"...the greatest of these is love"

Many Christians leave a bad taste in the mouths of nonbelievers. A lot of people look at Christians and think, "Well I certainly don't want what they have..." However, if our lives actually reflected Jesus then their reaction would be the exact opposite. I believe a big reason many people are turned off by Christians is because we've become a people who are judgmental and unforgiving. I don't blame people for turning away from that. We don't exhibit the one thing people SHOULD see when they look at us, which is love. "...but the greatest of these is love." When you think of Jesus you think of love....but when you think of Christians, in many cases, "love" is not what comes to mind first (or at all).

We are ALL born sinners, so who are we to judge anyone? And we constantly need forgiveness everyday, so who are we not to forgive? It is only by the grace of God and the death of Jesus Christ that we're forgiven and saved. Thank you, Jesus!

When I share Christ with others, I want "love" to be what they see. I want them to understand that no matter what they've done in their past or what they'll do in their future, there's a God who loves them just as they are and He desires to have a personal relationship with them. That's some awesome love right there! Love is who God is.....that is the message we should make known!

There are many times that I want to be quick to judge someone, but my prayer is that God will help me to love others the way He loves. I want to love God and love people, that's what I'm on this earth to do. This might sound a little morbid, haha, but how cool would it be if under your name on your grave it said, "Loved God. Loved people." I hope that's what mine says.

A New Adventure!

This morning I woke up having no idea that life was about to change....I was about to go on a new ADVENTURE!

Here's how it all started... Disney came to Nashville about two weeks ago and held auditions to be a Disney Princess. I thought this would be such an amazing opportunity and experience. Plus, what girl doesn't dream of being a Disney Princess?? My husband and I knew it would change life for us and we would have to move away from all of our family and friends, but it was a once in a lifetime opportunity and if I wanted to do this then now was the time, before we start having kids. I decided to go to the audition and prayed that if it was something God didn't want me to do that He would shut that door, but if it was something He wanted me to do that He would work it all out. I wasn't really nervous going into it, because if I didn't get it then I knew God just had other plans for me. I studied up on how to prepare for the audition and got as ready as I could...

When I got to the audition there were about 65 girls there. First they measured all of us to make sure we fit the requirements, then the casting director taught all of us a princess dance. I am NOT a dancer, so I was pretty sure I would get cut after I performed the dance in front of the judges. I tried my best to pull myself together and look as graceful as I could when it was my turn to dance in front of a huge room full of people. I was terrified. After the dance they called the numbers of the girls who made it through the first portion of the audition. To my surprise they called my number! There were about 10 girls who were left. Then they interviewed us and cut a few more girls. After that they put princess wigs on us, took our picture, then we had to learn a script to perform on camera. I made it through the whole audition without being cut and they said they would get back to me in a few weeks whether I got the job or not.

A lot sooner than I expected, a man called me this afternoon..."Is this Ashley Hargest? I'm with Disney Auditions and am happy to tell you that you fit the part as a Disney Princess!" WHAT?!?! I was freaking out, but of course tried to keep myself calm and collected like a princess would do so that the man on the phone didn't change his mind about giving me the job.

Now I play the waiting game again as I wait for one of the princess jobs to open up. He said they'll call me once they need me out there and I have to be ready to pack up my things and go! It could be in a few weeks or it could be in 6 months. Brandon and I are STOKED about this new chapter in our lives and I'm so thankful for this fun opportunity the Lord has given me! It looks like Disney World is going to be my new mission field and I'm excited to see how the Lord is going to use me there!