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jolehi
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Name: Joanna
Metro:
Gender: Female
Interests: ::God, music, art, and ballroom dancing. theater is pretty cool too:: music that rocks my eardrums: sufjan stevens, keane, the shins, mae, iron and wine, eisley, sigur ros, death cab for cutie, postal service...the list goes on:: lawn gnomes and chapstick are some of my best friends:: i'm madly in love with photography- not just digital. developing pictures, making my own elargements....it's exhilerating:: oh and did i mention? God is wonderful. i would naturally say that He's the best thing since sliced bread, but He created that, so...you know, He's way better than that::
Expertise: ::twirling, jumping, laughing, singing, screaming:: swinging on a swingset:: playing hide-and-go-seek:: doing laundry:: cranking up my stereo to make the walls shake:: finding dryer sheets in the middle of random fields:: hugging friends at every chance i get::
Occupation: Artist
Industry: Art
Message: message meEmail: email me
Website: visit my website
AIM:  jolehi89
Member Since:
9/16/2004
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Remember, remember the fifth of November
The gunpowder treason and plot.
I see no reason why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.
Guy Fawkes twas his intent
To blow up king and parliament.
Three score barrels were laid below
To prove old England's overthrow.
By God's mercy he was catched
With a dark lantern and lighted match.
Holler boys, holler boys, let the bells ring
Holler boys, holler boys, God save the King. | | |
| three days in a row with posts! i'm on a roll here!!....and it stops here too. hahaha
To Whom It May Concern [to those whom are family and friends of Jason and myself, who love us dearly]:
[This is uber long, but I’d ask that you’d PLEASE read ALL of it. If you have to copy and paste it in a document and save it on your desktop and read it when you get the time, please, please do. This is extremely important to both Jason and I that you read all of it. If you would, please pray before reading this, so that God would reveal to you clearly what He’s trying to say through me in this. I don’t want there to be any miscommunication because of poor wording on my part. Lord, I ask that you would give clear discernment to those reading this now, that you would show them Your heart in this situation, please give clarity. I know the enemy can get into words and twist them and destroy what you intended- Lord I ask that would not allow that to happen. Please grant us all your wisdom in this matter. Thank you, and in Your name do we ask these things, amen.]
We’d like to tell you what will be happening when Jason comes back.
To you, this may seem to be unusual and abrupt, but to both of us, we are at peace with this and God’s timing with it. This is no sudden thing, we have both been praying about it fervently [and frustrated-ly at times] and discussing it with each other as well and our parents as well.
Jason’s been gone for five months. I said to Jason “This is going to sound really terrible…” and he said “but you’ve liked me being gone” and I laughed and said “Well, no. But it’s been a much more fruitful and enjoyable time than I thought it was going to be”. We discussed how we think every relationship should go through this, because it produces such endurance, and God teaches you so much reliance on Him daily- it’s wonderful.
I know Jason has not enjoyed being gone for 5 months any single day. He’s said that every day there has been the worst day of his life. He’s a little overly dramatic, because I know he did enjoy shooting guns and some other moments, but they were few and far between.
Getting to the point.
During these past five months, God has pressed on my heart that at the end of these five months, life may not go back to what it was before Jason left. In fact, it would be completely different and it needs to be. In discussing this with Jason, we were both unsure about what this meant at first. So one Tuesday evening, I went to Commonwealth’s prayer service with this issue on my mind. While driving there I just asked God to make it clear, that I wouldn’t have a shadow of a doubt as to what He wanted to happen when Jason got back. After having someone pray with/for me, I went back and opened my Bible randomly to
Mark 9:42-50
"Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea. And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell, 'where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.' For everyone will be salted with fire. Salt is good, but if the salt has lost its saltiness, how will you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another."
This struck me pretty hard. Not to say that Jason causes me to sin, no no. But he distracts me in my life occasionally, we distract each other. Not in a really negatively impacting way, but I would choose to go hang with him and other people instead of doing my homework first- that kind of thing.
Then God brought my attention to this other passage- a passage which God brought to me right when Jason left at the beginning of the 5 months.
Mark 10:17-31
“And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, "Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" And Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: 'Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.'" And he said to him, "Teacher, all these I have kept from my youth." And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, "You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me." Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions."
And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, "How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!" And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, "Children, how difficult it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God." And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, "Then who can be saved?" Jesus looked at them and said, "With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God." Peter began to say to him, "See, we have left everything and followed you." Jesus said, "Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first."
At this point, I was crying. God had answered my prayer and made it clear to me, without a shadow of a doubt. But it was still difficult to take. Give up everything I have? Why is this so maddening? I should be pleased to give up everything I have for the sake of Jesus.
