Engagement Pictures!

The talented Joey Murrell Benedict of j&a photos took our engagement pictures a few weekends ago and we finally go them back, after much anticipation! I wanted to do a baking theme and it turned out perfectly! Joey has taken my family's pictures for years - I remember taking my senior portraits and talking about how Joey was going to have to do my wedding pictures. It's so exciting to have that dream come to fruition!

 

 

Monday Musings: I'm DONE.

I am officially done with my full-time career at UNC. WHAT?!

I'll be taking some summer classes, then in the fall I only have 8 hours. Seriously, I don't feel old enough to almost be graduating!

Buuuutttt I'm pretty okay with graduating early, seeing as a week after I graduate I am getting married! Woohoo!

Since finishing up my last exam...

I've gone on a bestie date with Lauren. We saw Safe House - SO GOOD. We got popcorn, a obvious must, and finished up by going to Sweet Frog for froyo!

 

I've hung out with my sweet fiance, who has yet to finish :( A week from today he'll be done though! Since he's been packing up and taking things off his wall, he made this giant poster airplane.

Aaaand he may or may not have thrown it. The pinnacle of RA-rule-following right there, folks.

I didn't think to snap a picture of it, but Miles took me on an impromptu date to see The Vow. I didn't ask him to take me or even say I wanted to see it. He just up and surprised me! And he got me popcorn. Then after we went to dinner & hung out. It was so sweet and thoughtful!

 

We went to Target to look around for things we liked before we go to register this Friday. Miles apparently likes zebra stripes and sequins. I might have to pull out some trump cards, lest we want our house looking like a 7th grader's room exploded...

I drove home and saw this beautiful sunset! I'm spending a few days at home before summer school starts. I picked up our engagement pictures, am trying on my (Mom's) wedding dress for the first time tomorrow, and hanging out at the lake with my friends!

And I finally put my Summit Church sticker on my car! (Read: I finally washed my car for the first time in for.ev.er. so that it was clean enough to put my Summit Church sticker on it.)

I'm so excited to share our engagement pictures! They're awesome. They'll be up tomorrow :)

Why Jesus Wants Me to Have a Big Wedding

As I've mentioned before, I have dreamt of my wedding pretty much my whole life. I've had a plethora of detailed dreams about it (of course, until recently, all of them had the annoying can't-see-the-groom's-face-at-the-end-of-the-aisle ending). I've saved pictures online and bookmarked wedding blogs for a few years now. Heck, when I was about 14 I decided I wanted to use the money my Paw had graciously and sweetly stored away for me for my wedding and/or honeymoon.

Okay, that's my side.

Miles, bless his heart, has not dreamt of such things. He's had dreams about things after the wedding. He's kept things in perspective. He's told me (more than once) that our wedding day is really the least important day of our marriage, with the last day of it holding the most weight. Granted, this perspective of realism has been helpful in planning. It's allowed me to relinquish some control (which is a big deal for me) and to not allow planning to be stressful or anxiety-provoking. However, I take this perspective with a grain of salt. I mean, come on, we're only getting married once! And it's pretty much the biggest party of our lives. There won't be any other time in our life where all our friends and family are gathered. That's a big deal!

Yesterday, I was reading in Let Me Be a Woman by Elisabeth Elliot (shocker, I know); she addresses the tension between wedding dreams and vanity beautifully, per yoush.

I laughed reading Jim Elliot's thoughts on weddings: [They are] "the vainest, most meaningless forms... no vestige of reality. The witnesses dress for show. The flesh is given all the place. We Fundamentalists are a pack of mood-loving show-offs... It is no more than an expensive tedium."

What a man. Obviously, Jim Elliot, at the age of 21, "had not come to understand the meaning of ritual." Elisabeth contrasts her late husband's quote with C.S. Lewis' thoughts on pomp, ritual, and humility:

Above all, you must be rid of the hideous idea, fruit of a widespread inferiority complex, that pomp, on the proper occasions, has any connection with vanity or self-conceit. A celebrant approaching the altar, a princess led out by a king to dance to dance a minuet, a general officer on a ceremonial parade, a major-domo preceding the boar's head at a Christmas feast - all these wear unusual clothes and move with calculated dignity. This does not mean that they are vain, but that they are obedient, they are obeying the hoc age which presides over every solemnity. The modern habit of doing ceremonial things unceremoniously is no proof of humility; rather it proves the offender's inability to forget himself in the rite, and his readiness to spoil for everyone else the proper pleasure of ritual.

Ahhh... bless you, C.S. Lewis. Isn't this such a richly beautiful imagery of ritual and tradition?

