GodStock is 1 day away!

hey y'all!
today was pretty good. better than they've been anyway. HILLCREST BEAT MAULDIN!!!! YEESS!!! GO RAMMSSS! haha the game was cool me candace & rachel painted up for it :] haha we're gunna paint up for GodStock tomorrow too, ch'yeah! i am just SOO glad its the weekend. not that its not gunna be busy because im swamped this weekend. GodStock ALLLL day tomorrow & then church Sunday. i really hope 1000 students show up at GodStock and i REALLY hope a TON of them get saved :] its gunna be great! & i cant wait to see what wonderful things God does! im excited about spending all weekend at new hope. even if it does mean being up till LATEEE saturday night cleaning up. haha.
well sorry its short
but its late
i love y'all!
God Bless!
- crystal jade


oh && GO RAMS!!!

have a healthy fear of God

hey y'all!
im pooped. i just got home from dance. and amy worked us really hard tonight. today was B day at school, i really dislike B day. bleh. today was another eh...alright day. im a little stressed about something right now...but God will make it okay :] im still workin on the GodStock thing, handed out more cards today! theres so many people with them at school. im really excited about it. i hope 1000 students show up! i know God can do it!
my devotion was on having a healthy fear [or great respect] of God. Hebrews 12:28 says, "Therefore, since we are reciving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe." we need to have a healthy fearful respect for God's power. real wisdom begins with a tremendous respect for Gods awesome power. God praises humility. so that is what we should show him. his greatest servents are humble people. we need not to care for our glory, but for the glory of God! my devotion book says "In God's kingdom the only way to acheive greatness is to shun it." and thats very true. we werent put here to gain glory for ourselves, our soul purpose is to live to glorify our Creator. God is all-knowing, and all-powerful, we must respect him and obey his commandments. because with pride, theres consequences. we need to respect God and be very fearful of disobeying him. God is great, and he deserves respect. remember, he created you, and this entire universe you live in. so show him some respect!
i love y'all!
God Bless!
- crystal jade

trust God's promises

hey y'all
today was okay. church was good. great lesson as always. but eh, it was just one of those days. schools becomming overwhelming and i just have some other stuff going on, but im praying about it. i am really excited about GodStock though. i think its going to be really fun. but newhope youth has A LOT of work to do. haha.
well anyway my devotion was on trusting God's promises. Hebrews 10:36 says, "You need to preservere so that when you have done the will of God, you will recieve what he has promised." God has made many promises to all of us, and he will keep every single one of them. the promises are found in the Bible! its our guide to life, and we need to take what it says to heart. including its promises. we also need to follow its commandments and spread its word! Gods prmises never fail, we should trust them all, and share them with everyone around us. Charles Swindoll said, "There are four words i wish we would never forget, "God keeps his word". which is true. you know friends may betray us, family might even betray us, im sure we've all had broken promises by someome, but God will NEVER betray us. hes always here, always listening, and always doing what he says he will do. we dont need to worry, we just have to trust in God and know that through him, everything will always be okay. hes only wants the best for us.
i love y'all!
God Bless!
- crystal jade

random thoughts :]

hey y'all!
today was the usual school day. soo dull & boring. haha. these 90 minute classes are rediculous. but im excited about telling everyone my amazing summer at church & stuff, i want people to realize how fun it really is to be involved in something bigger :] so...some random thoughts...

GodStock is really going to be amazing. we're trying to make it a big thing at Hillcrest. and Brad, Candace, & I created an event on Facebook and we invited almost 400 people, so we're really hoping to get a really big turnout!

I really want to see someone accept Christ and really take to heart what i have said to them when witnessing this year. i've been thinking about it, and though i've witnessed to alot of people, i dont think i've ever seen them accept Christ because of it, and i just think that would be a really amazing feeling. and just an amazing thing to see God do.

