ark date

This post in no way is meant to brag on what we did, but to simply encourage you to do little acts of random kindness for others.

It was a normal Saturday. We had a list of errands to run and stores to visit – only none of these were for us.

We began by taping these to a few car windows. (Honestly, I felt kinda creepy doing this one, but hopefully it brightened someone’s day!)

Our next stop was at Books-a-million (one of my favorite places). We picked out a book and placed in it enough money for someone to buy it without paying a penny of their own.

We then went to the Target dollar bins where we placed a few dollar bills for a lucky kid to find and be able to buy what they had their eye on.

To the surprise of the cashier at Marble Slab Creamery, we gave a few dollars for her to pay for the next customer’s delectable dessert.

My personal favorite stop was next: leaving bags of movie snacks and a dollar bill at different Redbox locations. We got to see a family pick up one after we taped it up, so that was pretty neat. The smiles on the little girls’ faces were priceless.

We then traveled to a local laundromat and put quarters in the change machine so the next customer could wash a few loads of clothes for free.

It took us a while to find gumball and candy machines next, but when we did, we put quarters in all of the slots. Hopefully some precious child would notice these and not have to find the money to pay for some yummy candy. (Of course, we first got a couple gumballs for ourselves, though, because let’s face it. I’m a sucker for those sugary balls of quickly flavor-less gum)

The last (and most scariest) a.r.k. was to place a “thank you for keeping our city extra safe” note and gum on a neighbor’s police car.

It was a memorable date. Cheaper than going to dinner and a movie, and much more rewarding. <3 o:p="">

(I pretty much stole this idea exactly from this blog. Hey, it was a really good idea. Now go borrow the idea and do it yourself!)

Guatemala sb14

I wasn't changed because I went to Guatemala; I was changed because of God. 

For eight days, we traversed around the state of San Marcos in Guatemala and ministered to and prayed over children in 9 different schools and churches. And my life was changed. 

I'm in school to be a pre-k through 3rd grade teacher, but lately I have been lacking in any sort of motivation. I've been struggling with my emotions and not enjoying anything. But on this trip, something clicked. I fell in love with teaching and children and God all again. 

It was only the second time we had ever done our program in front of kids, so I was still shy about it all - especially just going and praying over someone. But I looked around and saw a teacher motioning me over. My Spanish sucks, so it took me a while to understand that the young child she was asking me to pray over had a heart defect. I sat him in my lap and poured out in prayer over him. I will never know what happened after that day. I don't even know if he survived the night or if he'll outlive me. But I do know that God's got him... And I find peace in that. 

We were on the top of a mountain, actually in among the clouds. The children were shy and the moms were unfriendly. As we loved on them anyways, something in the atmosphere changed. When it came time for the children to be prayed over, the mothers started weeping. I've never felt so connected with the woman that I prayed over. It was almost like the Spirit in both of us connected and words can't really describe the empathy I felt in that moment. 

No matter where we went, I met a child who touched my heart. It never failed that I met a kindred spirit within moments of walking in the door. Her name was Selah and Alexandra. Selena and Kimberly. Maria and so many others. They stole my heart.

At every location, we sang some fun and sometimes silly songs, performed a skit that touched all listeners (I cried every time they did it), and then went and prayed over individuals in the crowd. The number of people who raised their hands for prayer didn’t make the whole trip worth it (although there were hundreds and hundreds, which is fantastic). The amazing food we ate didn’t make the trip worth it (and that stuff was freaking delicious). The work God did in me wasn’t even the sole reason this trip was worth it (and that’s saying a lot because a lot changed)...

Instead, it was each individual person I got to love on. The smiling faces, the tear-stained cheeks, the dirt caked foreheads… the little bit of God’s love I could share with them? To know that every tear I shed over one of these precious children and every word I prayed for the beautiful people of Guatemala made a difference? That made every penny of this trip worth it. Every sweat drop, every pain, every loss… it doesn’t even matter to me. I would do it again in a heartbeat. I mean, I still have a lot of heart left to give. And God's got a whole lot of love that needs spreading. Cause God doesn't call the qualified, He calls the available.

