He is Risen.

"I do not mind telling you that within me I find the Easter message and the reality of the Resurrection more beautiful and glorious than the Christmas scene. Christmas tells us that Jesus was born; that He was born for the humiliation of suffering and death and atonement. But Easter is the radiant and glory-filled celebration of Christ's mighty triumph over the grave and death and hell! When Easter comes, our voices are raised in the triumphant chorus: The three sad days had quickly sped; He rises glorious from the dead! There is the real beauty! This is more than the beauty of color; more than the beauty of outline or form; more than the beauty of physical proportion. In the living Christ is the perfection of all beauty; and because He lives, we too shall live in the presence of His beauty and the beauties of heaven, forever!" - A.W. Tozer 


Hallelujah!
He is Risen indeed.

It is when the sea is moonless that the Lord has become my Light.

This truth from Elisabeth Elliot just turned my day right-side-up. It has been a moonless 24 hours...but I am reminded of His provision and constant presence. Hallelujah.

"Some of you are perhaps feeling that you are voyaging just now on a moonless sea. Uncertainty surrounds you. There seem to be no signs to follow. Perhaps you feel about to be engulfed by loneliness. There is no one to whom you can speak of your need.

Amy Carmichael wrote of such a feeling when, as a missionary of twenty-six, she had to leave Japan because of poor health, then travel to China for recuperation, but then realized God was telling her to go to Ceylon. (All this preceded her going to India, where she stayed for fifty-three years.) I have on my desk her original handwritten letter of August 25, 1894, as she was en route to Colombo. "All along, let us remember, we are not asked to understand, but simply to obey.... On July 28, Saturday, I sailed. We had to come on board on Friday night, and just as the tender (a small boat) where were the dear friends who had come to say goodbye was moving off, and the chill of loneliness shivered through me, like a warm love-clasp came the long-loved lines--'And only Heaven is better than to walk with Christ at midnight, over moonless seas.' I couldn't feel frightened then. Praise Him for the moonless seas--all the better the opportunity for proving Him to be indeed the El Shaddai, 'the God who is Enough."'

Let me add my own word of witness to hers and to that of the tens of thousands who have learned that He is indeed Enough. He is not all we would ask for (if we were honest), but it is precisely when we do not have what we would ask for, and only then, that we can clearly perceive His all-sufficiency. It is when the sea is moonless that the Lord has become my Light."

All along, let us remember, we are not asked to understand, but to simply obey. 

Letter 1: My Best Friend.

Natalie,

I have a number of girls I would call one of my best friends: Linds, Kathryn, Kathleen, Ahnna, Jess, Abigail, Courtney, but they know and I know that there is only one you: my very best friend. You are the one I miss the most after just one day apart. This summer has been crazy without you by my side. Praise God for phones and Skype!

Can you believe that we are about to start our senior year? It's good to know that we are both terrified and excited. I'm glad that we can always share things. Whether it be food, time, a bed, or our thoughts, I know that it's ours. That's a favorite thing.

It's you that knows my deepest secrets, my biggest worries, the longings of my heart. I'm so blessed that you always have answers to my questions and worries. You may not know the answer, but you know what to say to calm me and make me realize that God is in control.

Soon, we'll be grown-ups. Looking at the road in front of us, I see that there is a plan...I just don't know it yet. I know that there will be crazy things ahead. I know we will be looking at you getting married and me getting out of the country. But I know that I'll stand next to you when you say, "I do," and I know that you'll be there next to me before I get on that plane.

You are the perfect counterpart to me. Know that there will never be someone to take your place. You are it. The best. We need each other.

Thank you for keeping my secrets safe. I never have to worry about that with you, and I'm so thankful. We need best friend necklaces, by the way.

Oh and you are never annoyed by my ADD! That is a major plus. I can go on for hours about nothing and everything, and you still listen. What kind of love is this?

Seriously, you are the best, Natalie Therese. I'm amazed by how perfect we are for each other. Best friends til the end.

I love you with my entire heart.

Your Anna.

30 letters in 30 days.

This may take me longer or shorter than thirty days, but I'm really excited to do it. Every day or so, you can expect to see a new letter to...well, someone. I saw this on Stumbleupon and knew immediately I had to do it. I'm hoping this will give me something fun to do as I start my senior yuck...I mean, year. Listed below are the days and their corresponding letters. Let's see how this goes.

Day 01 - Your best friend
Day 02 - Your crush
Day 03 - Your parents
Day 04 - Your sibling
Day 05 - Your dreams
Day 06 - A stranger
Day 07 - Your ex boyfriend/girlfriend/love/crush
Day 08 - Your favorite internet friend
Day 09 - Someone you wish you could meet
Day 10 - Someone you don’t talk to as often as you’d like
Day 11 - A deceased person you wish you could talk to
Day 12 - The person you hate the most/caused you a lot of pain
Day 13 - Someone you wish could forgive you
Day 14 - Someone you’ve drifted away from
Day 15 - The person you miss the most
Day 16 - Someone that’s not in your state/country
Day 17 - Someone from your childhood
Day 18 - The person you wish you could be
Day 19 - Someone that pesters your mind - good or bad
Day 20 - Someone that broke your heart the hardest
Day 21 - Someone you judged by their first impression
Day 22 - Someone you want to give a second chance
Day 23 - The last person you kissed
Day 24 - The person who gave you your favorite memory
Day 25 - The person you know is going through the worst of times
Day 26 - The last person you made a pinky promise to
Day 27 - The friendliest person you knew for only a day
Day 28 - Someone that changed your life
Day 29 - The person that you want to tell everything to, but are too afraid
Day 30 - Your reflection in the mirror

As I complete each letter, I'll hyperlink the list to the corresponding blog post. This should be fun.

Stay tuned for letter number one!