Christmas collage

well, we made it through Christmas time with thankful hearts and time with our family and friends. i am reminded every Christmas of how great God really is! He came as a baby and grew to a man who died on a cross for my sins and yours! He is an amazing God! i am using a lot of exclamation points because He deserves it!

that is what i came away with this Christmas. below is a picture collage of our fun and some of our new toys... we had Christmas dinner with my parents, and carrie came too. the first is a blurry picture that carrie took but we liked it a lot. pete took the picture of the candle, well done. the next picture is of my brother craig (i don't know if i have put a picture of him on here before?) the last picture of dinner was taken by pete of our table, my parents, and the shiny trees in the background. the next pictures are the actual opening of presents, pete received an ipod speaker dock that works great in our house (thank-you) and i received a shiny pink ipod that i love (thanks to pete) the last picture is for documentation purposes. we ate at home last night with carrie cooking most of it, i helped.

anyway, hope you enjoy the collage, have a great day.

He came!

"And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us,
and we have seen his glory,
glory as the only Son from the Father,
full of grace and truth." John 1:14

for my friend

lisa, i pray for your family during this time of loss.

i pray for your mom, brother, husband, stepmom, stepbrother, aunts and uncle and everyone who impacted your dad's life.

you are so beautiful in the eyes of God and your friends and i pray God will send you comfort to make it through today and tomorrow.

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted." Matthew 5:4

i love you

quote

"some people just need to grow a new personality!"
D

help me

i have a request for anyone who reads my blog. i have been asked to sing/play a song for Christmas at church. i would like some suggestions as to which one to sing. i am having a hard time finding one. i would like it to be for 2-4 people and one or two guitars. i am struggling, so give me your ideas please!
thank-you in advance for your wonderful ideas and suggestions

o Christmas tree, o Christmas tree!

okay, this post will shock and amaze you. pete and i bought a Christmas tree. but it is not just any normal, run of the mill, 6ft. green tree. no, i bought it on my own (pete does not like it) anyway, it came from target. and as we all know, target has some interesting items for sale in their store. i was looking around, minding my own business, when it jumped out at me (caught my eye) there it was, sitting with its friends on the top shelf. there were all kinds, big, small, different colors, and even one with berries. but the kind that caught my eye was teal (my favorite) with peacock feathers.

feathers you ask, yep! our tree is about 18" tall with all blue feathers. my rational in buying this outrageous item is because we do not have kids, or anyone who cares for the tradition of decorating the tree. pete and i did that last year. i still decorated the house with a nativity scene (i'll put a picture later) and other Christmas type things like a wreath. but i wanted to be a little crazy so i bought a tree made of feathers.

here are some pictures to tickle your fancy (get it, feathers, tickle...haha)

the lamps now have a friend!

i also bought a tree for my classroom. it is awesome retro looking some like to say iredescent!

the cups are white, but i think they look better this way. (more fun with my new camera)

have a wonderful day (maybe the trees will bring a smile to your face)

pictures with the girls

on monday the cheer team and their respective coaches (me, sarah, and kelli) went to avante photography to get our team pictures taken. this is the first year they have done that, but they wanted to get their hair and makeup done before the picture and avante does both. i have had bitter experiences with those types of photo places because of high school, but i agreed to let them experience it for themselves (some had the same experience as me). anyway, sarah, kelli, and i got our hair and makeup done too. it was really fun being in the coaches shoes because avante gives the coach a free picture package which includes a free 8x10, 8 wallets, team photo, and an eight pose photo session. kelli, sarah, and i took a couple pictures, then sarah and i took sister pictures. it was really fun and we had a great time. the girls were still themselves, but we survived nonetheless. shout out to kelli and sarah for making it so i didn't have to do that alone and you're the best coaches ever!

p.s. my new profile picture is from a picture that pete took later that night (with my new camera, post to come about that) while my hair and makeup was still pretty. i think the makeup was too much, but it looks good in pictures.

so overall this post was directed towards the girls, but i'll post again soon so everyone can enjoy it.

what am i doing?

sometimes i think about everything else except what i should be thinking about.

a fun time had by all, 18

well, thanksgiving has come and gone, and i pray you had a great time with your family and friends. we went to dinner at church, and there were 18 people who came and food for 40. so we have leftovers and everyone was full of food and ping-pong. i would like to say that i am not disappointed in the low attendance, but i wish some of you could have come. we played ping-pong and doug brought settlers of cattan and mike won! yeah mike! anyway, i enjoyed thanksgiving and i hope you did too. we have some friends in from out of town and we will be trying to hang out with them while they're here, so call us if you would, even if you are always in town.

i'll leave you with this, "And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful." Colossians 3:15

what i think

i think this new blog beta is fun.
i think grounds is a strange place.
i think teacher meetings are stressful.
i think my car is too cool for me.
i think the mountains are gigantic.
i think my church is the best place for me right now.
i think my marriage is not as good as it should be.
i think the Bible is the word of God.
i think i should read it more.

i think teal is my favorite color.
i think carrie should move here.
i think 70 degrees is perfect.
i think yellow is ugly.
i think i am too serious.
i think i should travel more.
i think in groups of 3.
i think pete is my bestfriend.
i think "crocs" are weird looking.

i think grades are unnessessary.
i think red hair is sexy for girls, not boys.
i think metal chairs are uncomfortable.
i think egg nog is delicious.
i think my family loves me.
i think ephesians 3 is my favorite chapter of the Bible.
i think encouraging friends are the best kind to have.
i think God made me for such a time as this.
i think you are wonderful for listening.

i don't like homework!

i am at got coffee trying to do homework, but i'm not really trying. i have to make a "fake" assessment, and the assessments i already have done won't quite work for this assignment, so i can't even double dip! i have checked my email at least three times and all of your blogs at least once. i am going to log off the internet after this, i just wanted to tell you that i am wasting time and an easy way to do that is on my space. i have checked all my friends, left some comments, and made some new friends. i hope you are all having a great weekend, the thanksgiving holiday is almost here, let me know if you will be in town, perhaps i will see you!

wonderful yet unmotivated

i dunno

"i dunno nothing that i haven't been taught
i dunno, why i was born into the family i've got
i dunno, if i ever had an original thought
maybe not, maybe so, maybe later, i dunno
i dunno how i can end a prayer and turn on a friend
i dunno what i was thinking when i just pressed send
i dunno why i still critisize the things i don't know
i dunno, i dunno, i dunno, but this one thing i know,

your love is better than life
without your love i'm like a broken machine
your love is better than life
without your love it's like a mindless routine
your love is better than life
without your love i'm in another free-fall
your love is better than life
without your love i've got nothing at all"

i took that from my new favorite newsboys song, and i think about it all the time when i'm at work. i want so badly to live my life as if the one thing i know is that God's love is better than life. i'm not sure i do that right now, but i pray that it will happen soon. so i know that a lot of you out there want the same thing, so my challenge to you and me is to think about God's love all the time and try to make Him the center of our lives! ps. 16:11

totally bodacious!

here are some pictures of my cousin and her family. they aren't always like this, but it was halloween. the pictures are awesome and i can't help but share...
she is the normal one of the family.
we love you guys!

shine?

when surrounded by darkness
it is hard to let my light shine

new way to share pictures!

above is a slide show of me, and the people in my life. right now it is mostly wedding pictures, but i will try to change it from time to time. so in order to see my new posts, you must scroll down a little. i hope you like it, i am proud that i knew how to add it to my blog. have a great day!

to grade or not to grade?

