what is love?

I was riding in the car the other day and someone asked me how do you know what love is? It's kind of funny... I don't think I know the answer to that question. I then explained how I think loving people and being in love with someone is two totally different things... I think it is a lot easier to love someone than it is to be in love with someone. I think to be in love with someone you have to have that physical attraction that I don't think you have to have to love someone. When I really thought about it I thought have I really been in love before? I mean I thought I had... but I don't think so. To be in love with someone is a big step... as a 17-18 year old there is no way I knew what that was... 

Anyway to love someone is really easy to me... I love a lot of people. I love every single one of my friends and would do anything in my power for them. 

"Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." -John 15:13

Our society overuses the word love and I think it's a really bad thing!  Don't tell someone you love them if you don't... don't say you love something just because you really like it. Really like and love are two different things. 

So... with all my doubts I turn to the Bible because love is in the Bible a lot... and God knows what love is. So here's what I think best describes what love truly is.

Love is... our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ dying on the cross to save the WHOLE world's sins.

"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." -Hebrews 12:2

would you do that for someone you love?

Love is... God's grace.

"God's grace exists to point people to love like no other love they have ever known. A love outside the lines." 

that gives me the chills... do you know a love outside the lines?

Love is... the love Christ has for us... never ending, constant, always love.

"We try to live so that He will love us, rather than because He has already loved us." -Lloyd Ogilvie

Love is... patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. LOVE NEVER FAILS. 1 Corinthians 13: 4-8

kind of makes you re-think how much you "love" someone

I think I have a long way to go...

So... let's love for Christ and for one another... Let's just love one another, or try to, as Christ has loved us.

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." -John 13:34-35

Happy New Year!!!

part two - Huntsville

Tuesday:

woke up and came home from the lake

got my oil changed

then Hunter and I headed to Huntsville!

when we got to Huntsville I traded Christmas presents with Mo and Jen...

yams help increase the likelihood of having twins

then we picked up Jordan and went to the Space and Rocket Center

they showed us downtown Huntsville and Bridgestreet

then we went over to Jo's and I saw Oliver! :)

then we went to dinner at Charrito's

we played Trivia at dinner and we were the Auburn Amigo's and we came in second place!! represent! 

after dinner we went over to Kiley's for game night 

which was sooo much fun :)

then we went back to Mo's for Christmas Tree talks!

Jen and I had a cuddle fest...

Mo and Hunter had a cuddle fest...

who won?

Me and Jen

Wednesday:

woke up and Jen had already left

Mo and I woke Hunter up

we got ready and ate some cinnamon rolls

then we went on a major tour of Huntsville

we went to Comanche Trail 

(where Mo used to live)

we went to the Nature Trail on Green Mountain

which was gorgeous and we had a mini photoshoot!

then we went by Grissom to see NayPalm

we went to lunch at Fly Boy's

then headed home to Bham!

I got ready and went to dinner at Costa's with Lindsay, Amanda, Alison, Courtney, Lena, Laura, and Lauren for Kendall's going away party!

after dinner we went to Alison's to see her presh new puppy CoCo Chanel!

then I came home and hung out with Carter

Today:

woke up

hung around the house

went shopping with Carter

came to my moms

part one - the past week

Wow! This past week has been amazing! I have been soooo busy... and I've been trying to see anyone and everyone that I haven't seen in quite a while! However, there are still many more people I have yet to see and I miss dearly!

Last Friday:

went Christmas shopping with the triplets

went to the Alabama Theatre with my best friend to see Christmas Vacation

Saturday:

woke up and tie dyed my sheet red and blue for the tshirt quilt 

Ann is making me out of my high school tshirts!

went with Hunter to camp to babysit for the Buerhaus children!

Sunday:

Candles & Carols at Camp

went to dinner with all the staff at Sol Azteca

hung out at Brittany's house

spent the night at France's house with Vron, Fran, and Pettey

Monday:

woke up and took Vron to babysit

came home and slept a couple hours

washed and dried my tie dye sheet which turned out pretty well I think!

went with Lindsay, Courtney, and Alison to shop for Amanda's wedding dress and bridesmaid dresses

went to late lunch/early dinner at Chuy's

went to the lake with Hunter, Carter and Caroline to watch the lunar eclipse which we did not see :(

Aubrey and Blake came by though! it was at least a fun night!

random blurb

I have recently discovered that in order to be a happy person you must know yourself.  Well of course it seems like you know yourself I mean you are you right?  Well what I mean is you have to know who you truly are and be comfortable with yourself.  In order to know yourself you must discover Christ and what gifts He has given you.  While talking with some friends today about a situation I didn't really know what to even say other than: "Well sounds to me like they just need a little bit of Jesus in their lives." If you are not comfortable with yourself and the relationship you have with Christ you are going to make others miserable.  I've been around people like this, and I used to be like this.  So, be comfortable with who you are.  Don't worry about trying to impress anyone, don't be selfish, just be who you are.  Our God has made you uniquely you so show others the gifts you have, don't worry about what others may think.  Be you. Be unique. Be what our God wants you to be. And most of all be happy with yourself.

