It Always Supports Itself

Isaiah 2:10-22

New International Version 1984 (NIV1984)

¹⁰ Go into the rocks,
    hide in the ground
from dread of the Lord
    and the splendor of his majesty!
¹¹ The eyes of the arrogant man will be humbled
    and the pride of men brought low;
the Lord alone will be exalted in that day.

¹² The Lord Almighty has a day in store
    for all the proud and lofty,
    for all that is exalted
    (and they will be humbled),
¹³ for all the cedars of Lebanon, tall and lofty,
    and all the oaks of Bashan,
¹⁴ for all the towering mountains
    and all the high hills,
¹⁵ for every lofty tower
    and every fortified wall,
¹⁶ for every trading ship^[a]
    and every stately vessel.
¹⁷ The arrogance of man will be brought low
    and the pride of men humbled;
the Lord alone will be exalted in that day,
¹⁸     and the idols will totally disappear.

¹⁹ Men will flee to caves in the rocks
    and to holes in the ground
from dread of the Lord
    and the splendor of his majesty,
    when he rises to shake the earth.
²⁰ In that day men will throw away
    to the rodents and bats
their idols of silver and idols of gold,
    which they made to worship.
²¹ They will flee to caverns in the rocks
    and to the overhanging crags
from dread of the Lord
    and the splendor of his majesty,
    when he rises to shake the earth.

²² Stop trusting in man,
    who has but a breath in his nostrils.
Of what account is he?

Revelation 6:15-17

New International Version 1984 (NIV1984)

¹⁵ Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and every free man hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. ¹⁶ They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! ¹⁷ For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”

Why? by Anonymous - a response to the Sandy Hook shooting

When I look into the eyes of a child,

I see delight,

The joy of living;

But tonight, when I look back, the light is gone -

Some eyes are closed in death,

Others mourn their passing on.

And as the weight of what occurred

Settles on my shoulders,

It makes a place of cold inside my heart.

Innocence was taken at an

Age that's far too young,

And my heart can't take it anymore.

As I sink to my knees and cry,

I feel Your arms surround me and

Your tears fall with mine.

How is it that You are here,

But still their eyes are closed

And innocence was lost in that brief time?

When I think about the life of a child,

I think of hope -

A bright tomorrow.

But tonight, as I look back, the hope has died.

I just cannot make sense

Of this pointless loss of young life.

I cannot see any good

In the dark that settles,

Smothering the light inside my heart.

Beauty, grace, and wonder have been

Shot down in cold blood,

And my heart can't take it any longer.

But as the shudders wrack my frame, 

I look up through my tears and I

Look into Your face.

I know that You are here,

But still their eyes are closed

And innocence was lost in that brief time.

Why is all I'm asking,

And it's all that I can ask.

You know the pain of Your child dying;

Why let others feel it too?

Another question hits my mind

(This one is more for me),

If the shooting didn't happen, how many

Would not be holding on to You?

Well, I never got my answer,

But this one thing I know:

I can't go on without my God,

So I'm not letting go.

I may never know why it happened,

But He's waiting for me to let Him

Pick up the pieces of my heart -

I'm going to let Him.

Why? - Anonymous

Wedding

     The church was beautiful.  The arch at the front was covered in purple crepe paper, white tulle, and synthetic ivy vines.  The lighting was low, accenting the soft green of the stage and minimizing the burgundy chairs in which the guests were seated.  The bridesmaids, the maid of honor, the bouquets - all of them were lovely.
     But loveliest of all was the bride.  In a sleeveless, lace-topped gown with pleated gathers at the waist, her hair done in curls twisted to the side and pinned with rhinestone clips, she was stunning.  Her smile as she joined her groom was brilliant and full of joy.
     And she is my best friend.
     We grew up together.  She is just over a year older than me.  And she is married.
     No matter how happy I am for her, the fact that she's married is surreal, not because I have known her for so long, but because she met her husband when she was a few months older than I am now.
     Now, I know some people would take this opportunity to tease me.  "It's coming soon!"  "So, when are you getting married?"  "You'll be dating in no time."  Guess what, people?  That is the most frustrating thing anyone could say to me.  It almost makes me cry.
     I am definitely not ready to get married.  I am nowhere near mature enough to handle that kind of relationship well.  Also, I have never lived apart from my parents, and while that does not hinder most people, for me it means I have no idea how to take care of a house.  My parents are such a blessing, but there are some things that I can try to do myself that they step in to do instead.  I have never done certain things, even though I have tried, because they have stepped in to finish them for me.  And until I can take care of myself, I am not ready to take care of a husband also.
     God is definitely calling me to stay single for now.  Honestly, I do not believe He will call me into marriage any time soon.  I would love to get married, more than I can say.  Because of that, as long as I am supposed to be single, comments on future marriage are far more frustrating than I can say.
     Several of you reading this have probably seen me laugh off a comment on marriage, or even joke with it.  I have been told that I am very good at pasting a front over my feelings.  So if this surprises you, okay.  Just please, next time you are tempted to make one of those comments...don't.  I will let you know when that changes.