(all photos with me in them were by Adela, one of our translators. The first one is by me, though, before my camera died. haha)

Twenty-one days

The past three weeks were very hard, I'm not going to lie. Spiritually, emotionally, and physically. 

I don't say that to be all high-and-mighty and brag about what I did. I mean, staying off social media for 21 days isn't really that impressive at all. However, what God did during these past few weeks was incredible.

The whole not being on social media thing in and of itself was not as hard as I thought it would be. The free time that I had and all the books that I read definitely outweighed any sorrow I felt for not being online. Through it, though, I realized that I was relying way too much on the people in my life and not enough on the only One who really mattered. And that needed to change.

As tomorrow marks the beginning of a new year for me, I am motivated to continue to pursue God with all I've got. Adopting a posture of victory and trusting that "we may not know the outcome, but we know that God has already won."

I pray that God motivates you through this next year to grow closer to Him and realize the passionate love He has for you. Much love to you all,
Jenna




"I have a great predisposition to see only my own suffering, but in order to see grace, I need a reality check. I have to see that sin is truly sin - and then I can see that grace is truly grace... When I see that my sin is appalling, only then I can see that His grace is amazing." 
(Saving a Life, Charles and Janet Morris)

Farewell to social media and all the other internet adventures

(I know it's been ages and an eternity since I've written on this terrifyingly old blog, but I figured this was the best place to put this... so please don't go reading all my old posts, they're irrelevant, and frankly, embarrassing.;) haha anywaysssss.)

"21 days of Prayer" is a thing my church does twice a year to get out of the holiday slump and help refocus your life completely on God. You don't necessarily have to fast from anything in this time of total worship, but I am choosing to.

Over the past few weeks, I've become aware of the dependence I have on the internet and social media. This addiction has stolen time, focus, and instilled a self-centered spirit in me. So for the next twenty-one days I'm going to be fasting from all social media and other time-consuming internet activities (i.e., Netflix, Pinterest, and all the other fun, but addicting, things as such).

No, I'm not getting rid of my phone or my emails, so you will still be able to contact me. Don't worry. I just need to start this semester and 2014 off with my life correctly aligned and not focused on the latest trend on campus or most recent Netflix episode.

I'm not doing this to simply give up this stuff, but to gain a Godly perspective. I've prayed hard, thought long, and sought much Godly advice on this. I know it's going to be difficult at times, but the reward will be worth any selfish desire of my own.

I would be honored if you would join with me in prayer for myself and everyone else who is using this time to grow closer to the only one who can heal them.

Much love to you all. :)

random blogs

I don’t do this very often (aka, EVER), but I have come across so many awesome blog posts lately, I just had to share.. So you should check them out. because they’re awesome.
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*Summer Manifesto… makes me wish that my summer was as simple and amazing as Libby’s.
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Photography is a feeling… amen.
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This post makes me want to go to the beach. NOW.
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*More of what we love… GAH.
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Reality and Beauty… LOVE LOVE LOVE.
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Yo-Yo heart… just what I was thinking about the other day… crazy. (if you follow me on twitter, you would have probably noticed that.)

Oh, Susannah!

I want to wish you the happiest of birthdays. You have been SUCH a blessing to me all of these years. From that first dance class together, it was fate that we were kindred spirits.

(lol, we were so little… and so strange looking. hahahaha. i have forever hated how my hand looks in this photo, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world. ;))

Every one of the dozens of letters you have written me mean SO much. I run to my mailbox every day to look for your letters (even if I still haven’t responded to your latest one…) and now I get to read your blog, tumblr, emails, and texts… MAKES my day.

That first time I got to see you again after so many years of just letters and photos sent in the mail was so beautiful. And each year I’ve got to chill with you since then has been just as awesome. :)

You are such a gorgeous dancer and I am WAY excited to see you again soon!

