{Tell me your secrets}

So recently, I've turned into the "go to girl" when someone needs to find out some information concerning another person. How I got granted this position, I have no clue, but it's happened. & most of the time I tend to know the answer to their questions. I'm pretty caught up on what's going on around campus, which isn't very hard when there's only 500 students here at York, but I know a lot. I don't know how I came to know every detail about everyone &/or why people think that I'm the girl to know.

But really if you think about it, it all dwindles down to one little issue. Gossip. That's right, I am promoting gossip. Am I proud of it? No, not really. Maybe it's just me being nosy, or maybe it's the fact that I'm constantly attached to social media where I keep in constant contact with what's going on with my peers' lives, or letting them have a little insight to my life, I mean just check out my Twitter page, I LOVE TWEETING #twitterlife. 

Just recently some sort of drama went down on campus, something that reminded me more of middle school than being in college, but everyone fed into it. We all laughed at the expense of the people involved. We added in our own comments. & many people subtweeted about it. You see, we're all guilty. It's not that anyone intends on gossiping, but it does happen & it's something that needs to be addressed. Some people might say that their little conversation is a secret, but I say that's kinda cheating & tricking your mind into thinking that you're doing something that would be pleasing to God's ears, when all you're doing is trying to hurt some one.

Yes, there is a difference between gossip & a secret, but it's is also a fine line. When your words are more hurtful than helpful, then you might want to reevaluate what you're saying. This is something that I for sure need to work on. I don't even catch myself doing ti sometimes until I'm halfway through what I'm saying, & then I think that I can't stop halfway through so I finish. So then I fully know I'm doing something that is displeasing to God. Good one, Bailey. Way to suck. You're the worst. But really, that's how I feel when I catch myself gossiping. I know I'm not showing love with my words when I'm just trying to spread something around.

Let's look at a few verses that specifically address gossiping:

Proverbs 20:19 "A gossip betrays a confidence; but a trustworthy man keeps a secret."

Psalm 52:2 "Your tongue plots destruction, it is like a sharpened razor, you who practice deceit."

Psalm 34:13 "Keep your tongue from evil & your lips away from speaking lies."

Think about it, how would you feel if you knew someone you trusted started spreading around what you told them in confidence? Would you trust them again? I'd probably get the urge to punch them in the face, but I'd to the Christian thing by just punching a pillow instead. It's frustrating. It's rude. It's disrespectful. It's mean & cruel. You feel betrayed, hurt. Nothing good comes from it, except maybe a few laughs at someone else's expense, but not the laughing "with you" type, but the laughing "at you" type of laughter, or maybe a few more rumors. 

So come on people, let's spread words of love, not words that can hurt someone. "My dear brothers & sisters, take not of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, & slow to become angry." James 1:19

Spread love.

Peace & love.

B.

{Sister Dear}

Today I got to sing the National Anthem for the last game that I will ever get to see my sister play. Though, I grew up hating that stupid sport, I grew up to be your biggest fan. The way you've pushed through pain, frustration, irritation, & disappointment has been so inspiring. I can now see why you love the game so much.

I'm going to miss watching to run around in circles & I'll be sad when I don't hear your loud screams on the field. I'll miss the "power point" we shoot each other when your name is called, those sister moments that no one notices. Your gross, green headband helped me to pick you out on the field. But if you for some reason lost that, then I always knew that #15 was you.

Serving as captain for two years is a great honor, & you've humbly held it. You were always looking out for your teammates and ready to push on to the next game, whether it followed a W or L.

I couldn't have been more proud to be your sister on Homecoming when you walked across the field as court royalty, as a senior, & knocked in that great goal. I've never celebrated more that what I did when you scored.

I love you, Jordan. I'm sad to see you be done with this phase of your life, but I know it brought you so much joy. You've got one more game, then you'll lace up your cleats, & even though we aren't going to see it, I know you'll put your whole heart into it. I can't ask for a better role model or bigger supporter. God sure did bless me with a great big sister like you.


Love,
BooBoo

{Lovely}

In my Soprano sectional every week, our section leader comes up with a discussion, opening question. They vary from one naming a moment in your life that impacted you in some way to what you look for in a guy. Some of them are silly, some are more serious. & with the diverse group of girls that are in our section, our responses are all over the place. This week's question though got us all thinking in a positive way of ourselves.

"What is your favorite part of yourself? Either a physical trait or a personality trait."

Talk about seeing yourself in positive terms. Sure we all have features we wish we could change, but this activity required us to pick out or favorite parts of ourselves. Some girls said they liked their eyes, or hair, or teeth. Some liked their legs or how they evenly fit into their body builds. It was really cool to see how someone would point out a specific trait and you would look at that on them & see the beauty in it the same way they did. It was extremely cool for me to experience.

Not only did we point out physical traits, but personality ones as well. Some girls said they enjoyed their servant heart or their heart for service, or how they found joy in encouraging others. It was just so awesome! It gave me a whole new point of view of these girls.

This simple discussion question helped me to see the real, true beauty in these other girls. The beauty that God wants us to highlight everyday, on both internal & external levels. You see, God made us all beautiful. Sure someone can tell you you're beautiful or pretty or whatever, but until you actually feel that way about yourself, those words don't mean anything to you.

