goodbye for now.

i'm taking a break from blogspot and switching over to tumblr. it seems to fit my style a little more. follow me over there http://rachola.tumblr.com/

it's been awhile...

Sorry I've been really terrible with keeping up with this blog. I have lots to be thankful for and I just don't know where to start or how to put it all into words. Hopefully, here soon I'll get a chance to share some of the wonderful things God is doing in my life. But until then, I'll just sit here in awe (: Have a blessed day friends!

holiday at the sea.

We are half hearted creatures, fooling around with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us. Like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased. C.S. Lewis 


This is by far one of my all time favorite quotes. This was something that God used in changing my heart and bringing me back to him and it always gives me a huge heart-check. When you think about it, every one of us is half-hearted. We don't truly believe that God can satisfy. We go on trying to write our own stories and we don't give God full control. God promises us that he will satisfy our every desire. He is the wellspring of life. (John 4:14) So why don't we take his word for it? Has he ever led us to believe that he will not fulfill his promises? No. Never. Yet, we continue to be satisfied by the mud pies. Even those of us who have experience the holiday at the sea...how often do we find ourselves returning to the slum? Christ freely gives us love everyday. FREELY. The only thing he requires is that we hand him the pen to our story and allow him to take control. When we do that, we are open to experience true joy and life the way it was meant for us. I don't know about you but a holiday at the sea sounds so much better than making mud pies. I don't want to control my own life. I am surrendering the pen of my life to God and allowing him to write a story much sweeter than the one I could write on my own. I don't want to be easily pleased by the things the world offers me. I'm going to hold heavenly standards and not settle for anything less because I've learned God's plans are better than my own (: He gives me a billion times more than I deserve because of his extravagant love for me. What else could I do but surrender to him and serve him with my entire life? 


Luke 9:23 Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me."


2 Corinthians 5:14-15 For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died and was raised again. 


Philippians 4:19 And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus. 

random blog of lists.

Things I currently love

1. Jesus!
2. Worship music
3. Disney channel
4. Horses
5. Dresses & skirts
6. Writing letters
7. Friends who are always there for you
8. Random British music artists
9. Reading
10. Eating popsicles

Things I could live without

1. MTV
2. Being in Lexington for 3 months
3. Girls in skimpy outfits
4. 100 degree weather
5. Moving
6. Fake friends 
7. Radio music
8. Miley Cyrus & Christina Aguilera
9. Oil spills
10. Friends hurting

Things I miss

1. Murray
2. All of my friends in Murray
3. Murray
4. All of my friends in Murray
5. Murray
6. All of my friends in Murray
7. Murray
8. All of my friends in Murray
9. Murray
10. All of my friends in Murray

new obsession.

okay so i never ever write blogs about unimportant things like this but i feel the need to share what i have so luckily stumbled across. CLICK FOR FUN. the clothes on this website are precious. vintage and floral and best of all, modest. so so so cute. here are my favorites that are on my wishlist now (:

so i know that's a LOT of clothes but what can i say...they're too cute to pass up (: 

enjoy kiddos!

God is writing my love story.

So I told blog world that I was going to get better at blogging and do it more often and I promise I'm trying! Sometimes I just feel like I have so much to say that I think it would only come out in a huge jumbled mess. But, when I think about it, that's how I feel on a day to day basis. The fact of the matter is, God is working through me. When I show his glory, when I speak truth, it is not by my own power or wisdom but by the Holy Spirit working inside of me. So when I remember that, I feel empowered and encouraged to write/blog/speak (even though that may seem silly that the Holy Spirit empowers me to blog).


Currently, I am reading a book called When God Writes Your Love Story by Eric and Leslie Ludy. Let me just say, it is wonderful. I've only gotten to the fifth chapter but my eyes have already been opened to so much. So far, the book has been about how we hold things back from Christ, namely our love life. People tend to think that either a) God doesn't care about little things like dating or our relationships or b) God will ruin our relationships if we hand them over to him. But friends, I can say with complete certainty that neither of these things are true in the least. 


