One life to live

I know from this blog title you may think I am going to talk about a soap
opera - but I'm not. Sometimes the things that happen in my life would make
an interesting movie... For sure.

I named this blog this because I feel like sometimes it is truly hard to
have any faith at all in people. Not people I know necessarily, but people
I don't know. How can you have faith in people today that are ruthless,
rude, uncaring, unloving, and narcissistic? I could be truly pessimistic
and continue talking about how disappointing people are nowadays but I am
going to try and be positive. I have faith in God, and that is about the
only reason I can get out of bed somedays. I don't claim to be a saint of
any kind, I get impatient and uncaring at times but never to the extreme
that I find in others today. How can I look at life with fresh eyes other
than asking for God to give me His. He somehow finds a way to find some
good in each of us and I find that particularly amazing about Christ and
His grace. We have this 1 life to live, and sometimes God gives us do
over's in our decisions but most times we are subject to dealing with the
consequences of our bad decisions. We have this 1 life to live and only 1
family to live it with, so why is it so hard to get along?? Can't we all
just put these differences aside for just 1 second for the greater good in
the purpose of our Savior?

A lot of the sermons I was listening to was talking about Revelation and
the end times and I disagreed on some of their views. So I am interested in
what all your view is on the rapture of the church? What's your opinion on
how you think it will all go down? No judgements here, I am just interested
:)

Well that's all for now, I am headed off to sleep now!

In loving Memory of Albert Barajas

Albert Barajas
June 25th, 2008

A while back I asked you to pray for my co-workers husband who was
suffering from ALS and he has been in the hospital for the last couple of
months. I received word this morning that Albert passed away early this
morning. Albert was deeply loved by his wife and 4 children and went home
to be with his Savior today. Keep his family in your prayers, that Christ
would wrap his arms around them and just let them know that He loves them
and he had a purpose for Albert's life.

Services have not yet been arranged.

In loving Memory of Albert Barajas

Albert Barajas
June 25th, 2008

A while back I asked you to pray for my co-workers husband who was
suffering ALS and he has been in the hospital for the last couple of
months. I received word this morning that Albert passed away early this
morning. Albert was deeply loved by his wife and 4 children and went home
to be with his Savior today. Keep his family in your prayers, that Christ
would wrap his arms around them and just let them know that He loves them
and he had a purpose for Albert's life.

Services have not yet been arranged.

In loving memory of Christopher Laurie

Statement on the Death of Christopher Laurie, Son of Pastor Greg Laurie
July 24, 2008

Christopher Laurie, son of Pastor Greg Laurie and Cathe Laurie of Harvest
Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California, died this morning in a car
accident in Riverside. A resident of Huntington Beach, Laurie, 33, served
as the art director at Harvest Christian Fellowship for the past three
years.

In addition to his parents, Christopher is survived by his wife, Brittany,
and daughter, Stella, as well as his brother Jonathan. Christopher and his
wife are expecting another daughter in November.

Memorial plans for Christopher are pending. More information will be posted
to the Harvest website as details become available. Please check on the
details at www.Harvest.org .

Friendship Community

Our pastor was in a leadership meeting and Friendship community asked to
have Andrew preach on August 3rd, so we are heading out that way again for
him to preach. I am really looking forward to hearing his upcoming sermon.
It's been a long time since we have visited that church and a lot has
changed with them, so it should be good to go back and see how things are
doing.

My top 2

I am trying to look at life through different eyes. Not ones who are
disgusted with humanity and unsympathetic with the world. I feel sometimes
I don't ever stop and smell the roses and stop to really enjoy the
beautiful things in life. Yes, there is a lot of bad in this world and we
can't pretend it doesn't exist. But what I mean is we cannot be so hard to
the world that we stop being compassionate, even if they never return the
favor, we cannot lose our compassion just as Christ had for us. Give me
your eyes Lord so I can see people how you see them!

These 2 artists have really touched an area of my spiritual life that make
me truly look at life with different eyes. Their full albums are not even
available until August but you can buy the singles on iTunes now, and I
truly think you'd enjoy them- Jimmy Needham's "Hurricane" (Lyrics below)
and Brandon Heath's "Give me your eyes" (Lyrics below).

Hurricane- Jimmy Needham

I have built a city here
Half with pride and half with fear
I just wanted a safer place to hide
I don't want to be safe tonight

I need you like a hurricane
Thunder crashing wind and rain
To tear my walls down
I am only yours and now
I need you like a burning flame
A wildfire untamed
To burn these walls down
I am only yours now
I am only yours now

I am yours and you are mine
You know far better than I
And if destructions what I need
Then I'll receive it Lord from thee
Yes, I'll receive it Lord from thee

I need you like a hurricane
Thunder crashing wind and rain
To tear my walls down
I am only yours and now
I need you like a burning flame
A wildfire untamed
To burn these walls down
I am only yours now
I am only yours now

It's your eye in the storm watching over me
And it's your eye in the storm wanting only good for me
And if you are the war
Let me be your casualty
Til I am yours alone
Til I am only yours O Lord

Give me your eyes - Brandon Heath

Look down from a broken sky
Traced out by the city of lights
My world from a mile high
Best seat in the house tonight
Touch down from the cold black tile
Hold on for the sudden stop
Breath in the familiar shock
Of confusion and chaos
Are those people going somewhere?
Why have I never cared?

