It's not about the moneyy.

I want so badly to be a missionary. I don't care where God takes me. I don't care if it's half way across the world. I just absolutely cannot wait.

I really truly believe God has given me a heart for missions because that's what he wants me to do. I want it with all my heart. Everything I've tried to set my heart on all these years seems like such a waste of time now.

But you want to know one thing that everyone seems to be concerned about?
Money.money.money.money.money.money.money.
Did I mention money?

Do you want to know how much a missionary gets paid?
Ehh, not much. well.. nothing. In Earthly currency that is. But they store up their real treasures in heaven.

When people talk to me about how much money they can't wait to make in their jobs and stuff, I just kind of smile and nod. Money doesn't excite me. That might come with being part of a family that's never exactly been rolling in dough. Maybe it's because the fact that I'm still living and breathing isn't because of money. It's because of this awesome God. He sent His only son to die - no, be SLAUGHTERED - for me so that I could live eternally with Him in heaven because He loves me that much. He loves us so much that He put every sin any of us have ever committed and put it on His son's shoulders. He took my blame. Took my shame. Took my guilt. That gift was something no amount of money could ever buy, so why should I base my life around money? It's useless paper that won't amount to anything in Heaven. Am I saying it's bad to make money? Absolutely not! I've just been blessed with a job that pays - wait for it - money! But I don't really worry about it. If God chooses to take that job away from me, then I know He won't leave me out in the dust. He'll provide; He always has.

Jobs are awesome things. The world needs bankers, and business men and women, and store managers, and dentists and doctors. I just don't feel that calling. I never really have, I guess. Growing up I could never put my finger on what exactly I want to do with my life. But when we left Michigan, I said to myself that I would NEVER be a missionary. I didn't want to have to uproot my family or cause them to have to worry about money. I saw kids around me getting everything they could ever want because they had money. But then God opened my eyes, and for once I saw past my own selfish desires and thoughts and it was like everything suddenly made sense. And here I am, 16 and ready to go wherever He takes me, doing the very thing I swore I'd never do. I want my kids to see that. And my grandkids, and my great-grandkids. I want them to experience God's faithfulness, even when times are hard. If my parents have taught me anything it's to wait and just see what God's gonna do, because He provides. HE PROVIDES!

We're Juniors, guys. When you sit down and start thinking about what it is you're going to do with your life, put aside the bill fold and the wallet and the credit cards. Grab your bible, and start praying like crazy. Where God takes you, I couldn't ever guess. But that's the exciting part of following Him. He has so many plans for you, if you'd just let Him start to reveal them to you.

Ready or not.

It's a new week. 5 more days to give God glory. How are you going to use this week? Well, let me just give you some encouragement :)

We are 1 and a half weeks into school, and I can honestly say that I haven't done squat to honor God. That's an incredibly shameful thing to have to admit, but I can't lie about it. All I've done is complain complain complain. "Waaaaahhh, I don't want to be heeerrrree!" "Oh, poor me. I have to be at school." Oh, cry me a river, Jo. Haha, anyway, here's the point.

Let's stop looking at school like it's some prison. It's not! School is one of the biggest opportunities we could possibly have to spread Christ!!! AHHH!! That makes me slightly excited. Okay, really excited. Anyway. This is a new week. A fresh start. So pray tonight. Stop right now and pray, right where you are. Pray that God will give people soft hearts to listen to whatever He wants to say through you, and that He'll give you the courage to say it. Okay? Pray. Right now. Then keep reading.

So that's my challenge to all of us, me included. This week is our chance to go out and spread God like wildfire. Who knows? We may wake up tomorrow and we won't have any time left to glorify God. He could come back any time. But until He does, START SPREADING HIM! Everywhere you go. Don't be scared, He's with you! Keep fighting the good fight until Christ returns. Go into this week with a renewed spirit, ready to battle through whatever satan throws at you! Put on the armor of God, and get ready. This is our chance. Let's make a difference.

"I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 3:14

"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up." - Galatians 6:9

"Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men (and women!) of courage; be strong. Do everything in love." - 1 Corinthians 16:13

"Therefore, prepare your minds for action: be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: "Be holy because I am holy." - 1 Peter 1:13

Let's go guys, cause God's not gonna wait forever. It's now or never.
Are you ready?

blinded.