Elisabeth Elliot goes on to say that earthly orders are a reflection of the heavenly. A wedding isn't "merely an excuse to get all our friends and relatives together to 'share our joy'... [it is] a celebration of marriage, of an institution ordained of God at the creation of man, to be entered into with solemnity as well as with joy."

I often think of marriage as a reflection of Christ's relationship with his bride, the church. But for some strange reason, I forget weddings in and of themselves are a reflection of Christ's pursuit of and covenant with his bride. People love weddings, because, yes, they're fun, but ultimately because they are a reflection of something much greater. They're a dim semblance of a more glorious reality.

Wordless Wednesday: Woomie Wuv!

To say she's a loyal UNC sports fan would be a gigantic understatement.

First time drinking from the Old Well!

I'm so thankful for you, Em! Rooming together has been such a blessing! Congrats on graduating! Love you!

Jesus In My Place (The CD!)

 Today, my church's worship team, released their long-awaited CD! The title, Jesus In My Place, marks the journey our church has been on for a few years now. The phrase "Jesus in my place" gets brought up around the Summit all the time because it's the simplest summary of the Gospel:

Jesus lived the life I should've lived, and died the death I was condemned to die. 

He bore the penalty for my sin on the cross, and rose from the death 3 days later, proving that God accepted his sacrifice for the sins of the world & showing that he was in fact divine.

Jesus stands now in my place before the Father. God doesn't see my filthy rags, but sees Jesus' righteousness and record instead of mine.

The gospel message of "Jesus in my place" is so amazing and profound that our only appropriate response is submission and worship!

As far as the CD goes, it's a response to it's namesake. It's 52 minutes of sweet-sounding, solid theology. Every part of Summit's worship team is so incredibly talented and each song features a different facet of the team.

Here's the run-down of the CD with my own thoughts/opinions on each song:

(1) We Welcome You With Praise (feat. Sam Fisher)

This song is such an appropriate intro to the CD! It's a combination of the Passion hit and "O, Come Let Us Adore Him."

(2) You Are (feat. Hank Murphy)

This song makes me want to run for an hour with this on repeat. It's a celebration of God's character and it's super upbeat and fun! Hank Murphy's voice is perfect for this song!

(3) How Rich A Treasure We Possess (feat. Kelby Dover)

This has been and probably will be my favorite worship song for a long time. It's hands down my favorite song on the CD. The piano accompaniment is awesome in this song!

(4) Interlude 1

This is what heaven will be like, techno version.

"Worthy is the Lamb, Jesus, Son of God. Rise from the dead, forever we will sing!"

(5) Jesus In My Place (feat. Matt Papa)

The first time I heard this song, I flipped. Then I sang. Then I might've cried. Then as soon as church got out, I tried to find it online, to no avail. I'm so glad this song is finally ownable! It's literally the Gospel, talking about our best days, our worst days, and how God sees us as his children!

(6) You Are Our King (feat. Jennifer Brown)

Such a beautiful proclamation that Jesus is all we need. Jennifer Brown, you go girl. This song is powerful.

(7) Revive Us Again (feat. Matt Papa)

The guitar portion of this song is killer, plus it's got a Scripture interlude defining what true revival is: a heightened awareness of God's spirit, which he gives.

(8) This Is The Gospel (feat. Sam Fisher)

Ummm... can't really get more obvious than this one. It's... the gospel. This song makes me (a Southern Baptist girl, mind you) want to dance - it's definitely got soul.

(9) Interlude 2

Like the other interlude, this is pretty techno. It'd be perfect to play during solemn times during a service (like communion).

(10) Savior Of The World (feat. Hank Murphy)

This song reminds us that salvation belongs to the Lord. Also, the music in between the verses kinnnda reminds me of Mario Brothers.

(11) We Bring Our Highest Praise (feat. Kelby Dover)

This is one of those songs that you pick up right away because it's super catchy, yet simple. The semi-a Capella portion makes me excited for a worship service in heaven. Pretty sure this hit is gonna be awesome when I get a perfected voice :)

(12) Thank You My Lord (feat. Haven Sink & Matt Papa)

This song deviates from the congregation-type praise & worship of the rest of the CD and features a duet between Haven Sink & Matt Papa. Haven's voice is so pure and clear, I love listening to her! This is a song of thanksgiving to the max.

(13) Forever We Will Sing (feat. Kaimy Masse & Hank Murphy)

Kaimy Masse's enthusiasm and obvious love for the Lord makes me a better worshiper. This is a powerful end of the worship expressed throughout the CD. 

Go pick up this CD on iTunes. Like, now. It's already broken into the top 50 Christian albums on iTunes and just came out today! Thank you, Summit worship team, for this wonderful resource!