Empty Chairs at Empty Tables...

To start off, watch this. Really listen to it.

There's a grief that can't be spoken.

There's a pain goes on and on.

Empty chairs at empty tables

Now my friends are dead and gone.

Here they talked of revolution.

Here it was they lit the flame.

Here they sang about `tomorrow'

And tomorrow never came.

From the table in the corner

They could see a world reborn

And they rose with voices ringing

I can hear them now!

The very words that they had sung

Became their last communion

On the lonely barricade at dawn.

Oh my friends, my friends forgive me

That I live and you are gone.

There's a grief that can't be spoken.

There's a pain goes on and on.

Phantom faces at the window.

Phantom shadows on the floor.

Empty chairs at empty tables

Where my friends will meet no more.

Oh my friends, my friends, don't ask me

What your sacrifice was for

Empty chairs at empty tables

Where my friends will meet no more

Now, what do you think? I found this song over at Pursuit a few days ago, and I simply love it. Probably because I can relate in some way. For me, this song is like the epic of awesome songs. It is from the Broadway production of 'Les Misérables'. Now, I am not a big fan of the Jonas Brothers, but Nick does an outstanding job in this part. I think that he carried it off perfectly. It talks about how Marius has lost his friends. They have gone, and are no more. They are now nothing more than a phantom shadow. These friends had plans, they had ideals of revolution (mind you that this is in France many years ago). Now, they will not meet again, and all that is left is empty chairs at empty tables.

My brief description by no means bears this song justice. My words cannot compare. After listening to this song, I have been inspired to read 'Les Misérables' by Victor Hugo. It is quite good so far. Go back up and listen to the song again. I'll wait.

Read these two stanzas again: 

Here they talked of revolution.

Here it was they lit the flame.

Here they sang about `tomorrow'

And tomorrow never came.

...

Oh my friends, my friends, don't ask me

What your sacrifice was for

Empty chairs at empty tables

Where my friends will meet no more

They dreamed of tomorrow, yet it never came for them because their life was claimed before it ever came. This man mourns the loss of his friends. Why? Not just because they were friends, that is certainly a part of it, but there is more to it than merely that. He is dealing with the fact that the pain of their sacrifice will be felt forevermore. There will be no more talk of revolution. It will be no more. 

Just wanted to share my new favorite song with you. =)

Blessings,

Hannah

To Surrender a Precious Dream

"To surrender a precious dream is a fearful thing, but to pursue anything but the full measure of the glory of God’s love is a wasted life."

~ Joshua Steven Eddy

This statement has had a very profound impact upon my life, despite the fact the I only heard of it some three weeks ago. The life of this young man struck me in a way that many things do not. Joshua was an amazing photographer with a heart of sharing and showing the glory of God. He died on May 5, 2012. He was nineteen years old. I never met Joshua - he lived in Oregon. In fact, I had never heard of him until after his death. So why am I writing about some guy that I never met? Because, the last post that he wrote on his blog has impacted me in a way that is irreversible. 

In all honesty, I'm still a bit unsure about what I am writing. Everything that I am saying here is still being processed and mulled over in my mind. All this said, I am a bit uncertain about whether or not I should be posting this now, but I believe that I should, so please bear with me. 

Since reading this profound statement, not a day has gone by that it has not run through my mind over and over. Every time that I read or think of this statement, I am continually struck by the profoundness of such a statement. Let me repeat it for you: "To surrender a precious dream is a fearful thing, but to pursue anything but the full measure of the glory of God's love is a wasted life." You all know my view on wasted lives...perhaps that is why this impacts me like it does. Perhaps it is because I have many dreams. Perhaps it is because I struggle with surrender. Perhaps it is because I desire nothing more than to live a life completely given to the glory of God. 

I want us to look at the definition of "surrender" for a moment: 

sur·ren·der [suh-ren-der] 

to yield (something) to the possession or power of another; deliver up possession of on demand or under duress.

to give up, abandon, or relinquish (comfort, hope, etc.).

to yield or resign (an office, privilege, etc.) in favor of another.

to give oneself up, as into the power of another; submit or yield.

*Taken from Dictionary.com

To surrender something is to give something up in favor of something better. To surrender a precious dream is to believe that God will choose to fulfill or not fulfill our dreams because He has a better plan in store for us. So often we believe that our dreams are all that there is. We believe that because they are our dreams, that they will come true. They simply have to, or so we say. The fulfillment that we see in our own dreams blinds us to the possibility that God's dreams for us hold more beauty and fulfillment than for which we could even begin to hope. Josh had discovered an important truth when he said: "To surrender a precious dream is a fearful thing, but he learned that night that he could not hold on to what was not his." Our dreams are merely that: dreams. We don't own them. We have never been promised that our dreams will come true. Yet we persistently hold onto them believing that we have the power to one day make them come true. 

