When God Says No

I had this dream, this desire that I wanted to be an RA next year.  Yes, it would be a lot of work.  Yes, a big responsibility.  Yes, a big chance I wouldn’t even make it.

But I went for it.  I took hours upon hours filling out the application.  I did the interviews.  And then I began to wait.

It was three weeks of waiting, waiting to see if I even made it to the next step in training.  Waiting that happened to be during Christmas break and Passion.

I wrote about Passion in this post, about Christine Caine’s message that the bravest thing we can be is a servant of the Lord.

A servant.

Before we can be servants, we must be willing to do the dirty work, to do what it takes to get that high title from Jesus Christ.

It was then that God began whispering, RA isn’t for you next year, Bailey.  SLC is.  You need another year of preparation, of me shaping you into who I want you to be.

Here at Liberty we have three leadership positions on each hall, a Prayer and Life Group Leader who leads a group of five or six girls in a small group every Wednesday night (that’s me this year), a Spiritual Life Coach who reaches out to the Prayer Group Leaders and the girls on the hall, and then RA’s.

SLC wasn’t something I had really considered…until Passion.  Until God began whispering into my life, Not RA, but SLC.  Not the head leadership spot, but the one where you are serving, where you are continually being shaped by Me.

At first I ignored it, I wanted to be an RA and nothing else. And when I came back to school in January, that’s all I had on my mind: RA, RA, RA.

But the longer I waited to hear if I made it through first cuts…the more God was telling me no, the more He was telling me that’s not what He wanted for me, the more my heart was being put in tune with his desires for me…and maybe that was SLC.

And so I began filling out the application for SLC.  I did the interview.

And when that email came from the office of student leadership saying that I didn’t make it through first cuts for RA, my heart sunk.  But then somehow in the same moment, this feeling of relief washed over me.  This feeling of peace settled down in my heart because God had made it clear that He didn’t want me to be an RA. His desires for me were very different.

God had said no.  But when I looked out at the sunset that night, I knew it was going to be okay.  This no wasn't the end of the world.

You’ll hear from people that God will never say no when you pray for something.  I’d like to tell you just the opposite.  Yes, He will always answer our prayers, but it won’t always be like we want them to be answered.

He’s going to say no sometimes.

I prayed for RA, I prayed for months that this was what He wanted for me.  But God said no.

Here’s the beautiful thing though: when God says no to one dream, He is always saying yes to another one.

He is saying no to what WE have planned and saying yes to what HE has planned for our lives.  It’s beautiful really, because when we think things are falling apart and God has ignored what we want, He is still keeping out best interests in mind.

He just wants to protect us, to give us the very best he has to offer.

Which is why I wait now for SLC.

Which is why He is breathing in me a new, beautiful, incredible dream for what awaits me in my future (which is a whole post in itself).

Which is why I’m trusting in Him, knowing that when He said no to RA, He also said yes to so many other things that I could have never imagined.

So just know the next time God tells you no, even though it doesn’t feel like it, He’s saying yes to something so much greater for you…and for me, too.

Isaiah 55:8-9, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

And I’m so grateful for His no’s.  Because in turn, He says yes.  And every time He says yes, it’s always been so much greater than what I could have ever asked for.

~Bailey

P.S. Just after I found out I didn’t make it for RA, I found out that I’ll be going to Tanzania this summer. It’s been three years since I went to Uganda and I could not be more excited to be returning to Africa.  Such a great yes from my Father! Please join us in praying as we begin raising funds for our whole family (yes, all six of us!) to go to Tanzania.

Passion 2016

I didn’t know my heart needed wrecking until the Lord came and brought the most beautiful wave of truth across my life.

I didn’t realize how much I had been missing Paige until I heard the testimony of a church planter named Levi Lusko who lost his daughter when she was five years old to an asthma attack.

I didn’t ever occur to me just how convicted I was about using my writing and my life for His glory until Christine Caine said that the greatest title we could ever gain in life was being called Christ’s servant.

Let me back up a little bit.

