Wake up.

So I'm just gonna write a whole bunch of things I've been learning in the past few weeks that has been waking me up as well as lots of the people around me.  This post is gonna be frank and it might piss you off.  :-)

It's heavy on my heart that my generation (who knows, maybe older and younger people as well) have been living a lifestyle of this thing that can be summed up with something like "how close can I get to the line before I cross it?"  You know what makes me mad!?  Is that I haven't been an exception!

You know what people our age are spending our time on?  Questions like "how close can I get to having sex without having sex?" or "How not-hard do I have to work on this without being lazy?" or "How is smoking weed wrong?  It's not as bad for you as cigarettes and I bet they're gonna legalize it soon anyways."

We need to be leading a new revolution.  A revolution of people that are standing up for what is right and true and lovely and glorious!  Do you know that there are places out there in the world where such things have happened?  Do you know that there are communities in parts of the world where ever since the majority of people there have fallen deeply in love with God and have set down they're lifestyle of "just good enough" and replaced it with a lifestyle of "All for God's best"?  This is what happens: Jails are closed down because there's no crime.  Hospitals get emptied because people are healed.  Families are restored and people live a lifestyle of joy and live in harmony with eachother!  People this is not some fantasy!  This is reality and that same revival could be happening in Snohomish, in Everett, Seattle, wherever, if we as people who know the truth would wake up.

We need to stop being okay with all this pain and crap going on around us because Jesus is gonna come back someday and all this will be gone anyways.  NO!  We need to be spending our lives getting ready, and trying to share as much of God's light as we can.  Jesus told us to pray "Let your kingdom come, let your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."  What is the kingdom?  It's everything wonderful and glorious and lovely.  It's where the presence of God dwells and the feeling of everything pure and good are obvious.  We are called to bring heaven to earth, not just waiting for us to die and get out of this place called earth so we can go to heaven.  Did you hear that?  Let's read that part of The Lord's Prayer again.  "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth, AS IT IS IN HEAVEN!

I wish I had know this before.  Because then maybe instead of living a life of "how little can I do around the house, or in school, to get my parents off my back" I could've been living a life of "What can I be doing to make everything around me better reflect the glory of heaven?"

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While I'm at it I'm gonna run through some things that a bunch of people my age, Christians included, are stuck on.  I'm not trying to judge you by these, but it's my hope that it might convict you as much as it has convicted people in my class so that you might be inspired to strive for the lifestyle our future needs US to start.

The first thing I'm gonna list is sex.  Uncomfortable yet?  ;-)

People, we need to STOP asking the all famous questions among youth groups: "How far is too far?"
You older adults might not be aware of this, but people my age are trying to get as close to having sex as they can while not quite going all the way.  A lot of couples, even couples who are following Jesus, without going into detail, are doing pretty much "everything but" with each other, thinking it's perfectly okay, or at least somewhat okay, as long as they don't actually have the kind of sex that can make babies.

Imagine how much heartache, emotional pain, and sexual-transmitted diseases would be saved if only we were asking "How can me and my boyfriend/girlfriend be a living example of purity through our actions, both private and public?" instead of "How far is too far?"

You know what?  Even if you aren't in a relationship and don't have anybody who you'd fool around with you still might be living in sexual sin.  Matthew 5:28 says "But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart."

Can I just say right now that porn sickens me?  Now if you do or have struggled with porn, it doesn't mean YOU sicken me.  But the act of looking at porn sickens me.  Don't you know that when you look at those naked girls that person is someone that God made and that he loves dearly?  That she was made for so much more?  Do you really want to support treating women like objects?  Because when you look at porn, I bet you aren't thinking about that girl's heart.  You're looking at certain body parts like toys build for your play.  It's disrespectful.  Don't you know that when you looked at that stuff it hurts your families, your wives, your girlfriends?  Now lots of women feel like we need to look or act like porn stars to get your attention.  (I'm not talking about me personally, but a lot of females out there.)  It's wrong, it's gross, if you do it, you need to stop.  If you can't, get a filter.  Don't put it off.  If you have time to gaze at body parts for hours, surely you have a few minutes to install something that's widely available and free.

And guys even if you don't look at porn I've been around a lot of my guyfriends and some girl in skimpy clothing will walk by and I can literally see you practically drool.  It's gross.  When you see a girl and she's wearing not much, look away.  She's not a piece of meat, even if she chooses to dress like one.

...Just to clarify, I don't want to make it seem like I'm only targeting the guys.  I'm not trying to.  Girl's struggle with it too, but I believe in most cases it isn't as visual.  Most girls just don't really struggle with porn.  Okay, now I'm done with my stop the sex-stuff rant. 

I was going to write about a lot of other stuff but I'm tired and I need a mind break before I write more.  I've already written two long posts today.  But I still have so much more stuff I want to say here.  SO much more that I want people to read and take to heart.  Because I wish I had known all this stuff earlier.  So I'll write more soon, so keep checking back with me.

I love you all.  <3

Africa.

So I'm thinking about going to Africa.

After China.

