morning thinking it was going to be a dream because I had such an awesome day! 

Yesterday morning God laid it on my heart to remove all the distractions from my life and to really begin to focus all my efforts on Him.  What an awesome day that was.  I could never begin to share with you all the things I learned, but here are a few highlights of things that really touched home with me. 

1 Timothy 4:12 ->  Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, and in purity. 

1 Thessalonains 5:16-18 ->  Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 

In the book The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren, I was able to read day one and complete day one in the journal I have that accompanies it.  Some of the main things in the reading were:

• You did not create yourself, so there is no way you can tell yourself what you were created for.  Just like a new invention, you have to consult the inventor or the Owner's Manual.  In my life, I'm consulting the Owner (God) and the Owner's Manual (God's Word).  
• You were my by God and for God - and until you understand that, life will never make sense. 
• God was thinking of you and me long before you ever though about Him.  His purpose for your life predates your conception.  He planned it before you existed, and without your input!

I am working on writing a lot, and memorizing scripture.  The writings are being saved for right now until I feel like the time is right to share them.  The memorization is coming from several places, but I am really intrigued by Beth Moore's blog and her challenges that she has given to women to spend one year memorizing scripture.  I'm taking that concept and tweeking it a little in that I'm wanting to memorize about 10 verses a week. 

I just have this drive and thirst for God right now.  A thirst that cannot be quenched, and I hope it's a thirst that is never quenched.  I am so excited to see what God shows me next. 

Thank you for checking on me.  You all reading this blog and keeping up with me is one of the things that is keeping me going through these next forty days.  The readers of this blog are the people holding me accountable to do this for forty days.  And I thank you for reading and praying for me, as I am praying for all of you, that something on this blog would touch your heart. 

More to come!  :)  Brittney

Goodbye but Hello!

Well, I guess most of you are reading this blog post because you saw that I am giving up Facebook and other distractions to get close to God.  I am so excited to start this journey to see what God has in store for me in these next few weeks.  I am planning on giving up for the next 40 days as part of a book and Bible study that I am going to go through.

Several years ago, our church did a 40 day Bible study called The Purpose Driven Life and 40 Days of Purpose.  I feel like it is time to revisit those principles as a college graduate and see what God wants to teach me.  Therefore, I want to spend as much time as possible digging in God's Word and see what all He wants to show me.  I need to remove the distractions of the world and focus on my Savior.  That's the intentions of getting off Facebook for a while, along with other distractions in my life. 

I encourage you to keep in touch with me through this blog over the next 40 days to see what all God has in store through this.  I can't wait to see all the things He has that He wants to reveal to me, and hopefully I will get the chance to share some of those with all of you.

I also ask that you pray for me.  I have a desire to learn so much about God and feel that the next 40 days of really praying and seeking God to see where He wants to take me in life is going to be powerful and mighty.  Pray that I can stick it out with this and stick to my plans, but also have a desire to continue this and see all this through until the end. 

I will be on this site frequently (hopefully!) posting things often, so leave comments, encouraging words, and be praying for me as I start this journey to really learn all about God and seek His will out for my life, as well as study and learn as much as I can about my God. 

Thank you all so much for supporting me through all this, and hopefully I will get the chance to post all kinds of things to share with you! 

Love You All, Brittney

Do Something.. Do Anything... Do it NOW!

One of the wonderful and exciting things at Passion events, including at Passion 2011, is the Do Something Now displays.  Do Something Now is part of the Passion experince, where college students and volunteers at the Passion events can come and help out people in need, by donating money to the causes that have booths set up.  Each cause deals with something different, and each dollar donated goes straight toward the cause.  The charge at Passion 2011 was to donate $500,000 from the 22,000 college students in attendance.  Some of the pictures below are from the Do Something Now experience. 

 Each of the attendees of Passion 2011 were asked to bring towels and socks to donate to the Homeless shelters of Atlanta through the Touch Atlanta project. 

 These are just some of the towels that were collected over the four days.

 This was the project that helped stop sex trafficking in the Philippines.  Each rescue mission would cost approximately $4,500 to rescue 15 girls.

 When you donated money for this cause, you had your picture taken and it was placed on a board that had pictures of everyone that helped out this cause.  The four of us that stuck together during Passion all donated to this mission.

