Hannah Maria Joy

Today is Thanksgiving and so many of us name a list of things we are thankful for similar to this one: Warm house Family Friends Morning coffee Food  Church Job  Car And on and on But what about all the people in the world that don't have all of those things? What if we don't have all those things? What then do we have to be thankful for?  People who have everything, people who have nothing, who suffer, who have only one or not even one of the things from the list above, all have SO much to be thankful for!  We ALL have a God whom created and continually chooses and loves us!  A God who suffers a long with us. A God who sent His one and only son to show us how to live, love, serve, and commune. A God who sent His only son to suffer and die for the sake of OUR redemption and the redemption of the world.  "for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I h

    It has been too long since my last post and frankly I'm not really sure where to start or what to even write about. So bare with me as I unpack the last couple of months and some ideas/themes that have been running through my head.  In February, I lead the Valley youth group to Winterfest in Gatlinburg TN. This was the first big event I have organized and it was certainly an adventure, but it was a lot of fun. The theme this year was WATCH and all of the speakers did a fantastic job but there was one specific lesson that really stood out to me. They were talking about how much we as believers need the church. We are not meant to walk this journey alone, we are meant to do it supported and surrounded by community. We are meant to learn from those who are older than us and you know what? We may(and probably will) learn from those who are younger than us as well. we are to mentor those who are younger than us, and we are to be their for one another when we slip or fall. We NEE