The doors of the school mark a new milestone in your life. For sophomores, it's the start of the 3 years of high school that lie before them. For juniors, it reminds us that we still have one year after this one to get through. And for seniors, it's the beginning of the end of their childhood. But for all of us, those doors remind us that the laid back days of summer where it's easy to get by with a mediocre relationship with God are over. Behind those doors lies a world that will beg you to go down the wrong road. They will trick you into compromising your relationship with God for popularity in this temporary life. Those doors will ask you if you're ready to make a sacrifice for your eternal well-being rather than the temporary pleasure this life has to offer. Because believe me and any other junior or senior. High school asks you one question: who are you going to follow? There are two paths you can choose when you walk through those doors. There's no gray area. There's no room for fence riders. Either you fully commit yourself to not giving into the temptation that high school will throw in your face, or you give in. Yeah I know. You're not the kind of kid that does that kind of stuff. You're not that student that goes down that road. Well, I have news for you. I've lost a lot of friends to that road that promised they weren't ever going to change. They were going to follow God too. They were going to stand strong. But they didn't. And looking back, it's still hard for me to see those friends I've lost along the way. Being a Christian isn't always a popular choice when you're in high school. It's not convenient. And it's also not something you'll be perfect at. I know I'm sure not. But if you commit yourself to God and ask for strength and stop caring about the worldly ideas about having a relationship with God, it's not such an unreasonable thing to do.

But here's the thing:
It's hard to stop caring. I get that. I've been through it, and I still am. Sometimes I look at the kids around me that can go do things without feeling guilty or get invited to parties that may not even be bad, but they get invited because they're in the crowd. But guess what? In eternity, it's not going to matter how popular you were or how many parties you went to or how many boyfriends you had or if you played every sport in the book. This life is a temporary stop on our way to our destination. We were meant for more than parties and sports and friends. We were meant for this huge plan God has for our lives. But the world tells us that it's okay to make your own plan. "It's your future; make it what you want!" "Follow your heart!" "Live your life the way YOU want it." And when the outside world sees that you live your life differently, chasing after God, they close you out. And when that happens, you take your eyes off of God and look around. Nobody may be running with you. Maybe it's just you and God. And from the outside, looking in at what the world can offer may look inviting, but when you put your eyes back on God, all of that stuff fades into the background. It doesn't matter anymore. That's how it should be. It's like this: Our eyes have a blindspot in them, right on the front. So when you look up into a starry sky, you may not be able to see a certain star looking right at it,but if you focus somewhere else, suddenly that star comes into your peripheral vision and you can see it for how it really looks. Put your eyes back on it, and you're blinded to it. When you take your eyes off of God and look at what the world is shoving at you, all of that "stuff" looks great and inviting. But put your eyes back on Christ, and you can see the world for what it truly is, which is sinful and deceitful and untrustworthy. You name it. So when you come to realize that, let me give you this advice:

Do a 180 and run as fast as you can from the world. God will be waiting with outstretched arms, ready to take you back and help you along the journey of life.

So here it is kids. Tomorrow we're going to walk through the doors to Ozark High School, and we'll be bombarded with lies to cause us to stumble. In real life, don't do a 180 and sprint back out the doors, because then you'll be absent and your parents will probably think you skipped school. But in your heart, keep your eyes focused on God and he will guide you through the whirlwinds of those hallways.

In all your ways acknowledge Him and he will direct your path.

And p.s. If you ever find yourself giving up or overwhelmed with life, don't walk away from God. If you ever need someone to talk to, I'm here. I'm just a facebook message, text, phonecall, or conversation away. Don't be ashamed to either. Following Christ isn't going to be easy, but I promise it's going to be worth it.

I will reach the Summit.

Summit.
Keahbone.
Chris White band.

