Showing posts with label Updates On Me and Mine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Updates On Me and Mine. Show all posts

Thursday, July 16, 2015

North Meets South {Part I}


Check it out, guys. This is my porch.
{I've always been in love with porches...}

So last week I invaded the coffee shop basement in search of boxes with which to pack up my Northern life. And I stuffed, and smashed and packing-taped that life into silent submission before squooshing it all into our 2005, Pontiac Montana van (nothing short of a miracle, right?!) for a sixteen hour drive to my house (my house?!!) in North Carolina.

After driving all night + making a quick stop at the Dollar Store (because we realized that I had forgot hangers for all my clothes. Woops!) we pulled into the driveway. At Last.

Rational people would have hauled their sleepy selves off to bed until later in the evening (when the Pritchard residence comes home from work.) Not us. We were too excited. Mom, Becca and I hauled every last bit of my new life into my new house, and promptly set to work.




                            This is some of the stuff Ethan and I hauled out of our cabin, into storage.
Here's a sneak-peak at some of my inspiration.
Yes. I'm a girly-girl.
Yes. Ethan is still okay with that.

Oh, yeah - and to top it all off: Before the trip was over, Mr. Pritchard and I had ourselves a gorgeous living room set. His Brother-in-law's parents were moving and needed to get rid of it...seriously, it was like that set was made for me!! Just exactly my taste. The rental we're moving into now is already furnished to the nines, but when we move into our actual house, we're gonna need some furniture. *Ta-da!

"For your Father knoweth what things ye have need of..."


                                                                
I love this guy...I was so, extremely excited when he made it home from work. Most people are aghast that we're getting married so soon, but they might feel otherwise if they only got to see their fiance once a month...trust me. It's not fun.

This is torture. I miss him like crazy.

But Twenty-three days 'til together forever!!

Monday, July 6, 2015

A Day In the Life...

Bonjour!


Anna here, taking a break from writing thank you notes to ease her writer's cramp, and stopping in for a quick ((over-do)) update on life in general. 



Mine, actually.

But you didn't know that.

Yesterday, my sweet, ultra-coordinated MOH (aka: Kara) pulled off a charming bridal shower for me. She did a fabulous job - what would I ever do without her?!


To see more pics of her handywork, click on over to her blog: HERE




Hanging out, waiting for the fireworks to start on the 3rd. (I'm 19 now, by the way...)


Oh, yeah. And I experienced an epic "Pinterest Fail" this morning. 

The "Listerine Foot Soak.." 

Yeah. Just don't even go there.

I've always had icky, wrinkled-ish feet, and I was trying to coax them into beautification for sandal-weather....but...yeah. Blue and green is ten times worse than...used, wrinkled and brown.


I ended up scrubbing them with hydrogen peroxide and baking soda to make them normal. ish. kinda.

The pic is included as persuasive evidence. ((My toes are rather humiliating - feel special that I cared this much about warning you not to soak your feet in blue mouthwash for 30 minutes. ;) ))






Moving on!

Yes...quite literally. I've packed up my life in a number of boxes (which I scrounged together from the coffee shop's basement). It's been fun...and slightly sentimental.

((The quilt Mom made for me when I was little..))

I'm curious to see how we're going to smash all this stuff into the van...we shall see...



Thank the Lord, everything's coming together!!!

Sunday, June 28, 2015

To the Bride

They printed my invitations pink and purple.

Two hundred and thirty dollars for pink and purple invitations.

Pink.

And.

Purple.


The weddingness of my week had not been going well at all. There was a conundrum with the dress, I had to order invitations three times, not to mention the issues with my veil, and some crazy-busy non-wedding-things that added to the pressure.

I needed to breathe.

But there really wasn't time for that.

After calling my sweet fiance and drowning him in my overwhelmed WHADAMIGONNADO moment, his solution was simple. "It's going to be okay, Anna. You get some sleep - but promise me you'll read a scripture before you go to bed."

I promised.

Paging through the new testament I found a chapter. Suddenly there it was, in all it's simplicity: Ask what you will.


"Wow. That's nice," I thought.

I flipped over to a different book. (Luke, I think). Again, it read; "Ask what you will."

And the light dawned. In essence, I was hearing straight from the Lord. "Anna, stop falling apart over things that I can handle. I care. Let me make your joy full again. Don't let this bring you down and steal the happiness I've given you."

