bye bye USA!

Hello from the beautiful city of Vancouver!

Kerri, Christine, and I left from the Marriott Hotel in Charlotte at 4:30 a.m. to head to the airport for our 6:59 a.m. flight. After running on practically no sleep because of the busy weekend we had just had and the not-so pleasant news I received last night, we were surprisingly ECSTATIC! My excitement was partially because of Canada, but mostly because my INCREDIBLE friend P. Sawyer has been spoiling for my birthday month and I got to open up a goodie this morning! YAY! I. Love. Her. Period.

After a two hour flight to Chicago, a two hour layover to match, and a five hour flight to Vancouver, we finally arrived in this beautiful city. We checked into the hotel, got our money exchanged, and grabbed some lunch. It was only 2 o’clock, but our bodies hadn’t adjusted to the time change and, therefore, we were already pretty exhausted. After lunch, my roomies and I stopped by the grocery store to pick up a few things, and then headed back to the hostel to unpack and reorganize our bags.

John, Chris, and Ashley mentioned going for a walk in Stanley Park, and I was definitely game for that! Our first stop: THE PACIFIC OCEAN!!!! I was totally pumped about this because it was my very first time seeing it and touching the water! It was FAH-REE-ZING, but totally worth the frostbite that my right hand may or may not have.

We continued walking, in a desperate search for the totem poles, when John asked two people sitting on a bench if they could direct us towards them. Immediately, they jumped up, introduced themselves, and offered to take us there themselves. Steve and Naline were SUCH a huge help and they were SO nice, too! They walked with us for about 45 minutes, giving us tidbits of information about the things we were passing along the way. At last, we found the totem poles! Three hours later, that is. All of our feet were about to kill over on us, but we kept on keeping on. It was all worth it when we spotted an otter on a dock in the marina-that was another “first” added to my list today.

We got back to our hostel around 7:30 p.m., a whopping four hours after we first left, and we had a quick class meeting at 8 o’clock, then Kerri, Christine, and I fixed ourselves some nice canned food in the kitchen of the hostel. High class, I’m tellin’ ya. Chef Boyardee for dinner: the story of my life.

I hopped in a quick shower and here I am now, snuggled up in bed in my onesie. At 10 o’clock. While most of the rest of the class is out exploring Vancouver’s night life. Maybe tomorrow we’ll venture out into the city, if my poor feet will be able to make it through the day. Since the drinking age in Canada is 19 and Kerri and Christine will knock me out if they don’t get to buy me a drink, I guess we have no choice but to get around to it. : )

Over and out. Sweet dreams!

remember that time I forgot to post these three months ago?

In December, P. Sawyer and I took a second trip to Tree Hill and here is our documentation. Whooopsies for the delay. Enjoy! :)

Day One:

Welp, we left from Greer at 6 o’clock this morning and arrived in Wilmington at approximately 1:30 this afternoon…after taking a 100 mile detour of which we were completely unaware of until we were approaching Charleston. Needless to say, we got a totally tour of every beach in South Carolina. A 5-hour trip became a 7-hour trip with just one missed turn. That WOULD happen to us, haha! Jesus was protecting us from something, and we are certain of that…and thankful!

When we first got to Wilmington, we decided to drive by Tric just to check it out andddd the crew and cast were there FILMING! One word: JACKPOT!!! We grabbed our tailgating chairs, and waited patiently for someone to notice us. While we were waiting, we got to meet a few of the crew guys that work on the set-which was awesome! Our favorite crew member was Russell-he helped us out a LOT by giving us the locations for filming for the rest of the week. He also said our favorite quote of the day…we asked what Roudabush was (the place where they’re filming on Thursday) and his response was, “I don’t know, they sell seeds and sh*t.” Bahahaha, classic! He made our whole day, and I’m still laughing about it!

Five hours later, India de Beaufort (Miranda) and Michael Grubbs (Grubbs) walked across the street to visit with us for a few minutes! They were so nice and acted like we were best friends! We had met India in August when we came, and she was just as sweet this time as last time! We love love LOVE her!