This weekend I traveled with the college ministry at my church to a conference in Atlanta, Georgia called Passion.  It was my second time attending this conference, but this time around God moved in me and around me more than I could have ever asked for or imagined. 

Passion is a conference that has been taking place for the last nineteen years, a gathering of college students, a generation united for Jesus’ fame and glory.  Each year we are given the opportunity to hear from world renowned Christian speakers, authors, pastors and musicians.  This year we had the privilege to hear from Louie Giglio, John Piper, Ravi Zacharias, Christine Caine, Levi Lusko, Chris Tomlin, Hillsong United, the Passion Band, Matt Redman, Christy Nockels, Rend Collective, and David Crowder.  

Oh, and did I mention it took place in THREE arenas in two different cities with a total of 40,000 students and their leaders?

Yes, it was incredible. If I haven’t convinced you of how awesome it is, just keep reading. 

We arrived on Saturday night and I left that night and headed back to our hotel so filled with the Holy Spirit and the joy He brings that I thought I might burst.  The next morning, however, I should have known that God was trying to show me huge things because I could feel the enemy vying for my attention. 

I began to get frustrated with simple things: it took us forever to get into the arena, we missed part of my favorite band, it was *according to me in the moment* 1,000 degrees where we were sitting, and I was starting to get a headache.

But then God said, “Just stop complaining and listen for half of a second, just remember why you are here.”

So I breathed in deep and did just that.  

It was then that Levi Lusko came on stage and began to share his testimony.  He began by telling us about the church that he and his wife had planted and how much God had been doing in their lives in the last ten years.

Then things shifted as he began to share that his five year old daughter had passed away three years ago from something so preventable, an asthma attack.  

Tears immediately filled my eyes and I thought back to three years ago when we lost Paige just as unexpectedly. 

He continued to tell us about how God had been glorified in the next few days when two of her nurses came to believe in Jesus Christ at their church’s Christmas Eve service that took place just days after her death.  He told us how God had begun to heal and put his family back together after going through such huge tragedy.

Tears fell down my cheeks as he spoke with such certainty about the sovereignty of God.

Because even within these past few months, especially the last couple weeks, I’ve missed Paige more than I have in a long time.  I’ve started asking God once again why He took her, why I can’t have her here as I walk through college and face the challenges that it brings.  I’ve wondered why Christmas hasn’t been the same since she’s been gone.  

But as I sat listening to his testimony, God wrapped His arms around me and reminded me that all of this has a purpose, and that purpose is that He may be glorified.  He reminded me that if I viewed suffering as a bad thing, that’s what it would become.  But if I viewed trials and suffering as a way to grow closer to Him and to glorify my Savior, that’s what it would become.

In the words of Levi Lusko, “Suffering is not an obstacle, but an opportunity to be used by God.”

Words can’t convey how much healing the Lord brought me as I sat in Phillips Arena with one of my best friend’s arm around me while I sobbed and Levi Lusko prayed over those longing for healing and hope in the midst of grief, prayed for us to see trials and suffering as a blessing in disguise. 

I left that session in awe of God, but little did I know what that night would bring.

Last year we got to hear Christine Caine speak, so I knew that her message for us would be nothing short of amazing. 

Little did I know God had even more reminders for me.

Long story short, she spoke about how the greatest people in the Bible we called servants of God.  Before Joshua was a servant of God, he was Moses’ aide, meaning that he served in the background for years on end while God built his character and prepared him for being a servant of God.

She pointed out that so often we want to be a servant like Moses without first putting in the unseen and hard work of an aide like Joshua.  But we must be willing to be an aide to Jesus Christ and those around us so that God can prepare us for the straining work of being a servant.  

He needs to build my character while I am an aide so that in my life and in my heart, the spotlight on Christ is greater than the spotlight on me. 

When it came down to it, she challenged us to do the hard work to reach all of the nations for His glory, trusting that God’s ability is greater than any of our human limitations.  To believe that impossible is where Jesus begins, miracles are what He does, and that we are able to complete the calling and the dreams He’s put in our lives in His power.