Exactly right. Girls - being engaged is such an amazing thing; knowing you get to spend the rest of your life with your dream-come-true, hearing his voice on the phone every night, making plans together and, really, just loving - is what this stage is all about. Don't let the wedding, ((in all it's fairy-tale glory,)) mess that up.

I finally came to that realization after a week of over-thinking everything. Sunday service brought me back to the real focus of it all. Namely: God and God's plans for me; what God calls important.

Think about it. What does His plan entail for you? You and your man enjoying every minute of being engaged, or you being an exhausted mess because the seamstress hemmed your dress crooked?

We say: "Yes...but..."


Ask what you will.

"But, Lord, they said..."

Ask what you will.


"BUT THIS IS A BIG DEAL!!"

Ask what you will.

When you know you're in God's vindicated path for your life, no matter what obstacle (be it an awful printing job, discouraging remarks, whatever) you can go forward, pray, and laugh it off. As God once told Abraham, face to face; "Is anything too hard for the Lord to do?"

Nope.

So do yourself a favor and go with the flow. Focus on your man and your marriage.
Relax.
Do your best.
Let God work His wonders.

Don't let yourself stress. Skip all that drama and keep the added pressure off of your fiance and your family. (Remember going nuts doesn't affect just you.)

Make it a point to enjoy every single minute of this weddingishness - it only happens once!



John 16:24

Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.

(33) These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.


Sunday, June 14, 2015

Lazy Sunday Afternoons



::Today involves::
A craving for strawberry glace pie
The bug that perished in my coffee ((bleck))
Slouching on the couch
Trying to sit in the sun (which went behind a cloud)
Kara's sleepy sarcasm
Textin' my fiance 
A break from the wedding planning
Time to re-charge


And, Oh - on another note, gotta love these suits I found for the groomsmen.

((Ps. they fell for it! ROFLOL))


                      Yes. My sense of humor only becomes more dilapidated with less sleep.

Wednesday, June 10, 2015

Wedding Extravaganza



My life currently involves coffee, the phone, google search, pinterest, etsy shoppes,facebook messages, online receipts, driving around Wisconsin like crazy and conferring with my back up crew.

Back up crew? Why, yes! When I can't decide what kind of favors to have, or what hairstyle looks best, I ask my "team bride." They're awesome. ((Shout out to Kara, Mom and Aunt Faith)). On the North Carolina side, they're busy planning a post-wedding reception, and the rehearsal dinner. ((Shout out to Ethan's Mom and Rachael Pritchard!!))

Love those girls.




Today's conundrums involved the coffee bar, (Are these coffee sleeves not adorable?!) honey favors, and super-secret bridesmaid-gift shopping. (Mwahahahaha...)

Ethan does a great job of keeping me sane. (Well, as much as can be expected, anyway.) He makes me promise not to do anything on the computer after midnight, and is a sweet reminder that AS LONG AS WE GET MARRIED EVERYTHING'S OKAY!!!

Oh. And singing helps, too. I'm sure my family is getting awfully tired of it...but they get a break when I'm on the phone. ;)

But I no longer remember how to punctuate sentences (sorry), often get lost halfway through a thought, and occasionally suggest taking a shorter route on our walks because; "Yeah, it's cheaper.

....wait a second..."

It's gonna be beautiful, though :) I love how it brings everyone together in the flurry of frivolity. You can see the website HERE






Ps. I love peonies..

Thursday, May 14, 2015

On the town with Becca


We had already bought mom's mothers day gift...but it wasn't going to be here on time. A quick phone call between us girls and it was decided: we need flowers.

Like:

NEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEED.

Problem was, it was 7:00 on Mother's Day Eve and there were only a few withered clumps of nasty floral-like... things .... left in the store.

I hated them; but that was all there was. After agonizing in the Shopko "Card" aisle for forever-and-a-lifetime, trying to stay out of the other late-card-buyers' way, I sheepishly carried them up to the register. I mean, who buys their mother wilted, icky flowers on Mother's Day unless they're just ungrateful? This cashier must think I'm a nut.

I stared at those flowers, willing them to be beautifuller than they were.

They were still not beautiful.

With a long, horrible sigh I knew the truth; there was no way I was giving these to my incredible, deserving, sweet, selfless mamma. Shouldering my purse once more, I turned back.

WHEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRREEE AAAARRREE THE FLOWERS?!!!!!! In this whole huge town, there had to be one pretty bouquet left, suitable for a terrific lady.

Unfortunately, I was stuck in Green Bay with a grumpy GPS that was easily confused and frustratingly set on getting me lost. A flower shop was out of the question.

Rebecca (the poor girl agreed to be my shopping partner that night) skipped along beside me; said "hi" to the mannequins in DressBarn, and begged me not to look at anymore shirts.

"Um...I'm a little bit hungry. Where's a coffee shop?"

"I forgot my wallet, mind if I pay you back?"

"Did you know what I saw in the woods this morning? I thought it was grandpa, but it was actually a deer! I don't think I have any ticks - I only found one, and it must have been stuck in a vein, because it really hurt. But how could it have gotten on me?"

"Mom and Aunt Heather won the baby-food tasting game at Nina's baby shower. I thought it was disgusting. We played a game where we had to put on a blind-fold and find safety pins in a bowl of rice. Catherine won, because she guessed "twelve" and the answer was "thirteen."

"I don't think there's going to be anything decent in this store. We shouldn't even go in."

"Do you want some gum? I have a orange-mango-kiwi kind, and a watermelon kind, too. Which kind do you want? Or, do you want some of my chocolate?"

"Plllllllleeeeeeeeeaaaaassssuuuuuh...not another shirt store!"

At long last, I procured some beautiful flowers. Utterly exhausted, Becca led me to the car. I was praying I could remember how to get home - the GPS never failed to forget the road renovations and lead us around in perilous loops.

Careening through Green-Bay evening traffic, construction, and Agnes's (the name of our GPS) ruthless commands, I tried to read the directions (which no longer applied, because I was on Oneida, the directions applied to "Mason" street). I turned around, like, twice. Becca was not phased in the slightest.

"Yeah...Jason had a bloody nose at church the other day. Esther did, too. I wonder what causes that?" Not thinking I had heard her, she discreetly reached over and turned down the music. "Were you listening?"

Oh...but I love that girl.



Saturday, May 9, 2015


Lord, thank you for giving me such a beautiful Momma. So many times I've looked around at children whose parents aren't interested in their lives; who don't take time to say "I love you" with more than words.

 I think about all the times she's held me when I cried; all the days that she's loved me in spite of the helplessness she must have felt. Her constant selflessness and reliance on you is what taught me to trust in your name. She and Dad didn't have to tell me how real you are (although they did). They just simply lived - and through their living, I first learned of your great love.

Thank you - that I didn't have to grow up wondering if someone cared about me.
Thank you - for arms to hold me when fear shook my footsteps.
Thank you - for someone who taught me to serve you with all my heart, soul and mind.
Thank you - for a Godly woman who raised me to be an "Esther" in a world of easy standards and loose living.
Thank you - for her words of comfort that still give me courage to be confident in who you made me. I know you have a plan for my life. Here I am; send me.
Thank you - for not taking her away from us, when we might have had to grow up alone. You are infinitely gracious. I praise you for knowing our needs.

Bless her now, Lord. Give her wisdom and strength for another year of serving, teaching and trusting you for the answers. Remind her that nothing she does goes unseen - her example inspires so many, and I know you have an amazing reward waiting for her. Help her to know how much we need her -how much we love her, and grant her heart's desires.

In Jesus Name
Amen

Tuesday, May 5, 2015

Tradition is Tradition



It's become an annual thing around here - once the weather gets warm(ish) the Pyatskowit kids just have to let out all the pent-up energy from another long, Wisconsin winter.


“ A brother shares childhood memories and grown-up dreams.” - Unknown


Run for your life!!



"Sometimes, you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory." - Dr. Suess

Thursday, April 30, 2015

Jared and Betsy's Wedding


My stay in North Carolina was an excited blur of activity while Ethan and I helped get everything ready for his sisters' wedding.
Aka: hauling ginormous loads of gravel up the side of a mountain to pave the faulty walk-way, picking up flowers....picking up more flowers...running to the dollar store for candles...cutting stumps for table decor...setting up...taking down...carrying...moving.... decorating...etc, (That last part was especially exciting since I've always considered myself to be creatively challenged when it comes to arches, centerpieces, and the like.)