About another hour passed before filming came to an end for the day, and then Jana Kramer (Alex) came over to visit with her boyfriend (Jonathan Shaech, from That Thing You Do and Prom Night), and we were flipping out! Jana was SO excited to hear that we liked her character; she kept saying “Really?! Aww, that makes me so happy!!!” Needless to say, that only made us love her more!

When Jana and Jonathan left the set, we walked over towards Tric and waited to talk to any crew members that could have possibly given us a tour of the building. Melanie saved the day by seeking this one girl out…who then led us into TRIC! I was so excited I tripped and fell off the sidewalk. It wouldn’t be a Wilmington experience without my clumsy self flopping all over the place! We walked up the stairs, and BAM!!!! There was Tric! The bar, the stage, the merchandise table, the tables, the chairs…EVERYTHING was INCREDIBLE! We even got to leave the building by walking down the stairs on the side of the building; the same ones we “trespassed” to climb in August, haha! Shhh, that can be our little secret!

Immediately following our Tric tour, we headed to the car to find a restroom…it was our first potty break since 11 o’clock this morning! We had to GO!

And now, we are currently laying on the bed, reminiscing about our extraordinary first day…in our ONSIES! If someone were to ask me what the perfect day would be, I would say this one, of course!

Day Two:

Well, day two of our trip wasn’t nearly as eventful…but still not disappointing! We started off the day right by waking up at 10:30 a.m., which is the latest I have slept in about a month! It was heavenly!! After getting ourselves all dolled up, we embarked on our journeys for the day.

Right after parking the car, we went directly to The Cigar Exchange to ask about a hookah bar, because hookah was on our list of things to do for the day! Next, we went to the Wilmington Post Office to mail my Christmas cards! 47 cards and $20 later, we went to The George to eat lunch…this was super exciting for us because that’s where Nathan and Haley’s first date was, as well as where Brooke and Victoria ate lunch one day. YAY!!!

When we came to Wilmy in August, I signed a table where Haley tutored Nathan for the first time (when he gave her bracelet and said, “Don’t say I never gave you anything,” which is one of my faaaavorite lines of the whole series! My initials were gone when we went to find them, soooo I re-signed of course! Only this time, I made sure it would stay there by signing with permanent marker!

Poodles is a store right beside The George that sells Tree Hill stuff, so we made a stop in there for a few minutes! Melanie got a super cute bag that says “Ravens” and I got a shirt with the same logo on it! They are CUTEEEEE! After Poodles, we went to CD Alley, which is the store Peyton always goes to when she buys new vinyl records. I bought the new John Mayer CD, which is uh-may-zing!! Even more so because of where I got it! 

Since we were in the Peyton mood, we drove to the corner of 19^th and Chestnut St., where her house is! Haley’s house is also at the corner, which was PERFECT because we both got to see our own houses, haha! We were hoping we could get the owners to invite us in, buttttt that didn’t happen…so we just took more pictures instead! After visiting our homes, we went to Screen Gems to see if the cast was still there filming…andddd they were, so we stalked for a few moments! It’s basically impossible to see the characters when they film in the studio, so we decided to go to Lucas’ bridge for a few pictures! This time, we tested our inner hardcore nerves and got out of the car to take pictures on the bridge (it’s in a bad neighborhood, so last time we chickened out!). A creeper was walking on the bridge while we were taking pictures, so we headed back to the car for a few minutes until he passed. Then, we got even more gutsy and went under the bridge, which is where Brooke and Peyton used to hang out when they were kids. We felt super macho, haha!

