It’s funny how we have no idea, sometimes, how the Lord is working in and through us and how, sometimes, we don’t fully know His plans for our lives. I suppose, then, that it makes us cling to Him all the more. Not knowing– brings us to a place where we need to depend on Him for everything. It brings us to a place where we are desperate for more of Him, every moment of every day.

 …It’s a beautiful place to be.

{ Been busy lately…I’m learning to balance my time..to manage my schedule…to wait and to go. Next weekend I head off to Arizona and I cannot wait ) This eastern girl is going out west for the first time. If only you could see the smile on my face at the thought of being in the mountains…ahhh… I am so thankful right now…my heart is full of joy—at the thought of Him. In the midst of business the Lord is the one who says “be still” …He is the one who lifts up my head…praise Him for what He is doing…honor be unto His name– f o r e v e r. }

 

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks;

                                           for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” 

                                                                                  I Thessalonians 5:16-17

                                                                                                                                                          :: peace ::

People. Comforable where they are. Comforable with the situations that they are in. I can honestly say that I don’t fully understand why some people don’t understand that there are people desperately in need. People are so comfortable doing the daily routines, doing the regular traditions…afraid to step outside of all that they have known and are used to.

People can think about what they will do…they can think about how they can help….when they will do something…but do they actually do it?

Oh God, I want to be one who puts their words into actions. I don’t want to spend all of my time talking about things…and not doing anything about it.

The other night, as I prayed, I was brought to the story of Peter walking on water. Jesus had called Peter to follow Him on the water. Peter was afraid. He was afraid to walk out of the boat. To take a step of faith. Once he did, he cried out for Jesus to save him before he drowned. “you of little faith” …Jesus told him and took hold of Peter.

Sometimes I find myself like Peter, afraid to actually walk out of the boat…and once I do, I’m afraid of falling. All the more, I know that Jesus is reaching out…He will catch me…He will be there to hold me up.

After Peter walked on water, the disciples and others knew that Jesus really was the Son of the living God. When people see that Jesus is leading us, His people; when people see that we are taking a step of faith no matter the cost; then they will know that we are following a King unlike any other.

A King full of glory, of passion, and of majesty.

 

 

 

Jesus, be my strength. My Love. My Everything. I am humbled to be your servant.

Put my words into actions. As You lead, be magnified and glorified.

 

“Trust Me, child…”

 

{ Let Jesus be your strength, today. }

 

{ this is what i call beautiful }

Psalm 113

Praise the Lord.
Praise, O servants of the Lord,
praise the name of the Lord.

Let the name of the Lord be praised,
both now and forevermore.

From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets,
the name of the Lord is to be praised.

The Lord is exalted over all the nations,
his glory above the heavens.

Who is like the Lord our God,
the One who sits enthroned on high,

who stoops down to look
on the heavens and the earth?

He raises the poor from the dust
and lifts the needy from the ash heap;

He seats them with princes,
with the princes of their people.

He settles the barren woman in her home
as a happy mother of children.

Praise the Lord.

 

May His name be known….I am in awe of Him. In all that I do and all that I say, may He be seen. As a man of God once said, “I want to make Christ look great.”  Cling to Him…with a thankful heart, give Him praise today   :o)

 

http://beautifuljourney.smugmug.com

 

 

 

 

I traveled from Cincinnati to Dayton, Ohio this morning. Visiting two large cities in one day. I don’t know what it is, but everywhere I look I see people striving for something. Something that is temporary, something that does not satisfy. I look around and see people striving to achieve the “American Dream.” Better cars, better looks, better homes…Is this all there is in life? People are literally working their lives out just to achieve a better lifestyle.  

If we are fixed on ourselves and our selfishness, we will never reach out. The poor, the deprived, the ones who simply need love…

 

…oh, that we might be an example of Christ I remember sometime last year I was talking to a guy a few years older than me in class. Each day I talked to him about everyday things, the things of life. Some days he would talk to me about which car or motorcycle he would be getting or how much he drank the night before. Some days this young man would ask me questions about my faith and sounded really interested in what I was saying…but one day was a little different than the rest. He was talking to me about going into the Marines and asked me what I thought about it. Then he asked me what I wanted to do with my own life. I told him that I want to be a missionary and he said that he had never heard such a strange thing before. He couldn’t understand why someone would want to devote their life to such a cause. I mean, shouldn’t we be living and getting paid to buy better cars, better things? He knew that I was a Christian, but he told me, none the less, that he had never heard of someone wanting to travel for God. I tried to explain it to him, but he sort of just sat there and looked at me. I simply smiled.

