I've learned while over in Israel...
1. "I guess gas pumps observe the Sabbath, too" - Dad
2. Camels' feet squish when they take steps.
3. Supposedly, Poles are supposed to be the nicest people around...if you consider pushing and shoving nice, then yes, they are about the nicest people I've ever met!
4. Middle Eastern men flirt like crazy. (not sarcasm)
5. Israeli people are very friendly! (that wasn't sarcasm, either)
6. Hibiscus tea is just oh...so....lovely. (that WAS sarcasm)
I had a superduper time. Several times, though, I almost lost my life, such as riding a camel, riding in a van through Cairo (that is the most dysfunctional driving I've ever seen), and riding a crocodile. Just kidding. I didn't ride a crocodile. Fooled you.
We rode on a Polish airline. The only bad thing about Polish airlines is that the people are Polish, which, in itself, is not a bad thing. Are you following me? What I mean is this: Polish people are great, I wasn't saying they aren't. It's just that I don't speak Polish, which made the flight rather inconvenient.
Are you pickin' up what I'm layin' down?
No? That's grand. Let's continue.
So we were going shopping at this Egyptian open air market type thing, and there was this adorable little boy - couldn't have been older than seven, prolly less - and he was selling bracelets. It was impossible to refuse him - we didn't even haggle (which, by the way, is an art form. I can't haggle at all, but some people are so good!). He just stood there, lookin' all cute. He was even better than the bracelets!!! We bought four. Bracelets, I mean.
But the best part of Israel? We were standing on this mountain, where Saul chased David. And it seriously looked like it hadn't changed since those days. I felt like I was reliving the Old Testament.
While in the plane ride, I got extremely bored. So I got to thinkin'...
...and all of a sudden, I was like WHOAAAAAA!!!!!!!! i'm engaged to Jesus! And we're really getting married! I'm gonna be His bride!!! I mean, I've known that for a while, but it became really real to me all of a sudden. I don't know why it did at that particular moment. It just did.
Enough for now.
Cordially,
Lady Rachel
...and, of course, moccasins.
Monday, May 31, 2010
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
The New Coffee Beans and Faded Jeans!
Like the look? It's still the exact same thing, only a different format! Enjoy!
Cordially,
Lady Rachel
Cordially,
Lady Rachel
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Donovan!
I have something to say.
This is a really random thought, but I'm really into the Old Testament stories lately. And I was thinking...
...King Xerxes called for all the unmarried girls in the kingdom. And just thinking...
...Esther was a Jew. And most Jews, during that time, got married around the age of twelve. She must not have been older than fourteen!!! I'm fifteen, and I don't even know if I would have had as much courage as she had. And, seriously! What if she was, like, eleven or something??????
It's insane how bold Esther was for God! She hesitated, but nothing kept her from approaching the king - even when he hadn't called for her, which was punishable by death. Would I have had that courage? I don't know.
So, yeah, that's that.
Right now, I desperately need to brush my teeth. Like, DESPERATELY.
I want to call attention to the fact that Kaylie and Kristi Stahl are absolutely superb. I had a prayer meeting with Kristi and Erica (my sis, of course) just yesterday. We shared our struggles and how God had worked in our lives the past week. She has a blog - krististahl.blogspot.com with some pretty legit blogposts. That isn't even scratching the surface of how awesome Kristi is, and Kaylie is just as awesome. Seriously, who else is going to marry an African-American ex-gangster who dances, plays guitar and piano, is a photographer and a painter, is half-Irish and is named Donovan??? And she's a girl with a mission - God is using her in an incredible way. She writes songs and stuff. She is so cool (Guys, they're both available! Hahaha, just kidding)!!! So yeah, just thought I'd share that.
Haha! After rambling on and on about Esther and my two dear friends, it's time to brush my teeth. Oh, and check out Psalm 68:8!
Cordially,
Lady Rachel
This is a really random thought, but I'm really into the Old Testament stories lately. And I was thinking...
...King Xerxes called for all the unmarried girls in the kingdom. And just thinking...
...Esther was a Jew. And most Jews, during that time, got married around the age of twelve. She must not have been older than fourteen!!! I'm fifteen, and I don't even know if I would have had as much courage as she had. And, seriously! What if she was, like, eleven or something??????
It's insane how bold Esther was for God! She hesitated, but nothing kept her from approaching the king - even when he hadn't called for her, which was punishable by death. Would I have had that courage? I don't know.
So, yeah, that's that.
Right now, I desperately need to brush my teeth. Like, DESPERATELY.
