Be Still

Be still and know that I am God... Be still and know that I am with you. 


These are the opening words to one of my all time favorite songs to sing in the church choir. I love the bluntness of them - it's like God's saying "Just be still because you know I'll take care of it!"
Things have been hectic on my side of the world lately - there have been a few family deaths in the past year and my uncle was recently diagnosed with cancer. It's been a long and bumpy road, and sometimes we don't know what God is doing through the journey - but we've got to be still and trust that He knows what He's doing.
Sometimes, when things seem to reach their climax and I just don't know how to respond, I'll go on a "God-walk". I go down to the pond and park by my house and just breathe. I talk to God - tell Him how I'm feeling, vent a little - and just be still and listen. A lot of times I need to just collect my thoughts and ultimately, the right decision shows itself through God's hand.
Are you going through a hard journey right now in your life? Do you sometimes feel like God isn't really showing you anything?
Maybe it's because you're too busy talking at God to hear what He has to say to you. Next time a struggle arises, be still. Listen. Pray. God's still there. He's watching over you and you've got to trust in Him to make the right path unfold for your life.

my quiet place

--Love MCat
{glitteringcompositions.blogspot.com}

Silence

Sometimes it's hard to listen.
We all do it. We'll pretend to be listening to a parent, teacher, or friend, but really all we're thinking about is how to get our homework done super-fast or what we had for lunch on Saturday.
But what about your bestest friend? Would you just stop listening to her? That would be a little rude, wouldn't it?
I try to think of God as my bestest friend. He's always there, watching us through our trials and fears. For some of us, that's comforting. Sometimes, it seems a little creepy. But other times, do you push God to the back burner?
Sometimes, I regret to say, I do not listen to God. He'll be trying to tell me something, like a little thought that keeps nudging at my heart, but I'll push it to the side and keep moving on with my daily life like He's not important at all.
But He's the most important person of all!
You would think that it wouldn't be too hard to remember what He's done for us - brought us into the world, died for our sins, given us mercy and grace. But all too often, I do forget. And that's when I need to sit still and just listen for Him.
Do you have a quiet time to talk to God? If so, that's terrific. But remember, God is your friend. It's okay to tell your troubles to him, but remember that a friend will give responses to your conversation. Take time to listen for Him just as much as you talk. After all, sometimes it's annoying when a friend dominates a conversation, right?
I go on long walks to listen for God. Being in his creation makes me feel closer than ever to Him, and sometimes, especially when I'm feeling troubled, I hear His answer for my problem.

Take some time this week to listen for your Father. Love Him like a best friend.

--Mary Catherine
{www.glitteringcompositions.blogspot.com}

Spiritual Fitness

Hello there, fellow bloggers, staff, and teenagers!
Ah, the new year. It looms ahead of us like a giant present from a distant relative - it could be something really amazing, or something terrible like a scratchy yellow sweater that sits in the back of your closet until your mom yanks it out and gives it to Goodwill.
The point is, it's all in how you look at it. The other day, I made a goal/dream/resolutions list for 2011. It was mostly made up of things I want to become and goals I want to reach - such as saving up for a Nikon D60 camera.
But one of the first things on my list that popped into my head was my goal to have a better relationship with God. But I have to ask myself, what is the best way to do that?
Let's back up to another subject for a second. I recently started working out regularily at my local fitness center, and something very noticeable occured this week - there were three times as many people there in the mornings! The classes were packed. It was, of course, because of all of the New Year's resolutions that people made. However, by the end of the next week, the crowd flow is back to normal again, because those same people decided that fitness wasn't important enough to them.
It's the same with spiritual health. Have you ever vowed to get closer to God and then ran out of time for Him due to soccer practice, ballet rehearsals, etc.? That's where we go back to the relationship-with-God goal on the list.
How can you become spiritually fit in the coming year?
Think of God as your best friend - your BFFL (best friend for life). Wouldn't you want to spend a lot of time with your best friend? In fact, God is better than a best friend - he can be there for you whenever you need him - even late at night or in the wee hours of the morning.
Even if you're busy, you can still make sure that you always have time to get to know God. It might mean getting up ten to thirty minutes earlier than everyone else for some quiet time, or staying up a little later with a flashlight for some Bible reading. If you can, find a special quiet time spot outdoors (well, not in this cold weather, but later in the spring) where you can sit on a blanket and just talk to God and admire his creation. We each give glory to Him in our own way. For me that means giving him glory through the things I love - I dance for Him, sing for Him, and take photographs of all He has given us in nature. Look deep inside your heart and find out how your talents can make Christ's name known. Through all of this, you can grow and make stronger your relationship with Christ throughout 2011.
That's my "spiritual fitness" plan for this year. Anyone care to join me?

Another Amazing Issue!

This is going to sound extremely unoriginal.
But...
We totally awesomely ROCK!
I'm once again in awe of the tireless effort that everyone put into the October issue.
I sat and read EVERY last article.
It took about thirty good minutes, but it was entirely worth it. You know why?
Because every word was GLOWING with the image of Christ Jesus and His word.
And that's what counts the most. Congrats on another amazing issue, everyone!
--Mary Catherine

First Issue Comes Tomorrow!

Hey girls and fellow readers and writers and photographers!

I just wanted to say that I think we should all give a shout out to KyAnn for organizing this whole thing. None of this would be here without her! She had an amazing vision for this magazine and now we all get to see it tomorrow. How cool is that? All of our hard work in one place. That's such a God-thing. Christian teen girls influencing Christian teen girls - that's what it's all about, don't you think? I'm pretty sure God is smiling down at us all right now. Don't forget that he loves us all!

--Mary Catherine

Bloom! Staff Writer