My Life is Not My Own

Lately, I've been reflecting on this phrase, "my life is not my own." It's part of a popular worship song that's been stuck in my head for a couple weeks now, and this morning it was played in chapel at my school. Here's what this phrase has meant to me. 

My life, everything in it and all of it, is not my own. It's Jesus'. I mean, after all, He's the one who gave it to me in the first place. So why am I so selfish with it? Why do I think that I know how to run it? All my dreams, all my plans, anything I want to do with my life, really isn't my decision at all. I have to submit to His plans for me, because at the end of the day... He knows better than I do, He knows what is best for me. With my every day life, He already knows what's going to happen. Plus, if it wasn't for what Jesus did on the cross when He died for my sins, I wouldn't even have this life at all. 

So, my life is not my own. I am open to His will for me, wherever that may lead me. My life is in His hands, not mine. Every day I surrender my life into His arms... and do what He leads me to do. 

I encourage you, surrender your whole life, every aspect of it to Jesus, because He knows so much better what you need than you do.

Choosing Joy

Choose Joy.

What does joy mean? Joy is defined as a feeling of great pleasure and happiness. 

Now, please don't misunderstand this post... I'm not trying to say I'm better than anyone because I've been able to find joy through my situation or because God has done things in my life. It's only through Him and Him alone that I've been able to feel the way I have. Also, I know it's not possible, or healthy, to always be 100% happy. Life has its ups and downs... and everyone has those days that they just want to stay in bed and binge watch Netflix, myself included... but I've been realizing this last month that choosing joy is a lot easier than we may think.

I don't know what you're going through in your life right now... but here's a little bit of what's been happening in mine. In the last month, I've gone through a huge phase of transition in my life. There was a big disagreement between myself and my group of friends who had been my friends for 3+ years which resulted in the loss of those friendships, being removed from one of their weddings and me moving out of the apartment I was living in. I can say that yes, that situation hurt me... it's something I honestly thought would never happen. The big blowout of all of that happened right before my college's spring break. I stayed on campus for the first half of break and the first day that I was here I went to an event at a local church with my friend Karen. The speaker was Gayle Brostowski and one of the points that she talked about in her presentation was choosing joy. I took notes and it resonated within me that day, but I really didn't put it into practice until more than a week later. The first few days of break, I was honestly really depressed... I stayed in bed most of the time and really didn't do much other than go to work and do homework occasionally. Those were really dark days, being completely honest. I went home the second half of that week to an extremely sick puppy. It's a miracle that my puppy is still alive while I write this, she had a seizure the morning I left to come back to school from break.

Coming back from break... I honestly felt like I had no reason to be happy... I knew I had lost my friends, I thought I was going to lose my dog, I was stressed with school, I didn't know what to do. I looked in my journal and read the notes from Gayle over again and that's when it clicked in my head. Yes, my situation was pretty stinky at that time, but why was I letting the loss of those friendships depress me so much? Why was I allowing that to drag me down so much? 

1) I wasn't trusting in God to handle my situation... I was trying to do it all myself.

2) I was choosing to let it drag me down, rather than choosing to have joy.

I made a decision that day... a decision to choose joy. A decision to not let the waves and currents of this life dictate my attitude and who I am. I decided to wake up every day and say "I am going to be joyful today" and honestly, it doesn't ALWAYS work. I still have my moments, I still cry, I still get confused and question... but making the conscious decision to be joyful has made a world of difference in my life.

Since losing those friendships, God has proved so faithful in my life, even through the trials, and my faith and trust in Him has been strengthened. He opened doors for me to have another apartment to move into, He's put friends in my life that I never would have seen coming but am so glad that they're there, He's rekindled old friendships that I missed so dearly to begin with, I've felt more like myself than I have in years, and honestly... I'm happy. 

I'm happy with my life, and I don't remember the last time I could say that with so much confidence.

So tomorrow morning when you wake up, I encourage you to make a decision at the start of your day to choose joy throughout the day, regardless of the circumstances life may throw at you. It makes more of a difference than you may think.

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance." -James 1:2-3

God is Faithful

Hey Guys!