In case you don't know, but you've probably heard, on December 28th I'll be heading off to China for three months.  But after that about fifteen of us students are needed to head off to Cape Town in South Africa for a year.

I want to go.

But I'm not sure if that's where God wants me.  I have recently started becoming a person who really, really, REALLY wants to do exactly as God wants me to do.  I've realized that he's just so darn smarter and wiser then me, and he's more dedicated to making sure my life goes great then I could ever be.  So if he for some reason wants me to stay home, or go somewhere else, I want to listen.  But me being the impatient person I am want to know right now what his plans are for me.  I don't want to have to wait for a sure answer that might not come for months more.  I still have plenty of time to decide!  But see I want to know my future now!  Which is totally silly!  Because he knows that I'm not ready to know all that yet.

Let's just think back about eight years.  If I had known then that woah, I'm moving, and I'll lose some of my then-best-friends through it, it would've broke me.  But I can look back now and see how it all worked out for the best.  Five years ago if God would've told me that I was going to Mexico, I would've freaked out.  If a year ago God would've told me that the relationship I was in wouldn't last forever, and that a little after I was gonna be sent away for six months and go to potentially dangerous places, I would've stomped my pissy little foot and complained.  See we just aren't ready for what God has in store for us.  So maybe I should just be crying "Oh my gosh God!  Thank you soooo much for not telling me what's gonna happen with my future!"

Needless to say I'm not to that point yet.  ;-)

But back to Africa.  I don't need to decide yet.  I don't need to know for sure yet.  What I'm evaluating now is my motivation.  I want to go and do God's work but I also have other motivations for going that might not be bad in themselves but should NOT be the reason for which I take off to the other side of the world for a year.

Things like... I know some people here who are also thinking about going that I love the idea of spending a year with.  I could see the group of us being super close and having so many joyous times together.  There's all sorts of amazing animals around there, like zebras and buffalo nearby, and even monkeys all around town.  And the children!  I love kids!  I would love being around them, talking to them, loving on them!  And just being in Africa would be such an adventure in itself.  I love adventure!  I love travel!  And I've wanted to go to Africa ever since I was little.

Now these are all good reasons to go somewhere.  They aren't wrong in and of themselves.  But they shouldn't be a factor in whether or not I go or not.  My reason should be God.  Making his kingdom come to the darkest places.  Making his story of love known to those who haven't heard.  Making sure there isn't any group of people on this earth who don't get a chance to hear how much God LOVES them!!

And I have to admit to that there might be motivations for going that I need to wipe out of my mind right now and forever.  Crap that has been forming in my mind like gooey mold ever since I thought about being a missionary as a kid.  Stuff like "I'll look like such a good Christian and people will think I'm super Godly." or  "People will think I'm really brave for going to dangerous places." or "If I'm in some crazy country surrounded by people who are madly in love with Jesus, like it was in Mexico, maybe I won't fall back into depression and I can keep riding this 'Jesus high' that I'll lose if I just go home."

My dear friends back home who pray, please pray that any time any of these thoughts start to cross my mind that I'll recognize them immediately and get them out.

But more on the possibility of going.  I want to go, and a couple times I think I've felt God telling me I should go.  But every time I can't figure out if it's my wishful imagination or God's soft voice.  See when God wanted me to go to Mexico, I knew it was him, because I SURELY did not want to go to Mexico.  If I feel a call to somewhere I've specifically asked God NOT to send me to I know it's him!  But if it's something I really want to do, it's harder to know whether it's my will only or a desire shared by both me and God.

I love you and miss you.  Please pray for wisdom.

I Love

So about two months ago I wrote a blog about things I hate.  (Click here if you haven't read it http://amandastangland.blogspot.com/2010/09/i-hate.html).  At the end of the blog I said I would write a blog about things I love, so here it goes.  I love a lot of things, so this might be a long post.  These are listed in no particular order, and I'll surely leave things out by accident.  But here it goes...