Our next destination was in Wrightsville Beach, on the bridge where Clay and Sarah jumped off in an earlier episode this season (“On 2…1, 2…”)! We only stayed there for a few minutes, and then headed back to downtown Wilmington. We took a few pictures in front of the Clothes Over Bros set, then searched around for a Hookah bar! I have wanted to smoke hookah for a little while now, and I was determined to do it TODAY! And ta-da, we found one! We tried the watermelon flavor, and it wasn’t too bad…until I got a KILLER headache and felt nauseous. I know I know, I’m so hardcore. Bahaha, oh geeeez! At least now I can knock smoking because I’ve tried it, ha! While we were sitting there, this man walked up and wanted to make us roses out of palm leaves (like the ones in Charleston). Melanie bought one, and he gave one to me because he said he couldn’t let one girl have one without the other one having one, too. What a gentleman!

Once we decided we had had enough of the hookah experience, we started walking back towards our car. We passed a bar, and there was a guy standing at the door. He said “Hey ladies,” and we said hey as well. The next thing we know, he is chasing us down the sidewalk! We stopped and he proceeded to look me in the eyes for the next five minutes and tell me how beautiful I was. He said, “You are the most beautiful creation I have ever seen. I have been all over the place, Iraq, Afghanistan, all over America, and I have never seen anyone as beautiful as you are. I saw you and I was like ‘WOW!’ You were so beautiful I had to chase you down the road to tell you so.” Bahahaha, talk about awkward!!! I was wearing a ring on my left ring finger, and I guess he assumed that I was engaged or married, and he was like, “I see your ring, so I won’t try anything. But please know that you are so beautiful.” He even looked and Melanie and said, “Just look at her. She is so beautiful.” Then Chris (of course he introduced himself, haha) shook my hand, kissed it, and watched us walk away. That was by FAR the funniest part of the day!!!!

We were headed to Kilwin’s for some ice cream before Chris stopped us, and then we found they were already closed when we got there. Epic fail. We were almost in tears, haha! We got some coffee from Port City Java instead, so we were still satisfied! We realized that after 6 o’clock, downtown Wilmington is DEAD unless you’re in a bar. And well, since I’m not 21 and we weren’t looking to hang out in the streets, we made the executive decision to come back to the hotel room, put on our onesies, and watch Home Alone.

Even though today wasn’t as wonderful as yesterday, it is still considered a success in our view! Can’t wait till tomorrow!! We’re headed to TopSail!

Day Three:

It is safe to say that this day had its ups and its down! We got up at 5:30 and were on the road at 6:30, headed to Topsail for some filming! It was a bit of an adventure for an hour or so, because we couldn’t find Clay’s beach house, which was where filming was taking place all day. We asked around and a lady named Nancy was finally able to help us! She was an extra back in November, and she was familiar with the area. Turns out, we were right on top of it at one point, and didn’t go quite far enough!

Once we parked and walked toward the set, a police officer told us that the best way to get to the actors was to hang out around base camp, which was about ¼ of a mile away from where they were filming. The vans passed by us without fail, but we had no luck with getting the actors to come over. We were sitting in front of a hotel, so we went in a couple of times to use their restroom. The first time I went in, the lady at the front desk asked, “Are you the girl that’s camped out on our lawn?” Bahaha, we had officially been identified as creepers!

After 8 hours of no response from the actors at ALL, we decided to walk back towards Clay’s house. A different police officer greeted us when we first walked up, and he told us that the best place for us to watch was right beside the house on a crosswalk. This was the moment we realized that the other cop just wanted us out of the way. Thanks to him, we missed every single scene being filmed. Truth be told, I’m still a little mad about it! UGH!!! Nevertheless, we staked out on the crosswalk and waited for the final scene to come to an end.

While we were standing there, two crew members walked up on the crosswalk and assessed the weather for the next scene. They walked off a few minutes later after we made small talk, and then one of the guys brought us back some hot chocolate! We thought that was the coolest thing ever!! Screen Gems, we love you! Haha! Then another crew member with two dogs walked passed to walk out onto the beach. As he was passing, he said, “Watch out; famous dog coming through.” He then proceeded to tell us that he was the guy who jogged passed Clay right after Dan “baptized” him earlier this season. SWEET!! His name was Jim, and of course we got a picture with him!

