The Small Things~ Nataleigh Robinson

If you had been told to do something great you would have done it. How much more than when it is something simple. 2 Kings 5:13

I remember sitting up late one night reading a book and just crying. I had just started the book that day but I just couldn't put it down. After finally finishing it I turned out the lights but I still couldn't get to sleep. I felt as if God was telling me something and I just couldn't get it out of my head. It was that night that I decided that God wanted me to be a teen guidance counselor and not only that but that he wanted me to go to public school. 

I had been homeschooled all my life and I was afraid to go to public school. I wasn't even sure what my parents would think of that idea. But I obeyed God and began the process to go to public school.  The amazing thing was that when the time finally came for me to walk through those doors for the first time.  I wasn't even the tiniest bit nervous and my first day went better than I had ever imagined.

Sometimes the things God asks us to do might scare us at first. But God doesn't always tell us the things he wants us to do right that instant.  While God wanted me to go to school he didn't necessarily want me to go running to my mom and tell her that I was going right away. It took nearly 2 years of me preparing myself and working out the details before I was ready to walk through those doors and by then I had thought through it so much and had so many people give me their input that it was like a normal part of my life already.

All God asks of us is that we trust that He's got it all under control. But don't overlook the little things that He asks you to do at that very moment that may one day affect that future dream that he has placed in your mind. Sometimes we get so caught up in looking for the big things God wants us to do that we overlook the little things.  It’s been almost 6 years since that dream to become a counselor first began to germinate in my mind.  That dream has gone through numerous changes over the years but the heart of it is still the same.

In the verse at the beginning of this entry The leper Naaman had gone to the prophet Elisha to be healed and Elisha told him to go and wash in the dirtiest river there was. Naaman refused and left dejected. It was his servant who said the words at the beginning of this entry telling him he would have done anything to be healed but yet refused to do something as simple as washing in a dirty lake.

We must never think that something we do is not as important as something that someone else does because everything is important in the kingdom of God .  It is God who put dreams in our hearts and He is kind enough to allow us the responsibility and the choice to do what we wish with what we are given.

 

10 Things to do This Summer~ Nataleigh Robinson

10 Things to do in the Summer

 

1. Go to the Beach and soak up some rays

 

2. Build something in the sand

 

3. Start a collection of cool shells or sea glass

 

4. Get up enjoy the early morning sun while it’s still cool

 

5. Go stargazing on a cool night

 

6. Go for a bike ride around town

 

7. Curl up on the porch with a good book

 

8. Get some girl friends together for a backyard campout

 

9. Play in the Sprinkler or turn your backyard play gym into a water slide

 

10. Start a garden

A Night to Remember... Forever by Nataleigh Robinson

I will never forget the Halloween of my 16 year for 2 reasons: 1. My mom was finally trusting me enough to let me go to a Halloween party at my friend Carly’s house. And 2. It was a night that changed my life forever.    

          I spent a great amount of time on my costume trying to decide what I would go as and in the end decided to go as the Roman goddess Ceres, the goddess of growing things.  My mother made an amazing green dress that looked like it was made out of leaves and I painted leaves and flowers on my arms and face and tied flowers in my hair.  It was an amazing costume if I do say my self and I would like to think I would have been the center of the party if I had ever arrived.

          About 6:00 pm Halloween night I dressed up into my outfit wished my parents good night and departed from the house.  I climbed into the back of the family car and gave our driver directions to the house. 

          Now is probably as a good a time as any to mention the fact that my families rich.  Both of my parents have pretty incredible jobs: My mom’s a lawyer and my dad’s in the FBI.  Since I’m their only child I pretty much get anything I ask for and since I’m so rich not to mention an A+ student I’m pretty poplar with both my peers an my teachers. 

Some people say I’m spoiled but I don’t see it that way.  The way I see it I’m just blessed or at least that’s what my mom says.  My mom’s a Christian and goes to church every Wednesday and Sunday she used to take me with her when I was younger but after I met Carly I began to hate the fact that I spent half my weekend at church and backed out.  

          My dad used to go to church to but that was before he got so grounded in his job.  Now he only goes for Christmas and Easter and since he goes I go too.  I guess I figure if Dad can take a break from his work to go to church on a holiday I can take a break from my parties and shopping sprees.  But that doesn’t mean I have to like it.

          Anyway back to Halloween:  I sat in the back seat of the moving car as Bert, our driver, drove the young goddess to Carly’s party.  We had barley pulled out of our gated community when my cell chirped and I pulled it out to discover Melody had sent me a text.

          “R U goin 2 prty 2nite?”

“Ya” I sent the text and waited a second sure enough a moment later the phone chirped again.

“Wat U goin as?”

“Ceres.” 

I soon was so caught up in my text conversation that I didn’t realize when Bert started heading the opposite direction of Carly’s house.  15 minutes later I heard the car turn off and looked up to realize I had no idea where I was.  “Bert, where are we?” But as I looked up I realized that the man who was staring at me through the rear-view was not Bert at all but a complete stranger.  “Who are you and what have you done with Bert?”  The man just smiled at me wickedly and got out of the car. 

In a panic I tried the door handle but the man must have set the child lock because I couldn’t open it.  I snatched up my phone and started to dial 911 but before I could hit send the door opened and I was pulled out of the car.  I was thrown into a completely dark and empty room where my captor said I would stay.  Until my father paid him the money he was owed I would stay right there.  Than he slammed the door leaving me in complete darkness.

I don’t know how long I was balled up in that room but I do know this:  It was the best thing that ever happened to me.  I know it sounds strange for me to say something like that but it’s true.  Let me explain.

While I was in that room I thought I was going to die.  Plain and simple, I thought my life was over.  I hadn’t eaten anything since lunch since we were supposed to be eating at Carly’s and I knew that if my parents didn’t pay, my captor would either kill me or let me starve.  Either way if my parents didn’t do something I was dead.  Soon my thoughts overcame me as I began to think:

  I thought about the party I was missing and began to imagine what it would have been like if I had actually succeeded in arriving.  My green flowing dress would have been the star attraction no doubt and maybe just maybe I could have stolen a dance or two from Jared Blare. 

