Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to all my readers! I am glad that there's a time set aside to thank God. It's sad, though, how stores will skip right from halloween to Christmas. Anyway, because it's Thanksgiving, I will post the top three things that I'm thankful for:


1. That God is with me.
2. That my Dad still has a job, and is able to provide for our family.
3. That my church has been able to stay together after losing a pastor.


In Christ Alone!

Courageous

My family and I went to see Courageous last Tuesday. It is an absolutely amazing movie! As soon as it finished, I wanted to go see it again :D. It was super hilarious, sad, and had a very good message. I just finished reading the book on Monday. It was really neat how they weaved a backstory into it... I really enjoyed both. If you haven't seen the movie yet, you should go soon!


In Christ Alone,

Tidbits

Hi everybody! Just wanted to let you know - I started a new blog. I'm going use it for putting up Bible verses, quotes, poems, songs, and things like that. Here's the link: http://www.tidbits96.blogspot.com. Oh, and if anyone has an idea for a better title, let me know!

In Christ Alone,

9/11

I wonder... did America really wake up on 9/11? Did we really turn back to God with a repentent heart? Or did we only turn to God for a little while because of fright and crisis? Is the U.S.A. any better off now then she was then, or has she steadily declined?

If we look at America today, we will see that really, we are no better off then we were 10 years ago. Rather, we have been steadily progressing in a path away from God! America
needs to turn back to Him!

However, God showed His Amazing Grace on that day - many people were saved, both physically and spiritually. I hope that we will remember what happened on 9/11, learn from it, and turn back to God.


In Christ Alone,

Earthquakes and Hurricanes

Everybody on the East Coast made it safely? I didn't even feel the earthquake... which, to me, is a disappointment. Dad thinks I didn't feel it because where I live, it was very slight, so you could pretty much only feel it if you were sitting down. Here are the stories of those in my family who did feel it:

Dad - he was somewhere on his way, or doing, his work. He felt his truck moving, and thought, at first, that the peope helping him were playing a trick. But, no, no one was. Then he thought it was a very strong wind... but when he got out of his truck, he didn't even feel the rocking. It didn't even occur to him that it was an earthquake until my Grandmother texted!

Mom - she had an appointment for her teeth. She was sitting in the chair in a position where she couldn't see anyone. All of a sudden her chair started shaking. What in the world?! Maybe the students (she went to a dentistry school thing) were playing a trick on her? She got up and looked around. No, no tricks. Latter she found out what it really was!

Jess - she was at home sitting at her computer. Then she felt the shaking. She also heard the house creak. Again, she thought it was probably the wind. But that would be one strong wind to shake the house like that! And she was sure it wasn't her imagination, either - she could see things shaking. When it was over, she came and told me about it. The thought occurred to me that it might be an earthquake... but here??? Nah. hahah!

Did any of my readers feel the earthquake? I am really disappointed. I lived through an earthquake and wouldn't have even known it if nobody else told me!

The hurricane hit us Saturday night. I woke up at about 4:00 a.m. - just in time to watch the power go out. It was very interesting. It was pitch black. I could hardly see my hand in front of my face! And that's when all the lights are out... kinda scarry.

All in all, we got about 5 inches of rain, the wind went up to probably somewhere around 40 or 50 mph, and the power went out for 38 hours. We do have a generator, which was definately a blessing... we didn't lose any food. Oh, and there was a lot of debris (not sure of spelling). We had an interesting few weeks. But thank God, we were kept safe!

In Christ Alone,

My Teeth are in Chains!

Yesterday I got braces. They HURT!!! Right now, I can't eat anything but soft things, like yogurt, mashed potatoes, and things like that. There's also this annoying thing on the inside of my back teeth that they put on, and whenever I move my tongue, it hurts. And there doesn't seem to be any reason whatsoever for those things to be there! I have to brush my teeth more often, too. I am soooooo 100% glad that my Mom got a waterpik a few years ago. I would say that that thing is definately a must-have for people with braces! I don't know how they can stand flossing, it must take like 15 minutes to floss! I can't wait till my teeth finish their "sentence" (:D) of two years in chains, or at least till I get used to those chains. Right now the only good thing about braces is that at the end of their "sentence" they'll be straight. Everything else... well... let's just say I could do without!