Just wanted to brag a little big about Jesus :)

Now, if you don't already know this, I'm graduating from college a semester late. Stinks, right? Well, when I figured out I was going to have to be here a little longer... I was upset about it... and it was something that for a good bit was pretty hard for me to accept. However, there was only one reason for that...

I wasn't worried about the money it's going to cost (although my parents would say differently :P )... because while yes, loans are miserable and they stink and take forever to pay back, they're not the end of the world. They'll be paid off eventually with diligence and responsibility.

I wasn't worried about staying in Pennsylvania longer... I love it down here.

I wasn't worried about being a "super senior" and being a college student longer than the normal 4 years. Honestly, I'd rather graduate late than never graduate at all. 

My main fear was the fact that most of my friends were going to be graduating in May without me. 

I do have some friends in the classes below me... but the people that I've been closest to are in my class and therefore graduating in May.

If you know me at all, then you know that I love people. I love being around people. I love talking to people. I love hearing about peoples lives. I love friends. I really do. 

I wasn't on campus last semester, as I took a semester at home and did online classes, so my main prayer coming back onto campus this semester was this: God, please put A good, strong, female friend in my life who 1) Will build me up in my faith and my life and 2) Will still be here next semester. (NOTE: I only said A as in one... I was asking God for one good friend.)

Well let me tell you... God has answered that prayer so much more than I ever thought was possible. Not only has God put one awesome woman in my life like I was asking for... he's given me three of them. I knew that I was getting close to them... and it's been wonderful getting to know them better and hearing their hearts. Guess what the best part is? They are ALL still going to be here next semester. 

God has answered my main prayer x3... how amazing is that?! He is SO faithful and He's been proving this to me every day in my life... through this circumstance and through others. I've been so full of the joy of the Lord the last few days... it's been so uplifting. 

So... Ashley Dease, Katie Essig, and Stacey Hilliard... thank you three so much... for literally being answers to prayer in my life. I love you three so very much and I'm SO incredibly grateful that God has allowed our paths to cross here at VFCC. <3

To everyone else, remember... God DOES answer prayers... and He hears us. Even if it seems like the smallest most unimportant thing in the world... He hears you. 

Be encouraged, God is good! 

"If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways ,then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and I will heal their land." 

~2 Chronicles 7:14~

Pieces for the Home

I have this love for interior design and making a space welcoming and home-like. I dream of the day I have my own house to decorate and design! I love bright and light colors that really open up a space and make it feel clean and happy. I also LOVE natural light :) I wouldn't complain if there was daylight 24/7. :)

Here are just some things I've seen on Pinterest that I love!

This is a great idea for a sun room! I would love to relax here every morning with a cup of coffee!

How cute is this entry way?

I love coffee and I love this idea for coffee mugs! Much better than taking up space in a cabinet.

These colors are to die for in this bathroom!

The light airy colors in this room are gorgeous! 

Hope these inspire you! Go decorate something! :) 

You're Not Fat

I've had a revelation today, sort of. I saw a post from a friend on Facebook today that said, "You are not fat, you have fat. You also have fingernails, but you are not fingernails." Now, that may seem a little harsh at first... but I thought about it a little more. 

Now, I don't know who's reading this, you might be the skinniest person in the world and have like 0% body fat... but me, I'm just not that person. I've got some fat on me, I'm a little bigger than most girls, and if I'm being honest, I'm not always comfortable with that. I'm guilty of using the term "I'm fat." I don't always love the way I look in the mirror, but at the same time... does anyone love how they look ALL the time? Also, that doesn't mean I'm not beautiful. We're all beautiful, each and every one of us. If you're reading this... please know that... you are beautiful. 

Fat. That word has come to be so harsh, our culture has turned it into an adjective and twisted it to be a negative and demeaning term. Fat is defined as "A NATURAL oily or greasy substance occurring in the body; especially when deposited as a layer under the skin or around certain organs." SUBSTANCE. Fat is a substance. Let me say this... (speaking to myself here too)... you may HAVE fat, but you ARE NOT fat. Fat is a substance, a physical characteristic, that may be on your body, but fat DOES NOT DEFINE YOU. Fat is not what or who you are. Like the fingernail analogy, you have fingernails, but you don't use fingernails to define you. You have hair, teeth, bones, and a mouth... but you don't say "man, I'm so teeth." 