i don't remember the end of the quarter being so hard! when i was in high school, the end of the quarter was stressful, but not that bad. now that i am the teacher, it is stressful. i made the mistake of giving two essay tests the last two days of the quarter. stupid, stupid, stupid! don't do that! anyway i am at the coffee shop trying to grade said tests, and i have completed one class. the problem is that it was my smaller class, i still have the 24 student one to go. with all that said, i love teaching. it is something that makes me smile when i think of all the students and how they affect my life. i hope i affect their lives positively too. this is also a shout out to my teacher friends, most of which will never see this post, but thanks anyway! to wenzel, holladay, ferraro, watkins, anderson, and short, you guys are awesome!

music is fun

this week in my life skills class we are learning about music and practicing just for fun. i want them to understand that music is fun, not boring. so who can show them that music is not boring, why pastor terry of course! he came to my class today as a guest and we had fun. we went through a cd with rhythm and followed along. i just wanted to share that and say thank-you p.t. it was so good! and those of you who have not found what it is like to have fun with music, tap along to the beat in your car, or sing in your shower and tell me that's not fun.

psalm 52.8-9

"I trust in the steadfast love of God
forever and ever.
I will thank you forever,
because you have done it.
I will wait for your name,
for it is good,
in the presence of the godly."

it is tough

i am posting at 1 in the morning to tell you that it is tough to "think on these things." not even 24 hours has passed since my post on phil. 4.8 and i have already failed to think on these things. i posted and then forgot about it. it is tough, the world is all around us telling us it's okay to do worldly things, like movies you think "oh, this one looks good, it has one of my favorite actors in it so what if it's rated r, i think it might be interesting" i am here to tell you that the world thinks it's okay, and as christians, we should not (with God as our guide, i'm not condenming r rated movies, but the last few i've seen aren't good). anyway, i'm sorry to those who joined us, and we will do better next time, Lord willing. so whatever is true and lovely, think on these things.
goodnight

think on these things

finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable,
whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely,
whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence,
if there is anything worthy of praise,
think about these things.
philippians 4.8

little timmy

i pray for you timmy, so small and so sweet
your body is struggling how hard it must be
your dad is so brave and so trusting in God
your sister is scared, not knowing what's wrong
the Lord will protect you little timmy so small
i pray for your health and your comfort most of all

pics

the girls and their babies! (i think they have names, i'm not sure)

avery's coffee shop experience, she had an 8oz. blended chocolate milk!

we went to the treehouse, and sadie loved putting on all the costumes, she was a bird from mexico.

sarah, as always, crazy! she was riding her donkey all the way to mexico.

i want somesing!

this is my update for you. my weekend was fun and high energy to say the least. i took care of sadie and avery (or abie as sadie calls her) this weekend. seth and jen went to his grandmother's funeral in iowa all went as well as could be expected for them. so much happened, sarah blogged about one such time at the coffee shop (read it). we had a sleepover friday. we watched veggie tales in our jammies while eating chocolate ice-cream. it was fun!

saturday we went to the treehouse in ogden. it was a free day and there were a lot of children. the event was successful even though avery became tired and cranky 3/4ths of the way through (which was better than i thought she would do).

saturday "night" we played with dolls and babies, and i'm almost certain i heard "whats goin' on?" five hundred times. i never know how to answer that, i eventually started saying "what's goin' on with you?" sadie would just giggle and ask me again.

sunday we went to church and they saw sarah again. the girls did well, we sang and fought over who got to sit by uncle pete. they went to nursery and had a great time. lunch was good and oh so tasty. i did notice that i ate less than i usually do because i was making sure they were eating more than they usually do.

we had some good times this weekend. avery's foot fell asleep twice. she didn't know how to react and i would ask her what was wrong and all she could do was step on her foot with her other foot. i told her it was asleep and we should wake it up. she looked at me like i was talking crazy.

many stained shirts and placemats later, we survived and the weekend was a success. i even speak sadie jive and avery babble a little better now. so thank-you seth and jen for letting me keep your beauties for a few days! they really did miss you i promise.

the blogger is not working for my pictures but i am posting anyway. i will put them on as soon as i can!

the lesser of two evils

what am i talking about you ask? EXERCISE, that's what. if you don't do it, you become out of shape and obese. if you manage to get out of bed and do it, then you are tired and your heart screams at you for the hour of torture you just put it through. so as an ode to sarah, i won't ask you to come in the morning anymore, we will find a later time during the day. maybe your body will like you better! "not cute!"

where were you?

five years ago yesterday i was a senior in high school. because of this, i did not have a first period on A days, so i slept in. i was awaken by my mom on the intercom. she told me i needed to get up and come watch tv. this was a strange request, tv before school? when i looked at the screen there was only smoke, i was still sleepy and confused. as i watched the news, another plane flew directly into the second tower. i continued to go to school and the tower fell while i was driving, the second fell when i was at school. it was a strange morning to say the least. as the day went on, we watched the news all day at school. it was good at first because everyone was so confused, but all day made me sick. all we saw was death and smoke. i know you saw it too, because it was on all day every channel.

i asked my students where they were on that day and most were going to school, but they were only in fourth grade so they don't remember much.

i am posting this because i think it is good to think back and remember our own personal experiences on that day. i know you will never forget it regardless of how we were affected by it.

so as you continue on with your life, remember those who no longer do. give a prayer for their families, and for others to come to Jesus through their memory.

one of the students prayed for the terrrorists to come to know Jesus. that takes a lot of courage for a ninth grader to say. i know that i am still upset sometimes, but we should pray for the lost no matter what.

so sorry this is a bit sad, but let me know where you were or what you were doing, and please pray for the lost.

pictures are coming!

hi everybody,

i just wanted to tell you that i am still planning on puting pictures of the house on the blog, but i don't have many good ones (so i will retake them.)

i hope you are doing well, in and out of towners, we miss you!

update-- teaching is fun, yet hard to plan. i am still learning obviously. i also started school, so the work load is no longer part-time (like it ever was!) pete is doing school and his master's project, so he is keeping busy also.

the bbq was so fun, if you took pictures let me know because i totally forgot.

here's my question of the day... we all have times when a teacher or our parent does something we don't like and we say, "oh, i'll never be like that!" why then do we seem to end up doing that very thing?

new house bbq!

you are invited! we (peteandamy) are having a bbq on saturday sept. 2. it is at our new house at 6:00pm. bring your own meat and something to share. you call me or i'll call you.

see you saturday!

friends and good times

last night we had a coming home type party for pfc micah krishnan. he has returned from basic and will attend weber while continuing his rotc. it was also a party for ryan who is home for a week before he returns to n.c. to work and go to school. the lovely meredith is also in town, so it was a fun evening. we did dutch-oven cooking in the krishnan's secret bbq area on the side of their house. i have some pictures, but it wasn't working, so maybe sarah can post them. sorry! have a great day.

praise You in this storm

i was sure by now
God you would have reached down
and wiped our tears away
stepped in and saved the day.
but once again, i say amen
that it's still raining

as the thunder rolls
i barely hear you whisper through the rain,
I'm with you
and as your mercy falls
i raise my hands and praise the God who gives
and takes away.

and i'll praise you in this storm,
and i will lift my hands
that you are who you are
no matter where i am
and every tear i've cried
you hold in your hand
you never left my side
and though my heart is torn
i will praise you in this storm

i remember when
i stumbled in the wind
you heard my cry
you raised me up again
my strength is almost gone
how can i carry on
if i can't find you

as the thunder rolls
i barely hear you whisper through the rain,
I'm with you
and as your mercy falls
i raise my hands and praise the God who gives
and takes away.

and i'll praise you in this storm
and i will lift my hands
that you are who you are
no matter where i am
and every tear i've cried
you hold in your hand
you never left my side
and though my heart is torn
i will praise you in this storm

i lift my eyes unto the hills,
where does my help come from?
my help comes from the Lord,
the maker of heaven and earth

and though my heart is torn
i will praise you in this storm.