In Christ Alone,

Library Raffle

Yesterday, the phone rang. We let it ring until the message came, as usually. It began "Hi, this is Dan calling from the library..." I expected that a book that we requested came in, but... "Angela is one of the teen winners for the Barnes & Noble gift certificate..." At that point my mouth dropped open! We had a summer reading program at our library, where for every book (as in one book = 50 pages) that you read, you put a ticket in a container for a raffle. The winner of the raffle wins 100 dollars to spend at Barnes & Noble. And this year, I hadn't read nearly as many books as last year. That was definately a surprise!

In Christ Alone,

Independence Day

Happy Independence Day! I pray that America will continue to enjoy the freedoms that our founding fathers faught for over two hundred years ago, and that we will return to being a Christian nation.

"If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turne from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."

~ 2 Chronicles 7:14

In Christ Alone,

Day 30: A Motto

I have decided to make this my motto for the year:

"For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."

In Christ Alone,

Whew! I finally finished the challenge! Guess I didn't do it on time, though :(

CHAP conference

In the middle of May we went to the CHAP homeschool conference (in case you were wondering, CHAP stands for Christian Homeschool Association of Pennsylvania :D). I was glad we were able to go both days!


The three main speakers we went to were Doug Phillips, Mark Hamby, and Ken Ham. I was sooooo glad that Ken Ham was able to make it... I've never got to see him speak (at least, only in tapes), and he had been kicked out of a couple of homeschool shows for mentioning that somebody else's "Bible" curriculum wasn't all it claimed to be. Unfortunately, we only went to one or two of his talks, because we had to go to the other speakers.

Mark Hamby's sessions were a lot on parenting, but I still enjoyed them. He is an awesome story teller!

Doug Phillips was great as well. And I was sooooo absolutely glad we went on the second day... if we hadn't I still wouldn't have known anything about the Alone Yet Not Alone movie! At one point, Mr. Phillips was talking about media... how it can be bad, but if it's used right, can be used for the glory of God. Well, he mentioned how he was in a movie. This is what I heard... he was in a movie... was a red coat... in the French and Indian war... That must be Alone Yet Not Alone! I whispered it to Jess, and the next thing he said was that this movie was called Alone Yet Not Alone! Later, Mom talked to Joshua Phillips about it, and he said that the website (http://www.aloneyetnotalone.com) will be up and running sometime soon, and that the movie is coming out this fall. I could hardely contain my excitement! Don't worry, I did get something out of his messages other than that :D.

Oh, and we each got to pick out one or two things to buy. I bought the "Letterbook of Eliza Lucas Pinckney" audio CD. I really love to read or hear read letters and things that are really old... and I know it my sound crazy, but artifacts and things don't excite me much, but if I find a book with the date 1904 on it, that gets me all excited. Anyway, after I listened to that CD, I decided to start a letterbook. I hope I get to fill it up soon.



In Christ Alone,

Memorial Day

I would like to give a great big THANK YOU to all those who have served or are serving in the U.S. military. I pray for them every day, that they would trust in the Lord... and I pray that they will never, ever be called upon to fight Israel.

In Christ Alone,

Sight & Sound: Joseph

Wow, have I got a lot to blog about! Since this is still kinda fresh in my mind, I'll start with this. Yesterday, for Mom's and Dad's anniversary, we went to see Joseph at sight and sound theaters. It was really good! At the beginning it was a little bit dry, but after that it was awesome. In the dream about the stars, sun, and moon, Joseph flew up above everybody's heads. That was neat. The jailer when Joseph was in jail was absolutely hilarious! Apparently, as he said, he'd been kicked in the head by a horse and, after that didn't do much thinking. It made us all laugh... I can't wait to go the the Jonah play next year!

In Christ Alone,

29: Hopes, Dreams, and Plans I Have For the Next Year

That's easy! Ultimately, to follow Christ without comprimise. Some more specific things that I want to do are: to improve in my piano playing for His glory, to post more often on my blog, and to expand on my knowledge in good Christian authors and books.

