Travel Diary: Entry 1

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina 2019

Dear Travel Diary,
  I just got home from South Carolina!  It was my first time in that state and it was so much fun!  Let me explain why I went:
  So my dad works for a company that restores water slides.  The owner of the company is my best friend's dad... and basically their whole family is really close to my family.  So... since this job requires quite a bit of traveling, between our two families we've went on quite a few trips; some together! 
  This time, most of the owner's family (they have twelve kids.  Yes... twelve) were in Florida headed to South Carolina next.  Their oldest daughter was planning on driving down there to meet up with them for a week and then they would all drive back together.  They had already been gone for about four weeks so I was really missing them.  When I was asked if I wanted to come along for the week I, of course, said yes!  I went to Michigan with them this past summer and it was a blast so I knew South Carolina would be fun too. 
  So, bright and early Saturday morning we left and drove to South Carolina.  We would be staying at Ocean Lakes Family Campground in Myrtle Beach where the crew was working on the water slides.

The camp had these three crosses set up right in front of the beach and I thought they were so neat!

  I packed for warm weather but most of the week it was cloudy, foggy, or just not very warm at all.  Well, I guess I should say it wasn't hot.  It was nice weather but I definitely didn't have any use for my swimsuit that I had packed!  But... it was definitely a lot warmer than Missouri so that was a plus!  AND... our house had a great view of the ocean!  We got up early twice to watch the sunrise.  It was absolutely beautiful one morning and the other it was really foggy.  But I thought the foggy morning was pretty too.  Something about not being able to see into that cloudy mist and thinking that we were basically surrounded by a cloud is pretty cool. 

The "non foggy" morning ♥

  We walked on the beach many times and I got my feet wet a couple times (once by accident).  It was definitely way too cold to go swimming! 
  We went to the Nature Center at the camp and got our own private tour because no one else was there.  Since it was the middle of the week and in winter no one but old people were there at the time.  At the Nature Center we got to pet an alligator (a small one, don't worry) and see lots of other cool animals, including a little turtle that kept staring at me! 

  We went to the Arcade twice and, while I'm not one to get super into arcades, it was pretty fun!  Especially because, the first time, no one else was there except us!  We had the whole thing to ourselves!

  On Valentine's Day us girls dressed in pink or red and went to the beach to take some pictures.  You gotta document the trip right??

  I just love road trips... especially one to a new place.  I can now cross South Carolina off of the list of states I've been to.  Thank you Cooper's for including me in your trip!  It was a fun week! 
-Abbi

"The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page." -Saint Augustine

"For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up
in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone." Psalm 91:11-12

A beautiful sunset in South Carolina

My Favorite Bible Verse

 Hello! Today, I want to talk about my favorite Bible verse. Most Christians have a favorite verse and I think whatever it is says a lot about you and your personality. I have lots of verses that I love but one that has always stuck out to me is this one:

"But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8

Now, if you just read that once, you'd probably think about how God loves you so much that He was willing to die for you. And yes, that's true. But if you read it again, then maybe you'll notice how it also says "While we were still sinners". Jesus died for us while we were still sinners! Think about that for a minute. How cool is that?! I mean, it's cool that He would die for the people that love and obey Him but how much cooler that He died for sinners too?? We're all sinners. Not one of us is without sin. If Jesus would have died for only those without sin... there would have been no point to his death on the cross. He died to pay the price for the sins that we have committed.

Not obeying your parents, fighting with a sibling or a friend, being prideful, angry, lazy, or greedy, having a god other than Jesus, using the Lord's name in vain, murder, hate, adultery, sexual immorality, homosexuality, stealing, dishonesty, deceit, boasting, and lustfulness are all sins that the Bible warns us of. And because Jesus died to pay the price for our sins, we can be forgiven if we repent of our sins and ask Jesus to come into our lives. I'm not saying that Jesus will forgive you of your sins and you'll never sin again. Definitely not! But I am saying that Jesus will forgive you and if you give your life to Him, read His Word, and obey it then you will learn how to live a life pleasing to God. This still doesn't mean you'll never sin. You will, because you're human and it's been that way since Adam and Eve. But with God guiding you, you will be a better person than you were because God is the one leading you!