Since I began my walk with Christ, I have learned how seen how much he pursues me, daily, and through that I've learned how much he loves me. He doesn't want us to just pray about other people or pray about how we need to be molded into a better person for his glory, while those things ARE important, God longs to hear the deepest secrets of our hearts. He wants us to share with him everything we are struggling with, everything that has ever hurt us, everything that makes us who we are. God wants to know us intimately! How incredible is that?! But with that being said, he loves us so much that he wants to know every little thought we have and everything that's in our hearts; this includes relationships! 


Once I handed my life over to Christ, many things changed for me. Some I saw as negative things and others I saw as positive. Of course, everything that changed worked out for my own good, and I see that now. Anyways, a huge thing that changed was relationships/friendships. I had a huge group of friends in high school and when I accepted Christ, things changed with them. Not because I backed away, but because I began to see that those weren't true friendships and God had better things planned for me. Also, I ended a relationship because I heard God telling me that it wasn't going to push me in my faith or help me in the long run. Although I felt like everything was falling apart, God quickly surrounded me with people who love him and who would encourage me. He gave me community and accountability and the best friends I've ever known. Friends, none of this would have ever happened unless I handed things over to God. 


For me, it is a daily struggle. I like having control of my life because I feel like I won't get hurt if I hold on to things tightly. The fact of the matter is, God satisfies our deep desires and he knows what is best for us. When we surrender to him, things turn out 100x better than they would have if we tried to do it on our own. I tried controlling my life for 17 years and all it brought me was heartache and shame. But God has turned my heart breaking story into a romantic comedy (: So everyday, I will do my best to surrender everything to his glory. It's the least I can do after he has pursued me so diligently and turned my life around (:


Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it." Matthew 16:24-25


I die every day. 1 Corinthians 15:31

recap of my first year of college.

This has honestly been the most interesting/terrifying/emotional/eye-opening/growing year of my life. I don't think I have truly felt so many things within the course of a year as I have during my first year of college. First semester...well, let's just say it was not as easy or fun as I had hoped it would be. Second semester, on the other hand, has probably been the best experience of my life. I have made the most incredible friends and built community and learned more about myself than I ever thought was even possible. The people God has placed in my life are honestly some of the greatest people I've ever known. People who you can laugh with, cry with, talk to about anything, and just have fun with no matter what you are doing are very rare to find. God has truly shown me so many things this year. My eyes have been opened to how much I depend on other people, instead of depending on him, and how I still struggle with finding my identity and contentment in him instead of other people or what the world tells us. Through these things he has shown me, I have grown closer to him and seen how much he truly loves me. It is so hard for me to even comprehend how God can love me(us) so much when I(we) wrong him and run away from him and turn to worship other things so often. I don't know if I will ever be able to wrap my head around his unfailing, unconditional, and everlasting love. It amazes me on a day by day basis! I am so sad to be leaving Murray for the summer. I never thought I could fall in love with this place as much as I have. It's going to be so hard leaving all of my friends and people that I've grown close to this year, even if it is only for 3 months. I am just in awe of the things God is doing in my life, even as we speak. I am so blessed by the wonderful people he has placed in my life and I cannot wait to see the things God is going to do in my life this summer and next year! 

i'm a blogging failure.

I've been meaning to blog some updates about my life but I honestly have not had any time. Summer starts in a week so hopefully you all haven't given up on me and I'll try to start blogging regularly again. 

P.S. Life is so good (:

sing sing sing.