Why is it that we are afraid of surrendering our dreams? Our dreams are a reflection of our hearts. They are a part of us. They are a reflection of all that we hope for and that in which we believe. If we were to give up our dreams, we would be vulnerable to the guidance of the Master Dreamer. We are at risk of losing our dreams on the hope that there is a better dream out there for us. We are afraid that if we surrender our dreams today, we will not be able to dream again. Dreams inspire us and make us dare to be more. However if we let them become our identity, we are giving ourselves false hope and replacing reality with the mere faith that our dreams will someday come true. To allow God's dreams for us to replace our own is daring, challenging, and takes every ounce of faith that we possess; yet to give anything less than the entirety of our beings - every hope and dream that makes us who we are -  is to live an incomplete life. 

I am a dreamer. I have more dreams than I can count, and many of them are immeasurable in size. I have dreams to become a wife and mother. I dream to work with rescued victims of human trafficking. I dream to live overseas. I dream... I dream.... I dream... Because I have so many dreams, it scares me to death at the thought of surrendering them. In my head, I know that God's dreams for me are better than anything that I could possibly imagine. However, I have a rather difficult time convincing my heart of this. Now, don't get me wrong: I have been called by God to work against human trafficking, as well as many other things that my dreams encompass. However, I often keep these to myself and enclose them in the area of "My Dreams." I have made these callings into my dreams, rather than God's dreams for me. In doing this, I am taking His calling, His power, and His timing out of the picture and making it all about me. That is where the problem is right now for me. 

Watch this video. Listen specifically to the lyrics. I have listened to this song over and over again recently. The words hit me, wash over me, and soak into my mind and heart. 

My hands hold safely to my dreams
Clutching tightly not one has fallen
So many years I've shaped each one
Reflecting my heart showing who I am
Now you're asking me to show
What I'm holding oh so tightly
Can't open my hands can't let go
Does it matter?
Should I show you?
Can't you let me go?

We hold our dreams as if we would fall to pieces without them. We have made our dreams into the very reflection of all that we are and all that we hope to be. If God asks you to open your hands and let go of your dreams, in favor of His dreams for you, will you open them? We wonder why God won't just let us go; why He won't just let us dream until our heart's content. It is because He desires to make us more like Him through surrender. He desires for His dreams for us to be fulfilled as part of a greater plan for our lives than for which we could ever hope.

Surrender, surrender you whisper gently

You say, I will be free,

I know but can't You see,

My dreams for me?

 My dreams for me?

We are called to give up our dreams, and yet we ask if God can see them. There is freedom in surrender. In the giving up of ourselves, we find true peace and freedom in the Lord. 

You say you have a plan for me

And that you want the best for my life

Told me the world had yet to see

What you can do with one

That's committed to Your calling

I know of course what I should do

That I can't hold these dreams forever

If I give them now to You

Will You take them away forever?

Or can I dream again?

We often know what we should do, yet we lack the courage to do it. We know deep down that we can't hold onto our dreams forever, yet we still hold onto them as if our life depended on it. However, we despair because we are not comfortable with the thought that some of the dreams might be gone forever if we give them to God. We fear the fact the some of our dreams for us might not be God's dreams for us. In our stubbornness, we do not see that our dreams, no matter how wonderful they seem, will never begin to compare to the splendor of God's dreams for us. We question whether or not we will ever be able to dream again. We have placed all of our hope in the futile, emptiness of our own unlikely dreams. 

However, this is still hope. God has a plan for us. He desires for us to have life to the fullest. He wants us to experience the fullness of His riches, and He knows that we cannot do this when we are tied down, stubbornly holding onto our dreams. That is why He asks for surrender.

"Commit your work to the Lord,

and your plans will be established."

~ Proverbs 16:3 (ESV)

"Delight yourself in the Lord,

and He will give you the desires of your heart.

Commit your way to the Lord;

trust in Him, and He will act."