- for my family (see sararah's blog)

the calm before the storm

friday, i went to the spa! that's right, sego lily day spa, and it was wonderful. the cheerleaders at chs chipped in and bought me a gift certificate for the end of the season, so thanks girls. i decided to use it right before i started work, so tomorrow i start work, but my face, back and toes are happy! i am happy to start work, don't get me wrong, but i know it is going to be hard and a bit stressful, thus the spa trip.

i also got a hair cut and eyebrow wax that same day. so the total body experience went from 9am to 2pm. it was the most time i have ever spent doing those types of things in one day, how great.

to get away from the trivial and useless, i would like to know your plans this fall. whether it be school, a new job, the same job, moving, staying, whatever. just leave me a comment, and i would love to know. as for me and pete, pete is going back to school for his final semester of his masters, i am teaching 3 classes at christian heritage high, and taking 7 credits of my teaching certificate (estimated time of completion, next fall). that is what we are up to, your turn.

God bless you, and we will be having a bbq soon, this weekend or the second weekend of september. i'll let you know.

by the way melissa, pete and terry are going to a conference at john piper's church sept. 29-oct. 1, i'm not sure if i can get work off or not, but they might be calling for a place to stay, hope you guys are loving your new place and town. see ya

what makes for peace?

romans, that is what i have been reading from the Bible lately. today is romans 14, verse 17-19 in particular.

"For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men. So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding."

to pursue what makes for peace is a tough thing to think about. because so often i search for my own way which does not lead to peace. think about what makes for peace, and pursue it, even today!

amy-g

what a world, what a world

hey, i'm back to blogging! our lives have changed quite a bit in the last week, thus my abscence from the internet.

we are now in our new house! yeah, all moved in except for a couple boxes. so thank-you to my parents and pete's parents, krishnan's, lanie and josh, both grandparents (peters and gomperts) aunt lori, mike, glendon, mat, seth, sarah. also those who helped move boxes, the same above, and jesse, brock, whitney, kelli, sabrina and travis, terry, suzy, carnahans, and mindy. we are so grateful for your help in our crazy extreme home makeover!

we are truly blessed to have so many friends and relatives to help pete and i finally move in. it was better than any television make- over show even without ty pennington. micah, we wish you were here, but you can help us add a wrap-around porch some day!

i start work officially on monday the 14th. i am teaching one 9th grade geography, one 10th grade world civilizations, and the jr. high life skills class. i'm not into the planning enough to be scared yet, but i will be by tomorrow.

pray for me to be able to do a good job teaching those kids and pray that i can be a light for God while i'm there. i also want to be better at managing my time and continue working out.

thanks for being a part of our lives, we are going to have an open house type bbq so you can see our new house! sometime around aug. 19th. i'll tell you more later

amy-g

do not conform

i appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God which is your spiritual worship. do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
romans 12.1-2

prayer and discipleship

two things i am currently striving for is a better prayer life, and deeper discipleship.

i want to pray more often and more passionately.
i want God to be my closest friend.
i need His guidance and love.
i want my relationships to show His glory.

that is all, pray and ponder with me on this journey.

family and fireworks

my day consits of spending time with family, and enjoying a fireworks display at weber state tonight!

after church we went out to red robin with my aunt and uncle, and their two children and their wives, and kids, and two friends. confusing, i know. but it was so much fun, and i haven't seen them in a long time. i wish corie lived here so i could spend more time with her, we are more alike now than we used to be. colorado has been good to her. anyway it was really good, and i would like to say they are doing great things for Christ. Ben (her husband) is a pastor of a small church, and they are going to change things up a bit and meet on sundays for a message, but have smaller house church things happen every other time, keeping it simple, which is where our church is headed i hope. simple makes it easier to focus on God and His purposes! so thank-you to corie and ben, you are loved my many in utah, hope to see you again soon (do i hear a family reunion coming?)

tonight is the pops concert at weber state, and we always attend the fireworks. i love fireworks, and this year we didn't see any at the 4th (although the backyard display at my parents was impressive), so this is the first this year!

hopefully you are having a great day, and if you are not, go out and buy max lucado's book , "just like Jesus" and read it. it may not make your day better, but it will make you realize your need to be more like Christ.

the p.l.a.n.

i hope your weekend is going well, mine is long and relaxing (as much as it can be). right now pete and i are at got coffee? reading and such, and i am reading a book called "just like Jesus" by max lucado. it is really good. each chapter addresses a different area of life that we as christians struggle with. chapter seven is about having a focused heart. so i will share with you max's thoughts on being focused on God.

as you know, our life has been crazy lately, and it has been hard to keep focused on God with so much going on... just an update, i should be talking with mike at the high school about my job sometime next week. our offer was accepted, so we will hopefully be moving july 27thish, we are currently staying in the gompert's extra room. we are excited for everything that is changing in our life, yet it is still hard to focus on God.

max lucado made an acrostic to help us remember what we should be doing and thinking to stay focused on God.

the p.l.a.n.
am i fitting into God's plan?
what are my longings?
what are my abilities?
am i serving God now?

these are the (small) explinations to help you understand max's thinking...
as a part of God's plan, we need to be witnessing and sharing the gospel with others to ultimately bring them to God and bring God glory. we are Christ's ambassadors.
our longings and desires were given by God and we need to pray that we can surrender them to Him.
our abilities are things we are capable or strong at. we desire some things that we are not good at, and that's okay, but it is good to use the strengths that God has provided in serving others.
serving God now means we shouldn't wait until we complete this or that, He wants our service now in what ever we do. our job, or friendships, all of our lives should be serving Him.

that chapter was a good reminder for me. i know that i don't need to worry about anything, or focus on anything that doesn't further God's kingdom. i want all my focus to be on Him and everything else won't be such a problem.

"I ask-ask the God of our Master, Jesus Christ, the God of glory - to make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do." ephesians 1: 17-18 (msg)

may God help you remain focused on Him for He is all that we need!
amy-g

God is so good!

every time i post about moving, we don't move! so, you guessed it, the house fell through. i know, i know how many times, but it's okay. we still sold our house as of today, and we moved out last night. the complication comes with the place we moved to. we got a call from steve yesterday who got a call from the other realtor at our new house (actually from her secretary because she is on vacation at lake powell)... the bank is forclosing on the new house! so it turned into more of a hassle than we wanted so we told them no thank-you. we are currently staying in glendon's basement (thanks buddy) and we will be staying with pete's parents for as long as we need to. (all our stuff is at mike's house, including the dog) thanks mike!

so while we were homeless for a couple of hours, steve (the best guy ever), shopped around and showed us four houses (one we didn't even go in, it was bad) anyway, the second one we looked at caught our eye. so we put an offer in today (more to come tomorrow, we may move at the end of the month). this house is in ogden on rancho vista and it is the third house down from the mountains! (pete is so excited) it is also in the same neighborhood as his friend sebastian. lanie and josh's house is 1 1/2 blocks away! so we might be close to friends! the house is bigger than our old one with 3 bedrooms, 2 bath and a kitchen that is open to the living room (so i can chat and cook at the same time). it is cozy yet big enough!

we love you all so much and will let you know more soon (5pm tomorrow we hear about our offer) so be patient with us, and God will work this out. i forgot to tell you, the house is the same price as the one in n.ogden, and it was built in 1999. (oh yeah, also comes with central air and a two car garage!) also i have some pictures of our old house and the moving process, but the connector cord is packed. so they will come later!

love and thanks, from amy-g

my turn

now that i have read all of your posts, it's my turn! jen, this one's for you. yes, more often than not, i don't post because i think my life is boring, but here you go anyway... a couple of announcements (no i'm not pregnant) and an update on the house.

my mom's procedure to remove the kidney stone was successful and she is feeling fine. she didn't even take any pain pills (yet) ! love you mom

brett t. is going to be back in town on july 13thish, so hopefully we can all hang out sometime! maybe we can talk in funny british accents to remind him of the uk, not really though, my british accent is awful!