I thought of my parents and what would they think when they received the call telling them I had been kidnapped.  How long would it take them to gather the money?  Would they even care?  I had always been a disappointment to them constantly asking for money to buy this or that but never having the tiniest bit of compassion in my heart to go to church with my mother. 

I thought of my childhood.  How I used to go to church every Wednesday and Sunday with my mom then just on Sunday and now only when Dad went which was barely ever.  I remembered a time long ago when I had sat between my mother and father and listened to the pastor preach his sermon.  I suddenly realized that I missed those days.  I had always felt safe in church and then I had met Carly and safety was replaced with pleasure.  I had spent the last 2 years of my life searching for something but not really sure what that something was.  And now as I sat reminiscing about my childhood I realized the one thing that had been missing from my life: God.

I soon realized tears were streaming down my cheeks and suddenly a thought popped into my head actually something my mom used to always say to me when I was younger.  Pray Heather, when ever you’re in trouble don’t ever hesitate to pray.  He’ll listen to you even if you don’t think you deserve to be heard.”

So right then and there I prayed.  I prayed that God would get me out of this dark room,  I prayed he would release me from my captor and most of all I prayed he would change me from the inside out.

I was in captivity for about a month.  My captor who’s name was Bill- at least that’s what he told me to call him- let me out of the dark cell within a day and locked me in another room with bared windows and a camera in the corner.  But at least I had a bed, lights and my own bathroom-void of camera’s and window’s.  Bill told me that he had given my parents one month to get the money before he would do away with me.  I was frightened but thanks to my Sunday school memorization program when I was 10 I had all the encouragement I needed to get through the month. 

The end of November brought great fear to me as the money from my parents never came- I found out later that my parents had been struggling financially for a long time but hadn’t told me and so trying to come up with the amount required to rescue me had become impossible to get.  One night Bill came into my room and he was carrying a gun.  I was frightened and thought suddenly that this would be my last night on earth.  But he suddenly started crying.  When I asked him what was wrong he told me.  “Heather, I have never met anyone like you.  There’s no way I could ever kill someone as amazing as you.  The threat of death has been hanging over you for the last month and still you smile as if nothing was going on.  I can’t do this to you or your family.  You’re free to go.”

I could hardly believe it.  I thought for sure that he had something up his sleeve but he wasn’t and about an hour later I was safe in my mother’s arms.

          I went to church with my mother that Sunday and at school I told Carly about my changed life.  Needless to say she thought I was crazy and I never spoke to her again but I soon made new friends at my parent’s church.  I never saw Bill again but 4 years later I received a letter in the mail.  The letter was from Bill thanking me for being such a wonderful example to him and putting him on the “Straight and Narrow”.  Attached was a picture of him and his wife and his beautiful new born daughter.  I was completely thrilled to know that I had made a difference in this mans life when at the same time he had made a difference in mine.

The Story of Joseph~ Short Story by Nataleigh Robinson

“I don’t deserve this.”

 

            My face hit the rough stone ground as the prison warden threw me into my new home, a prison cell, I didn’t deserve this.  I had worked hard for my master and mistress harder than all the rest of their slaves put together.  So why had my mistress sent me here?  I ran up to the grate in the door and shouted out to the wardens receding figure. “I’m innocent I don’t deserve to be here.” 

          “That’s what they all say.”  The warden laughed without turning around he turned a corner and a door slammed in the distance.  I was alone in this dank smell.  I take that back there were the rats who I found got more of my food than I did.  

          I slumped down to the ground and looked up at the single bright star that shone through the small window engraved in the wall.  “Oh God.”  I prayed.  “Don’t let me die here you know I don’t deserve this.”  I sighed as I thought about what I had said and then I added “But you know what’s best for my life and I trust you.”  With that I lay down and slept a long and peaceful sleep.

          You may be wondering how I got into this situation and why I don’t deserve to be here.  Well let me explain in order to do so we need to go back to when I was about 17.  No even farther for the year I turned 10 was when this story really begins

 

                             About 10 years before

       

          I came from a fairly large family.  I live with my mother, father and younger brother, Ben.  But beyond that my aunt and her seven children live with us.  We also have a decent amount of servants two of which have two children of their own giving us a grand total of 13 children and about 7 adults including servants. 

          My mother, Rachel was barren for most of my parents’ marriage and so it was that my father thought of my cousin Reuben as a son and even told my aunt that Reuben would get my father’s inheritance when he died.  So you can imagine my aunt’s sorrow when I was born and therefore her and all my cousins especially Judd found they were jealous of me. 

          My father worked as a farmer and when I was of decent age he had me help my cousins in the fields.  Thinking back I am certain that that was when my troubles began.  I well remember the first time I was ever to help them.  I was just about 10 and had a big mouth which my cousins hated. 

 

          “Well Joe it’s the first time you are to help your cousins with the chores.  Do you think you’re ready?”  My father asked me only days after my 10^th birthday I nodded vigorously and my father handed me a small bucket.  “Don’t get in the way now you hear.  Just go over there,” He pointed to the field where I could barely see the top of my cousin Izzie’s head.  “And just hold the bucket for Izzie to put stuff in, all right” I nodded again and took off running toward Izzie.      

          I reached Izzie out of breath.

          “What are you doing here twerp.”  Izzie scolded me. 

          “Father said I could hold the bucket for you.”  Izzie narrowed his eyes at me unbelieving.

          “I’m 10 now you know that’s old enough to at least hold the bucket.” 

          “Are you sure?”  He jeered at me bending down to get close to my face.  “Once there’s stuff in it gets pretty heavy.  I don’t think a little shrimp like you would be able to carry it all the way back to the house much less lift it up to the table.”  I stuck my lip out and my eyes began to fill with tears.

          “Ahh leave him be Izzie.”  Reuben spoke up.   “He can hold the bucket if not for you then for me.”  Izzie crossed his arms and grunted. 

          “Fine then he can help you.  I don’t want a little snitch to be working with me all day.”

          “Why?  You got something to hide Izzie?”  I’d never seen any of my cousins speechless but especially not Izzie but Izzie was sure speechless right about then.  “Come on Joe you can come hold the bucket for me.”  I followed Reuben around the corner and for the rest of the day held the bucket for him while he filled it with different sorts of veggies. 

