His Strength is Perfect!

His strength is perfect when our strength is gone.

He'll carry us when we can't carry on.

Raised in His power, the weak become strong.

His strength is perfect, His strength is perfect.

His strength is perfect. Just when I think I have nothing left to give and can go no further, God reaches down and reminds me that it is HIS strength in me that makes all the difference! Today was one of those days. Between coming up short on one test, taking another, and some complicated lessons in one of my classes, I felt exhausted. My classmates and I were all feeling it. This chorus instantly came back to my memory. God has proven over and over again throughout my college years how perfect His strength is. He is so good and so faithful! He has carried me through so much. As I come to the meat of the semester here in the next few weeks, my prayer is that He will always remind me that His strength is perfect and He WILL help me carry on, even when I feel like I can go no further.

Since it has been a while since my last update, I will also bring you up to speed on some things. Life as I know it has been completely crazy this semester! I am in what is known as "pre-sequence" in the College of Education program. It is an intense semester with four classes (all literacy/reading methods courses) plus field experience. I am in a 2nd grade classroom at a midtown elementary school, and I absolutely love it! My students are so sweet and (generally) well behaved, and my mentor teacher is so wonderful! In addition to that, I am also taking a course about assessments and how to create good ones. Between classes, church, and friends, I stay busy constantly. As Billy Currington sings, "God is great, [life] is good, and people are crazy!"

Music Monday

Okay, in an effort to get me to update the blog a little more often, I am going to get into a pattern of posts throughout the week. One of the blogs I follow -Courtney over at Women Living Well - has a pattern of her own that she uses for her posts. I will not follow her same pattern, but I am creating a pattern of my own. So I will begin each week with "Music Monday", where I will share a video and the lyrics to the song in an effort to encourage you as you seek the Lord each new week!

So for my first music post, I will share with you a song that has recently become a very favorite of mine..."Glory Giver" by the Annie Moses Band.

Lyrics:

I am a bride waiting for her first kiss.
I am a child dancing in the river.

I am a worshiper basking in the bliss

of the glory of the Glory Giver!

I am a saint dressed in robes of pure white.

I am a jewel set in finest silver.

I am a follower walking in the light

of the glory of the Glory Giver!

I am a pearl purchased at a great price.

I am an heir, chosen and delivered.

I am a miracle bursting with the life

of the glory of the Glory Giver!

He is RISEN!!

Happy Easter, everyone! He is RISEN!!! Hallelujah!

I was able to spend Easter weekend with my family, and worship this morning with my home church, First Baptist of Prattville. I sing with the choir whenever I am home, and I wanted to share the words to our anthem today because they are just that powerful and deserve to be shared! Ponder this as you think on the sacrifice of the cross and the glory of the Resurrection.

It is Finished - by Bill and Gloria Gaither

There's a line that's been drawn through the ages.

On that line stands an old rugged cross.

On that cross, a battle is raging

for the gain of man's soul or its loss.

On one side march the forces of evil,

all the demons, all the devils of hell.

On the other, the angels of glory,

and they meet on Golgotha's hill.

The earth shakes with the force of the conflict,

and the sun refuses to shine.

For there hangs God's Son in the balance,

and then through the darkness He cries:

It is finished, the battle is over.

It is finished, there'll be no more war.

It is finished, the end of the conflict.

It is finished, and Jesus is Lord!

Yet in my heart, a battle was still raging.

Not all prisoners of war have come home.

These were battlefields of my own making.

I didn't know that the war had been won.

Oh but then I heard that the King of the Ages

had fought all the battles for me,

and the victory was mine for the claiming.

And now, praise HIS name I am free!

It is finished, the battle is over.

It is finished, there'll be no more war.

It is finished, the end of the conflict.

It is finished, and Jesus is Lord!

He has risen indeed! It is finished!

Mi Vida Loca: Spring Break 2010

Well, it's been a while since I've checked in on this blog. School has been mega crazy the past few weeks. And then Spring Break happened....

I had the incredible chance to spend a week in beautiful Chimaltenango, Guatemala, with about 12 other of my friends from the BCM here at South and a team of about 19 students and adults that met us down there from Lakeside Baptist Church in Birmingham. We spent the week in two villages building houses and working with the children there. And oh my goodness is it BEAUTIFUL!!!!

I would upload more pictures...BUT the picture thing is not working at the moment! Will make a slideshow and post later...

Adopted

No, this is not a literal adoption like you might think!

When I first began attending my church here in Mobile, we had a program in our college ministry called "Adopt a College Student". It's where a family in our church could kind of take a college student who was not from Mobile under their wing and help them out and be like a family to them while they were away from their own family.

Well folks....meet my adopted family!

The picture above is of my 'adopted parents' Eddie and Linda Robinson in October 2008 celebrating 40 years of marriage. I first met Mrs. Linda when I joined the choir at Dauphin Way in 2007. She is one of our first sopranos, and boy can she SING! We got to know each other, and, a few weeks later, I got to meet her husband, Eddie, and their daughter and youngest child, Melissa (I'll try to share some pictures of Melissa and me in future posts.). A few weeks later, I found out that they were going to be my adopted family! Talk about a shock! I mean, when you walk into the choir room and one of the choir members tells you they were just told to give you some balloons, pretzels, and a card...yeah...shock! Then I found out who it was from and what the request before me was. I loved them already, so it was an easy decision to say yes when they said they wanted to be my adopted family!

Since that time, the program itself has kind of fell by the way. This bond, however, remains. Mr. Eddie, Mrs. Linda, and Melissa (who we affectionately call "Sissy") will always be my adopted family. They are such a blessing to me, and I thank God for their willingness to be there for me and to look out for as their own!

Meet My Family!

