Letter to the Readers: I'm Alive, I Promise

Hi everyone!

I'm sorry for the unexpected month-long hiatus from VH posts. I'm not proud of slacking off from it, at all. Life has been very busy event-wise, academically, and spiritually, not to mention preparation for and the act of taking midterm exams as of the last couple of weeks.

I'll be back soon with more posts for sure!

For now, here's a beautiful song that our church sang on Sunday, that I've been really enjoying lately in my worship time:

God's been speaking to me through it, and I hope you enjoy it as well. 

Blessings,
Hayley

Top 30 Inspiring Songs

Sometimes when you're going through tough times, or you're just having a hard time feeling motivated for certain things, you just need to turn on some really good tunes when Christmas music doesn't cut it. Today, I'm going to show you my list of top 30 inspiring songs! :)

1. Defying Gravity by the Original Cast of Wicked

2. Dare You To Move by Switchfoot

3. Do Everything by Steven Curtis Chapman

4. Beautiful Day by U2

5. True Colors by Michelle Chamuel (Studio Version)

6. It's Your Life by Francesca Battistelli

7. Brave by Sara Bareilles

8. Don't Worry, Be Happy by Bobby McFerrin

9. Every Good Thing by The Afters

10. Beautiful Things by Gungor

11. In Christ Alone by Newsboys

12. Oceans by Hillsong UNITED

13. Overcome by Jeremy Camp

14. No One by Alicia Keys

15. Mean by Taylor Swift

16. This Is Your Life by Switchfoot

17. Waiting For Tomorrow by Mandisa

18. We Are by Kari Jobe

19. Walking on Sunshine by Katrina & The Waves

20. Ours by Taylor Swift

21. The Stand by Hillsong

22. The Voice of Truth by Casting Crowns

23. Great I Am by New Life Worship

24. Mine by Taylor Swift

25. When I Speak Your Name by Klaus & Kari Jobe

26. Good Morning by Mandisa

27. Life is a Highway by Rascal Flatts

28. Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield

29. Revelation Song by Kari Jobe

30. The Scientist by Holly Henry (Studio Version)

I hope you like this list! Let me know in the comments what songs you think I missed or if you think it was absolutely perfect. :)

Have a wonderful Christmas Break everyone!

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.  For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.  So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." --2 Corinthians 4:16-18

Don't forget to comment and share with your friends!

The 30-Day Blog Challenge, Day 23: Hobbies

Prompt: List your top 3 favorite hobbies and why you love them.

1) Blogging!!!
Yes, indeed. Blogging is one of my favorite hobbies. Why? It allows me to write continuously (not just when papers are due at school) about life, the Lord and His ways and share them with people all over the world. I also consider it to be a way of professing my faith to others.

2) Baking
I'm definitely one of those people that think baking is therapeutic. I love the quote from the movie Julia and Julia in which the food blogger Julie Powell says, "You know what I love about cooking? I love that after a day when nothing is sure, and when I say "nothing" I mean nothing, you can come home and absolutely know that if you add egg yolks to chocolate and sugar and milk, it will get thick. It's such a comfort." I love how baking is a science. If you simply follow the recipe, and measure things carefully, you'll end up with a perfect masterpiece. It's also nice when I'm at home, and everyone else is having a stressful or hard day somehow, just combining an egg, peanut butter, and sugar and baking it turns into something sweet and rewarding for them.

3) Music/Teaching
I wanted to list both of these on my hobby list, but I ranked them together so that it still counted as 3. :)
Teaching: I truly enjoy teaching, because when I prepare to teach a lesson of some form, I learn something too. I either learn a different technique of how to do something, or I learn a fun new fact that I never knew before, or I even learn more about the person that I'm teaching and build a stronger relationship with that person. I feel that it's a gift that God gave me, and I hope to keep learning how to teach even better as I grow.
Music: Have you ever noticed that when you tap your foot on the floor or your pencil on the desk, you're adding background music to your day? Why do grocery stores always play songs at a certain volume, or even at restaurants, a local Subway might play rock music in the background, or a special expensive restaurant might hire live bands to come play? Everyone enjoys music in different forms. It's something special that adds to everyone's life. Without music, life somehow seems a bit empty. Life all of a sudden feels bland or awkward or uncomfortable when there is not one sound to be heard. That's why I like playing music. It feels like I'm adding more to someone's day.

Question for the Reader: How do you like to contribute to other people's lives in big or small ways?

"Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others." --Philippians 2:4

Halloween/Reformation Day

Happy Halloween everyone!

Or for those of you who celebrate it, happy Reformation Day to you as well!

I know it's not quite Halloween yet, but I thought I'd send my best wishes to you early, since it's unlikely that I'll be blogging tomorrow due to a busy schedule.

I hope you all stay safe and enjoy the day that the Lord has made, whether it's dressing up in a costume, eating candy, carving pumpkins, giving gifts to others, or doing the same-old same-old Thursday night routine, remembering God's presence and love.

For those of you in need of a good tune for the day, I would recommend the youtube link below. It is Mendelssohn's 5th Symphony, otherwise known as "The Reformation" Symphony. Mendelssohn based it off of Martin Luther's hymn, "A Mighty Fortress is Our God." It is one of my favorites, especially during this time of year. (Note: If you don't have time to listen to the entire thing, the 4th movement is my favorite part.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTdZTSqpwyg

God bless you all on this coming Halloween/Reformation Day! :)

Question for the Reader: What's your favorite way to celebrate October 31st?

"Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good." --Romans 12:9

The 30 Day Blog Challenge, Day 11: Today's Theme Music

Prompt: 5 songs on your playlist today.

1. Crazy Love by Mindy Gledhill
This is a cute song by an artist I really like. Her opening line is my favorite part: "Nobody knows that I am a secret spy..."

2. Piano Concerto No. 2 by Dmitri Shostakovich
I love this piano piece because it sort of reminds me of a fairy tale. If you've ever seen Disney's Fantasia 2000, then you probably know what I'm talking about. (It fits The Steadfast Tin Soldier perfectly.)

3. Hot Air Balloon by Owl City
This is one of my favorite songs. It's on my playlist for today because my sister and I actually saw a maroon hot air balloon right early this morning. :)

4. Symphony No. 5 "The Reformation Symphony," Movement 4 by Felix Mendelssohn
I love how majestic this piece is. It's almost as if Mendelssohn had the ability to compose God's power into a symphony, especially towards the middle and end of the movement.

5. Your Hands by JJ Heller
This is one of my favorite Christian music songs. It's a great, soft acoustic song about God's love and our security in Him.

Question for the Reader: Do you have any songs stuck in your head today?

Praise the Lord. 

Praise God in his sanctuary; 

praise him in his mighty heavens. 

Praise him for his acts of power;

praise him for his surpassing greatness.

Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,

praise him with the harp and lyre, 

praise him with timbrel and dancing,

praise him with the strings and pipe,

praise him with the clash of cymbals,

praise him with resounding cymbals.

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord.

--Psalm 150

Thou and Thou Only First In My Heart

Today I was reminded of one of my favorite hymns, "Be Thou My Vision." It's a beautiful song about letting God help you see everything in His ways. Here are the lyrics:

Be Thou My Vision, O Lord of my heart;

Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art

Thou my best thought by day or by night

Waking or sleeping, my presence my light.

Be Thou My Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;

I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;

Thou my great Father, and I Thy true son;

Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the fight;

Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight;

Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high Tower:
Raise Thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,

Thou mine inheritance, now and always:

Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

High King of Heaven, my victory won,

May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heaven’s Sun!

Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all.

These words are absolutely beautiful. What hit me hard is when I saw a youtube video of someone singing the hymn, and she sang the words "Thou and Thou only, first in my heart" three times before singing the next line. It really made me reflect on the importance of having God first in our hearts before anything else. Not riches, not popularity, but the Lord Himself. This is a great reminder in the midst of the craziness of the month of May. We are not justified by the praise of the people around us or by money or fame. We have no justification apart from Christ alone, and He helps us see our purpose. We are to seek the Kingdom of Heaven, and find our Treasure in the Lord. 

Question for the Reader: Are there words or lyrics that stand out to you or send a message in certain times?

"But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." --Matthew 6:33

Every Little Thing You Do

It's that time of the year again. The trees are getting green leaves with blossoming flowers, the days are getting hotter, and everything seems so much brighter. Summer is near! 

One of the things I've heard people love to do in preparation for summer season is create a "summer playlist." For a couple of minutes, I was curious to see what Christian songs counted as "summer" music. It didn't take long for me to find one of my favorite songs that I haven't heard in quite a few weeks. 

It's called "Do Everything" by Steven Curtis Chapman. The title almost makes you think that the song is about how we have to do absolutely everything through Christ, no excuses. But on the contrary, it calls followers of Christ to simply do the things that bring glory to God. That's a big weight lifted, isn't it?

Here are the lyrics: 

You're picking up toys on the living room floor for the 15th time today

Matching up socks

Sweeping up lost cheerios that got away

You put a baby on your hip

Color on your lips and head out the door

While I may not know you, 

I bet I know you

Wonder sometimes, does it matter at all?

Well let me remind you, it all matters just as long

As you do everything you do to the glory of the One who made you, 

Cause he made you, 

To do

Every little thing that you do 

To bring a smile to His face

Tell the story of grace

With every move that you make

And every little thing you do

Maybe you're that guy with the suit and tie

Maybe your shirt says your name

You may be hooking up mergers

Cooking up burgers

But at the end of the day

Little stuff

Big stuff

In between stuff

God sees it all the same

While I may not know you

I bet I know you

Wonder sometimes, does it matter at all?

Well let me remind you, it all matters just as long

As you do everything you do to the glory of the One who made you, 

Cause he made you

To do

Every little thing that you do 

To bring a smile to His face

Tell the story of grace

With every move that you make

And everything you do

Maybe you're sitting in math class

Or maybe on a mission in the Congo

Or maybe you're working at the office

Singing along with the radio

Maybe you're dining at a 5-star

Or feeding orphans in the Myanmar

Anywhere and everywhere that you are

Whatever you do

It all matters

So do what you do

Don't ever forget

To do everything you do to the glory of the One who made you, 

Cause He made you

To do

Every little thing that you do 

To bring a smile to His face

And tell the story of grace

As you do everything you do to the glory of the One who made you, 

Cause he made you

To do

Every little thing that you do 

To bring a smile to His face

And tell the story of grace

With every move that you make

And every little thing you do

In every little thing you do

In every little thing you do

This is such a great reminder. With school finishing up soon, and just praying constantly that I survive through the end of the semester and extracurricular activities, it's nice to know that God is all right with my best as long as it is all to His glory. 

With that in mind, I think my last few weeks of spring will be nicer than I thought they would be at first glance. :)

Question for the Reader: Are you making preparations for summer?

"Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?" --Matthew 6:26