"You have searched me, Lord, and you know me."

- Psalms 139:1

"For you created my inmost being;

you knit me together in my mother's womb.

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

your works are wonderful,

I know that full well."

- Psalms 139:13-14

And if our God is for us then who could ever stop us

And if our God is with us then what could stand against 

Our God is Greater - Chris Tomlin

A more "fun" blog post is soon to follow :)

fearless and true

if you know anything about me you know that I am very passionate about the things that I love most...

a list of a few things that I love the most...

• Jesus Christ
• family
• friends
• Auburn football
• Camp
• YoungLife

passion can sometimes seem obnoxious, however let me tell you that it is not meant to be obnoxious, I want to share my love with others. whether it's actual love or if it's my love for something.

if you know anything about me you also know that I love and am passionate about Auburn football...

so with that being said, I am not trying to be an obnoxious fan. I wish that people knew me best understood that. not that I have to justify why I love and have a reason to love and be passionate about Auburn football, I am going to go ahead and justify it just so you can hopefully better understand. 

• my first words second to mama and dada were War Eagle
• my first Auburn game was when I was oh... still in diapers. don't know my exact age.
• all growing up the only thing I did during the fall on weekends was road trip to Auburn with my mom
• I am a student at Auburn University
• My mother went to Auburn University
• I bleed orange and blue

I will not apologize for being a passionate fan because I bleed orange and blue. just like I would not apologize to a non-Christian because he/she doesn't like me talking about Jesus... I am not sorry that I am passionate about these two things. maybe I shouldn't relate Jesus and Auburn football... but it's an easy analogy for people to understand. I don't expect people that go for Alabama to apologize to me because they love their team. It would be NO fun if we all went for the same team. so... let's be proud of our state for having two consecutive Heisman winners and two consecutive (praying) National Championship winning teams. there is no perfect fan... and let's take a look back at this time a year ago... Alabama fans sure were obnoxious. 

my inspiration for the end of this post is going to be some of my favorite lines from the Auburn Creed:

I believe in honesty and truthfulness,

without which I cannot win the respect 

and confidence of my fellow men.

I believe in a sound mind,

in a sound body and a spirit that is not afraid

I believe in my Country,

because it is a land of freedom 

and because it is my own home,

and that I can best serve that country by

"doing justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly with my God."

my unfailing love for you will not be moved

So glad to be home!

Well I got home this afternoon and I was so happy.  I of course went straight down to the triplets... I surprised them and as I was walking upstairs Aiden saw me and goes, "Caitlin!!!!! What are you doing here?!" Oh I just love them to death! I went over to Lee Ann's with Sandy and the kids... it was fun! I felt like an adult. weird. Then I came home and Cousin Tim and Catherine came over and we ate some yummy soup my mom made. I just love being at home, nothing like my parents food. After we ate, I went down to the triplets to put them to sleep and babysit. As I was tucking Taylor in she goes can I give you a butterfly kiss? (when you blink your eyes together and your eyelashes tickle each other) I cannot believe she remembered this! I taught her this at least a year ago if not longer! Oh, it was so precious though! Then she goes let's do the nose kiss (a.k.a. eskimo kiss) and so we did that and then I kissed her on each cheek (a.k.a. the Caitlin kiss) and she went to sleep. I absolutely adore these kids and love them with all of my heart. I cannot imagine what it is going to be like when I have my own kids. Because they literally mean the world to me!

Random Thoughts...

1. Lately I've really been thinking about what life would be like if I would have just taken one step differently along my path... What if I would have gone to Mississippi State? What if I would have not joined my sorority? What if I wouldn't have worked at camp this summer? I cannot imagine what my life would be like without all the decisions I've made. It has really made me be very thankful for everything God has blessed me with. 

2. So anyone that knows me knows how loving I am... if you are my friend the I love you and would try to do anything that is in my power for you. Something I've realized recently - as much as I love unconditionally, I cannot expect that back. This is such a let down! But... life will go on and I can only give and not expect to receive. Which is okay!

