Sweet Southern Pearl

  Our Story This is how it goes... For several years, they would glance at each other across the sanctuary at Oak View Baptist on Sunday mornings. They knew each other, but they didn't really know each other. Beth went to High Point University, and Drew attended North Carolina State University. Years passed and sometimes they would say hey, but were usually too shy to say much else (yes, Beth Burroughs was shy around boys she thought were really cute). Even when they both accompanied the youth group on church camp trips, they didn't say much to each other. After college Drew moved back to High Point to start work and Beth moved to Boone to get her Master's at Appalachian State. The timing wasn't right yet....... When Beth was in her first year teaching at Southwest High School (2015), she sent Drew a Facebook message (ah, the era of social media) asking about apartments because she was looking to move out of her parents' house. She was also looking for the conversat...

So I've been posting our story on our "The Knot" site. I've been posting in increments since I wanted to include the full story, but haven't had the time to sit down and type the whole thing! Also, I think people would rather read a little at a time... and it keeps everyone on the edge of their seat!! lol This was the first 'installment' I posted: For several years, they would glance at each other across the sanctuary at Oak View Baptist on Sunday mornings. They knew each other, but they didn't really  know  each other. Beth went to High Point University, and Drew attended North Carolina State University.  Years passed and sometimes they would say hey, but were usually too shy to say much else (yes, Beth Burroughs was shy around boys she thought were really cute). Even when they both accompanied the youth group on church camp trips, they didn't say much to each other. After college Drew moved back to High Point to start work and ...

Yesterday I read a devotional about schedules. I love the Bible app (YouVersion), and I cannot start my day without having my coffee and reading my morning devotion on the app (in the afternoons I read a different passage from the Bible). Today the app told me that I have a 100 day streak! That means I have read a devotion in the app every day for the past 100 days. *Let me go off on a tangent and say that if you're treating the Bible app like Snapchat and just open it and click through a post to "save your streak" and don't really comprehend what it says, this method of accountability isn't really effective and you're just going through the motions to 'save the streak.'* Anyway, yesterday's devotional (from "Passion and Purpose" by Charles Stanley) was about not filling your schedule and how today's world is fast-paced and we feel the pressure to "keep up." How if we aren't busy, we feel like we aren't doing ...

I've spent some time today looking back over my posts from Thanksgiving seasons past. Specifically, three years ago at this time when I was battling some ungratefulness and lack of sense of purpose. It was a dark time. I'm so glad that season didn't last very long! Every Thursday I make my students list ten things they are grateful for that week. I have read that it helps boost mood when we intentionally and actively think about what we are grateful for. In addition to this, from a spiritual standpoint, gratefulness is so key. We are to offer prayer and thanksgiving to the Lord every day for what He has blessed us with. I started a couple Thanksgiving daily devotionals on the Bible app this week (YouVersion) and I'm getting my heart in the right place. I'll be honest -- being thankful hasn't been a cake walk right now. With my dad and Granny both being sick off and on the past couple months and in and out of the hospital, being so busy with everything, an...

"Perfection is my enemy"...that's a line I heard in an old song on the radio the other day... We live in a world of comparisons. That's no doubt. I'd say in the past year I've fallen more victim to these comparisons than I have in the past five. I remember always comparing myself to others when I first started college but after that I was pretty good about being satisfied with myself and content in what I had. Lately I've been doing a lot of reading that encourages people (especially millennials) not to get caught up in social media, because doing so causes you to constantly ask yourself "Is my life as exciting as this person's? Am I as pretty as she is? Why does he have this and I don't? How did she get that job? How is her house always so clean??!?!?" ...etc.  This mindset is the opposite of what the Lord intended. He created each person on this earth in a different way to serve a different purpose and to be content in their uniquen...

2 Corinthians 4:17-18 (NIV) 17  For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.   18  So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen,  since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. Lately I've been getting weighed down with the issues of the world. Yesterday I read 2 Corinthians 4:8-18 in my daily reading book. In these verses, Paul talks about being pressed but not crushed, perplexed but not in despair, persecuted but not forsaken, and struck down but not destroyed... if you are a follower of Christ. The troubles of the world may weigh on us, but they will not overtake us. As we receive grace and sustenance for each day from God, we should become more thankful, which goes along with what I've been intentional about this week - writing a list of things I'm grateful for and thanking God for them. Focusing on these things will help us to see the world through His eyes. ...

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I want to be very intentional about being grateful. Even if it wasn't the Thanksgiving season, I want to do this because gratefulness cuts down on stress, worry, and complaining. I feel like lately I could really use a good dose of being thankful for what I have. I plan to jot down a few things each day, because writing it out really makes me do it and think about it. Some things I am especially thankful for today are: *My health. Over the summer I experienced some weird complications due to a steroid shot, and now I'm back to normal! *My church / church family. I am so blessed by Oak View Baptist and the amazing people that go there. It has forever changed my life. *My family. I'm so blessed to be able to spend so much time with them and have them as support. They are the best people I know. I can't begin to thank God enough. *Emery! A good dog is the best therapy, but I don't even know what I'd do without her. It...