~ Psalm 37:4-5 (ESV)

I believe that the last verses that I shared (Psalm 37:4-5) are often taken out of context. So often we quote verse four, and say "God will give you all that you desire!" However, we are missing a key principle when we take out the first part of the verse, "Delight yourself in the Lord." As one who delights in the Lord, your heart will desire the right things, i.e. the things of the Lord. Your desires then are not the worldly desires of carnal man, but reflect the heart of God in saying that He has a better plan for us. In saying this, we are essentially saying, "Because I delight in the Lord and align myself by His covenant, His plan for me will be fulfilled." This is a far cry from the normal usage of this verse!

So you can see, I struggle with surrender. I have a difficult time giving up that which I hold dear to me. That is why I hesitated to share this. I have a hard time trying to convince people of something that I am struggling with myself. However, I feel the tug on my heart that this touches more than just me, and that this is something that we all struggle with in some place of our lives. That is why I decided to share this. To close, I want to share with you a few of the photographs that Josh took during his life. Be blessed by the beauty of God's glory. 

Lovely aren't they? A close friend of Josh's, Ariel Strom, wrote a song entitled To Surrender a Precious Dream. She recorded it and it is posted on her website. It is a beautiful song, and I encourage you all to go and listen to it. 

One last thing for you all, and then I will close: here is a picture for you that contains both Josh's statement that impacted me AND one of his gorgeous photographs. I encourage you to save it to your computer and view it often.As I said earlier, to allow God's dreams for us to replace our own is daring, challenging, and takes every ounce of faith that we possess; yet to give anything less than the entirety of our beings - every hope and dream that makes us who we are -  is to live an incomplete life. Remember the beauty of a surrendered dream. 

Blessings,

Hannah

I dream a dream . . . of dreams

I'm quite positive that the last thing anyone wants to talk about with anyone else are dreams, religion, and politics. I avoid discussing the latter two because the majority of people are quite fond of bigotry and talking about their opinions for a long, long, long (Read: long, long, long) time.

Still, I don't mind talking about my dreams to people who care. Some of my dreams are actually kind of awesome, fueled by my punishing imagination and anime-watching habits. (I'm looking at YOU, Blue Exorcist)

So here was a dream I had last week.

Here is a dream I had last week.

There was a group of archaeologists, Kyo, Kevin, Marks, and Liliana, on a search for a mystical ruin rumored not to even exist at all. As they were exploring an old building for some artifact, Kyo accidentally sat down on a button. The button opened a door, and the group went through it and found themselves walking down a stone staircase. At the bottom, they saw a magical ruin that looked just like the one they had been told about.

Kyo saw a crystal.

"Oh look, a crystal!" he said.

"Don't touch it!" Kevin shouted.

Kyo touched it.

The world around them began to shake and the air rippled like water. A shock wave came from the crystal, knocking them all back and rendering them unconscious.

Liliana and Kyo woke up and found themselves in the ruin, but the crystal was gone and everything looked . . . changed. They saw a person walking around in fancy and old-looking clothes and asked where they were. When the person answered, L and K realized that they were 500 years in the past.

Meanwhile, Kevin and Marks woke up to find themselves in the ruin, but completely surrounded by desert. There was no life to be seen. They walked through the sands and almost died running into a strange shadow creature. A nomad rescued them and said that a strange energy had been released, causing horrible creatures to walk the earth and causing the earth to turn to dust (kind of like my novel. Direct influence, yes). Kevin and Marks were 500 years in the future.

Later, the two groups realized that they could get in contact with each other through strange warps in time, probably caused by crystal explosion. Together, they work with the time line in order to restore the world back to normal, while also trying to get back to their own time period. (FF XIII-2, I'm sure) 

It was actually pretty cool. Kyo fell in love with Liliana, Kevin and Marks became very good at riding camels, and Kyo died his hair red and got some strange accent.

----

I love it when my dreams have plot. This was one of my better ones. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this filler post. I will come up with something much better when I'm not dying of writer's block.

*Throws squid*

Electrocute!

*squid shoots electricity from tentacles*

Now, pose!
*squid poses, with fireworks exploding in background*

Booyah.

May all of your squids be as cool as mine,

Esther

The World at Our Fingertips - Always, but not Quite

I adore traveling. Really I do. There is just something that is positively exhilarating about the idea of getting on a plane and going somewhere that you have never gone before. Really, you should try it sometime. It's stellar. Your life will never be the same after you have stepped beyond the borders of your own country (I will have travel posts coming soon! I just can't create them while I am in Texas, because not all of my pictures are on this computer and none of my travel journals are with me).