Like any other girl, I grew up with insecurities, like I'm too tall, too skinny, not skinny enough, My arms are too long, I lack in muscle tone. Whatever, it was I felt it too. But I've come to terms with myself that this is how God made me to be. So I may be a little awkward, but I'm confident with the way I look & confident in what I wear.

Even if I'm having an extremely ugly day, I can feel that God has given me beauty. He's given us all our own unique beauty. Some compare it on different levels, but God compares your beauty to your heart. Sure He made you beautiful on the outside, but He intends you to be beautiful on the inside.

Growing up, my mom never really told my sisters & I that we were "beautiful" or "pretty" mainly because she didn't want that to go to our heads, not because she didn't think we were, {because let's face it, us Kinney girls are babes, just kidding, but not really, we just get it from our mom, that's besides the point though} she didn't tell us about our outward beauty, because she wanted us to focus on us being lovely.

Not beautiful, but lovely. Pleasant. Ladylike. Sweet. Kind. Gentle.

Try it sometime, be lovely to someone. & maybe, just maybe, they'll be lovely back towards you.

You have a body, but you are a soul. Make it a lovely soul.

Peace & love.
B.

{Enough}

I am enough. I have enough. I do enough. I am enough. I am enough for my Lord to send His only Son to die for me. Enough that I am able to serve Him will all my might & with all my will & strength. I am enough.

I constantly hear people telling each other how they need to change so that they can be enough. So that they can reach some certain standard that society has branded into their minds so deeply that we can never be enough. But you are enough.

No, we're not perfect people. & no, we will never have the perfect day.We will never always know the right thing to say or how our actions may affect us in the future. But we are all enough to feel worth from others & ourselves. To feel special. To feel loved & appreciated. To feel that we are doing everything in our power to be the best version of ourselves that we know to be.

Instead of comparing myself to other people, taking my weaknesses & placing them right up next to someone else's strengths, not an even balance in any way, I need to compare myself to what Jesus would want me to be. How He would want me to be strong, courageous, fearless, faithful, truthful, & patient. I need to be enough for Him because He gave his life for me.

My whole life I've never thought of myself as a smart individual. School has never been my strong suit & it's incredibly hard for me to feel that I am doing my best when I don't really know what my best is. But lately, I've been thinking on how I'm smart enough to be in college. Talented enough to be in the concert choir & a small traveling choir. I'm coordinated enough to be on the cheer squad here. Lucky enough to know that I will be graduating early. & I am more than blessed enough to have the friends that I do here.

I may have my struggles here, but I have enough. Enough support & love. & whatever may be thrown my way, I know that my God Will be there, right by my side, because, to Him, I am enough, & I am worth it.

Peace & love.

B.

{It's Complicated}

Sometimes life is complicated. Too complicated. & as humans, we make it even worse by adding more complications to it!We complicate relationships, we all can recall DTR talks, we complicate money issues, school, family situations. Anything! But wouldn't it just be great if we could all live simply? No problems, no struggles. Just living life, going with the flow. All that hippie junk you always hear about. Sounds great, huh? What if we only had the things we need, not the things we want? Let's face it, I'm greedy. Society is greedy. We want & want, & once we have it, we want more! It's this never ending cycle of never being satisfied, never being content. We let the pleasures of earthly things take up space in our hearts that should be given to God.

Jesus taught us to be simple. To take what extra we have & give it back to others & most importantly to back God. Remember the story about the woman at the temple where she gave only the two pieces of silver while everyone else was placing bag of money into the offering? Jesus said she gave more because she gave all she had. She was humble enough to think that God would provide for her when she gave all she had to him. What if we were to give our hearts to the Lord with the same intentions that the woman at the temple had in giving all she owned. "The poor will eat & be satisfied; they who seek the LORD will praise him -may your hearts live forever." Psalm 22:26

Imagine your life without a cell phone.

Yeah, that's rough.

But think about it, do you need it to survive? Is it vital to your existence? No? Yeah, that's what I thought. It's not. People did just fine without advanced technology for thousands of years, but we act like our life is ending if we don't have these stupid little devices on us at all times. Trust me, you're not going to die. Sure they're convenient & helpful, but we don't need them to survive. Last semester, in my Organizational Communications class, we were given an assignment which required us to turn off & turn in all of our electronic devices. That included iPods, cell phones, computers, laptops, radios, anything that would connect us to the modern communication. We were required to journal throughout the day when we were tempted to us the technology & when we thought the technology would be helpful.

At fist, I hated this assignment. First off, because now I had nothing to do in class because I couldn't sit on Twitter, & secondly because I had no way of getting a hold of any of my friends to make any sort of plans. & let me tell you, it is quite difficult, even on a campus of only 500 students, to find a few select people. Extremely difficult. But as the day progressed, I began to enjoy the freedom of not being tied down to my phone. I didn't have the desire to text or Tweet or really waste my time looking at an itty bitty screen. I was able to open my eyes to the world around me & focus on the beauty of that day. Because it really was a beautiful day.

Sometimes, taking the simplistic approach to life is a good thing. it gives you a break, gives you freedom. It's beautiful. I'm not saying I want to go every day without my laptop or cell phone, but it was a nice blessing that I didn't expect to have.

So I don't know why we complicate things. I can;t give you that answer. Maybe it's just that we are drama driven, or greedy, or jealous, selfish, who knows. All I know is our Savior was none of those things. Just keep that in mind as you go about your day & when things get "Complicated."

Peace & love.
B.