God reminded me that He gave me a love for writing not for myself, but for those who need to hear the good news, for those who need to know that He has a plan for their lives.  He reminded me that whether I end up being a teacher in a title one school on the east coast, or in a small Ugandan village, there will be people who need to hear about Jesus.  No matter where I end up or what I end up doing day in and day out, my purpose remains the same: to bring glory to His name and share His love with all people.  

Even as I write this, I can’t put all that He has done into words.  All I can say is that I’ve never been more excited to start a year as I am about 2016 because I know that my Jesus has such an amazing future planned for me.

But for now I’m going to write.  I’m going to love my family and pour into the lives’ of my friends.  I’m going to learn and prepare myself for whatever He has in store.  And I’m going to depend on and fall in love with Jesus more and more every day, pursuing His heart and His Word more than I ever have before. 

So here’s to 2016 and my Jesus and the hope that I have, we all have, in Him.

~Bailey

Faithful God

“When we look back and see trials, God sees testimony. When we look back and see suffering, He sees blessing.” -David Nasser

Faithful: loyal, constant, and steadfast

- - - - - -

When I came to visit Liberty back in January, Kari Jobe sang “Great I Am.”  For those of you that are new around here, one of my best friends, Paige, passed away in 2012 and this was her favorite worship song.  Since then it has become my anthem, one that is still emotional and heart wrenching, but so very powerful.

Back to January.  I wrote about this experience in convocation (chapel) in this post, explaining how the Lord was further convincing me that Liberty was where I needed to be.

- - - - - -

Last Wednesday night, I was sitting in campus church and they began to sing “Never Once.”

Standing on this mountaintop
Looking just how far we’ve come
Knowing that for every step
You were with us

Never once did we ever walk alone
Never once did You leave us on our own
You are faithful, God, You are faithful

Tears filled my eyes as I remembered the Sunday after Paige passed away when I sat in church sobbing while they played this song, wondering how in the world my “faithful” God let her die, how He took her from me.

Again on Sunday morning in church, they played the same song and again I pictured little 15 year old Bailey sitting in church crying, questioning God, angry at Him.

But as the tears started to fall down my cheeks, I was only able to reflect on the last three years and all that God has done to bring me where I am today.

Today I am no longer bitter or angry with God. No, I am completely the opposite. I am thankful to Him for refining me and bringing me through the fire.

Today I no longer question Him and His plan for my life because I know He has my best interest in mind, no matter how hard it may seem in the moment.

Today when a trial comes my way, I hold fast to my Jesus. I hold fast to Him and the promises He’s made to me.


When I shared my testimony with some of my friends here at school, I found myself in tears over God’s faithfulness in my life over these past three years.

This week He has constantly been saying to me, “I am faithful. I am faithful. I am faithful.”

He hasn’t put me down so far…and I know that He will forever have me in His hands. Words can’t express all of the ways He has been showing me His faithfulness…from beautiful sunsets, heartfelt conversations with friends, new friendships that are beautifully brought together by Christ…

Tonight we stood again in campus church and they began to play “Great I Am.”  Tears immediately fell down my cheeks and all I could do was worship.

Because He knows.

He knew that tonight I’d be sharing my testimony with my prayer and life group. He knew that it’s been a long week. He knew that I needed a reminder that it’s okay to miss Paige, especially in this stage of life.

He knows that I need to be constantly reminded of the fact that I desperately need Him every moment, every hour, every minute of every day.  He knows that in a world that fails me, I need someone who is faithful no matter what.  He knows just how much I need Him, His love, His peace…

He knows how much I need my Father, the Great I Am, the One who is greater than any wave of affliction that comes my way, the One who calms every storm and brings us through the fire stronger than ever.

So tonight, in the early, early hours of September 24th, 2015…another 24th is going by and I miss my Paige just as much as I did the day she died.

But it’s another 24th where I’m saying to my Father, Thank You for Your faithfulness to me. Thank You for refining me and bringing me through the fire…and being faithful in every step of this story You’re writing for me. 

Jesus, I am in love with You.