I am overwhelmed. I just want to be back, but I know God has plans for us here. I would honestly spend a month straight there. We might all get sick of each other, but I know I would not get sick of that overwhelming, beautiful, perfect presence called the Holy Spirit.
Keahbone is such a blessing. He allows God to speak through him and God uses him so much. My life is going to be different, I can feel it. I figured, you know after a few hours of being home I'll get over all of that feeling I had there, but I'm not. I'm overcome with the Spirit. He's in me. I read my bible tonight. I really read it. I studied it. I applied it. I actually memorized something. I started the One19 Revolution, which is Mike Keahbone's bible study. It's already starting to impact me. I just can't get over this. I think about what God's done, and what he's still doing in my heart, and I literally want to cry. Not sad tears, I don't even know if their joyful tears. It's like they are just tears of letting so much out that's been building up for so long. I'm finally letting go of so much. Believe me though, I came home and knew satan was already at his temptation games. But I have strength now. Not my strength, but the strength of the Holy Spirit, letting me know that I can do this through Christ who strengthens me. He gives me strength. I'll fall. I'll trip over something the devil sets out, but I have strength to get back up now. I have God to pick me back up. I have trust knowing that God's moving. I have faith that reminds me God is in complete control of any worry I can have.

Oh death, where is your sting? Oh hell, where is your victory? Oh church, come stand in the light. The glory of God has defeated the night! Oh death, where is your sting? Oh hell, where is your victory? Oh church, come stand in the light! Our God is not dead; He's alive, He's alive!!

My God is alive. He's reigning over us, and I know when He comes back, whether it's tonight, tomorrow, or 100 years from now, I'll be ready. I have so much love for him. So much passion that before this week, didn't exist. I just went through my relationship with Him. Some days I didn't even pray. But now, I just want to talk to Him. I just want to know Him. I just want to love Him. I just want to praise Him. He's all I want. I think about the stuff I wanted before He grabbed ahold of me this week, and I think, what on earth was I thinking? God is so much greater than this! He is ALL I need! All I want! He loves me unconditionally. He wants me to have this precious gift. Even though I hurt Him so much, he still invites me back. Now, what kind of friend on Earth would do that for you? God is the only one that satisfies. He's all that there will be. And in the end, He's all that will matter. I love Him so much. I can't say it enough. I LOVE YOU SO MUCH GOD!!!

THE GLORY OF GOD HAS DEFEATED THE NIGHT!

worth.

my biggest critic is me.

people have said that to me before. Coach Nagel tells me that all the time. my dad says it all the time. but until tonight I never really realized it.

I was sitting outside thinking about something, and all of the sudden, I just said to myself, "Jo, you are so immature. just shut up about this. you always get yourself into this. just shut up about it already."

some people might think I'm crazy for talking to myself. I probably am. some people might say that it's the devil attacking me or something. but I know my heart, and I know that was me saying that. and I literally felt myself cower down and shut up. and you know something else? it really hurt. maybe I'm just sensitive. I dunno. but I do know that I do that all the time. I just tell myself I'm stupid, because I know it'll stop my complaining. but after awhile you kind of begin to believe that you really are stupid.

and that's where satan comes back into play.

words get whispered into your ears against your will.

worthless.
worthless.
worthless.

you will never be anything more than this.

but you know what? God doesn't have that same point of view about my life.

I gave my son for you; you were bought at a price. you are NOT worthless.
you are not worthless.
you are not worthless.
you.are.not.worthless.

I know I'm not the only one that satan plays mind tricks on. I know others feel this way.
Maybe you feel this way. Yeah, you.
But I have news for you. news that satan isn't gonna like. news that I'm going to rub in HIS worthless face.
you aren't worthless.
you
are NOT
worthless.

congratulations, cause we've made it all the way home.

We're growing up.

I am just about done with my sophomore year, and I'm preparing to slap a few kids on the back and congratulate them on graduating. I don't like it. No, not one bit. So here's a little something for some that I've gotten to be pretty stinking close to.

Tyra Dutton:
What can I even say? You are just so amazing. You have been such an inspiration to me. You have stayed strong in your faith through all these years, and you are such a true friend. You care so much for people, and that's something I love so much about you. You think of others before yourself, and JEEZ I mean what a beautiful person. Christ absolutely shines through you and I can't wait to see what he has in store for you. Even though you are scared of the future and unsure of what to do, I can promise you that he's not done with you yet. The God that I know cares for his children, and I know he will take good care of you out there. I love you so much.

