~serenity~

Serenity.
Something I haven't had enough of lately.
I think there is just something in the human soul that requires some amount of serenity. Away from the hustle and bustle of people, school (or work, as the case may be), and just life in general. One of my favorite ways to gain some serenity is going out into God's marvelous creation - especially around this time of year! - and just enjoy a cool breeze and a bird's song and the changing leaves.
But however we find quiet, I think we are indeed supposed to find it. Think about all the times Christ went out seeking quiet to be with His Father. Just one example is Matthew 14:23 - "And after He [Jesus] had dismissed the crowds, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. When evening came, He was there alone." Jesus is often found in the gospels going out into the wilderness to pray to God. Spending time alone with our Savior is the most calming thing ever, and it rejuvenates us so we can go out into the world and live for Him.
We all get tired sometimes. We all get this feeling at some point that we can't keep going. That we need to stop. Breathe. Look at the stars. Think. Sing. Pray. Just something that will get us away from everything and get us alone long enough that we can really live life.
I think I could really learn this lesson.... this week alone, I have: done a drama at my church, gone to mock trial meetings, done school, had a piano lesson, played for a children's choir, planned, put together, and held an annual activity for our homeschool group with my brother and friend, went to chorus, ran a 5k... so you get the picture. Not once this week I have just sat down quietly to read my Bible and pray. And how do I feel right now? Fine. But sort of.... bland. I nearly never make time to just be silent and be still. And I think this goes as much for everyone else as it does for me. We are going so much that we don't take time to just sit quietly before God.
And especially as the holiday season approaches (ah, yet again), I think we could all spend a little time just resting. When you find yourself stressing about Thanksgiving's fried turkey, Christmas presents (gosh, what ARE you going to get for your second cousin once removed?) , getting the house ready for guests.... well you'll probably end up feeling a little Grinch-ish right? Well of course. Because we were not created to spend our time constantly running. Neither were we created to sit around and do nothing. But there is a balance of rest and quiet and busyness. And we have to find that balance, especially this time of year. So hopefully we all can find some quiet as the holidays approach.
And maybe I'll find some more time to blog? (haha)


~Madison

Happiness

So. I have definitely had the best night ever tonight, and I feel like skipping down the street at 10:24 in the evening screaming at the top of my lungs in joyfulness. Unfortunately the neighbors would not appreciate that, so I suppose I won't.So instead.I shall post pictures of happy things that make me happy. Enjoy:
Winston, our dog, wanting to eat my M&Ms. He actually stuck his face on the coffee table to eat them.... he's so naughty


Aeropostale flipflops in the grass on a sunny day <3



My purity ring



School work... Gulliver's Travels paper


Sunny day


The edge of my new dance dress =) It sheds glitter everywhere... in other words it sheds happiness everywhere



The obvious: a flower




Have a delightful evening
~Madison

Life & Stuff

So since I have really no where that I had planned to begin this blog, really, then I will simply just begin.
Updates, and such, even though most of you won't really... well... know exactly what I'm talking about since I just began this blog. But here we go:



~School
Well. School has been interesting. Being in my sophomore year has been a little bit more crazy than I expected. It seems like I have added on twice as much stuff in school than last year. History, science (ornithology to be exact) , logic, geography, math, Latin (intense stuff), art, literature... it gets crazy. But since no one really wants to hear about school (I mean, who does?) I shall go on to my next topic.




~Church
Church. My favorite place in the world. <3 The church I go to I have to admit is pretty big. But that allows for opportunities I never would have imagined I would have had a year or so ago. For instance, our church has recently started doing several different services on Sunday mornings. Since our family tends to lean towards the traditional style, we go to the service at 8:30. But that leaves us an hour afterward until we have Sunday School (for my parents) and highschool ministry (for me and my brother). So, that has allowed me to start volunteering with the preschool ministry. I'm starting next Sunday and I'm SO excited about it! Also, we are having a mission thing this weekend. On Friday night we are having a dinner with a missionary speaking, and I'll be serving drinks at that... not to big of a deal. But Saturday I will be babysitting basically all day. So... that will be interesting. But I think it will be fantastic. Although I'm hoping I won't be bawling by the end of it. . . I love little kids but they stress me out so much after several hours. BUT. God will give me the strength I need. =) And then I also am in the drama team at our highschool ministry. It's pretty awesome. And although I have never had experience with drama (as you can tell when I'm up on the stage ~cough cough~), I find it really fun! Drama has always been intriguing to me, so I'm excited to get to do something with it. And then of course I have Wednesday night stuff at church, and I have the BEST small group leader ever, Becca. And then we have the best youth pastor ever as well. He speaks the word of God as it is, and I really like that. So overall, church is a huge part of my life. I love being able to learn about God, and getting to fellowship with other believers and encourage and be encouraged. Church is awesome.

~Exercise
SURPRISE. Exercise is actually a part of my life. Haha. Stifled giggles I hear. . . . in any case, at the present moment, I am preparing for my first race ever!!!!!!!!!! (!!!!!!) So I'm super excited. Me and my cousin are running every Tuesday and Thursday. And sometimes by some miraculous chance, I am able to knock myself out of bed some other days of the week when it's still dark and freezing cold out. So although exercise is not a huge part of my life, it is worth taking note of it.



~Just Life
Life. &. Stuff. It's what I do. Chorus, mock trial, piano, and hangin with friends. So. Explanation of each: chorus is awesome. Currently we are working on Christmas music, which has been super fun. Usually we have one thing we perform at before Christmas, but this year we didn't, so we've been working on Christmas music all this school year so we'll be really good. We've been working on Carol of the Bells (acapella! We do it every year. It's pretty amazing), Angels Gloria, God Rest You Merry Gentleman (in a jazzy style), I Saw Three Ships, and my absolute favorite song we do in chorus: One King (which is by Point of Grace; but for the record, we sing it WAY better than Point of Grace. Seriously) So that is chorus right now. And then mock trial... ohmygosh we JUST got the case today, and I'm so flippin excited! I already know what part I want to do. Although the likelihood of me getting that part is small... but we shall see. I'm super excited. Btw, if you don't know what mock trial is, then look it up, 'cause I seriously don't feel like explaining it to someone for like the billionth time in my life. And if you don't feel like looking it up, just know mock trial is legend. Piano. Ah. My love/hate relationship with the thing will kill me yet. Currently I am playing a Concerto by Mozart (I'm drawing a blank on which one exactly), an Etude in A flat by Moszkowski (try saying THAT five times in a row), a nocturne by Chopin (my FAVORITE <3 <3 <3 ), Soft Lights, and a couple of hymns. I'm probably playing something else too but I forget... way too much to practice. And then last but not least, hanging out with my friends. Ahhh, my friends. They're pretty off the wall insane. But hey, I love them to death, and they love me, so it's all cool right? As of late, I have gone bowling with my youth group, hung out at some of my best friends house with some other awesome friends, eaten at Chick-fil-a after church on Wednesday nights, and went to a play tonight that had some of my friends in it. So basically friends fill up like half of my life, and I love that. <3


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So basically you're probably sick of me talking about my life. If you made it all the way through this post, I congratulate you and gape at your attention span.
Thank you.
G'night and God bless