Praise God that when we see trials, He sees testimony, when we see suffering, He sees the most challenging, beautiful, redeeming, grace-filled blessing.

Praise God that He is faithful…always.

Deuteronomy 31:6, "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."

~Bailey

Lessons at LU

Abide.

"Accept or act in accordance with"

Thankful.

"Expressing gratitude and relief"

How much.

"What amount or price"



Over this last month at Liberty (I need to write another post devoted to my experiences and college life) God has been teaching me.  I've been trying to stay in a stance of humility so that I'm always able to hear when He speaks to me.

Just in this last week, each time He's spoken it's only been in one or two word phrases.

Abide. Thankful. How much.

He's been teaching me how beautiful it is when I- heart and soul -abide in Him.  When, throughout the day, I stop and remember to rest in Him, to let His peace take over my heart and bring a sense of calm throughout my soul.

The definition of abide reads "Accept or act in accordance with."  But abiding in Christ is so much more than that.  When I choose to abide in Christ, I am choosing not only to accept His plan, but to embrace it, to find joy in each day He has for me.  I am choosing to act and speak with genuine joy and acceptance of His plan, no matter how difficult it may seem.


He's been teaching me that no matter how long the day is, no matter how many homework assignments I have left to do at midnight, there is always something to be thankful for. Whether it be friends who remind you of family, a team of leadership who exemplifies Christ beautifully, or worshipping in chapel earlier that day...there is beauty in every day.  If you're saying, "I'm in the valley, in darkness that seems to deep to crawl out of."  He tells us there is beauty even in the ashes.

Be thankful.


Just tonight as I walked back from the library on the brink of tears over tests and homework and assignments all due at once, I couldn't get this phrase out of my mind: I just can't believe how much I have to get done. It's too much. I don't know how I'll get it done. 

But in that moment, I had a nudging just to glance up at the sky to try to get a peak at the stars. There have only been a handful of times that the stars have outshone the street lights up here on campus. But tonight was one of those nights. I looked up and the stars shone down and God whispered,

My daughter, you have no idea how much love I have for you...how much greater I am than anything you are facing...how much grace will be awaiting you when you awake in the morning...how many wonderful blessings I have for you in the coming minutes, hours, days, and weeks if you will abide in me and be thankful...and remember just how much love I have for you, that the stars would shine so bright on a night when your heart is so overwhelmed. 


These are lessons He is teaching me up here at Liberty University.  So tonight, as you might expect, I have quite a few things to be thankful for.  As I have been abiding in Him in these last few weeks, and hopefully in the weeks to come, I can't wait to continue to see just how much my Savior has in store for me.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-19, "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."

~Bailey

P.S. If you haven't purchased With All of Your Heart yet, I would love if you read it and told your friends about it :)

How to Survive Your Senior Year

Here I am, getting ready to leave for college in less than a week and I find myself reflecting on the last year.

It has been crazy and full of so so so many decisions.

It's been, at time, stressful.

But then others have been simply beautiful, memories that I will remember forever.

Reminiscing on this past year, however, is not the purpose of this post.

This post is for you, yes you, the rising senior (and even junior!) in high school. For as I thought back on my senior year, there were so many things that I wanted to share with you. So after much thought and consideration on just what I would share...it came down to this: a list of five things to keep in mind as you close out your high school chapter.

1. I suppose we'll start on a non-serious note and I'll say this: have fun. Enjoy yourself! Let these last one/two years of your high school career be the best yet. No matter what's going on, make sure you take time aside from studying, applying to colleges, visiting colleges, and stressing about life in general to spend time with friends, be goofy, watch sad movies, laugh until you cry, eat WAY to much candy, and be a kid because soon people will expect you to be very much like an adult.

2. And that brings us to #2. All of your 18 years people expect you to listen to your parents/teachers, let them make your decisions for you and, well, quite honestly, they still (for the most part) treat you like a child.

But something interesting happens about half way through your junior year in high school. Everyone, and I mean, everyone, is going to ask you this: "So what are you doing with the rest of your life? Where are you going to college? What are you majoring in?"

