Two days today

I'm a slacker....well it's that, and the fact that I'm really bad at being consistent, I think I state that everytime I write.

Anywho, Day 12, a picture of something I love:) yay!

My life could be falling apart-- take me to the water and the worries go away. I absolutely love these things.

Day 13 (today)....a picture of my favorite band or artist. That's so hard, I'm such a loser when it come to having just A favorite. I can't just have one. But, I'm going to say Laura Marling at the moment...she's my age by the way:)

I hate them.

...this is day 11...a picture of something I hate.

That was the nicest picture of a clown I could find...

Let me just tell you, that there is a deeply rooted fear accompanied by a deeply rooted hatred for these things. I don't like them, can't look at them, hate seeing them around, and get chills down my spine everytime I hear the word. Here's the history lesson, I think I may have been in the 5th or 6th grade and we were at snow camp with the church's Club 56 as we used to call ourselves. We were having so much fun, I loved snow camp, in fact, I miss it terribly. Those were the days....
Okay, so one night--for some odd reason-- a friend of mine in my cabin thought it would be hilariously exciting to tell scary stories. Oh my heavens, four reasons why scary stories don't belong in the same sentence as Laramie Wells:
1. I'm a girl, with girl feelings, with a touch of sensitivity.
2. I can't even look at my own blood.
3. I was homeschooled, so I couldn't even make one up if I tried.
4. I love Jesus, Jesus doesn't like scary stories either unless they end with someone become his Child.

So, this friend proceeded to tell the cabin seriously, the most terrifying horror story I've ever heard. And she used US as characters!!!!!!! No!!! I won't go into detail, but that story followed by torment from her (because it in fact scared me), followed by the entire youth group playing around with me, followed by people literally seeking out the movie "It" and shoving it in my face--eh, I was young. So all these things led up to a fear and obession with the fear of clowns, so much that I had consistent nightmares about them. Still do sometimes...thank you snow camp.

~Laramie

messed up things.

Day 10:) A picture of someone I do the most messed up things with. Hm....well, Nathan and I do a bunch of crazy stuff, like buy thousand-piece puzzles the night before the day- before I leave for home. Or we buy tickets to a movie, watch 20 minutes of the movie, decide it is thoroughly inappropriate and proceed to get our money back. Or, we drive to South Dakota and drive 90 miles out of the way (the WRONG direction mind you) then end up driving up with just enough time for him to literally sprint into Wayside Cross Ministries before the doors close...anyways, this is Nathan:)

And this is Vic. She's basically my other half in a more mature fashion. Messed up things, not really... random? Yes. These adventure include: the beach on windy days, which result in sand in our guacamole chips; Australian licorice; Candy shopping in Elmhurst; sitting in auditions for six hours without getting called, but taking photos in 3D glasses...and um... sunglass shopping at H&M, featuring this picture:) I love her:)

~Laramie

More pictures, more pictures, more pictures

Meh, I don't like this picture thing, but I want to be consistent at SOMETHING. I missed yesterday for two good reasons: Grandpa's birthday....Grandpas 80TH birthday....oh how I love him so much, look up to him, want to be like him and my grandmother when I am advanced in years as they are. 80 years of dedicated work, love, life. So grand. And seeing him walk through the door to see his two sons from the Midwest and Eastcoast--meaning all eight children, practically all cousins, and most great grandchildren were present-- not knowing they were going to be there, things got a little misty for a bit. It's just, he's such a precious man and we all love him so, so much. A reunion like that with all of his eight children doing whatever it took to come and love on him for his 80th...flying in from out of state, driving as long as it took. That's love.

Anywho, picture time, since I missed yesterday I'll have two sets of pictures. First one, (day 8) someone you used to be close to. Well, Caterina. This is a competition picture from the dark ages, but it's really the most recent I have of us. She moved to Argentina and I moved to Illinois. Best friends, but we haven't been able to really keep the closeness going from so far away. She's a beautiful lady, beautiful friend:)

Second, the person who has gotten you through the most. We have a tie. My mother, of course, who's been a rock in my life for, well, 20 years. She's always been there, always dealt with my crap (I bring a lot of crap), she's even stayed up until 3 am, helping me with college homework I could have had finished had I applied myself.

And the other tie-er...whatever...is Julie. I think that if she didn't have the ability to love like she does, I would have driven her insane. Well okay, I almost drove her there, but, she has pulled me out of some scary places. Scary to me anyways; and we have only grown closer as time goes by. Unfortunately, I'm a bad photographer, so I do not have a picture of both of us...awful daughter in love am I. But she did:)

Peace in Christ,

Laramie

Oh to be like David and Asaph.

