~ A True Friend Is. . . ~

This Post pretty much describes itself by its title. :D  I believe the Lord really wanted me to type this post up to share with others. You may wonder,  "How do you know He was wanting you to type a post about friendship". . . At first, I wasn't really sure what my next post was going to be on. I usually wait until the Lord gives me the words and things to type on. I look to Him. I type what I know He want's me to type. Well, recently quite a few people ( followers, friends ) mentioned to me that I should really think about doing a post on friendship. After them telling me that, I was like, "Lord, thank you for laying this on my heart". :) Each time, He has His own way of showing me what He wants me to write about. 

First, I'd like to start out by saying that apparently, this is going to be typed from a Christian's perspective of  the definition of friendship. Not through the world's eyes but through Christ's, and what He sees as what a true friend should be. . . There is a difference between the world's and God's idea of friendship. So here is what a true Christian friendship should look like. . .

I will first start out by writing the type of people God wants His children to spend most of their time with. If you are a true Christian, then you should be spending most of your time with fellow believers. I am not saying that you should never be around unbelievers, because then we would never be able to be a light in this fallen world or ever witness to anyone. What I mean is, we should be carful with who we hang around and spend most of our time with, or who we call friends. 1 Corinthians 15:33 says "Do not be misled, 'Bad company corrupts good character' ".  This verse isn't just talking about thieves, alcoholics, and criminals... it is also saying, do not spend time with those who speak wrong about others, those who gossip, blaspheme God's name, curse, and act as hypocrites. Because I have personally seen people who were persuaded into the worldly acts because they started spending more time with those who did those things that I stated up above. "Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm. ( Proverbs 13:20 )"  Even I had to deal with that.. I mean, who hasn't fallen into sin? But I asked the Lord to forgive me, and He did! . . . I had to learn that you have to be very careful when choosing friends. "One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother." (Proverbs 18:24)  . . . If you want to have a lasting true friendship, then both people will have to have the same priorities in life. That is to honor God in all that we do and give Him the glory. So what makes a lasting true friendship? . . .

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid ofall bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. (Ephesians 4:29-32) 

. . . . .

"My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. - John 15:12-15

We should have a love for each other like Christ loves us. We should be willing to do anything for our friends. like Jesus died on the cross for us, we should be willing to do the same. . . 

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8

Love is one of the most important things in a friendship. We should love our friends as Christ loves His church. And our friends should have that same passion. So. . .

{ a true friend will be kind, not easily enticed by jealousy, does not dishonor others or is easily angered. A true friend will not hold on to past wrongs but forgive. True friends will not delight in doing wrong but takes pleasure in doing right. A true friend will always defend for what's true and right, always hopes and prays with us for God's will. . . A true friend's love for each other will never fail, because Christ's love never fails us. }

. . . . .

I'm sure that we all have had broken friendships. Many of my friends have told me that they had to go through falling out with friends as well. . . Why does this happen so often? Because Satan is out to destroy anything and anyone in his path. If you had to go through that and believe that you were right in Christ's eyes, maybe it was God's will that you be separated from the people you parted with. We don't see the future and we can't see God's plan in our life ahead of time. He does. He could be saving you from more pain, heartache, or danger by taking you out of those people's lives. We just need to learn to trust God's will in our lives and rely on Him to bring the right type of people into our lives to become true, godly friends.

 I have had to learn this and it has brought me closer to my Jesus. I made my Lord to be my truest, best friend. Whom I put first in my life. And let me tell you something people, Jesus Christ is the bestest friend you could ever ask for. :) He will never leave nor forsake you. He is there when you have good and bad times. He will never let you down when everyone else in your life does. He is our Saviour, Father, King, Holy One. One who will never get tired of us expressing our feelings and He will always be there to hear our cries. All of this while He embraces us in His arms. . . Who can ask for a better friend than Him? :)

 After I gave everything to Him and put all my trust in His will for my life; when I decided to let Him take over and decide who would be taken out of my life and who He would put in it; then, just then did I realize that before, I wanted things my way but God had other plans for my life. He gave me understanding, and through everything the Lord allowed to happen in my life, He has brought true, Christian friends into my life. I couldn't be more thankful for how the Lord has worked in and through my life.

I'll end this post with a heart felt prayer. . .

Dear heavenly Father,

I want to take this time to thank you for

the amazing people you put into my life. 