We always hear the phrase, "The world is at our fingertips." In the technological sense of the word, yes it is. It is very easy to type a quick email or facebook message to someone across the world or to Sype with someone who is seven thousand miles away. In all honestly though, nothing can compare to actually going. If we settle for viewing others pictures and listening to their memories, yet make none of our own, we are sorely missing out on a fabulous part of life. Despite what you might think regarding my vocal advocacy for travel, I do not believe in traveling without a purpose. To do so is to waste time and money - both of which, primarily the first, are far to valuable to throw around carelessly. I do not recommend it. Also, I am not saying that you should go just because you have the time and the money. Make the trip worthwhile and use it to further the Kingdom of God. Now, back to what I was saying regarding the cliche use of the phrase...despite the number of photographs we see or the amount of time that we spend listening to others' stories, they will never come alive unless you go for yourself. Many people live vicariously through others - I am determined not to do so.

I hope and pray that each one of you are blessed to receive a call to missions from the Lord. It is a wonderful thing to be able to serve the body of Christ in such a way. Just make sure that when you go, you go for the right motives (Watch the video below). To our international viewers (You are absolutely fabulous!), the U.S. needs missionaries too. Pray about it, and see where God leads. He may or may not have you travel internationally, but that fact isn't always necessary. For some, a walk next door may be many more miles than a flight across the ocean. Either way, I pray that you will be stretched, challenged, and changed. Seek the world from somewhere other than behind your computer screen.

Pretty crazy, huh? That video makes me stop and think everytime that I watch it. Like Josh (the guy in the video with the red and white shirt), I'm not saying that you shouldn't go on a missions trip - I hope that you can someday. Just do it for the right reasons.

Before I close, let me just share with you a few of the fabulous places that I dream of which I dream to go:

• Italy (The place that I want to go the most, currently)
• Ethiopia (I would love to go back!)
• England/UK (I mean, come on? Who doesn't love British things? Secret** I love British accents and find myself talking to myself in them more often that I probably know. =))
• India (There is such a deep spiritual need in this country.)
• Ecuador (It's amazing.)
• Guatemala (I have friends who have gone - I would love to as well!)
• Mexico (I want to go back here as well. =))
• Spain (I have a friend who lives her, and it is a beautiful country.)
• Zambia (I have heard so many stories from my cousin who lives here; I want to see it in person.)
• Kenya (I love wild African animals, and I know someone who lives there.)
• Tanzania (My Mom went here once; I would love to go where she went.)
• Bahamas (Again, my Mom went here so I want to as well.)
• New Zealand (It's gorgeous.)
• China (I have several friends here, and so want to visit them someday!)
• Denmark (Colored houses, houseboats, bicycles....what more could a girl want?)
• Romania (Something stirs in my heart for this place.)
• Argentina (I had to research this place for a Spanish report and fell in love with it - particularly, the Buenos Aires Tango Festival.)
• France (I love French food and I long to visit Paris for just a few days.)
• Korea (I have a friend there as well, and it is such an awesome country.)
• The Canary Islands (Simply put, beautiful.)
• The Galapagos Islands (Such a testament to God's creation!)

I could go on, but I will bore you no more with my long list of countries which I dream to visit someday. I may never reach them, but I have already been there in my dreams. Dreams are capable of taking us farther than we can go.


Blessings to my fellow travelers and travelers-at-heart,
Hannah

The Dare to be More

"Care more than some think is wise;

Risk more than some think is safe;

Dream more than some think is practical;

Expect more than some think is possible,"

~ The Missionary Heart

Before we continue, let's get one think straight: I'm not this super awesome, special person. Just because I dare to believe that I can make a difference in this world, it doesn't mean that I am any different from you. I've heard a lot of times that "You are doing such a great thing! Keep it up! I know that you will make a difference." (Note* to those of you who have something similar to this, I don't mind at all - I'm just using it as an example. It is in no way a criticism of you or your comments - because I love them all and they do make my day!) I don't say the things that I do because I want you to tell me that I am doing a great job; I say them because I want to inspire you to have the same passion to go beyond modern expectations and beliefs. I want all of you to make a difference in your world. That is why I say these things.

Now that that is settled, let's continue. The quote above is one that I really, really like. Let's dissect it a bit (yes, I am one of those people who didn't mind biology): "Care more than some think is wise." When you care for anything, you are setting yourself up to possibly be hurt. It is a chance that you take. Some people are reserved, scarred from the pain of past hurts. It is logical to care so much that you could be hurt? Not at all. Our society has been structured in such a way as to place the mindset in each of us to avoid pain as much as possible. Caring always brings a risk, but it is a risk that must be taken. If that risk means that someone comes to know the love of Christ, then it is a risk worth taking. Jesus cared for the least, how can we say that we will not do the same? Here is a quote by C.S. Lewis that I simply adore:

"To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket - safe, dark, motionless, airless - it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable."

