Read Angie's Thoughts

  '...to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.' ~ Isaiah 61:3 This past weekend, my dad and I spent a day traveling through Yellowstone. I love the park, it is full to the hilt of God's creation and no matter where you are in the park, you're completely surrounded by His handiwork. When my dad and I got home, he was looking at the pictures I had taken with my digital camera. When he came to the picture above, he asked, "What were you taking a picture of here?" I explained to him how much I love to see places in the park that were once devastated by fire, but now green grass and beautiful wildflowers and coming up from the very place that was burned. It reminded me of this verse in the Bible, where God promises to  bring beauty from the painful, broken, and devastating experiences in our lives. It seems God has been really emphasizing this promise ...

"Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from Him." ~ Psalm 62:5 What message are you proclaiming? The pastor at church asked this question of the congregation yesterday and it has had me thinking ever since. What message is my life proclaiming? These days, I'm really not sure. I know what I would like my message to be but do I do a good job of living it out each day? Probably not. The truth is that Christ came to save this sinful and fallen world. That's what His entire life and ministry was about. During his 3 years of ministry, He healed the sick, caused the blind to see, the lame to walk and the deaf to hear. He fed thousands with two fish and five loaves of bread. He rose people from the dead, even Lazarus who had been dead for four whole days. He called ordinary men to be his disciples and lived out the greatest message of all - salvation through believing in Him. His greatest triumph was over the grave, when He rose three days after being crucified ...

Ahh, summer vacation is upon me...sleeping in, staying up late, making and living by my own schedule, no deadlines, no due dates, no children (unless you count the 2 cats, 1 dog, and 1 parakeet currently residing at the Hensley Zoo!). As much as I have looked forward to this time of freedom and relaxation, there is a part of me that's sad the school year is over and wishes I had just a few more days with my students. As I look back over this last year, there are so many stories to tell and things I learned about myself, that I could probably fill an entire notebook with! Here are a few of the highlights: - The day Emma told me, "My mom didn't get married until she was 30, so there's still hope for you Miss Hensley." Ahh, how encouraging! - The afternoon we were going ice-skating and I came back to the classroom after going to the bathroom to find an adult pair of boxers flying through the air. It turns out the dad of one of my students had used the bag he packed h...