Just a few minutes after we walked back to our designated stake-out spot, a crew member told us that they had just wrapped and the actors were about to leave. He showed us the best spot to stand in order to get pictures and autographs, and we were OH SO thankful! Clay and Quinn’s van pulled right up next to us and they hopped out! Clay said, “Wanna take a few quick pictures?” And of course we jumped on that like there was no tomorrow! Being wedged in between Shantel and Robert was the best five seconds of my lifeeeee!

As they were leaving, Shantel (Quinn) said, “Thank you for hanging out with us for the day! Sorry we have to rush off!” That was incredibleeeee!! Now if only Joy and James would flippin’ acknowledge us! BAHHHH!

Right after that, we started walking back towards my car. Did I mention that is was like ZERO degrees outside all day long? And we were basically ice cubes by the time we got out of the cold? Anyways, we walked back, got in the car, and started to pull out of the parking lot. And what would happen? Why, the gate would be CLOSED, of course. There was a note on my car that said I wouldn’t be able to move my car until morning when it opened back up. Really?! I mean, that would only happen to us! So, we got out of the car are jolted back to the set to catch the cop before he left. We made it there in record time, and the police officer called another officer to meet us at the parking lot to let us out. WHEW!!! Talk about a blessing! Jesus was most definitely looking out for us tonight!!

We left Topsail and an hour later, we were back in Wilmington! We had our first real meal of the day (mmmm, Subway!) and headed back to the hotel room. And now? Happy Feet to wind down! Can’t wait to sleep in tomorrow morning and finish our trip up strong! YAY!!

Day Four:

On our final day in Wilmington (tear!) we woke up at about 9:30 and checked out of the hotel around 10:30. Our first stop was the Rivercourt, which was gross! There were puddles of water everywhere and the court itself looked very worn-down. Right after we left, we drove by Hilarie's house & her Range Rover was parked in front of it! Her address will be ingrained in my mind forever!! After we lingered there for a little while, we went to The Reel Cafe for lunch. This was the set they used for Brooke’s first job at the crab place! Melanie got sex on the beach…but no worries, she’s not an alcoholic or anything. HAHA!!

Our next stop was Kilwin's!!! We were so disappointed that this was our first trip, but they closed so early everyday that this was the first chance we had. The girl who took our order called her sister a “stank behind” for skipping school and we just about died of laughter!!! So funny! We ate our ice cream and walked along Boardwalk and found the spot where Everly scene took place, with Joy and Grace Potter!

When we finished walking around, we went back to Hilarie's to stalk some more! This time we saw Nick Gray (who does all the SoGoPro podcasts!!) leave her house AHH!! And we followed him down the street for a while until we lost him haha! Instead of continuing to search for him, we just decided to walk around downtown some more. We went to the Cotton Exchange, and got stuck talking to this creepy guy that worked at a store called Ping Tibet. Weeeeeeird!! Then we sat on a bench in front of Roudabush to scope out when they were going to start filming! We walked to base camp, which was at 2nd & Dock St! We talked to one of the van drivers named Reggie, and he gave us some inside tips!! He told us the actors weren’t there yet, so we decided to walk to the car and put more money in the meter. When we were walking toward the car, Melanie had a heart attack….which was because she had spotted HILARIE BURTON!!!!! We stalled for as long as we could so we could meet her, and then she finally got out of her car! We told her how big of fans we are of her, and she stuck around and talked for us for like five minutes! We were FREAKINGGGG OUT!!! We got pictures with her and everything! BEST. DAY. EVERY!!!!!!!

Still freaking out, we walked to a little coffee shop right in front of Roudabush, and we were in the best moods ever!! Seriously! We admired pictures like a million times while just sitting there!!! YAYAYAYAYAYAY!!!!!!

We finally left the coffee shop and staked out on a corner in front of set! A crazy drunk guy causing a disturbance kept saying "I'm doing society a favor!" and thennnnn he got arrested! HAHA!!! The crew guys walked over to us while we were sitting at The Reel Cafe, and we FINALLY took a picture with Russell!!! I also took one with Paul and Bill….and Paul, well, he enjoyed it a little too much! HA! Then out of nowhere, Jen waved us over across the street because Shantel came over pre-filming!!!!!! We got pictures with her, and discussed cow scene! Hahahaha, it was all of our favorites!!! She told us she would send Bess (Lydia) over to take pictures after filming!

