When Change Happens...

Wow... I think I took the whole "Missing In Action" thing to a whole new level. It's rough people! Why can't I seem to post on here anymore? I literally have like 60 posts awaiting publication, but I can't seem to either post them or finish them and post them. Goodness Gravy!

Well, how is everyone? If you're still reading this blog... Congratulations! I honestly can't believe it. But... Good for you! You're a true inspiration for me on never giving up on people.

So, I honestly just wanted to pop on here and let everyone know that I'm not dead, and I didn't fall off of the planet (trust me, it's not possible but somehow I'd find a way). I also wanted to just share with you all how thankful I am for change. I mean... kinda thankful for change, but even more thankful for my Jesus bringing me through all of the change in my life. It's pretty amazing!

I think most everyone can say without a doubt that they are not the same person they were at the beginning of the year. Right? I mean, whether you've grown physically, mentally, or spiritually... you've grown! And you can't grow without some change being thrown in here and there.
This year I've felt a lot of change in the air. But, I'm so thankful to have that change, for without it there would be no maturity sprouting within me.

I wanted to encourage you and let you know that change happens! Now, that's not encouraging for those of us that don't appreciate change... But, there's more!

Change happens.

Yes!

But God never changes.

Think about that for a second! It's really profound.

I was realizing the other day that I can't change God. He is no different now than when I wasn't here. When I sin, it doesn't change how He views me, or how He views the world. His plan is still the same. Before I was born, He loved me. When I was lost in my sin, He loved me. When I surrendered myself at the foot of His cross, He loved me. Right now, He loves me. Tomorrow, He will still love me. His purposes will still be the same tomorrow as they have been since 1865 or even 189 A.D. I can't change any of that. But, the best part is...

His love is perfect!

His purposes are good! 

He is good!

When I think of the change in my life, I can usually point to a specific person in my life that brought about that change. It could be myself. It could be Phillip down the street (sorry Phillip). We're human and we change. But how often can I say that change was good? Or how often can I say that change didn't affect me in a negative way? Rarely. -Like I said... I really don't like change.- But it's brought me so much comfort to know that my God will never change, and He is always the same! Not a soul can change that, and no greater comfort can be found in the midst of a turbulent twist in life.
My God Is Good, And He Will Never Change!



“Of old, You founded the earth,And the heavens are the work of Your hands.  “[y]Even they will perish, but You endure; And all of them will wear out like a garment; Like clothing, You will change them and they will be changed. “But You are [z]the same, And Your years will not come to an end.

Psalm 102:25-27




I find so much encouragement in this truth! Whatever change comes my way, I can trust my God to be good, faithful and never changing through it all!

What a peace fills my heart as we prepare to take on a new year that is bound to be filled with lots of change. ☺

Now, before I sign off... I figured it might be wise to give an appropriate farewell just in case you don't hear from me in the next three years. 

So, Merry Christmas!

Happy New Year!

And Happy Thanksgiving for 2021! 

So, until next time, I pray you're finding Fulfillment, Everlasting Joy, and overwhelming Peace this Christmas season and on through the next year.

~Makayla ♥

Book Signing...!!!

 Hey Everyone!

So! As you can probably guess from the title of this post... I went to my first Book Signing! *Claps obnoxiously for ten seconds*

If you've visited some of the other pages on this wonderful site you've probably come across a list of my favorite books... Well! *Drumroll* Friday night I got meet the wonderful Shannon Messenger! (Author of the 'Keeper of the Lost Cities' series)

These books are some of my favorites! They've got plenty of adventure, action, and all kinds of crazy stuff that keeps you interested. Shannon Messenger just released her fifth book in the series and has been on tour as a result, so, I was super excited when she announced that she would be coming to Minnesota!!

Anyway! I was surprised at the way it turned out... As I said before, I've never been to a book signing before, so it was a new experience anyway... But I guess I always imagined a HUGE restless crowd waiting in line to get their book signed... Now don't get me wrong, there was a decent size crowd, but they had lots of chairs set up so people could sit while they waited, and they had everyone grab a ticket so you knew when it was your turn. Then they had a Q&A when Shannon got there so it seemed a little more like you were getting to know more about her and stuff about the books. Overall, it was a pretty cool experience!

Bailey and I were super excited to meet her!

  We were the last people to meet her... Which was worth it because we got to talk for like ten minutes and she gave us the last of her posters and stuff. So that was super cool!
So! Yeah! That's just a random thing that happened that I thought was worth blogging about!

Hope you enjoyed!
Makayla♥

Just some thoughts...

People... The new school year is slowly coming upon us. (For some, it's already started.) What shall we do? I can't believe it's already so near! It feels like just yesterday we were looking forward to last year's school year!

Just think, we only have four more months in this year left. *Jaw drops* It's mind blowing!
But! I am determined to enjoy every moment while it's here.