Inspiration.

Well tonight my devotion was Phillipians 2:1-13 - Imitating Christ's Humility. You should go read the whole thing... but this is just the best verse in my opinion.

"Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus." -Phillipians 2:5

Some other verses from this week:

"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." -Hebrews 12:2

"For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him." -Colossians 1:16

Leaving on this note:

"Christ is the human face of God. Jesus is the autobiography of God. In Christ, God was spelling himself out, expressing himself. Jesus was the audible, visible Word who expressed the heart of the inaudible, invisible God."

i have no creative title for this post

Friday - went to dinner with Mo and Jen and then we went rented a movie... The Backup Plan which was super cute!  Hunter came over and we all watched it together and then had "Christmas tree talks" a.k.a. our version of a camp fire inside by the Christmas tree... real cool I know!

Saturday - woke up and went over to Mo and Jen's with Hunter to watch the SEC Championship... Tanner, Jordan, and Thomas were there as well! We had some awesome food! Jordan made buffalo chicken dip, Jen made chocolate cake and "pretzel noms" and fruit salsa, Mo made pasta salad, I made pigs in the blanket, and Thomas made nutella hot chocolate!  It was a lot of fun... and of course Auburn won... so we are headed to the National Championship!!!! It's hard for me to show my excitement via blog post however I AM SO EXCITED!!!! :)  After the game, Thomas and I went to Auburn Junior High School for their holiday program... which was dinner and a show, it was medieval themed.  Very cool, but kind of surprising... not what Thomas and I expected.  It was fun nevertheless, and the kids did a great job!  After that, we drove by Toomers to see a snow of toilet paper everywhere!!  When we got back to Mo and Jen's the five of us watched The Holiday.  Then we had "Christmas tree talks" again!

Jen's cake

Jen's pretzel noms

My pig and the blankets

Jen's fruit salsa

Mo's pasta salad

Sunday - Woke up and went to church with Marie and we had Sunday lunch at church!  Then I came home and got ready to go Irene's.  I spent the afternoon/evening at the Page's!  It was so much fun, we went and fed the horses and just played, and I got to catch up with Irene!  I absolutely adore this family. Irene is so awesome to me and I got home later that night... it was COLD!

Monday - first day of h-e-double hockey sticks week. I woke up and started studying.  At 4:00 p.m. I had my first final - social work - it wasn't too bad... I completely blanked out on the short answer where it asked the 6 core values of social work, so I only put down 2... which was really frustrating.  But other than that, I think I did well. Then I came back to my dorm and study, study, study, study, studied! I studied my life away for my American Lit final.  I went to bed around 2:30, after cleaning my room because it was such a wreck. Davis, Alex, Marie, and I all studied in the study room on the hall which was a lot of fun... I did get a lot accomplished although it seems like I wouldn't have. I left for about an hour and a half to go caroling with my YoungLife team for one of the amazing families that helps us out so much! It was lots of fun... but I went back and hit the books. Davis's grandparents on her mug helped keep me studying... they helped a lot thanks Jonny and Norman!

Today - I woke up and took my American Lit final which SUCKED... no nice way of putting it.  I did the best I could... and that's all I can do. By the way it is FREEZING! I didn't realize I had moved to the mountains... or at least that's what it feels like. I live in Alabama for goodness sake! Anyway... after my final I came back and showered and got ready to go babysit! I babysat then went to Old Navy and Target to get presents for my little girl I'm buying Christmas presents for!  I really hope she likes them... I think the clothes I got her are just precious! Then I went over to Mo and Jen's for lunch... Now I'm here.

My life is just so entertaining. I wish everyone luck on their finals! oh and hey Mo! I know you're reading this...

this semester: your love sets me free

Listen to Hope Now by Addison Road as you read this... it's my theme song for the semester!

Well this week has been bittersweet.  As the last week of classes ends I feel two ways... happy and thrilled.  I lied, it hasn't been bittersweet.  It should feel bittersweet, however I am just SO ready for Christmas break it's not even funny.  It is kind of sad that I am finishing my third semester of college.  It is sad that I will be home for a month missing all of my Auburn friends.  BUT I plan on going on several road trips over the break including Huntsville and Florence to see Alex, Mo, Jen, and all my other friends in Huntsville.  This semester has been life changing for me.  I have grown so much in so many ways... most of all my faith.  I have truly begun a "journey" with Christ and I cannot be happier with who I am and where I am in my life.  No, I'm not a good student, but I don't have to be.  I'm happy with the fact that I'm never going to make a 4.0, that is just not who I am, so what I will do instead of hoping that one day I will be this "perfect" - straight A student - is to be happy with who I am and to strive to do my best each and every day.  What I've learned this semester - to be truly happy in life you have to be comfortable with who you are and live your life through and with Christ.  This semester I believe I have found who I, Caitlin Lee Brennan, really am.  It's so reassuring... and the Lord is so great because He has helped me, blessed me, and loved me unconditionally.  So... don't give up :)  