now for the update, we are supposedly closing on our house tomorrow (tues.) at 4pm. the plan is to sign some (many) papers, then move all our stuff to the garage and set up the bed. after that the plan is to rip out carpet! for those who will be at Bible study, the announcement that should be made by p.t. is... everyone is invited to come to help us paint on saturday starting around 9am! the more the merrier, i think! so that is the update. pete is going to take this week and next week off to work on the house. i will be helping everyday when i get off work. i do have friday this week and tuesday next week off yahoo!

thanks for your prayers, if you want or desire to help on other times besides saturday, call us up, we wouldn't mind the help.

boring as ever, but i may not post for a while so have a great week, and i'll let you know how it goes! love amy

oh yeah, this is for micah and whomever else wanted to know... sunday worship was good except i was all ready to be in my own zone and steve asked me to play drums out of no where when pete and i arrived to sunday school (maybe i won't go early anymore). it wasn't that bad, it's just i had my heart set on worshipping in my own seat, not in front of anyone. i merely had to change my heart (which was hard) i did pretty good, but i didn't worship much because i hadn't practiced all the songs, so i was concentrating pretty hard on staying with the group. so for all you who play on worship teams, don't run your team that way. i didn't even get to see seth and jen play for offerring! i was dissappointed. the sermon was really good, we are starting james, so come up and hear!

do you glow?

i have been reading a new book. p.t. gave it to me for graduation, and it is really good. it is called just like Jesus by max lucado. i am currently on chapter six, and it is about worship and preparing our hearts. he talks about matt. 17:1-5 where Jesus takes three disciples up on the mountain and they witness His transfiguration. max lucado uses this as Jesus' time of worship. i know it very well could be, but that part is not very well thought of in context, but it works for his point. the point is, do you prepare for worship? do you pray and get adequate sleep, do you come to church half awake and leave the same way? these things caught my attention because so often i go to church and leave the same way. but one thing i drew from the chapter was the fact that other people notice when we are truly worshipping. Our worship should be authentic and our face should "change" because of it. not litterally become shining like Jesus', but there should be a difference in our outlook. max lucado suggests that our worship can sometimes be evangelistic or the opposite. how we worship can make others want to know more about this God we are praising, or make them indifferent because we look so glum during the service, like we can't wait to leave.

i challenge you to truly prepare your hearts tomorrow and every sunday. it is hard for me too, but if we come into the worship service expecting nothing to change, nothing will. to quote p.t. (yes it's true we really can repeat his sayings like robots, but is that bad?)
"God is doing exactly in your life what you expect Him to by faith, nothing more, nothing less."
we need to expect a lot from God and we need to give a lot to God. so please join me in making an effort to worship God tomorrow in church more than i have lately. i don't know about you, but it is God who changes our hearts, but we must give Him our time and attention.

may you be encouraged in your worship times tomorrow, and let me know how it goes!

to my friend

i had a good phone conversation with my friend tonight. we caught up on how things were going and how it seems we are both busy with not a whole lot to do. it was a conversation that made our desire to stay connected stronger. so to you, thanks for your call, have a wonderful and grace filled day! love amy

come one come all!

if you don't have any plans for the 4th, consider this your invitation. every year the town of huntsville always has a big-to-do at the park (where pete and i were married), anyway it lasts all day with fireworks at night. our church which is right across the street has an annual garage sale, with lots of stuff! there is a parade at 9am with cool cars and tractors, we are also having a bbq at the church around 7pm for anyone who wants to come. it is a great time, so come see us and have some fun!

scratch that!

okay, so we didn't move today, but it's better this way. in 10 min. pete and i will have an extra 3000 dollars from the earnest money of the "buyer" of our house. at 10 this morning we were supposed to close on our house, so we did our part, but the other party wasn't ready. because this was their last day, we dropped them and went with the next person interested who was very excited and is paying 5000 more than the original buyers. so we jumped the gun a little and moved some stuff, but not enough to worry about. for now we wait for this other gal to tell us when she can close but her deadline is july 21st, so it will be before then. all she needs is an inspection and appraisal and we're good to go.

i know, you're thinking, this is crazy, why even move. but when all this goes through we will pay off the car and my student loan so praise God!

goodnight and goodluck, amy

2 days to go!

we will hopefully be closing on our house friday the 30th at 10am! if the other party doesn't show up, then we get their 3000 earnest money (so we are secretly hoping they don't.) either way, we are glad to be getting somewhere with the house. if you would like to help in some way, we are moving on friday and painting on saturday! call me if you want to help it would make the process more fun if you do. thanks for your encouragement and prayers, and i'll see you all soon.

amy

shout out to you!

hey all, this is my post after such a long time, but anyway full-time work makes it hard for me to get to the internet to post. i just wanted to congratulate some people...

to my cousin todd and his wife charis, congrats on your baby that is to come!

to suzy, good job at turning 17 ! like it was hard.

to glendon, he moved into a new house on 22nd and it is great! micah and jesse are going to be his roommates as well.

to our friends ben and holly, they were married yesterday and the ceremony was wonderful! they are off to glacier national park for 2 weeks!

to our buds jen and seth, they accepted a photography award for her dad's studio jolley photography! they looked great and will be on tv next saturday.

to anyone i forgot, you are great and i love ya lots! don't feel bad, your time will come.

anyway, this weekend was good, we helped glendon move. it was a good weekend of fellowship for sure. i'll try to post this week and for sure on the weekend. sorry i don't have any pictures. the connector cord for our camera is lost! and i don't own one for my phone yet! but i'll try to get some of our new house when we move. we close on friday the 30th! so pray for that.

thanks, have a great week!

happened

to all who are there, i am sorry i haven't posted in so long. my blogging has been slacking lately because i am not around the internet anymore. anyway, here are some exciting things that have happened in the lives of amy, pete, and friends...

dréa (my friend) had her baby! yeah baby! his name is bryson glen, and he is so cute and tiny. it is exciting because she and robb now have a baby boy, but robb will not be home from afghanistan until august, so pray for their family.

pete and seth go mountain biking every thursday, and they have a blast. we had dinner with seth last thursday because jen and the kids were away and seth needed some conversation. it was fun except i didn't understand the conversation most of the time because it was in engineer!

i started working full-time (thus the no blogging). it is really fun and i get to be with little kids all day. sometimes it makes me never want to have kids, but there are always those few who capture your heart! one first grader even asked to accept Christ's love and forgiveness this week, so please pray for all the kids to understand how important God's love is to us.

our youth group put on a 5dayclub this week and we canvased down-town huntsville with flyers and kids actually showed up! so that is a praise and a pray because we want them to remember what they learned beyond this week.

our house plans are changing yet again, but we have the best realtor so it is okay. the new closing date is june 22 or 23 and we don't yet know who will be buying our house because there are two parties who want it (how cool is that!) anyway, whoever responds first with the better offer wins basically so for now we wait (i'll let you know).

oh, my brother recently purchased a motorcycle, and he is like a rebel without a cause, but he took all the safety classes and he wears a helmet and jacket so it's not as scary. good job craig!

that is all the recent events in the lives of amy, pete, and friends. may you have a great day and know that God is always taking care of His own!

still here

hi guys, just a quick post to say i'm still here and alive. we are doing fine but i am really busy. i started my summer job this week so i am now working full time (close to overtime) and i haven't been to the coffee shop in a few days. surprisingly enough i'm doing just fine (i do stop in quick to get coffee though). as for my summer classes, one is done and only one more assignment in the online class yipee! so have a great day, i'm off to celebrate glendon's birthday with some close friends (i'm not sure who will be there, but it will be fun). bless you for reading this and i'll post something worth while soon.

