tally hall...

I haven't heard of them for a while, but I just came across the band Tally Hall and they reminded me of a few things...

1. Their name is from this plaza in West Bloomfield, where my parents used to go to back in the day, (that still exist near where I grew up at 14 Mile & Orchard Lake) when it had an indoor section of the strip-mall. Now its home to a California Pizza Kitchen, Old Navy, & Bed Bath & Beyond...

2. One of their songs is from a place in the plaza which is also still there, called Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum. Its a sweet arcade-esque place with a legit photo booth & old games, where I went numerous times growing up for birthday parties or with my Uncle Brad & sisters.

3. I used to work with Joe Hawley's sister & we have the same birthday...

4. I personally do not care for much of their music, but its sweet that they're mostly from around here.

i love the King & the King loves me...

Child, I know full well each & every detail of the plans I have just for you. I have amazing plans to prosper you & not to harm you or lead you anywhere else besides what is best for you. I have plans to give you hope & a future. Taste & see that I am all that you need in this life. Along the way you will come across difficult times or situations, but don't let that bring you down, I overcame the world so you could keep going, keep reaching for your prize, just keep your eyes on Me. Be still & know that I am Your Father & want you, my child, to follow the path, I have marked out just for you. Child, I am Your King & I am coming back for you. I can't wait until I can share my Kingdom with you, until then, keep trusting, believing, & following Me.
Love forever & always, the King of Kings, Father, Creator, Yahweh.

[Jeremiah 29:11, Psalm 34:8, John 16:33, Psalm 46:10, 1 John 3:1, Hebrews 12:1, John 14:1-3. the collection of passages that have been on my mind this past weekend, that helped me write this little reminder to myself...]

stuck in my head...

"Like an apple on a tree
Hiding out behind the leaves
I was difficult to reach
But you picked me
Like a shell upon a beach
Just another pretty piece
I was difficult to see
But you picked me..."
-A Fine Frenzy

worship + outside + night...

there is something about secretly gathering, being outside, in the darkness & quietness of night, to worship God, that is a beautiful thing.

there is something about a single guitar & voices lifting up praises to the Creator, that is a beautiful thing.

there is something about sisters & brothers in Christ coming close to ask God for pece, joy, & comfort that only God can supply, for a hurting brother in Christ, that is a beautiful thing.

there is something about silently talking to God, by candle light, that is a beautiful thing.

there is something about God being felt near in the middle of the night, that is a beautiful thing.

there is something about being His and knowing that He is mine, that is a beautiful thing.

By day the LORD directs his love,
at night his song is with me—
a prayer to the God of my life.
Psalm 42:8

thirty things I want to do before I'm thirty...

*This is a random collection of things I would "like" to do before (or after I guess) I am thirty..... (some of these things are semi-unrealistic, but never say never.)

things to do, people to see, places to go....

1. Fly in a plane (in August, I can cross this off). 8/27/09, Detroit to Miami
   
2. Go to South Africa, India, & Thailand to share God with people there.
3. Drive to California.
4. Graduate from college.
5. Marry prince charming.
6. Live in New York City for a few months, just to say I've lived there.
7. Climb a Mountain.
8. Learn how to long board.
9. Drink coffee & read a book in Seattle.
10. Write a generous check anonymously for someone that could use it or leave a large sum of money somewhere for someone to find.
    
11. Run a marathon.
12. Spend a week on a secret tropical island.
    
13. Do the 3-Day walk for Breast Cancer for my Grandma Patricia Joyce.
14. Get a Pancreas transplant!
15. Write a book.
    
16. Own a small boutique in a quaint downtown area.
17. Go to Disney World & act like a little girl.
18. Kiss someone under the Eiffel Tower.
    
19. Live in a house with a deep, large, wrap around porch in the front & a Cracker Barrel rocking chair.
20. Dance at the Wild Horse Saloon in Nashville. (7/26/2011)
21. Sit on a rooftop & look at the stars.
22. Adopt a baby girl from China.
23. Speak at a womens conference.
    
24. Write a song & hear it on the radio.
25. Meet Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, or Britney Spears & tell her God loves her, and that she doesn't need to act the way she does to feel loved or accepted.
26. Have a daughter named Gloria Jean.
27. Climb across the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
28. Get dressed up & see a Ballet or Orchestra in the city. 12/5/09, Nutcracker, Detroit Opera House
    
29. Use the map Claire Colburn from the movie "Elizabethtown" made for Drew Baylor to travel from Elizabethtown, KY back to Oregon.
30. Go to Jerusalem & walk where Jesus walked.

among others...

here is just one reason i hope God sends me to the Nashville area after college to teach kindergarten, marry a musician, & live happily every after...

{even though my mom informed me tonight that my grandpa -who lives in Nashville- said finding work is becoming more of a chore these days as well... but definitely not as bad as it is here in Detroit.}