a letter to my girls.

to my sweet lady friends--

never, ever let one guy's ignorance lead you to believe you aren't beautiful. that you aren't special. one of a kind. wanted.

"For you formed my inward parts;  you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made."
                                                                                   Psalm 139:13,14

so many times I have young ladies coming to me telling me how unworthy they believe they are.  they truly believe they aren't beautiful. they are seeking out. desperate for attention of a man...any man. they settle. end up broken hearted. they are convinced they are unwanted, and undeserving of a special kind of love.

sometimes it's the season of singleness. sometimes it's the season of heartbreak. but always, in both of these situations, it's the questions. questions of why guys aren't flocking to us asking for a date. pondering why he would break our heart. maybe we aren't pretty enough. have the right body type. we usually either fall into a pit of self destruction of our self esteem, or change who we are. we compromise who God made us to be to hold on to him. we compromise ourselves, and what we believe in with hopes of winning his heart.

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 don't fall into this trap. remember Christ's love for you...you are beautiful. God created you to be an outstanding woman of His. Let Him have your heart.

"Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised."
              Proverbs 31:30

only one man can ever be all that you need. only one man see the total and complete beauty in who you truly are. only one man knows every single thing about you. only one man died a humiliating death just so He can have eternity with you. and this man..and only this man...is the King of Kings, and God of the universe.

Focus on these truths.

 

 

and in time...a love, a special kind of love, will come. a love that shows you, you are beautiful for you are. a love that loves you for your heart. a love that sees Christ in your eyes. a love that desires to lead you in spiritual truths. a love straight from God himself. a love that shows you the kind of love Christ shows you.

 

 

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Don't settle...you and I deserve this love. remind yourself of that daily.

you deserve a special love.

 

"The heart is more than just emotions. It is the internal driving force of everything we do.  What the heart desires is the most powerful force in our lives. Therefore, we need to make sure to guard it from those influences that would seek to divert, pollute, or steal our hearts."
                  --Before You Meet Prince Charming
 

 absolutely one of my favorite quotes from BYMPC:

"Pray for a man after God's own heart---pray for a David.  Pray for a man whose life is devoted to the Lord so that as you give yourself to him, you will be using your life to bring forth fruit that is eternal.  Pray for a man who loves Christ more than he loves you.  Pray for a man upon who God's blessing is evident."

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what i'm loving wednesday!

here is what I am loving today!

 

i'm loving fall, and everything about it. the food. the clothes. ahh. it's marvelous.

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i'm loving my new study. it's been such fun to dig deeper into God's
 word, and see even more his amazing love for me.
 

single ladies--go check it out.


i'm loving this weather. i just want to sit on my porch sipping coffee all the day long. wouldn't that be a fabulous life?

i'm loving babies. don't my friends have the most beautiful little ones?!









brady--his mom posts the cutest pics. he's 100% precious.

sophie--she thinks she's a little diva. she might be right :)

 

 

ava--such a sweet little girl.



i'm loving law and order and NCIS: LA. on my recent trip to north carolina i was stuck in a hotel room for several hours without much to do. jacksonville is clearly a not-so-happening place. the only thing my little cable tv would pick up was law & order. i'm addicted..to the point of dvring.
isn't it awesomeness?

...and last, but certainly not least, i'm loving this dancing baby. luke bryan don't have anything on this little stud.

 

love. it's a battlefield.

Life...it's crazy sometimes, or in my case, all the time. Lately, it seems like God's sense of humor has increased, while my lack of planning skills have plummeted.  If you've read my blog any length of time, or know me in the "real word," you know I am very much a planner. God has really shown me over the past couple of weeks no matter how persistent I am in trying to make sure my life is going according to my little red planner, His will will always prevail. In an effort to get past the hurdles that have recently come into my life, I am doing a little life renovating.

Have you ever had something happen in your life that in the moment seems tragic? Planned and counted on something with your whole heart, and in just a few short seconds have it blow up?  Then suddenly, one day you wake up, crank up Pat Benetar, and give those once treasured photos, t-shirts, and bummer stickers a new home...in the garbage can. Recently, that was me. The whole thing, Pat Benetar and all.

I've spent most of the day today working giving my blog a makeover.  I think you can put two and two together and figure out what may have transpired in my life lately. I may or may not post details later.

All that truly matters is that I'm good now. I admit a rough patch, but it wasn't anything a little chocolate chip pizza, my God, supportive family, and some girlfriends ready to kick some butt couldn't handle.

