Great Mercy

I've been thinking a lot about friends lately, and I have been hearing this hymn a lot. Very fitting.

Each life that touches ours for good reflects thine own great mercy, Lord;
Thou sendest blessings from above thru words and deeds of those who love.

What greater gift dost thou bestow, what greater goodness can we know
than Christ-like friends , whose gentle ways strengthen our faith, enrich our days.

When such a friend from us departs, we hold forever in our hearts
A sweet and hallowed memory, bringing us nearer, Lord, to thee.

For worthy friends whose lives proclaim devotion to the Savior's name,
Who bless our days with peace and love, we praise thy goodness, Lord above.

Now, I know you can read this and get a lot out of it. But I would just like to emphasize the truthfulness of this song. God blesses me so much by surrounding me with wonderful people. I am positive that I don't deserve these blessings, but I am so grateful for their words and deeds and the laughter and smiles they provide. There is no greater gift or goodness than my friends. They are all such wonderful examples to me in multiple ways - spirituality, kindness, courage, strength, confidence, happiness, care-free, I could go on forever. My friends, despite their religion or faith, strengthen my faith and enrich my days.

Sometimes, when I look back on people I used to be friends with, I get a bit sad. But it truly is a miracle. Friends leave an imprint on my heart. Even though many things can never be the same with people who lose touch, one thing is always for sure - they have left a sweet and hallowed memory in my heart forever. Even though friends may go separate ways, I can take comfort in the knowledge that I will hold them in my heart forever. Not only that, but memories of these wonderful people bring my closer to God.

I am a stress case. I worry a lot, and I drive myself completely insane. Can you imagine how crazy I would be if I didn't have friends to bring me peace and love. Friends provide for me a sanctuary where I can be myself and forget my worries and my strife. Friends=Hakuna Matata. I am not worthy of my friends. Truly, I praise God for sending me such remarkable people. I can't express my gratitude, but the lyrics to this song sum it up pretty well.

And that's what Jenny thinks.

At the ol' ball game

Today in church, I had lots of good, inspiring thoughts. This was one of them.

Life is a baseball game. You have a coach who knows what is best and is there to guide you. You play on a team made up of people you love. They support you in everything you do, even when you fail miserably. They cheer you on and encourage you. You have fans as well who you might not know personally, but from far away, they are impressed and you often motivate them to be better. You are on an allstar team, but there is also a pretty good team opposing you. They mock you in various ways (hey Batter! Batter! SWING! Batter! Batter!), distract you from what is important (the game), and they may even cheer when you make a mistake. There also may be hidden ruts in the field that trip you or slow you down. But despite the opposition, you are supposed to hit this really fast-moving ball, with a stick and run from first base, to second base, to third base, and then home again.

You see, life is a baseball game. We have a Heavenly coach who knows all and can guide us through anything. We have a team made up of friends and family, fans who may be our friends or who we may not know at all. There is always opposition whether it be temptations, Satan, being made fun of, etc.(Hey Batter! Batter! SIN! Batter! Batter!) We experience trials regularly like a rut in a field. We have tasks and missions set out for us that we must complete like a player must touch all of the bases before running home. And our ultimate goal is to make it home -home to our loving Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and our family for eternity. And when we make it home, it is like scoring a point for good, for righteousness.

Go team!

And that's what Jenny thinks.

Speaking

Nothing speaks more directly to my soul than music and lyrics. The combination of words, melodies, harmonies, and rhythm pulls my heart to the surface. My emotions become raw and unbelievably real. I can't quite describe it, but the song can always exactly describe my music. The floating melody, the blending harmonies, the words - all of them combine to perfectly define my being at that particular moment.

Some people can study and listen to music at the same time, but that is not a possibility for me. Music distracts me. Music overwhelms me and my mind floats elsewhere. There is no concentrating when there is music on. But I wouldn't have it any other way. The way music speaks to me is worth the sacrifice.

Just like someone who is learning a new language may understand the language better than they can speak it, I feel like I understand music better than I can speak it. Music speaks to me, but I can't always seem to speak its language as fluently as I wish. But you know, that's alright. I feel entirely blessed that music speaks to me so frequently and fluently. Someday, when I can speak music fluently, I will describe to you how it makes me feel.

Basically, what I'm trying to say is music speaks to my soul and often defines me at many different moments in my life.

And that's what Jenny thinks.

And that's what Jenny thinks.

Miracle

I love sports movies. Period.

There are very few things that inspire me more than a good sports movie i.e. Remember the Titans, Blindside, The Most Amazing Game Ever Played, and my personal favorite, Miracle.

For those of you who don't know, Miracle is a movie about the underdog 1980 Olympic USA Hockey team that became just that - a miracle. I can't just sit and enjoy movies like this. Nope. I have to have my pen and paper on my lap the whole time (that was when I wasn't eating the delicious brownies my mom made). But besides those few moments, I was ready to write down whatever inspiring quotes flew out of the characters' mouths. And they did. They came flying right out of the screen and onto my notebook. I have a whole page dedicated to this movie in my journal. Now that you caught a glimpse of how much I love this movie, I will move on.