Okay, I'm going to start by saying I have the coolest family in the world!

This is my dad (Archie), my sister, and me on Christmas Even 2007. Yeah, it's a little old, but it's all I have for now.

I am a total Daddy's girl. I am very close to my dad. We enjoy doing things together - mainly going to Coosa County!

My sister Holly is 17 and a Senior in high school We have your sister squabbles just like any siblings do, but I mean it when I say I have the best little sister! She can make anyone - and I mean ANYONE - laugh!

I have a wonderful mother (Kelly) as well, but for some reason, I cannot find the picture of me, Holly, and her. My parents have always supported me no matter what I have done, and they continue to be there for me and support through my college years. I love them more than they will ever know!

Now for the extended family...

I don't have many pictures to share, so I'll just brag on them a little!

Holly and I are two of six grandchildren on our dad's side. My dad's brother Art and his wife Cathy have four boys - our cousins Matt, Ryan, and twins Andrew and Zachary. Matt married Lauren in 2008. What a joy she is - truly one of the funniest people I know. In May of 2009, the next oldest, Ryan, married Heather - a NICU nurse with a heart of gold! We gladly welcome these two ladies into our family. The twins...well...they were sort of a surprise! They came along in 1998. Matt and Ryan were 14 and 11 at the time. They are now pushing 12 years old, and they are a delight in our family. My mom said it best when she said that they were a surprise, but now we cannot imagine our family without them. The heart and soul of the Cowart family lies with my precious grandparents, Gene and Anita. God called my grandmother home to Him on Halloween night 2008. She is so greatly missed, and I anxiously await seeing her again. My sweet Granddaddy is one of the most hardworking, hoss of a man I have ever met in my whole life. At 70-something years old, he still gets out in his yard and the land up in Coosa County (a post about that to come!) and works the land and does all that needs to be done. I am SO blessed to have such a heritage and to call these folks MY family!

I am the oldest of four grandchildren on my mom's side, and Holly is the youngest. In between us are Adam and Megan - my mom's sister's children. We have tons of fun when we get together - even if that fun usually comes at poor Adam's expense. Hey, we can't help he's the only guy in the bunch! My mom is the 2nd of 3 girls born to my grandparents James and Lois Reynolds (aka, Nana and Papa). Her older sister Kathy is married to Clay. Her younger sister Kristy is Adam and Megan's mom. We grew up together, all of us on the same street. There is never any shortage of family fun to be had when we get together for birthdays and holidays. God called Papa home in 2006, but his legacy is still strong in our family.

I thank God every day for my family! Being 180 miles away from home has taught me to appreciate them in a way that only distance can do.

If any of y'all are reading this - love you so much! See you soon!

Let Me Introduce...

I am no stranger to blog land, but this is my first personal blog. So....let me introduce myself!

My name is Rebecca, obviously! I am a junior at the University of South Alabama. GO JAGS! I am majoring in Elementary Education, and I will graduate in December 2011! I absolutely cannot wait to graduate and to have a classroom of my own!!

The most important thing that I can tell you about myself is that I am a Christian. I grew up in the church, but I did not give my life to Christ until I was 17 years old and a Senior in high school. Since that time, God has done his transforming work in my life and He continues every day to mold me into the kind of person He wants me to be. I am forever grateful for God's grace that "reached down His hand for me" and saved me after I ran for so long.


Let's see...what else...well...I am a native of Prattville, Alabama. I am the oldest of two children. I have fantastic Christian parents and a wonderful sister who is 17 and a Senior in high school (makes me feel REALLY old!). I also have wonderful aunts, uncles, and cousins that I am so blessed to call my family! My family is the most important thing in the world to me. It's hard sometimes living 180 miles away from them, but it makes going home that much sweeter!

I am active in two wonderful churches - my home church, First Baptist of Prattville and my 'college church' Dauphin Way Baptist. My main avenue of church service through music. I am currently a 'part time' soprano in the Dauphin Way choir (that's changing in August - back to full time singing!). I also sing at First Baptist whenever I am home. Here at Dauphin Way, I also teach Children's Choir and AWANA (3 year old Cubbies). My college church has been one of the biggest blessings, and I am so thankful God led me to Dauphin Way!

I have also been blessed with the most amazing friends both here in Mobile and in Prattville. I have a fabulous roommate. Holly is pretty much the coolest girl EVER and I am so blessed to call her MY roommate! I am active in the Baptist Campus Ministries here, so a lot of my friends are from that, but I have also met some really cool people from my classes and from various other activities on campus. I also have great friends of all ages through my church involvement.

Then there is Ethan...my boyfriend and best friend. Our story began when we were in junior high. We were friends through mutual involvement in our youth group. We were friends, but I had pretty much no interest in him beyond that, so when his family moved away in 2004, it didn't really affect me all that much. In 2007, we reconnected via Facebook (a marvelous tool, by the way!). He joined me at South Alabama in the fall of 2008 and that is pretty much where our story begins again. After a year of rebuilding our friendship and getting to know each other again, we officially began dating on September 6, 2009! I am grateful that, though I was stubborn about the whole thing, he continued to pursue me. I cannot imagine being with anyone else, and I look forward to all that God has in store for us in the future!

I love to travel, and would do so more often if I had the chance. I am also discovering that I LOVE to cook (if only I had a kitchen in my dorm, I would do it more often). I love cleaning and doing all those homemaker type things. My ultimate goal in life is to be a wife and mother. I am also looking forward to being a teacher, however. Children are some of the most fascinating people I know, and I love working with them and being around them!

Well, I think I have "rambled" long enough! I look forward to giving you a peek into my life and the ups and downs that I experience. Most of all, I pray that everything posted here will exalt Jesus Christ and point people to HIM!