          I found myself going back and forth from the house to the garden with the bucket.  Izzie hadn’t been kidding when he said that the bucket was heavy.  But Dinah, yet another one of my cousins was a great help in getting the heavy bucket on the table and emptied and she even put the vegetables away in the cellar so I didn’t have to go down the rickety old stairs and into that dark and scary cellar.  Of course later in my life I would have to live in many dark and scary places but not for another 7 years. 

 

          I spent the next 7 years working alongside my cousins in different things.  But I got myself into quiet a bit of trouble when I was about 16, my cousins did some unmentionable things that I found impossible to keep from my father.  And so it was that I earned the name tattletale as well as some other unmentionable names.  Although I do have to say I was quite prideful and rubbed things in their faces.  Which I’m sure made them madder. 

          One day my mother called me and my cousins Zeb and Levi into the house.  Holding my three year old brother Ben on her hip she gave us her instructions “I need you three to go into town and get some things for me.”  She handed Levi a list and some money and me a bag to put things in. 

          While we were in town Levi and Zeb were window shopping as well.  Suddenly Zeb cried out “look at this Levi.  Look at this coat isn’t it beautiful.”  Levi and I walked over to the window that Zeb was looking into.  And Levi gasped.

          “It is gorgeous Zeb.”  And I thought so too it was a beautiful deerskin coat and it looked expensive. 

          When we got home I immediately asked my father for it.  My cousins all laughed even Reuben whom had taken quite a liking to me.  “its way too expensive you’ll have to raise your own money for something like that.” 

          “Besides,” Zeb said laughing uncontrollably, “It probably wouldn’t even fit you properly you’re as skinny as a stick.  That coat’s meant for strong men not weak 17 year old boys. I frowned but I refused to let their jeering get my hopes down. 

          Sure enough about a month later was my 17^th birthday and I received the deerskin coat.  This was the worst thing that my father could have done for me for it made my cousins very jealous of me.

          About a week later my father sent me out to get my cousins who were working in the fields.  That was the last time I ever saw him.  The boys had gone out early in the morning with the cows to find fresher pastures.  I found them in a lush field they were doing something beside an old dried up well.  I ran up to them.  “Judd, Izzie, Levi, Zeb, Reuben what are you doin?”  What a stupid question.  If I had just told them what I had come to tell them instead of always butting into things that were none of my business then maybe I wouldn’t be where I am today.  But as it is I didn’t. 

          “Did your father send you here to spy on us Joe? You seem to be good at it.”

          “No he didn’t” I said getting closer and closer to them by the second.  As soon as I was close enough they jumped me Judd held a knife to my throat.  “I should just kill him now Reuben.” 

          “No we can’t kill our own flesh and blood throw him in the well as we agreed.”  Even then with the knife pressed against my throat, even at Reuben’s suggestion of throwing me into that terrible well, I am thankful of him that I am still alive.  

          I spent the rest of the day in that dark hole.  The sun was down and the moon high in the sky when they finally let down a rope to me.  But when I reached the top I found that it wasn’t my cousins after all but Bandit’s whom my cousins had sold me to.  As they tied me up and threw me on one of the horses.  I could see Judd’s yellow smile and the shine of silver as he counted the money from a bag that the bandits had thrown him and as I looked closer I saw 5 more faces surrounding him the faces of my cousins and a sudden laugh rent the air.  Simon’s laugh he had the most evil laugh of all my cousins.  The last thing that struck my mind as the bandits spurred the horses on is that Reuben was not with them and I hoped even then that he had not been part of that wicked plan.

 

          We rode for quite some time before finally getting to the rich town of Gaza . The bandit’s sold me to a man named Ishmael Potts.  I made the best of my status and before long I was Potts most trusted servant and his wife’s personal attendant, a job I would have much rather passed up. 

          One day Ishmael went out on business and I was left to care for his wife.  The only problem as I was soon to discover was that Ella had fallen deeply in love with my tan skin and strong arms.  I was out on the terrace overseeing some things when she came up behind me.  “Joe,” she whispered “As you know my husband is not here.  Come away with me to my husband’s chamber.  Ishmael will never know.”  I gasped in surprise.

          “My lady your husband trusts me with everything in this house including you.  None of the servants have as much authority as I do.  I have access to every room and possession in this house.  But you are his wife I can not do this evil thing.  It would be a sin if not against you then against your husband, my master and against my God.”  She was furious at me and when her husband returned she accused me of trying to seduce her.  I tried to reason with him but he wouldn’t hear of it and therefore had me thrown into this prison that I am in even now. 

          Although much has changed since you came in at the beginning of the story.  Now the warden respects me and actually lets me out everyday and I help him to feed the other prisoners.  So it is that I know that God has everything under control.  I don’t know if I’ll ever get out of this prison (although that cup bearer said he would do all he could to get me out) it really doesn’t matter anymore because I know He has it all under control.  I do hope to one day see my family again I forgave my cousins long ago and now all I want to do is give them a great big hug every single one of them.  I don’t know what God has in store for me but whatever it is, even if it’s staying in this old musty prison for the rest of my days I know that it’s part of God’s plan. 

          For a closing note I’ll just say this: Remember that no matter what life throws at you.  It’s part of God’s plan and he’s watching out for you.  And not to worry if dreams can tell the future I’ve got nothing to worry about.  After all one of the nickname’s my cousins gave me was “dreamer” But I must stop now for the warden is shooing me back into my cell.  The guards are coming and I must not be seen out of my cell.

 

          Story found in Genesis 37, 39 & 35:23-26

        Story continued in Genesis 41-45  

   

Wandering Wonderings~ Nataleigh Robinson

Death, Pain, Anger, Humiliation

Why all of this complication?

Why must there be such devastation?

If God is a God of adoration

Then why is there such speculation?

I scream up to the sky

Begging for some kind of answer

But the heavens are silent

You refuse to speak

Refuse to let down an answer

I’ve done everything you’ve asked

But still you let this happen

In your love I basked

Now life’s all misshapen

Why can’t you just do what I first asked?