amy-g

God had other plans

i often think of what my life would be like if i just let go of my agenda and tried my hardest to find what God had for me instead. Sometimes i do that, but it is usually because i am forced to by God showing me that His way is better after i have fought Him about it. many of you know how busy i have been lately and it makes me crazy! i have a 2 ½ hour class monday through thursday for four weeks (only three classes left) and i crammed a 12 week class into 3 ½ weeks just to finish before june 7th. june 7th is the first day i start work full-time this summer and it is two days before we move, so you can see why i want school to be over. i make myself so busy that i have to plan everything on my phone calendar so i don't forget it (even the times i make dinner). even though i am so busy, my plans have changed again. i know, your thinking how many times can this happen? well, we got a call and we are not moving on june 9th.

we are now closing and moving on june 30th!

this was hard at first, but i think it will be okay because we won't have to hurry and pack, pick carpet, and paint hastily or take off that much work (july 4th is the next week). you may be thinking, why not just tell them no? well, the catch is that the realtor who sold our new house to us also found this lady to buy our house now, so we would lose the new house if we said no. so for now we can relax a little more and wait. there are good aspects of this change, but it reminds me of how little i control. God is in charge and if He doesn't want us to move yet, then okay. i am going to try to accept from now on that my life flows much better when i don't obsessively control every little bit. so if your plans change unexpectedly, remember that God always has a reason and He has known forever what will happen. to me that is comforting when i only know a little and i just found out today (not an eternity ago)! so keep God in front of you and all the other things on the side will fall in place.

thank-you for praying for us and supporting us in this crazy and exciting time!
amy-g

six weird things and habits

so here it is... my weirdness, as a result of being tagged. things that should stay with me but i will tell a few to you.

1. i count things in my mind all the time. like if there are candies out on a table, i look at them and before i know it i am counting them. when i am at work, if i am in a room full of children, i count them (usually for safety reasons) but the weird part is i count them again not two minutes later, (even if there are only three) when nothing has changed. so number one weirdness, i count random things over and over.

2. (it was hard to think of these, so there may not be six) i smell things a lot. i love smells, perhaps my favorite sense, but it is weird. i smell my food before eating it. i smell my skin randomly to see if i still smell like my lotion or perfume. i smell people if they are standing too close, so if you don't want me to smell you, don't stand too close (especially if you have perfume or cologne).

3. this one is a bit of a stretch because mat said i wasn't allowed to use ones that have been done by someone else. i have routines for everything i do! so kimber's shower thing, i do that, and meredith's routine stuff, i do that too. i pretty much have a routine for everything. even the steps to getting in my car and driving go in the same order every time (down to get in turn key, then close door, put on seat belt, then check mirrors, then drive away) silly i know, but i do it for everything, just watch me set up my computer at the coffee shop and it is the same every time!

4. i also get overly excited for small things. many people may think i am being sarcastic by how excited i get over the dumbest subjects or activities, but i'm not. so if i get excited over going to the store, it's okay, i am just that way.

5. i don't like the doctor. i like the dentist, and i don't mind the eye doctor, even the "girl" doctor. but i get so nervous to go to just the normal doctor for a check up. even if i'm sick i don't go to the doctor until it's really bad because i am hoping it will go away before i have to go to the appointment. i really just don't like it.

6. i can't think of anymore, so this one is up to you. if you know of a weird thing i always do, just post it in a comment, or tell me next time i see you. that would be fun to know what others say.

so there it is, i already tagged others and good job on the weirdness. i like finding out what others do, because those are the things that make us unique.

have a great holiday, amy-g

tag, you're it!

okay, so there is now a little game of tag going on in the blog world. i will uphold my end of the deal, but i don't have enough time right now and i want to tag my friends who haven't been taken. so here's the deal... the rules are, once you've been tagged, you have to write a blog with "6 weird facts/things/habits about yourself." in the end you need to choose the 6 people to be tagged and list their names. don't forget to leave a comment that says "you are tagged" in their comments and tell them to read yours. for a sample of what this looks like, go to claire's site (on my check it out section) i will post this friday hopefully, things are a little crazy, which would be my first habit, i can't really say no, but i am getting better! anyway.... mat, ryan, meredith, jen, sararah, and leah, you have all been tagged by me, show us what you've got!

have a great day, look forward to finding out your habits and weirdness.

still here

just so you all know, i am still posting, and my weekend was filled with fun and i even have some pictures. the problem is that the cable to download the pictures from my camera is in a box somewhere in my basement, but i will find it! this week is hectic with school, and i don't know how many times i will be able to post, but for sure when the pictures can be downloaded you will see the fun we (me, pete, mat, sarah, glendon, and my mom) had on our hike up waterfall canyon on sunday, it was beautiful! have a great week, and i have a prayer request if you remember. my friend "e" needs some prayer for some hard times in her life right now. she is visiting utah, and i will talk with her on thursday, so pray that i can be an encouragement, and she can lean even more on God and His comfort during this time. thanks,
amy-g

regular joes

in my studies this week, i have discovered that the disciples were just like you and me, a bunch of regular old joes. i have always known that, but never really looked at why. peter, andrew, james, and john were fishermen. levi/matthew was a tax collector. philip was from the same town as peter and andrew (bethsaida) and philip in effect recruted nathanael who was later called by Jesus when he came to see him. (their calling is recorded in john 1:43-51)

anyway, what i am trying to say is that there was nothing very different about that group of 12 guys. they had jobs and families. we have jobs and families. the cool part, we don't have to leave ours to devote ourselves to following Christ. i pray that you will be encouraged as i was and please if you need something good to read, read matthew 1o (the whole chapter). it is what Jesus told His disciples before He sent them out to do His work! think about this during your conversations with others, "And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." so may you be encouraged as a disciple of Christ to live as one who carries his cross, for God and His glory is infinitely more important than anything else we know!

think about this!

this post is a warm-up for some up and coming posts. the Bible study that pete and i go to is really good, full of learning, and fellowship, and of course...food! anyway the part i want you to think about is our next topic mostly for this summer. we are going to be studying the life of Christ and how we can strive to be as He was, as well as some parables.

the subject for next week to jump start our brains, is not the birth, but the calling of the disciples. Christ had friends just like you and me, and He took them everywhere (almost) with Him. so why did He pick those men? what qualities did they bring to the team, or was it just for kicks (of course not). anyway, think on this, and i will post more this week on what i find in my studies, and look forward to your comments.

i'm enjoying summer classes by the way, have a great day filled with God's beauty in whatever you do.

r.e.s.p.e.c.t.

the topic today- respect (which i can't spell without singing the song in my head). today is the second anniversary of my marriage to pete. in honor of that, i read ephesians 5.22-33 during my devotions. of course i paid a bit more attention to the information for wives than i did for the husbands. this passage hit me differently today than any other time i have read it. in previous times, i would read it as the wife, and the relationship of Christ to the church was viewed as an aid to making my marriage better. but today i viewed the passage as the church. so, if the wife is to submit and respect her husband as the church is to Christ, why is that hard? i think it is hard (for most people) because we as the church don't have the proper respect for God. i know that seems harsh, but like most marriages, the roles that come naturally are not the ones we are commanded to do. follow me for a moment, it is easy (enough) for husbands to respect their wives, but to love them (as they are commanded) takes effort. the same goes for wives, to love is an easy thing, but respecting the husband is the area that does not come naturally. so, church, why is it easier for us to love God than to respect him? (maybe for you reading this it is easy, good, keep it up, but these are just my thoughts on the passage)

we should respect Christ for He is holy. it is hard to understand, but many Bible verses talk about fearing the Lord, which is just as important as loving Him. if we do not have a good example to follow as it would suggest in ephesians, then how will we know what a good marriage looks like? we as the church (married or not) should strive to respect Christ in all His wonder, for that is how the relationship should be.