 

Love you, dear!!

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for more dance pictures from her most recent recital, go here. :)

pulling the cat out the bag…

I saw this idea on someone’s blog , and was dying to do it… people say I have too much in my purse, but you have NO idea how much it all comes in handy!! :)
SO NO MAKING FUN OF ME.
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On any given day I have the following junk items in my purse:
wallet with cards, money, etc…glasses & case…keys attached to another wallet…deck of playing cards…box of tictacs…mini tool kit…2 things of lotion…2 things of hand sanitizer…3 things of chapstick…1 bag of kleenex…1 thing of superglue…2 things of duct tape…1 bottle of pain meds…phone…at least one camera and a lens or two…hair brush…wisp teeth cleaner thingies…bag of bandaids…2 pairs of scissors…fingernail clippers… floss…1 pen, 1 highlighter, & 2 pencils…a flashlight…hand washing towelettes…germx wipes…assortment of first-aid creams and swabs…latex gloves…a notepad…a seam ripper… fifty million safety pins…girly items…(i USUALLY have a pack of gum but i’m out at the moment), and a big bag of napkins (its hiding somewhere in my room at the moment…), and some sort of food. ;))…
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SO THERE. that’s my craziness.
and all the random containers are the things that everything else goes in. it’s much easier to keep up with everything that way… ;)
and I made the purse that is in the picture (hence why it looks awful), but I usually carry my kavu purse if I don’t have my camera with me.
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YOUR TURN. I wanna see what all you manage to cram into one bag! ;)

brought to you by the letter I…

I: 
ice cream…inchworms…internet…iTouches…(the)Inkwell…imagination…ice…inside jokes…instant messaging…iTunes…igloos…ice sickle Christmas lights…insect repellant…instant replays…indigo (the color and/or the baby)…inspiration…images…iwastesomuchtime.com…instagram…icing… <3

gifts #1201-20

 

(ohmygosh, this is like the hardest letter ever to think of words for… feel free to add your own. ;))

random fantastical SYTYCD peeps

This weekend I went to a dance convention and took several classes from some pretty fantastical teachers… :D

Allison Holker, the girl on the right (I’m the nasty, sweaty one on the left), is a PHENOMINAL dancer… She taught us jazz and contemporary this past weekend…

Here’s a piece she did on SYTYCD last season. :)

And then we had a hiphop class with Lil’ C on Sunday… AH. he’s phenomenal too. And an amazing teacher.

(Lil’ C is the one in red. :))

And in other random excitement, here’s a picture with me and Twitch. ;)

 

There are many different perks to being a dancer sometimes… :))

brought to you by the letter “H”

H: hotdogs…ham…hamburgers…heros…hampers…hands…help…hellos…health…homework…house…hugs…history(yes, Little Fairy, I am grateful for history…haha)…hope…hot chocolate…holidays…hula-hoops…hip-hop…healing brush tool (on PSE)…Hillsong United…hard-cover books…hiccups(they make me laugh!!)…hips…helmets…hersheys…hulu.com…hubba bubba bubble gum(thanks, Ashley!:))…hyperlinks…hot glue…happiness…handy dandy notebook!(oh dear, i so loved Blue’s Clues)…home…HEAVEN.

gifts #1167-1200

2012 books to read

I kinda feel like my mom while making this list, but oh well. I’m a list person, and a book person, so a books-to-read list is needed. ;)
(in no particular order)

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

 

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Forgotten God by Francis Chan

Finally Alive by John Piper

The Cross and Christian Ministry by D. A. Carson

Tortured for Christ by Richard Wurmbrand

Kabul24 by Ben Pearson and Henry O. Arnold

 Sketchy Behavior by Erynn Mangum

Fish and Chips by Erynn Mangum

I’m pretty sure that I’m skipping over about 15 other books, but here’s an overall view… can you guess which ones I have to read for school and what is for fun?? ;)
On a side note,
MERRY CHRISTMAS!! :D