My Bible is a New International Version Worhsip Bible. And I love it. And today I wanted to write something so badly, something worth while. Because I feel like when I sit down to write on this blog, sometimes I don't have anything to say. So I turned to the first page of the book of Psalms, which happens to be the introduction that the editors give. All about the history and meaning of the book. And here is a little tidbit of what they have to say about Psalms:

"More than any other single book, Biblical or otherwise, the book of Psalms teaches us how to worship. Each psalm expresses, not merely the heart of the composer, but also the heart of the Holy Spirit Who inspired the composition. The more we read, study, meditate upon, sing and pray the psalms, the more we will worship with authenticity and ardor. The psalms invite us to go deeper with the Lord than we have gone before-- and they expand the horizons of our heart for God as well."

Ah, to be like David, Asaph, and the others who wrote this book of praise. And I so miss this concept every time I read Psalms: that it is the literal example to me I have at my disposal-- without question or doubt-- how to worship my King. And when I pray to him to prepare me for the scripture I'm about to take in, I should be asking him to show me the heart of the Holy Spirit and to give me that authenticity. That obsession with Who God is. Yes, let me be so consumed by His power and love that I lose all feeling and awareness to the rest of life going on around me. And that when I write, when I praise, when I lament, that it is inspired and breathed by God himself, the one to whom I cry out.

He teaches us how to worship and we completely miss it. All the time. And then we complain that we aren't being fed at our church, we aren't getting anything from the Word, we haven't felt convicted in such a long time, or that the worship of our hearts just isn't reaching heaven. And he's sitting there saying "worship like this! Pray like this! Hope like this!" Nothing here will ever be enough. It is our duty to our souls and to our salvation to become fed when there is no food, to worship when there is no music, to be convicted when there are no convictions. Because we are made in his image and that is enough for us to be able to understand how to be Children of God.

I love my Bible, but I also love the breath behind it.

This is the 7th picture: A picture of someone who inspires you. Well, that's obvious...

She's overcome so much. And she's loved God through every minute of it all.

~Laramie

Bleh, another photo

So this is the sixth photo....a picture of someone I would love to trade places with for a day. BY FAR: Mia Michaels. Greatest choreographer of all time, I think so anyways:)

I don't know what it would be like to be such a genius. She's got a creative bone that just produces the most amazing pieces of work, even just to think like her as far as dance goes...would be amazing.

~Laramie

It's a Psalm;)

I was searching through my Bible last night, literally looking for the right scripture to read. And it sounds funny to say, but I "stumbled" upon this Psalm. Psalm 62. I've never read it before, but it expressed literally everything I'm feeling, and spoke the words into me that my soul needed for encouragement. Our God is so great, so sincere, and so trustworthy. One of my favorite lines is verse 8, "Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge." YES PLEASE. I pictured myself taking this and applying it to my life in real, tangible ways, whether it be getting in the car and just saying "Jesus...." and just spitting out my feelings, pouring out my heart. That's part of the reason why he died! So that I could climb into my car after horrible days and just vent to Him, because I know that he's got me.

Here is David's art song, Psalm 62:

Truly my soul finds rest in God;
my salvation comes from him.
Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
he is my fortress, I will never be shaken.

How long will you assault me?
Would all of you throw me down—
this leaning wall, this tottering fence?
Surely they intend to topple me
from my lofty place;
they take delight in lies.
With their mouths they bless,
but in their hearts they curse.[b]

Yes, my soul, find rest in God;
my hope comes from him.
Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
My salvation and my honor depend on God[c];
he is my mighty rock, my refuge.
Trust in him at all times, you people;
pour out your hearts to him,
for God is our refuge.

Surely the lowborn are but a breath,
the highborn are but a lie.
If weighed on a balance, they are nothing;
together they are only a breath.
Do not trust in extortion
or put vain hope in stolen goods;
though your riches increase,
do not set your heart on them.

One thing God has spoken,
two things I have heard:
“Power belongs to you, God,
and with you, Lord, is unfailing love”;
and, “You reward everyone
according to what they have done.”

Oh and by the way, day 5 of this crazy thing, and I'm sick of it. A picture of a favorite memory...my oldest cousin Ben came to Chicago with his wife Janet. They came and stole me for a day and we went to the city. My favorite place in the world nonetheless. Ben and I had a little heart to heart in front of the Lincoln Statue:)

Never fails to make me laugh...

Well, this is the fourth picture, and I crack up every time I see it. I was obviously having an eyebrow crisis, and Megan was failing miserably at pushing air into the top of her lip. After we tried multiple times to take a picture with both of us with inflated lips...this was our result:)

She will probably not be at all thrilled that I put this up, however, I enjoyed it when it happened:)

"He will yet fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy."
Job 8:21

~Laramie

Day 3

Aha, day three of this nifty little photo challenge. This one is a picture of the cast of my favorite show. Holy cow. Well, I am an old soul in some instances, so here are my best friends on television...

