good things.

me and Jacob got engaged on august 13, 2011. praising His Holy Name! He is the Giver of all good things. i just wanted to take some time to reflect on the whole situation. it was so much better than i ever could've imagined or planned out.
it all started as a simple trip for the end of the summer for me and jacob to go and have a break before school started, without work and without jacob having to deal with summer school. as we started to plan the trip, jacob brought up the idea of having his family and my family come up with us as well. at first i wasn't too happy about this, but like everything else...i got over it. as we started the eight hour drive to beech mountain, north carolina it ended up just being me, jacob, my sister morgan, and my dad. my mom and other sister erin wanted to come, but they made me believe they weren't going to be able to make it.

we spent the first 2 days outside enjoying God's creation, the beautiful mountains, and the wonderful weather.

the second night me and jacob went and watched the sunset. afterwards, we went to the house that my dad and sister were staying at because i had to wash my face (me and morgan were sharing face wash). while i was washing my face jacob got the ring out of my dad's suitcase - i didn't know this at the time. dad had hid it very well (in case i went lookin in his suitcase for any reason). jacob said he was hitting my dad's bag trying to find it. i would've loved to see this! later that night, my momma and erin came - i had no idea.

the next morning me and jacob planned to wake up and go watch the sunrise. so we wake up that morning around 5:40 and we pack a backpack with jacob's camera and a blanket (it was cold). as we started driving up the mountain it keeps getting cloudier and cloudier. we start to wonder if we are going to be able to see the sun at all that morning. sure enough when we get to the top, its completely cloudy.

we go to this gazebo at the top - which is a good lookout spot. where there is usually a view at this spot, this morning there was a white blanket in its place. we sit on the floor of the gazebo and just talked for about an hour, waiting for the clouds to part so we can see the sun. we walk over to the ski lifts on top of the mountain and sit up against the ski lift house to help block the wind. while sitting here jacob tells me the sweet story of a time he remembers when he was riding up that very ski lift by himself and looking out over the valley and praying for his future wife. little did he know then what would be happening on that same mountain years later...
while we were on top of the mountain jacob prayed and asked the Lord to show him a glimpse of the sun and this would be the sign that he is to ask me. after waiting for about two hours the clouds part for just a moment and the sun shines through. i notice it and point it out to jake - jacob! look! the sun!!

after i saw the sun i was ready to go. i was hungry and cold so i got up and started walking back to the car. i notice jacob messing with something in his backpack, but i still didn't think anything of it. then jacob says, "jordan, hang on a second" so i turn around and he catches up to me and says, "i gotta ask you one more question." i said, okay what? and he gets down on one knee and says, "jordan, will you marry me?" all these thoughts start going through my mind and i thought he was kidding! i pointed at him and said, "jacob, you're kidding!" [the picture was taken later that afternoon, this was the same spot though and i really did point my finger at him!]

once i took a second and looked into his face i knew he was serious. he had this look on his face like he was about to be sick or about to cry. and i knew he wasn't kidding because i have never seen him this nervous before. when i realized this, i said yes! yes jacob! i will marry you! i was in shock - i couldn't believe this had happened! we both are overwhelmed with thankfulness to the Father. we both cried our eyes out.

then we drive back to his grandparent's house and my family was there (including my mom and erin).

we were so happy and rejoiced in the Father's love, grace, and mercy He has shown us. so excited about my life together with jacob harrison, so thrilled to see what the Lord has in store for us.

crayon canvas.

recently, me and my friend Augusta decided to be really creative and did some really fun things. here is one of them...

first, you get a canvas (whatever size you want) and hot glue crayons (without paper around them) to the top of it. let it dry.

you could also spread them across the top, they don't all have to be glued in the center of the canvas.
you can really play up the colors as well, but be careful with darker crayons because they tend to mix with all the other colors and turn them all dark.