mom (what else can i say)

this post is dedicated to my mom. terry challenged me to think of things my mom taught me through the years and i realized that many of my attributes and values came from my parents' influence. i would share them but there are many, and some are too personal. but the funny one i remember is, my mom taught me not to ask obvious questions. whenever we asked my mom what she was doing, she would say "doing the laundry" and leave it at that even is she was really cooking or something like that. it would make us so mad that eventually we would figure out what she was doing before we asked. i realized how silly it was to ask someone what they are doing if i can clearly see what they are doing. just as a side note, the only time i would ask my mom what she was doing was when she actually was doing the laundry, then she didn't have an answer, we thought we were so smart!

the picture is the best picture of me and my mom together, and i love you mom!

proverbs 31.28-29 "Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her; 'Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.'" i pray that you rise up and bless your mom on this mother's day!

be a screen-door

well, hello! i know it has been a long time (more than a week) since i have posted, but i have been away from coffee shops since then. i don't have internet at home, so the only time i post is at coffee shops or mike and mat's house. anyway, here it is, my week and my thoughts.

i went to graduation on friday, (no pictures, gowns never make you look good!) anyway, it was fun (surprising enough) and we had a lovely party that night with all the people i care about. sometimes i want to come up with a reason to just have a party like that all the time. sidenote= i was on the tramp (yes, and it was fun) and i received a burn on my elbow, like a rugburn but worse. it still hurts a week later. sidenote over.

saturday and sunday were "normal" for normal people (i didn't have homework to run off to), so we read and caught up on sleep.

that brings us to monday, tuesday, and wednesday. i would have come to the coffee shop, but i ended up staying home all those days and doing other things at night. (Bible study was fun, ryan and micah we miss you!)

okay so now today: i am reflecting on some comments from the todd agnew concert (monday night). that is what the screen-door is all about. he was talking about being more like Christ and discovering who He really was (not our made up sunday school version). anyway, a passage in john 10 is good for knowing who Christ is because He told His disciples who He was. read my Bible encouragement section for the verses (john 10: 9-10) todd agnew went through a very funny, yet challenging conversation with God about this passage, and he came to the conclusion that if Jesus is the door (to salvation and heaven), and we are to be like Him, how can we be the door also? we are not the door as Christ is, but we lead others to the door, by the way we live our lives. if we lead to the door and we are to be like Christ, then we must be the screen-door! i found this to be very good to think about. the concert has opened many new questions and challenges in my own life, if you ever have the chance to see todd agnew, do it! he talked more than he sang, but it was all great conversation and little tidbits that make you think.

so i pray that you, having already gone through the door, (if indeed you have) could help others to find the amazing love and joy we have in Christ. the abundant life He gives can be for everyone. oh, that we will let go of ourselves and look to Jesus who is our example for abundant living and live it!

bless His name, and it will not be long before my next post!

5 down, 0 to go!

yes, that's right. i am officially finished with spring semester 2006!!! i still have two classes this summer but they won't be anything compared to this sememster. i also will continue on sometime with the education program, but not for now!

so now you know, thanks to all of you for praying, i hope to see you sometime and just talk at the coffee shop instead of doing homework!

i'm off to take a much needed nap, and fix dinner for pete (it's been a long time)!

God's blessings on you,
amy-g

2 down 3 to go!

i finished another test, and everything else will be completed tomorrow. i will take a test tomorrow at 7 am (how crazy) then another one sometime between 9 and 3. at 3 my senior thesis is due, and i am happy to say i am almost done. so that is all, hope to see you all soon!
amy-g

1 down, 4 to go!

well, i am happy to say that i am officially done with my first final! it was pretty hard, it took an hour and a half of the two hours. but now it's done and i can focus on the up and coming finals looming in my future. so thanks for your prayers, i have one on tuesday, and two tests wednesday as well as my paper so please keep praying.

another note, many of you have blogged already about the twins, and i would like to say i am proud of my geography buddies. that's right, if the nfl didn't work out, they would have graduated in geography, lucky for them it did! anyway, keep them in your prayers at this time as well, this is so exciting, but they have a lot of big decisions to make.

i would also like to say bon'voyage to micah who leaves tomorrow for basic training! pray that he can stay strong in the Lord in the midst of all the ungodly things around him.

that's all for now, may you be blessed by knowing you are a child of the King, and no one can change that, not even you!

amy-g

solid in Your truth!

i have a friend who shall remain unnamed because he would be embarrased, but if he reads this he will know who i am talking about. (many of you might as well, so sorry jeremy!) opps, did i say that out loud. anyway he shouldn't be embarrased because what i am going to say is good and exciting. okay, now are you ready? he has written a song (a long time ago) and some recent conversations have brought it back to my memory. i will give you some of the words,
show Your truth in me, let Your glory fall, God all i want to see is Your glory fall, bring us truth in unity that we'll see eye to eye, we are Your children but, there are lines that divided. to be solid in Your truth is my prayer for us.
that is the chorus and it is a prayer of mine right now, even though we are christian, and so are our friends, we should still be striving for knowledge of God's truth, and unity through that truth. it should be our goal to see God's glory fall, especially on those who are lost. it is like terry (our pastor) always says, if we are not comfortable enough to share what God is doing in our life with fellow believers, we will never be comfortable enough to share what God is doing in our life with unbelievers.
so i challenge you (and me) today to go out and live in unity, but don't compromise truth, because it is through God's grace and truth that the lost are found!

i love weather!

i am currently trying to keep myself from becoming stressed over school. today was the last day of class (yipee) but i still feel like there are two more months left of school. update: i finished all my papers except one, my thesis, i am currently working on it. it is due wednesday by 3:00pm and i'm sure i'll use all that time. the stress part comes in because i have to find time to study for 4 tests, one monday, one tuesday, and two wednesday. so pray for me to do well, and to remember a lot of the information, as study time will be minimal. so all that to update you and say, i love weather. there is nothing we can do to control it, and in utah it is a bit irregular. so as i am doing my homework, i am also thinking about what a nice day it was today. the breeze was blowing, but the temperature was still 67 F, 18 C give or take. weather makes me excited, even a little rain is fun for me to track on the news (no matter how accurate) and the internet. i hope you enjoy weather too, what was the weather like at your house today?

have a great weekend!
amy-g

you're invited!

i would like everyone to make a note, there are 7 days left until i, amy, graduate! yes it's true, i am so excited (even though it's not official until i finish my two summer classes). the "best" part about it, i get to be in the graduating ceremonies. if you don't remember, or never had one, or you didn't go, let me remind you... everyone who is "walking" shows up and they (the people in charge) put you in a line, usually aphabetically. then the whole line proceeds into the large auditorium, and walks down the isle so parents and the such can snap a couple pictures that are so small it wouldn't matter who the picture was of. anyway, this takes about 4 hours or so? i'm not sure, but i am still deciding if i will go. the difference between high school graduation and college, for college you must do this twice! yes twice, once on thursday night (the processional) and once for your specific college area. the social sciences (that's me) is having a ceremony at 8:00 in the morning! all to say thanks, we apprieciated having you in our class, and oh by the way, here's an empty folder, your diploma will be mailed in about 3 months! so all that to say, i am excited (if i pass) but i don't really want to go through the ceremonies. but i must appease the family (grandparents) so i'll live. to make this post even funnier, i have included a picture of myself at my high school graduation, 2002. go ahead, you can laugh, i did. anyway, if you would like to see me look a lot like that picture, you are welcome to come to my graduation (those who live here) and cheer or sleep, whichever. call me for details! oh yeah the part of graduation that is fun...
i am having an open house. because my house is half packed, we will be having it at my parent's house. you know the one, and if you don't, call me. the open house will be next friday from 6-8. i am sending out postcards, but in case you don't get one, you're invited. oh yeah, one more thing. notice i have an honor cord in the picture, yeah, not this time. but, at least i am graduating!
have a blessed day, i'll see you soon.

