A Tearful Sunday

This Sunday I drove up to McKinney to be with my family on Claire's Baptism. I knew I was coming for a special day, and the baptism was amazing, but this church service did so much more for me than just getting to witness Claire's special day. It was one of those church services that had me crying during the first song, before the sermon even began. I guess my heart and mind were open, and I took in every single word and felt personally touched. The pastor began his sermon with the verse “Turn your eyes upon Jesus, Look full in His wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of his glory and grace.” Did he know I was coming to church, or was it just a co-inky-dink? I have been stressing way too much lately and not praying near enough. I have let the things of this world consume me. Cheerleading, school, finances, my health...I have been trying to do everything on my own. I felt like he was preaching specifically for me, and I thanked God for bringing me to this church on this day, not just to witness Claire's beautiful baptism, but to hear those words I needed to be reminded of. He also talked about when Jacob was shepherding and came upon a burning bush. He could have kept going or run away but he stood there and heard the Lord call him by name. He replied by saying "Here I am Lord." The preacher compared the Burning Bush to things in our daily lives such as a neighbor going through a divorce, a troubled teenager, or a sick friend. We could go on about our lives with blinders on, or we could turn to Jesus and say "Here I am Lord...use me." We have to open our eyes and see how the Lord is calling us to reach out and help others. I am in a position, (as a coach who works with 40 teenage girls constantly searching for acceptance) where I can reach others. I can be there for them. Not just as a coach, but as a "big sister" if you will, in Christ. I need to witness more, although subtly, I can do it! Though I am sure there are a few who are not crazy about me, most of those girls look up to me. I can show them that it is cool to pray and love Jesus and serve others. I know this is a very personal thing, but by blogging about it, maybe I will hold myself more accountable to follow through. We ended the sermon with one of my favorite worship songs. I had not heard it in quite sometime (I am sad to say it has been a while since I have been to church), but the song is called "Here I am, Lord." Here is a version I found on YouTube that I liked. There is not video, but just close your eyes and listen to the words...





Okay, back to the baptism... Claire was an angel. She was so cute and sweet and good. She might be taking lessons from her big brother, because she was even a bit of a "ham" at one point. You can watch the video HERE. After he baptized Claire, he picked up Nati, so the entire congregation could see him. Nati had a huge proud smile. It was priceless. Here are a few more pics from the amazing morning we spent together. Claire had quite a fan club! :) What a family! (You can click on the pics if you want to see them larger.)








I kindof went crazy on YouTube looking for the "Here I am Lord" video and found some of my favorite songs. Some of them go back to my childhood and my first years in church, and some I learned more recently, doing FCA in Burnet. Here are the videos/links to some of my favorites. I realize not everyone will be interested to hear them, but if you have time and feel inspired, I highly recommend checking them out. I feel better just from listening to them while I was blogging this. :) Enjoy...

Grace Like Rain

Here I am to Worship

Open the Eyes of My Heart Lord

Shout to The Lord



After church, I went to lunch with Uncle Chuck and Aunt Sarah, and my cousins Amy, Ariel, David, and Gabriel. We ate at Scotty P's which is this great burger joint, and then went back to Amy's for some relaxation. I watched Amy and Sarah needle point Christmas stockings, and I have decided I need to take that up. It looks relaxing and theraputic, and I need more hobbies like that! :) Maybe if I start one now, by the time we have a kid in two or three years, it just MIGHT be finished, haha! We had a great time visiting and I even got to sneak in a nap! What a perfect Sunday afternoon...family, relaxation, napping!

When I got home, Zac and I decided to rent a movie, since he did not have school today. We rented The Kite Runner. I can not describe how powerful and amazing this movie was! Not just for myself, but for Zac as well. It is the story of two best friends growing up in Afghanistan, one a the son of a wealthy man, and the other the son of his servant. I can not remember a movie that effected my emotions so much. (*I know I was extra emotional yesterday already, but I dont see how you could watch this movie and NOT be touched.)

I can not describe it anymore, but I can just say you must see this movie. I had this painful lump in my throat, and cried throughout the entire movie. At times I laughed, and at others I was so angry that I actually felt like throwing up. When the movie ended I was still crying. Zac asked me to stop, but I told him I couldn't. I had been sniffling in, and holding back tears all day, and I could not do it anymore. I told him I needed a good cry. Being a man (no offense, sensitive men who like to cry) he did not understand this reasoning, and "how could it possibly feel good to cry?" So, I went into the privacy of the bathroom and let it flow. I sobbed. My chest bounced up and down, and I saw my face contorting into ugly expressions in the mirror. I'm a firm believer that if you are needng to cry, it is like poison to hold it in. It felt so good to let it out. It lasted a while, and I had to blow my nose a few times. I looked horrible, but I didn't feel horrible. I felt better. I was not angry or sad...I was just emotional. Happy tears all morning, and sad tears during the movie that night. When I was finished, I took a deep breath, and left the bathroom feeling like a new woman. I finally felt relieved.

Have any of you seen The Kite Runner? What are your thoughts? If you have not yet seen this, please go rent it and then email me. I would love to talk details with you. My mom actually gave me the book to read a few months back, but being so busy this summer, I didn't ever get around to it, even though the back of the book is sprinkled with words like “genuine” and “haunting” and “riveting” and “unforgettable.” (Now I know why, after seing the movie! Last night when I could not sleep (perhaps because my mind was still racing from the film) I started the book, and already, I am hooked. (Probably not a good thing that I'm hooked, since I have 6 textbooks I should be reading, but I will let it be my leisure reading.) I can already tell that the book and movie are different, but there's also been a part in the book that I remember being word-for-word from the movie. When I finish the book I will let y'all know which one I thought was better.

Until then, I am going to try to balance my faith, trusting in the Lord, school, leisure, cheerleading, and blogging. Hopefully, with minimal tears...