"Here - just put this display together."
Me: "Um....okaaaaay..."


But altogether, it was fabulous. I mean - how could it not be? I got to spend the whole thing with the kind of gentleman who makes coffee in the morning, picks flowers for my hair, gives me his jacket, always opens the door, and prays with me before sending me back home. :)

Friday, April 17, 2015

Gullible.

Nope. This isn't my Dad - in case you didn't know.

"Oh, hey... Did you try, well - C'mere."

There was nothing strange about Dad wanting me to try some new, exotic food. (I mean; we tried cow guts last year. Seriously.) So as I followed Dad into the kitchen, I didn't suspect the tiniest bit of foul play.

But I should have.

"You need to try some of Roger's chili."

"Oh, sure!" - and I grabbed a spoon. "Is this spicy?"

The silence and sneaky grin shoulda given it all away.

But, still, I gingerly licked the spoon.

.....And then....

Everything was absolutely fine. A moment of simple reflection revealed a very well-flavored, delicious half-a-spoonful of chili.

Then my tongue started to tingle....

...And the roof of my mouth caught on fire. Tears came to my eyes as I groped for a carton of milk in the 'fridge.

Was he laughing, you ask? That's a dumb question. Sorry; but it just is. "That's what ghost peppers taste like." He grinned. Taking another swig of milk, I glared at him over the rim of my cup. As it turns out, he took me out for ice cream later - so I guess forgiveness can be granted, in spite of his rather spicy sense of humor.  ((Because, you know, ice cream fixes everything;))

Sunday, April 5, 2015

What am I going to do with him...



  Fourteen hours is a long ways away. Two months without seeing each other is even longer. There comes a point when six-hour phonecalls don't quite cut it and you just, well... miss him like crazy!
 I came home after one, long Friday afternoon to find a package on the kitchen counter. 
From North Carolina.


Addressed to me.

Oh, what am I going to do with that boy...Isn't he sweet?!

Ps. Yeah - I know my last post was about my boyfriend, too....but, hey! I think I'm allowed to be infatuated, no?


Thursday, March 26, 2015

You Know Your Guy is Amazing If...


He prays through on everything.
Works hard.
Loves to scare you half to death.
Never. Ever. Under any circumstances misses a chance to call you.
Cares about every detail of your day.
Accepts you for you who you are.
Treats you like a princess.
Gags down his coffee - just because you ask him to have some with you.
Whistles in the morning. (When I can barely even croak)
You miss him like crazy.

An' girls - don't settle for less. Wait for him. It's worth it.

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

A Breath of Summer Hope

You can't be unhappy when the sun is shining, the birds are singing and the world slowly comes alive again. Yes - spring has visited Wisconsin. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that all this gloriousness will be trumped by an April snowstorm in a few weeks, but that's okay. We've smelled the wet dirt, soaked a little sunshine into our white, aching-for-warmth faces and taken long, wet walks in the gentle light of actual sunshine -  that is felt. And loved. And thrills me to my frozen core.

I love this time of year.

It's been so awesome to take a few minutes and throw open the windows, do a little spring cleaning and just close my eyes in the warmth of it all.

What's that? Oh, you think this is ridiculous? Try living in the frozen tundra for 15ish years and see if you don't feel like singing when the temperature gets over 30 degrees!! ;)

Thursday, March 5, 2015

An' we forgot a camera.



I made him drink coffee every morning.


He taught me how to drive a stick shift.


He talked me into riding the ski lift up the side of the mountain...



and I actually came back alive.


He gave me a tour of the firehouse

We went out for Mexican.



I tried to make him drink a "Jumpstart" (it involves three shots of espresso. 'Nuff said.)

He asked me to sing in church...and didn't inform me that his church streams all over the world.


We went for a walk by a frozen waterfall.

And both of us forgot the camera ((which explains the picture, snapped on Ethan's cell phone))


In short; it was terrific. North Carolina is perfectly amazing - especially if you have a good tour guide.  ;)

Friday, February 27, 2015

Forever


I'll love you forever
I'll like you for always
As long as I'm living
My Baby you'll be...

In the fading gray of evening she sang while my heavy eyes struggled to see.

When I squirmed, she held me closer. If I cried, she stroked my hair. The unspoken rule was simple; she wasn't letting go.