Shelby Armstrong:
I still remember meeting you back when my mom made me help with VBS and you were going into tenth grade. I thought you were just the coolest thing, and even after 3 years I can still say the same thing. I'm unbelievably excited to see where God takes you. Shelb, you are such a beautiful person, inside and out. You care so deeply about people, and you are a great friend. Even though I'm sad to see you leave, I'm even more excited to watch you grow in your faith and find new places that you'd never dreamed God would take you to. Just be ready, because I plan on making MANY escapes to your dorm :)

Lydia Humphrey:
Oh, Lyd, I don't know if I've ever seen you not smiling. You are always so so so so happy! I LOVE that. I love that you are totally your own person. I love that you love God. I love that you are just one of my best friends. I know you're pretty scared of what all this growing up junk is about, but believe me, God's gonna show you what he wants you to do. Life keeps on moving whether we like it or not, but I know that you will do amazing things. You are SO gorgeous, inside and out, and that's so special. You are so genuinely caring, and one of the best friends I could ask for. I love you so much Lydia :)

Maebry Halmes:
MAEBS! You have been through so so so much, and still you chose to overcome. You are an absolute inspiration, and I'm so glad that you are here today. Jesus has a HUGE plan for you, I can just tell. Even through the worst circumstances you could have chosen to give up, but you never did. You are so strong, and I love it. You are such a good friend, and always have a smile on your face. You mean so much to me, and I can't wait to see what God does in your life. I love you so much.

Morgan Casto:
Oh, Morg, where would I be without you? When things got rough in basketball, you were always the one that stayed strong and kept on truckin'. I already miss you, and your hair and humor and laugh and everything. You are SUCH a beautiful girl, and I love you so much!! God has something in store for you that I can't even imagine yet, but I know he's got big plans. You are a truly caring person, and you were always quick to make sure everyone was okay on the team. You think of others before yourself and that's so cool. I'm so blessed to have you in my life and I love you so much. :)

To all the other seniors, follow God's plan. He's got such good plans for you guys, and he just wants to work through each one of you. I've been so blessed to know each one of you, and it will be real hard to say goodbye. I love you guys.

Worship. Please, just worship.

I think you think you get it. I think you think that you understand exactly what I'm talking about when I say worship. I think you think, "oh. Isn't that that time after dodgeball during wednesday night church when we all line up and mumble the words to those songs no one actually cares about?"
I think you just don't get it. I think you will never get it until you ALLOW yourself to understand and grasp just how stinking important worship is.
GUYS. LET ME MAKE THIS VERY CLEAR. WHEN WE PRAISE, WE DON'T DO IT FOR EACH OTHER. WE DO IT FOR THE GOD OF THE UNIVERSE THAT SAVED US FROM A FATE WORSE THAN DEATH. A FATE THAT WOULD MAKE DEATH LOOK LIKE A PIECE OF CAKE. YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND JUST HOW MUCH OF A BIG DEAL THIS IS.
Oh my goodness. Like, seriously I can't even begin to describe to you what it's like when you really, truly, deeply, let go and just praise. JUST PRAISE. Praise him for your family. praise him for being forgiven. praise him for never letting go. praise him for the hard times. praise him for the good times. just praise him.

But Jo, that kind of praise just doesn't exist. maybe it does in some other universe, but not here. not in this world. not in this country. not in Arkansas. not in OZARK of all places. No Jo, that kind of praise doesn't happen here.

BUT IT CAN!!!!!!!!! IT CAN! I'VE SEEN IT. Guys, I've seen that praise. I've grown up with that praise. I know that praise. I've lived through that praise. I WANT THAT PRAISE! And it can happen. I believe that. We just have to stop looking around at the kid next to us hoping they don't hear the quiet whispered lyrics coming through those lips. We live in a world that says "Be unique!" "Stand out!", and standing out seems great at first. Yeah, I get to be different and have attention. But when we come into that youth building suddenly we don't want to be unique. Suddenly we freeze and say, wait. I have to be like everyone else and not sing. I have to wait for someone else to stand up and sing.
But if you're waiting for someone else, just count on waiting for a long time. because at least in my youth group not a whole lot of people care too much for singing. I want us to praise Him though. Because even though we may have the most horrible voices or whatever, God deserves at least our praise.
Doesn't he?