They have all truly been a blessing and I can't

keep from thanking You enough for them.

For placing them in my life at just the right time.

Because Lord, your timing is always perfect and 

and I now understand why you allow things to happen

 to people who truly love You and want to follow

 Your will in their lives.

Thank you Lord for never leaving my side. 

For being me closest Friend in even the hardest times.

...

Lord, please mold me into the person You want me to be. 

Please use me as much as You can to be a light in this world. 

Above all, everything I say and do, let it honor and glorify You Lord. 

And help me make a difference in this world I live in. 

In Jesus' name I pray. . . Amen

 

Hurricane Isaac

I'm sure like 99% of y'all know that hurricane Isaac hit the gulf coast states and more. I have been trying to update all of y'all that follow me on Instagram but I have family and friends that don't follow me on that so I thought I would just do one nice size post telling y'all how things went and what we did. It'll be easier. :D

For this post, I would first like to thank God for not letting any real big damage be done to any of my family, friends, or our home. He has been so good to us and I continue to thank Him for His blessings. When we first saw Isaac's path heading straight for us, our first thought was "Evacuate".  But after lots of discussion, we decided not to... We boarded almost every door and window there was on our home, so it felt like living in a cave. Isaac decided to take a long visit over Louisiana and Mississippi. Way longer than we expected... I thought the rain and horribly strong wind would never end. I will never forget the sounds the wind made. . .We lost power a couple times and tried passing our time by talking, praying, and watching the news. We did get tornadoes but they came at night, which was perfectly planned.. God knew that we would really freak out if we could see them during the day. He even thinks about the little things that help us. :D

I think so many people underestimated hurricane Isaac. I think God wanted us to realize that even though it was only a category 1 and then turned back into a tropical depression, that it could cause a lot of damage. My prayers are with everyone who flooded or lost so much in it's path. God is in control and people need to not underestimate God's power. The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away. And as Isaac hit on the 29th, all I could think of was when Katrina hit. How so many people lost their lives, family members, houses, and so much more. We really need to have compassion on all of those people and send our prayers out to them.

And to that, I want to thank everyone who has sent so many prayers our way. They meant the world to me. I felt so much comfort from every comment you sent me saying you were praying! It was like the Lord giving me a big hug. I can't explain with words the comfort of prayer brings. . I can't thank y'all enough. <3



These two pictures are of our lake that over flowed with water.

Our lake over flowed with water. To the point it breached. 

And to that, I think I shall call it a quits. This past week was pretty interesting. But I will continue to pray for anyone else who was affected by hurricane Isaac. I'll leave y'all with this verse below. Someone showed it to me before Isaac hit us. Even though he said it's meant for a spiritual storm, it could go both ways. :) 

Love to all,

In Christ. . . Rachel

Day 27: A physical feature you love

I want to first start out by saying that I know this "30 Day Challenge" was started in January, and seven months later, I'm still not finished with it. I guess I  just had so many other things on my mind to post on here that I had forgotten to finish this challenge. . . Sorry followers. ;D 

So a Physical feature that I love! Hmm. . . I think one physical feature that I always look at people first and admire the most has to be their eyes. Each person's eyes are so different than someone else's and each pretty! With our eyes, we see this beautiful world the Lord created for us. The people He placed in our lives.. And we get to read His word and learn so many things with our eyes.

 ^"The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light.  But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!"

~ Matthew 6:22-23 ~ 

How true! Let us see the good things the Lord has given us to see and filter out the bad. . . For then our eyes will have no darkness but will be healthy and full of light!! :D

. . . So these three pictures are all taken by my sister, Katey. She is an Amazing photographer and you should really check out her photography blog! ( click here ). . .

observe how each one is different (except for the three pictures of my little cousin whom I just had to put three photos of because she is just too adorable ;D ) 

~ Megan ~

This post is taken over by all girls photos. haha, I am glad I found this one photo of my dear cousin, Andrew!  ( Katey, note to self..get more guy models ;P )

~ Me  w/ my oh so many freckles~

~ Alyse ~

~ Alyse again ~

~ Kayla ~

~ Emily ~

~ Alyse for the last time ;) ~

I can't help but see how beautiful each and every person's eyes are. They tell so much about someone too! So. . . That would have to be my favourite physical feature! 