And it's always been that way. When icey little feet pattered to her bed in the middle of the night; when small flashing eyes glared their rebellion; when a stubborn pouting lip spoke out with silence - she embraced them all, held them close and didn't give up.

Because that's what mothers do.

Unlike other things, years never changed my Momma's steadfast, loving faithfulness. "Charity suffereth long and is kind." It didn't matter what time of night I came to ask for help, nor what shameful behavior made her want to crawl under a floorboard - Mom has always been Mom; praying, selfless, steady.

As Abraham Lincoln said - "No man is poor who has a Godly mother." I agree; for I have been blessed beyond measure with the amazing lady who has always been there for me. I'm so glad to be her daughter and hope that I will be as organized, prayerful and unselfish as she has been to me.

With that, I say "Happy Birthday" to a personal hero of mine.

I'll love you forever.



Tuesday, February 17, 2015

The Ballad of Tuesday


At last there came an awesome day
that I had off from work
And it seems that, well - that is to say,
this line rhymes with "jerk."

But back on subject...Uh, yes, that's right..
..my day was downright thrilling
But I can't think of what to write today
Not even for a shilling.

So I wrote this empty-headed poem, here
just to fill the void
Because if I didn't, I'm afraid - I fear
You guys would get annoyed.

So here you go. Be thrilled. Be wild.
May joy just fill your heart
Cause even if this aint inspired
I still played the author's part. 

The End.

Ps. It's cold.



Tuesday, February 10, 2015

And There was a knock at the door.


It was a sleep-deprived sort of morning. One of those mornings when you grope for a cup of coffee, can't find anything that you would particularly love to wear in the closet, and wonder how on earth it can be possible to have such huge circles under your eyes.

I had kinda/sorta/alittlebit started to get a handle on my to-do list for the day, and was in the middle of practicing some songs on the piano...in those ugly no-fun keys like, Ab and Bb and...just, bleh... and somebody was knocking at the door.

"Hey, Anna! Go get the door." How weird. Most of the time, the grand "Opening of the Pyatskowits' door" goes to whoever runs up to open it first. I don't run, and I don't race - so, in essence, I practically never get the door.

Whatever.

The lock was stuck and it took me forever to get it unlatch. With a click and a whine, the door swung open, and there in the cold fresh-air of February, was the florist. And she was holding this huge bouquet of beautiful flowers, wondering who "Anna" was.

I was shocked. How? What? For Me? For Real? You're kidding right?

But, no. It was all very real and very terrific and very beautiful. I had no clue...

But, I guess, that's Ethan for you :) :) :)

And of course, I just couldn't have not  been wearing a big comfy sweater (and looking like I hadn't slept in a week) on the first day that I got flowers...and Kara takes the picture before I can go change...


Monday, February 2, 2015

Skiing // Awkward and Aweseome


So, why am I doing this again? I looked up at the rather large disclaimer posted above the ski rental/desk/thingy. About five-zillion reasons why, just as I thought, this was a horrible, terrible MISTAKE.

"You have to try it," he said. "You'll be fine," he said.

Still, as the glowing lights of "Navarino Slope" came slowly closer,I was pretty sure I was facing my last hours. And all because I made him try a cup of coffee...

Awkward - Trying to walk around in ski boots. "kwa-thump kwa-thump kwa-thump..."

Also Awkward - I only fell four times through the night. Three of those times were on ((off, rather)) the ski lift. Oh, bother.

Awesome - GOOD NEWS PEOPLE!! If you point the toes of your skis together, it is impossible to go overly fast. Therefore, there is actually a slight chance that you'll make it to the end of the bunny hill without perishing in a sparkling cloud of snow.

Awkward - When you fall on the hill and your left ski is trapping your right one and your ankle is stuck and you can't get up without breaking it and the little thingy that holds your boot in the ski won't unlatch and the snowboarders are about to plow you over... so. You just sit helplessly on the side of the lift, trying to duck out of the way of the in-coming up-goers until the little thingy finally comes un-jammed and the paramedic walks by and asks you if you're alright and what's the matter? And you're just fine - if you can get up the other half of the lift, that is...

Awesome - Ice skating experience is fairly handy when it comes to "how to stop." I was superdy thrilled to find that stopping wasn't hard at all.