I am really going to try to live my faith out loud this year. i dont care if im an outcast and if im labled a Jesus Freak. thats what i want. i want people to see a difference in me. because i've gotten alot closer to God ever since i started going to New Hope.

whoever invented block scheduling needs to be beat. i really dislike it. i cant pay attention for 50 minutes, let alone 90 minutes. and its so confusing b/c i have A lunch one day, and C lunch the next. goodness i am going to get all jumbled up this year. and i am totally not looking forward to lugging my huge guitar case to school tomorrow. but what can ya do? haha.

i love y'all!
God Bless!
- crystal jade

first day back

hey y'all!
so today was the first day of my junior year. goodness gracious, i am NOT ready to be back at school. haha. the block scheduling is badd. i really dont like sitting there for and hour and a half every class. and i got so confused. haha. i got to hand out a bunch of GodStock cards today and will continue too all week. and tell people about church all summer and how fun its been. it was really neat. i really am going to try to step it up this year and let everyone see that im a Christian and that its REALLY great to have Jesus in my heart :] im really excited about my guitar class. it sounds really fun. and then tonight i went to dance and did contemporary & now im home.
my devotion was on making your actions conform to your beliefs. Matthew 7:20 says, "Therefore by their fruits you will know them. (NKJV)" we can say what we believe as much as we want, but it doesnt mean anything until we show others we mean what we say through our actions. my devotion book says, the sermons that we live are far more compelling than the ones we preach. the way we life is a reflection of what we truly believe. Lesslie Newbigin said "It is less improtant to ask a Christian what he or she believes about the Bible than to inquire what he or she does with it." we can read the bible until our hearts content but what we need to do is take it to heart and live by what it says. talking about our beliefs is one thing, living them is another. so show people what us Christians are made of! like mister allen said sunday night, if you squeeze a christian really hard, what should pop out?? JESUS!! haha.
i love y'all!
God Bless!
- crystal jade

entrusting your hopes to God!

hey y'all!
today was great. got up & went to church, great sermon Pastor Chad! and then i came home & hung out & then went back to church :] after the sermon me mitchell candace & kody went out in the field and attempted to play some sort of makeshift football, that was more like keep-away, and i ended up turning around, and runnig straight into mitchells hand, candace hit me in the face with the ball, and then i slipped and fell when trying to get the ball from mitchell. haha. then went out to eat with mitchell, megan, mrs rhonda, mr mark, mr lyle, and my brother at zaxbys. it was fun :]
my devotion was on entrusting your hopes to God. Isaiah 26:3, "You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you." we have to place our hope in God and the promises he gives us. if we feel discouraged, remember Psalm 31:24, "Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart, all you who hope in the Lord (NKJV). " we all face dissapointments and failures but these are only temprorary because we have God who has promised us eternal life. God always keeps his promises and so we should trust in him in everything we do. we shouldnt doubt him, because he will ALWAYS answer our prayers. we never need to be afraid to hope in God. hes there for us, just like my devotion book says, today, tomorrow, & forever.
i love y'all!
God Bless!
- crystal jade

be on guard against temptation

hey y'all!
today was great. i woke up & mitchell called & we talked for a little bit & then candace came & got me at 12 and we went back to her hourse & hung out & then went up to the church at 2 and hung around until mitchell & megan & dakoda got there & then we went to get icecream with mr allen, it was fun. last friday of the summer. my goodness that is sort of depressing. haha. at the moment, hillcrest is actually doing well. the score is 25-28 [TL Hanna of course] but we still are only down by three, which is amazing. b/c usually hillcrests first game of the season is a shutout. idk whats into them players tonight, it HAS to be a God thing. b/c we all know its a miracle if hillcrest wins a football game. haha
anyway, my devotion was on being on guard against temptation. we all are tempted with many things, but it is up to us to keep our guard up. Matthew 26:41 says, "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing but the body is weak." which is totally true. satan tempts us to get us to do things that will not please God. in our day & age we are tempted with many different things, but we have to put our faith to God and not give in to these temptations. Vance Havner said, "It is not the Word hidden in the head that keeps us from sin. It is the Word hidden in the heart." which is true. sometimes we have to forget what our head is telling us, and go with what our heart says. remember, Jesus is in our heart. and he will tell us what is right & what isnt. we need to avoid things that bring temptation to us and not give into it!
i love y'all!
God Bless!
- crystal jade