Now, I'm happy and moving on with life. Classes are in full swing, and definitely keeping me busy.  My body is definitely on repeat lately. Get up. Work. Eat. Sleep. Repeat. I'll try to make a more frequent visit to my page, and update you on fall festivities (I'm so happy fall is upon us!), Rosemary's Home, and the new devil in my life (aka weight watchers). Follow me on Pinterest. You'll definitely get an overload of Points+ recipes!

I'm going to leave you with this. Whether you were fortunate enough to have been around when this hit charts, or you're like me, and wish you had been, sing it.

Heartache to heartache we stand!

"Oh Baby, Baby, Baby.."

Sooo...MY BEST FRIEND HAD A BABYYYY! I might be just a little excited!!

Brady Lee McKay was born on Wednesday, May 23. After an all day wait, he finally made his arrival at 7:36 p.m.! He's such a little precious thing, and I am super proud to be his Auntie Em.

Such a little blessing from God.

He's already a little praying man.

Me & my bestie a few hours before Brady arrived.

While we were waiting on Brady's arrival, I got this wonderful message from another one of my best friends...

So happy for Angela and Jon!

God is SO, SO good! Ang Dios Mabuti!

A couple of months back, while I was away from the blog world..this sweet friend found out she is also expecting a little bambino! We are all so thankful for God's faithfulness. She has such a beautiful story and faith and perseverance during difficult times. Just a little proof God will always bring a rainbow after the rain!

My list just keeps getting shorter and shorter ;)

Longing

5 days until take off! Wow! It seems like it has slipped up on me all of the sudden, but at the same time has taken forever to finally get here! I am currently feeling a slew of emotions. Excited, overwhelmed, joyful, anxious, stressed, thankful...to name a few.  I have three midterms on Friday to get through, and hopefully ace. Studying for midterms has been taking up much of my time lately. I counted, and on Monday afternoon, I had gotten roughly twenty-five hours of sleep since the Tuesday before.  I don't know about you, but that's not normal for me!! Although things have been so crazy with school and preparing for the trip, I am so excited to get on that plane next Monday, and head over to the land of pineapples, bumpy roads, and the happiest people in the world :) All of the work is going to be 100% worth it! Everything is finally beginning to really fall into place.  We have gotten most of our supplies, and money, and finally beginning to pack! So many people have helped with this trip, and I am so very grateful! I have learned, being the leader of a trip, (especially when going around the world) can be very stressful.  Of course, God knew way before I realized this, and knew that I would have many obstacles to overcome.  I have to believe that is why He has sent so many of His faithful servants to help out. Some very generous donors provided the money for my trip within two weeks of me sending support letters.  That has never happened before, and was a huge relief. I stand in awe of an AMAZING God. Many churches, clubs, and individuals have made both a monetary donation as well as donated many supplies.

Yesterday, I went to meet with a homemakers club here in Itawamba.  They were so generous, and shared such a compassion for the children that we will be visiting.  When I left there, (and still today) I could barely fit into my car! I'm going to take a picture before I empty it all out this afternoon!




They made little shorts for the boys, and pillow case dresses for the girls. Adorable.



Most of the ladies who helped with the supplies, as well as the clothing.

Lately, I have been studying a lot in Romans.  My dear friend, Ben, actually suggested I do some reading there because it happens to be the scripture that Mr. Bob is using to help prepare the summer missionaries for the summer Philippines trip.  God has really been showing some things to me through Paul.  Most nights I don't get past a couple of verses. So, so good.

As preparing for this trip, I feel much like Paul. He was so anxious to get to the people in Rome and share the Gospel with them.  He had a longing, a deep desire, just to be there in their presence.  Although my circumstances are different from his, I am a missionary too, and I am longing to be in the country that I know God has called me to! To those who don't share those same desires as I do, it might sound absurd.  I miss the simple, and sometimes stinky things of the Philippines.  I miss people being SO eager to hear the Good News of Jesus Christ.  But, at this very moment, my deepest longing is to see the children at Rosemarys, wrap my arms around their little bodies, look into those big brown eyes, and share with those beautiful children how much I love them, and most of all, how much our Father in Heaven loves them.  It's going to be a beautiful meeting!!

As mentioned in my last post, I have a very dear friend whose family is going through a trying time  Please remember them in your prayers. Our God is THE Healer!!! 

Wait..I'm not superwoman??

Every so often I come to the sad realization that I am NOT...superwoman. It's a sad feeling at times knowing I can't do it all. I'm such a hands on person, and like to see things done; therefore, I usually just do them myself and stop waiting on someone else to make a move, ultimately ending up beyond exhausted.