So why do we let the substance of fat define who we are? 

You ARE NOT fat. 

You ARE beautiful. 

You ARE loved. 

You ARE treasured. 

So, from this point forward, I'm done letting the term "fat" be a definition of who I am. Fat is just a substance that is on my body, but it is not who or what I am. 

Be encouraged, you beautiful person you :) 

Psalm 139:14: I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful. I know that full well. 

Coconut Oil Moisture Treatment for Hair

This is pretty much another post for the ladies, but guys... if you have flowing locks... feel free to utilize this too :)

Okay! I am really starting to LOVE Coconut Oil! It has so many uses that I've read about, but I've gotten around to trying a few of them! I'm telling you, the stuff is glorious... (I'm almost out of it actually!) I've been trying to grow my hair out for a while now and it's finally becoming healthy and starting to grow quicker but since I need it trimmed soon, it has just been feeling really dry lately so I set off it search of a remedy and found this one (HERE) and decided to try it! It was super easy! 

It's basically just a pre-wash moisture treatment. All you do is take your Organic Virgin Coconut Oil and grab a big scoop in your hand and work it through your hair.... its kinda messy! Make sure you saturate your whole head. Then take a clip or two (hair ties work as well) and clip your hair to your head. If you look at the original post, there are two ways of doing this, a heated way and non-heated way. I used the non-heated and it was fine. (Also, I did not use a shower cap) Let the oil sit in your hair for 30 minutes, then shower and shampoo and condition as normal. (I had to shampoo twice to get the oil all out). Style your hair as you normally do and then enjoy the softness of it! I don't even remember the last time my hair was SO soft!!! 

Invest in some Coconut Oil now, if you don't already have some! So many uses :) 

Enjoy your soft hair! :)

Coconut Oil Eye Make-Up Remover

I remembered a few nights ago (when I realized I forgot my eye makeup remover at home last weekend) that I had read somewhere that you can use Coconut Oil as an eye makeup remover. So I thought I would try it! 

Well, I have good news! I've been using it for a couple nights now and I must say it's the BEST eye makeup remover I've ever used! (And I've tried A LOT of them... Avon, Mary Kay, Neutrogena, Maybelline, etc...) Get a little on your finger, rub it on your eyelid and lashes, and wipe off with a wet paper towel. It's wonderful and it's all natural! :) Ladies, try this! :) 

I got mine at Marshall's for $4.99... by the way :) 

and now that my makeup is all removed from my eyes, I'm off to bed! Have a good night and be blessed! :) 

Ahh, Refreshment

Have you ever been outside on a hot summer day and were craving something cold to drink? Maybe a tall glass of ice water or some nice sweet tea? How refreshing was it when you finally were able to have that drink? Hold on to that feeling, that's what this weekend has been for me. 

Last week was sort of like my hot summer day... it was a really long, stressful week. I had a couple big assignments due for classes and I had slipped on ice earlier in the week so I've been sore from that. Then on Friday, things started looking up. The day didn't start off necessarily well, but in the afternoon we had some thunderstorms! You may think, how is that looking up? Well, it's simple... I love thunderstorms! The thunderstorms were a sign of a warm front rolling in... and roll in it did. 

It was as if this weekend was singing a Blake Shelton song to me... "I'll be your sweet iced tea..." 
(please see link at bottom of post if you don't know what song that is.) The weather was BEAUTIFUL. Now, here's a little something about me... I LOVE warm weather. Spring and Fall are the best. If it could just be like 65-70 degrees all the time... life would be beautiful. It was sunny and in the 50's all weekend...and will be again today! The snow is melting. I got to spend some wonderful quality 1-on-1 time with a few key friends in my life. I was able to have Chick-Fil-A for lunch yesterday. I went to the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia for a hockey game last night with my roommate and had a total sports geek moment when we were leaving because the Wells Fargo Center, Lincoln Financial Field, and Citizen's Bank Park are all in the same complex. Yesterday and Friday were just so wonderfully perfect. Today, I'm planning to be outside for a little while and enjoy the warm weather, maybe clean my car, and work on some homework. 