As I write this I am literally on the verge of sobbing. You may think that you understand just what praise is. You may think you understand what I'm talking about. But until you give all of that self-conscience-ness about standing out or whatever the problem is to God? You will never understand. And you HAVE to just figure it out. Because once you understand, it is unlike almost anything else. Anything.
And if you have figured it out?
Praise Jesus, because maybe I'm not crazy when I say all this. Maybe there is more to praise than standing awkwardly waiting to sit down because your feet hurt so much. Maybe there's more. There has to be more. There is more.

Pray.

My dear friends, don't let public opinion influence how you live out our glorious, Christ-originated faith. - James 2:1

My friends and I have started going up to people and just asking if they need prayer. It's sliiiiightly terrifying, uncomfortable, and hard, but we believe that prayer is so, so, so, SO important. Know why? Well let me give you a little list.

God can't stand pious poses, but he delights in genuine prayers. - Proverbs 15:8
When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer for that person. - Luke 6:28
Pray all the time. - 1 Thessalonians 5:17
God's there, listening for all who pray, for all who pray and mean it. - Psalm 145:18
Are you hurting? Pray. - James 5:13
Hallelujah! Thank God! Pray to Him by name! Tell everyone you meet what He has done! - Psalm 105:1

Could God make it any clearer? HE WANTS US TO PRAY!


But it's hard to rebel against the things the world says are right, when everyone is staring at you differently. When people think you're crazy or weird for going up and asking to pray with them, it's hard for me. Some people don't care, but it's hard for me to do that. Honestly, it's really intimidating. But James 2:1 tells us we shouldn't let what people think of us keep us from living and sharing our faith. We shouldn't let the whispers and stares of the kids in the hallway distract us from what is right. Because I know that God is real, and His opinion of me is what really matters. If God wants me to pray, I'm going to do it. And I'm going to do it the hard way because if I always just stand back on the sidelines asking God to help them with whatever they need, I won't grow. I have to step out of that comfort zone and go up to that girl sitting alone, or the whole table of kids if that's what God asks of me, and ask them personally what they need prayer for. That may not be what God is asking of everyone, but I know that's what he wants of me. So I'll give it. I'll give myself over to him and stop worrying about what people think, even though it's hard. Because when God says in the bible to freely give, I think he wants us to freely give to him too, not just people, even when it's hard. So right now, it's time for us to freely give ourselves to God and his perfect plan. And if freely giving yourself over to God means going up to that table of kids and asking if anyone needs prayer, then you'd better do it, because if you won't be a tool God can use, he'll find someone else who will.

So God, give me boldness. Send me over to that group of kids. I'll go.
Will you?

To know God and make Him known.

Wow. what a week.
This past week was Ozark's spring break, and lemme tell ya, it was something else. I went with a group of kids to Dallas Texas to do an outreach to the city.

God was there.

He was there in everything we did. There were moments that some of us were so overwhelmed with the Holy Spirit that we couldn't help but weep. Thinking about it makes my heart beat fast and gives me butterflies. Let me just share a few stories.

Thursday we went with Hilltop Church to some apartments to knock on doors and ask if we could pray. Maddi and Tyler went to a door and knocked, and a woman with a 1 year old child opened the door. This woman had been living with a man for two years and had had a child with him. Little did she know that he had had AIDS since 2001, and had been hiding it from her. She asked for healing, not only her body, but her heart. Can you imagine the opportunity God gave us to minister to her?

On friday we went to inner-city Dallas to hand out water bottles and ask if we could pray with people. As we were heading over to set our waterbottle-filled coolers next to a lamppost, a woman caught our attention. She was sitting in a power wheelchair waiting for her bus. We had not said anything to her, when she said, "Y'all are here to talk about Jesus, huh?" We looked at each other like, woah, how does this woman know what we're here for? "I can tell," she said, "Y'all are shining with Jesus."
WOAH. Isn't that like the one thing every Christian wants to hear?? A woman who had never seen us before knows just by looking at us that we were Christians. That's an honor to me. "I can tell you're gonna feed me some goooooood food. the best kinda food. food for the soul."

