In the Quiet

+ J.M.J. The Nicene Creed I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible. I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages. God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father; through him all things were made. For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate, he suffered death and was buried, and rose again on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and his kingdom will have no end. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son

+ J.M.J. Look at that face. He has perfect love. He looks at you with understanding. He loves you infinitely. He has sadness in His face too. Look at those eyes. He knows what you have suffered. He knows! He knows what He has planned for you! Guess how you can reach the highest happiness possible on this earth. He says it, right there in Jeremiah 29: When you look for me, you will find me . Whoah! We can find Jesus! That is so valuable! Do you realize what it is to have Jesus on your side? Not just on your side but living through you? For you to reflect His image and be His hands and feet in your day-to-day life? He has plans for a future full of hope! Get excited, because that is so awesome!

+ J.M.J. Introducing: my new fashion blog! Find me at  https://fashionbystephblog.wordpress.com/ . I'll still be blogging here, but I started this new blog so I could learn more about WordPress and have a more specialized focus on one of my passions: fashion! :)

+ J.M.J. Happy Saturday! Review time! This time my item of scrutiny is Dutch Bros. Yes, they have a lot of great coffee drinks. They are cheaper than Starbucks , but the customer service is comparable. Usually there's a long line, but the employees compensate for this by sending someone outside to take your order. Then you can wait in line until you inch your way to the drive-up window, where your drink is ready and you drive off happy. One time my punch card got punched twice. I said something, and the girl said she just usually does that. This was a one-time thing; this never happened again, sadly. Other than that, this place isn't anything out of the ordinary. I briefly mentioned earlier that the customer service is comparable to Starbucks. Let me elaborate a little more; the customer service is better. They're a little more personal at Dutch Bros., and ask about how your day is going not just as a face value lip service, but because they are

+ J.M.J. Happy Friday friends! (Or enemies, who knows, I guess I have a few) ;) It has been an interesting week! Life has been moving by kind of slowly of late and I'm just trying to figure out what to do with my time. I should be more appreciative of time passing slowly--this is what I longed for, right? I just didn't know it would feel like this. I heard a great talk by Paul Kim  last night, and he said something that made me think. He said that we get so caught up in looking forward to the next great thing that we don't appreciate the present, which is what actually matters. For me, I keep looking forward to getting married. I keep thinking, "I can't wait until I get married!" But the thing is, I can wait. And I need to wait. Besides the fact that I don't have a choice about waiting (I still have to find a guy/he has to find me), now is a time of healing and discerning. It is a beautiful time of clarity and beauty. Thank you

+ J.M.J. I went to Seattle last weekend and had a lovely time. Lemonade from this really healthy place called Evolution. They had cold-pressed juice, using oxidation instead of pasteurization. Fancy elevators at Macy's! My lunch, from a Chinese place at the Westlake Shopping Center food court Food court dining center. Isn't that lighting magnificent? Fancy lettering The place for deals and steals! ;) These charmers were painted on top of the Children's Museum. This view is from the top of the Space Needle. Look how small the cars are! I had my picture taken with this giant teddy bear when I was little, and also when I was 19. So this is a tradition. My breakfast of gluten-free crepes with ham and cheese. I got to watch them being made by hand at a neat little place at Pike Place Market that was established the year I was born. :) Essential to start my adventures with

+ J.M.J. [Verse 1] She sees them walking in a straight line, that's not really her style They all got the same heartbeat, but hers is falling behind Nothing in this world could ever bring them down Yeah, they're invincible, and she's just in the background And she says... I really relate to this song. I've always felt like I didn't fit in. I wanted to blend in, but by being myself, I never did. I never have. People notice. My friends would all be doing the same thing, and I would be at a different place in my life. I always felt like nothing bad could happen to them, and the older I got, the more I thought that somehow my life was full of bad stuff and everyone else had it easy.  [Hook] I wish that I could be like the cool kids Cause all the cool kids, they seem to fit in I wish that I could be like the cool kids Like the cool kids The only reason I wanted to be like everyone else is so that I wouldn't be noticed. I would pore through teen magazines