Then I hear your voice from up above:

“Have I not loved you with an everlasting love?

Did I not create you from the dust?

Did I not command that in me you trust?

Yet here you sit and fuss and fuss

Now I am reminded who is in charge

I know that his love is large

Though I do not always understand

He holds my life in his right hand

I will trust in him!

I know he treasures me

I know he values me

His love is beyond what I can see

But is it wrong for me to have these questions?

Is my anger a transgression?

Though his sight is better than mine

Though he sees my first and last

Though he knows things I cannot

Though he loves me a whole darn lot

Through all these things I can’t help questioning

Is it wrong to seek answers?

If so why do we think?

Is it wrong to be angry?

If so why do we feel?

Are these not gifts from God?

I think God must love our questions

Is he too big that he doesn’t care?

Or too small that he cannot listen?

Not at all! He can take it

I feel closer when I question

I will not be afraid to question

I will not be afraid to rant and rave

I will not be afraid to cast the blame

I will not be afraid to shout

My God is a big God!

Photograph property of Lilies Among Thorns Magazine. Photograph taken by Abby Whear.

10 Lies Hollywood Tells Us~ Nataleigh Robinson

If you live on this earth (which you probably do) then you have probably experienced your fair share of expectations.  Your parents expect you to clean your room, your friends expect you to be there when they need you, your pastor expects you to pay attention in youth group and God expects you to share the good news of His son. 

All these things are rather reasonable expectations but often we can feel like we’re getting mixed messages.  We get one message from our friends at church and a completely different message from our friends at school.  Our parents tell us one thing while our teachers tell us something different.  Our pastors present one way of gaining success while society presents an entirely different way to gain success. 

The Devil uses a variety of lies to confuse us into living our lives in a way that is less than holy.  But we can’t expect to realize these things as lies if no ones ever pointed them out to us.  Not to worry that’s what this article is here for.  Here are ten lies that Hollywood tells us

1. You have to be a size one to be considered attractive.  A hundred years ago people held a very different opinion of beauty.  It was considered much more attractive to have a little fluff.  But in 1959 something happened that forever changed the way beauty was viewed.  This life changing event took place in the form of a still very popular toy named Barbie.  Barbie was stick thin with the perfect hourglass shape and drop dead gorgeous.  Every girl wanted to look just like her.  And so the search for beauty began. We’ve all experienced insecurity at one time or another, it’s part of being a girl, its part of living in a sinful world.  Since sin entered the world women have struggled with wanting to be attractive.  There isn’t anything wrong with wanting to look good, after all God tells us to take care of our bodies since they are the temples of God (1 Cor 6:19-20).  I think this includes watching out weight but it doesn’t mean obsessing over it.  God made each of us with different builds and not all of us will be able to healthily fit into a size one.  What’s important is that we except the body God has given us.

2. Being a virgin is something to be ashamed of.  Turn on the TV for any extended amount of time and you will quickly realize that our society is obsessed with sex.  Adult shows and movies are full of sex scenes and explicit sexual jokes.  Kids movies are less obviously filled with sexual undertones and innuendos.  Even some commercials have an underlying sexual message.  Living in a world filled with never-ending sexual messages and friends who are constantly hooking-up, it can be difficult not to feel like you’re the only virgin left on the planet.  

I can assure you that you are most definitely not.  There are hundreds of students who are still virgins.  In 2009 34% of high school students admitted to being sexually active and even if there were another 10% who had had sex but hadn’t admitted it that still roughly 56% of high school students who are still virgins. That’s over half of your school.  Just remember that the next time you’re thinking of giving in just because your ashamed of your virginity.  You’re not alone and God values your purity more than anything else.

3. Marriage doesn't last forever.  God created marriage.  God realized how lonely Adam was and decided that he needed not just a friend but a partner, someone who was so close to Adam that it was like they were one person.  As if to illustrate just how close he wanted Adam to be to his wife, He decided to create her out of one of Adam’s ribs showing that she was an important part of him that could never be replaced by anyone else.  No friend could ever be closer to him than her.

Today divorce is as normal as changing your socks.  People get married, start fighting, decide it’s not working and give up rather than sacrifice a bit of themselves to rekindle their love for each other they would rather tear away from that part of themselves and move on to someone else.  100 years ago people would have never thought of divorcing someone so easily they worked at it until death parted them no matter how difficult it was.  Marriage doesn’t have to end in divorce, it is possible to have a life long commitment if you’re both willing to work at it.

4. It is weird when parents show affection for each other. Television loves to make fun of parents who have a happy and healthy relationship.  Whenever parents start to get a little cozy, the kids always have to walk in and tell them how gross they are, forgetting that they were just sitting in the backseat of a car doing the exact same thing and worse but without the wedding certificate.  For some reason seeing a married couple who’s over the age of 40 show any affection for each other is inappropriate and disgusting, but it shouldn’t be.

We should be willing to encourage our parents to show their love for each other because that’s how we know they still do.  Far too many marriages end in divorce because someone thought they were getting too old for affection and the other moved on.

5. It is ok to lie as long as no one finds out. If you think this isn’t a lie then you’re lying to yourself because according to the Bible it’s not ok to lie.  In fact lying is one of the “thou shalt not’s” in the 10 Commandments.  So many times in the shows we watch we see our favorite characters lying to teachers, parents and even friends in order to save their own necks.  The plot line often follows like this: an especially naughty character that’s known to be a troublemaker convinces the main character to lie because “I never get caught” and “it’s so easy”.  The main character gives in and the lie works and they realize wow that wasn’t so bad after all and so they continue to lie and lie and lie until finally they’re caught and then suddenly they’re sorry and now that they’re in trouble they realize it was a mistake.  But we’re often left wondering whether they really learned their lesson or if they’re just sorry that they didn’t get away with it

6. A high school pregnancy will not turn your life upside down.  In the last 10 years there has been a strange influx of movies and shows about teen pregnancy each with its own way of showing that pregnancy is kind of cool, even in high school.  With Juno in 2007, Secret Life of the American Teenager premiering in 2008 and Pregnancy Pact in 2010, teenagers are more aware than ever that teenage pregnancies can and do happen.  While each of these movies and shows are pro-life encouraging students to keep the child despite their age and their mistakes none of these shows reveal the realistic side of what happens when you have a child while still a child yourself.  Whether a girl decides to raise the child herself or give it up for adoption there is no denying that her life will be forever changed and she will never be able to go back to her old life or her old friends despite what Hollywood tries to tell you.

