Jesus and Jeremiah 29:11

Jeremiah 29:11.

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

This is a verse that a lot of people claim as their "life verse."

I see it on key chains and t-shirts all the time around graduation season.

I see it on Facebook statuses and coffee mugs.

But...well, I wonder if it means what we usually think it means. I've always thought it meant that we would go to a good college, get a cushy job, live in a fancy house, meet the perfect person, get married, have four beautiful children, and live happily ever after. That scenario certainly screams prosperity, lack of harm, hope, and future...at least from a worldly standpoint.

John 16:33

"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.

James 1:2-4

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

Those, and many, many other, verses speak of the certainty and value of trials and hardships and suffering. Jesus rebukes the rich young ruler and tells him to sell everything he owns.

So I'm starting to think that the prosperity won't come in this lifetime and that our hope is in the next life.

Maybe everyone else has already thought about these things and I'm late to the party, but these are some things I started thinking about the other day. I'd definitely love to hear you input.

Well, that's all. Thanks for reading.

Relationships, Dating, and Marriage...oh my!

Relationships

Put in the right circumstance, I think we could love and/or bond with nearly anyone, so are all relationships circumstantial? I mean, if someone else were my mother, would I be as close to the other person as I am to my current mother, or is my mom's specific personality a huge factor in determining how well we get along? Family relationships are thrust on us from birth, and we learn to adapt to them, to the crazy habits our parents and siblings have. Can we do that with friendships and other types of relationships? Do we just give up too soon? Could we date/marry anyone and eventually learn to love that person? If so, what exactly is so special about relationships? When I think about all my closest relationships, it seems as though they all just happened. The "infatuation chemicals" in our brains kind of ruin the whole choosing vs. adapting theory. Our brain tells us who we like; we don't choose. And because we are generally inclined to think that this particular person hung the moon and invented sliced bread, there isn't a ton we adapt to. And as far as marriage goes, do we really need those "Things I want in a spouse" lists? Could anyone become the "perfect person" with a bit of time and grace?

Dating

What is dating? I would really like to know. I've been thinking about for a while, but I became even more confused the other night when I saw a Facebook status that said, "I'm finally dating the most amazing guy. He's always been my best friend and now we're together" or something along those lines. It made me wonder what changed. How is their relationship today different from their relationship the other day? Is dating a commitment? It can't be or people wouldn't break up. Is it based on emotion? That's part of it, but I'm sure everyone has liked someone but never officially "dated" that person, whatever that is. Is dating based on words? That's the only conclusion I have reached. Dating relationships usually begin with words like"Will you go out with me?" and end with words like "It's not you; it's me." Even wedding vows are just words. Are words really a good foundation for dating relationships? Are they even the real foundation? I've heard that dating is just preparation for divorce. I've also heard that dating helps us to discern what kind of person we should marry, which leads me to my next point...

Marriage

What exactly is the point of marriage? Oh, I know it's God-ordained and the first institution and necessary for being fruitful and multiplying and all that, but I mean what more is there? A few weeks ago some friends of mine informed me that every girl's dream is to get married. I'm pretty sure that's false. My dad says that marriage isn't something to fret over or dread; it's just a normal part of life. It's not the fulfillment of a lifelong dream or the answer to a problem; it's just something most people have to do. I guess that makes some sort of sense, at least more sense than people giving me bewildered looks because my goal in life isn't to get married.

In Conclusion

Well, these are just some things I've been pondering for the past few weeks. I look forward to learning more about relationships and coming up with new questions and continuing to learn how to love my neighbor and not be so cynical. I hope you could follow this post; it was a little on the stream-of-conscious side. Also, I'd love to hear your insights regarding these matters.

Hi hello

Hello friends!

It's finally summer! For the past week I've been sitting on my Granny's couch reading and napping to my little heart's content. I think I'm still catching up on all the sleep I've lost this past year. It can get a little boring but no worries. I have a packed schedule starting Monday. I leave for the beach on Monday. I slightly hate the beach, but I also slightly love it. Hopefully it won't be too humid because humidity just makes me want to sit in an air-conditioned room. Or cry. Whichever is available. Then I leave the following Monday to be a camp counselor at kids camp. I'm a little nervous about this seeing as I am horrible with children, but hopefully I'll learn some patience or something good like that. Haha. I hope I don't tell those poor innocent children something terrible that will scar them for the rest of their lives.

After I get back from that trip, my family and I are heading to Orlando! We're going to chill at Disney World, Sea World, Space coast, the beach, and hopefully some other fun places. Everyone is half looking forward to it and half-dreading it. However, I have decided that even if we are exhausted and stressed and only get to ride the dumb rides and the beach is closed because a whale decided to park itself on the shore, we are going to trick ourselves into thinking we are having the time of our lives. I'm not entirely sure how this will be accomplished, but I'll let you know how it goes. Also, we are total WDW newbies (my dad taught me that little acronym; he's been reading lots of message boards in preparation for our trip) so any advice would be greatly appreciated.

As you may know, yesterday was Memorial Day. It was the loneliest day I think I have ever had. My father agreed with me that we really need to find some friends or something. We are so pathetic. I make for a terrible only child. My mom has this awful eye infection so she's kind of been sitting around all miserable-like. On the bright side (although it does show the extent of my loneliness and it makes for a terrible pun), I made a firefly friend. I didn't exactly name him, but he was my swinging buddy. Also, I convinced my father to grow a goatee/soul patch. It looks nice so far. I did that because he loves chopping down trees and I wanted him to have that whole lumberjack look going for him. I'm pretty happy about his new hobby A) because fallen trees are really cool and B) he's saving some of the big chunks for me to carve and/or paint.

I need to update you all on my movie life. For the past few years, I've been disappointed in pretty much every movie I've seen. I always think I want to see some goofy chick flick, but I'm always let down. I talked to my sister about this and she suggested that I view some other genres of films because perhaps chick flicks are not my cup of tea. I took her expert advice, and I have to say, I think she was right. I watched 2012 which was absolutely ridiculous. It was super cheesy and the world didn't even end. It still wasn't too bad though. I also watched Sherlock Holmes. That one was really good. Suspenseful. I finally saw The Lightning Thief. I'd heard it wasn't good so I didn't expect too much from it. Otherwise I would've been disappointed. It wasn't horrible by any means, but they really did leave out some crucial parts. I would have been lost if I hadn't read the book. Also, what is up with Grover? He was a total perv. They tried way too hard to make him fit the typical black-guy-in-movie stereotype. He was so not like that in the book.

I don't know if I've ever mentioned this before, but Underoath is my absolute favorite band. Ever. Of all time. I've been in love with them for as long as I can remember. Unfortunately, their drummer departed and now he's focusing on his little side band. His side band is not terrible by any means, but man, Underoath is just perfect and they owe a lot of that perfection to Aaron (the drummer). At least I think they do. I'm nervous about the record they're recording. It just makes me sad. I've been listening to a lot of Deas Vail, The Devil Wears Prada, and Mayday Parade lately. My taste in music is so not impressive, haha.

Well, thanks for reading!

Much Love,

Marissa Lanae