The Love of My Life

This blog is dedicated to saying a huge thank you to my fiance!

Thank you for your patience and love during these last 4 years.

Thank you for believing in me and what God has gifted me to do.

Thank you for always seeking to put a smile on my face.

Thank you for supporting me and loving me!!!

Sweetly Broken

How amazing is God?? I have goosebumps just thinking about how awesome He is. And we can't even comprehend the whole magnitude of what the Lord did for us on the cross and His defeat of the grave by raising from the dead on Easter. Praise Him.

This video is amazing. True worshipers if you ask me!

there are so many times I just want to sing so loud and just dance before the Lord!

I pray that you come to know the Lord more deeply this season and consider all He has done for you and all He wants to do in your life.

Jeremy Riddle - Sweetly Broken
From the album Sweetly Broken

To the cross I look, to the cross I cling
Of its suffering I do drink
Of its work I do sing

For on it my Savior both bruised and crushed
Showed that God is love
And God is just

Chorus:
At the cross You beckon me
You draw me gently to my knees, and I am
Lost for words, so lost in love,
I’m sweetly broken, wholly surrendered

What a priceless gift, undeserved life
Have I been given
Through Christ crucified

You’ve called me out of death
You’ve called me into life
And I was under Your wrath
Now through the cross I’m reconciled

Chorus:

In awe of the cross I must confess
How wondrous Your redeeming love and
How great is Your faithfulness

(2x’s)
Chorus:

Happy 23rd Birthday to me!!!

Andrew's family took me the Macaroni Grill for my birthday on March 7th!

Me with the soon to be in laws enjoying our meal!



The goof balls of the group! hahaha. This is Mike, Holly's boyfriend, Holly and Andrew.



Here I am stuffed after so much pasta and bread!

Andrew and I!!

Holy Vessel

Merriam Webster's Dictionary defines a vessel as: 1 a: a container (as a cask, bottle, kettle, cup, or bowl) for holding something b: a person into whom some quality (as grace) is infused vessel of the Lord — H. J. Laski>



Our theme for our Ladies Retreat this April is "Holy Vessels". We are all holy vessels to the Lord. But as the ladies ministry at our church has been studying the book of Daniel with Beth Moore we have learned that there are many times that we use our vessels in unholy ways, we toast to unholy behavior and things. We ultimately disgrace our own vessels.



Vessels must be filled. Vessels must also be pure before the substance is put in them.



For example, if you drink a glass of orange juice and then put water in that same glass is it is going to taste like orange flavored water!



Well, how then can we pour our God's grace, love, mercy, kindness, and patience if our vessels are still filled with our flesh, and old life?



It's impossible!! We must let the Lord purify our vessel through testings and trials that our vessels may come out as pure gold. Once we've been refined in the furnace that which we receive from God we can pour out.



By no means is this a process that happens within hours, days or months. Our vessels are constantly being cleaned and reshaped by the Lord. He is the potter and we are the clay.



Let him mold you and shape you and take our all uncleanliness.

Girls Nite!

Every month my girls (Andrea, Victoria, Krystal, Marissa and Erin) get together and so something fun. We either teach each other a talent or spend time relaxing together! It is much needed and I wish we could do it more often!


Here is our lovely instructor in the back, Barbara Rog, helping us make cups/vases.

Andrea, me, Victoria, Krystal and Marissa had a great girls night!! We had the chance to get messy, laugh, and have great godly fellowship.

I wouldn't trade these girls for the world.

Andrew was our special photographer that night!!

Here I am designing my soon to be vase.

Krystal wore latex gloves because her hands get so dry!! She is a riot!! Fun times.













I will post the finished products later!

Wedding Update 1-The Mementos

Barbara and I worked on the Wedding Mementos March 1st!! Barbara did most of the work! She stamped them all out and then I helped clean them as she put the holes in them. It was a fun project to do together.















The next step will be to glaze them with pink and white! Then we will print our special message on the velum, hole punch, tie them on and we're done!

Oh, I am so excited. And the best part about it is it costs under $10 to make ALL of them!!





Barbara and I were scheming to go into the wedding gift business...




Isn't that beautiful??










March 1st and 4th Andrew and I registered at Linens N Things and Target. Andrew definitely was not into it until we got to the coffeemakers! It took him 10 minutes to choose the right one! Then he had a ball scanning things like a meat tenderizer and saying, "OOO, we need this!" By the end of the night he let me know, "I never want to do this again!"

Barbara was amazing enough to help out with my preparation before departure!

My Valentine

VALENTINE'S DAY FEBRUARY 14, 2008

Andrew and I decided we wanted to have a low cost evening at home!!

So, Barbara helped me prepare a yummy homemade meal. And I went down to Vons to get some shrimp for Andrew (his love language).

Andrew surprised me with a bouquet of roses (my love language).



It was a very sweet night and very relaxing!!

4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
5It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
6Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
7It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
8Love never fails.

2 Corinthians 13:4-8

SWIFT

High School Ministry

The Return of SWIFT (Students Walking In Faith And Truth!)

All high schoolers are invited to a Bible Study with Andrew Rog on Sundays at 11:30 am in the Fireside Room starting February 10^th. Bring an appetite and a friend!