Let it go

Ah! Monday. .  A fresh start of a new week! Mondays are a favorite to me. A new week to look forward to. To see what this week will bring and what the Lord will teach and reveal to me. Yes, I love Mondays. =) 

Last night, someone pointed me to this song and many others. He suggested I go look them up. I believe God laid it down on that person's heart to tell me about this song. I really needed to hear these lyrics. . . The lyrics are just, A.m.a.z.i.n.g.!  I have never heard of this song or band but I just let the words soak in!

"Let it go" by Jesus Culture

What do you think about it?  How amazing is our God, His arms always open for us to run into and always there to hear us call out to Him. We need to give everything to God. We need to "let it go". He hears our prayers and hears us cry out to Him. We do not go unnoticed by our all powering God! He will work out everything in our lives, as Christians to His perfect will. We pray to Him, and say "according to your will Father" and in His timing, He will give us the desires of our hearts. "And this is the confidence that we have toward Him, that if we ask anything according to His will He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of Him." (1 John 5:14-15)...God will see that we are asking our prayers to be answered according to His will. He will see that we are submitting ourselves to Him. He notices and will make our paths straight. "And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him." (Hebrews 11:16)...So here we see that we have to have faith to please God. And also, here is says that God will reward those who seek Him. I am not living for praises and rewards here on earth. Those come to me when I am in Glory. But that verse plainly states that God will take care of His people, those who have faith in Him! What a wonderful promise He gives His children. 

I am living for God alone. As a Christian, my passion is to proclaim God's word and His truth. Like the song says "And we are never going to let this song die out..and we feel the heart of God, so we cry out". . . As long as I am here on this earth, my fire will not stop burning for Christ. His name will be proclaimed. I won't be ashamed to spread His word. People may persecute me, make fun of, or tell me I'm too religious, but as a Christian, that only makes me want to proclaim Christ even more. "What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8:31)

Our God is surly alive and watching down on us. How must we use our time then, here for this short while we are on earth? If we call ourselves Christians, we definitely need to be using our time wisely. Let even the little chances you get glorify God. We want the people who don't know Christ, to look at us as and say to themselves "There is something different about him/her". . . A good different! . . . I want to be God's hands and feet. I want Him to use me as much as He can on this earth. I consistently ask the Lord to just take me and mold me into what He wants me to become. To conform me into His image. 

I urge you to do the same thing. God answers prayers, reveals revelations, and shows you so much in your life if you let it go and give everything over to God. He knows even the deepest part of our hearts. Our thoughts..What our real intentions are in life. As God's children, let's be the brightest light we can to shine for Christ.

~ He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. ~

= Mark 16:15-16 =

*Quote Crazy*

Yes that's right. . . I went a "little" crazy picking out a lots of stuff to post here. I had fun finding everything I needed for this post. ;) I decided to just pick out all sorts of quotes, verses, and funnies that I thought might entertain y'all. I'm going to just categorize them in three different sections. Hope y'all enjoy and comment telling me what y'all think. =) 

. . . First, I will share with y'all quotes and scripture that really encouraged and comforted me. I found plenty more that I would love to share but then I believe that this would be the never ending quote post. ;) 

*Encouraging*

~Romans 12:12~

I absolutely love these quotes and scriptures. Whoever created them was quite creative! =)

~A prayer~

 

He is the only reason I enjoy living on this earth. To praise His great name and spread it for the world to see. 

~All I know is that I'm not home yet, this is not where I belong~

"We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord." - 2 Corinthians 5:8

"But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh." - Galatians 5:16

"And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you." - Psalm 9:10

* * *

. . . Here, I am going to post some stuff pertaining to "future life partners" <3 Oh! just the thought makes me happy! To think one day I'll marry that one man that God picked out specifically for me. To fulfill the spot as a "Proverbs 31 woman"! Right now, I believe we single ladies and gents should be praying for our future spouses. Prayer that right now, the Lord will be molding that persons and our own life to be ready for marriage one day. And pray for that person's relationship with the Lord. Because I will not settle for anything less than for that person being more in love with God than he is me. For then I know he would have enough love for me as his wife. Hope y'all like these! <3

*Future Love*

~ Amen! Where your faith is..that's way more important than so many other things. ~ 

:') <3

Ok, this just made me smile!

