Moolah- (n) slang term for $

Money, money, money, money...money! (go ahead-sing the song) Why does moolah tend to control every aspect of life? Can’t do this, can’t go there, I have to buy these, how long is my hair?? Ok, ok-I just put in that last one cuz it rhymed (but, I do cut my own hair now haha). God has really been speaking to me about sharing and giving with a compassionate heart. He’s referring to sharing food, the laundry room, everything else in the house, giving time, resources, smiles, money...


Here's a little story: Let's face it, it's frustrating to me when I reach for a piece of gum from my bag and then 5 people around me either see my hand grabbing the pack of minty goodness or it wafts up into their nostrils as I slowly and quietly peel away the wrapper. Dude, my mom sent me that Big Red from home; I bought that Extra with my own Australian coins! Alright, why does this kind of thing bother me? It really shouldn't be a big deal.

I came to a simple realization—that when something isn’t mine (like a new pack of gum left behind at my house with nobody to claim it..woohoo!) then I don’t mind giving all of it away, since it was never mine to begin with. God was like, “Briana, nothing on Earth is truly yours, so, like this gum, you shouldn’t have a problem with giving freely, cheerfully, and willingly to others who may need it more than you.” Whoa, wait a minute! I have a budget, things to buy, places to go, a stomach to fill…and you want me to just keep giving and thinking of others needs before my own? God, you're asking too much, right? WRONG. I’m blessed to bless others. Period. And guess what? Even if you’ve heard this before, you've read it a million times, been there-done that..blah, blah. I get it; I do, but check it out one more time:

“One man gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty. A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed. People curse the man who hoards grain, but blessing crowns him who is willing to sell.” [Proverbs 11:24-26]

Did you catch that? When you refresh someone else, God will refresh you--Because you're not focused on trying to refresh yourself, God takes care of it for you. What a relief! I can write from experience that He will keep this promise, but you'll never know how He's going to do it; which is exactly what makes life so curiously fun!

Now take a look at verse 27: "He who seeks good finds goodwill, but evil comes to him who searches for it." Hello! So, this is my mission: to seek good, not evil; and not to be a hoarder!

Sacrifice Releases Power

So, I really want to have at least one entry per month…if not for any other reason than at the end of the year to see every month listed on the left side with an arrow leading to a blog. It wouldn’t be complete if I skipped over one! But I keep putting this off. Why? Holy jeepers, it’s the end of JULY already and I have so much in my heart that I want to share. Maybe I don’t do it because I sort of have a theme to every day of my life and then when I get behind in writing about them I feel overwhelmed. Of course, I write in my personal journal, but not everything has to be public knowledge. (And not everything would be that interesting to you anyway) Wear your heart on your sleeve? Yeah ok, well-don’t wear all your organs on your sleeve (it gets a bit messy...). There’s just something about sharing personal stories and lessons I’ve learned etc. with other people. For me, sometimes I save the special ones so I can bring something new up in one-on-one conversations. If everyone knows about everything you’ve done with your life, then nothing will be refreshing; no more inspiring revelations to bring to the table. No light bulbs will be going off in their heads because most of the time, let’s face it, as soon as someone realizes they’ve heard a story before, their brain shuts off. And just the fact that they’ve already heard it somehow becomes the grounds for them to puff up with pride—like they’ve taken ownership of your story and no longer need to listen for the punch line or underlying message. Do you know what I mean? Maybe I’m the one with the pride issue, but I like contributing to conversations and taking people off guard when they realize I actually have something legitimate to say. haha! Did I actually just write that? It’s true. People underestimate me, but you know… I find that I kind of like it that way because I’d rather be the underdog than the arrogant know-it-all.

All that aside (albeit the reason for my general, not always so up-close-and-personal notes)…Encouragement that I have for you right now: A major change of subject, but this is what I thought of. I’d like you to ponder what you can sacrifice for the sake of others. John Richard Wimber put it this way, “Sacrifice releases power. The greater the sacrifice, the greater the power released.” Do you truly know what it means to think of others before yourself? Have you ever really tried to live out this way of thinking? I’m starting to grow more in this area of my life-not just because I’m off in a different country and am learning to live closer to God while I’m at Bible college, but because it’s exactly what He asks me to do. We’re supposed to be like Jesus and serve others with Him in mind. But hey, I’m not forcing you to wash other people’s feet, although if the opportunity arises-maybe that IS what you should do… I am just suggesting that you should do a heart check—perhaps a “where am I spending my money” check or “how much time do I waste on things that only benefit me” check. Die to yourself, kneel at His feet, and think about the power that He’ll bestow upon you when you willingly decide to give up your current desires. Practical advice: Do the dishes for your mom, open up to your family about your personal life, answer those emails the first time you read them, offer to pay for the coffee of the person standing in front of you at Starbucks, stick around to hear the real answer to the everyday questions you ask people, get a baby-sitter for a night to spend some quality time with your spouse, set up the chairs at church, sit down and make a list of all the people you told you would pray for..and then actually pray for them-daily. Just do something out of the ordinary for another person to make them feel special, stop worrying about what you can get out of life, and start making it better for someone else.