Oh The Dick Van Dyke Show. How I love, love, love thee.

This form of entertainment, with the talent that it had, will never come around again. It's when I watch this show that I'm convinced, I was born in the wrong era.

~Laramie

Someone I've been close to...

So the next photo: Someone I've been close to for the longest. Wow, I have known a lot of people...for a lot of years. Hm...I think because of moving so much I really don't have a ton of friends that I've been consistently close to since way back. So let's do this everyone, two pictures, though I've lived more than two places.

Rachel has been my best friend since probably 3rd grade. We've seen the ugly sides of each other, yelled at each other, and it will be a solid sister love for the rest of our lives, no matter where the Lord takes us.

Bethany and I are sisters:) I can't even express how much I love this woman of God. She keeps me in check and I trust her with my life:) Our first friend experience was a duet. She sang, I danced....Alabaster Box.

This was so hard. I think my biggest difficulty with having friends that stay close, is that I've been moved around a few times, so old friends may stay friends, and new friends may stay friends, and then the new become old, agh. Then I move. But, the Lord has blessed me with so many people in my life, that I love calling 'souls'. Because they mean so much to me, and I love them so much. They are the ones that have been Christ holding my hand. I've said this before: He physically held my hand through them.

~Laramie

I'm a bit of a softy.

So while I update my life on this here blog, I decided that I want to attempt to be consistent at it. There's a lovely fad on facebook right now called The 30 Day Photo challenge. Well, I'm going to do this in this space, instead of our friendly social network.

First photo: myself..

Ten facts about myself....hm....

1. I love orchids.
2. My brain goes straight to music whenever there is a trial I am going through, big or small.
3. After Australia I would love to be a choreographer.
4. Worship is my favorite thing to do.
5. I look terrible in white.
6. Thrift store shopping cures all my retail therapy needs.
7. "Walking Far From Home" by Iron and Wine gets me away from real life.
8. I love being the oldest kid.
9. Since I don't have my own bedroom at the moment, I shove myself in the bathroom for up to hours...listening to music.
10. Jeremiah is by far one of my favorite books of the Bible.

Eh, this could be a fun thing, I like pictures... a little too much:)

~Laramie

Psalm 139

So I was doing a google search for a Bible verse that I know I know, but I don't know where it is. And I found it:
Psalm 139:23

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.

I love that verse, it's the most vulnerable verse. Search me. I know there are catacombs in my heart that I don't want the Lord to walk through. But then I kept reading and the site had a whole list of versions of the same verse. So a couple versions down was this, from God's Word translation:

Examine me, O God, and know my mind.
Test me, and know my thoughts.

Ooooo my. EXAMINE me. Put me under a microscope and see me, see what I'm about God. Show me what's my fault, show me the burdens I'm wrongly bearing, give me eyes to see where I am not walking with you. King James puts it this way, to "try me, and know my thoughts." Try me, test me, push me, challenge me, examine me, open me up, find me out. So many times have I read this verse and totally skipped over the deep vulnerability that it presents. And I sit here reading it like it's a piece of cake! Heck no I don't want the God of the universe looking at my dirty laundry! I've apparently coerced myself into thinking that I have it under control...because it's microscopic.
"NO. No my dear child, I can see you. I know you, I put you together." He can already see the mold growing on the walls of the catacombs of my heart, this verse is for me. For me to be able to get to the point of complete and total surrender. Reckless abandonment, see me God. It's for my own benefit, not His. He doesn't need my permission. He's already in there repairing the damage. But he wants me to find him on my own. To take Him there myself, so we can repair together.

He's such a genius, he knows us too well.

~Laramie

Adam

I don't know if I've ever explained my living arrangements. Or maybe I have...anyways, it's really not the living arrangements, it's the roommates. We are living in the guest house that belongs to my Aunt Lorena and Uncle Darin. They have two kids, Adam is 10 and Sarah is 7. And they are both such a blessing to be around. When we moved to Illinois, they were still pretty young, so it's nice to be close to them and watch them grow.

I want to tell you about the blessing that Adam is. I walked to the other side of our little house a bit earlier and stood at the kitchen counter. As I looked up, straight ahead, out the window I could see Adam standing on the ledge of the fence, looking over the side. Just watching. He was talking with the neighbors as they played baseball in the backyard. And it just made me smile.

Adam is autistic as well as having slight mental disabilities. But he is such a love. And watching him just sit and enjoy someone else enjoy life is something I want for my life. To be able to "be still." He's a precious kid and remind me of Matthew 19:13-15...

"Then people brought little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked them. Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” When he had placed his hands on them, he went on from there."

He's talking about Adam. He's talking about his children.