(girl) scout's honor

i am back after much too long a break again. life gets so stinking busy especially with school started back up and sorority stuff turning into my entire life! it's so shocking to me how quickly days go by and how bad i am at getting around to posting.... especially when i truly mean to try. (maybe the thought isn't everything!)

but, here is some news for you all! i'm starting my last full quarter of college and it's going to be a real doozy... i mean a real doozy. but i'm up for it and must rise to the challenge.

dearest God of mine,

please grant me strength and determination in this time of great work.

love,

a humble and needy child named am

thank goodness He promises to give us strength in phillipians 4:13:

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

oh, and how He must be so strong for me in all of the weakness that i show.

in this time of trials and amazing work loads i promise to be faithful in my posts, though they may end up being shorter. i must remember, it's not quality, it's quantity. (yep, it's cliche, but i'm trying to make myself feel better).

i will be back, sooner and not later.

scout's honor.

(yep, this is a late night make-up free shot for you all... i really want to be more personable to you all!)

song of the day:

this i promise you

by: n*sync

yep, taking it old school! it's a little romantic for my intent, but what elementary school girl didn't love n*sync during the nineties?? i know i had what i believe was an undying devotion...

just a few of my favorite things

i love to read blogs where other people put things that bring them joy in the world. and i do believe (especially during difficult times) it is the little things that count. so, here is a list of some of my favorite little things:

1. starbucks refresh tea: it's minty flavor is all kinds of goodness. i love it because it is soothing for at night time, but refreshing for a gloomy morning!

2. a good book is like a great friend. i am in love with many characters from books i have read and often try to think of people i know who could function in my life the same way the characters have in the book. (my favorite character right now is sadie from sophie kinsella's twenties girl).

3. running: nothing clears my mind and body like a good run. and living so close to the ocean and downtown la jolla equals beautiful scenery regardless of the direction i run.

4. chimes ginger chews: this brand makes the most delicious candy! and it's still "healthy" (at least that's what i tell myself!). my favorite are the mango ginger chews that look much like the container above... but this one is peanut butter (a flavor i haven't seen before!)

5. mama bird's sun tea: nope mama bird is not a brand. my mom makes the most delicious sun tea during the sunshiney summer months. sun tea is one of the things i miss most about being home all summer long... and i tried to make the same recipe down here, but something is so much more delicious about mama's.

6. taylor swift greeting cards: i mean look how precious they are! all of the ones i've seen have glitter and they are so precious. they're my favorite to pick out (though i tend to just buy all of the ones in sight) and send home to my mom... (she appreciates them so much more than my dear boyfriend, father, and brother - maybe it's the glitter?).

well, i hope you have favorites that make tough times a little bit easier.

song of the day:

beautiful every time

by: lee brice

i guess amazing will always be amazing

like a church choir singing, a nation healing

a soldier coming home alive,

the love for me girl i see in your eyes

that's beautiful, beautiful every time, ohhhhh every time

he gets the whole favorites thing for sure. find some things that are beautiful every time.

bubba, we miss you!

big changes in the minegar house this past week… my little brother is off to college and my parents are left with another empty bedroom (at least for most of the time!). what an exciting time for him... but a sad time with him being further from home than ever before. (yep, he’s a brave soul that ventured further out into the world than i ever dreamed of doing at his age!)

with move-in upon my parents and bubba, i had the honor of spending two days being adventurous with my adventurous seven-year-old brother, miah. he is just such a sweet boy with quite the personality and sense of humor.

we went fishing at the local lake… and though we did not catch anything but some weeds growing on the bottom of the water, we had so much fun being attacked by ants, finding a good fishing spot that was shaded, and going through jason’s collection of bait in his tackle box.

and, on top of all that, my favorite (all be it new and not the original) rainbows joined for the adventure!

song of the day:

boondocks

by: little big town

"you get a line, i'll get a pole, we'll go fishing in the crawfish hole down in the boondocks"

lint is a shell's best friend

"my one regret in life is that i will never have a dog. but sometimes i tie a hair to a piece of lint and i drag it around.” – marcell the shell with shoes on

oh, how i hope you watched my dear little buddy marcell the shell with shoes on (if not scroll down and catch up on your reading!). i truly admire so many things about the precious little shell with shoes on that marcell is, but most of all, i love the attitude that his little body possesses. what i would do to be able to contain that much of a personality in every square inch of my body.