 This is the group of the four of us that all donated money to this mission.  It was a wonderful to know we are helping young girls on the other side of the world who so desperately need it.

 This was a station where you could spend $1 and pay to send 1 Bible to a person in Colombia where they have never been able to read the Bible because it is not in their language.  When you spent your $1 you could write a dedication or prayer in your own language to the person receiving the Bible and also pray over the recipient.  This was what these four men were doing.

 This station is where students and volunteers could contribute money to help build homes for the victims of the Haiti earthquake over one year ago.  One of the stories shared at Passion about a family that experienced the earthquake brought the entire Philips Arena to tears.

 This was the display area for the station where money could be donated for those to have not had access to clean water in India.

 This is the station that allowed those who wanted to offer to sponsor a child through Compassion International.

This station was for feeding hungry children in Africa who needed help with getting their everyday meals.  The bowls hanging overhead were sent to the child that was being sponsored so they could eat from the bowl when they received their food.  


This is only a small portion of the overall experience of Do Something Now.  The real story of this is incredible.  These photos were all taken between 11:15pm and 12:30am the last night we were at Passion 2011.  Did you notice all the people around?  There were some individuals who waited over an hour in a line in order to contribute money to a cause because they believed in that cause.  How incredibly amazing is that?

The thing that is even more incredible is that at 7:45pm Louie Giglio, the founder of Passion events, came onto the stage with amazement in his face.  He told us that we, the attendees of Passion 2011 had not met their goal of raising $500,000 but exceeded it in that we had already donated $700,000.  Four hours later there were still lines at each of the stations where people wanted to donate money for these causes. 

The last morning we were given amounts to say the totals of the money donated at Passion 2011, but people were still flooding the stations even after the last session of Passion.  In four days, college students blew the $500,000 goal out of the water!  The students of Passion 2011 gave a total of $1,167,249.24 to the causes of Do Something Now. 

But it's not about the money but about what you do.  It's about how you help others.  Helping someone does not include giving money alone, but by talking to them, calling to check on them, or just showing them that you care.  It's about doing something, and about doing anything, to show the love of God to them.  That's what Do Something Now was all about! 

So do something!  Do anything!  Do it in God's name to show his fame! 

Do Something.. Do Anything... Do it NOW!

http://www.dosomethingnow.com

1-1-11: A New Year, A New Beginning!

Passion was a true learning experience.  There was so much information shared with us while we were there, and we were given so many examples of love, compassion, and amazing stories found in the Bible of things unimaginable but things that were done for you and me.  How cool is that! 

One of the nights we were at Passion our attention was directed to Philippians.  We, the 22,000 college students in attendance, were asked to look in our Bibles and to say the first word that we saw in our Bibles.  We didn't understand when we looked and it was the word Paul.  Why the word Paul?  What does it have to do with anything that would go with the date 1-1-11? 

In the previous books of the New Testament until this point, one of the followers of Jesus was always referred to as Saul.  When Philippians 1 starts out, the first word was Paul.  After everything Saul had done in his past, the word Paul reveals that he was given a new start.  Now I know that 1-1-11 is already come and gone, and I understand that it is important to remember that, but think about it.  No one on this Earth is perfect.  No one is close to being perfect.  But we can always be followers of God.  We can always be the ones that ask even our closest friends: Do you have a relationship with God that you are proud of? 

Can others see Christ living in you?  Without talking to you about it, can others see God through the way you live your life?  Is God's light shining through you to show the world who He is?  It may not be 1-1-11 but if there is something that needs to change in your heart, the change can start today.  1-1-11 may be an easy date to remember and a new start, but if you truly want to change your life and begin to live for God, then why not start today?  Don't put off tomorrow what you can do today! 

God wants us to live for Him.  He wants us to let our lights shine so that others can see Him and we can share His love with the world!  So tomorrow go out into the world and let the light and love of God shine through your words, your actions, and your thoughts! 

God the person reading this right now is beautiful and wonderful in your eyes.  They are seeking you and wanting to let you live through their lives.  Come inside their heart, live in their lives, and show others how wonderful and powerful you are.  Show them your light and love so that they can show that love and light to others in their world.  Fulfill their desires to serve you, and be a beacon of light for you.  Amen!