In Christ Alone,

Day 28: A Scar I have and it's Story

Okay, I don't really have any scars... I think the closest thing to a scar I have is right under my right big toe. It's not really a scar; just a greyish dot. I was just walking around the house one day, and somehow there was a pencil on the floor. I have no clue how, but it got stuck in my toe. It came out pretty easy, and we took care of it, but it left a spec of grey color.

Day 26: A Childhood Memory

I know I said I'd put up a pic, but I decided to just get it over with and put the pic up later. =D

Okay, so one day when I was about five, by great-grandparents came for a visit. They brought with them a box of donut holes. This box of donut holes got set on the kitchen table, opened. Whenever I went through the kitchen, I ate a donut hole. The house we were in then was the kind of house where you could go through the kitchen very often, and so, by the time dinner came along, the whole box was empty! I had eaten every single donut hole!!! I guess you could image how I was feeling.... Y-U-C-K! I looked pretty pitiful, too. :D

In Christ Alone,

Mother's Day

Hey everybody! Hope you all had a wonderful Mother's Day!!!

In Christ Alone,

Prayer Request

Hi... a few days ago my mom woke up and her eyes were a little swollen. Just today, her right eye was almost swollen shut, so she went to the emergency center. It looks like she has something called orbital cellulitis (not sure if it's spelled right) and has been admitted to the hospital for two days. My Gramma has been down visiting, and so she decided to extend her visit for a while longer. It sounds pretty bad, please pray! In Christ Alone,

Father/Daughter Retreat

So, you know how I mentioned that we have 'birthday surprises?' Well, about a week ago, Dad said at the dinner table that he would tell Jess and I our birthday surprise this year. I was thinking Huh??? My birthday's not until December! I wonder what it is? and then Dad said that he's taking Jess and I to vision forum's Father/Daughter retreat two weeks from now! Yay!!!




In Christ Alone,








P.S. - I will finish the blogger challenge soon.

Day 27: A Physical Feature I Love

I skipped day 26 right now, but I'll post it later. I have a picture that goes with it, and can't skan it just now. So I'll do the other days :D.



This one's easy... the answer is deffinately the eye! This eye is certainly the "window of the soul." From it you can tell what a person is thinking or feeling better than any other body language. Plus, I think that eyes are very pretty :).


In Christ Alone,

A Song I Want Played (or sung) at my wedding

Here's day 12's song! I asked my friend about it... and this is the song she sang. She did change a couple of things, and I like the way she did it better. Anyways, here's the song. It's "When God Made You" by Newsong.













In Christ Alone,

Day 25: A Recipe

Pork Bake & Yumm Yumms



Before I actually post the recipe, I'm going to post the story... one day, we were watching a cooking show (I can't remember what it was called) and the chef was making a pork dish. After the show, we couldn't find the recipe and had forgoten to write it down, so Mom sort of brainstormed and this is what we came up with. Oh, and Pastor's wife officially named the recipe... we went on vacation with them a few years ago, and this was one of the meals we made, and she called it that :). So, there you have it. Okay, here's the recipe:



5 TBS oil (pretty much any kind will do)
2 TBS coarse salt
1 Pork Loin
1 tsp rosemary
1 tsp poultry seasoning
1 large clove of minced garlic
1 ten ounce bag of shredded carrots
1 bunch of scallions, chopped
1 TBS fine salt


Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Put about 3 TBS of oil (btw, it doesn't have to be exact... you can eyeball it :) and the coarse salt in the bottom of the pan. Next put in the pork and rub with the rosemary, poultry seasoning, and garlic. Dump the carrots, scallions, fine salt, and the rest of the oil on top. Bake for half an hour, then turn the oven temperature down to 350 and bake for an hour to an hour and 20 minutes longer. And there you have it :).

Day 24: A Movie No One Would Expect Me to Love

Star Wars! Actually, I've only seen from the last half of the 4th movie and on through the last one because I didn't think I'd like it. Dad had recorded them all, and he and Jess were watching them (of course, not on the same night. lol!) but they looked kind of scary to me, so I only watched snipets here and there when I had to pass where they were. I don't know what made me start to watch them... but after I did, I thought they were pretty good!


In Christ Alone,

Day 23: A Way in Which I Want to be Remembered

I want to be remembered as caring, gentle, compassionate, godly, virtuous, pure, loving... and so much more.