All of the sudden you're being treated like an adult, expected to have all of the answers and know exactly what's going on. These questions won't end...they still haven't for me! Some days you'll get tired of the endless questions, but know this: these people only want the best for you. Let them ask questions, care deeply, and ask how they can pray for you. Because when you leave for college, knowing you have a crowd of prayer warriors will mean the world. So answer the endless questions, let people treat you like an adult even though it may seem hard to act like one.

3. But also know this: it's going to look like everyone else your age knows exactly what they want to do and exactly how they're going to do it. My friend, that is not the case!

From your perspective, it'll seem that everyone else has everything together, but in reality, they're just as wigged out as you are.

It may not seem like it, but while you're scrambling to submit college applications and trying to squeeze in as many credits as possible, and about to lose your mind...everybody else is feeling/thinking/doing the exact same things. 

So friend, you are not alone! Don't let this overwhelm you. Talk about it with your friends and rant together about senior year struggles. We weren't made to do this alone.

4. Treasure every single moment with your family, friends...again, we weren't made to do life by ourselves. Time with those we love should be well treasured, because trust me, when it comes time to leave...or get a job...or do whatever God calls you to do...you'll have wished you would have spent less time on Instagram and Facebook and more with the people you deeply care about.

Friendships are priceless. Family is gold. Time goes by so much faster than we ever think it would. But these relationships are the things you'll remember- and hopefully have- forever. So make them beautiful, memorable, and super fun memories. {I wrote a whole post on this here.}

5. Give it to Jesus.

My friend, turning to people for help is awesome. I highly recommend it. But above that- turn to Jesus. I cannot emphasize that enough.

Turn. To. Jesus. 

Let Him have every single detail of your fragile life. He will make it into the most stunning mosaic you've ever seen. Trust me.

I took the long route. I tried to do this whole college, tuition, huge life changes thing by myself. I tried for SO long before I realized: well this isn't working. To say I failed miserably would be an understatement.

No matter how crazy it may sound, this failing was one of the best things that ever happened to me. Because when I turned to give it to Him, He was waiting with open arms, waiting for me to trust Him and let Him take hold of every detail of my life and work it out better than I could have ever imagined. (See Ephesians 3:20-21)

If you take anything from this post, take this: Give it to Jesus. What is IT? Everything. Admissions. Tuition. Nerves. Stress. All of it. He wants to show you just how good He is at creating marvelous stories.


So, as you enter into your final year(s) of high school, I hope this put some peace into your soul. I hope it reminded you to treasure the little things, to have fun, but most importantly: to trust Jesus with your everything. He wants to give you the best possible future.

And as I head to college next week, I'm so excited to be entering this future He has had prepared for me for such a long time.

~Bailey

If you've been looking for updates on With All of Your Heart, here it is! Book #2 is officially published and available on amazon.com. I'm so excited for all of you to read this new story.

Thanks for supporting me in this journey!

Holding All Things

Graduating high school brings in a slew of emotions. Ask my friends, I'm not an emotional person but ever since the beginning of this semester I've been emotional on a whole new level.

Last Sunday I sat in Sunday School in the youth area for the last time. My youth pastor was praying afterwards and his first words were this, "Lord, thank You for these six years we've had together."

And I just about lost it.

Wednesday night I realized I only had two Wednesday nights left as a student in the youth ministry. But while Matt was preaching a verse that I had read a million times popped out at me...it was this:

Colossians 1:17, "And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together."

When I'm emotional because my whole life is changing...that verse went straight to the deepest parts of my heart.

This was my train of thought driving home from church:

At the beginning of the year when my financial information wasn't coming through at Liberty and I felt as if maybe college just wasn't going to happen, maybe God had a different plan...

He was holding all things together.

When I was applying for scholarships and crying over essay topics I just didn't understand...

He was holding all things together.

In February when I went to visit Liberty and nothing was set in stone but I knew this was the place I wanted to spend the next four years of my life...

He was holding all things together.

Just weeks ago I spoke at a church about writing my book and my trip to Uganda. But my nerves were eating me alive and I was terrified...