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." - 1 Corinthians 13:4-8

^^^ Perfect definition of Love!! ^^^

<3 <3 <3

That's right. . We don't pick out our future partner. God does, and "He" will bring whoever He has chosen for us, together in His perfect timing. 

Just a few qualifications. ;P

* * *

*Funny*

Just a few more, I promise, but this time I thought I would bring a smile or laugh in. I do like to make people smile or laugh so. .  ;D

Ok, this is so wrong yet so funny. That's what the song meant. .? :/ ;) 

Is this not the truest thing? I love my mother so much including how wonderfully protective she is over her children. Lol. . 

hmm? ;)

Okay, I was told this too many times when I was a youngster. ;P

Very accurate

Mothers are the best!

Well, I hope y'all enjoyed viewing the gazillion quotes and such that I posted here. I pray all my dear friends and family have a great weekend! 

God bless y'all!

- Rachel

Happiness, Blessed, and Loved

This post is being typed out of pure happiness and joy. Out of thankfulness and feeling like one of the most blessed persons on earth. Not because I don't have any problems or that my life is perfect. If I said that, I would be lying to y'all and myself. Sometimes we are so consumed in our downs, our negatives in life, or things that don't lift us up. What we really need to be doing is looking at the things that bring joy into our lives, the positives things and the things we need to be most grateful for. Jesus Christ! "I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation but take heart; I have overcome the world." ( John 16:33)  

Lately, the Lord has blessed me abundantly with so much encouragement from fellow Christians, lifting each other up in the Lord. Even though my life isn't perfect and I am continually going through stuff in my personal life, what can I ask more than to have fellow believers by my side, lifting me up in God's word and using them to change so much in my life."What then, brothers? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up." (1 Corinthians 14:26) . . . So I thought I would do a special thanks to those who have really touched my life lately. I have had the chance to meet and/or talk with some amazing people either over computer or iPod. I have had the chance to share my testimony with so many whom I didn't know and those who did know but haven't heard it before. I have had the chance to spread God's word and let so many see what great love our Lord gives and displays. I have been able to get and give so much encouragement and uplifting from so many others..I just wanted to thank those who have been there for me and to tell y'all that y'all are truly, blessings from God. <3 God works in the most mysterious and amazing ways. He knows just that right time to bring these types of people into your life. He knows when you need them most and and they need you. "So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding." (Romans 14:19)
. . . 

God answers prayers even if it's not exactly what we asked for. We need to make sure, as we pray, that we say and understand that it will be according to "His" perfect will. "For it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure." I didn't ask God to bring perfect strangers into my life. . But He did, and it has strengthened my relationship with my Lord. He knew my future, I didn't. Of corse I "planned" what it might have looked like, but once I let God be in full control, He has made it more clear than ever that my life wont be what I wanted it to be but it will be what He has planned it to be. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;" ( Proverbs 3:5 )  . . .  I can't keep from thanking Him for opening my eyes and for Him to have shown me so much lately. For understanding and knowledge through Him! "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." (Jeremiah 29:11)  . . . He is and an Awesome God!!

And to that, this is where faith and trust comes into the picture. I'm sure that we all have those days where we have our ups and downs. Some when we feel like we are alone and others where we feel like we have everyone we need in life . . . But here's the perfect remedy for all of the above. . . "Put all your trust in Jesus Christ" . . . "Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the Lord." (Psalm 32:10)  Putting all of  your faith in God, He sees that you are willing to hand everything over to Him. Therefore He knows that your ready for His next move in life. If we just hand EVERYTHING over to God, He sees how earnestly we want Him to have our whole life and are willing to do anything or go through anything to please Him. There are like a gazillion verses about putting our trust in God. I would have the best time posting all of those if I had the time but today I'll share with you just a couple of so many comforting verses. . . 

 ~ But I trust in your unfailing love;  my heart rejoices in your salvation. - Psalm 13:5 ~

~ Surely God is my salvation;  I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; He has become my salvation. ” - Isaiah 12:2 ~

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. - Romans 15:13

And before I sign out, I just wanted y'all who haven't seen it already on instagram, I started taking all my friends/dear follower's prayer requests. I believe that the power of prayer is very strong and it can change so much in one's life.  "And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”  ( Matthew 21:22 ) . . .


