Courtship

Courtship
'what it means to me and why I feel it is important!'

In the last few weeks I have been really into watching my new favorite TV show called 18 Kids and Counting. It is a show about a Christian family who have 18 kids, and the mom is pregnant with their 19th child. Their oldest Josh got married last year to the love of his life, Anna, and they recently had their first child. These are a few main thoughts I have about courtship, and there are much more, maybe I will write another post about more thoughts from different sources. Check out Joshua Harris' book's, "I Kissed Dating Goodbye," and "Boy Meets Girl," too.

I have watched the episodes around the time when Josh proposes to Anna, and seeing how their courtship went, and thought wow, that's exactly how I want mine to be when I meet my future husband someday. I have also been watching their wedding episode often, that one is special to me also. I have a special journal that singer and songwriter Rebeca St. James put out, and I absolutely love it! It helps me to prepare thoughts of purity for my husband and for him to one day see what I went through in this time of my life while waiting for him.

Seeing the kind of courtship that Josh and Anna Duggar had is awesome for me to see in today's society because so many people look at that as being to vain. All they did was hug when he proposed, very appropriate, then they held hands while they were engaged and courting, that's it, awesome again. When you limit it to just holding hands in the courtship, then there is less of a chance you will keep yourself, your whole self pure before the wedding night. So in seeing them and viewing the way they went through courtship, I really want to hold true to those same principles when I meet my future husband. Also hold them when we become friends, get engaged and court, then get married. I want us to stay pure to each other, for each other, and God, until our wedding night.

Since I am in the stage of my life where I am looking at guys and wondering when I may meet my future spouse, I can't help but to wonder where and when that might be. I constantly pray for him daily, and ask God to guide him in every decision that he makes, and that he may be praying for his future bride as well. I love him already, not because of "who" he is, but "who's" he is. He is a child and follower of Jesus Christ, like myself, and that's why I am going to love him so much when I meet and marry him someday.

Courtship to me is something that I feel God created to keep purity in a relationship between a man and a women as they enter into a important stage of life. The world sees it as "dating," then "engagement", courting is the same thing, just purer, that leads to marriage. For Christians, courtship is a way of keeping themselves pure before each other and God before they get to their wedding night. I think that having a good courtship shows that the couple will have a strong and lasting marriage in the Lord's care and guidance.

Thanks for reading about my views and thoughts on courtship. I thank God after already having "dated" myself in life, that he has brought me to a place of total surrender and am looking forward to my courtship with my future husband someday!

"You see, what happend was...."

Lol, I LOVE hearing Orlando from our church say that line, and so I said it too this past Friday night as we were coming back from Judgement House in Goldsboro, NC. Btw, if anyone in this area wants to go, GO! It is SO awesome and I highly encourage you to go. It was so good this year as per usual in my personal opinion. Well friends, so sorry I haven't kept you up to date on here, but if you wanna see whats happening with me these days, the best way to see is check out my photography website/blog. www.hhphotography21.wordpress.com, or catch me on FB. Other things to say, Christmas is coming and I can't wait, the semester will be over with, and I will finally get to see, WILL AND MEGHAN!!!! I haven't seen them in a year, and it is going to be great. Things are going well otherwise, check back soon, I shall post more soon!

Great things are happening.

A lot has been happening in the last few months. I haven't been on this blog as much since I have been getting my photography site up and running. By the way, if you are a friend of mine, please let your friends know that I am looking for jobs, so if they want pictures done at a cheap price, to please give me a call, or shoot me an e-mail. Info to come at end of this post. Things are going good though, reading my Bible a lot and getting closer to God these days. Things are going good with my family, dad is still busy with work and the Gideon's. Mom and Tori and still homeschooling and keeping busy. I currently am finishing my GAIT degree at LCC and loving the photography classes I am doing. Josh is still working and keeping busy. Will and Meghan are doing well, and I can't wait to see them at Christmas. Anyways, that's all for now folks, hope you all are doing well.

Hillary
252-286-8554
photographer2012@suddenlink.net

Hello World!