I want to call attention to the fact that Kaylie and Kristi Stahl are absolutely superb. I had a prayer meeting with Kristi and Erica (my sis, of course) just yesterday. We shared our struggles and how God had worked in our lives the past week. She has a blog - krististahl.blogspot.com with some pretty legit blogposts. That isn't even scratching the surface of how awesome Kristi is, and Kaylie is just as awesome. Seriously, who else is going to marry an African-American ex-gangster who dances, plays guitar and piano, is a photographer and a painter, is half-Irish and is named Donovan??? And she's a girl with a mission - God is using her in an incredible way. She writes songs and stuff. She is so cool (Guys, they're both available! Hahaha, just kidding)!!! So yeah, just thought I'd share that.
Haha! After rambling on and on about Esther and my two dear friends, it's time to brush my teeth. Oh, and check out Psalm 68:8!
Cordially,
Lady Rachel
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Beautiful Ending
I was reading a devotional book - Daniel by Beth Moore, I strongly recommend it - and the thought struck me (it had nothing to do with the devo, so I have no idea from whence this idea came hahahehe), what would Saul have been able to do if he had devoted his life to God?
And I kept on thinking...Saul started out as a really cool guy! He had a ton going for him, and, in the beginning, he really loved God (or so I gather from the stories).
And then, it's like WHOA!
What happened?
What changed? Why did Saul start chasing after the world? He could've been such an amazing king if he'd kept his focus on the right place!
All over the Bible, there are stories like Saul's - Uzziah, Solomon, Asa, Joash, etc. (ironically, these are all kings!) - where the kings started out as SUCH GODLY MEN, but forgot God in the end. What was it? Pride? I think so.
There are also a ton of stories about people like Ahab and Delilah and Judas, people who were bad to begin with and bad through the end. We don't like to recant those stories very much - they're depressing and ugly.
Seriously!!! What could these people have done if they'd stuck to the straight and narrow?
People remember Biblical heroes like Hezekiah, David, Ruth, Esther, Mordecai, and Joseph (as in coat of many colors guy) for sticking to God all their lives. It's their stories we like to tell, it's their stories about which we like to think. They stayed true to God, through thick and thin (I'm not saying they didn't make mistakes - we all make our fair share of 'em).
But then...oh, and then! We read about people like Rahab, Mary Magdalene, Judah (as in no coat of many colors guy), Manasseh, Paul - people who really had nasty beginnings but turned to God. We like to remember those people because their stories demonstrate how God can pick up the lowliest and use them in an astoundingly life-changing way!
There are people of each of these four categories in our lives - people who started off as awesome ol' folks but then turned away from God, people who were bad from the start, people who have been devoted to God from diaper days, and people who have checkered pasts but are such influential Christians now. And I can't help but think...
...on Judgement Day, all our stories are going to be told. What kind of people are we? Will we be proud of our life history? Will we be praising Jesus for His amazing redemption? Or will we be on our knees, mourning and wishing, with all our hearts, that we'd listened to God while we still had the chance?
There's a song by BarlowGirl called "Beautiful Ending" that perfectly fits this post. I strongly recommend that you listen to it.
Cordially,
Lady Rachel
And I kept on thinking...Saul started out as a really cool guy! He had a ton going for him, and, in the beginning, he really loved God (or so I gather from the stories).
And then, it's like WHOA!
What happened?
What changed? Why did Saul start chasing after the world? He could've been such an amazing king if he'd kept his focus on the right place!
All over the Bible, there are stories like Saul's - Uzziah, Solomon, Asa, Joash, etc. (ironically, these are all kings!) - where the kings started out as SUCH GODLY MEN, but forgot God in the end. What was it? Pride? I think so.
There are also a ton of stories about people like Ahab and Delilah and Judas, people who were bad to begin with and bad through the end. We don't like to recant those stories very much - they're depressing and ugly.
Seriously!!! What could these people have done if they'd stuck to the straight and narrow?
People remember Biblical heroes like Hezekiah, David, Ruth, Esther, Mordecai, and Joseph (as in coat of many colors guy) for sticking to God all their lives. It's their stories we like to tell, it's their stories about which we like to think. They stayed true to God, through thick and thin (I'm not saying they didn't make mistakes - we all make our fair share of 'em).
But then...oh, and then! We read about people like Rahab, Mary Magdalene, Judah (as in no coat of many colors guy), Manasseh, Paul - people who really had nasty beginnings but turned to God. We like to remember those people because their stories demonstrate how God can pick up the lowliest and use them in an astoundingly life-changing way!
There are people of each of these four categories in our lives - people who started off as awesome ol' folks but then turned away from God, people who were bad from the start, people who have been devoted to God from diaper days, and people who have checkered pasts but are such influential Christians now. And I can't help but think...
...on Judgement Day, all our stories are going to be told. What kind of people are we? Will we be proud of our life history? Will we be praising Jesus for His amazing redemption? Or will we be on our knees, mourning and wishing, with all our hearts, that we'd listened to God while we still had the chance?
There's a song by BarlowGirl called "Beautiful Ending" that perfectly fits this post. I strongly recommend that you listen to it.
