:::Pointless Blah:::

So many random thoughts jumbled around in my head... gonna try to get them out as best and as un-messy as possible.

First of all - life is in FULL swing. I'm finally back at HOME :) and I love being with my husband again. Bill is a good four weeks into Pilot Training (aka UPT) and is finding himself in the middle of the classroom setting again in Phase 1 of UPT which is academics... (aka slackademics...) :) He's been studying his butt off, both with friends and on his own and I'm so so so proud of his hard work. He's been getting 100's on almost all of his tests... and in just TWO WEEKS will be OUT of the classroom and into the cockpit... IN THE SKY!! (awesome.)

Today was our FIRST day opening the new branch at my work and it was exciting! I'll be working full time and am so so so so grateful that God answered my prayers for finding a job - this one literally landed right in my lap, I was a perfect fit and so far am LOVING the company and LOVING my co-workers... all four of them. :) The branch is TINY but it thrives and focuses on customer service... and I'm beginning to realize that customer service is a PASSION of mine and hopefully an area/job that I will always be in.

I got the new Passion CD - 'Here for You.'

The CD is nothing short of anointed and has been blasting through the speakers of my iHome (my valentines day present from my honey:) ALL. DAY. LONG.

I rarely find CD's that I truly enjoy listening to all the way through, (unless it's a T-Swizzle CD of course) and this CD is definitely the exception. The most beautiful, raw, intense, simple worship I've ever heard - fills my heart with praise and reminds me of who's in charge.

My baby sister turns 18 in two days... how weird is that?

I miss my family a lot - still seems surreal to me that I will honestly NEVER live with them again. I've started my own life as a wife and there's no turning back. I have mixed emotions about that truth I must confess - I really miss the Garcia Gang. But I'm loving being Mrs. Stainback and growing in what God has for me.

SPEAKING OF GOD... He's seriously the BEST.

FIRST - He answered my prayer of finding a job - answered it above and beyond what I imagined of course!

THEN - He answered my prayer for helping me find a way to get involved with the high school somehow - I miss mentoring and building relationships with middle & high school girls. How did He answer that pray you ask?? WELL, first He got me the job :)

Then at the job, the assistant branch manager tells me that her dad has decided to take up coaching her sisters 12 year olds' volleyball team and that she's going to be the assistant coach and doesn't know how to play volleyball so she wanted any tips or advice!

I. LOVE. VOLLEYBALL.

So of course I tell her that if they need any help or a ball shagger or WHATEVER that I'd LOVE to help out! So she invited me to the practice tonight and it was so fun. I MISS VOLLEYBALL. I love it. I love what I've learned and being able to teach those techniques to a bunch of Del Rio middle school girls who are learning volleyball.

What's even cooler though, is that her father works for the HIGH SCHOOL and has worked there over 20 years! So I'm so grateful to have that connection - I'm going to keep praying about it and see if I can start helping out with the high school girls JV and Varsity levels and hopefully that'll be somewhat of an "in" with the high school girls and I can just love on them and build relationships with them and help them see how valuable and beautiful and treasured they really are.

I MISS high school girls. That is SO MUCH of my heart and so much the group that I want to reach to... I know God sees that and knows me better than I know myself so I'm excited to see what other doors He will open during my time in Del Rio.

Lastly... I finished decorating my home... and I LOOOOVE it. It's beautiful and amazing and perfectly what I wanted and so so so stinkin' cute.

I'm going to post pictures this week so... STAY TUNED!

Sorry for the boring update... don't know why I started this post but I'm going to finish it now.... ON THE NOTE that God is SO cool. He's showing me every day that He is SO in charge of my life and knows me better than I know myself. He knew I was going to live in Del Rio - He knew I was going to get a job working with awesome people that I'm going to share my life with over the next year - He knew that I would be helping coach a middle school girls volleyball team - He KNOWS. And He LOVES. And His love is better than life.... all we'll ever need.

OH AND I ALMOST FORGOT...

Billy & I have been married for 10 months today :)

(only two months until our ONE YEAR anniversary... TIME FLIES!!)

:::More than Lyrics:::

Be still, there is a Healer.

His love is deeper than the sea.

His mercy is unfailing.

His arms, a fortress for the weak.

{{Let faith arise}}

I want to pause on that.

Because sometimes in my life, I let pretty songs be just that, "pretty songs," and I don't allow them to sink deep deep DEEP anymore. I've realized that being raised to worship God in more locations than just church has taught me to become incredibly unphased & disensitized by the words that I'm singing... I'm no longer amazed by the truths that are so beautifully woven into them.

The lyrics become second nature to me and in the middle of me singing the words I've memorized, I don't allow my mind to meditate and cultivate exactly what I'm VERBALLY saying OUT LOUD.

It's just... blah.

