Fourteen Two

     So from December 15th to December 20th you may notice something different about me. On both of my wrists you will see different colored lines drawn in Sharpie. Each color holds its own meaning and each wrist holds it's own meaning as well. Obviously I'm not doing this just for fun otherwise I wouldn't be writing it in my blog.      This year I am participating in The Lines Project!      This is to show support for people struggling with depression, anxiety, self harm, suicidal thoughts, eating disorders, etc. And also to let them know that they aren't alone. I am a big supporter of mental health awareness and I really like these different projects that bring about awareness and support in creative ways. Right Wrist- Showing my support      So how do you participate you ask? Well you draw about 6 lines on your wrist from Dec. 15- 20. Draw them on your right wrist if you are a supporter and draw them on your left wris...

     " Here I am, Lord, send me/  I won't look back ‘cause I was made/  To be a part of the impossible/  You're God of the impossible/  Here I am, Lord, send me/  I won't back down ‘cause I believe/  You are the God of the impossible / Here I am, send me!"            God has truly shown the Ignite Youth Ministry that He is the God of the impossible. The things that have happened in the past 2 weeks could not have happened in our own strength. We prayed and relied on God to make incredible things happen and He did! Let me tell you just what my awesome God did!      Well September 3rd and 4th I had the opportunity to share my testimony with the Jr and Sr High. As the Creative team was preparing for MessFest I was thinking about how it would be EXACTLY 6 years since I trusted Jesus as my Savior at Fight Night on Wednesday, September 3, 2008 and I just asked if I could share my testimony. As soon as...

     You know that game "Never Have I Ever"? My friends and I sometimes play it on long youth trips when we are in the car for hours. It was always kept simple and light. But what if we talked about serious things while playing this game?      Well one of the things I could have said was "Never have I ever looked in a mirror without having make-up on and my hair done and had positive thoughts about myself." Never in my entire life. If I don't have make-up on and if my hair isn't done all of the negative thoughts and feelings about myself come out. But tonight is different.      Tonight I looked in the mirror and my face was make-up free and my hair was in a really messy, unruly braid and not one negative thought or feeling. Not ONE! Not for one second did I think that I was ugly or worthless! Not for one split second. THIS HAS NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE!!!!!!!!      I pray everyday for God to give me even a tiny glimpse of wha...

    This time last year B and I were talking about dating for the second time that summer (the full story can be found in my first post, "The Start of A Journey" from April). Actually at the youth group's Six Flags trip I was texting him and flirting and talking about dating the entire trip. I was very sneaky about it so none of my friends saw, I knew they would disapprove. It's funny how much can change in the span of a year.     I wanted to post an update about what happened with this whole B situation, sort of like a sequel to "The Start of A Journey." Like I said in my first post, this is so that at least one person who could be going through a similar situation can be helped. This is by far the most difficult situation I have ever dealt with in my entire life, and I can't be the only person on the face of the earth to go through this. So if you are reading this and you have had someone blame a porn addiction (or something else out of your control) ...

    Two Fridays ago at The Landing we were asked to answer the question, "Are you too busy for God?" One person's answer convicted me, "We are never too busy for God, we make ourselves too busy ." The truth in that hit me really hard, when I got home I decided that I needed to take a break from social media and focus on the One that really matters in my life. I survived!     Bible reading is something that I know I struggle with. I have tried so hard to stay committed to the Bible reading calendar plans or reading one chapter a day. And honestly with those plans I get to a point where I just get bored because all of the reading plans are pretty much the same. So I Googled Bible reading plans and found Professor Grant Horner's Bible Reading System (just Google that and it will come up) and I absolutely LOVE IT! You read 10 chapters a day from 10 different lists that all end at different times so you can see how the Bible all fits together. Look for it becaus...

     As I stare in amazement at the number 429 I can't comprehend why in the world God chose me for this task. Starting this blog I imagined maybe 5 people would read each post, meaning I would only have 20 views on this page, which I would have been so thankful for...but 429 is not a number that I thought this blog would reach.      So this is a shout out to Jesus! Thank you to the Creator of my mind for giving me words to say. Thank you to the One who formed my fingers so I could type each letter. Thank you to the Giver of wisdom who gives me all sorts of crazy ideas to write about and shows me the truth that I need to share with all of you. Thank you, God, for letting me go through these trials. They suck, a lot, and I complain about them, a lot, but in the end if it weren't for these trials I would not be able to write this blog. Thank you for giving me a passion to write and to help others. Thank you Jesus, for allowing my words to reach people who a...

     Ahhh S U M M E R ! The season of sunny days, long nights, beach trips, adventures with your friends, and the annual modesty talk at youth group! Fun right?      I know what you're thinking, " ANOTHER  blog post about modesty?? Really Michaela???" Yes, another post about modesty. I've been reading a lot of other blogs lately about this topic and I agree with some things and totally disagree with others. As a girl who has recently been blamed for a guy's porn addiction, modesty has become something that I value even more than before. I have always preferred to dress modestly, even before becoming a Christian; however, I know that I was not super careful about how I dressed around B (the boy I talked about in my first post in case you missed it or forgot). If I had a shirt where my bra straps showed I didn't really care, if the shirt was a little low "Oh well, big deal it's just B." And while his addiction to porn is 100% NOT my fault I reali...

I just wanted to share a poem that I wrote a few months ago. A lot of times I feel alone in the things that I am going through, like I'm the only one going through it. But I'm not, I'm sure other people are feeling this way, so this poem is for those people. You are not alone in this! Trapped Trapped. That's how I've always felt. Behind closed lips that will never tell how I truly feel. Because they can't. The truth is locked up in chains and hidden behind solid cement walls that my lips can't break through. But my hand and my pen can loosen the chains just enough for the Truth to pass through. The truth is...since he  told me I feel like nothing. Because to me  he said, "You're worth nothing to me, they  are." I feel ugly. Because to me  he said, " They are prettier than you ." I feel unlovable. Because while he said "I love you" to me, he was looking at them . All I can think is that ...

     I don't know about you but 95% of the time mirrors are my least favorite objects on the face of the earth. Scratch that, least favorite object in the entire universe! Why? Simple. It shows me all of my flaws. Some days I look in the mirror and think, "Hey look at that, one gigantic flaw!" or "How can so many flaws be found on such a small person?" The truth is, if I never had to look in a mirror again I would be perfectly happy.      The funny thing is that I spend a lot of time looking in a mirror or something that reflects my image. I find myself staring into the thin mirrors found on our jewelry spinners at work, computers, my phone, glass, TVs, etc. With most glances into a reflective surface the immediate thought in my head is "Ew." And I know that I am not the only one who has this problem. I'm not the only one who looks in the mirror and sees a ton of flaws like that I'm fat, some parts of my body are disproportionate, my arms are ...

    What I'm about to share is very difficult for me to talk or write about; however, I know that God wouldn't allow anything to happen to me that wouldn't be used for His glory. I've struggled to find the purpose of this situation until I started praying about this blog, I love to write and I think this is the best way that I can use my struggles and how God is working in me to help others who may find themselves in a similar situation. I'm not writing this to get pity or anything like that, I'm writing this so that maybe even one person can be changed by it. God has a plan for this and I am completely willing to let him use me. "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God." 2 Corinthians 1:3-4     So it all started this summer when I started to really lik...