Wow. Two posts in one day.

While making my way out of town from Fort Collins to Colorado Springs on Sunday, I got my first speeding ticket. 36 miles in a 30. Seriously? Yep. $85 of my Christmas money is now being exchanged for a point on my licence. Merry Christmas to me.

"It's a funny thing about coming home. Looks the same, smells the same, feels the same. You realize what's changed is you."

It's Christmas day. I am home for break and I've been able to spend time with my brother and family. The last time I saw Brad was almost two years ago because he's been deployed twice with the Navy. It's crazy to think how much has happened in those two years, but as I get older I have really begun to realize how special this time is. I don't think I've grasped the importance of living in the now and holding onto the opportunities that I am given, but I am getting there. Brad brought me a gold necklace and a papyrus painting from Egypt. They are both beautiful. Although he still seems a bit discouraged by the situation he is in in life, I am proud of him.

Things I've Learned Recently

Turns out the words "beautiful" and "steadfast" came about in the first translations of the bible. They didn't exist prior to that.

⁹ What does the worker gain from his toil? ¹⁰ I have seen the burden God has laid on men. ¹¹ He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. Ecclesiastes 3

⁷ My heart is steadfast, O God,
my heart is steadfast;
I will sing and make music.

⁸ Awake, my soul!
Awake, harp and lyre!
I will awaken the dawn.

⁹ I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations;
I will sing of you among the peoples.

¹⁰ For great is your love, reaching to the heavens;
your faithfulness reaches to the skies.

¹¹ Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
let your glory be over all the earth.

Tonight I became overwhelmed by love.

I'm really thankful for:

A God of transformation. (I am constantly made aware of this)
Open hearts.
Tears.
Raspberry white chocolate scones.
The 6 girls I got to spend this evening with.

I Don't Want to Talk About You Like You're Not in the Room

This is my attempt to keep up better with writing down what I've learned (or failed to learn) at this point in my life. I figured that blogspot is an easier way to connect, and rather than transfer everything from my other blog, I'll just link it here.

I've been thinking a lot lately about faith. It helped that it was the topic of bible study this week, but I've found myself wondering about my own faith in the recent past and how the way that I conduct my life does or does not exemplify it. Faith, in my possibly shallow understanding of it, is not only manifested by the actions and conduct that we show in our own lives (ie. James 2) but also in the action that our faith spurs others toward. I get this understand from the story of the blind man receiving his sight in Luke 18.

When he came near, Jesus asked him, "What do you want me to do for you?"
"Lord, I want to see," he replied.
Jesus said to him, "Receive your sight; your faith has healed you."

...When all the people saw it, they also praised God.

So the substance of our faith has the ability to draw us closer to God as we trust in his sovereignty and goodness and also has the possibility to prompt others to do the same. But it leads me to wonder, what, if anything, God gains from our faith. Hebrews 11:6 states that it's impossible to please God without faith, but what exactly pleases him about our growth? His end of the deal is constant regardless of our trust or distrust because He is unchanging. We, on the other hand, do change, so it makes me wonder if our fluctuations in the depth of our faith solely involve us.