My Savior.  Wheat thins with good cheese.  Dill pickles  My puppies.  Climbing trees, even when you're not a kid anymore.  The color green.  The smell of rain on concrete.  Music.  Sleeping in.  Warm blankets.  My sister.  Hippie dresses and flowy skirts.  The feeling of sun on bare shoulders.  Playing with people's hair.  Cori and Stephanie.  Daisies.  Being a girl.  Being creative.  Worshiping with good friends.  Hot chocolate before I sleep.  Coffee, not just the taste but the smells.  Freckles.  Hands.  Writings songs.  Hugs.  Knowing a good secret.  Old couples in love.  My kitty girl.  Hearing somebody sing when they think nobody is around to listen.  Good, deep conversations.  Night-time.  Sunrises.  Photography.  My family.  Un-related brothers.  A nice cold glass of milk.  Good concerts.  Feeling energy.  People's faces.  Knowing that you're truly and fully loved.  Car rides with the windows down.  Watercolor paints.  Tall grass.  Dragonflies.  True happy endings.  Baths.  Resting your head on someone's shoulder.  Singing harmony.  Comfy couches.  My DTS.  Seattle.  Dew.  Big waves.  Animals.  Innertubing in the lake.  Gentle people.  Inside jokes.  Vanilla flavored everything.  Happy memories.  Swing dancing.  Starbucks, especially when other people pay, lol.  Making things.  Airports and plane rides.  Wind.  Mist.  Babysitting.  Cartwheels.  Flowers.  Boulders.  Beauty.  My little church back home - oh my gosh, I miss you guys.  My youth group.  Anklets.  Fearlessness.  Crooked teeth.  Sprinting so fast you feel like you're flying.  Skipping.  Bug comfy chairs that swallow you up.  Chocolate truffles.  Vanilla Lattes.  Secretly observing people's unique habits.  Cinnamon.  Love.  Hugs.  That waddle toddlers do when they're learning to walk.  Kittens.  Going super super fast.  Being enveloped in water.  Cliffs.  Sunny meadows.  Playing with people's hair.  Dill pickles.  The light perfumey smell of Oprah magazines.  Mack massages.  Dimples.  Playing piano so fast your fingers feel like they're flying.  Endorphins.  Laughter.  Really getting to know people.  Dew-covered spiderwebs.  Morning frost.  YOU.

Funny Stuff

I decided to post a couple or funny stories here so you people at home can hear about them.  I want to jot them down before they are replaced with new funny happenings and might be forgotten.

The Pimple Video

(Don't read and skip to the next story if you have a weak stomach)

So yesterday I was taking a shower, minding my own business, when I heard my roommates start screaming their heads off.  I wasn't super worried, because I assumed it must be a cockroach or something.  Well after a short pause they started screaming again, so I jumped out of the shower soaking wet, half soapy, and ran out with just a towel to see what was going on.  Well all my roommates were crowded around one of our laptops, so I was like "what the heck is going on!?"  And they started laughing and told each other to rewind it so I could watch it from the beginning.

It was a horrible video or this poor man with a massive pimple-cyst thing on is upper back getting cut open and popped.  It's two minutes of these women cutting it open and just squeezing out huge, grotesque amounts of pus and blood.  Just when you think the pimple couldn't possibly have more pus in it they squeeze it some more and more comes out.  It's just about the most disgusting thing.  It's one of those things that's absolutely horrible yet you just keep on watching out of disbelief.

So we all watched it together and all screamed throughout, especially me.  (I can be a screamer at times, especially when puss the size of maggots is being squeezed out of some pimple.)  So two of the staff in the room next to us hear our screaming and think we might be in some sort of danger, so they come bursting in, and of course we rewind the video and show it to them from the beginning.  So now all of us are just standing around this laptop screaming and freaking out over this guy's zit, all while I'm still in my towel.

If you want to see the video, and have a really strong stomach, here's the link.  But I don't suggest it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xf8G-c_eAhs

The Cockroach I Didn't Catch

So the girls in my room, as well as a few girls in the rooms nearby, know that if there's a huge cockroach in their room, I have no problem with picking it up with my bare hands and letting it outside.  I think most of them have a mixture of "oh, that's brave" with "she's really strange" and "I can't believe she cares about saving the vile creature instead of killing it"  But nevertheless all are glad that the thing isn't in their rooms anymore.  Well anyway a couple nights ago I heard one of the rooms had an especially large cockroach in their kitchen, so I went in to try to safely remove it.  Well they just said it was somewhere on the floor, maybe behind the garbage can (it wasn't) or maybe in the shower (it wasn't) or something...  Anyway they wanted me to keep searching for the stupid bug, and I wasn't finding it and I didn't really like looking in all these dirty places.  And I was getting tired of looking for it.  And the poor girls were all outside feeling scared and refusing to go in their rooms even though they were really tired and wanted to sleep.

So finally I just went in their kitchen, shouted "Oh my gosh, it really IS big!" and cupped my hands around a random spot on the floor.  Then I ran out of the room with my hands cupped around the non-existent bug and pretended to let it go off the balcony, and it was super funny to have the girls around me screaming and moving out of the way.  They had no idea the cockroach was still in there somewhere and went to sleep and kept thanking me, and I felt kinda guilty.  But they found out later and thought it was funny.



"That's a good word Chad!"

A couple weeks ago one of our speakers told us this story from a church he attended.  So there was this preacher who went to this church in Ireland.  He got really discouraged because he had preached at more charismatic churches before, but this church, no matter what he said, just sat there like zombies with blank dead faces and he never knew if anything he said even got through them.  Anyway his wife decided to try and set an example for the rest of the church, so she sat in the front row, and after every point he made, or during any pause, she would loudly say, "That's a good word Chad, that's a good word!"  Which made the rest of the church super uncomfortable and put them in their shells even more.

The speaker who told us the story said it was just about the funniest thing ever.  Anyway after that now if somebody in class says something, or even just at random times throughout the day, we'll just say in a super girly voice, "That's a good word Chad, that's a good word!"  It's super funny.  I know I'm probably going to do it accidentally when I get home and nobody will know what I'm talking about.