"More Like Falling in Love" by Jason Gray (Lyrics)

"More Like Falling in Love" - Jason Gray

Give me rules

I will break them

Show me lines

I will cross them

I need more than

A truth to believe

I need a truth that lives

Moves and breathes

To sweep me off my feet, it's gotta be

More like falling in love

Than something to believe in

More like losing my heart

Than giving my allegiance

Caught up, called out

Come take a look at me now

It's like I'm falling, oh

It's like I'm falling in love

Give me words

I'll misuse them

Obligations

I'll misplace them

'Cause all religion

Ever made of me

Was just a sinner

With a stone tied to my feet

It never set me free, it's gotta be

More like falling in love

Than something to believe in

More like losing my heart

Than giving my allegiance

Caught up, called out

Come take a look at me now

It's like I'm falling, oh

It's like I'm falling in

Love, love, love

Deeper and deeper, it was

Love that made me a believer

In more than a name

A faith, a creed

Falling in love with Jesus brought

The change in me

More like falling in love

Than something to believe in

More like losing my heart

Than giving my allegiance

Caught up, called out

Come take a look at me now

It's like I'm falling, oh

It's like I'm falling

More like falling in love

Than something to believe in

More like losing my heart

Than giving my allegiance

Caught up, called out

Come take a look at me now

It's like I'm falling, oh

It's like I'm falling in love

It's like I'm falling

(Falling in love)

It's like I'm falling

Anchorage

     So...here I sit in Anchorage...crisscross on the floor...with my left foot falling asleep...
     *gets up and moves to a seat*
     There.  Much better.
     *CLATTER*
     Oops.  Sorry, laptop.
     ANYWAY, the trip here was relatively uneventful.  Eight of our ten bags arrived with us; the two that are missing are my box of things I'll need in KC but will not need here (no problem there, as long as it shows up before January 2) and the duffle bag of bridal shower (tomorrow) and wedding (Wednesday) gifts.  *sigh*  But at least all our clothing made it in.
     A lady saw how many bags and boxes we had and offered us her carts, so Cassie and I did not have to wait with the bags while Mom and Dad went for the car.  Kinda sad, because I was all set to do my Joey Stamper impression - sunglasses and playing guitar - so we would not be bored.  But it was nice to get to the car.  Mom and Dad were a little concerned about how all our bags would fit into the car, but we got a free upgrade in size due to the rental place being out of the car we requested.  Everything fit perfectly. :)
     Dropped some books off at Title Wave, ate dinner, did some shopping, drove to Grandma and Grandpa's.  Hauled luggage inside.  The cap on my hand sanitizer fell off (how does a screw top fall off?!?) and got all over the outside (not the inside - whew!) of my bag, and all over one of my grandparent's chairs.  Nothing got ruined, and they both smell like chocolate and peppermint, so I do not mind one bit.  (Neither did Grandma, fortunately.)
     Finished Julie's bridal shower gift (I had mine in my carry on, not the duffle) and am about to start on Christmas gifts.  So I should go do that.  Even if it is almost eleven.  Bathrooms are all full, so I cannot get ready for for bed yet, anyway.
     Hope you all sleep really well and have a blessed Sunday tomorrow!

Probably the last

     I don't really have anything to blog about, and I'm not doing a stream of consciousness post today.  I just wanted to update, for those of you who read this, and say that I probably won't update until I'm off the island.  I have a ton of stuff to do to get ready, so I probably won't have time.

     Goodbye, Unalaska!

The Next Stream of Consciousness Post

     In an effort to continue my habit of writing semi-regularly, and because I can't think of anything else to blog about, I am going to write another stream-of-consciousness blog post.  My apologies to those who were scared by the last one; this one probably won't be any less frightening.

     

     *YAWN*  Much better.  I'm tired.  Less than two weeks till I leave the island!  I'm kinda ready for it.  Waiting is getting frustrating.  I want to listen to music.  One moment while I go get headphones.

     Mmm, Christmas music by Amanda Noel.  Love it.  My rose is beautiful.  Thank you, Kristen!  I just had chocolate cake.  It was good.  Really good.  But sweet.  I think I've (CALEB!  Sorry, song features Anthem Lights.) maxed out my sugar quota for the day.  It's pretty low.  I can't handle much sugar.  "Mild, He lays His glory by; born that man no more may die.  Born to raise the sons of earth, born to give men second birth.  Hark the herald angels sing, 'Glory to the newborn King'."  I love Christmas music.  Oooh, Ali messaged me.  Hi Ali!  Be right back.

     "A child shivers in the cold; let us bring Him silver and gold."  CALEB!  Anthem Lights' Christmas song.  *serious nod* *giggles*  I'm tired.  I should go to bed.  But it's barely after 8, and my brain won't let me.  Plus I'm sleeping on the couch and everyone's hanging down here.  I might be allergic to my bunnies.  *sadness*  They're in my room, so I"m avoiding my room.  OWL CITY IS SINGING!  For anyone who can't tell, I love music.  Bleh, my back hurts.  And I'm thirsty.  And I'm going to close this post and get ready for bed.  At least I'll be ready when everyone gets out of my "room."  G'night.