In the movie, the coach says,

"This cannot be a team of common men. Because common men go nowhere. You have to be uncommon."

This statement fills me with a rush of inspiration and a rush of fear at the same time. One part of my brain is screaming, "YEAH!!! Let's do this. I am amazing and uncommon!" While the other half is silently making a list of things preventing me from being uncommon. Often times, it is lists like these that prevent us from going somewhere. Fear, self-doubt, and discouragement keeps us common.

The coach, speaking of the Soviet Hockey team says the following lines:

"You don't defend them, you ATTACK them."
"Screw 'em! This is your time!"

Let's not sit back and try to defend ourselves from our insecurities. Let's attack. Let's rip up the mental lists of faults and weaknesses and attack them. Let's throw away self-doubt and replace it with a vigorous belief in ourselves. Who cares about your faults? Who cares about your weaknesses? THIS IS YOUR TIME!!!! This is your time to go somewhere. And you won't get anywhere if you are common.

And that's what Jenny thinks.

People

Barbra Streisand made the song "People" from the show Funny Girl very popular. Here is a line from this wonderful song and then I will explain.

"People, People who need people are the luckiest people in the world."

After a tough week, the people around me blessed my life in so many ways. Blessings toppled onto my lap in multiple forms - pep talks, listening ears, icecream, movie nights, a phone call, an e-mail, jokes, reminders, etc. I would love the to list the amazing individuals that helped me this week, but it would just take to long. This only confirmed the truth that I need people. I NEEEEEEEEEEEDD people. Not only do I need people in general, but I also need one person in particular - Jesus Christ. He is my comforter. He is my light. He is my joy. He is my song. He is my life. He is my strength. He is my guide. He is everything. Without him, I couldn't be anything. But through him, I can become everything I ever dreamed of. And the best part is that Christ not only blesses me through scriptures, prayer, and guidance, but he also works through other people. And those people enter my life on a daily basis. And as a result, I am exponentially blessified. And that is why people who need people are the luckiest people in the world. I sure am lucky.

And that's what Jenny thinks.

P.S. I love you

I watched a chick flick this weekend - P.S. I love you.
It was okay. I was almost brought to tears once but I wasn't blown away by it as so many other females were. But it was pretty enjoyable. The best part was probably the delicious food my friend made for our girls' night.

Anyways, back to the movie. The title got me thinking. Shouldn't the words, "I love you" be the first thing we tell our loved ones, not the last. "P.S." to me almost seems like an afterthought or an "I almost forgot. "So saying P.S. I love you, to me, seems like saying "Oh and I almost forgot to tell you, I love you." I think love should come first. In the movie, Remember Me, the main character eats her dessert first. She says:

"I just don't see the point in waiting. I mean, what if I die while eating my entree?It's possible. What if I choke? What if an asteroid come hurling down onto the restaurant?... I'll tell you what, if you swear on your eternal soul that I'll make it through my entree, then I'll wait. But before you answer, consider that if something does happen, you'll have to live the rest of your life knowing that not only did you lie to me, but you denied of my one last indulgence. Are you prepared to shoulder that kind of responsibility?"

We should love first. What if someone you love died before you could tell them how much you cared for them? What if a friend moves away before you can tell them how you feel? That's why I think we shouldn't wait to share our love with others. It isn't worth waiting for. We all need love, why wait to share it?

These days, I feel like love is missing in the world. So many conversations are filled with complaints, gossip, and insults. We shouldn't waste our time with rude words, actions, or thoughts. Life is too short and precious. We need to be filling our moments with lovely thoughts, actions of love, and words of love. I will strive to fill my life with love. I know it will make a difference.
And that's what Jenny thinks.

P.S. I am on a blogging kick tonight, so there are two other new ones that I posted before this one. I apologize if they sound too rambly. I can't stop once I get going.

Into the fire

I think one of the hardest decisions I have to make on a pretty regular basis is the decision to not give up. I am constantly tempted to throw in the towel, to settle for mediocrity, to do something easier than what I am currently doing. I was telling a close friend of mine how discouraged I was and that I needed to gain some confidence if I was going to excel any further. In all his wisdom he replied:

You can't excel at all if you quit.

He was right. If we just run away from our fears, we won't ever accomplish anything. If we give up now, we have no chance of winning in the end. Yes, there is a lot of competition in the world. There are so many things opposing us. It is often hard to believe that we have a chance of winning. But we can't just forfeit the game. We must face our foes and if we fight with all of our might, we will conquer. In one of my favorite musicals, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Percy sings a song that goes like this:

There will always be a valley Always mountains one must scale There will always be perilous waters Which someone must sail
Never hold back your step for a moment Never doubt that your courage will grow Hold your head even higher and into the fire we go
Are there mountains that surround us? Are there walls that block the way? Knock 'em down, strip 'em back boys And forward and into the fray
Someone has to face the valley Rush in! We have to rally and win boys When the world is saying not to By God, you know you've got to march on, boys Never hold back your step for a moment Look alive! Oh, your courage will grow Yes, it's higher and higher and into the fire we go Into fire! Onward, ho!

So on that note, Onward, ho!!!!!!!!
And that's what Jenny thinks.