7. It is unacceptable to not 100% accept someone else's beliefs.  Society is constantly trying to confuse us into thinking that when we disagree with someone about something we are in essence telling them that we don’t love them.  So many people will even go so far as using scripture against us, they’ll remind us that we’re supposed to love everyone because God is love.  While this is true and as Christians we have more reason than anyone else to show unrelenting love to those who are different from us, but the problem comes in when we allow people to scare us into submission.  God tells us to preach the gospel boldly, he told us we would experience hardships and persecution because of our faith.  He didn’t tell us that our Christian walk would be simple but he promised he would be waiting for us at the end of the road and he promised that his son would be interceding for us and that his Holy Spirit would be walking beside us all the time.  Everything we do and say should be said out of love and selflessness but if we truly believe that we have the answer than we should not be afraid to share our opinions and we have just as much political right to share as they do, despite how they try to convince you otherwise.

8. Love is an emotion that can't be controlled.  As girls it can be hard not to get caught up in the romance of a good story.  Many of us are romantic saps all the way to the bone and even those who pretend not to be really do want someone to love them deep down inside.  No one knows better than Hollywood how desperate each girl is to find her Prince Charming who will be different from anyone she’s ever met and will be absolutely perfect.  From a young age girls are indoctrinated with stories of princes who ride in and save the princess from some terrible danger and ride away with her to live “happily ever after”.  By the time we’re in high school we have such twisted ideas of love that it’s no wonder that many of us end up with our hearts broken and our confidence shattered.  Hollywood tells us that we can’t choose who we fall in love with it just happens but if that were true then God’s command to love everyone would be very difficult to follow.  If we can choose to love our grouchy neighbor who complains whenever we step on his grass then we can certainly choose not to give our hearts away to someone that isn’t following God

9. If you’re single there must be something wrong with you.  In a society that relies so heavily on relationships it is no wonder that not having someone to call your boyfriend can make us feel like there might be something wrong with us.  When we see our friends with their special someone it can be difficult not to feel alone.  But there is so much more to life then dating relationships and there is so much more to relationships then the butterflies.  God made us for relationships but that isn’t limited to dating relationships.  God wants us to build our relationship with Him, our family and our friends before we even begin to think of having a dating relationship

10. Sex will not affect you emotionally.  Hebrews 13:4 tells us “to keep the marriage bed pure” this means to not give away that which was meant to be saved only for our husbands.  Society tries to convince us that sex will not really affect us, that we can just do it and not really think of it after that.  The truth is that sex outside of marriage can be very emotionally painful.  Don’t fall for the lie that if you give in he’ll stay with you.  The truth of the matter is that guys like to have something to pursue once you give them what they want they’ll have nothing left to fight for and since you’re married they’ll have nothing keeping them with you and so they’ll leave.  Don’t fall for the same lies that so many girls before you have fallen for.  Keep the mystery, good Christian men would much rather prefer the mystery anyway.

Did you know that Nataleigh wants to open her own home for teenagers?!?!

Chosen by God~ Nataleigh Robinson

The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance but the Lord looks at the heart 1 Samuel 16:7

I've always loved how God picked David, puny little David, to rule over the kingdom of Israel over his big strong brothers. Imagine with me Samuel and God walking down the line of boys together examining each of Jessie's sons. Samuel looks at each man sees the strong hands and arms and says "this guy would make a good king." But God shakes his head "No, he's no good I've seen his heart and he’s not fit to rule my kingdom." The process repeats itself until Samuel finally comes to the end of the line. This can't be right! he thinks somebody has to be king! Finally after a short conversation with Jessie, David enters the scene. He's a scrawny teenager who can't be much older than 16 or 17 but there's something in his eyes that causes Samuel to stop. Then he hears God's voice whispering in his ear. "He's the one Samuel, the one I've chosen."

Can you imagine that: The world looks at you and says "Oh she's nothing special just, she’ll never amount to anything, she’s just another face walking the halls to class." but when God looks at you He sees something amazing.  He looks at you and He calls you beautiful, He calls you smart, He calls you by name and He's chosen something AMAZING for you to do that's different than anybody else. 

There's never going to be another Nataleigh who has gone through the same things I have. God has chosen something different and special just for me that only I can accomplish. If I can't do it no one can. But that's the beauty of it: I can because God made the task just perfect for me. He gave me just the right amount of inner and outer beauty to help me accomplish the task.

God has something for you too. Yes even you. You may think but I'm not smart, I'm not pretty, I'm not brave, I'm not strong. Stop telling yourself that.  Those are lies straight from the Devil trying to convince you that you’re less than you should be. You have potential! Moses didn’t think that he was charismatic enough but God put him in charge of an entire nation, Paul considered himself a terrible sinner but God used him to build the Christian church, Mary was just a normal girl living in her village but God saw something special in her and chose her to be the mother of his son.

Hadassah probably never considered herself to be to be brave or smart or much of anything for that matter.  She was an orphan who had been raised by her cousin.  I’m sure she lived with a lot of fears that those who had killed her parents would kill her too.  I imagine she spent a lot of time trying to fade into the background.  But God saw something in her.  He saw not only an outer beauty (for no one could deny that she was beautiful) but an inner beauty as well. 

Because of her outer beauty she was noticed by the king of her land and ended up becoming queen and because of her inner beauty she was able to find the courage within herself to stand up for her people who were sentenced to death.  This women, whose name had been changed to Esther opened herself to be used by God and it saved the life of the Jewish people.

God gave you just the right amount of smarts, beauty, courage and strength to accomplish the task he has for YOU! Some people may still be smarter or stronger or braver or prettier than you are but that's because God has something different for them than he does for you and their going to need to be smarter or stronger or braver or more beautiful.