On my drive home, I was still distraught. I came to a stoplight and God spoke to me and said “For now, your relationship is a red light. But don’t loose hope, because I have promised to give your relationship a green light, but for now, this a season for you both to seek my face. I cannot afford for either of you to be distracted for this time, I need you both to fix your eyes on me”
Our God is a loving God, is He not? Our God is a God of hope, our blessed assurance. A God who says “Delight in me and I shall give you the treasures of your heart” not “Delight in the treasures of your heart and surely you shall see me”.
God could have just said “I’m telling you guys to chill out, so do it, obey”. But our God is so loving unto His children- He gives them hope, He gives them a light at the end of the tunnel. He decided to make this easier on my flesh and told me that I can get through this time because I have something to look forward to. As if seeing Jesus when I die isn’t something enough to look forward to. Jeesh, I’m so lame.
When I got home, I went back and read those passages again, and God revealed to me something I had not noticed when I read them earlier. Relatively between those two passages was this passage
“'Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.' So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate." -Mark 10:7-9
Again, I began crying. Hahaha. God has given me this passage before during tough times in our relationship. So it’s kinda precious to me.
God could have given me those other two passages and said nothing else. But He is so gracious and merciful that He gave me those words of hope.
"With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God."
Praise the Lord that all things are possible with Him. Thank you Lord that you have chosen me, thank you Lord that you have chosen Jason. Thank you for bringing us into your kingdom, thank you for bringing us into one another’s lives. Thank you that YOU are our solid rock, our firm foundation. Thank you that we have You in this relationship, otherwise we would be doomed, Lord. Thank you.
So what this means is . . .
[in layman’s terms]
In this situation, the pros outweigh the cons 100000%. It's good for our relationship with God, good for our relationship with each other and good for family and friends to witness.
And it's a time of testing, and that always brings good things... as weird as it seems.
It's just comforting to me to rely on God and know that He is in control, and He knows better than both of us. And its funny- when we fully rely on God for EVERYTHING life is a lot simpler, and a lot more fun, a lot more fulfilling too.”
In telling Jason about what I wanted to write to everybody about I said, “And what I was thinking of telling people is something like, "Hey guys me and Jason are still planning to marry each other and whatnot, we're just going to be taking a break to focus on God more, because that's what God told us to do. So if it seems like we're different, It's not just cuz Jason got back from training, And nothing has changed between us, we still love each other- we're just taking a season to really focus solely on God." That's the REALLY, REALLY simple version, i would make it sound fifteen million times better than THAT”
Hahaha.
Just because Jason has been gone for 5 months doesn’t mean anything has changed between us.
We’re not “breaking up” with each other [... if we were actually ever “together”… aahhh it’s so complicated!] We still love each other. We still both feel peace from God about the promise He has for us.
We are also at peace with this season off.
We both agree that it’s the best thing for our lives. If he had come back and we both thought “Ahh I haven’t seen you in 5 months let’s spend as much time as we can together to make up the time!! Yaay!” NO. That would have been detrimental.
What we really need to do NOW is pray constantly before and after Jason gets back, pray that God will give us the strength to fight the temptation we're going to face. We must soak this time in prayer and bible reading. We’d like to ask you guys to stand with us in prayer, and help us fight the good fight and not give in to what the enemy would like to see happen- but that we would fight with joy and perseverance for the One who’s already fought for us.
So when you’re talking or hanging with us, we want you guys to keep us accountable. Please, don’t give us the third degree and expect us to not talk to each other. Friends talk to each other, friends dance with each other, friends laugh with each other, friends give hugs to one another. But please, on the other hand don’t be tolerant of what you think may be going to far and not keeping our promise. Please, please, please tell us if anything we do bothers you! We want to live by what the Bible says about not causing anyone to stumble.
Romans 14:19-21
“Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a man to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother to fall.”
1 Corinthians 10:31-33
“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God— even as I try to please everybody in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.”
Please, I ask you again that you would keep us in your prayers. We both have a lot of decisions to make about this situation and in other areas of our lives as well. Jason has to make lots of decisions with find a good car, possibly getting a new job, and getting everything to start school in the spring semester. I have tons of work to do every single day, and God wants me to be a tool for His glory on the VCU campus, which is a joy and a challenge.
And we’ll obviously face the temptation to fall into line with what our lives were like before Jason left- that’s what we REALLY need ya’lls prayers for.
And now I’d like to give a huge thanks to both my parents and Jason’s parents for giving us both guidance and direction in both of our lives. We have been stubborn and obstinate most of the time, and I want to thank you guys for being patient through it all. Thank you also for your words of wisdom and encouragement, and of course all the prayers for us. Thanks for loving us so much and making the choice to raise us to be God fearing, God honoring, and God glorifying in all that we do.
And thanks to all our friends who’ve encouraged us and discouraged us in everything we did. Thanks for keeping us in check, and you know who you are :) We couldn’t have done this without you.
And of course, thanks and praise be to the God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him that He disciplines those whom He loves!!