we wish it was our birthday

i would like to start out with saying happy birthday to ryan, your party was so fun!

it is wednesday and i am blown away by the fellowship i enjoy. last night at Bible study we decided that our fellowship does not talk about what God is doing in our lives enough. the things that we read and get excited about, we are scared to share with each other for one reason or another. but i want you to know that i love it when people share what they are learning or what they read or discover about God with me! it makes me so happy for you and it makes me want to enjoy that joy right along with you. so please share your thoughts in a comment, or the next time you see me, i want our friendships to grow in an understanding of God's love. so please walk with me in this new adventure, and maybe soon we won't feel nervous to talk about the love of our souls.

love and respect

my favorite thing about my hectic life right now is being married. i love being married! we have been through so much this year that i can't imagine doing all of that alone. a Godly marriage (at least trying for one) is hard work, but when i think of the other alternatives (like a non-christian marriage), i am so thankful that God had pete in mind for me. i know some of you are married, some are not and want to be someday, and some of you may not want to; but no matter what relationships you are in, i want to encourage you to continue on striving to be the man or woman that God is molding you into, instead of searching hi and low for the Godly man or woman you desire. our girl's group recently talked about this issue, and i have been thinking a lot about it. if God has it in His plan for you to be married, then you will. the trick is staying in His will so you will know the time when it comes. please don't view this post as anything but me wanting to encourage you and thank you for supporting me and pete in our marriage. you are a great group of friends, we love living here, and your friendship and love is so uplifting to us.

this picture is one of my favorites (plus it was one of the only good ones that wasn't a wedding photo, i show those off a lot). i pray that whatever relationships you are in (or not in) you will be so grateful. hopefully you can see God's perfect timing in that, He knows what we need when we need it, not when we want it!

praise Him continually,
amy-g

what tomorrow may bring!

when i was setting up this blog, i put that my residence was "anywhere God leads." at the time that was true in theory, now i know what it could mean in true life.

i'm sorry it took a long time for me to post something new (2 days), anyway, i have been busy enough to not be around the internet much. so in continuation of the previous blog about our house situation, i would like to tell you how amazing God is, and how unexpected are His surprises.

well, our house deal fell through on thursday morning. that day, a couple came to look at the house (we put it back on the market for a bit more money than before). friday came and we received an offer on the house! the realitor that we are buying our house from sold it to the couple so we would follow through on buying the new house. well, not only did it sell in one day, it sold for more than the previous offer, so in the end we come up with a couple more thousand than we were planning on. so not only to we have some extra (needed) cash coming our way, we are now moving around june 9th. this is good because it is not during finals week like before, it is the day after i finish my summer classes. so i will be school free when we move!

so thanks for your prayers. i am glad that we trusted God to take care of our needs, He truly is our provider, and He knows our struggles better than we do.

that's the update, so our praises are all for God, His timing, and His plan. pray that we can continue to trust Him, because we never know what tomorrow may bring!

oh yeah, check out the new Bible encouragement on the left side, i think it is truly what our world needs.

have a blessed day, amy-g

my new music

hey all, today i thought i would tell you a little about what music i am listing to lately. recently pete and i were convicted about how many burned cds we "own" and felt we should help out the bands by actually buying the cds. anyway one of the bands i have had a burned cd of forever is downhere. they have two cds which are awesome and are coming out with a third, may 23rd. i don't even know who to compare them to, but give them a listen and i'm sure you'll like it. check out their site, i put it on my links section. also, they have a blog, http://downhereblog.blogspot.com. it is really good. so that is my new favorite band, what are some of yours?

have a wonderful day or night, whichever, and i'll see you soon
amy-g

a hurt and a praise

hi friends, i pray this day finds you well, may i start off with saying, God is good and loving, and holy. i am always amazed by the stories i hear from other people about what God is doing in their life. today i am doing homework, and i saw a good friend of ours, but he was a little frustrated with something. we got talking, and he is struggling with why other christians don't understand that God is sovereign and in control of everything. he wants them to understand the the more we understand God and His attributes, the more joy we have and the more we grow. i whole heartedly agree with him and i can testify in my own life, that before i really knew what it felt like to live for God and let Him control my life, little things like moving and finals, and surgery would have broken me down. now i know that even though it is hard, God has a plan for my life and He won't give me more than i am able to handle. so as you go out today, remember that God has a plan, and your only job is to glorify Him through your actions the best you can.

so as we are all remembering that God has a plan, i would like to say that we aren't moving just yet. the buyers of our house were denied their loan, so it is back on the market. this is both a hurt and a praise. it is a hurt because we are half-way packed, and kind of let down. however, it is a praise because now we aren't moving till the middle of may (hopefully) so it is not during finals week! thanks for your prayers, and keep it up. it is comforting to know we have so many friends who care.

also, (sorry it's a long one today) for those who were wondering, pete and i are doing well, and our new house we bought is in north ogden, (before the big houses on the hill). we are excited because it is a bit bigger than our house now, and the neighborhood is quite and a bit safer (i think). so please continue to pray that we will not be worried because we know that God is sovereign over all creation (including me)!

homework and prayer

homework and prayer, that seems to be the extent of my days. sometimes it is just homework. this blog is not meant to be a pity me post, i am just asking for your prayer and support. as you may see from my countdowns, there are nine days till moving time, and 15 days till graduation. so i am frantically trying to finish my homework as fast as i can so i can help pete pack. i still have nine things to work on, so that's more than one a day! i know that God is in control, but i get discouraged, especially with the setbacks i've had this week. i do have a praise, i am recovering well, (i had a cyst removed monday) and we have many friends who have offered to help pack, so maybe we can get it done in one day! thank you for all your prayers as pete and i move into this exciting time of graduation and moving. please pray that we can be strong, that i can stay rested and get all the work done that i need to, and that we can still find time for fun. thanks for your friendship, and let me know how God has blessed your lives!
in Him,
amy-g

i changed my mind

hello again, i am back after a short break from posting yesterday. i had to go to the doctor yesterday, and i ended up staying home after that, so i didn't have access to the internet. i am feeling better today, and ready to tell you what fun i have had already. i was going to post about my school work and moving and all the busy things i have to do. as i sat down to write my post, a huge group of college kids walked through the door of got coffee. i knew they were probably a mission team of some time because whenever mission teams are in ogden they usually stop at a coffee shop. anyway, not five minuites later, a boy named nathan asked if he could sit with me. we started talking and he asked me about homework, and i asked him about his group. he is with a group of fifty students from biola university. they are here on spring break, "bringing love to the mormons." he was really excited, and at the end of our conversation we prayed together which is something christians don't do enough of.

so i posted a prayer request for them if you think about them this week, they are here till sunday. also, i changed the Bible encouragement. this verse has helped me remember that when times are hard, they are not that bad because God's yoke is easy, and His burden is light. may you be encouraged this week by God's love and His word!

He is risen indeed!

on this day that the Lord has made, i pray that you are well. also, i hope that everyone was able to attend an easter church service today. there is just something about easter that is almost like a new years day for christians. now before you laugh too hard, it's true. at new years, you are able to almost look back at the previous year and decide what things you would like to keep, and what things you would like to make better (resolutions). at easter, we look back at the year and remember all that Christ has done for us, and we look forward to what He has in store to make us more like Him. so this easter, don't forget what a gift God has given you, and take time this week to thank Him for it. that is the difference between new years and easter, new years is all about us and how we react to ourselves, and easter is all about God and how we react to His grace.

luke 24:1-12 is my favorite resurrection retelling of all four gospels. verses 5 and 6 say, "why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen." so as you remember God's gift on the cross, also remember that He is no longer dead, but alive preparing a place for us until His return!