Hadassah probably never considered herself to be to be brave or smart or much of anything for that matter.  She was an orphan who had been raised by her cousin.  I’m sure she lived with a lot of fears that those who had killed her parents would kill her too.  I imagine she spent a lot of time trying to fade into the background.  But God saw something in her.  He saw not only an outer beauty (for no one could deny that she was beautiful) but an inner beauty as well. 

Because of her outer beauty she was noticed by the king of her land and ended up becoming queen and because of her inner beauty she was able to find the courage within herself to stand up for her people who were sentenced to death.  This woman, whose name had been changed to Esther opened herself to be used by God and it saved the life of the Jewish people.

It’s time we stop comparing ourselves to those around us and start comparing ourselves to God's perfect plan. Find out what He wants you to be and strive to become that.  Because trust me there’s nothing better in this life than walking in the path God wants you to walk.  And there is nothing worse than stepping off that path and going our own way.

Did you know that Nataleigh's favorite TV show is Once Upon a Time?!

Garden of Joy~ Short Story by Nataleigh Robinson

There is a moment in every young person’s life when they decide this is who I’m going to be.  Some get to make the decision themselves, choosing who they want to be and what they want to do with their lives without people’s expectations to hold them down.  I always envied them, for I was never given that choice.

My father always told me what I was going to be and I knew better than to ask questions.  But when he left to be with another woman his expectations left with him and new ones came to take their place.  My mother’s expectations were for me to help in keeping the house and taking care of my younger sister while my two older sisters did their best to make money.  But even with my help we still had to move to the poorer part of town and to a cheaper school.

Even my new friends had expectations for me.  They expected me to drink and smoke and fool around.  But at least these expectations were better than my mothers and so I fulfilled them. I don’t remember the exact moment I became a criminal but before long I was a regular vandal.  But I do remember clearly the night of my first arrest, and even more than that I remember my sentence.  Forty hours of community service for Mrs. Hunter, the old women whose house my friends and I had tagged and egged two weeks before. 

We had spent so much time making fun of the poor old women.  We knew that she was too weak to clean up the egg shells herself; in fact, she was barely even strong enough to take care of her garden on her own.  We laughed whenever we saw her son scrubbing the walls of her house from the old yoke.  How were we supposed to know her son was a cop?

I remember those days so clearly, though I dreaded the very thought of working for Mrs. Hunter.  I thought I would be like working for the devil in hell itself.  Maury said she probably smelled because she was too weak to take a bath, and Theo thought she was probably a bitter old women who would work me to death.  Needless to say, I quickly decided that I would much rather be scraping gum off of the lunchroom table then working for this woman. 

But I quickly realized just how wrong they both were.  In fact Mrs. Hunter was much more fit than we realized.  She spent hours working in the garden.  She had a muscle condition that kept her from being able to lift her hands above her head, or to stand for long periods of time, which was why she needed help cleaning the egg off of her porch ceiling.  Still she helped with as much as she could.  But there was one day that will always be engraved in my memory for all eternity, a day that changed my life forever.

It was toward the end of my sentence, we were working together in the garden because most of her other odd jobs had been finished.  Suddenly, she turned to me and said, “Do you know why I enjoy gardening, dear?”

I was surprised; I was used to her jabbering on and on about the old days, but this was the first time that she had ever asked me a direct question.  I shook my head unsure how else to answer.  She stopped her work and smiled at me, “It’s because flowers are some of the weakest creatures on the face of this planet.  A chill wind can blow them over, a sudden frost can kill them…an ignorant child can crush them with one misplaced foot.”

I looked away and turned my concentration back on pulling weeds knowing that she was referring to me and my friend’s destruction of her garden 3 weeks before.  But Mrs. Hunter continued, “Flowers are much like people in that way, a misplaced word or a thoughtless deed can crush the life right out of them.”  She motioned toward the handful of weeds in my hands, “weeds sneak in and attempt to strangle them, but with the right nurturing hand, these flowers can grow stronger than ever.”

She paused and watched me for a moment as I struggled with a stubborn weed then said, “Dear, I know you’ve been hurt, I don’t how or by who, but if you keep letting the weeds choke out your growth, if you let the frost kill your joyful spirit and you allow the ignorant people in your life to stomp out your love for life, then you will be no better than the weeds.”

I swallowed past the lump in my throat then forced myself to speak as bitterly as possible not wishing for the tremor in my voice to peek through, “If we’re like the flowers then what does it matter, when winter comes I’ll be dead anyway.”

Mrs. Hunter shook her head, “That’s someone else’s words you’re speaking, someone in your life has told you you’re worthless and you’ve believed them.”  She stood up then and brushed the dirt off her hands, “Come with me I have to show you something.”

She led me around to the back yard where there was a large tree that I had seen many times before.  The tree stood in the center of the yard with pink and purple flowers on it. Tiny white flowers climbed up it trunk and wrapped around it’s branches and curled them all the way to the top making it look like they were sprouting flowers out of the side.  Along its base hundreds of tiny forget-me-nots bloomed.  

Mrs. Hunter picked one of the forget-me-nots from the base of the tree.  She gave it to me and I frowned not understanding what was so special about this simple flower.  “Forget-me-nots are perennials. Do you know what that means?” I heard the term before but had never bothered to learn what it meant, so didn’t answer, she continued.

“Like all flowers, perennial flowers die in the winter, they feel all the harsh winds that the others feel and are crushed by the same driving snows, but unlike the weaker annual flowers, perennials return each year when spring comes.”  She picked one of the white flowers from its place on the tree and handed it to me as well.  The petals were twisted into the shape of a star and I was awed at the simple beauty of these flowers

“These are moonflowers.”  Carol explained, “Moonflowers are also perennials and they are also climbing plants; they need another stronger plant, or a wall to cling to in order to be healthy.  That’s why I planted them so close to my fuschia tree.”

With that she looked up and pulled down one of the smaller of the large flowers from the tree. “I planted this tree nearly twenty years ago now.  It was just a tiny sapling at the time I had to tie it down to keep the wind from pushing it over.  It’s become so big and strong since that time. Sure it still has to deal with the winters, and it even looses its flowers, but they always return more beautiful than the year before.”  She looked at me with a look that said I should understand her point but I was still confused. 

