Monday movies

So here in the burg the dollar theater (now the dollar 50 theater) has monday movies for 75 cents. So, we decided we should def see one last movie together. Jen looked up movies and most we had already seen because well, the dollar theater is like THE THING to do, and its cheap..BUT lucky for us they had just started playing the movie :"Letters To God" So we thought that sounded pretty good and we took our 75 cents for a good time. Sarah wasnt able to come which was a bummer but she was there in spirit. Now, i dont know if any of you are planning on seeing this..so i wont spoil the movie for you..BUT i cant remember EVER crying that much in a movie. The plot of the movie is about a little boy with cancer who write letters to God and changes lives through the ministry of his own life. talk about a tear jerker. The girl behind us was crying so bad she had the loud sobs (you know you hate those cause once they start you cant seem to stop them) On the upside i thought to myself, "Self, if you do lose it no one will hear you in this theater." Im not sure if the movie was that touching or that fact that any movie where the Lord changes lives just gets me, or maybe even the fact that it was the last time i would be sitting with my roommates in the theater before we graduate..but man i had a hard time composing myself. We decided to nix the pic since our eyes were all red and everyone was kinda sad anyway.
The message of the movie was good and it had me thinking about things. One of the exciting (and scary) parts about graduating is the "all in his hands" mentality that comes with moving on and waiting upon the Lord for WHATEVER his will is. Recently the discussion among the five of us has been the uncertainty of the upcoming year. And lets face it, it's more than just the upcoming year, it's knowing we have to go it without four girls standing beside you. I was moved by the verse at the end of the movie. No matter what lies ahead knowing that we are literally a letter from Christ, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, gives us courage to have faith that moves mountains. I am so thankful for something better than ink in my life. In time of change, what could be more comforting than the permanence of God. (indelible: that which cannot be removed. )

2 Cor. 3:3
"You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts."

Day TWO-All Fired Up Pottery Painting

   As part of our fabulous week of endings..we decided to finally use the gift certificates that Lib gave us for Christmas and go paint pottery together. All Fired Up is a pottery painting place that has tons of plates, cups, bowls, figurines, frames, vases, etc. that you can pick out to paint. Once you've picked out what you want to paint you go over to the paint station and pick your colors. There are SO many colors so sometimes it can take forever to pick out what you want. I went with specked red and black because i wanted to do a tree on my plate. It's a really neat atmosphere where you just sit and paint and listen to music. Even if you aren't that creative there is something wonderful about being able to just paint and enjoy quiet time listening to music. One of the great things about being such close friends is that we dont always have to entertain each other as much as it really is just nice to be in each others company.
 It always takes a good amount of time painting the pottery because you want to wait for each coat to dry. Periodically one of us will stop and ask what the others think we should do next, paint next, which color to choose, etc. By the end we actually ending up spending a good part of the day there. The worst part is you have to wait like 2 weeks before you can get it because they have to put it in the kiln and then it gets a great glossy look. oh, and your colors totally change, which is very exciting. Overall a successful and very fun day. i cant wait to see how it turns out! Enjoy the photos below!

until tomorrow.
Leslie

      

DAY ONE-Falwell Farm Senior Picnic

As promised i am beginning my blog documenting the entire last week of my college life with my roommates. Today one of the biggest events of the year happens. For seniors, and seniors only, Jerry Jr. and Becky Falwell (our chancelor and his wife for those of you who do not know) have all seniors over at their farm. Now, let me first start by saying that this is not some po-dunk farm...in fact, this was the most beautiful place ever.
We made sure to get their extra early because the first 500 seniors got free, yes FREE t-shirts (which by the way were fabulous and we were soo excited). We signed up to do horseback riding. This was surely eventful because thus far i had gone through my life never riding a horse (mainly because i think they are stinky animals that are hard to control) which really, they are stinky animals and "whisky" my horse desired to eat grass and disobey every command i gave him (maybe he sensed i thought he was stinky and dumb). To be honest, i think i can go the rest of my life never riding a horse again. but hey, it was def something cool to do.

   

Then we ate free food and got a picture with the man. the man is jerry jr. and so that was really cool.

Becky told us before we leave we should def go check out the house, which i mean Lindsay and i are all about checking out homes so we jumped right on that. all i have to say is wow. HGTV has nothing on this massive and amazingly beautiful house. One of the rooms had these HUGE, i mean HUGE beanbag like chairs, that literally i want more than anything else in my house. below is a picture of this

What a great way to cap off the beginning of the end...more tomorrow..

