[1] My new roommate Morgan Hale. She just moved in with Haley & me. She is such a blessing.

[2] When Winston, our cat, sleeps against my side while I’m editing.

[3] His plans. Not mine.

[4] My new Midtown family. Words can’t express. I’ve never been apart of a family that has such real urgency to carry out the gospel.

[5] $8 t-shirts at Charlotte Russe.

[6] Bold, blunt, and loving presentation of Scripture. Thank you Dustin Willis.

[7] The smiles that my freshman small group girls bring to my heart. Spending time with them and talking to them is one of the coolest things in the world.

[8] Katie Brewer.

[9] Uncontrollable excessive laughter.

[10] The many amazing, God fearing women that Jesus has placed in my life. 

…Something else that has been rocking my world:

“But what happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely.” 

Galations 5:22-23

The transformation, change, and transition that I’ve experienced the past several months have greatly defined the joy that Christ has planted in me through much perseverance and pain the past few years. Yes, at times it has been hard as crap. Yes, the process is still taking place. But believe me, my life has been surrounded by so many BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE who daily surrender their hearts to His, who love me and push me, and wow- I definitely don’t deserve a single one of them. Words can’t do HIS WORK justice. And how much He loves me… Something beyond what I’ll ever to be able to fathom. It sends chills up my spine when I think about how great God is and how microscopic I am. I’m so done with strategically planning out and abiding by what looks good on paper. My life is His. I desire nothing more than for Him to take in one hand the things that consume my heart and in the other hand, His truth, and to use them to further His kingdom. HIS KINGDOM. Not this God-shaped hole I’ve created in my life that has built an empire rooted in self. NOTHING, absolutely nothing, about the Gospel is comfy-cozy. It makes me so excited to realize today that my heart REALLY DOES crave a life that is the craziest, most uncomfortable, beyond abundant adventure in Christ. Every fiber of my being. Because anything else outside of that would suck. And what looks good on paper is dumb. I’ve known this truth for quite some time now but once I finally let go of PLANNING ON IT, my heart moved from living on a planned truth coated in self to an identity fixed ONLY on what my Creator imagined & then implemented in the beginning when He spoke human life into existence.

TAKE MY LIFE AND LET IT BE, ALL FOR YOU AND FOR YOUR GLORY.

I say this because it leaves me with this question…

WHY IN THE WORLD HAS THERE NOT BEEN A MOVIE MADE ON THIS BOOK YET?!?!?!?! Hop on it Hollywood!!

24 hours is not enough to accomplish everything that you need to do, much less touch anything you want to do.

thoughts?

0 My bffl haley had her 21st birthday on May 25th.

0 I finished up my internship at Mt. Horeb June 1st. 

0 Greg & Sara Adamson were married on June 20th.

0 I went on vacation with my mom the first week of June to visit my Grandparents, Aunt, & Uncle in Kure Beach, NC. I love this place.

0 My other bffl (pronounced biffel) had her 22nd birthday on June 11.

0 My good friend Shannon (of 8 1/2 years might I add) asked me to do a big family portrait session for all of her mom’s extended family. This is one huge, AWESOME family. Quite an army. And they all live around one another so they get to see each other almost every week. (I had 4 days to prepare, only 30 minutes, and awful weather to work with… but believe it or not it turned out great!!)

0 I had the amazing opportunity to photograph the first half of VBS at Mt. Horeb last week!!

0 Back at the VERY beginning of May I got to tag along with a ton of parents and some of my favorite high school students (now graduates) and take portraits of all of them dressed up for prom!!

0 Last but not least, the Crocker girls. I was honored to take their senior portraits back in May and I can’t BELIEVE these two have graduated and are heading off to college in a few months!

That’s all for now.

 ¹ There is a time for everything, 
       and a season for every activity under heaven:

 ² a time to be born and a time to die, 
       a time to plant and a time to uproot,

 ³ a time to kill and a time to heal, 
       a time to tear down and a time to build,

 ⁴ a time to weep and a time to laugh, 
       a time to mourn and a time to dance,

 ⁵ a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, 
       a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

 ⁶ a time to search and a time to give up, 
       a time to keep and a time to throw away,

 ⁷ a time to tear and a time to mend, 
       a time to be silent and a time to speak,

 ⁸ a time to love and a time to hate, 
       a time for war and a time for peace.

ecclesiastes 3:1-8.