then you take a hairdryer, yes a hairdryer and melt away!! i would suggest putting something at the bottom of the canvas to catch any that drips off. also put your canvas at a slant. you can blow the air directly on them or from the top going down, just experiment with it!

and there you have it! a wonderful crayon canvas!

time flies.

just yesterday my baby sister, Erin was blessed with a car. this photo just happened to be one the Lord allowed me to capture in the midst of the moment! it was a precious and memorable time to be able to rejoice with her in the gift. i was once again reminded of how this life we have been given to live goes by so fast. it seems like just yesterday that Erin was having her 5 year old birthday party, and now she is about to turn 16! crazy! lately i've been constantly reminded of how precious and short life is, it is truly a gift from the Father!

i just had to share this delightful photo with all of you...

life like grass.

my nana celebrated her 66th birthday this past june. let me just say she is such a delight. this picture pretty much does a great job describing her...

every birthday should remind us of how short life is. it just seems to go by so fast. psalm 103:14-16 "a person's life is like grass. like a flower in the field it flourishes, but when the hot wind blows by, it disappears, and one can no longer even spot the place where it once grew." every birthday should leave us thankful for the grace He has shown on us thus far. james 4:14 "you do not know about tomorrow. what is your life like? for you are mist that appears for a short time and then vanishes." these verses are such a reality check for me. wow how blessed are we to have life. Father, let our lives count for Your glory and let us not take for granted the short time we have.  

His worth.

a lot of times we are more convinced of our unworthiness than we are His worth. our inability has a tendency to take on a greater focus than His ability.

we have fallen into a dangerous trench of unbelief that takes away from the Father's ability and worth. this is something the Lord has convicted me of recently-if anything doesn't makes sense in my rational mind, i automatically dismiss it as something that is in conflict with the Scripture. what a shame! i am missing out on so much truth that the Spirit has to teach me! this is why God often looks so much like us. we are afraid to accept any part of Him that is different from us or that doesn't make sense to us, therefore making Him to be someone that looks just like you and me. now how is it that we overcome this? the answer is actually very simple...faith. it is the listening heart that is ready for Heaven's deposit of faith. it is faith that overcomes the doubts that our rational minds might have. faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. the Father is ready to reveal Himself to us. He wants to overwhelm our little minds with His ability, we just have to let Him. i get chill bumps thinking of all the amazing things He wants to do in and through us if we would just take the focus off of what we can't do and start focusing on what He can do.

let the simple delight of knowing that His ability completely overpowers our inability refresh your mind, and your spirit.

be a refresher.

in proverbs 11 it says, whoever refreshes others will be refreshed. i have been meeting once a week with a sister in Christ who loves the Father. through our time, we have been able to pour into each other and learn new things about the Lord. she brought this verse to my attention. its so easy for me to get self-centered and forget my purpose, this verse was a sweet reminder from the Father of what my purpose is. we are supposed to be living for others, not ourselves. this verse has challenged me to be a refresher. to be a breath of fresh air to everyone i come around. when i am a peacemaker, an encourager, a refresher, and filled with love, i find that in return i am filled with unexplainable peace and incredible love. i feel refreshed!

signature of Divine.

we are, by His design, signature of Divine. His ways are so lovely and so high above ours. i think there is so much we can learn from the baby in the manger, but i know that i miss out on so much of what the Lord wants me to see in this beautiful picture! there are so many simple and yet so profound truths that can't be overlooked during this season; one being His incredible sovereignty in our design. the fact that Jesus Christ was fully God and came to this imperfect world as a human, just shows His overwhelming love for us. we can't forget the ultimate reason for His birth and that was His death. a death so incredible that it would save all of us from what we deserved. we must not forget our wretchedness. when we diminish our wretchedness, we diminish the divinity of a holy God. be so encouraged of the true meaning of this Christmas season. a season that brings joy and peace to me and you as followers of a sovereign God. He loved you and i so immensely that He came to die. He has had you and i in mind since the beginning, since that night in the manger. what a divine love.