Oh, and thanks for reading all this! :P
“oh Christ, be the center of our lives,
be the place we fix our eyes,
be the center of our lives”
“there is no one else for me
none but Jesus.
crucified to set me free,
now I live to bring Him praise.
all my delight is in You, Lord
all of my hope, all of my strength.
all my delight is in You, Lord
forever more, forever more.”
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| I went to walmart. I went to the gas station. I went to school. I went to prayer at ComChap.
Feeling the many, many stares.
Hearing all the stirred up conversation about abortion, “there’s one of those pro-life people”, “those crazy Christians”, “why would you ever do that”, “yeah I’ve got this Christian friend who’s pro-life”… I was happy that it created a dialogue. Dialogue shows that people are at least thinking about it rather than tossing it aside.
You’d think the worst part was all the stares. It wasn’t. The worst part was when people wouldn’t stare. When they would purposely ignore. When I would find the flyers on the ground or in a chair. It seemed eerily fitting. The flyers were purposely discarded. Just like the children these flyers discussed.
The second worst part was the constant feeling of lockjaw.
I changed the tape several times. Once after the permanent marker from the tape had made its way from the tape to my fingers to my cheekbones, nose, and forehead. Haha. Once after it was just not sitting well. Once after I ate lunch. Once when it was getting loose.
A person said how cool it was that I was doing this.
I had two people pray for me, out loud, in front of others.
Carra helped me :) she told the TA my attendance number.
My methods and processing teacher asked me if she could talk to me, I nodded.
She also pointed me out to another teacher.
While walking past one man sitting on a park bench eating his sandwich, he said, “Wow” in a deep voice. I couldn’t tell if that was a good wow or a bad wow.
While waiting to enter art history class, a girl said to a guy “Hey she has tape on her mouth, I wonder what she’s doing”
One guy gasped when he saw me and said “Oh I wanna be silent too!” but then his friend said “No, give him a flyer”. He didn’t read it in front of me. I think he wanted to jump on just about any bandwagon.
One guy got my attention on the stairs down to the underground in the commons, and asked me for a flyer, so I tried my hardest to reach it up to him, but I could not. So another guy taller than I reached it up to him, and almost fell down the stairs.
One girl said “High fives girl. Props”- before even knowing what I was supporting.
I played charades most of the day. One guy was trying to guess just about everything about me. My major, what year, where I’m from. It was amusing.
Three people refused to be handed my flyers.
One was because she had already gotten another from someone else :)
The other two refused with an angry look on their face.
One girl even said to my face “I’m a firm believer in planned parenthood”.
Several people would smile at me after reading the handouts.
Some would grimace.
I didn’t handout flyers to just anyone, just to those who stared long enough, to those who asked- and sometimes just anyone. I will never know if it will make a difference in any of their lives.
My favorite part of the day was when my History of Visual Communications [Jamie Mahoney] teacher came up to me with a look of shock and awe and I handed her a flyer. She took the time to read the whole thing over right in front of me. Still looking stunned.
Then she said “This is the best thing I’ve ever seen for this issue. It’s the right way of conveying pro-life without botching it. I teach another class with Visual Communications and I show all the signs of the pro-life people doing it wrong, and I ask the ladies in the class (because their message is directed at them) how it makes them feel, and they always say terrible. It’s offensive. And they should be preaching what they are saying to themselves! Are you in Mass Comm? [I shake my head] Arts? [Nod] In graphics? [Nod] Illustration? [shake head] Graphic Design [Nod] Oh! You’re in my department! Are you a sophomore [nod]. I really wish I had my camera with me today. Could you take some pictures and send them to me? [nod] I want to use you as an example of how to properly communicate this issue. Great job!”
I was beaming after departing from my conversation with her.
Why? She’s a liberal. I’m pretty sure she’s not pro-life.
She gave everyone in class registration forms to vote who weren’t already registered. And she told those who were registered in other states that they need to register here because their vote is more important here. She also promoted the obama website while doing all of this.
She was saying today how the religious right attacked the comic industry back in the 50’s, and how they always attack things and make up things to remove what they think is bad from culture.
It thrilled me to have her see that there IS a right way to go about standing up for pro-life.
One of the reasons I wanted to do this other than standing up for all the lives lost was the fact that this was the best way I could have possibly ever imagined to stand up for the pro-life movement.
All those crazy pro-lifers hold up dead baby pictures and scream awful things in the faces of people who don’t want to pick a fight.
But this way, I was silent. I couldn’t say anything that would offend anyone.
And my silence spoke louder than any voice could.
My silence spoke for those who will never have voices.
We hold these truths to be self-evident,
that all men are created equal,
that they are endowed by their Creator
with certain unalienable rights,
that among these are
life,
liberty,
and the
pursuit of happiness.
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| Today my silence speaks for those who will never have a voice.
http://www.silentday.org/
LIFE.
We hold these truths to be self-evident,
that all men are created equal,
that they are endowed by their Creator
with certain unalienable rights,
that among these are
life,
liberty,
and the
pursuit of happiness. | | |
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