after watching the video probably near 50 times, i have realized i love it so much because i can learn from marcell… hopefully you can too!

marcell makes the best of his small shell situation throughout the video, but when he talks about regretting to not be able to have a dog my heart just feels so sad. then he goes on to be absolutely adorable by improvising with hair and a lint ball. oh my gosh, if i could improvise like that my life would be full of so much more joy and a lot less time spent dwelling on what i’m lacking.

A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. –proverbs 17:22

i think God would smile down on me if i channeled my energy in the same way marcell does. rather than sit around throwing a pity party for myself, i should find some lint, tie it to a hair, and love my little “fluffy” named allen. so, yes God, i will try my hardest to be more like marcel and less like amber.

A happy heart makes the face cheerful, but heartache crushes the spirit. - proverbs 15:13

and, as marcell goes on to describe his little allen,

“well, you know what they say… lint is a shell’s best friend”

… maybe a dog is not the only best friend a person has. what can you improvise this week? maybe at work, maybe at home, or maybe just for fun… best of luck to all with their improvisations.

sincerest of apologies

dear all who read synchronicite,

here is my official apology for being absent for so long. i am sooooo incredibly sorry for being a slacker. i just returned from the vacation in idaho and have been enjoying my time away from responsibility way too much!

please, pretty please accept my lack of motivation and forgive me for being a slacker. i promise to make it up to you!

sincerely,
amber

p.s. take this little video as a token of my appreciation for your commitment to reading my blog. it will not disappoint! (and if you’re anything like my family you will be repeating the lines all the time)

p.p.s. this is apology is also my official statement that i am going to try to blog twice a week rather than just once. i am going to challenge myself to realize that even the mundane can be influential!

song of the day:

apologize
by: luke bryan

hopefully it's not too late for me to apologize... but, once again, i am sorry!

just one of those days...

it's funny how we have a little saying to get out of talking about a bad day.

her: "how are you amber?"
me: "oh you know, it's just one of those days."

somehow there is a solace or comfort found in being able to label a down on your luck day, as "one of those days". it's almost as though by saying "it's one of those days" i can lay it to rest. i no longer need to seek the goodness out in the day or be hopeful for a change in fate... instead i can just spend my precious day counting down the moments until i have the chance to lay in my bed and sleep off the ickyness. (i made that spelling up for sure!)

but why? why do we have to pretend like it's a day to be categorized? every day brings something new, adventurous, different into our lives... even if it's something as mundane as parking in a different spot in the work parking lot.

however, i realize i have a "just one of those people" attitude.

her: "amber, this is my friend, billy."
me: "oh you, you're just one of those people."

somehow, it doesn't flow as nicely off the tongue as "just one of those days". but it's the same attitude in my heart... i am ready to lay them to rest for whatever lame reason seems to be enough in my narrow mind. i decide i don't like the people billy hangs out with, the things i have
heard about him, or the way that he dresses (whatever it may be) and i decide he's "just one of those people".

but why? what a horrible injustice i am doing to skip out on the chance to make a new friend and have my mind expanded by their wisdom! one of my closest friends in high school was the atheist boy that sat next to me during my art history class. he was intelligent beyond comprehension and
admitted to being "too smart to believe in God". initially i was freaked out by him because of his strong stance on all things political, religious, academic - just on all things i suppose. but, he expanded my mind and tested my faith through his many questions and discussions... and
i like to think i pushed him to think too.

so, who are you writing off as "just one of those people"? or who is writing you off as "just one of those people"? my challenge to you (and to myself) is to open your mind and your heart to experience a new kind of friendship with a new kind of person... and if you are "just one of those
people" to someone, show them you're not.

"...great are your purposes and mighty are your deeds. Your eyes are open to all the ways of men; you reward everyone according to his conduct and as his deeds deserve." -Jeremiah 32:19

let your eyes be opened to the greatness of Him in His creation, the people that fill your lives.

song of the day:
give me your eyes
by: brandon heath

let's find God in the people we interact with. He is there, though sometimes it can be so hard to find.

