Doubly Awarded!

I was doubly awarded by my dearest friend, Ellie, over at Aquamarine Dreams. And Jonny over at Scrinium et Suggestum

The German word liebster means dearest. It is awarded to those who have under 200 followers on their blog.
Once you have been awarded, you have to share 11 random facts about yourself. Next you must answer the 11 questions asked by the person who nominated you. Lastly nominate 11 other bloggers (who have under 200 followers) and ask them 11 questions. Don't forget to notify them that they have been awarded.

I must begin with 11 random facts about myself. Oh, dear...

1. I am a Christian (that's not really random actually)
2. I am a homeschool graduate.
3. I am not going to college.
4. I write songs and novels.
5. I hate driving in the city.
6. Pistachios are one of my favorite snacks.
7. I am a patriot.
8. I stand with Israel.
9. I don't have a Facebook.
10. I love toast.
11. I prefer being barefoot.

OK, now to answer the 11 questions posed by Ellie!

1. Why did you start your blog?
I started my blog because I wanted to reach out to people whom I can't see or touch. Through the words that the Lord gives me I can encourage and hopefully bless those unseen faces.

2. Why did you name it what it is?
My middle name is Rose. Naturally I wanted a spin off of my middle name. The phrase, 'stop and smell the roses' kept coming to my mind so I went with it.

3. Where do you find inspiration for your blog?
The Lord, and life lessons.

4. Is your blog for you, or for your readers?
It is for my readers.

5. What was your favorite birthday gift?
Uh...I have quite a few birthday gifts. I loved many of them so I will pick one of them which would be the Bible that my parents got for me on my 13th birthday I think it was?

6. What song always makes you cry?
Never Give Up on Me by Josh Bates.

7. What movie puts you to sleep?
 Hm...probably one of the Ken Ham movies we own. No offense here. :P

8. What is something you wanted to show someone, but didn't dare?
Getting personal now are we? LOL! Let's see, there was a time I wanted to show a whole lot of people just how hurt I felt. I didn't though because I wanted them to see the love of God. Not my pain.

9. Which personality type do you find more approachable, quiet or talkative? 
Talkative. :)

10. May it be, or Into the West 
      Into the West.
11. Which smiley do you use most?
:P

Since I was doubly awarded I must answer Jonny's questions too. Which, they prove to be quite interesting. :P

1. What's your favorite book/passage/verse of the Bible, and why?
Good one!
Well...my favorite book of the Bible, well I don't just have one, I have several. But to pinpoint just one I would say the book of Psalms. Why? Whenever I am going through a rough time I can open to any psalm and find comfort through David's words. Plus a lot of the psalms are praising the Lord. David was a songwriter. I am one as well. Both of us have the same goals. Praising the Lord.
My favorite passage is Proverbs 31:10-31. My Good Morning Girls group and I are getting ready to study that! :) And why? um..The Proverbs 31 woman is my role model. She is what I am aiming to be like.
Favorite verse is 1 Corinthians 10:31.
Why? It's my life verse. 'nough said. :)

2. Who's your favorite non-biblical historical figure?
Two come off the top of my head. Eric Liddel and Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

3. Excluding Jesus and the Apostles, which New-Testament person would you want to talk to, and why?
One of Jesus' brothers or His earthly parents. I would like to know what He was like growing up.

4. Which Old-Testament person would you want to talk to, and why?
Esther and Jeremiah. Esther, well I want to know what it was like facing danger like that. Her bravery and loyalty to her people and the Lord is awe-inspiring.
Jeremiah. He was the weeping prophet. I want to know how he felt when he was rejected and everything. Get the inside story. :)

5. Which of the following soundtracks do you think is more sad-sounding, and why: The Jedi Purge (Star Wars), Gandalf has Fallen (Lord of the Rings), or Never Forget (Halo 4)? I recommend listening to them while you fill out the rest of the questions to save time (all three combined should take less than 12 minutes). ;-)
Gandalf has Fallen. That one sounds the saddest. Why? I don't really know why! It just does! :P

6. If  you had the choice to be involved in any historical event, which event would you choose, what part would you play in it, and why?
World War Two would be my event. I would like to play the part as a spy (double agent for the U.S.) in Germany. Why? I have always dreamed of doing something like that. Since I can't do it myself I have written a book about it. :P

7. If you had the choice to play a part in any fictional event, which event would you choose, how would you want to be involved in it, and why?
OK. I think I understand this question correctly. My fictional event would take place in the book series, The John Bennet and Erin McCoy series, by Joel C. Rosenberg. I would like to play the part as Erin McCoy. Why? She's awesome! :P

8. If for some reason you weren't a Christian, what belief system do you think you would be most likely to follow? 
I would probably be an agnostic

9. Do you have any combat/self-defense/shooting skills/training? If so, name them. If not, name some you would want!
I have zilch! I would like to learn some sort of self-defense training...maybe knife throwing, or scalping, and maybe...no I'm just kidding.
I would like to learn some kind of self-defense training though.