We are so excited that Andrew is going to be ministering to the high schoolers. Please pray for him as he dives into the word and seeks direction from the Lord!

The Lord put youth ministry on his heart in 2006 and now that he's been asked by the Pastor to serve in this capacity he is on cloud 9!! Andrew is a great bible teacher and has such a big heart for the youth.

"Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near."

Hebrews 10:24-25

The Journey

"For I know the plans I have for you," says the LORD. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope." Jeremiah 29:11
I struggled to believe these words through the time this blog covers. I fought with every fiber of my being to stay afloat. I went under many hard times but the Lord did uphold me. And at the end I am certain that the trials I faced were not for my disaster but to reap a mighty harvest!!

Enjoy!!

The middle of 2006 began a great journey of my first step into the wilderness with the Lord. I had no idea I would be going into the wilderness because I was just on a mountain top. It was around that same time that I had overcome some great difficulty and trial. I was now smack dab in the middle of the book of Psalms. The Lord is my rock, I was reading, my strong tower, refuge, in Him I shall not be moved.





May 2006- my grandmother had been diagnosed with bone, lung and lymphnode cancer; stage IV. As I read the book of Psalms I rejoiced in the Lord that whatever He may bring through my grandmother's illness He would be my rock. I was thinking that my distant and not so compassionate extended family members would pull together during this time as I sat on my mountain top of God's word--then everyone came home from the doctor's office. And the light of the Lord came into a full on clash with darkness. No one wanted to pull together they wanted to blame and make someone else a scapegoat. And that honor was mine! Through this the Lord revealed to me what I had been neglecting to see my whole life. My family of origin wasn't meant to be a healthy place for me--it was my battlefield that would help me grow stronger through circumstances.


September 2006- My mother was diagnosed with Thyroid cancer and underwent surgery that December. Such a hard time for a person who had already had about 1 other cancer scare and many other illnesses. I started my last year at CSUN and this was application time for graduate schools. I had come down with a bout of Epstein Barr because of all the stress of home and taking the hardest classes in my Undergrad. I was so sick that I really wasn't as focused as I needed to be to fight this battle victoriously. I had definately been wounded in battle and wasn't fulfilling all the Lord had planned. But I tried.






January 2007- I met my lovely girls in our women's ministry study of "Jesus the One and Only" by Beth Moore. In the middle of the wilderness the Lord was teaching me to sow. Through that bible study I sowed friendships with "My Girls" that are continuing to reap this very day. One Thursday night the Lord revealed to my heart that I was not going to get into grad school this time around. Grad school is a promise the Lord has put on my life because I know He has wanted me to fulfill a career as a Speech Pathologist.

March 2007- I was diagnosed with 3 nodules in my left thyroid and tonsillitis. Still with no grad results back. I decided to plan in my head how I would work 2 surgeries in with grad school. The next day I got my REJECTION letter from CSUN and that week all the other schools I had applied to. But, I gave it to the Lord. I had been sick for so long and worked so hard that I figured a break would do me good.


May 2007- I graduated with honors from CSUN.

June-August 2007- took two summer classes!




August 15, 2007- Left thyroidectomy success!!! And tons of rest and love from my mom and church family.



End of August- hounded professors for letters of recommendation. And sent in the application.

September 13, 2007- tonsillectomy success!!!
October 2007- phone interview with CSUN distance learning program (Online Grad School). November 2007- Andrew proposed!

December 2007- relationship issues with a very dear loved one that drove me to the place the Lord had in store. I never realized that I hadn't really grown and matured in many healthy ways that families are suppose to facillitate. THIS TIME I PUT MY WHOLE TRUST IN THE LORD. I would not budge an inch until He told me the directions to where He wanted me to go. Many tears were shed grieving the loss of a life and relationship I thought I once had and then JOY came in the form of revelation from the Lord of the the life that God has had planned for me but I wasn't ready to live.

January 2008- I moved in with the Rog's to escape the oppression at Clybourn Ave. 18 years is long enough!!

January 2008- ACCEPTED to graduate school! Clothed in full armor. My battle wounds are healing but no more fiery darts of that devil are coming in. My shield of faith is up.

I pray that you see the parallel of 2006/2007 to 2008. I was sowing into tough, wilderness soil during 2006 and 2007. In December 2007 I finally gave it all to the Lord. Now I am reaping what the Lord and I have sown through those tough times. PRAISE HIS NAME! I feel like a walking testimony of the Lord. Not in my strength or wisdom, ALL through Him. I studied His word, sought godly counsel and books, I WAITED on the Lord and HE CAME!! He was faithful to show me the path and that path is full of light and promise and let me tell you HARDSHIP--but it's HIS way and that's all that matters. I know this post could be a book but thank you for enduring it. I had to spill out the excitement I feel as the Lord has acted on my behalf and shown me great things. I am certain that He can do it for you too!!

The journey is long. The road is tough and full of fog at times but the Lord knows where He is going. I claim His promise proclaimed by Moses in Deuteronomy: "Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you." Praise God it's true!!