I ran across this young man a few months ago once again and told me that he was about to leave for the Marines service. I have to wonder if he ever remembers the conversation that we once had and if he still thinks I’m the strangest person alive  :o)

All I know is that this life is short. 

 

 

It makes what we are living for all the more precious.

 

 

“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen,
since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal”
{ II Corinthians 4:18 }

 

Lord, fix my eyes on what is not seen…on You and You alone.

 

 

 

 Reach out, today…and show someone His  l o v e .

 

Lord Jesus,

 

Purify me. Purify Your people. Prepare Your Bride, equip her to do Your good.

 

As I want to be pure and steadfast for him-my future husband-wherever he might be…

 

…so make Your church ready for You…so that we may present ourselves blameless.

 

Last night while praying, the Lord led me to this verse about being blameless (don’t you love it when He leads you to verses that are sooo full of truth?!)

 

 

“May the Lord make Your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you. May He strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all His holy ones.” { 1 Thessalonians 3:12-13 }

 

 

There are three things on my heart right now:

 

1. Jesus

2. Asia

3. My Future

 

Asia has also been so much on my heart. It always has been but it seems as I grow closer to Him, the more my heart is burdened for this area of the world. Specifically the Islam culture. I had a dream the other night that I was taking a couple of Islam/Arabic classes at a school. I’m reading a book called “Unveiling Islam” written by Christian authors which is really amazing. The religion and the culture is intriguing…oh, to minister to these people and show them Jesus. They live in fear and my heart breaks for them to know the Truth.

 

 

And… my future. He often has to remind me to not rush His timing of things. It is not easy to want to try and look at what my future will look like, I admit. Especially at this time in my life. What to do when I finish school…where to go…what to “be.” I must remember that everyday has worries of it’s own. I must remember that He will faithfully lead. I graduate next year and I feel like I am not going to be going to college right away. My entire family assumes that I will go off to college and I know that they want the very best for me. However, I want to give my life for Him, go where He sends me and obey Him. If going to college is what I should do, then I will go. I have been looking into the Honor Academy lately and praying about attending there for a year. So far, I am at peace with it. But there is still yet time to decide and to figure it all out. So, for right now, I just have to live day to day for Him.

 

Right now, I don’t want my eyes to look an any direction but to the Lord. Keep my eyes on You. Set my heart apart for You and Your everlasting glory.

 

 

So there is something…

 

And it is beautiful…

 

 

…I’m just waiting.

 

How I love You, Jesus.  )

 

I want…

 

I desire to change and grow in Your truth.

 

It’s You…

 

It’s for You I live.

 

“At the cross, You beckon me

Draw me gently to my knees

And I am lost in love

I’m sweetly broken

Wholly Surrendered…”

 

I’m completely abandoned to You, Jesus…

 

Set Your people’s heart a flame for You…

 

Only Yours,

arielle

H u m i l i t y.

This has been on my heart the last couple of days. I think that humility is something that is lacking in Christianity today. …It is handing everything over to the Lord so that He can be my all. It is something that I need so much more in my life.

 Humility is precious and it is beautiful. The one the Lord esteems is he who is humble and contrite in spirit. We are prideful humans by nature and in the world today, it is not easy to rid of all pride. It is a lifelong task that takes hard work and patience. Webster defines humility as “reflecting, expressing, or offered in a spirit of deference or submission.” Submit to His ways, let go of pride…and let humility be a reflection of my heart.

“In God’s presence, humility is not a posture we assume for a time-when we think
of Him or pray to Him-  but the very spirit of our life.” {Andrew Murray}

 The perfect example of humility is Jesus Himself. He is the one who sat and washed His disciples’ feet. He was the one who was ridiculed by the Pharisees. He was the one who spent time with the beggars, the hurting, and the weak. He is the one who made Himself nothing so that others could have everlasting life.

I read this today:

“Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
    Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
    but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
    being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
    he humbled himself
and became obedient to death—
    even death on a cross “

_________________________________

( This is all I have to say right now… )

 Things are changing…a new season has started in my life..

 … the    Lord      is     good.