Frolicking (You should try it)

A song is one of the most powerful communication devices that you'll ever encounter. Songs stick in your mind, you hum them subconsciously, they give people a common ground- it is possible that a song can change your life...
While I'm working on songs of my own, I also take plenty of time to appreciate what's already been written. Now, this song may be cheesy, but I happen to like it immensely. It just reminds me to keep my standards high and never settle for less than God's best. Ultimately, I will end up in Heaven forever and ever after and the fact that the Holy Spirit brings a bit of Heaven inside of me right now, today, on Earth- just excites, encourages, and strengthens me even more.

Plus this song makes me think of running around in a wide open meadow--and to be honest, sometimes I just get the urge to frolic.

P.S. Meriam Webster literally defines frolic as "to play and run about happily".

:]

EVER EVER AFTER

Recorded by Carrie Underwood

. . .

Storybook endings, fairy tales coming true
Deep down inside we want to believe they still do

In our secretest heart, it's our favorite part of the story

Let's just admit we all want to make it to

.

Ever ever after

If we just don't get it our own way

Ever ever after

It may only be a wish away

.

Start a new fashion,

Wear your heart on your sleeve

Sometimes you reach what's realest

By making believe

.

Unafraid, unashamed

There is joy to be claimed

In this world

You even might wind up

Being glad to be you

.

Ever ever after

Though the world will tell you

It's not smart

Ever ever after

The world can be yours

If you let your heart

Believe in ever after

.

No wonder your heart feels it's flying

Your head feels it's spinning

Each happy ending's a brand new beginning

Let yourself be enchanted, you just might break through

.

To ever ever after

Forever could even start today

Ever ever after

.

Maybe it's just one wish away

Your ever ever after

Oh, for ever ever after

Caution?

Before I get the chance to write a full entry, I just wanted to share a little food for thought... something that I read in my devotions:

"We may think we are being appropriately sensible when we measure the wind and waves and proceed with caution. But Jesus urges us to ignore them altogether and fix our eyes on Him."

This is HUGE for me. Too often I think I'm being prudent in my cautious attitude; and even though it's important not to be reckless with my actions or make irresponsible decisions, God doesn't want me to be overly-cautious because of things going on around me. He calls to me, wants me to listen to HIS voice, and let everything else fade away.
..............................................................................................................................
On a silly note:

I saw some kangaroos in the wild! hehe

The picture is blurry because we didn't want to scare them off with a flash, but I literally saw over 25 kangaroos that day! (including a dead one on the side of the road...)

And the video is blurry because of the internet upload, but if you look closely enough, you can at least see the few kangaroos that started hopping away...especially the one at the end :)

Singing Heart

During Colour Conference 1 & 2 and Album Recording these past couple weeks, I served at the Kids' Welcome Table. Every day was pretty full on- with early mornings and late nights, but it was so worth the work to be able to bless others and experience this gathering of women for conference and fellow worhippers for the live recording! As you can imagine, though, my body got pretty weak. Lack of sleep and rainy mornings causing damp clothes that took forever to dry-- didn't really help either. As per my previous decision to not let circumstances overcome my attitude, I tried my best to look at all my situations with a different perspective. So here's my story:

As a result of pushing through being so sick-I actually lost my voice the day after Album. For a couple days I really couldn't talk at all, which wasn't super ideal since my job was to talk to the parents as they dropped their kids off and answer any questions they had... And during worship!! ahh! I was so irritated that every time I got to sit in on a worship session during the 2nd conference, I couldn't actually sing :( So as I'm standing there mouthing the words to my favorite new songs, trying with frustrated effort to make some sort of beautiful sound, it got me thinking:

.

Maybe I get too caught up in thoughts about how good my own worship sounds and get so distracted by this that I fail to recognize His desire for my heart to be singing.

.

It might be time to get my eyes off of myself and what I can do: Look to Him and what He's already done for me.

.

Gradually my lower register came back-- so now I can either talk like a guy going through puberty or just whisper haha. I'm patiently awaiting the day that the rest of my voice will be restored, but while I can't sing a song in tune, I will still be making a joyful noise to Him in my heart!