Hey everybody

Last Thursday May 22nd, 2008, my mom was driving me and my sister to school and we were listening to our local Christian radio station. The station has a news update every hour and the new update came on. The lady said “a tragedy for the Chapman family” I was thinking oh my gosh who died. and then they said  the name and I almost started crying. The name was Maria Sue Chapman. The youngest daughter of  Mary Beth and Steven. Maria went to be with the Lord on May 21st, 2008. She was 5 years old and for reasons that we don’t understand God called her home. She was playing in the family drive way and her brother was driving the car and he didn’t see Maria in the drive way. the name of the brother was not named and i think that is good. I feel like the whole world shouldn’t know which son killed Maria. Just because he did kill her that doesn’t mean that he did it on purpose. That’s exactly why they call it an accident.

I felt deeply saddened for this family. They do so much good for some many families by providing grants through their ministry Shaohannah’s Hope for families who want to adopt children. The grants that Shaohannah’s Hope provides makes it possible for families to witness a miracle by adopting a child from a third world country or even the United States. The mircle of adoption is something that opens the eyes of so many.

So please pray for those orphans who have yet to be adopted and if God is tugging on your heart to adopt a child then pray about it and start some research. I know this blog is for teens but even I want to adopt kids when I get older. So I believe its not to early to start thinking about adopting kids. I really have a heart for kids and orphans so I think that God is calling me to adopt some kids.

As you are praying for the orphans of this world, pray for Mary Beth and Steven as they greive the death of 5 year old Maria Sue Chapman. Please pray that God would comfort the Chapman family in this time of tragic grieve. Pray that this would be a time for the Chapman family to not only greive but come closer to God and understand more of who God is.

Have a great summer everyone! I will posting periodically during the summer.

God Bless!

Jessica 

Below is Jess’ second blog article. Her article made me think of something my dad told me once when I was a little girl. My mom and dad were both 19 when they got married (they’ve been married over 40 years now). I asked my dad, “If you could go back in time, would you still marry mom?” He answered, “If I had a thousand lives to live, I’d marry your mom in every one…but I would never again do it at 19!”

Hey guys,

 

Alot of times in this world we hear about all the celeberity gossip. I don’t like to listen to the gossip even though it is interesting sometimes. This gossip is the story of people’s lives. I don’t really think that we should be so interested in other people’s lives so much that we track their lives. I think we should leave the celebirties alone and let them live their lives. But yet we find this in Christian music to. One of my favorite artisits, Bethany Dillon recently got married to Shane Barnard(Shane is from the band, Shane&Shane). The couple tied the knot March 29th, 2008. When the news of Beth and Shane’s engagment came out I was so surprised. I didn’t even know that Bethany was dating anyone. It just seemed sad to me that a christian music star had to keep her relationship in the shadows so that the christian media would not stop spreading it. But once the word was out, it was all over the place and people had alot of opinions about it to. I personally thought that Bethany was to young at 19 to get married to Shane who is 33. I just don’t think the age difference is very good for the two to get married. I also thought that Bethany was sending a bad message to her fans who are mostly 10-16 year olds. The message that Bethany was sending was that its ok at 19 to get married. I mean yes Bethany is mature but 19 is just a little young to me. Even though we may have opinions about Shane and Bethany, God only knows what is best for them. It was in God’s plan for the two to get married.

 

so next time you watch a show like ”ET” or “Extra” think about what you are watching on your screen. you are watching someone’s life that has been exposed to the public. so instead turn off the tv and give that celebirty some privacy to live their life the way they chose.

My pastor recently read the opening paragraph from Alex and Brett Harris’ book, “Do Hard Things: A Teenage Rebellion Against Low Expectations.”  The title alone is a brain-bend.

Some of you may have heard of Joshua Harris (who wrote the popular book, “I Kissed Dating Goodbye”). Alex and Brett are his younger twin brothers. And they, like their older brother, have a gift for writing – the kind of writing that can inspire young readers to live life outside the Boring Box.

I read the book a day or so ago in one sitting. I don’t always read 230-page books in one sitting. But when you are stuck in a plane on a runway for three hours, you don’t have much of a choice! My opinion is that this is a fantastic book and even though it is written by teenagers, for teenagers – I was tremendously blessed and convicted by nearly every page.

The book is a challenge for teenagers to see their teen years, not as a prolonged decade of childhood to be squandered playing video games and watching TV, but to be harnessed and used to do hard things – great things – that can change the world.

Bret and Alex have a website TheRebelution.com. Check it out!

Here is the first paragraph of their book, “Do Hard Things.”

Most people don’t expect you to understand what we’re going to tell you in this book. And even if you understand, they don’t expect you to care. And even if you care, they don’t expect you to do anything about it. And even if you do something about it, they don’t expect it to last.

Well, we do.

Ever feel like nobody understands you?

Ever wish you had that super special best friend?

Ever worry that you are too ugly and that no one will ever love you?

Ever wonder if you are the only one who feels this way?

This blog is for all of you girls out there who are being bullied by the “What If” monster. We’re going to talk about all sorts of cool stuff and hopefully make some friends and tackle those pesky fears once and for all.

Save the Date isn’t just some catchy title – it is a mission. Are you prepared to accept the challenge?  Put dating aside for a second and let’s work on getting our hearts and minds confident and strong and healthy so that when we do date – our relationships are rooted in solid, meaningful, and pure foundations.

You are created in the image of God. You were put on this earth to reflect HIS glory! Do not settle for anything less that the absolute best God has to offer. Worried you’ll be left to wait too long? Worried Mr. Right will never come along? Worried you’ll wind up with some “nerd” if you date a guy from church? Don’t worry about it…you’re normal! Post a comment and let’s start talking about it.

Got something private to talk about?  Feel free to drop me a line at: std.savethedate@gmail.com and I will send you a note of encouragement.

I am looking forward to getting to know you!

Your friend,

VeeJay (Vicki Joy)