_________________________________

p.s. : My dad and I spent the lovely day together yesterday:

We first went to lunch here…it’s..where I work…

…then headed down to Cincinnati…

 

 

 

 

 

….the end   )    

” c o m p a s s i o n  must not merely warn people about the pains of going to hell but must also lure people to the pleasures of knowing Christ….the only way to get to heaven is by wanting to be with Christ and by trusting His work to get you there. wanting to avoid hell is not the same as wanting to be with Christ. and so it would not be compassionate merely to warn people about hell. we must display the beauties of Christ.” {john piper}

 

“I will tell of the kindnesses of the Lord,

the deeds for which He is to be praised,

according to all the Lord has done for us.

Yes, the many good things He has done for the house of Israel,

according to His compassion & many kindnesses.”

Isaiah 63:7

Jesus, help me to display the beauty of You.   always.

 

Right now I’m learning to lean on my Lord. In my life, I can feel Him changing me in the most unusual ways. He is changing me so that I can carry out the plan that He has for my life.  ...And I know He has a plan, just as He does for every one of His children. He has an extraordinary plan for every one of us.

 

The question is, are we going to take it? Are we going to accept a beautiful calling from Him, which is unique in its own way; perhaps unlike other’s lives? Are we going to take a step of faith and live a life that is out of the ordinary? Am I willing to go out to the nations as He calls, at the cost of losing my life…for His name and glory? I mean, am I willing to make a difference in this life and waste my life for Christ?

 

Many of these questions hinder people’s plan that the Lord has for them. Doubts and fears turn them over to live a life that is just like the others’ around them. In fact, that is why you see so many sitting in Church every Sunday doing the routine and living a comfortable and lovely lifestyle. Going to church, by any means, is not a bad thing. However, not taking a step of faith is. Not obeying His commands for your life is not a good thing.

 

The Lord uses ordinary people for His extraordinary plans. Just as He made David, the shepherd boy, a powerful and mighty King or Esther, a young Jewish woman, a Queen…He can use any one for His own glory. This does not mean we have to become some big Christian superstar or some famous preacher…it only means that we must be willing to lay down

our lives,

our dreams,

our plans

 

…so that He can fulfill His own purpose in our lives.

 

I have questions on what I am going to do next in this life of mine…who, what, where, when?  But I think right now I am just going to enjoy this time that He is giving me to learn more of Him and His ways as He prepares me for my future. Each day is a new opportunity to become Christ-like and press on for the sake of His name.

 

 

 

and so I wait…

 

for I have…

…set my heart on this journey.

 

{ psalm 84:5 }

 

Between my job, my classes, and the business of life, I am finding how precious the time I spend with the Lord is. There are days when I come home from work exhausted and want nothing more than to be alone with Jesus, praying, and reading the Word. There is just something about the world and how it can grab a hold of you so quickly. Before you know it, the world and its ways can tempt you to think a certain way, to act a certain way, and trap you into temptation. This is why the Lord has called His own to be called out from among the world…to be  d i f f e r e n t. When people see that we are truly different and not like the rest; when we start truly loving others the way Christ has loved us, then others will start to see the essence of Christ.

I pray that during this time, my eyes are fixed on Christ alone. Friends, “Church things”, work, classes…all of this is nothing compared to the beauty of my Savior.

A couple of weeks ago I found out that I was not going to be going to Belgium because of the work and teaching of English with Muslims. However: ‘when God closes a door, He opens a window.’ In this case, He opened a window that He alone could open….a beautiful opportunity! So…instead, and I praise God, next fall I will be going: here.

 

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Lord knows my longing and desire to serve Him in Asia in my future and I will definitely be counting down the days until my plane leaves and I start a blessed journey that He alone can lead. )

What a beautiful journey this life is…getting to know His ways more & more each day…

“Sing to the Lord a new song,
His praise from the ends of the earth,
you who go down to the sea, and all
that is in it, you islands, and all who
live in them…

…let them give glory to the Lord
and proclaim His praise in the
islands.”

(  Isaiah 42:10 & 12 )

a new year is here.
a year to dig deeper into His truth,
to make His name known,
to fall more in love with the One who deserves all the praise,
all the glory, and all the honor.

Jesus, this year:

teach me to love more like you do.

show me Your everlasting ways.

lead me in Your truth for i cannot do it on my own. { psalm 27:11 }

equip me to bring the Good News to people.

purify me and wash me clean…make me holy.

sanctify me that i may live a life that is hidden in You.

prepare me for all that You have in store for my life and the lives of others around me.

strengthen me because i am so weak without You.

this year,  may there be more of You and less of me.

 

 

 

 

 

{..i love my familia..}