Give me your eyes for just one second
Give me your eyes so I can see
Everything that I keep missing
Give me your love for humanity
Give me your arms for the broken hearted
The ones that are far beyond my reach
Give me your heart for the ones forgotten
Give me your eyes so I can see
Yeah
Yeah

Step out on a busy street
See a girl and our eyes meet
Does her best to smile at me
To hide whats underneath
Theres a man just to her right
Black suit and a bright red tie
To ashamed to tell his wife
He's out of work
He's buying time
Are those people going somewhere?
Why have I never cared?

Chorus
I've Been there a million times
A couple of million eyes
Just moving past me by
I swear I never thought that I was wrong
Well I want a second glance
So give me a second chance
To see the way you see the people all alone Chorus (x2)

Ask anything?

It has been really nice listening to Kwave in the morning and listening to sermons while I drop the baby off at daycare and run to work. I was listening to Chuck Smith and he is teaching in 1 Kings 3. So just as Chuck Smith asked the question, so will I ask the question.

What if the Lord came to you and said, Ask me for anything and I will give it to you. What would you ask for?

4 The king went to Gibeon to offer sacrifices, for that was the most important high place, and Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. 5 At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream, and God said, "Ask for whatever you want me to give you."

6 Solomon answered, "You have shown great kindness to your servant, my father David, because he was faithful to you and righteous and upright in heart. You have continued this great kindness to him and have given him a son to sit on his throne this very day.

7 "Now, O LORD my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties. 8 Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number. 9 So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?"

10 The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for this. 11 So God said to him, "Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, 12 I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be. 13 Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for—both riches and honor—so that in your lifetime you will have no equal among kings. 14 And if you walk in my ways and obey my statutes and commands as David your father did, I will give you a long life." 15 Then Solomon awoke—and he realized it had been a dream.

I think if you were truly honest with yourself, this answer could give you a better idea of where you need to be in your walk with the Lord. Your answer to this question can be really revealing, because how you answer this question I think reveals truly where your heart is. Is it of worldly things or of spiritual things? Would you ask for a closer walk with the Lord, a deeper knowledge of His ways, or would you ask for a house or more money?

Baine- Black Wedding July 13th

This last Sunday I photographed yet another wedding, with this new lens I bought and I was extremely excited when I arrived on site at the Groom's house to see such a beautiful Oasis. The wedding was awesome and so was the couple, wanted to share a couple of my most favorite photos just from uploading with no edits yet so far from the wedding! Let me know whatcha think :)

Portrait of Hezekiah

Hezekiah is looking more and more like a little boy and less like my little baby anymore. I recently bought a new lens for my wedding coming up tomorrow (for all those photography geeks, I bought an 18-200mm with vibration reduction). I really needed a better all around lens during the ceremony to catch up close and far away shots and I think this one does the job. I am still using my portrait lens (55mm 1.4) because for only $100 has been my favorite lens for portraits and indoors shots. I believe this wedding with be an outdoors wedding tomorrow, so it should be interesting doing this one all on my own :) Cute couple, so I am really excited to do this wedding.

Anyway back to Hezekiah, here is the most updated portrait of him and I love his face and eyes in this picture. He just has the most beautiful blue eyes I have ever seen :) I love this kid!

Peace

Seems as though I haven't written a blog in a while and I have been listening to some sermons on the radio on 107.9 and the sermon I listened to the last couple of days were in regards to Peace.

So I ask the question, Do you feel at peace? Or are you at peace? Those questions to me seem to be 2 different subjects. Feeling at peace and being at peace, I believe, are 2 very different things. Do you have conflict in your life, whether it be with friends or between God? If you do, then you are not at peace. You have created an illusion that you are at peace, you are merely just feeling at peace. If you don't become at peace with God, then you are in a perpetual conflict with your maker. When will you decide to wave the white flag and surrender? Not under our terms, but under God's terms.

Are you a peacemaker? See, peacemakers build bridges, not walls! Peacemakers drain their motes and allow others to cross the bridge. In this society, don't we all on some level build a mote around our lives? Romans 12:18 "If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone."

If at all possible! There are going to be some people in our lives, no matter how hard we try won't let us live at peace with them. They don't want to be happy, and they want nothing more than to create conflict rather than put it away. There's a problem there, because Christians are all bound together and the one thing that binds us together is the ultimate peacemaker, Jesus Christ. He was THE peace child that came to the earth and gave us the ultimate reconciliation- dying on the cross. 2 Timothy 2:24 "And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful."

Selah.

Thank goodness for apartments!

We were noticing the last couple of days that our A/C unit was making a dripping sound but we thought it was just condensation from using it so much... but it turns out it wasnt! I came home yesterday to the entryway to our bedroom being wet.

Today when I woke up I picked up some clothes off of the floor and noticed they were damp from laying on the floor of our closet. I came home after work and I distinctly remember smelling mold or mildew and when I went to the bedroom and our closet it was so horrible. I walked down with Hezekiah to the manager's office and put in a work order to have both things looked at. He completed the A/C leaking problem and said he would have to come back tomorrow to completely replace the padding and carpet in the areas where water damage had happened.

And I say, thank goodness for apartments because had we owned our own home when this problem happened we would have to fork out the costs to get both problems taken care of. I am totally okay with waiting a little longer until we own a home just for that reason alone!