10. Do you agree or disagree that flying is for Droids?
Uhh...I disagree...flying is for any flying device that can stay in the air. I don't know! :P

11. Pardon me, would you have any Grey Poupon? 
Dijon mustard? Oh yeah! Bring it on! :P

Wow...now after that crazy round of questions.....I hope you all are still interested in this crazy ride! :)


OK! Now I must award eleven people who have under 200 followers

Olivia at Epiphanies
Haley at Remake of a Girl
Leah at My Journey
Gabrielle at The Ink Stained Parchment
Lauren at Virtuous Daughter
Sophia at Simple Delights
Katie at Writer's Ramblings
Anna at Shine
Rachel at Of Love and Beauty
Cindy at Life as a Young Christian



And their eleven questions are:

1. Why did you start your blog?
2. Where do you hope to find yourself in five years?
3. If you could place yourself in any book, which book would it be, what character would you want to be, and why?
4. What are you currently reading?
5. What is your personality type: quiet or more outgoing?
6. What is your biggest goal?
7. Do you prefer an action-packed film, or a romantic one?
8. Jane Austen or Charles Dickens?
9. Do you laugh a lot?
10. Do you read political thrillers?
11. Are you interested in eschatology?

Have fun you Liebster friends. :)

Rewarding Hard Work

I have been teaching four of my younger siblings for two years now. I will admit that teaching my siblings is harder than teaching someone else's child. The natural tendency to get impatient often arises when I'm teaching them.

After two years of teaching them I finally figured out how to get them to practice regularly. You would think that I would have already discovered that, but alas I had not.

I told them that starting in June we would begin a rewards system. Each of them will get their own calendar for the month. They have to practice ten minutes a day, four days a week. At the end of the month they bring me their calendar and if it meets the requirements that I set, then they get a prize.

Each child I explained that to, their eyes lit up when I got to the end of my explanation.

I remember when my older sister's best friend, Elizabeth was teaching me. She did something similar, and it made me want to practice even more because I knew I was going to get a prize for it.

When lessons were over and I was fixing dinner I got to thinking about my whole rewards system. I realized that God does the same thing with us in His own way.

(Don't you just love it when you have an epiphany?)

In Psalm 37:3-5 it says, "Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the Lord: and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass."

In every one of those verses there is a reward for doing something for the Lord. Trust in the Lord, and do good and you shall be fed. Delight in Him and He shall give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way unto Him, trust in Him, and He shall make your desires happen!

There are many other references in Scripture that illustrate this. God made us and He knows how we work. He offers rewards to His children when they obey Him.

He rewards us with eternal life if we will only repent of our sins and ask Him into our hearts.

This principle of rewarding works for personal goals as well. I find that when I have a daunting task, such as cleaning my disaster of a room, I don't have the motivation to do so. But if I set a reward for myself when the job is finished I have a lot more energy. Usually.

Maybe there is something that you need to get done that isn't happening because of a lack of motivation? Try setting a good reward at the end of the task.

God uses it so it has to work. :)

Crossing Over the Threshold

I've been absent for an entire month. At least in my posting. I apologize, but life has been crazy here lately, and the lack of Internet has prevented me from updating my posts.

   If you read my post, Don't Worry About It, then you will remember me mentioning that I would be taking the  GED test. Which I take next week.

Before I did so I had to finish quite a few math lessons. I wanted to finish them, but at the same time I was hesitant to do so. I couldn't figure out why.
Why would I be so hesitant to finish school and move on into adulthood? Isn't that what most kids dream to achieve? To make it to adulthood (finally)?

After giving it some serious thought I discovered the reasoning behind my hesitation.

By finishing school I was, in my mind, closing the door to my childhood completely. That's a rather sad thought, in my opinion.

I'm reminded of the verse in 1 Corinthians 13, "When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things." 

Putting away childish things. OK, I don't believe that necessarily means packing away the baby dolls, Lincoln Logs, train tracks, and forsaking all fort building in the woods.
I believe that's part of it, but I think it is more of putting away childish thinking, behavior, and immaturity.
I have, I think, put all of those away. (Haha)

I am hesitant to leave my childhood because that's all I have ever known. Stepping into adulthood scares me. I have no idea what lies ahead. I don't know what roads I will take. All I can do is simply trust that the Lord will guide me in this new way of life.

So as I step over the threshold of adulthood, I will take my Savior's hand and trust Him to lead me wherever He wills.