He was holding all things together.

When life is overwhelming and frustrating...when I wanted someone to really talk to, someone who would listen and have the wisdom I needed, but my adopted big brother was in Brazil, my adopted big sister was in California...and the other sister passed away almost three years ago and I missed them so much that it hurt...

He was holding all things together even when it didn't seem like it.

How do I know? How can I be so sure?

Because when I needed that person to talk to, I got a text from Trent (that big brother in Brazil). I got the kind of text that really just said, "Hey, how's your life?" And I knew he wouldn't care if I poured my guts out. We texted back and forth and the tears rose over and over again.

When I went to speak at that church, the Lord gave me such peace and spoke through me as only He could.

Because when my financial information came through it was better than we could have ever imagined. The Lord provided and did it in His time...not mine. All of this is a whole post in itself.

In all of these things He proved to me exactly what that verse says, "in Him all things hold together."

Without Him, I would literally fall apart! My life would crash and burn...but no, in His great love, grace, and mercy, He chooses to hold my life together day in and day out, making sure everything happens exactly when it needs to.

I know, you probably hear that all the time and it probably sounds cliche. Because less than two months ago it sounded cliche to me, too.

But today I can assure you that my God is the One who is making sure the sun will set tonight, the stars (that He knows by name) will be in the right spots, the earth keeps spinning...is also the God who is executing every detail of your life, and mine, too.

So whatever you're waiting for, whatever you think just isn't going to happen, whatever you've lost hope for and are even doubting God about...know He's holding it all together.

Know He's got you and me and all of us in His hands and is very literally holding all things together.

I know at least for me, that is the greatest hope.

~Bailey

There is Liberty

I don’t even know how to begin to tell this story.

Only God.

I guess a good starting point would be this blog post, the one where I talked about what I didn’t know what was coming next in my future.

Around this time I had started looking at three different colleges. I had been to two of them and didn’t feel at home, I didn’t love either of them. Many of my friends who are in college had said, “You’ll know it. You’ll walk on campus and you’ll know it’s where you’re supposed to be.”

I hadn’t felt that at either of these two schools (nothing against either one- they are awesome schools!). So the next week my parents, my friend Caroline, and I traveled up to Lynchburg Virginia to visit Liberty University.

*Let me give a bit of background here: from various things I was basically set I was not going to be attending Liberty University. I just had it in my mind that I was not going to Liberty.*

So. We go on a Thursday night to see The Little Mermaid at their theater. Holy cow, was it amazing. The next day we take a tour to see the campus and to experience convocation (chapel). It was all so very impressive and so beautiful. Every person and every atmosphere shouted Jesus.

Various times throughout the tour I could just picture myself there, growing in my relationship with the Lord there. And I thought, Maybe this is that feeling they were all talking about. 

Fast forward a couple of weeks.

I really wasn’t thinking about the college thing all that much but I had been praying, “Lord, give me clarity, give me undeniable peace.”

I had pretty much already eliminated the other two schools but I wanted to know that Liberty was where I was supposed to be…wanted to know without a shadow of a doubt.

Right after Christmas I had sat down with my mom and dad and just said, “I’m pretty sure Liberty is a yes.” I had begun to sense this peace and contentment about the whole decision.

Little did I know what God had planned.

Soon after, I’m scrolling through Facebook and I see that Liberty has posted something about Karen Kingsbury. I clicked on the link to see that she had just partnered with Liberty to be a visiting professor, would be offering exclusive curriculum to Liberty, and would be offering a significant scholarship to four students.

I turned to my mom, “I could be taught about writing by Karen Kingsbury!!”

Alright, Lord. I’ve got it. Liberty it is.

Friday, January 30th, my dad and I made the two hour drive to Liberty for convocation because Kari Jobe (my favorite female vocalist) and Beth Moore would be there! Obviously we needed to go.

So just my dad and I went. We left bright and early and got there twenty minutes early just in time to see Kari Jobe finishing her sound check. (Yes, it was awesome.)