He is risen!
amy-g

this one's for the girls!

sorry to all you boys reading this, but maybe it will give you insight into what girls are like. today i went shopping with some of the girls. we went to newgate mall because i have a gift card that is good for every store in the mall! anyway, it was a good time. i purchased a pretzel from the pretzelmaker, three shirts from mervyns (14.50 total), a skirt and shirt from wet seal, and perfume from victoria's secret for 5 bucks! talk about a good time. so i know you girls know what i'm talking about when i say i am so excited to have new clothes. there is just something about having something new every once and a while. so if you have not indulged in a while, there are always sales to be found, and even cheaper clothes from ross bring the same amount of happiness at the end of the day. so get your friends together, and go have fun.

now boys (if you've read this far), you may think girls are strange, and we are. but if you don't know what to get your mom, sister, girlfriend, or wife for mother's day, christmas, birthday, or just because, get them a gift card and tell them to take an afternoon with the friends and spend it! it will be much appreciated. (it's like real money!)

have a great day all you crazy bloggers, and i'll talk with you again soon. hopefully, in person, but for now, goodnight and goodluck!

good friday to you

here we are, two days before easter the day we celebrate Christ's resurrection, but before Christ could rise from the dead, He had to die, which is why we have good friday. it is amazing to think of all the events of that day for Christ. the thing He came to earth to do was about to unfold. He came and died for my sins, and yours, so that we may live for Him now on earth, and someday in heaven. it is good to think about, and we should do it more than once a year.
this weekend more people will go to church than ever, save christmas time. please keep Christ in your mind this weekend, and pray for all the lost people who will have a chance to hear just how good, loving, and just God is.
as pete and i sit at the coffee shop this afternoon, it is hard to do homework instead of reading my Bible. but if you get a break to read today, read over john 19. it goes through the crucifixion from His arrest to burial. think about Christ's sacrifice today, and my you be moved by His redeeming love.

He is risen indeed!
i forgot to say that back to a few people this week, so when somewhen says to you "He is risen!" respond with "He is risen indeed!" it is a good way to keep the resurrection always at the front of your mind.

beautiful

that is what i think of when i think of spring. today the temperature is in the 70s in utah. it is so loverly outside. i want to show you a picture of my favorite tree at my house. the picture is from last spring, but it looks the same every year anyway. the people in the pictures are my sister, dad, mom, and me. i love that tree, the only problem is that it only blossoms like that for maybe two weeks out of the year.
when i think of things that are beautiful, i also think of christians who are helping each other and spuring one another on to love and good deeds. that was the scene last night at youth group. once again we had a mission group come by and run the show. this time they were mostly in high school, so our kids were ministered to by kids their own age! they are a fun group from sacramento. it is good to see that even though our youth group is small, they can still have a great time enjoying God's word with a group twice their size!
so to all of you who were there, thank you for the fun time, i was really encouraged.

do we delight in the works of the Lord?

my question today, do i delight in the works of the Lord? i am reading psalm 111 and it is one of my new favorites! anyway verse 2 says, "Great are the works of the Lord, studied by all who delight in them." now i know that as christians we would say that God's works are great. but do we really believe it? God is sovereign over all things, and His works happen exactly to His plan. so why is it we often question God's work in our life? God is good and all of His works happen for a reason. we should delight in the working of the Lord. so read psalm 111 for yourself, and let me know what you think. our goal should be to notice the works of the Lord, meditate on them, and glorify Him through it by telling others how great His works are.
have a good day and tell someone how great God's works are for you!

good to have friends

may i just say, my site is working! i set it up so that i could receive encouragement from you, and i am. the comments you leave are so good, even if they're short. i like reading your blogs as well, i will try to comment more.
the weather here is nice and cool, but still spring (yeah). on to another subject...
today at work (the high school office of christian heritage school) i did not have much to do so i went to the gym to check out what they were doing. when i arrived i saw the teacher, two students, and mat (yes the english teacher!) jumping all around on those dance dance revolution mats. they were having so much fun. i took my share of turns and i have to say, it was addicting. i wasn't very good, i only made it to light. but that is one step up from beginner! so if you are ever around a dance dance revolution game, try it out. you will feel dumb and awkward, but it is worth the workout for one, and the good times. it would be best if you took a friend!
have a great day, amy-g

new changes to site

hi friends,
i hope that you are having a wonderful april monday. i just want to say that this blog is so fun. i ran into ryan today at the coffee shop (surprise, surprise) and he helped me add some links and things to my blog. i hope you enjoy them, some are more serious, and some are not. there are prayer requests that i will change often, a Bible verse of the week or month depending on how i feel. also there are links to websites like strongbad emails (funny), tetris, john piper's site: desiring God, bebo norman's site, and a color site that tells you the html code for your templates.
also, after that comes "check us out!" my friend's blogs, then a couple things that are "coming up", countdowns to when pete and i move and the day i graduate (or at least walk with my class, i have two more summer classes)!
so look around and enjoy, if you have a prayer request, please leave a comment, because i read them all!
thank you for being encouraging, God bless
amy-g

nothing better than sundays and grandparents!

even though i am sitting at got coffee right now doing homework, (which i always do) , i love how sundays "feel". i know you know what i mean. it's a relaxed time to be around friends and worship together.
my grandparents came to church with us today, which is a big deal because they are lds and it took a long time for them to even step foot in a church on days that aren't sunday. but anyway, i picked them up and brought them through trappers loop to huntsville. they have met some of the people from church because of my wedding, so i know they weren't completely uncomfortable. i think the people at church were very inviting, and pt's (pastor terry) message was very salvation ressurection driven because of easter. i'm not sure how much of the message they understood, but they said it was fun and they enjoyed it. i know i don't do everything i can to share the gospel with my unsaved family, but i am trying.

if you read this, please pray for my grandparents ab and janett. pray that they would pull down their walls that keep them from God and listen to His calling. here's a picture of them from my wedding,



thanks, and God bless you on this palm sunday,
amy-g

working out is hard!

hi friends, i would just like to say that working out is hard. i went to an end of year aerobics "fitastic" at school this morning. it was very hard, but fun. i am not a fan of working out, but i know i need it to be healthy. however, i do love the feeling after working out, it is so refreshing. it makes me feel ready for the day. so hopefully you all are fit or at least trying like me, it does a body good.
later today i am going to play frisbee and slackline in the park. the weather is nice around 65 degrees. God surprises me so often. today it is sunny, yet it snowed 6 inches on thursday. what fun we have had here.
well, that is the update. i enjoy posting more than i thought, so look often, you never know what might be there. i am going to try to put some links and things like that on the site. i'm not sure how, but pete or jesse can help me.
many blessings to you, amy's Bible verse for today (another feature i would like to have someday) is, John 15:22 "So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you." i hope you are encouraged, and remember that Jesus is the only way to the Father and eternal joy!
amy-g

oh the places you'll go

i am currently working on a presentation for my geography of europe class and this is one of the pictures i'm using. i went to italy in 1999 and i would love to go back. this is a picture of the rialto bridge in venice, what a beautiful city. i think italy is one of my favorite places! i love the culture and the history. if you're reading this, give me an update on a few places you would like to see. so farewell for now, may your day be filled with sunshine and good friends.

the way i was made

Hi,
I have been looking at my friend's blogs and it looked really fun. So, I made my own! I won't keep it up every day, but it is a good way for you to know what's going on in my life even when I don't see you. First things first, what does my blog name mean? I wanted this site to be a place where I could leave some encouragement for you, and receive some as well. So, the name "the way i was made" comes from a Chris Tomlin song off the arriving CD. Here is part of the chorus,
I want to live like there's no tomorrow,
I want to dance like no one's around
I want to sing like nobody's listening
Before I lay my body down
I want to give like I have plenty
I want to love like I'm not afraid
I want to be the man I was meant to be
I want to be the way I was made

That is my goal for my life and this year, so help me out as we journey together!