Deuteronomy and Luke

"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever." Hebrews 13:8

(picture by Andrew Rog 2005- Los Angeles Crest)

It's so interesting how even Christians try to separate the God of the Old and New Testaments. A God of wrath and of love. But as I've been lead to study the old testament (Exodus and Deuteronomy) these last 3 months I have seen anything but consistency in the Word. God has always had a righteous wrath and will until the end of time. God has always had an unfailing love for His children.

(proof that I read the Bible! lol)

I found a great parallel between how the way of eternal life was set since the beginning. Read these two passages: "Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live! You can make this choice by loving the LORD your God, obeying him, and committing yourself firmly to him. This is the key to your life. And if you love and obey the LORD, you will live long in the land the LORD swore to give your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob." Deut. 30:19-20 "One day an expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking him this question: "Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus replied, "What does the law of Moses say? How do you read it?" The man answered, "You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind." And, "Love your neighbor as yourself." "Right!" Jesus told him. "Do this and you will live!" Luke 10:25-28



If we obey the Lord, love Him, and commit ourselves to Him He is faithful to save. We should never claim to just follow the New Testament because the law reveals spiritual truths about our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus said that the law of Moses was right to inherit eternal life. God hasn't changed! We have just put Him in a box and conformed Him to our finite minds. God has amazing treasures hidden in His law that expound His unfailing love, His faithfulness when we are not faithful, His open arms to His children, His omnipotent knowledge that He knows all our sins and still loves us and longs for us to come back to Him. "This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you to understand, and it is not beyond your reach." Deut. 30:11 We can do it brothers and sisters!! It's not impossible we just have to ask for it and it will be given!



I leave you with a quote from Andrew Murray's book Absolute: Surrender: "God is waiting; Christ is waiting; the Holy Spirit is waiting. Do you see what has been lacking and why you have been wandering in the wilderness? Do you see the good land, the land of promise, in which God is going to keep and bless you? Remember the story of Caleb and Joshua (Old Testament) and the spies. Ten men said in effect, 'We can never conquer those people." Two said, "We are able, for God has promised.' Step out on the promises of God. Listen to God's Word: 'Through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death' (Romans 8:2). Take hold of the promises and claim that God will do for you through His Holy Spirit what He has offered to do."

Andrew has chosen life!! hehe

The First I Love You

So last night I was trying to think of a fun thing to post about Andrew and I. Our trip to Santa Barbara immediately popped in my head. It was a time of innocence and a fresh start. As I looked up the pictures I couldn't believe that we had gone in January!! We missed our Santa Barbara anniversary! lol. It's been 3 years since that trip.

JANUARY 17, 2005

Andrew and I took a trip up the coast to Santa Barbara to get away from crazy LA. We stayed up there for 2 days. We walked on the beach, swam and just hung out. We had officially been boyfriend and girlfriend for 2 months. But those 3 words still hadn't been said....



Our first day at the beach Andrew made our names out of sticks and drew a heart around them. I later learned that I was suppose to get the hint that "he loved me" from the heart around our names.

He soon realized that I was dense and totally didn't get it.

Later that day as we were hanging out and talking he nervously said, "I have to tell you something." He immediately said, "I love you" and then kissed me because he didn't know what I would say in return.

Can you guess what I said?? Only you romantics out there---hahaha. There began our love.







Our marriage will begin with a honeymoon in Santa Barbara, where the love began.

The Story of Us

(Andrew's 21st B-day, Sept. 2004)

Andrew and I met in August of 2004 through some mutual friends (Lesley and Jimmy). That night Andrew begged Jimmy to get my phone number and ever since that day we have been inseparable.

We officially became boyfriend and girlfriend November 4, 2004.

God has been faithful in our relationship to bring us through many ups, downs, twists and turns. We have had our share of difficulties from every angle Satan could hit us but the Lord has used everything for good and we are stronger for it. (Romans 8:28)

We faithfully serve in the children's ministry together. I teach the preschool and he teaches 2nd-3rd (right now). We strive to maintain God as our focus.

We enjoy hikes, movies, music, fellowshipping with our church family, and snuggling!

(March 2004)

Andrew taught a college bible study at Woodbury University. It was names PRAISE (Pray Read Inspire Seek Evanglize.) He took us through the books of Jonah and James. Many good memories.

Andrew started his own photography business called Cross Eyed Photography. You can view his amazing photography at www.crosseyedphotography.com


I graduated from CSUN with a Bachelor's Degree in Communicative Disorders in August 2007.

In August of 2007 Andrew and I sat on a bench on the Chandler walk and we talked about marriage. He said he wanted to get married in August of 2008. I was completely taken aback because it sounded way too soon!

November 3rd 2007 Andrew and I walked back to that same bench and that is where he got down on one knee and proposed. It was a dark night so he bought a box from Robbins Brothers that had a light in it so I could see the beautiful ring sparkle! We went back to my house to show my family and then we went up to the Rog's who did not want to get out of bed. But after much persuading they were very happy they did! Andrew and I celebrated at BJs restaurant.



We are planning on August 16th, 2008 to be our wedding date. It only seems to be in God's perfect timing and that is why we are going for it.