This semester I have made the decisions too:

1. stop drinking - this is something that I have done for personal reasons, and I realized that the only reason I was doing this was to please other people.  It made me irresponsible and I had a hard time finding where my limit was.  Oh yeah and I'm not even legal to drink yet...

2. become a YoungLife leader - this is obvious... I've only blogged about it a million times.  I really feel called to this ministry and could not be happier with this decision.

3. go inactive as a member of Kappa Alpha Theta - I've chosen to do this because Theta is really not where I need to be at this point in my life, it's not where Christ is calling me at this point.  I have gotten really burnt out this past semester due to my officer position.  Also, with joining YoungLife I feel like this is where I am more needed.  Next Fall - I will become an active member once again and will reevaluate how I feel about being a sister of this wonderful sorority.  

A couple things I need to address:

1. I am not at all miserable at Auburn, nor do I hate it.  I sometimes wish I would have chosen to go to a different school.  I feel like I chose Auburn solely based on the fact that this is where "I've supposed to have gone my whole life."  I do miss Birmingham a lot, a lot, and wish I stayed there.  However, I will not be transferring, every thing happens for a reason, and I need to finish where I started.
2. Seminary... I wanna go!  Never thought you'd hear me say that if you knew me six months ago did you?  Yeah, the Lord is great and I am beginning to feel called.  This is still very foreign to me, and I don't know a lot about it.  I don't know what I want to do through seminary... that is something I'm going to have to rely on God for.  Prayer is the answer for that, and I know that will be answered.  I will finish my degree in Special Education from Auburn before I embark on that task.  I am a little intimidated by the thought of seminary... because I don't have a lot of answers.  I don't know the Bible and I don't know as much as I should as a Christian.  However, that is changing as we speak and it's not possible for me to have all the answers!

Words of wisdom:
I've chosen these verses and they are in this order on purpose because they represent my semester from beginning to end.
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not own your understanding: in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight." -Proverbs 3:5-6
At the beginning of the semester I struggled with many things, but I trusted in the Lord and he began to help me make my life so much better.

"Have I not commanded you?  Be strong and courageous.  Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." -Joshua 1:9

Trusting in the Lord with all my heart is a daily struggle but if I'm strong and courageous I know that the Lord is always with me no matter what.

"Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!" -Psalms 66:20

This is kind of ironic, this is the verse from the very first day I began journaling and doing my daily devotions on August 21.  Foreshadowing... thanks God you're awesome!  If only I knew that this verse would be so true by the end of the semester!

"Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly." -James 3:1

Well no matter what I do I am going to be a teacher.  Whether I'm teaching through YoungLife, a special education teacher, whether I'm teaching by preaching, or teaching through children/youth ministry... so I feel like this is a very fitting verse for me. 

last week of class... bittersweet?

Well since I have not blogged in over a week! ah! Here goes what I've done this week! hope you enjoy :)

Monday - what did I do? I presented my social work project with my group!  That was really the highlight of my day. I tried writing my paper and was not successful in the least bit.

Tuesday - tried to wake up early and work on my paper. didn't work! went to babysit and sweet baby Adela slept on my chest for about an hour. I can't wait to be a mom!  Met my group for my math project  and we got everything done!  Then of course I went over to Mo and Jen's for Glee and 16 & Pregnant... Jen cooked pasta and Mo fixed cheese bread... it was quite delish!

Wednesday - went to class. met my English professor to talk about my paper... he helped me so much and I wrote over half of my paper!  I went to chapter... last one until this time next year. (details in next post) First meeting with my team at IHOP which was delish :) oh and my best friend sent me an adorable picture of my niece! 

Thursday - babysat. went to the bank. shopped. HAD MY FIRST CLUB!!! that is with YoungLife! not I went clubbing... haha! it was fantastic! the kids are great. I'm obsessed with my team, because we are the best!  I love all of my team member so very much! the theme was Tacky Christmas... then we went to Buffalo Wild Wings afterwards and I took a picture of the very inappropriate napkin! ha!

Friday... so far - got up and went to class. turned in my paper. presented my math project. about to go to lunch with Marie! :)