Camp Meeting is HERE!!

I'm so excited to say that I will be leaving tomorrow morning for beautiful Portland, Oregon for one week! I just hope I remember to pack everything. It seems that every year--even with a packing list--I still end up forgetting something.

Revivals....

Why is it that everyone waits for camp meeting to get serious about their relationship with God? Every year, the same thing happens. Right before camp meeting people pray for everyone to seek for their basic experiences and draw closer to God. Nothing wrong with that. But why put off what you can do today? There seems to be some unwritten rule that you can only receive great things at camp meeting or special meetings.

Why wait to get serious? God has these experiences for us if we just ask with an open heart, He will gladly give it to you. I don't see in any point in waiting. God has your sanctification for you NOW. He has your Baptism for you NOW. He has the answer you are looking for NOW.

It seems interesting that people pray for a revival, when, if every person prayed with that much intensity for their experiences, there WOULD be a revival.

Camp meeting is a wonderful place to fellowship and seek God, but I think we put so much emphasis on it sometimes, that we forget that it doesn't have to be a special service to receive. Every service is special, and if we seek with an open heart, God won't disappoint. Even if you don't receive it by the end of camp meeting, don't get discouraged, don't lose faith. (I got saved two weeks AFTER camp meeting four years ago). God still has it for you.

So, I ask you, what are you waiting for?

So...sorry for the lack of posting for an almost two weeks! When I got back from the Youth Retreat, I had full intentions of posting. However, I just haven't had the energy to post. You see, I have been sick ever since last Thursday. First, I had and eye infection. Yeah, that was fun. Then, to make matters worse, despite my best efforts to not get sick, my body just couldn't handle fighting off soo many different things at once, and broke down. So, not only did I have an eye infection, I also have had one of the worst colds I've ever had! Needless to say, I stayed home from school three out of five days this week. While the sore throat is still present, I have to say, my energy is finally back!

Anyway, about the youth retreat. It was absolutely awesome! We got up to the Eagle Crest Resort around-I want to say- 6:30 or so. Originally, the plan was to eat an hour later, but the Grants Pass van was late getting there, so we didn't eat til after 8:00. After dinner, we did a devotional about committment-which was the theme of the whole weekend.
Saturday we had to be at breakfast at 8:30, so naturally, 6 or so of the girls were up at the crack of dawn to take showers. *rolling eyes* After breakfast, we did a devotional and several seminars taught by Bro. Peter (Grants Pass), Neil (Medford), Bro. Nathan (Medford), and Bro. Bob (also Medford). Hmm..I think I may be leaving someone out. After the devotional, we were given about 5 hours of free time. A big group of us went and did put-put. It was a lot of fun, and Zach took some pretty awesome pictures of Matt on the way there (See Stacy's blog). After free time, we had dinner, and then they had an awesome question and answer session where we could ask where the church stood on anything. It was a great session, and there were some great topics discussed. Even better was the prayer service after!
Sunday morning, we had an early breakfast, another devotional, and then it was time to pack up and head out. While the weekend wasnt great for physical R & R (Church functions usually aren't), it was definately some great spiritual R & R! I'm looking forward to next year already!

So, first off, I'm soooo sorry for not posting for over a month....all I can say is that I've been sooo busy. Since school got back in session, we've been working like madmen trying to get senior stuff done. Anyway, there are a few new things going on for me and I thought you'd like to know.

To head things off, a couple of days after my last blog, I decided to put in my 2 weeks notice at my job. God has been talking to me for awhile about how I needed to leave for multiple reasons, and I just knew it was what I was supposed to do. So I put my faith in Him, and He didn't disappoint. Here I am less than 2 weeks after my old job ended, and alas, I have a new job!
For those who didn't know, some of the main reasons I left my previous job was because it wasn't enough pay, or enough hours. My new job, at Morgan Stanley, is 15-20 hours a week, as compared to my old job which was STRICTLY 10 hours a week, and it is ABOVE minimum wage. So, last week I started the training for my new job, which I have to say, is quite extensive, but at least I get to do it in the comfort of my own home, which is a plus.

Earlier I mentioned the dreaded Senior Project. I have FINALLY decided what I am doing it on, and I am actually excited. I have decided to do my paper on learning styles, and for my project, I plan on going into an elementary school classroom, and helping out. Which is a great project for me, since I love kids!

Also, Wednesday mornings, I have been attending a Bible study and it's absolutely fabuloso! It's a great way to start off my day, and I'm soooo glad that this got started up!

Well, I think that's enough updating for now, and hopefully it won't be another month until I post again.

Random statement: I really do hate Valentine's Day.

Ah the joys of christmas program rehearsal....All I can say is that I'm glad I'm not the "muscle." Poor guys get roped into it every year....on a happier note, I got to go to Beyond Images today to decide on which of my senior pictures we are buying...and I'm SOO excited for when I get them back at the end of the Month! If you haven't checked them out yet, you can go to beyondimages.com...and then "view my images"... the last name is quast and the ID is 20060012.

On a sadder note, my sister recently told me that Target has banned their employees from saying "Merry Christmas" to their customers, they are now only allowed to say "Happy Holidays" so that they don't offend anyone. She told me to say, "Well, Holidays derives from Holy Day which is Christmas, so Merry Christmas to you, too!"