Awkward - When somebody from North Carolina can ski better than you. Downright Hilarious.

Oh, yeah. And between the two of us - don't bother trying something "a little more challenging." Stick with the bunny hill or things won't go well.
The end.




Monday, January 12, 2015

Hullo five-in-the-morning




            :The Good:

 My coffee shop is warm and smells amazing. A few seconds away from the freezing out-of-doors and all the lights will be on...

      :The Bad: 

I've always been awful at frosting doughnuts. I'm not sure how I grew to be old and still can't make a doughnut with chocolate frosting look aesthetically pleasing. Oh, well...it's on there, I guess...

        :The Ugly: 
              ((worstest of all worsts.))


                     I forgot my breakfast. 
                     And my lunch. 

I was so excited about the homemade granola I was going to have this morning...and I forgot it. 7 and 1/2 hours is a long time to go without food. A real long time. Hopefully that half-and-half will really stick to my ribs...

It ended up being a good day, though. I bought some "extra turkey" and "extra cheese" and squirted on some "diet Caesar salad dressing." Yup. Just as delightful as it sounds...heh. Naaaaah...when you're starving, you can eat a whole lot of things and call them delicious.

My boss and I had some fun conversations and this sweet, elderly lady informed me that I looked like "the breath of spring." 

And I get to take a nap.

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGETTATAKEANAPPYYYYYY!!!

    OOPS. Did I say that out loud?


Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Retreat Lessons


Youth Camp is always incredible - especially when you come expecting God to move in a special way for YOU, personally. As usual, the Lord met with us and our faith was encouraged.

Sometimes, as the months pass and the "daily grind" takes it's toll, you forget what God spoke to you in those special moments or how He dealt with your heart. Thus, I'm just writing down a few of the things that spoke to me, or stood out in the services. Thought you might be blessed by it, too. :)



  • "How do you know God loves you? Because He said He does." There are so many arguments about "If God were real...If God cared...If God was so loving...then, Why?!" The above statement is also the perfect answer for Satan's reasons why "You don't deserve God's love anymore." It's true, we don't. But Christ makes us worthy.

  • I was reminded not to be so lackadaisical in my walk with the Lord. We're supposed to be watching the signs of the times and preparing ourselves - zealously waiting with great anticipation. Plan for a thousand years - but don't turn a blind eye to the hour we're living in!

  • It was incredible to me how the ministers who were preaching not only spoke about some things that I had been asking God about, but they were using the exact phrases I had prayed in my quiet, "prayer closet" conversations with the Lord. Who says God isn't mindful?!

  • "He heard you the first time." Sometimes we don't feel anything when we pray; no mighty rushing wind, no ray of light piercing through the darkness, no audible voice - And we feel deflated and worried, like something isn't right and God refuses to listen to us in our time of need. Have faith. If there's no besetting sin to hinder you and your heart is clear, don't think He isn't listening. He heard you the first time.

  • I've always thought it was so sad to see all the girls these days who mope that "I'm never going to get married. Nobody likes me. Nobody could ever want me. There's no guys in my church. Here I am, just graduated high school, and nobody's interested." (Yeah...the syndrome of desperate 18 year olds). I've never quite gathered the courage to write a post about it, but I've always wished I could tell them: "Hey! We trust God for salvation, for a job, to keep our family members, to make a way for us, and is He not faithful?! There's no way He's incapable of bring the right one, at the right time."

    Yup, you guessed it - that was brought up in the sermons, too. (And I was equally encouraged.)

  • Never, ever give up on the loved ones who have "gone out into the world."  All of our faith was raised a notch (and I'm pretty sure there wasn't a dry eye in the whole sanctuary) when Brother Jonathan got up and testified of how the Lord had brought Him back to the truth. One of Jonathan's friends (and I'm sure, his parents, youth group and church) had refused to give up on him and continually brought his name before the throne of grace. It took three years, but at Winter Youth Retreat 2014, God honored those prayers. If God could do it in his situation, I know God can do it in mine.


    Okay. Before I write a whole book, I had better cut it off. In summary, I was so blessed and encouraged at retreat this year. God's not dead - and He cares about young people and their questions. Never let Satan tell you that your too far gone, too small or too despicable for God. God loves you because He said He does, and there is no repentant heart that God won't cleanse and make whole again.

    God Bless.