Blue-Eyed Breather

Can I just say that we have an Almighty, All-Poweful, Awesome Father?? He is so faithful and trustworthy! Why the sudden outburst, you ask? Recently, God has been encouraging me to pray and pray big. I mean really, really big. I have no problem trusting God with my everyday prayers. I go before Him on behalf of my friends and family, lifting up their struggles and hardships to my Father with open hands regularly. But I have trouble asking God to do big things in my own life. For instance, I don't pray for a cure for cystic fibrosis nearly enough. I don't ask to be healed. I can't really explain the logic behind that thought process. I know that God is Sovereign and could heal my fragile body without blinking an eye. However, I guess since I've lived with CF for so long, I just don't think about praying for a cure. In a way, part of me doesn't want to believe that a cure could be found in my lifetime because I don't want to get my hopes up. I know, I sound ...

20 Things CF has taught me: 1.Time management 2. How to swallow 8 (or is it 9?) pills at a time. 3. Attitude is everything. 4. Life is precious. 5. Being a control freak does not mean everything will turn out perfectly. 6. But it's still important to plan. 7. Fully rely on God!! 8. How to say and spell long names of random bacteria and medicine that no one else will ever know. 9. The abundance of germs in society. 10. I can't do everything on my own. 11. Be responsible. 12. Breathing is kind of necessary. 13. Take joy in true friendships. 14. Prayer is insanely powerful. 15. Serve others. 16. Don't get caught up in your own struggles. 17. In keeping with number 16, know that life isn't fair. 18. Be dedicated to whatever you do. 19. It's okay to get upset. Believe it or not, it's even okay to cry. 20. Live each day to the fullest, laugh and enjoy life, love others like crazy.

Have you ever seen the show, "What Not to Wear"? Stacey and Clinton, the fashion experts, choose a candidate to be on the show who is struggling to dress fashionably. They take all of the woman's clothes and throw away everything they deem inappropriate. Then, Stacey and Clinton give the woman rules to follow when buying clothes, along with $5,000 to purchase a whole new wardrobe. Every episode of "What Not to Wear" that I have seen, I've noticed a common theme among the women--they try to hide their femininity and beauty behind clothes, make-up, and hair styles that either oversexualize their bodies or behind appearances that do not draw attention to their unique womanhood whatsoever. This trend to waver in self-confidence and constantly struggle with self-image is common in society. Women compare themselves to others, wondering if they are pretty enough, funny enough, kind enough, sensitive enough, or attractive enough to grab a man's attention. We str...

Prayer is the most powerful tool we have. In Matthew 7:7, Jesus says, "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and it will be opened for you." Far too often, however, we overlook the immensity of prayer. If you're like me, you want to do something to help friends and loved ones struggling through difficult times. I will pray earnestly for them, but then I will feel this overwhelming urge to help in some tangible way. This is not a bad thing in the least. I am able to show my love for others through service, and I know that my acts of kindness have helped my loved ones through difficult trials. But I'm afraid I underestimate the power of prayer. I forget that GOD is completely sovereign, magnificently powerful, and tremendously almighty. I am nothin!. And what's more incredible is that when I pray to my Father, He hears me and answers my prayers. How cool is that?? For someone who tends to take matters into her own hands, this statement of Go...

A week ago, I got blood work back that didn't look very good. My hemoglobin number had dropped from 11.3 to 9.5. The bottom range of "normal" hemoglobin is 11.5. Immediately, this became a cause of concern. My doctors don't know exactly why my hemoglobin level is so low. After another blood draw, my iron level came back at half the number it is supposed to be. Obviously, this is a serious problem. My GI doctor is concerned I may be bleeding internally. As soon as possible, I am supposed to do a test where I swallow a pill camera that will show the inside of my entire digestive tract so that he can look for abnormalities. For now, though, I have started on an iron supplement and am trying not to overwork myself. The blood work indicates that I am severely anemic. This could explain why I've been so darn exhausted lately. At times, I've had to fight my body to stay awake, even though I'm getting at least eight hours of sleep a night. I know this is not how I...

So, in case you haven't noticed, it's Valentine's Day, also known as Single Awareness Day. Being completely honest, I'm not a huge fan of the holiday. Why, you may ask? For one, it's a very cliche holiday. It's pretty universal for a guy to get his woman flowers, chocolates, a teddy bear, or some combination of those items. Companies that sell cards, like Hallmark, make enough money on Valentine's Day to stay in business for a whole year. And if you don't get your significant other a gift, you are looked down upon as being a bad boyfriend or girlfriend, even if you both mutually decided to skip the hoopla and the celebrations. It's also a day to remind all the single people that yes, in case they'd forgotten, they are indeed still single. You thought you could enjoy your singleness, but alas, it is thrown back in your face as all your dating friends have a special day/evening with someone they care about. Now, maybe I'm being a little unfair...

This is an entry I wrote for my ΣΦΛ sisters at retreat. Enjoy! Life is a journey. A never ending roller coaster full of ups and downs. It's sometimes a perfectly ripe apple, sweet, intoxicating, and good. But It's sometimes a mushed up banana, slippery, disgusting, and repulsive. It's the delighted laughs heard from the playground, but it's also the tearful cries heard in hospitals. It's the screams of good news and the dejection of rejection. Life is unexpected. It is surprise parties, joyful reunions, and unbelievable friendships. But it's also pain you thought you'd never feel, despair like you'd never imagined. It's full of sudden twists and turns and halts and somersaults. Life is a mystery. It is confusion, chaos, and questions. It is like following clues to a treasure trove at the end of the path. The way ahead is only identified step by single step, keeping you constantly guessing about the future. Most importantly, life is a gift fr...

I wrote a Facebook post earlier that was a bit forward, so I decided to explain myself further in a blog post. It said: "Beyonce is not an idol or a role model. Yes, she's an amazing singer, but she objectifies herself as a sex object. I want to be known for my heart and my love for Jesus, not for my body or my ability to shake my booty." Let's unpack this a little bit, starting from the beginning. Beyonce is not an idol. No human being can ever be perfect, no matter how awesome he or she may seem. Having idols in general is against God's clear words. Many times, we idolize human beings by saying, "I want to be just like them" and trying to emulate their actions. This is not right. We should be striving to imitate Jesus because He alone is perfect. The second part of that sentence is that she is not a role model. This one is hard to explain. I understand that she is better than many celebrities in that she gives back to society and tries to raise money...

The Boomer Esiason Foundation is well known in the CF community for raising millions of dollars for the CF Foundation. Boomer Esiason's son, Gunnar, has cystic fibrosis, which was the motivation for him to start the foundation. The foundation also gives out many scholarships to deserving college students (who just so happen to have CF and fight the disease courageously.) One of the scholarships, called Sacks for CF, is a $10,000 scholarship given to a handful of CF patients at the end of football season. During the season, with every sack that occurs on Monday Night Football, an amount of money is donated to the scholarship. Then, the scholarship committee chooses a certain number of recipients based on the total amount of scholarship money available. This year, I am one of the recipients!! I got the call this morning. I am so excited! Boomer himself will also announce my name as a recipient on the radio between the first and second quarters of the big game. How cool is that?! ...