I haven't written anything on here since MARCH. ...not anything from my own spiritual journey. I've done promotions for two companies and that's all I've posted. I am realizing that when I write, I am a better person. I can't believe I haven't written on here in seven months. It makes me sad. I've felt a void! Ironically, though, what I came here to write is the same topic as what I last posted about - what others think. I found a version of "Be Thou My Vision" that I  really love about a month ago, so it's been on repeat. As I'm busy with everything going on in life, I have to constantly remind myself to keep my eyes set on Christ. The line that has stuck out to me the most over the past month is "Riches I need not, nor man's empty praise." I'm teaching 9th and 11th grade this semester. In both classes we are reading books set in the Great Depression. We've had discussions (sometimes debates) about how money can...

I didn't want to go to college. I decided in sixth grade that I was going to be a movie star and I didn't need college. That was my mentality my first year at High Point University. Looking back, I wish I had made the most of my freshman year instead of going through the motions. My mom told me I had to go to college, so I knew I was going to go. When it came down to time to decide, I didn't know where to go. I had great options - North Carolina State University, Appalachian State University, the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and High Point University. The problem was, I wasn't passionate about one over the other and I didn't want to leave home. I finally chose UNC-G and decided to live at home and commute. My first semester of college was a struggle. I wasn't prepared for the self discipline it took to get to freshman seminar on time, I wasn't dedicated to doing well in my classes, and I was nostalgic for the simplicity of high school life...

One of my downfalls is seeking the approval of others - of caring too much what others might think about the decisions I make / of wanting someone to tell me what THEY think I should do because I feel like an objective opinion is better sometimes. Granted, I seek this advice and approval from spiritually like-minded friends, articles and books by Christian articles, etc, but the main source of my guidance and approval should be the Bible / the Lord. Today, with social media and our lives on display, it's easy for everyone we know to know every little move we make if we choose to put our business out there. For me personally, with big decisions I've made, I've always thought "What would other people think about this decision?" -choosing the college I went to -choosing the grad school I went to -what city I choose to live in -buying my house -the job I choose to have / where I choose to work (just some examples) While it's great to seek godly advice a...

A few weeks ago, the message at church was about Jacob literally wrestling with God and God giving him a new name and identity. Jacob has been dealing with some hard things and plans to spend the whole night alone praying, but God interrupts his plans to come and wrestle with him. Jacob demands a blessing, which pleases God, and God delivers.  “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob [deceiver], but Israel [strives with God], for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed” ( Genesis 32:28 ). I've been thinking a lot lately about Psalm 46. It is all about God's sovereign power and how He is with us through anything we go through, and how He will always win. He won against Jacob because after the match, Jacob changed his ways, lifestyle, and lived up to his new identity. At first, though, Jacob was headstrong and wanted his own way. Thinking about times in my life that were difficult, or where I wanted my own way, I think about how I've spent so much ti...

Last night at church the message was about spiritual attack and lies from Satan that distract us from doing God's work or tempt us to get off track. I lead a small group of amazing middle school girls that I love so much, and our discussion after the message was great. A couple weeks ago, I was talking to one of my best friends on the phone (she's in San Antonio) and she brought up a good point - Satan knows exactly how to tempt girls/women. He knows that we are, for the most part, concerned with our looks and being accepted and admired, and he uses that to feed us lies and try to get us off track. Last night we talked about how with social media, it's harder than ever for girls and women not to compare themselves to others. With filters and HD photos and the ability to post only your best pictures and make it look like life is perfect, it's easy to scroll through the Instagram news feed and start to feel really bad about your own self because everyone else looks ...

Last Thursday night I got in my car and drove to Hilton Head Island for a mental health mini-vacation. I was meeting two precious friends down there, and had five hours in the car all to myself. I had a LOT on my mind from last week, and although the drive was brutal for my legs and fanny, I got to talk on the phone with a precious godly accountability partner / encourager (BFF) and spend time in my thoughts in silence and with my worship music, and most importantly, talk to God. I was listening to my worship playlist on Spotify and the songs ran out, so Spotify started playing songs recommended for me. "Psalm 46" by Shane and Shane came on, and I had never heard it before. I loved it immediately, so I played it again and really listened to the words. O come behold the works of God the nations at His feet. He breaks the bow and bends the spear and tells the wars to cease. O Mighty One of Israel you are on our side. We walk by faith in God who burns the char...

Yesterday I was blessed to sit through THREE amazing church services. Lately, I feel like I really need to absorb as much of the Word as I can on Sundays in order to thrive through the week. It is so easy to get caught up in the stress of daily life, and I've found that the best way to combat that is to be poured into through spiritual teaching. I can't pour into my students or my family or my friends or my middle school girls on Wednesday nights if I'm not constantly growing and learning.  It's also really cool / interesting to sit at different churches with entirely different groups of people and hear the Word presented in different ways. Different churches appeal more to families or young people or older people for different reasons. One thing I realized as I sat in my home church yesterday morning (OakView Baptist) is that although we don't have the lights and the music and coffee, we do hear the Word in a way that really gets deep into your soul. It...