BUT THEN, there are some times, when the Holy Spirit just WEIGHS on my heart the reality of the TRUTH that I'm singing.

They're no longer just words that I've just memorized... they become ALIVE and TRUE and when you realize the TRUTH embedded in words like, "His love is deeper than the sea..." it's almost impossible to contain your joy.

One of these rare but treasured occurances happened to me as I was driving home (aka hotel) from work today... I was listening to the song up above in red and just felt this THICKNESS of His love and felt the HEAVINESS of the words I was singing.

You guys... God's love for us is DEEPER than the SEA. The OCEAN: The most enchanting, mysterious, epic mystery that still astounds scientists every day.

His love for us is deeper than that... and NOTHING CAN separate us from it!

"No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord..." ~ Romans 8:39

"His mercy is unfailing..."

"His arms, a fortress for the weak..."

Sometimes I don't ALLOW myself to be weak. I don't willingly recognize the areas in my life where I just can't muster up the strength and come to a place and a PEACE in my heart as I realize... it's OK to not be able to muster up the strength.

My strength in life is I am His!

I really WANT to allow myself to get to a WEAK place... just SO that I can truly, literally experience His arms being my fortress... my ONLY safe place.

That's so beautiful and the fact that I don't take advantage of that probably extremely cozy spot in His arms more often is so ridiculous.

Lastly...

"Let faith arise."

That speaks for itself... in a monumental, powerful way.

My prayer is that you truly, PURPOSEFULLY, in your worship, whether at church or in the car, let your heart sing more than just lyrics... that you realize the WEIGHT of the words that You're singing to the Creator.

The TRUTH about our God, the LOVE from the King!

The LOVE that is better than life!

Don't get caught up in words.... get caught up in TRUTH and allow it to move your heart to tears of JOY!

Because, when all is said and done, there really is NO ONE like our God.

And one day EVERY knee will bow and EVERY tongue will confess and EVERY heart will know it.

~~~~~~

"His mercy is unending."

"Amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me!"

"Until my breathe runs dry, I will sing to you!"

"You are the Lord, the Famous one, Great is Your name in all the earth!"

"Amazing love, how can it be that You my King would die for me?"

"He is jealous for me, loves like a hurricane..."

"Savior, He can move the mountains, my God is might to save!"

"All Your ways a good, all Your ways are sure, I will trust in You alone."

"What can wash away my sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus..."

"In Christ alone, my hope is found."

"Fire, fall down on us we pray, as we seek You..."

"Be blessed, be loved, be lifted high... be treasured here, be glorified. I owe my life to You my Lord, here I am."

"Let me be in love with what You love, let me be most satisfied in You."

"Jesus You're all this heart is living for."

"All I have I give to You, Oh God."

"Christ is risen from the dead, we are ONE with Him again!"

"Captivated but no longer in chains... left at the empty grave... the sinner and the Sacred resolved!"

"Everlasting, Your light will shine when all else fades!"

"Precious Cornerstone, SURE foundation..."

"My strength in life is I am Yours."

"My hiding place, my safe refuge, my shelter Lord, You are."

"Holy, Holy are You Lord God Almighty! Worthy is the Lamb!"

"Nothing compares to the promise I have in You!"

"You'll come, let Your glory fall as You respond to us!"

"There is no one else for me, none but Jesus!"

"Holiness is what I long for."

"This world has NOTHING for me, I will follow You!"

"I have not much to offer You, not near what You deserve, but still I come because Your cross has placed in me my worth!"

"You walk on waves, You run with clouds, You paint the sky for me to see! Your majesty is why I sing!"

"All my fountains are in You!"

"He's coming for a pure bride..."

"Jesus saves! Hope is here, shout it out!"

"Father, let Your light shine down on me..."

"Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!"

"Somehow, all that matters now is You are Holy!"

"I can only imagine what it will be like, when I walk, by Your side..."

"Caught a glimpse of His splendor, in the corner of my eye... the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen..."

"Come, let us sing a song! A song declaring we belong to Jesus! He is all we need!"

"Great is they faithfulness, morning by morning new mercies I see..."

"Jesus, the only Name that brings healing, and strength... when I speak Your name, mountains move, chains are loosed..."

"All You are is All I want, always. Draw me close, in Your arms, oh God, I wanna be with You!"

"Open our eyes, to see the things the make Your heart cry, to be the church that You would desire..."

"Arise my love, the grave no longer has a hold on You!"

"Our earthly crowns and all our desires, we leave at Your feet."

"You stood before creation, eternity in Your hands... You spoke the earth into motion, my soul now to stand."

"I lay it all down again... to hear You say that I'm Your friend..."

"Oh the Wonderful Cross, bid me come and die and find that I may truly live!"

{{Ilovetruth}}

And if our God is for us, than who could ever stop us?

And if our God is with us, than what could stand against?