We stood around right across the street and got to see some filming thru windows for about 2 hours, and chatted it up with Paul mostly. Andddd he invited us to spend the night with him bahahaha!! He said I’ve got locks on the doors, and we could drink some wine, beer, whatever you want…” All I have to say about that is…man-whore!!!We kept talking to him, though haha! He led us in front of the store and explained filming techniques! When we walked back around to the side, a razy girl with make-up blackened eyes and ripped fishnet stockings walked past us downtown with two guys. Sketccchhhhh!!! Then a creepy old guy walked up to us and asked us if we like wine and turkish beer. He then proceeded to tell us about his step-mom: "she my stepmom, well, she might as well be" Bahahaha!!! Craaaaazy people!

Filming wrapped and the crew told us to walk up a block to base camp to meet Lydia and Quinn, so we did!!!! Bess was precious and called us adorable, and she loved Melanie mentioning the quote about Haley smoking crack from season 2! We were able to take individual pictures with Shantel, and even a sandwich picture!!!

We had to get gas, so we stopped in at South of the Border. Little did we know we would meet the biggest drug dealer in the area….awesome. The lady who rang us up was crazy too!! Note to self: never go back there again! We finally arrived home at 2 o'clock! ACHAAA!!!!

what a wonderful world :)

Matthew 6:19-21 says, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

For years, Matthew 6:21 has been one of my absolute favorite verses for several different reasons. This past weekend I added another reasons to my list. When I was at Disney World (yes, DISNEY WORLD!), there were so many children whose dreams were coming true and parents who were so excited for their little ones to experience the magic of Disney. It was absolutely beautiful, and it made me wish I had a little girl to dress up like a princess and a little boy to dress up like a handsome prince!

I got to see some of the most gorgeous things, and I got to meet most of my favorite characters...including my childhood and present idol, BELLE! Although this was my third visit to Disney, I was able to truly appreciate the whole park more this time because I was old enough to understand how much time and effort had been put into making it so beautiful.

The whole time I was experiencing this awesome park, all I could think about were these three verses. If Disney World has the power to make people feel so alive and add so much joy to the lives of people of all ages, just think how AWESOME is Heaven going to be!

Jesus said that he was going to prepare a place for us in Heaven, and that it would be beyond our wildest dreams. Just think about that for a second. If I could have every single thing I ever wanted here on earth, it still wouldn't compare. I could watch One Tree Hill all day long while eating cheesecake and banana pudding and laying in my warm bed with rain pouring down outside without gaining a single pound. That's what I wish I was doing right now more than anything...and Heaven will blow that out of the water! I can't even wrap my mind around the thought of Heaven being the most peaceful experience I have ever known and, at the same time, the most thrilling experience I have ever known. But I love it!

My treasures on earth don't even scratch the surface of the treasures that await me in Heaven, so where should my heart be? The correct response is Heaven. but so many times I choose to put my heart into things that won't last beyond the day without giving my whole heart to Jesus, the one who died so that my heart could be pure.

Jesus wants my heart to long for him and to ache when I fall away from him. I'm almost positive that Disney World doesn't feel the same way.

So today, I choose to be in love with Jesus. Not with the world or anything it has to offer. None but Jesus.

this little girl they know.

Ever since I was a little girl, I have always been known as two things: "the sweet little angel" and "the strong one" to almost everyone who meets me. Flattering as it is, that's not the only thing that makes up Anna Michelle Henderson. When I am put on a pedestal like that, there is no where I can go but down. I am not more righteous that anyone else on this whole planet, but the very moment I mess up or make a mistake, I feel like I have to hide that from everyone around me because I have to be "strong" or I have to put on that million-dollar smile and pretend like everything is okay. Most of the time when people ask me how I am doing, their question isn't sincere because they think they already know the answer: "Great!" Now don't get me wrong, I do strive daily to be a light to people who may not see any light the rest of the day, but I do have bad days. I have them more frequently than most people realize, even my close family and friends.