-Leslie

this week.

The most surreal week of my life is about to begin. I graduate college in exactly a week from today. May 15th. i have been staying up late, my mind swirling with thoughts about the ending of my college career coming near. Moving out with my four best friends who i have lived with since freshman year..is well, sad. No one can understand the depth of the friendship i share with these girls. For 3 of those years i have shared a bed next to Lindsay. In one week we move across the country..possibly the world from each other. A new phase i am both excited and nervous about. I am so thankful for the sweetness of these last moments together. i am fully prepared for a week of hugs, tears, and the butterflies i get in the pit of my stomach when something new and unknown is about to happen. They way i felt four years ago when i walked on the hall of 33-3 and had no idea the Lord was about to bless with me not one lifelong friend..but 4. As a tribute to this week i am going to blog every, yes every, day. enjoy what my words will not adequately describe....

(top to bottom: freshman, sophomore, junior, senior)

        

“Much of the vitality in a friendship lies in the honoring of differences, not simply in the enjoyment of similarities.”

Fence Riders

"i know it dont make sense for those who ride the fence, but i'm sold out to Christ. You call it loosening up, LOOSENING it up, i call it Spiralin' down...."

I often wonder what it takes for people to come to a point where they completely deny everything they once believed in. This week i read an article about an artist whose music i loved who has just came out as a active homosexual. I literally grieved over this article. There was not even a hint of conviction or remorse for their lifestyle..in fact, they denied that scripture even addresses this issue as wrong. REALLY?! I mean, i can understand this for someone who doesn't believe in God, or see the bible as truth..but this is a professing Christian whose old music was extremely scriptural. I was so grieved that they had taken the lies of the enemy and given up their position to be a light in to a literally dying world.  Now, i want to be careful not to point a finger and "stone" this artist to death. Sin is epidemic, and we all struggle with things. I am not even trying to place her particular sin as worse..my point is..When have we become so deceived by the enemy, that absolutely truth, black and white, right and clearly wrong, have become areas that are subjective to our personal interpretations.
        If the word of God is not ALL true, than NONE of it is true. 


And hey, it's not just this artist..one of my long time favorite artist has thrown their gospel message completely out the window to promote their own political venues. I went to 3 concerts of this musician and by the 3rd concert i stopped listening to their music. Why? Because somewhere along the way they forgot that Christ had literally given them a platform for the gospel..and yet, it was less and less important  in light of their popularity, clever views, and shock value. And wouldn't you know..these two are touring together. misery loves company huh?

All week i have kept thinking about the Jimmy Needham song, fence Riders. (quote above). i love the song, because now, in our society..Telling someone that living a homosexual lifestyle is wrong, for that matter SIN is wrong, and denying his will for ours is wrong, well all that means is you haven't evolved into our society. Praise God he continues to work in our lives and through the work of the Holy Spirit we find conviction to change the wrong in our life. Because Christ loves us in light of our sinful lives..we are called to do the same. And thank God that he loves us even when we deny his truth.

So like Jimmy: you call it loosening up,

I CALL IT spiraling down..

1 John 1:6
  "If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth."

hidden place.

"I cannot see with HUMAN eyes
       The SECRET plans you have devised
 My heart is full as i contemplate
         The frailty and the fullness
Oh i MARVEL at your goodness -- to me.

But for now i REST in this in between
  In the heavy clouds of this WAITING
Knowing you are as close as the clothes i wear
   These hours, my soul will SAVOR
You surround me as i waver

WHO AM I TO HAVE KNOWN SUCH FAVOR?

it's a gettin' closer...

"Oh every day it's 'a getting closer
Going faster than a roller coaster. "
                       (James Taylor)

On my way back to school today, windows rolled down, my hair going crazy in the wind, pollen in my face (well, so it wasn't exactly picturesque..but hey, it's real life) i had a little James Taylor playing in the background and an old song of his was playing (another day). i was singing along thinking about the fabulous weekend with Daniel and realizing how every day we are closer to marriage. This weekend we celebrated his birthday and after sufficiently stuffing our faces with chocolate cake we talked about marriage and being excited to graduate and get married..all in the same year. Even though there is like tons to be done..there is this excitement about being able to come home to each other. To start something new, together. I wonder sometimes, if married life will be anything like we imagine. In ten years will we laugh at how differently things were from what we thought? Will we smile at how accurate we were? There is so much expectation and even more questions..and yet, there are days the excitement seems like it couldn't possibly grow any more.

Right around the corner from something big...