little mini adventures,,,,,,,,

i visited a little church on the other side of town today,
and i loved it.  it was like i was at home.
and then i drove around aimlessly,
trying to be adventurous.
it was a part of town that i would probably have never appreciated had i been home,
the whole sketch neighborhood, barbed wire fence thing usually turns me away.
but for some reason, today i loved it.
i really appreciate "family owned and operated".
i love seeing the non-corporate side of things.
the heights is unique, non-matchy-matchy.
all of the houses were painted bright colors,
with white trim, and white shutters.
i found some really sweet looking antique shops and boutiques.
i can't wait for the day i have a house to fill up with art and pictures and furniture.
i can't wait for the day i have money to fill a house with art and pictures and furniture.
until then, i'll be happy with bright red and yellow gerber daises in a makeshift vase. : )

i'm learning to embrace this new life of mine.
every time i go out and explore another section of this place i call home,
i find another thing that confirms that i'm in the right place.

each day, when i decide to give up my plan,
and embrace the plan of my sovereign God,
i feel a little less overwhelmed.
if i did what i wanted to do 100% of the time,
i'd never have ever imagined a way to get me here,
to the lady that i am,
to the place that i am.

"but joyful are those who have the God of Israel as their helper,
whose hope is in the Lord their God.
He made heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them.
He keeps every promise forever."
psalm 146: 5-6

freely loved.

"My deepest awareness of myself is that I am deeply loved by Jesus Christ and I have done nothing to earn it or deserve it." - Brennan Manning, Ragamuffin Gospel

new, new, new, new,,,,,,,,,,,,

new apartment.
new couch.
new friends.
new starbucks.
new curtains.
new washing machine.
new sweaters.
new shoes.
new grocery store.
new co-workers.
new city.
new zip code.
new restaurants.
new church.
new blog.

Everything in my life seems new.  I never thought i'd become an iPhone addict, but two months in and i'm hooked.  It doesn't help that I use googlemaps for everything, everything. chick fil a, target, the grocery store.  i'm such a whiner.  or a scaredy cat.  take your pick.

being in a new city is scary.
being in a new city is exciting.

these are the two attitude options i wake up with each morning.  and depending on how many times i get lost during the day, and how loud my neighbor's surround sound was the night before, i genuinely try to exemplify the second.  i love adventure. and this is a big adventure.

sometimes though, i get scared. and lonely.  and then i remember that i'm all alone, and i can't run down the hall and have a "you'll never believe what happened today" dish session with the roomies, and i can't just run downstairs and watch episodes of the office with my baby brothers. and i stay scared.

and these are the times that my heart become unbearably grateful for a sovereign and loving God.

"There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love." 1 john 4:18

i love my God.  and he loves me.

and i love adventures.

so it's gonna be a good time.