Adjustments

A weekly update in a haiku:                                                        

“I survived this week.

Junior year is awfully hard.

I just want to sleep.”

- Jacqueline

          On another note, In the midst of the crazy I finally had a chance to post the first official video for this semester (Episode #15). Look below for the newest addition to the "Hannah & Jacqueline Show" and enjoy, especially if you have roommates of your own. 

          I hope you had a good laugh! and while I hope you can relate, I actually hope you can't, because sometimes these adjustments are the hardest ones to handle. Adjustments test you, grow you, and prep you for a later time in your life, but sometimes they leave you in tears while other times in fits of laughter. So whoever you are living with at this point in your life, good luck and hide your dark chocolate covered pomegranates because chocolate is always there to get you through! 

Well FRIENDS...

Till next time have a great week and a VERY happy Sunday!

#WatchOutForTheIcePuddle

    Unless you have been living under a rock, or hibernating for the last 4 weeks (like I wish I could be doing) you have probably heard about the south and the sudden #snowapocalypse2014 --- and, No I did not make that up it was a legitimate tag on twitter in reference to the condition of good 'ole South Carolina.

     It's a scary place folks! Walmart ran out of bread and water,  people have lost power, all businesses have been shut down, schools been out for the last 3 days, and driving would be right up there with committing suicide (just a joke). . . As the picture below so beautifully points out S.C has been closed.

Courtesy of Stix blogs

     It hasn't been that awful, although for me to say I am ready for spring and summer is for sure an UNDERSTATEMENT!

I do have to say though, that It is Awesome how God gives us EXACTLY what we need, when we need it most. I was just telling my friend the other day that I needed a day off - where everything would be cancelled and time would stop for a bit while I caught my breath... and look what happened aside from time stopping.

     All this to say, even though I learned my lesson from the last snow day and have worked on a toooooooon of homework in the last few days - They have been so great!

     


















    
     Time with people, plenty of  laughter, olympics, and lots of good things to think about are what have marked my days and made them good gifts. . . and since I know that it is Valentines Day and all, I'm just gonna conclude by saying I don't deserve any of those good gifts, especially the love that I have been given at such a costly price, but I will accept them and dwell on the giver that ultimately gave me life. 

     Anyway, I hope you have a moment in-between eating chocolate and giving hugs to your closest friends today to think about the good gifts God  has given you recently;  and if you are in the South or anywhere with snow or ice really - grab your boots and grab you gloves and watch out for those ice puddles! :)

Love the Arctic penguin 

   

Things to Ponder

* PAUSE THE STUDYING* 

     Whether you are a college student, an adult, a parent or high schooler who is surfing the web I hope you continue reading especially if you like food for thought. I think one of the biggest mistakes believers make is being uneducated (notice is didn't say believe) in the world of modern literature and philosophy. I am not above this, and I admit to living under a rock for a long time, but I'm catching up.
     This semester I had psychology so naturally I learned about all the "greats". . . Freud, Adler, Jung, Skinner and more, but as I am studying for my LAST FINAL EXAM ** INSERT fist pump here**  I am reading up on Frankl, who by far is my favorite. Partly because he is a believer and partly because so far he is the most interesting. Anyway, at the moment I figured a little study break and plus  I just wanted to share with you some of his wise words:

"To those who say they will not believe in God because they cannot verify His existence empirically through normal scientific means, Frankl responds by saying that they should get over their immature epistemology. Many realities exist that we cannot examine in a direct, sensory way. No one can directly see, physically handle, or directly measure sorrow, loneliness, hope, faith, love, peace, joy, or meaning – the most basic and most important of human realities."

"Man loses respect for himself and others when he loses his contact with his Creator." 

"Stripped of their belief in God, men quickly fall into a close-ended, close-minded, “philosophical” Naturalism."

"He (referring to Frankl)  finally asked himself what kind of meaning could entirely depend on having a child, or publishing a manuscript. In that moment, he saw that if there ever is to be a true meaning to a man’s life, it must be a meaning from beyond himself and his surroundings, an unconditional one, a meaning that cannot be destroyed by suffering or death." 

All of these come from a book I have to finish reading called "From Sigmund Freud to Viktor Frankl:  How Psychiatry Became Human" written by Stephen H. Farrah. (who just so happens to be my prof) and I am really loving it. 
     To elaborate a bit on what I said earlier - it is important to know what is going on in the mind of the world around you - TO BE AWARE - since we are called to be IN, but NOT OF. (Think of it like this, a foreigner goes  to a country but refuses to know any of the traditions or ways of the people yet wants to connect and build relationships. . .Its pretty impossible) So, next time you want something challenging to read or think about pick op a philosophy/psych/or famous novel BUT just remember to compare it to The TRUTH God has given us.  It is good to think (spiritual exercise to strengthen your spiritual belief), to be aware of what false truth is out there and be reminded how much better Gods Truth is in comparison to mans understanding of life. Food For thought . . .
Anyway, I better get back to my book 6:30 is getting closer by the minute.
Have a great night!
- Jac

Not Such a hard book.

Can I tell you my favorite past time? You might think I'm a little crazy, but it makes my day.

I love reading... and out of real books. WHHHHHHHHAT? You may be asking.... but Yep, they still exist believe it or not...and as the summer has allowed I've read 3. 

SOUL CRAVINGS by Erwin McManus

RISK IS RIGHT by John Piper

TRAUMA PLAN by Candace Calvert

I'm working on two others at the moment, but the one I'm most excited about finishing is a subsection of another book - 

          ECCLESIASTES. 

I currently have one chapter to go, and I am actually pretty sad about it! Bittersweet is a better word. This summer has been a work summer and contentment, enjoyment and value have been words I have pondered numerous times --- all of which this book contemplates -- which is why I think this book has been my favorite!

Words of wisdom like "There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat, drink, and find enjoyment in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God" (Ecc. 2:24-25) 

Questions like "For whom am I toiling and depriving myself of pleasure?" (Ecc. 4:8b) remind me where my focus is.  Actually chapter 4 alone gave me a lesson on contentment and how much better it is then to have being the best and having the BEST be my drive and reason for doing things. 

Even the lesson on satisfaction... man that was another good one - Chapter 6 describes this evil that lurks and as you read and pick up clues you find that the evil it is talking about is unsatisfaction. The fact that people can have EVERYTHING yet be unhappy.  Truth is... If YOU are not satisfied with what God gives you ... then you'll NEVER be satisfied.  

In the past people I have talked to have said its a hard book; and honestly .... it is. It challenges a soul and brings life and death into focus. questions the things society values and will confront you. As I have read I've kinda found a theme, and if i had to summarize this book this is what I would say. 

    "Without a purpose life is meaningless 

and 

the only way to completely enjoy life 

 (the ups and the downs and everything in between)

 is by having a focus on and purpose driven by Christ."

I challenge you to read it for yourself change your perspective. 

Don't worry... its not such a hard book.