Jesus said in Matthew 11:28, "come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." He sees my smiles, my giggles, and my happy dances. But he also sees my tears, my heartaches, my cuts, my bruises, and all the other yucky stuff that's hidden in the deepest parts of me. It's so easy for me to just open up to him and tell him all the things I do wrong every day. The world, on the other hand, sees my mistakes and points at each of them individually. So what do I do? I hide them. And why do I hide them from the world? Because the world isn't forgiving. And as long as Satan is the prince of this world, it never will be.

But that doesn't make it okay. Just like the Good Book says, we are in this world but not of it. We are of God and saved by the grace of Jesus Christ. When I hide my sin from the world, I am telling myself that I have to be the best. But the thing that is wrong with that mindset is pride. And pride is sin. So really, by hiding my sin I am only just covering it up with more sin.

I remember the exact moment that God completely rocked my world and I began to see him for who he really is. Dustin Willis was speaking at Awanita when I was in 8th grade, and he said "we must have a reaction to Jesus Christ that shows no concern for our reputation." That is a quote that I will never forget but by hiding my faults and failures from the people around me, I forget to live by it. And I have this crazy feeling that I'm not the only one who feels this way.

Jenny and Tyler (one of my latest obsessions) wrote a song that hits right on this issue, and one of the lines in one of their songs says: "I can't let them know about my sin 'cause what will they think of me when they finally see that this little girl they know doesn't let her bruises show?" But God says it doesn't matter what the world thinks. He's the one in charge here, and he wants us to be transparent to the world so that lives will be touched and maybe even changed. We are the messengers of Jesus Christ, and how will His Word be spread if we all walk around like we're perfect? News flash: it won't.

In Philippians 4:12, Paul tells us that he has matured to much in his walk with Jesus that he can rejoice in any and every situation that he is faced with. I believe that that is God's desire for everyone of us. And if God desires it, then it is his will. And if it is his will, then it's our responsibility to try our very best to do what he says. Why? Because he promises that he will never ask us to do something that we cannot do (1 Corinthians 10:13).

As Jenny and Tyler put it so perfectly, "it's not what they think, it's how You think of me." Let Jesus be your judge, not people. Jesus died for you and me to be free, not to live a life filled with guilt and regret. Let's start living the way he intended us to live! Deal? :)

all I know.

“I don't know how the stars hang

Or how there's night and then there's day

I don't know how you spoke into the black

and made it all obey

(Chorus)

All that I know is the bleeding in my heart

and the healing in your touch

All that I know is that you gave everything

so let that be enough...it's all I know, it's all I know

I don't know how your love works

Or how you cover me in grace

I don't know how you swallow all I am

when I can't stand my taste, oh

(Chorus)

All that I know is the bleeding in my heart

and the healing in your touch

All that I know is that you gave everything

so let that be enough...it's all I know

And I can't explain your mystery,

but I know the answer

(Chorus)

All that I know is the bleeding in my heart

and the healing in your touch

All that I know is that you gave everything

so let that be enough...it's all I know, it's all I know”

WOW! Matt Wertz sure knows how to write a song that hits your heart in all the right places! This song absolutely blew me away.

We can't see God in the form of an actual person, but we can see all the things that he touches. Just like the song says, I don't know how God makes everything work together (for his glory, might I add), but there is no way that I would ever doubt that he does. The song says "All I know it that you gave everything," and it floors me how just one little sentence can have such a HUGE meaning.

JESUS paid it ALL. And because of that, we are completely covered in his grace. Forever. And ever. Once we ask God for his grace, he gives it to us day in and day out, even though we have never deserved it-never even once. Why? Because he is GOD and he LOVES us! So many times I forget the weight of that.