First, and most importantly, God is so good. My heart is continuously changing and I am constantly growing into the person He is calling me to be. Not by anything that I am doing but by His grace and love for me. I am finding my place in Murray, KY. Over the past month and a half, God has blessed me with some of the most beautiful people I have ever met. He is building community all around me and providing opportunities for me to serve Him all the time. Something I have been praying for since I came to Murray is to be surrounded by believers and really get connected with people with are running hard after the Lord. Friends, He has been sooo faithful! It took me being patient, overcoming some fears and selfishness, and putting my whole heart into things but I have experienced first hand that our God is a God who provides! Since I first visited Murray I knew it was where I was supposed to be but for the first time, I truly FEEL it! I am truly amazed by how the Lord is changing my heart and building these awesome relationships around me. I am doing All Campus Sing with BCM (Baptist Campus Ministry) and I can't tell you the theme but I can tell you it is AMAZING. Eyes are going to be opened! I've also started doing a leadership study with BCM and God is really putting things in my face and laying it all out there. I'm seeing sin in my life that has been there for a long time that I didn't even realize and I'm starting to see where God wants me and who He wants me to be. I've started to really build solid friendships with people there and I can't wait to see how the Lord uses us! Last weekend, I went on Spring Retreat with Campus Outreach to Jackson, TN and it was seriously EXACTLY what I've been needing for so long. We had parties and worshiped and built relationships and learned more about God's character and serving Him. There are so many great people on this campus that are truly seeking after the Lord and it excites me so much. Since the retreat, I've gotten coffee and lunch with a few people and had some great discussions about our Maker. Community is springing up all around me and God is working in HUGE ways. AHHHH I am so pumped, friends. God is really laying some things on my heart, super heavily, and I know He has big plans for my life, I can just feel it! I want to make disciples of all nations and spread the love of Jesus all around! I am on fire for Christ right now and it's been far too long that I've been living the lukewarm life. I commit to giving Christ my everything and serving Him wholeheartedly. He created me, He loved me before I was even on this earth, He gave His blameless Son so I could live and be with Him. Ya'll, I will never understand this but I will give my life to know Him even a little better. I desire to follow Him with every ounce of me. All of my strength, all of my heart, all of my mind, and all of my soul for His glory, alone. I will not be content until all know who our Savior is. I will GO until He comes, give until I drop, preach until all know, and work until He stops me. I won't give up, shut up, let up, until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, preached up for the cause of Christ. 

THEN JESUS CAME TO THEM AND SAID, "ALL AUTHORITY ON HEAVEN AND ON EARTH HAS BEEN GIVEN TO ME. THEREFORE GO AND MAKE DISCIPLES OF ALL NATIONS. BAPTIZING THEM IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND THE SON, AND THE HOLY SPIRIT; TEACHING THEM TO OBEY EVERYTHING I HAVE COMMANDED YOU. AND SURELY I AM WITH YOU ALWAYS TO THE VERY END OF THE AGE. MATTHEW 28:18-20

it's been a very long time since i've blogged.

my first semester of college was one of the biggest struggles of my life. i felt very alone and had a hard time keeping my faith strong. i felt far away, emotionally, from everyone i knew and when i got hurt even a little bit, i built my wall back up towards God and all of my closest friends. the hardest part of it all was that i faked my way through. anyone that asked how i was doing was given the answer, "great". the majority of these people, i'm sure, could see right through me but kept to themselves. i think a major problem for me was that i was living in the past. senior year was the greatest time of my life. i had an awesome community surrounding me and i was living for the Lord. over the summer, life got even better when i went to work crew. there, i met the greatest people i've ever known, had awesome fellowship, and grew so much closer to God than i had ever been. so imagine how hard it was to go from that to a college where i hardly knew anyone. i had such big expectations for my first semester and when none of them happened, i was angry. over winter break, i went to a reunion with all of my work crew friends, and for the first time in a long time, i was honest with myself and with God. at that point, i decided some major changes needed to happen. i asked God to invade my heart once again and to break down the walls that i built back up around it. i decided that i was going to stop living for myself - stop seeking my own glory - and finally get back to what really mattered in my life; JESUS CHRIST. i cant tell you all how grateful i am that our Father is so forgiving and loves us so incredibly much. he never ceases to amaze me. when i look at my first semester of college, i am so disappointed in myself and i just cannot comprehend how he still loves me after all the times i slapped in the face. yet, i know he does. i know he is rooting for me and is tugging me along telling me that there is more to this life and more i have to do for him. i know we've only had about three weeks of this new year, but already i feel him working. (now that i'm finally letting go of control) in such a short amount of time, he has brought my best friend and i back together for his purpose and started building community here in college. in one week, he introduced me to new friends who are so passionately living for him and gave me opportunities to have honest fellowship with them. i can feel how much bigger he is than i make him out to be. i dont want to live for myself anymore. i want to live for his purpose. i am surrendering all of me to glorify his name, no matter what that takes. i am so so so thankful for a God who picks me up when i fall and never leaves my side. he died for me so i will live for him. 


love forever and always.