Living to Make Jesus Famous!!

Well, it's a new year!  We have all rang in the new year, threw the confetti, and most of us have begun back to work in 2011.  But I wonder something.  Can 2011 be a different year than 2010?  Can we make changes in our lives that will greatly change how 2011 goes compared to 2010?  I believe we can.  Even though you may not want to change how your life went in 2010, does God want you to make a change that will impact how you live in 2011?

If you are my friend on Facebook, you've been seeing my status and even a photo album labeled as "Making Jesus Famous".  Wondering what that means?  Where that came from?  Well, I will try my best in the next few posts to sum up an amazing four days in Atlanta, Georgia called Passion 2011.

This is inside Philips Arena on January 1, 2011 where 22,000 college students were inside Philips Arena and Georgia World Congress Center all for one purpose: to make the name of JESUS famous! 

The conference was not about the names of the people that sang there.  It was not about the names of the speakers who came and presented a message.  It was about something much more meaningful.  It was about time with you and your Father, studying His word, singing praises to God, and showing the love that He has to others around you.  Making new friendships and relationships, while strengthening the ones you came with.  Passion was much more about making the people of Passion famous, but about making the name of God famous!

Over the next few posts, I hope to give one small glimpse of what God showed to me while I was at Passion 2011 so you can just get a glimpse of how incredible these four days were!

Thank You's All Around!

2010 has proven to be a wonderful, crazy, and intense year for me!  So many things have happened in this year, both good and bad, that I never expected when we rang in the new year on December 31, 2009. 

Love has proven to be a whirlwind ride this year for me.  I came into 2010 a single college student focused on her relationship with God and what she needed to accomplish in school.  I knew that college would soon be ending for me and the world would open it's doors.  What an incredible feeling it was to know that God had blessed me so much so far with all the wonderful opportunities in school that I had already been blessed with.  Love was on my mind, but was not the forefront of my mind.  Then I met someone. 

I thought this someone was the man I was going to spend my life with.  I feel in love with him.  But that love that I had for him was not what he felt in return.  It was hard to see what God wanted to teach me through this experience.  It was a challenge to see the good coming out of the situation.  But God showed up and showed out in my life and showed me just how powerful and strong His love is for me and how He was going to protect me and keep me on His mind at all times.  Other situations came and went in my love life, but none stands out like this one did.  But none stands out more when I felt like God himself had turned His back on me, then all the sudden He reminded me just how powerful He truly is and how much He truly loves and adores me. 

2010 has proven to teach me a lot, both about myself, the people around me, and the situations that I am faced with.  And through all this, I am always reminded that God is here for me, He loves me, and wants the absolute best for me in my life. 

2010 also proved to get me out of college when I finally graduated from Columbus State University with my degree.  How amazing it felt to walk across that stage and get the recognition for the things I accomplished at that school.  To hold a degree in something I have always dreamed of following, it's incredible to see how things happen!  All the credit for getting through college goes to God himself.  Without God helping me through with each step that I take and each breath that I breathe, I don't know how I would be able to do it. 

2010 has taught many life lessons and God has shown up and shown out this year!  With all the blessings I have been given, I can't imagine my life without God in my corner, guiding and directing me!  But there are so many other people that are very important to me that there is no way I could begin to thank each one of them.  I am so thankful for every one of my family members, both immediate and extended.  Without family, I could not feel the love that I feel on a daily basis from them.  And then there's my friends.  I have so many, ranging in so many ages, and so many walks of life, but each one of them means more to me than I could ever think to express.  Some I have known my whole life, some new to me as of this year.  I just think it's time for me to express a special thank you to each person that means so much to me.  Whether you're family or friends, you all mean the world to me.  I wouldn't be the person I am today without all of you being so special to me and teaching me so much this year.  I love you all and am so thankful for everything you mean to me, along with all the special blessings you have been to me this year! 

~So thankful for a wonderful 2010, and can't wait for 2011,
Brittney!

Relationships... What is Important!

Calling on all married, engaged, dating, and single individuals....

There are so many people in this world that wonder what makes a working relationship and a relationship that will last!  I want to pose a question to each of you..

What do you consider when beginning dating someone?  What is the most important in creating and maintaining a Christ-based relationship with your significant other?