On rare occasions, very rare, I have a complete breaking point. Sometimes it takes some type of big plans falling through, or something super important not going quite as planned, and sometimes it just takes a tiny cut to the foot. Today, it took...a tiny cut to the foot. Piles and piles of to-do lists accumulated on me all day. Things fell through. People. Weather was awful. My best friend got sad news. And then the thing that triggered a breaking point to an overwhelming day was a cut?!
After my miniature melt down in the bathroom, I doctored my foot, and decided I was crazy. Stupid. Foolish. Tired. Helpless. Broken. And downright overwhelmed. So, I picked myself up, fell on my knees, and thanked my God for being holy, genius, complete, helpful, and in total control of everything. I hate it when I think I can do it all. I can't. Not by myself at least.

Okay..that was difficult to write. Now, my secret is out. I'm not perfect..I'm a complete mess at times. I apologize for putting you in a state of shock after finding that out ;)

Much love.

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(this was written Friday, March 2...haven't had time to post)

"Welcome home Emily, welcome home!"

"Ah..Welcome home, Emily!" is what she said after a long awaited reunion. I was at General Santos International Airport in General Santos, Philippines.
Today, I want to share with you another one of my Philippine stories. I'm going to attempt to do a new one every Friday. (please don't hold me to it) Maybe a Filipino Friday? That sounds wonderful. If you know of a story you'd like for me to share, please don't hesitate to let me know.


July 2008, I made my first trip to the Philippines. I was scared, but just a little. Mostly, I was completely overwhelmed with excitement! I had been praying for the opportunity to go on a foreign mission trip for years, and was thrilled God had finally opened up the door. Our first week of evangelism was totally overwhelming. I was amazed at all God was doing through us, through me. I had never in my life witnessed to that many people, and it was overwhelming. The weekend finally come,and we were all excited for what we thought would be a restful weekend. We were so wrong. It was totally exhausting, but totally beautiful. We traveled the entire weekend to get to our destination. It was my first experience at Uncle Dicks Home! I don't know what I expected when preparing to go, but God blew my expectations out of the water big time. I fell head over hills in love with those kids. I knew in my heart that God would lead me back there again. He is so faithful. The following year I wasn't able to go because our island was so far away from Gen San. However, 2010 I was back again. It was even more wonderful than the first time I went (and I didn't think that was possible), and I left with the peace that I would see those kids in less than a year. I spoke with Mr. Bob about it and thankfully got his approval. I come home and wrestled with the Lord about my plans before finally getting peace that I was to go and live a little while in January 2011...less than 6 months away.

First trip-- July 2008

Second trip-- July 2010

After months of preparing and fundraising, I finally took off on my six week journey. When I finally arrived at the airport in General Santos, I was terrified. Some very rude men made some very inappropriate comments to me on the plane, and I dreaded being in the small airport with them. On top of that, General Santos is very dangerous because of its high Muslim population, and the home of a very dangerous terrorist group. When I finally saw Nanay and Tatay I was relieved! Nanay welcomed me with open arms, and very excitedly exclaimed, "ah..welcome home Emily, welcome home!" At those words, tears filled my eyes, and I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt I was exactly where God wanted me to be. The journey home was very long. We took care of some business in town, stopped at a sari sari store on the side of the road for a snack of corn, and grabbed some Jollibees! At last..we were home! I was so excited to see those precious familiar faces. I was overcome with happiness as thirty five children come racing toward me with open arms saying, "we've missed you Ate Emily, we've missed you!" Those days were precious, and so so few.

Such a fun day at Lake Sebu with the third year high schoolers.

KB! This shirt, with all of the kids handprints, is one of my favorite possessions.

That was the first day of what was a beautiful several weeks. I long for those days back at UDH. I miss singing praises to God every morning before breakfast. I miss getting up in front of everyone on Wednesday and thanking God for all things. In moments of having nothing, I realized what true thanksgiving was. Thanksgiving for water, even though it was ice cold. Thanksgiving for a bed and blankets, even though they were uncomfortable and soaking wet from humidity. I found true, raw thanksgiving. I miss that. I long for that back in America. Days of simplicity. Days of spending hours in the Word with the broken and fatherless. Days of singing at the top of my lungs with kids who thought I sang like a superstar (if you've heard me sing, you would question their hearing :) Days of playing with kids until my feet were covered in blisters. I want those days back.

We carried our fruit juice to church. If you had four hour church services you would too :)

I was the first American to get to hold baby Juter :)

My sweet little Angel.
My last day to walk the children to school.  As you can tell, I was a bit emotional.

One last picture by "the view." It's breathtaking.  This was on my very last day at UDH.

I pray the Lord leads me back to UDH soon. I miss those kids, and pray for a visit again soon.
I pray their hearts are full of joy, happiness, and most of all God's unending love.