“Darling, people are going to get you down in life and it’s true sometimes it’s hard to forget what people have done to you.  You may feel like life as you know it is over, but like a perennial you have to get back up and try again.  You’re going to have to rely on people sometimes to help get you through, but you need to rely on people who can support your weight.  Think of what would happen if one of these moonflowers tried to attach itself to a forget-me-not.  Both would collapse.  But by clinging to a strong tree it’s able so survive.”

I thought about she was saying and then said, “You’re saying I’m like a moonflower and my friends are like forget-me-nots.”

She nodded. 

“So what does that make you? The Tree?” I said knowing I couldn’t hide the bitterness of my tone.

Carol smiled, “Maybe, maybe not.  I can be if you want me to be.  I’m old; I’ve seen and experienced a lot of things.  I can’t say that what you’re going through is exactly new to me.”

I shrugged and looked away, “Well you’ve only seen the surface stuff.”

“That’s true, but I know how to use my eyes to see what you allow on the surface, and I analyze these things through my hearts eye which can see far more.”  I turned back to face her, and I’m sure my confusion was obvious.  “For example,” she continued, “I can tell just by looking at you that you are from Middle Eastern descent and by your slight accent I would assume first generation, your parents probably speak your native tongue at home.”

I nodded slightly speechless at first and then finding my voice, “They did, until my father left a couple of years ago, my mother hasn’t spoken much since then.  We moved here from India when I was born.”

A knowing look came into her eyes then and she moved toward the house, “I think the rest of this conversation should be finished over a plate of cookies and tall glasses of milk.”  We moved into the house and soon were settled in the living room, each of us a glass of milk and a plate of cookies between us.  As soon as we were comfortable Mrs. Hunter said, “If you were born in India I imagine it’s safe to say that whatever name you have told your friends is not your real name.”

I gulped afraid of where this conversation was now headed she continued, “Am I right in believing that you were born with the name of Nakusha?”

I nodded tears springing into my eyes and I blinked them away and tried placing the firm look back on my face not wanting her to see that she had struck a cord, “It’s a common name for girls in India, why shouldn’t my parents call me Nakusha?”

“Because it tells of what your parents think of you and how they treat you.  They treat you as if you were Nakusha…unwanted.  Let me tell you something, dear, I do not see you as a Nakusha I see you as” She paused for a moment thinking of a more fitting name before saying, “a Sada…a pearl.  And I know God thinks of you like that too.”

I scoffed, “What does it matter, a name does not make you who you are, I did that myself.  I chose this life.  I’m a criminal.”

Mrs. Hunter placed a hand gently on my shoulder and looked deep into my eyes, “No, it doesn’t,  but it says a lot about the person who named you, and if that person named you unwanted then I can only imagine what your home life must be like.  You don’t have to become what they expect you to be.  You can become what you want to be.  Tell me, what is the name that your friends call you?”

I smirked, “They call me Creo, it’s Latin for artist or creator.  My friend Theo is a big word nerd.”

“Is this a name that you like?”

I shrug, “It fits me well enough.  I spend enough time with my art.  But…”  I paused debating whether or not I should continue.  “I’ve always liked the name Sarah.”

“Ahh, a good name, it means Princess.  And it was the name that God gave to the wife of Abraham.  She was the mother of his chosen people.  She was a woman who would never be called Unwanted by her God.  And I would be honored if you would allow me to call you Sarah…Princess.”

Tears were flowing freely down my face by this time as I said, “I would like that a lot Mrs. Hunter.”

Mrs. Hunter smiled and said, “Well I’ll only call you Sarah if you call me by chosen name.”

“And what’s that?”

“Carol, a Song of Joy and for 30 years now I have been planting seeds of that joy in the garden of girls hearts…Nakusha’s just like you.  Because you see long ago when I was growing up in India a women did it for me.”

Did you know that in India women who only give birth to daughters are considered a disgrace to their families and will spend time in mourning after giving birth to a daughter?  Hundreds of girls have been named Unwanted and are treated more like property than family.  The only way that many of these girls can restore honor to themselves is by marrying a man who can a pay a good dowry.  Today in India, authorities are working to stop the practice by holding renaming ceremonies to help these girls regain the self-esteem that was stolen from them before they were even a minute old.  One day Nataleigh’s own sister hopes to work with young girls who have been raised in this setting.

Did you know that Nataleigh owns over a dozen hats?!

The Lonely Track~ Short Story by Nataleigh Robinson

The clock struck one and Addison glanced around the room again nervously.  He had said midnight, midnight exactly but as she looked around the room again she was beginning to doubt if he would ever come.  She glanced at her watch again and decided that she was done waiting around. 

She turned toward the door stopping only for a minute to look back over her shoulder hoping that someone would notice her departure, someone would stop her and tell her they wanted her to stay but just as she had expected no one paid her any attention. 

“Can I pull up you car miss?”

She snapped back to attention turning toward the valet who was standing behind her.  “Yes, Weems please.”  He spoke into the small speaker pinned to his jacket asking one of the drivers to “please pull up Miss Weems vehicle.” She watched the dancing guests spinning around the dance floor in the Waltz.  She sighed and took her coat from the man who had just brought it to her and turned to get into her car. 

As she drove the familiar road home her thoughts turned to Blaine once again.  She should have expected it, it was typical.  Every guy who had ever promised her anything always let her down in some way or another.  She should have known Blaine would be no exception. 

She was 20 years old and she was ready to settle down, get married and have children, but try as she might nobody was willing to stick around for long.  She had started online dating not long after her 20^th birthday deciding that if she didn’t start taking some control of her love life sooner than later than she would probably end up an old maid.

The thought of being single for the rest of her life usually made her feel sick to her stomach she couldn’t imagine what it would be like to die alone without having experienced true love and children and grandchildren.  What a lonely existence that would be.

When she had met Blaine through one of the online dating sights she had promised herself that she wouldn’t get worked up about him, she didn’t want to be disappointed.  But the more they had talked and the more they got to know each the harder she found it not to imagine herself marrying this guy and living happily ever after.  Finally after a couple months they had agreed to meet. 