"why does God let bad things happen to good people?"

this is one of the questions i have heard from believers and non-believers alike. i have spent months pondering this after the alzheimer’s diagnosis of my father, after the loss of baby hallee, after watching members of the church come down with fatal illnesses, after corruption plagues church leadership, after having good intentions and still messing up… how does this happen with the righteous right hand of God protecting us, His children, from danger?

the book of job seems to speak directly to this, but not in a fast and simple way. it takes a little bit of digging and a prayer for God’s word to speak directly into your heart. i have read through Job before, but suddenly, in this new light that the Spirit has shed on it, it is extraordinarily enlightening.

God does not stop bad things from happening for three reasons (that i have come up with and by no means is this list exhaustive or right):

1. you, as God’s child, underestimate your strength and/or abilities.

“Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us” – Romans 5:3-5

in the book of job, God hands job to satan while bragging that job is one of His most faithful servants and will remain strong despite the devil’s temptations. does job do so? yes! but not on his own. God provides friends to serve as encouragement during the most difficult of times. He is allowing for us to realize the insane muscle He has blessed us with, faith. realize that through your suffering you are growing into a better, stronger, more Hulk-like christian.

God also lays the stipulation out that satan can strip job of all he has but cannot kill him. He is holding job in His righteous right hand by ensuring that Job’s life is safe… God promised life and He is providing. He wants you to have hope in trials and tribulations so that He can come to the rescue, just as Christ rescued us from the throes of sin by hanging on the cross… maintain hope in the face of trouble because God does not disappoint.

2. He wants you to realize the condition of your heart.

“I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy. . So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.” John 16:20, 22

friedrich nietzsche once said, “what doesn’t kill me makes me stronger.” the same goes for the matters of the heart: what doesn’t kill our desires only makes them stronger. God calls us to serve His greater purpose and He provides us with talents in order to ensure our chance to participate in bringing glory to His righteous kingdom.

i have realized that all good things are worth working for; however, it’s not easy to run into tests and trials. are you truly dedicated to your convictions, your talents, His purpose? the flame will dwindle and, at times, you may fear it’s complete extinguish. but, just as nietzche says, if it doesn’t blow out that little fire will come back a full-blown, unstoppable blaze. there is a time of trial, but He will bring us into a time of rejoicing in His undeniable purpose in our lives.

3. He has faith in you, but He longs for you to grow your faith in Him.

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen.” – Ephesians 3:20-21

God has created you. He knows your greatest potential and has great faith in your ability to accomplish His goodness. but do you have enough faith in Him to endure the trials and tough times? i believe that in the face of persecution and trials you realize your (a) heart and (b) dedication. how much do you want to help others in His name? how badly do you desire to reflect Him in everything that you do?

putting yourself out there every day is difficult and being met with anything less than praise makes the task that much more daunting; however, He is rejoicing your perseverance up in heaven and will reward you (beyond anything you can fathom) for being faithful to Him. receiving criticism and negativity when you feel like you are doing what God has created you to do can breed doubt in your heart, but have faith. know that He designed you with a specific purpose for you life.

rather than think in the negative, consider tough times the ultimate compliment. God, the creator of all things, is up in Heaven wishing for you to pull close to Him and lean into the promise He has made to give a greater purpose to your life. He longs to do things in your life that are more than you would ever ask for… i’m in, how about you?

"My life is an example to many, because you have been my strength and protection. That is why I can never stop praising you; I declare your glory all day long.” –Psalm 71:7-8

remember that in everything you do people are watching. a person’s true character shows when they are staring adversity in the face, make sure you’re someone worth paying attention to (during good times and bad).

song of the day:
meant to live
by: switchfoot

"fumbling his confidence and wondering why the world has passed him by...
hoping that he's meant for more than arguments and failed attempts to fly...
we were meant to live for so much more, have we lost ourselves?"

i've lost myself several times, but leave it up to God to bring me right back to where i need to be. it's a confusing world, but He can serve as the ultimate GPS. just ask and believe.