The weather is going to get cold again tomorrow, and there's snow in the 10 day forecast 4 times for next week.... but I think God knew how badly I, and I'm sure others too, needed this weekend. 

So if you're reading this... take advantage of today... go out and go for a walk... take some pictures... enjoy the day and give somebody a hug :) 

Isaiah 43:19- "See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland."


Blake Shelton- Honey Bee
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZjosn2u1gA

Life is Truly a Highway

I've decided to start this new little blog to kinda have somewhere to blurb out my thoughts once in a while. I may not even publish everything I write out... but I think it will be nice to have.

My first post is actually about the title of the blog. "Life is a Highway". 
Now, I know we probably all know the Rascal Flatts song that was featured in cars... and even if we may be ashamed of it, I'm sure we've all jammed out to it a time or two... but have you ever actually taken the time to sit and think about that phrase? No? Neither did I until it came to my head for a blog title. 

Life truly is a highway. Think about it. What do highways have? 

Highways have ups and downs. Hills and valleys. Much like life. 

We have to put our foot down on the gas a little harder to get up the hill when we're driving, but once we make it to the top, it's a feeling of relief. I remember this summer when I interned in South Dakota we were on our way across state on Route 90 to take the kids to summer camp and the church bus is OLD. There's one hill just past Chamberlain, SD that the bus has a hard time making it up... we have to put the flashers on and move slowly up the hill the whole time wondering if something is going to snap and the bus is going to break down. But it didn't, the bus made it up and over the hill and we all breathed a sigh of relief at that moment. When we're trying to get up a "hill" in our lives... when we're fighting that upwards battle... don't we get so worried and anxious sometimes that we're going to break down and go sliding back down that hill? But when we finally persevere enough and we make it to the top... to the plateau... isn't that the most relieving feeling?

On the other side of that, life has valleys (or downs). When we're driving and the road starts going downhill and the speed of the car keeps getting faster and faster what do we do? We hit the brakes... sometimes not so hard that we come to a screeching halt... but we ease on the them... to keep our car in control. Everyone will have a "downhill" time in their life. There is nothing wrong with that... there is nothing bad about that... but how do you handle it? Do you just let yourself keep speeding up and speeding up until you hit rock bottom and slam into something? Do you slam on the breaks and cause a pile up behind you? Or do you gently ease on the breaks and keep yourself under control and send a warning to those behind you that you're slowing down and everything is okay? 

What else is there about highways? Sometimes, there's a big open stretch of highway. Picture it. You're driving down the highway in the warm month of June, the sun is shining, the radio is up, there's only a couple other cars on the road... and everything is going great. We've all got those "open road" times that it feels like nothing can bring us down and life is going so wonderfully. Those are my favorite times.

Highways also have traffic. Have you ever come around a turn on the highway and had to slam on your breaks before rear ending the car in front of you because there's some sudden traffic? Let me tell you, being from New England... I have a small amount of patience when it comes to traffic on the roads. But I've learned something when it comes to traffic... it doesn't last forever. It may last longer than we would like it to... but eventually... the road clears. Something else I've learned about traffic is there is always a reason for it. Whether it's a small reason like a lane shift and people just don't know how to merge properly... or a bigger reason like a car wreck... there is always a reason. However, we don't always see that reason until when? Until we're through the traffic. Life is so similar. Sometimes everything is going fine then we round the turn and slam on our breaks to wait through a time of traffic, a time of difficulty. But much like the traffic on a highway... the traffic of life doesn't last forever... and there's always a reason for it. 

So make the most out of the highway in your life. Persevere up the hills, have control in the valleys, turn your music up on the open road, and have faith in the traffic.

This is why my blog is titled "Life is a Highway". Follow along with my as I travel my highway... enjoy my posts about life, love, beauty, food, and anything else that comes up along the way. I hope and pray that you are blessed by this blog.

Much Love, 
Kaycie Danielle

-Proverbs 19:21-