These are just two of the incredible stories from our outreach that I experienced. We also got to fellowship and minister to the Burmese refugees staying in Dallas: the Karen people. I have never experienced a more loving, compassionate, beautiful people. They shone in a way that makes me want to do this for the rest of my life. I had the opportunity to play with the kids while we taught English classes to the adults/teens. It was just a really eye opening time for me, to see kids so full of love for each other, and for me. They had only just met me and they latched on in a way most kids don't do. It was different than anything I've felt while working with kids.

My last story is one that isn't my own, but is one of my favorite examples of the week of how compassionate and personal our God is. Caleb, a boy in our team, spoke about how it seemed scary to think about hearing God's voice. He felt like it would be a terrifying experience to hear our creator, and I really couldn't agree more, haha. He has trouble sleeping in unfamiliar rooms, and so one night he woke up very early in the morning. Suddenly he heard Tyler Combs (another boy in our team) say "Caleb." Caleb sat up and looked at Tyler, who was asleep. At this point, Caleb felt a little worried and lay back down. "I'm here," Tyler's voice said to him. Caleb immediately prayed that God would let him go back to sleep and stop hearing voices, as it would be SLIGHTLY terrifying to hear voices talking to you in the middle of the night. Haha. So the next day Caleb was sitting in the basement of the Church we were staying in, and heard Joseph's voice say "Caleb." Caleb looked at Joseph, and said "What?" Joseph looked at him like he was crazy and said "I didn't say anything." It was then that Caleb realized something. God was using voices that Caleb was familiar with to speak to him, because being the great God that he is, he knew that Caleb was afraid of hearing God's voice. Some of you may think, Oh, no Caleb was just hearing things. But if you were on this trip and had seen God work the way he did, I think you might think a little differently. I believe whole heartedly that God was using more familiar voices to speak to Caleb. I've seen what He can do, and I believe that this was God.

This week was life changing. I have cried, laughed (A LOT), come to a lot of realizations, and begun to see what God has in mind for my future. I've decided that after high school, I will most likely be doing a Discipleship Training School (DTS) with Youth With a Mission (YWAM). I think that God is calling me to be a missionary for him. Wherever that takes me, I'm not sure of. But of one thing I am sure: I am absolutely head over heels in love with my savior Jesus Christ. He has set all of our hearts on fire, and I can't wait to see how he works through all of us. We've decided as a group to begin an outreach type thing to our community. We know that God's opened a door that satan will try to close, but we're committed and ready for our Jesus to do His work.


"We pray that you'll live well for the Master, making him proud of you as you work hard in his orchard. As you learn more and more how God works, you will learn how to do your work. We pray that you'll have the strength to stick it out over the long haul- not the grim strength of gritting your teeth but the glory strength God gives. It is strength that endures the unendurable and spills over into joy, thanking the Father who makes us strong enough to take part in everything bright and beautiful that he has for us." - Colossians 1:9-12

"Get the word out. Teach all these things. And don't let anyone put you down because you're young. Teach believers with your life: by word, by demeanor, by love, by faith, by integrity." - 1 Timothy 4:11-12

"I can't impress this on you too strongly. God is looking over your shoulder. Christ himself is the Judge, with the final say on everyone, living and dead. He is about to break into the open with his rule, so proclaim the Message with intensity; keep on your watch. Challenge, warn, and urge your people. Don't ever quit. You're going to find that there will be times when people will have no stomach for solid teaching, but will fill up on spiritual junk food- catchy opinions that tickle their fancy. They'll turn their backs on the truth and chase mirages. But you- keep your eye on what you're doing; accept the hard times along with the good; keep the Message alive; do a thorough job as God's servant." - 2 Timothy 4:1-5

Keep the word moving, guys. God's coming back soon. Be ready. Allow God to use you to make others ready.

And after all, if our God is for us, then who could ever stop us?