Over 2000 years ago, Jesus took ALL my sin (past, present, and future) and made it his. And on June 21, 1998, I told him just how much it meant to me. I've been his ever since.

I don't have all the answers to the questions people ask me about the history of the church or every little detail in the Bible. In fact, I usually answer most of those questions with one word. But that one word is filled with a million other great words: Jesus. It's all about him. None but Jesus. When we fix our gaze on Jesus, everything else in the whole world seems a little less significant. Jesus is the only thing that is worth giving your life to in this life.

"All I know is that you gave everything, so let that be enough." God says, "IT IS ENOUGH!" When we glorify and praise his name, we tell him that we love him. And if we love him, what else even compares? Love is the ultimate gift you can give anyone, and God wants it more than any of us here on earth do.

God WANTS us. That single sentence in itself it amazing! Who in the world would ever think that the God who single-handedly created the ENTIRE universe would care if anything happened to me? He doesn’t need us, but he wants us.

The funny thing about that is that even though God wants us and doesn’t necessarily need us, we are the complete opposite: We NEED him even when he’s the last thing we WANT. In Mark 2, Jesus says, the sick people need a doctor, not the healthy. And contrary to what you may believe about yourself, we are all sick. We sin, and are, therefore, in constant need of a savior. I don’t know about you, but I couldn’t make it through one single second of the day without him walking beside me.

My prayer for you is that you realize that you don’t need all the answers to follow Jesus. Hebrews 11 says, “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” When you follow Jesus, one thing is for sure: you will not always have the answers. But one of the AWESOME things about Jesus is that we don’t need them!

He knows how incapable we are, so he will never ask more from us than we can give (1 Corinthians 10:13). But what we can give, we should give it to him. Why? Because he demands it.

We are enough for Jesus. Every last one of us. No matter where we come from, how old we are, or how much we know, he still loves us just the same. It’s time for us to start loving him.

Jesus is not religion.

Last February, I got the amazing privilege to go see Shane & Shane perform a concert. David Nasser, an evangelist and writer, was with them and spoke to us that night during the intermission. He had so many wonderful things to say about Jesus and the Gospel, but I distinctly remember him saying something that really confused me. He said, "Jesus is not religion." Everyone in the crowd seemed to understand what he meant when he said that, but I, on the other hand, did not. When I went home last that night, I prayed and prayed over what that meant, but I never really got my answer.

After a couple of days, I brushed it off and stop worrying so much about it. Then, I went to NewSpring a few months later and Perry said the same thing that David Nasser did: "Jesus is not religion." He explained what he meant by it a little bit, but I was still lost in the clouds. I had always been told that when I loved Jesus, I was being religious. And people who judge others for their beliefs always say, he/she is "acting all 'religious.'" I've heard it a million times. So that's why I was so confused.

I wondered what was so wrong with being religious. I had always taken pride in my religion, so I couldn't understand how it was such a bad thing.

Later that week I was reading in Matthew about all the times Jesus stuck it to the Pharisees and Sadducees for their corruption and abuse of the scriptures. And then it hit me. Those big-shot "religious" guys were all messed up but they thought they had it all together. Jesus was and is RELATIONAL. Religion is not. That was the second best light bulb moment in my life. Second of course to my first encounter with Jesus!

Jesus IS NOT religion.

Religion says, "Do this, this, this, and, this and then you'll be acceptable."

Jesus says, "I knew you would never be good enough because of your sin, but I love you anyway. I love you enough to take your sin and make it my own."

All the other religions of the world are about what we have to do to get to it. Christianity is all about what JESUS did to get to us. Christianity is all about how JESUS RESCUED US. What a beautiful picture!

When Jesus came, he messed up religion. For the first time, it wasn't about certain steps you take to complete a process. It was about loving something so much that you couldn't stand the thought of living without it. And that's what he did for us. How amazingly and incredibly AWESOME is that!

We are blessed by the best. And if we don't want to be in God's presence here on Earth, why would we want to go to Heaven when we die? Like Perry said at the Easter service at NewSpring, "Hell is a place where you can have for an eternity what you wanted on Earth."

