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John 8:49-50 (The Message) "God intends something gloriously grand here and is making the decisions that will bring it about. I say this with absolute confidence." Like fireworks in the night sky, this Scripture popped off the page as I was reading Jesus' words in the gospel of John last night. To put the verse in context, Jesus is talking with the Jews, who happen to believe that he is crazy...or demon-possessed. Jesus responds to their questions with this statement of "absolute confidence," which makes the Jews walk away nodding their heads and saying, "Yep, he's crazy all right." They didn't quite get it. They just didn't understand what Jesus was talking about. But who am I to blame them when I so often do the same thing? In the midst of trouble, opposition, fear, or struggle, Jesus whispers to me, " God intends something gloriously grand here and is making the decisions that will bring it about ." Yet so often, I think to mys

When my white pair of Toms Shoes were delivered to me a few days ago, I couldn't wait to break out the pens and paints and get to work. Although I have never considered shoes to be a canvas, there is a first time for everything! What started out as a pair of ordinary blank white shoes became a colorful testimony to anyone who looks at my feet. Today, my feet are bright green billboard. They declare my favorite Scripture from John 10:10. "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." In the context of John 10, Jesus tells us that He is the good shepherd who came to give us life to the full. On the heel of each shoe is a little lamb to remind me of this passage. Strecthing across both feet is a tree, representing the full and fruitful life that Christ gives us. "He is like a tree planted by streams of water which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither." (Psalm 1:3) I cannot wait for the moment when someone will say to me, &quo

With her blonde pigtails bobbing on the top of her head, the little pre-school girl ran over to me with a smile on her face. "I have something for you," she said as she held out her tightly closed hand. As she slowly uncurled her fingers, she revealed a tiny blue jewel in her palm. "Thank you so much, Carly!" I said enthusiastically as I delicately pinched the tiny treasure out of her hand with my two fingers. As small as the head of a needle, this little gift was something like a tiny craft sequin. She called it "a sparkle." After making sure that the sparkle was secure in my pocket, we walked hand-in-hand to play on the playground together. Yesterday afternoon, I was blessed to be able to play with and love on children like this little girl at a local elementary school. I was proud to join with over two thousand other Harding students to participate in a service day where small groups scattered across the community to serve in the name of Christ. I volun

"There is a 50% chance of rain at 11:00, but after that, the weather looks pretty good. Should we still go?" I tilted my head towards the sky, noticing a ray of sunshine peaking through the cloudy gray. "You bet!" I replied. And the adventure began. Plugging in the ipod to the radio of the car, we turned the volume up loud so we could hear the music above the whirring of the wind as it danced through all the open windows. We cruised down the curvy country road surrounded by lush lime green spring foliage, singing loudly and breathing in the fresh air. Today, we were going on an adventure. We knew where we were going...sort of. With hiking shoes tied and backpacks loaded with PBJs, we five college girls were ready to climb Sugarloaf mountain - we just needed to find out how to get there. We could see it from the highway, so we began searching for a road that would take us to the trailhead. After several wrong guesses, slight detours, and a phone call or two, we final

Have you even been so aware of God's presence or His voice that you get goosebumps or chills on your whole body? It's not like a shiver when you are cold or afraid or nervous, but it is a sweeping feeling that comes over you when the Holy Spirit shows up! There is nothing quite like the feeling you get when God's reveals His power and love. My friends, family, and I have officially coined this phenomenon as the "Spirit bumps!" This past Sunday at church, we watched two great videos that both filled me with such hope and revelation that my whole body was covered in the "Spirit bumps!" And whenever the Holy Spirit works, you just have to share it! May these clips encourage, inspire, and motivate you like they did me. I'm just warning you in advance - You might get some "Spirit bumps!" Come Awake http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sn2a73B0uB0 God's Chisel http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UXut0HxncvY

Jesus must have loved feet. He healed many pairs of feet so that they could walk, leap, and dance again. Hundreds of dirty feet came to Him, falling at His feet to listen to Him speak or to beg for His healing. He send out seventy-two pairs of feet to minister in His name. He loved the woman who washed His feet with her tears, and He honored the woman who annointed his feet with her alabaster jar of perfume. To show His disciples the full extent of His love, he washed their feet. It was His own feet that were pierced for our transgressions. After the resurrection, He showed His disciples his hands and feet so that they would believe. He even sends our feet on the ultimate mission to show people the way to Him. How beautiful are the feet that spread the good news! Yes, Jesus must have loved feet. Yesterday I left my shoes in the closet and walked barefoot all day in honor of Tom's " One Day Without Shoes ." This cause was initiated to raise awareness about people in povert

I have officially found my favorite place in the world, and it happens to be in Searcy, Arkansas. Compared to other college towns, little Searcy does not have much to offer college students in the areas of recreation, fine dining, and quality entertainment. When it comes to college students hanging out off-campus, you have three options - the coffee shop, the park, or Wal-Mart. (Okay, I might be exagerrating a little bit, and I don't mean to give little Searcy a bad rap. She just doesn't quite compare to Nashville or New York City.) However, all of that just changed with the grand opening of Froyo's Self-Serve Frozen Yogurt Shop. The buzz around campus was that a new ice cream place came to town, so of course some friends and I went to check it out last night. When I opened the front doors, I fell in love. You could probably hear the heavens singing the hallelujah chorus as my eyes scanned the colorful parlor. With mouth watering, I began the great adventure of creating my

After months of late-night rehearsals, music lessons, and staging practice, the show finally comes to the audience this weekend. Costumes on, makeup lathered, and hair pulled back - it is finally time to perform! Spring Sing weekends brings a ton of people to Harding's campus to see the show, and with all the people comes a wave of excitement that you can hear, see, and feel everywhere around you. I sit here in my costume and makeup with songs from our show playing in my head over and over, just waiting for our final performance tonight. I can almost picture the audience, see the lights, hear the music, and feel the rythym under my feet. Spring Sing is an energetic show of singing, music, and dancing that brings life to the stage and smiles to the audience. I have been so busy this weekend with performances that the spring literally "sprung up" on me! Surprise! The trees are lime green, the breeze is warm, the flowers are blooming, and the weather begs me to come outside