We met up with my cousins who are there and the service started.

She sang Revelation Song, one of my all time favorites.

But then they started playing the chords to the second song.

Wait, I know this. I thought. Great I Am. 

My heart filled.

For those of you that don’t know, Great I Am was Paige’s favorite worship song. For the first year after she passed away, I couldn’t sing it without breaking down into tears. But the Lord has brought me SO far since then and now it is my own worship anthem to Him.

I stood and worshipped and it was if the Lord leaned down and said, “My Daughter, if she were here, she would love this school and how they proclaim Jesus and she would support you coming here, too.”

As if that wasn’t enough, there was peace. There was clarity. More importantly, there was Jesus. Lifted higher than anything else. Great I Am.

It was all the confirmation I could have ever needed. Tears fill my eyes just typing this.

Only. God.

Only God!

As I was reading my Bible last night before bed, I came across this note I had written on a post-it note and stuck in the book of Esther. It read, “As painful as the process might be, that which shatters us will also shatter our fragility and free us to walk with dignity and might to our destinies. We aren’t the fragile flowers we’ve considered ourselves to be. We are the warrior princesses of God.* Let His name be higher than all He has overcome!”

And the date noted at the bottom? January 30th, 2013.

What was Friday’s date? January 30th, 2015.

I don’t begin to remember what happened on January 30th, 2013. Obviously it was something big. God was doing big things in my heart that prepared me for this day.

But I know that every moment that has shattered me has allowed me to walk with dignity and might to this, what has been my destiny since the creation of the world.

Not only will I walk with dignity and might, I will walk in His love, in His plan…and in His liberty.

2 Corinthians 3:17, “Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.”

~Bailey

*I do remember I was doing Beth Moore’s study on Esther. This quote is from that study. It is excellent! I highly recommend anything by her.

And We're Off!

Wow! It's the 20th of January and I've spent more days this year in a hotel than in my own house!

But I'm not complaining!

First up was a trip to Disney World celebrating my upcoming High School graduation. We got to meet so many fun characters AND spend an entire week as a family. Not to mention we got to go with my best friend and her family. It was an unforgettable week!

{Again: picture overload! If you follow me on Instagram you've probably seen most of these pictures already.}

It was still decorated for Christmas and I couldn't have been happier.

Yes. I was the 17 year old waiting in line to meet all of the princesses.

Mandatory "It's a Small World" selfie.

Sonia and me in front of Rapunzel's tower.

We ate lunch at the Be Our Guest restaurant inside the Beast's castle. It was so beautiful I almost cried. *no lie*

The boys were almost as excited to meet Rapunzel as Sonia and I were!

Magic Kingdom is the most magical place of all.

Hollywood Studios!

Princess Tiana and Prince Naveen!

Another group picture!

Mary Poppins! We met her, Alice, The Mad Hatter, Tigger and Pooh at 1900 Park Fare for a character breakfast.

Proof that, yes, we saw Anna and Elsa. But no! We didn't wait in the two+ hour line to meet them.

Snow White...

And Belle!

Epcot in the evening!

Animal Kingdom.

Nemo the Musical!

Then less than a week after we returned from Disney I had the incredible opportunity to travel to Atlanta, GA with a group from my church for Passion 2015! If you don't know what that is, here's a brief explanation: it's a conference for 18-25 year olds(and high school seniors) who want to worship Jesus and grow closer to Him. Musicians include people like Chris Tomlin, Christy Nockels, Kristian Stanfill, Matt Redman and David Crowder. The speakers for this year were Louie Giglio, Christine Caine, and Lecrae. I've watched the live stream of this conference for five years now and it was worth every second of the wait. Needless to say it was three of the best days of my whole entire life.

Courtney and I extremely excited for our first Passion.

Megan, Kristen and me!

The cross and Jesus were the center of our whole weekend.

Community/family groups were fantastic! 

I got the chance to meet up with my lovely cousin, Mary-Gwen and her husband.

This was my family group- seven girls I had never met before and will never forget! They were SO sweet and even though we've all been through incredibly different things we were united through our relationship with Jesus.