We have a choice to make. Jesus or religion.

I choose JESUS! And my deepest and most heartfelt prayer for you is that you will choose him, too. He didn't come to start a new religion. He came to bring us life.

Jesus died so we could live. So are we living?

oh how he loves us.

The love of God is indescribable. This week was my spring break, and I was able to spend it in the beautiful city of St. Louis, Missouri. God showed his faithfulness and love in so many ways this week that it almost blew my mind. God is so good!

This past week I worked at the Wesley House in St. Louis with FLOCK X! We had so much fun together. We grew so close that we actually didn't want to leave each other...which is usually uncommon when a group spends so much time together. But it was so awesome! God definitely blessed the socks off of our group and we were able to be witnesses to everyone around us. Angela, Anna, Hope, Caitlin, Heather, Savannah, Sarah, Emily, Kyle, Kit, and Bryan were all INCREDIBLE! I feel like I went to St. Louis with eleven acquaintances and came back to Clemson with eleven siblings. I am so grateful for each of them. All of them brought something unique to the group, which made it even more fun.

The Wesley House in St. Louis is a place where children come after school and during the summer, and it is sort of like a day program for them. Mr. Jimmie, Linda, Sharon, and Dorrie were the four people in charge and they were so awesome! Mr. Jimmie and Dorrie were so eager to help us whenever we needed them, and they were also able to hang out with the kids with us. They were awesome at some kickball, too!

Each child that we were able to hang out with and get to know was so different, yet so alike. Antwonette was full of funky dance moves. Terrence was busting out back flips like nobody's business. Antwon had a smile that could make anyone smile and the cutest little voice to go along with it. Johnny was absolutely precious and ran from all the girls because we had cooties. Clarence was fearless when it came to dance offs. These children will always hold a special place in my heart. Especially Terrence, because he claimed me as his girlfriend and wouldn't let any other boys come near me. He knew how to make a girl feel loved!

All of the people from Flock X and Crazy 8's were so amazing. Everyone was so willing to do whatever it took to serve the Wesley House, and it was so encouraging to watch them interact with the kids. Everyone got along so well too, and that made things even better. Everyone cheered each other on and just had so much fun trying our hardest to love those little ones the way that Jesus loves us.

In twenty+ years when I look back on this week, I can garuantee that the one line that will come to my head will be "oh how he loves us." Because that is exactly what this week was all about. His love for us and, also, this: If we profess to be followers of Christ, we will strive to love others as he has loved us.

Jesus loves us so much that it's almost impossible for me to grasp my mind around the concept of it. And the part that absolutely BLOWS my mind is that he still loves me although I mess up a million times a day. I don't deserve his love, but he still gives it to me day in and day out. This is HUGE. It's so easy for us as humans to turn our backs on people who hurt us without even second-guessing our actions, but that's never even an option for Jesus. If we loved people the way that Jesus loves us, just imagine the change we would see.

When we are able to love people despite their flaws and imperfections, that's when we begin to see people the way Jesus does. Loving someone the way Jesus loves us means giving 200% of your heart when the world says that isn't safe. It's showing no concern for how something will affect you, because all you want is for someone else to feel that joy that you have. Love is so powerful. Our love for people puts our love for God on display. If you don't believe me, take a look at 1 John 4.

I believe that love is the greatest gift God gave us. I'm not talking about love of worldly things like money or possessions, I'm talking about the love of him and our brothers and sisters in him. I believe that a little bit of love can change the world. What if we all loved each other just a little more? Just imagine how awesome that would be!

Oh how he loves us. Oh how he loves us. Oh how he loves us so.

If we could get that in our heads, we reach so many more people. God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and LOVE and of a sound mind. We've got love in all of us; even the people who act like they don't, do. To love is to serve and to serve is to love.

The big question that Brad Cooper asked the group in St. Louis this week was "Selfishness or Salvation?" So which one is it? Only one comes out of a heart filled with love.