Love to all my followers! 
In Christ,
=Rachel Pursell=

When I accepted Christ into my life

I think this will be my favorite post so far on my blog so share with my readers. This specific moment in my life, I will never forget. Because that was the one day that changed my life forever. That day I accepted Jesus as my personal Savior. Some of my friends who follow my blog hasn't yet heard my testimony of when I accepted Jesus into my heart. I think it is important to tell each others testimonies as Christians. To be a born again Christian, you have to have a testimony. Not everyones testimony is the same. Each one is different, each one unique. But there has to be that one time in your life where you gave it all to God. Repenting your sins and asking God for forgiveness. To come and give us a clean heart and to give everything we have to God. . . . So today I decided to share mine with y'all. 

~ ~ ~ 

It's not like I was once an alcoholic, abuser, or drug dealer. . . It wasn't like I didn't know about the Lord. What's worse is that, I knew that there was a God who was worthy enough to accept the unacceptable... I knew that He was the only way to heaven. But that's my point! Others who haven't really heard of The Lord and His ways don't think anything is wrong with what they're doing. Or they do, but they don't think much about the consequences of their actions. I am growing up in a Christian home. My parents are devoted Christians..Living to please God and take care of their children. I always attended church with my parents, prayed at night and before meals, and tried to obey my parents. . But what I was really doing was faking myself out. Yes, I would go to church, or go into public and act like a Christian but then come home and not act as a Christian should act. I wouldn't want to devote my time to the Lord. I thought that I was doing good though, I had even prayed a prayer asking God into my heart, but that wasn't true repentance. I was only playing a role in a Christian home, telling myself that I was a good person and I'd make it to heaven. But here Matthew 21-23 says “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’  I was only faking myself into Christianity. This next part I'm about to say is my favorite part of this story. :)

One evening in January, 2011,  my Dad called us in for a family devotion. We would all sit around in our living room and listen to daddy read a verse or two in the Bible and then teach on that. I can't remember the exact verse we were reading but it was in John. It was so convicting and the whole time my parents were talking, I was thinking to myself how much of a sinner I was. I remember feeling how heavy my heart was because I knew I was only "playing" Christian before. My mom must have noticed the look on my face when He was reading because she asked if I were alright and understanding everything. I told her that I was understanding what he was saying but that I didn't think I was saved. I think it might have surprised her because I had an "experience" a couple years before that. I had prayed to God to come into my heart but it wasn't genuine . . . I told them that I knew that if I were to die right there, I would go to hell because I didn't truly repent of my sins and ask for forgiveness. So I asked if I could pray with my dad to accept Christ into my heart. So Daddy brought me to his room so we could have quiet time. He showed me these verses. . . Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.". I definitely felt that one hit me. I knew I had been sinning my whole life. Lying, Playing a fake Christian, quick to anger and attitude. I definitely knew I fell short of the glory of God. Dad also showed me these verses - Romans 3:10-18. When he read me those, I had knew without God's grace on me, I would be sent straight to hell without a doubt when I come to die. But after he showed me those verses about sin, he read me this. Romans 5:8 "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." . . I thought, Christ, who was blameless and perfect, gave His own life for me, a sinner.. Me, worthy of nothing but to be sent to hell. Then went on to read Romans 10:9 "that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.". Daddy said that it was a life long choice to make but it would be the best decision of my life. So I asked Daddy to pray with me. As tears flowed down my face, I asked the Lord to forgive me of my sins. Thanking Him For dying on that cross for me. So that I could live with Him one day in Heaven. I then went on and asked the Lord to come and live inside me. To be my one and only personal Savior. To live in and through me and let His grace show through me. I asked Him to use me in every way I could to tell people about His great love He has for His children and how He changed my life in the best way. And after thanking Him over and over again for giving me a new life, I said "Amen". After I prayed that prayer, my heavy heart was so light and happy. I felt this warm feeling inside me. It was like I was a new person. And I was. I was born again!! I was so happy with tears of joy still dripping off my cheeks and chin. I thanked Daddy for praying with me and showing me those verses and then went to see my mom and sisters to tell them what just happened. They were so happy for me. That I now was a true believer in Jesus Christ! - Romans 5:1 "Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ."  &  Romans 8:38-39 "For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."  . . . I had such a peace in my heart after I gave my life over to Christ. Now my goal is to grow closer and closer with my Lord.

So that is my Testimony of when I accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Savior.
The best day of my my life. When everything changed. . .


Love to all my friends and family!