Leave a comment on this post (you need no account, just type your comment and post) and I am going to look through them and create a post with all our suggestions!

Think hard and share your best ideas!

-Brittney

God's Love.. through it ALL!

Something I want to share tonight is about God's love..

God's love is unconditional.  God doesn't love us because we go to church on Sunday mornings.  God doesn't love us because of our actions.  God doesn't love us because He is required to or has to.  God loves us without condition or requirement.

Romans 5:8 states that "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

The Bible doesn't tell us that God waited for us to do something or say something before He sent His son.  The Bible does tell us that God sent His son to save us from our sins and an eternity in Hell.  He sent His son to save us from that eternity and to give us an eternity with Him in heaven.

I feel like sometimes people forget what it means to be a christian.  Being a christian is not about an attendance record.  It is not about a church membership.  Church attendance is important because it is a time to learn even more than you can on your own about God. Church is also a great way to be with believers such as yourself and to have a support system to lean on and worship God with.  But no where in the Bible does the requirements for becoming a christian list that you must be in church on Sundays.

I say all this to say one last thing..  You may be dealing with a lot in your life.  You may feel like God is punishing you for something you have done.  You may feel like God is pushing you away.  You may even feel like you can't do anything to fix some problem that you have because God would not want to even know what is going in your life.  Here is my answer to all that!:

God loves you through it all.  He loves you unconditionally.  God knows what is going on in our lives.  He knows everything about us.  Even the things you don't want to tell Him about or give to Him, He already knows about them.  But the most important thing to remember is that being a christian is not about sitting in a pew on Sunday mornings.  Being a christian is about something bigger and more important:  

It's about a relationship with a mighty and powerful God that we serve.  It's about the relationship you have with your savior!  Studying God's word, prayer, and showing others the love that God has through your actions and words.  That's what being a christian is all about! 

God is a mighty and powerful God.  He knows what we are going through and the struggles we have.  But He also knows how much we have on us and He will NEVER give us more than we can handle.  He would never punish us for something that we do or not do.  That's not the God we serve.  The God we serve loves us through our faults and gives us opportunitites to show our love to others.  

My prayer tonight is that you take this blog to heart.  If you have any questions or feel like you need someone to talk to, message me on Facebook or leave me a comment on this post.  I pray that your heart be filled with love and compassion and ways to show the love of God to others around you.  

God, thank you for the opportunity to show your love through our lives to others.  Thank you for the love you have given us and will continue to give us until the end of ages.  I pray that the person reading this blog is filled with your love and understands the kind of love you give us.  But I also pray they would examine their own lives to see what you would still like to teach them God.  We love you and thank you for your very abundant blessings.  Amen!   

God Bless! 

While I'm Waiting!

This blog post is short and sweet.  I love this song and it shows that I am waiting for Him and His plan for my life.  I want everything to be solved right now and to know that I will have someone to spend my life with, to hold a teaching certificate, and all the uncertainty I am feeling in my life.  I want those answers now.  I want to know those things, because I am not being patient and waiting on MY GOD to put his plan in place.  So while I am still here and sometimes impatient, I am waiting!  I am waiting on my God, the all-mighty, to do the things HE wants, and in the times HE wants.
So I am waiting!

(Youtube Video Link below to song!  Go listen!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bb7TSGptd3Y

I'm waiting
I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am hopeful
I'm waiting on You, Lord
Though it is painful
But patiently, I will wait

I will move ahead, bold and confident
Taking every step in obedience

While I'm waiting
I will serve You
While I'm waiting
I will worship
While I'm waiting
I will not faint
I'll be running the race
Even while I wait

I'm waiting
I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am peaceful
I'm waiting on You, Lord
Though it's not easy, no
But faithfully, I will wait
Yes, I will wait

And I will move ahead, bold and confident
Taking every step in obedience

While I'm waiting
I will serve You
While I'm waiting
I will worship
While I'm waiting
I will not faint
I'll be running the race
Even while I wait

I will move ahead, bold and confident
I'll be taking every step in obedience, yea

While I'm waiting
I will serve You
While I'm waiting
I will worship
While I'm waiting
I will not faint

I will serve You while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting
I will serve You while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting
I will serve You while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting
I will serve You while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting on You, Lord