Saturday, February 27, 2010

Fancy That.

This summer at Kamp, the Lord introduced me to one of my favorite verses of all time. This Fall, Shane & Shane (Contemporary Christian group) wrote a song titled "My Portion," clearly singing the words to my favorite verse. This Spring, I burned a CD for one of my sweet ladies at Hosanna Home. She put the CD in the player and said, "This one is my favorite song of all on here." She flipped through until she got to this very song, "My Portion." I told her it was my favorite as well and explained to her that I had fallen in love with a verse over the summer. I read her the verse which is exactly the words to this song. Later that night, she was rushed to the hospital for a possible heart attack. She is doing fine now but the Lord reminded me how he used this coincidence to encourage her on the very night her heart would weaken her. The verse is found in Psalm 73:26:

"My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever."

Fancy that.

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Distracting the Real Goodness?

Ever tried to eat your favorite dessert right after you put a strong mint flavored piece of gum in your mouth? You love that dessert so much but it doesn't taste quite as good because that mint flavor still roams in your mouth, distracting the real goodness.

The Lord wants us to grow in our spiritual lives, our new lives in Christ. We have tasted and know the Lord is good. Continue to crave that goodness. Desire Him. Desire being holy, being pure. You can't grow in purity and in your walk with Him if you are harvesting any bitter or hard feelings toward others. Lay it at His feet, get that taste out of your mouth.

1 Peter 2:1-3
" Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good."

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

my ultimate role model...

Growing up, I was quite obsessed with this individual. And, still today I have to say she is so legit! I love Jennie Finch!! She's an Olympic Gold Medalist, an amazing mother to a beautiful little boy, a wife to the Arizona Diamondbacks's Casey Daigle, and a shinning light for the Kingdom. Here's her most recent blog that I wanted to share...

Victory & Heartache! Super Bowl Recap

Watching the Superbowl my heart was elated for the Saints and Drew Brees but on the other hand I was aching for the Colts and Peyton Manning. I know the feeling before that Gold Medal game, or the Nat'l Championship game. You know there is going to be a winner and a loser in just a few hours. You know you will either walk back into your hotel room as a Champion or not. Its the feeling you train for, the place you want to be, you dream about being there your entire life!

It brought me back to my last 2 years of being a Wildcat. In 2001 (my junior year) we did it, finally! We sent 8 seniors out with a Championship, a ring, we achieved it! We were finally the ones jumping up and down on the field lifting the trophy high! This was a magical year, we were on a mission, we had an AMAZING team! I was undefeated this year on the mound... I can remember fighting the devil telling me in my ear, don't let this final game be your only & first loss of the year/season. I fought that the entire time trying to ignore those negative thoughts! I tried focusing on each pitch, each task, and most importantly battling for my team! We did it! We finally won! It was awesome we were playing UCLA, our biggest rival, our biggest competition back then. And we pulled it off 1-0! Finally the Champions!



Then came the next year 2002 (my senior year), we lost 8 seniors from 2001, I knew it was going to be a challenge getting back there let alone winning again! But we did it, we made it back, we were in the Championship game the following year. Just getting to that final game wasn't enough, we wanted to finish it, win it! Coach Candrea always says, "its tough to win a National Championship and even tougher to repeat!" But We were going to do it, we could it, I wanted nothing more than to prove that statement wrong! This time it ended the complete opposite way, we fell short, way short. Ouch, it hurt, hurt really bad. This isn't the way I wanted to end my career as a Wildcat. The score was brutal, my last game as a Wildcat was ugly. I was devastated and heartbroken. I can remember fighting the tears and losing the battle of holding them in.


After sitting in the dug out for what seemed like 2 hours, I finally gathered my stuff and made my way off the field. I was walking off of the Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City as a Wildcat for the last time and we/I fell short. The Lord used this time to speak to me and speak to me clearly. I didn't make it too far, I was immediately stopped at the gate. I couldn't even get out. All I wanted was my hotel room and bed so badly, to sit and sulk by myself. I then looked up and there was this enormous line wrapped around the stadium, no end in sight. The security guards asked me if I wanted to sign autographs. I replied, "Not really, but how can I say no to this line?" He said, "It's up to you?" I knew in my heart I had to sign, it was the right thing to do.

I dropped my bag and stayed there til the last girl received a signature. Through tears, I signed, I was there for hours... I was floored. I kept thinking we lost, I was the loser. Why are these people wanting my autograph? Through so many hugs and generous people encouraging me that day. It was such a gift! A gift from the Lord. He reminded me its not about winning or losing, its about touching lives, touching others! I received more mail from that day than our perfect season,Nat'l Champs, going 32-0, the previous year. So many sweet thoughtful letters about the way I handled the loss, thanking me for staying and signing. I was in awe and still am thinking about it today.

The Lord taught me a big lesson that day! It doesn't make the pain of a loss go away but He reminded me of my purpose. Its not about the trophies or medals, its about touching others, living out God's will! Trying to be a Champion even when we are not the Champ. Through Christ we are all Champions, Jesus died for our sins & our losses, we are able to gain the gift of eternity through His grace! We are fighting for the true prize, the nonperishable prize, the prize of eternity! As my Gold medal tarnishes and gets scratched, I cringe. I cringe and then chuckle... its the Lord reminding me yet again, there is more to it! The trophies & medals will one day fade away.

When I go back to Oklahoma City, it never fails, that line is brought up by someone. The longest line they had ever seen for "the loser!" Thank you Lord for using the losses & heartaches to help mold me and shape me. And Lord, just FYI I prefer winning! ;)

Dreaming & Believing,
#27

MAZEL TOV!!

Congratulations to Jamie and Ben David!!
My first cousin on the Sharker side was married this weekend in Atlanta, Georgia. I am so proud of her and had a blast celebrating this wonderful day with her!~ Here's some pictures of my wonderful family!! I am so blessed.

Jamie and Ben

Mom, me, Blakely, Blair and Dad

My Nana and Pop- love love love them!!!

The beautiful, did I say, beautiful bride and her sister, Stacey who flew in from Israel for the wedding!!~ So excited to spend some time with both of these two!

Jamie had everyone wear converses to the wedding... :)

Me and Blakely

Me and Blair

The sisters and Aunt Debra

We love our Nana and Pop!

The 3 Brendles

The weekend was one of the best times I've had with my family. I enjoyed getting to just rest, catch up and snuggle with my sisters in our hotel room. I love every opportunity I get to spend time with my grandparents who I truly believe are God's gift to the world. I love getting to learn and see my Jewish side of the family and the culture that they are apart of. Even in the midst of confusion, it's a blessing to see their hearts for God and the way they worship Him. I am so thankful to the Lord for such a wonderful family.