Some things I've learned...

Ok...so in the past month or so I've learned a few interesting, funny and educational things that have, in some cases left me perplexed. Here are just a few things I've learned that I previously didn't know or had a different understanding of what they were.

Here's what I've learned...
1. The word Cathartic does not actually mean relaxing, tranquil or
therapeutic (which is apparently what a lot of us thought it meant...but you'll
have to look it up yourself...and people commonly mistake its definition and use
it with a whole different meaning).
2. There is a food called mustard greens?
3. If someone is in your yard and they aren't wearing an LHPD uniform, they
probably aren't LH police (read previous post for further explanation).
4. Never leave your garage door open...(a wild dog might come in and scare the crap
out of you (its true..happened to me this past weekend)
5. Never trust someone who's sitting in a motorized wheelchair (in your driveway),
trying to get you to believe that their wheelchair won't go forward after just
having proven that it can! (another crazy person I've encountered recently)
6. 7 out of 10 young adults (ages 18-30) who went to church in regularly in high
school said they quit attending by age 23 (that's absurd)!
7. Be patient, now I say I've learned that in the past month, but really God has just
been dealing w/ me a lot lately in this area (whether its when I'm behind snow
birds in traffic or just life in general)...Everything is done in HIS timing!
8. Not to look at the past and wish things were different and not to look toward the
future and hope for certain things but to realize that in the here and now (if we
are looking for opportunities), God can and will use us!...My youth pastor always
says, "are you going to wait until God says go or go until God says wait?"
9. This is something else I've really battled with...If we say we our christians and
only love those that are like us or nice to us, what credit is that to us?...Even
friends of mine or people from my past, I love but the second they are mean to me
or offend me, I immediately find myself (my sinful self) wanting to be mean back
to them or rude or ignore them...and although they've done this to me...I am
constantly having to pray "God...make me and my attitude, that like yours...help
me to love this person NO MATTER WHAT...and to show them your love"...-this has
been without a doubt the hardest thing for me lately!

So there are just a few things I've learned in the past month!
This next month is about to be crazy...I'm finishing up this semester (full of presentations, papers and finals in the next few weeks), still working 2 jobs, and getting pumped up/preparing for our new Young Adults ministry that we're starting (May 14th at LHUMC)! I'm sure it will all fly by but just the urgency of completing everything by the deadlines is a little stressful!
Real quick, I also wanted to share w/ you about a book I just finished reading that absolutely rocked my world and my views of Christianity, the church, Jesus and my selfish and simple ways. If you haven't read it yet, I suggest you read it (I've read it and am about to read it again)...it's written by Francis Chan and is called Crazy Love! I highly recommend it...its an easy read and will leave you questioning what you are doing for God, knowing what he's done for you and wanting to change how you live and view others, God and our purpose here on this earth!
That's all for now! Oh..and I thought I'd leave you with a picture I took a few years ago and one of my favorite quotes. "I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen, not only because I see it, but because by it, I see everything else." C.S. Lewis