We went to the State Fair the other day! I've always loved the fair... but, Oh Boy! There were a LOT of people! It seemed busier than ever the day we went!  But still, we went and had a great time! Ate a lot of fried food, walked until we couldn't walk anymore... The usual!
 Does anyone else have a tradition of going to the Fair every year? I'd like to know!

Just a question... Am I the only one who thinks this weather has been strange? One day it feels like it barely hits 50, and the next day it feels like someone dumped  a truckload of water into the air and turned on a heater!☺

 Anyways, I just had to bore you with that little spur of randomness. I'm trying to get back into the swing of things... Blog wise.☺

Oh! If you have a minute to listen to this song... Do! It's amazing! 

 

Until Next Time,

Makayla♥

Roadtripping...

Well... I'm back! Finally! (At least for this post...)☺

So, most of my readers know that my family was away on vacation for the last ten days. Well, I've decided to post a bunch of pictures and tell you a bit about our adventures!

The Grand Canyon was our destination, but we ended up seeing many different places.
We took a round about way to Arizona and were able to visit Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. Let me just say... It was Amazing!

       At the beginning of our trip, we drove through North Dakota... And it really is flat.

   But the closer we got to Montana, the more hills, and even rocky canyons we saw... We stopped at Teddy Roosevelt National Park (In North Dakota). It looked like a mini Grand Canyon!

 We eventually made it to Montana... And Mountains!

    When we got to Yellowstone, I was amazed at all of the trees and mountains! The trees grew so close together, I'm not sure one could walk through them!

    Old Faithful (one of the many geysers) was a must see once we were there. We also got to see a few other geysers around the park, and some deep holes in the earth filled with boiling hot water, and spewing gases. It smelled like burning eggs... But I guess it was just the sulfur we were smelling.
You had to be careful not to step off of the boardwalk, because you could accidentally step on an extremely thin sheet of earth and go down into a hot pool of water! The Buffalo obviously didn't get the memo though, and you could see their footprints in the hot mud.

                                              (A smaller geyser...↓)

Here is a pool that was filled with Boiling Water... You could see bubbles coming up from the bottom!

   Most of the trees around the geysers and pools were dead...

Old Faithful... It only shoots out once every hour and fifteen minutes or so.

                            
  Just talking a Sunday stroll... In the middle of the road!☺

   Another hole going deep underground... You could hear the gas and water pushing their way out.

A Waterfall... It was absolutely Amazing!

 More Mountains...

We eventually made our way through Idaho, and then Utah. We stopped at The Great Salt Lake in Utah. It was sorta weird... Just a huge Salt Lake! ☺ The only things that live in the lake are algae and brine shrimp (they're REALLY tiny!). The lake shore was covered (and I mean covered) in tiny flies that eat the shrimp and algae. Wherever you stepped a little cloud of flies would shoot up! They were everywhere!

Arizona!! Land of desert, more desert, and... Is that a tree??! Jk... Sorta. ☺
So, I was messing around with my camera and discovered I could switch the setting so that the red in the rock really came out in the pictures. I was pretty excited!

There actually was more vegetation in the desert than I was expecting. There was still a lot of rock and sand, but still, there where a lot of shrub type plants, and more grass than I thought was possible.

The Grand Canyon was Absolutely Gorgeous! When people say that the pictures don't compare... well, they're right! It was so deep and wide and just downright Huge!

 We got stuck in a hail storm on the second day. When it passed us you could see it drifting over the Canyon!

We ended up hiking down the side of the rocks a little ways on one side... which was a tad bit scary to say the least. My dad and I got so close to the edge of a cliff, we could almost see straight down!☺

  We made our way toward New Mexico and ate at a really cool Mexican restaurant in Sedona, Arizona. The view was amazing!

 This hummingbird was just hanging out around the flowers outside...

New Mexico!

 White Sands, New Mexico... You could see were they had used plows to make a road through there!
We got there in the evening the first day, which was perfect! The sun was just going down and it wasn't too hot. We ended up going back the day after... and although the sun was behind the clouds for the most part, when it came out, it came out with gusto!

After White Sands, it was time to head home. We had to drive around seventeen hours in two days to get home. Great Fun! Lol! I actually enjoy being cramped in the car on road trips. It's cozy!☺

We drove through Colorado, Nebraska, and Iowa to get home. It was an amazing trip!

People, God is Great. God is Good.
  I am so extremely blessed to be able to go on such an adventure with my family. I'm also extremely blessed to be able to explore God's Oh-So-Vast creation. I'm so Grateful we made it home safely. And, I'm so thankful for Jesus. I was reminded on this trip again and again just how much He loves us. And not because of anything I've done. Just because.☺

I hope you all are having wonderful adventures this Summer. And I hope you catch a glimpse of Christ in this wonderful Season!

Until next time,

Makayla♥

P.S. Shout out to my Dad who drove us all that way! It wasn't so bad... was it? By the way... how much was the coffee bill?☺