And that leads me to my second point. If God could die for us while we were still sinners, then shouldn't we be able to love our enemies as well as our friends? So often, we want to avoid the people we don't like because it makes us uncomfortable or it's not as fun as being with the people you do like. But God didn't come to Earth to hang out with all the people who had lived their lives for Him. No, He came to be with the sinnners and to save them. He didn't spend all of His time with the religious people. He spent it with tax collectors (Zacchaeus), trouble makers (Saul), and the sick (lepers, the blind, crippled, paralyzed, etc.). So if we strive to be like Christ, shouldn't we not shy away from sinners and others whom we don't want anything to do with? Shouldn't we go to them and tell them the good news? How Jesus loves them and can forgive them? How they can live their lives for Him and one day go to be with Him in heaven?

I wonder why, we as Christians, don't spread the news of Christ everywhere we go. The cashier at the grocery store or fast food drive-through, the waiter at a restaurant, your classmates, the person you accidentally bump into in public, the stranger who opens the door for you, your boss, coworkers, and Uber driver. There are so many opportunities to spread the good news, especially through social media. We should take advantage of these opportunities and use them to shine a light for Christ. We need to love our enemies the way Jesus loves His. We need to set an example of love for those who have been deceived by all of the judgment that so called "Christians" throw at them. We need to speak out boldly of the love of Christ to everyone around us and not be ashamed of the gospel.

These are things that I need to work on. And maybe you do too. I hope that, in some way, this encouraged you to go tell the next stranger you see that Jesus loves them. We tend to be afraid to do these things because we're scared of what people will think. Well, let me remind you of something: Don't be afraid of what other people think of you. Worry about what God thinks. How you can please Him. Because, when the day of judgment comes, no one else's opinion is going to matter... except God's.

"When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw Him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked His disciples: 'Why does He eat with tax collectors and sinners?'

On hearing this, Jesus said to them, 'It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.'" Mark 2:16-17

"You have heard that is was said, ''Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?" Matthew 5:43-47

End It

"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world." -Anne Frank

  Hey there!  Did you know that Thursday, February seventh is Shine a Light on Slavery Day?  If you want to read more about modern day slavery go to my blog post titled "Dressember".  You'll also find out why I wore a dress every single day of December!  So, back to this Thursday:

  There are more than forty million slaves in the world today!  So on Thursday, people like you and me are helping raise awareness of this fact by drawing a red X on our hand.  How does this help you may ask?  Well, awareness is step number one.  Someone may see that bright red X on your hand and ask you why it's there.  "Because I want the forty million people trapped in slavery to be free," you might reply. 

"Nothing happens just because we are aware, but nothing will ever happen until we are." -Gary Haugen

  You see, there are ways that everyone can help!  I'll list a few to get you started, but you can use your imagination too!

1. Join the End It Movement and draw a red X on your hand this Thursday to raise awareness.

2. Post a picture of your red X on social media using the hashtag #enditmovement.  Social media is a powerful way to raise awareness!

3. Educate yourself and do some research.  Use social media, the internet, books, etc.  We have so many resources; use them!

4. Donate.  There are many organizations but here are a few: Dressember, IJM, and Operation Underground Railroad.

5. Fundraise.  There are so many different ways to fundraise.  And it can be fun!  Grab your friends to help you sell baked goods, things you've made, used clothes, and anything else you don't need that you could sell.  Donate the money you make.

6. Read books.  This is such a good way to learn more and you can pass the book on to someone else!  A good one I'd recommend is "Do Justly".  It's written by my cousin, Savannah Jane McCrary and it talks about injustices in the world today.  It also includes a list of 102 ways you can help!  You can find the book on Amazon or on Savanna's website at www.writtenonyourheart.weebly.com .

7. Participate in Dressember this December.  Even though it's almost a year away, you can still go ahead and commit to wearing a dress or tie every day of December to help raise awareness for human trafficking.  Go to my blog post titled "Dressember" for details.

8. PRAY!  Prayer is such a powerful thing that I think we take too lightly sometimes.  Don't ever underestimate the power of prayer.  God hears the small requests just as much as he hears the big ones.

  Drawing a red X on your hand is such a small and easy thing to do!  I hope you'll join me in this fight to End It.

"Justice will not be served until those who are unaffected are as outraged as those who are." -Benjamin Franklin

"Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering." Hebrews 13:3

"Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute." Proverbs 31:8