Matchy-matchy with the girls.

Seriously- I've never experienced God's Presence like I did this past weekend. He spoke so clearly to me (and the 12,000 other students in attendance) and I will never forget all that the Lord did. We were able to worship Him with nothing else in the way. It was so very beautiful. 

Obviously it's been an incredible beginning to 2015. I can tell that God has amazing things in store for this year and I can't wait to see what else He has planned!

~Bailey

"Like a bride waiting for her groom, we'll be a church ready for you, every heart longing for the King. We sing. Even so come, Lord Jesus come."

Top 12 of 2014

Wow. It's always so crazy how every year seems to go by so much faster than the one before. It absolutely blows my mind that it's January 1st of 2015. 

This year I graduate high school. This year I'll go to college. This year we're going to Disney World (in 3 days, but who's counting?). This year I go to Passion. 

But as I got ready for bed last night, all I could think about was how incredibly thankful I am for all that 2014 held. 

Yes, it was hard. Believe me, mono was NOT fun. 

But my Jesus held me and He took care of me and showed me that I always, always, always need Him and His never ending, unstoppable, always reaching out for me love. 

Last year I did a top ten of 2013 post and I figured I'd do it again. Except this year I couldn't narrow it down to just ten. 

So here's the top 12 of 2014. {Warning: picture overload.}

12. Braces came off!

11. Trent and Sydney

Throughout 2014 my entire family grew so close to Trent and Syd and it was amazing. Now they're in Brazil and I miss them like crazy. 

10. Praise band has been such a gift this year. We've had multiple youth Sundays and they are my favorite. I love leading alongside these talented musicians. 

 This was at our night of worship in December. It was magical.

9. 17th birthday and Summer With the Arts. 

Shortly after being diagnosed with mono we had our yearly music and arts camp. It was also the week of my birthday. I spent about half of the week sleeping, BUT God continued to heal me and I had a great birthday celebration. 

8. Hilton Head!

We try to take a yearly trip as a family to Hilton Head. We got to go for almost two weeks this year. GLORIOUS.

7. Student Life at Myrtle Beach.

What a week. Got to room with three of my best friends, got to worship with the majority of my youth group. God was there. (And I had mono but I didn't know it yet. That was fun. NOT.)

6. CHRISTMAS! 

Ah. This Christmas was like a breath of beautiful, fresh air. I don't think I've ever been so Christ focused around Christmas and it was probably my favorite Christmas yet. 

And a trip to Disney was included so that was amazing. 

 We had a little craft day with some of the girls from church!

At the Christmas Eve service.

5. Kari Jobe in Atlanta. 

I don't even have words. It was one of my all time favorite weekends. So thankful. 

 

Selfies for days. 

4. Amanda and Nick

Back in October my favorite big sister and brother-in-law came in town from CA and spent a couple of days with us. We made some amazing memories and I got to spend so much time with both of my nieces. 

They're the cutest. But I'm only a little biased.

3. Kids at Church. 

This year the Lord has given me so many opportunities to pour into the lives of the children at church and I have never been happier to do anything (except maybe to write).

2. I got so much closer to my friends this year. They're the ones that I know I will share the rest of my life with. We've rejoiced together and been sad together. I'm so incredibly thankful to have such an amazing group of godly women to share life with.

1. And then I wrote a book. 

And it got published. 

And aside from my relationship with Jesus Christ, and my family and friends, I've never been more thankful for anything in my entire life.

He has redeemed me and given me this gift.

It has been the most rewarding journey.

 Book signing a couple of weeks ago.

Newspaper article!

My book wall.

Thank you to each of you who have been such a big part of my life in the last year.

You've encouraged me in this journey of publishing a book and writing another. I can't tell you enough how thankful I am for you and your support, prayers, and love.

But most of all, at the end of every day, I'm so thankful for my Jesus. I'm so grateful that He's given me today and that He made 2014 such a beautiful year.

He is faithful. He keeps His promises.

And I cannot wait to see what He has planned for 2015.

~Bailey