Cordially,
Lady Rachel
Friday, May 7, 2010
Call Me Odd, But...
Call me odd, but I happen to adore the boy's names Marcus, Lucius, Adonis, Cassander, Chandler, and Rhett (no, I did NOT get that name from Gone with the Wind!!!).
Call me odd, but I like the girl's names Aishe (pronounced Ay-sh), Aure (pronounced Aww-ray), Juliet, Kashley, Persephone (pronouned per-seff-uh-nee), and Britt.
Call me odd, but right now, I have a craving for french fries and a Frosty.
Call me odd, but...I happen to know the capital, official language, and poverty level percentage in Romania.
Call me odd, but this post is going to have to be cut short. I have to go vaccuum.
Call me odd, but I really don't feel like it.
I hope this post inspired you to reach for the stars! to do great things with your life! to become a better person! to show the world how wonderful you can be!
Haha.
Cordially,
Lady Rachel
Call me odd, but I like the girl's names Aishe (pronounced Ay-sh), Aure (pronounced Aww-ray), Juliet, Kashley, Persephone (pronouned per-seff-uh-nee), and Britt.
Call me odd, but right now, I have a craving for french fries and a Frosty.
Call me odd, but...I happen to know the capital, official language, and poverty level percentage in Romania.
Call me odd, but this post is going to have to be cut short. I have to go vaccuum.
Call me odd, but I really don't feel like it.
I hope this post inspired you to reach for the stars! to do great things with your life! to become a better person! to show the world how wonderful you can be!
Haha.
Cordially,
Lady Rachel
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
A Frannyville Weekend
Not to mention the fact that it was my birthday, last Saturday was a wonderful youth group activity in Indiana. Let me explain.
The way I explain our church is this: our church is like a Wal-Mart, only it's a church - there are a whole bunch all over the globe, and we all believe the same doctrine and hold to the same traditions. Our church is called Apostolic Christian Church (not Penecostal, though). I'll be referring to our church as the AC Church and things belonging to it as AC _____ (ex. AC youth group, AC friends).
So our AC youth group went to this big invite thing that another AC youth group hosted. A whole bunch of other AC youth groups were invited. We all got together and played games, listened to a speaker, did skits, had a praise singing (IN A GRAIN BIN!!!!!!), and went to church the next day.
You're probably wondering where I'm going with all this. Truth is, I haven't a clue. I haven't a clue where I'm going with all this!!!
One thing of which I'd like you to take note: when attending an AC youth group thingy, DON'T tell anyone it's your birthday (if it is)!!! I made the mistake of telling some of my friends...and the entire crowd of teens SANG TO ME! And if that wasn't enough, they sang three different verses! By this time, I'm thinking, Gracious me, whatEVER possessed me to tell my friends it was my birthday??? And then I think, Oh, yeah, I told them because I'm Rachel, and I do stupid things like that on occasion...
I would like to draw attention to the fact that one of my bestest friends, Maria Steidinger, gave me a huge pad of paper, a picture frame, 8 markers, and 150 crayons!!! for my birthday. I'm kind of protective of my presents; the paper is mine, and mine alone. Haha.
Well, I'm running out of things to say...Come to think of it, I never really had anything to say in the first place.
Cordially,
Lady Rachel
The way I explain our church is this: our church is like a Wal-Mart, only it's a church - there are a whole bunch all over the globe, and we all believe the same doctrine and hold to the same traditions. Our church is called Apostolic Christian Church (not Penecostal, though). I'll be referring to our church as the AC Church and things belonging to it as AC _____ (ex. AC youth group, AC friends).
So our AC youth group went to this big invite thing that another AC youth group hosted. A whole bunch of other AC youth groups were invited. We all got together and played games, listened to a speaker, did skits, had a praise singing (IN A GRAIN BIN!!!!!!), and went to church the next day.
You're probably wondering where I'm going with all this. Truth is, I haven't a clue. I haven't a clue where I'm going with all this!!!
One thing of which I'd like you to take note: when attending an AC youth group thingy, DON'T tell anyone it's your birthday (if it is)!!! I made the mistake of telling some of my friends...and the entire crowd of teens SANG TO ME! And if that wasn't enough, they sang three different verses! By this time, I'm thinking, Gracious me, whatEVER possessed me to tell my friends it was my birthday??? And then I think, Oh, yeah, I told them because I'm Rachel, and I do stupid things like that on occasion...
I would like to draw attention to the fact that one of my bestest friends, Maria Steidinger, gave me a huge pad of paper, a picture frame, 8 markers, and 150 crayons!!! for my birthday. I'm kind of protective of my presents; the paper is mine, and mine alone. Haha.
Well, I'm running out of things to say...Come to think of it, I never really had anything to say in the first place.
Cordially,
Lady Rachel
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