~ C.S. Lewis

"Risk more than some think is safe." There will always be someone who thinks that what you are doing isn't safe - and maybe it isn't. Before I went to Ethiopia, my Grandma strongly wished that I would not go (she eventually changed her mind); she didn't think that it was safe. In reality, what lasting change has ever been made without risk? It involves stepping from the known into the unknown (George Shinn). I've had many people tell me that the path that I am on isn't safe (the rescue and restoration of human trafficking victims). By the world's standards, it isn't. But that is a risk that I have to take, because I have been called to do this by Someone who is bigger than the risk involved.

"Dream more than some think is practical." I am a dreamer. I love to dream. I have lots of dreams - big dreams. Anyone who is a dreamer knows that many people consider them to be absolutely strange. Dreams allow us to be more than we currently are. They allow us to go places that we have never been. They inspire us to make a difference. Dreams aren't practical, but they are the fuel for making a difference in the world. As so many people have stated in the past, "It all started with a dream."

"Expect more than some think is possible." Oh boy, isn't this the epoch of life? Someone says that they can do something, another person replies that the other can't, and so they set out to prove the other wrong. One expects more than the other thinks is possible. The same is often true for you and me. Maybe you think that you won't do well on your test, but I think that you will because I believe in you. I am expecting more than you think is possible. The same is true all through life. People are going to tell you that you will fail. However, I dare to believe that success is achievable. Just because it has never been done before, doesn't mean that it can't be done. If people believed this then we wouldn't have many of the inventions that we have today. The inventions succeeded because their inventor expected more than other people, as so they were willing to try what was thought to be impossible or absurd. We can do the same.

So care a lot, live beyond the realm of modern safety boundaries, dream big, and expect the impossible. Because, you never know, it just might change the world.

Blessings,

Hannah

Hello Everyone! My name is Hannah, and I am a sixteen year-old who loves life! My friend, Esther, and I decided to start this blog out of a mutual love for writing and the concept of blogging. It is a collection of our thoughts and experiences which we wish to share with the world. We hope that our experiences in life will inspire you to live fully and passionately, making the most of each moment of every day. 

Jesus. World travel. Random quotes. Elephants. Best friends. Memories. Japanese Cherry Trees. Reading. Pride and Prejudice. My Bible. Sunglasses. Old lanterns. The Chronicles of Narnia. Keys. Baking. Playing guitar. Foreign stamps. Counseling. Ethiopia. Big, white farmhouses. Chocolate. Blowing bubbles. Making cards. Starfish. Italy. Organizing. Journaling. Blogs. Family. Gentle breezes. The smell of rain. Dancing. Laughter. Sleepovers. “Noodle”. Taking pictures. Soccer. Mission trips. Spanish. Dreaming. The beach. Footprints. Music. Dancing in the rain. Prayer. Little kids. Innocence. Baby polar bears. Writing. Discovering something new. Long letters. Gazebos. Walks by the lake. Smiles. Flip-flops. Skittles. Movies at midnight. Psychology. Rhythm. African landscape. Growth. The sound of birds chirping. Glass. International cultures. The color yellow. Walking barefoot. Sisters. Sunshine. Listening to Italian music. Making international foods. Shopping. Calligraphy. World maps. Moments of solitude.

Each of these things is a part of me. Every one describes a facet of my character and personality. I love life and I long to make a difference in the world. I plan on going to college next year to become a counselor for rescued victims of human trafficking. I have big dreams, but I serve a big God who specializes in doing what is impossible to man alone. There is a Hawaiian proverb which states, “A man goes out on the beach and sees that it is covered with starfish that have washed up in the tide. A little boy is walking along, picking them up and throwing them back into the water. ‘What are you doing, son?’ the man asks. ‘You see how many starfish there are? You’ll never make a difference.’ The boy paused thoughtfully, and picked up another starfish and threw it into the ocean, ‘It sure made a difference to that one,’ he said.” I can’t reach everyone, but I can try to make a difference to someone. I find happiness in the small things in life, and I treasure memories and experiences more than most other things. I love to dream, and I have seen the amazing things that can be accomplished because of dreams. I am on a journey called “life”, and I am determined to make the most of each moment.

“Everyone has oceans to fly, as long as they have the heart to do it. Is it reckless? Maybe, but what do dreams know of boundaries?”

 ~ Amelia Earhart