In Christ Alone,

Day 22: A Website

Hmmm... Maybe Amazon? It's sort of for shopping, but I use it a lot if I need to know about a book or movie, or if I need to know which book comes first in a series. I find it pretty helpful :).

http://www.amazon.com

Day 21: Something I Know I do Differently Than Most People

Well, for one thing... in my family, instead of getting gifts for your birthday, we have Birthday Surprises where Dad and Mom will find something interesting that we could do (generally as a family) that we wouldn't normally do. And also for a birthday, the birthday girl (or Dad :) gets to pick what restuarant they want to eat at.

Day 20: A Hobby of Mine

Reading. Definately reading! And blogging...

Day 19: A Talent of Mine

Cooking, probably. I love to cook! I wish I had more time to experiment with different recipes, and try to make up my own!

Day 18: A Time When I Felt Passionate & Alive

There have been times when I was playing the piano, practicing hymns and things, and I felt like that. One of the songs I've been practicing lately is "How Majestic is Thy Name" by Ron Hamilton. It's really a beautiful song, and it's easy to get overwhelmed thinking about just how majestic God really is! :)



In Christ Alone,

Day 17: An Art Piece

Yeah... I have absolutely NO CLUE!! Here's one I came across, though: Spring Gate by Thomas Kinkade.

In Christ Alone,

Day 16: A Song that Makes Me Cry

Here's one. Its called "Somewhere in the Middle" by Casting Crowns. It makes me cry because, well, I find myself, waaaaay to many times, 'somewhere in the middle'. I long to be 100% on fire for Christ!









In Christ Alone,

Day 15: A Person I Admire

There are many people I admire... my parents, pastor, and other people I know as well.

Day 14: A Vacation I Would Like to Take

There are a few places I would want to go, but I would say that the Middle East, Israel, is where I would most enjoy to go. It would be really neat to see where my Savior lived, preformed miracles, died, and rose again.

In Christ Alone,

Day 13: A Guilty Pleasure

Hmm... I'm not really sure! Maybe eating... yeah. A buffet is not really the best place for me to eat out, as I always seem to end up with waaaayyy to much food!

Day 12: A Song I Want Played (or sung) at my Wedding

Sorry I didn't get to post yesterday... we went skiing after church again :).

So, the only song I could think of that I know for sure I want played at my wedding is... well... I can't remember the title! My friend sang it for her cousin's wedding, so I'll have to ask her. When I do, I'll let you know! :D

In Christ Alone,

Day 11: A Picture of Me Recently

This was taken on Christmas day. Grandma's friend, Harold, hooked up his tractor and pulled my sisters and I around in the sleigh. It was fun... but I kinda wished it could go faster :).






In Christ Alone,

Day 10: A picture of me 10 years ago

So, there you have it :). I think I was doing school here....

Day 9: A Picture You Took

I couldn't seem to find a picture that I took... so I went outside to see if there was anything picture-worthy. That ^ is what I came up with.




In Christ Alone,

Day 8: A Thank-You Letter to Someone Who Has Changed Your Life

Dear Lord,

Thank for sending your Son to die for me! He payed the ultimate price so that I, a sinner, could go to heaven rather than hell. Help me to be willing to do whatever you ask of me. Thank you, also, for my family and all the other people you have brought into my life. Thank you for putting me in a country where I am still free to speak Your name. Thank you for everything, Lord!


Your humble daughter,

Angela

Day 7: Five Things I Couldn't Live Without

Other than necessities, including my Savior:

Books

Jean Skirts

Music

History

Family & Friends

In Christ Alone,

Day 6: A Moment You Wish You Could Relive

There have been many moments where I knew I should have done something and haven't, or should not have done something and did. There have been so many moments...



In Christ Alone,

Day 5: A favorite quote

I'm a fan of quotes... but at the same time, there's one quote that I've always liked the best:

"My memory is nearly gone; but I remember two things; that I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Savior."

~ John Newton

In Christ Alone,

Day 4: A favorite TV show

I'd have to say that the Andy Griffith show is my favorite. :)

Day 3: Favorite Books :)

Of course, the Bible is my favorite book of all! But other than that...

Alone Yet Not Alone

Through Gates of Splendor

The Chronicles of Narnia

Anne of Green Gables

In Christ Alone,