She had spent hundreds of dollars on the perfect dress, spent hours searching for the perfect shoes and had booked her hair and nails appointment months in advance.  The evening was supposed to be glorious.  As she neared the punch bowl at five till midnight with heart pounding she had envisioned Prince Charming coming up and sweeping her off her feet.  But as the minutes ticked by she slowly started to realize that she had been stood up…again.

As she parked her car and headed inside to her small one bedroom apartment, she couldn’t erase the feeling of rejection and couldn’t help but feel like maybe there was something that she was doing wrong that was causing all the guys to run the other direction when they started getting to know her. 

           

She kicked off her heels and headed to the bathroom where she stood staring at herself in the mirror for a moment, “What am I missing?” She asked her reflection, “I think I look ok maybe not drop-dead gorgeous like some girls but it’s not like I’m hideous or anything.”

She took her time to change out of her dress all the while thinking through her potential flaws and trying to figure out what it was that caused Blaine to reject her.  By the time she crawled into bed she had practically convinced herself that she would never be able to attract a man.  “Maybe it would have been better if I hadn’t been so picky about the type of guy I wanted.  I’m sure it was my conviction to stay pure that scared Blaine off.  If I could do it over again I wouldn’t have been so hard to date.  Maybe I would be married by now” By the time she drifted off to sleep her pillow was soaked through with her tears. 

When she woke up the next morning she felt terrible.  Her sheets were tangled and in an attempt to untangle herself she ended up tumbling onto the floor.  She stood up in confusion wondering how she had misjudged where the edge of the bed was and scrambled to her feet.  The sun was shining through her single window and she decided that today would be a good day for a jog. 

“I’ll take a nice long jog and then I’ll come back and update my profile,”  She thought as she pulled on her tennis shoes,  “maybe there was something I’ve missed that’s been turning people off or maybe there’s something I need to add to it.”

She ran for probably a good hour before stopping and by then she was standing outside a small park with a little girl sitting on a swing.  There was a bench close by and she crossed the distance and flopped down on the bench.  The little girl hopped off the swing and rushed over stopping just a couple of feet from the bench, “What are you running from?”  She asked curiously.

Addison laughed softly, “I’m not running away from anything.”

The little girl climbed up onto the other end of the bench and stared intently at Addison, “You have to be running away from something, you were running like someone was chasing you, were you playing a game?”

“No I wasn’t playing a game,”  She was about ready to tell her once again that she wasn’t running away from anything but then realized that it wasn’t true.  “I guess I was running from something.”

The girl scooted a little closer and repeated her original question, “What are you running from?”

Addison sighed and leaned forward resting her chin in her hands, “Something I can’t get away from.”

The little girl looked around nervously her blond pigtails swinging back and forth as she looked for any sign of danger, “I should be getting home,”  She said slowly edging off the bench.

Addison laughed gently and shook her head. “I’m not running from a person, I’m running from a problem.”

The little girl looked relieved and climbed back onto the bench, “How do you run away from a problem?”  She asked pulling her legs underneath her and placing her small hands on her knees. 

Addison looked out at the park as a squirrel dashed up a tree startling a bird that flew away; she sighed and looked at the little girl that was staring at her eagerly.  “I’m not actually running away from anything.”  She stared down at her hands wondering why she was so nervous to talk to a little girl, it wasn’t like she would even understand what she was saying, “I’m just running to distract myself from thinking about my problem.”

The little girl nodded as if she understood and then to her surprise said, “I do that too.”  She looked down at her hands studying them as if they had suddenly become interesting, “except I don’t run I come here and swing on that swing,” She turned and pointed at the swing she had been previously sitting on.

Addison turned to look at the little girl staring at her curiously, “What do you have to distract yourself from?”

The little girl shrugged and didn’t look at Addison, “A lot of stuff,”

“Like what?”  Addison pressed sensing that this little girl had a lot of things on her mind.

She didn’t say anything

“Well I’m here because I’m tired of being alone.”

The little girl brightened, “Well you’re not alone anymore, I’m right here.”

Addison smiled at the little girl, “thanks but that’s not what I meant, I meant that I want to be married.”

The little girl scrunched up her nose, “I don’t think I’ll ever get married.”

Addison laughed, “You won’t say that when you’re older.”

“Mommy says boys are stupid and don’t ever keep their promises.”

“That’s not true of all boys.  There are good guys out there.”

The little girl thought for a moment then said, “Well than I would rather wait until I find one of the good ones.  And if I never find one then I’ll just live by myself forever and ever.”  She paused for a minute considering something then said, “My daddy ran away and never came back when I was just a baby.  My mommy got married when I was three and now they’re getting a divorce now mommy cries all the time when I asked why they didn’t just apologize and make up she said because she didn’t trust or love him anymore, but I think she’s lying because I still here her crying when she doesn’t think I’m listening.”

Addison sat there in speechless shock and then finally regained her composure, “That’s a lot for a little girl to carry by herself.”  She just nodded, so Addison continued, “you make my problem sound really small.”

The little girl laughed and to Addison it seemed like the sweetest sound she had ever heard, “mommy says that adult problems are always bigger than kid’s problems.” 

Addison grinned, “Well that’s not true in this case.”

The little girl looked over at a house across the street and hopped off the bench, “I should be going or mommy will get worried.”

Addison nodded and watched as she raced across the park, stopping for only a moment to look both ways before dashing across the street and disappearing inside a house.  Addison just sat there for a moment.  “God forgive me,” She whispered, “I’ve been so focused on being in a relationship that I haven’t been thinking clearly.  I almost set aside my purity but you’ve reminded me that it would cost me more to give myself away then it would cost to keep myself pure.” 

She stood up then and started the jog back toward her apartment once she got back inside she pulled up the online dating sight and hit the delete button, “God I’m going to trust you now.  I’m going to trust that you will bring the right guy my way when the time is right.  And give me other things to focus my attention on until that time.” 

 Did you know that Nataleigh's favorite movie is "To Save A Life"?!

Did you know that Gina's mom is also her best friend?!

Photograph property of Lilies Among Thorns Magazine. Photograph taken my Gina Vasquez.