Hey to all,
hope everyone is doing well. I am sorry that I haven't been around in a while, been busy, busy, busy with school, and other stuff. I now have my photography website up, so go take a look and leave me comments on there too please! www.hhphotography21.wordpress.com!!! It's been a really busy month but all is well, have finally gotten my external hardrive, and I also just got a ipod touch too! It will be here within another week or so, and I am really excited about that! Well, things are going well with me and mine, things are going on that need prayer about, more to come in the upcoming months in that goes through! Thanks, and love you all, God Bless!

G'day Mates!!

Last week I had the pleasure of helping my mom, aunt, and sister babysit 3 of my cute second cousins in the Greensboro area. It was a lot of fun, but then my sister and I had to drive back to Kinston for an awesome session of VBS at our church this past weekend. The theme this year was "The Boomerang Express." ON the Boomerang Express you have to remember that it all comes back to Jesus Christ and having a relationship with him. We have 2 lives that were saved which was awesome. They are members of a great family that I have gotten to know that has recently joined the church, so it was touching for me to see 2 more members of their family saved into the kingdom.

So, now I am back home for one week before classes start back and let me tell ya, it's going to go back WAY to fast! Well, that's all for now blokes, and I will have some pics up soon to show of last week, VBS, and my summer too!

Bible Verse for the week!

I have been feeling that like last weeks verse, this weeks verse holds the same, or similar purpose to my life right now and my life as the last one did. I have always loved it, and like Phil. 4:13, this one is one of my all time favorites.

Romans 8:28 " And we know, that all things work together for good, to those that love God, to those that are called according to his purpose."

WOW! What a great promise brought to us by our God and king!

Bible Verse for the week!

Well, I haven't done this in awhile with all that has been going on, and my not being on blogger, so wanted to get back to my Bible verse for the week, and this one, seems like it is an oldie, but is one of THE best!

"I can do all things through Christ who gives me Strength." Philippians 4:13.


This verse has meant more to me now than ever with all I am going through, and it is a blessing to see this verse coming true right before my eyes as it has many times before. It is an amazing verse with such a great promise to it to all who truly apply it to themselves in Christ.

A Lasting "Hope."

My sister and I went to the last night of her VBS at her best friends church a few weeks back, and one of the things the teachers did was give us a rock. On that tiny rock we were to write one word that whenever we carried the rock in our pockets would remind us that Jesus is always there for us. I wrote the word "hope" on mine, and ever since then I have felt that so strongly in my life. I have gone through what I would call a hard time, and so many people have been there for me, but it was my cousin who put it to me the best out of my struggles and her words comforted me tremendously.

She reminded me that when going through a hard time such as the one I am experiencing that is is these times when we hold onto God and draw closer to him in our relationship with him as well. That and our whole conversation was great help to me in what I was searching for. I had a great weekend at my aunts house seeing my aunt, uncle, and cousins, and it was exactly what I need in my time of hardship.

I also am really reflecting on God's Holy word, the Bible, and what it says. I am finding comfort, encouragement, and great strength from it. All in all, I am thankful. I am thankful I have a wonderful family who is always there for me when I need them, especially during the hard times, and I have a relationship with a risen Savior who is ALWAYS there for me no matter what. What a MIGHTY God we serve, and how blessed we are to be HIS!!!!!

God bless you all! Much Love.

Where does the time go?

This is the puppy that my brother Josh brought home what seems like just yesterday some days, and this is him just the other day.

I still can't believe at how big our little Ranger is getting to be, and what joy and happiness he brings to our lives. He is an awesome dog and doing well with his training too!

I know it's been a while but.....

This girl has a good excuse for being away, that and she has been lazy and procrastinated updating her blog for too long, cause my friends need to know what's happening in my life right now!

As of June 23rd which is coming like a freight train, my boyfriend, Ryan and I will have been going out for 6 months, wow! That is awesome to us and we are continuing to bring happiness everyday to our relationship and to each other. We have been able to see each other at LCC where we both attend school, and on the weekends as well. I still can't believe that 6 months is almost come already but think it's great and love it.

LCC continues to bring new adventures for me everyday, and the latest is, I"M DONE! With my GAIT classes anyways, and have finals and it will be official. As of 2:00 today, Wednesday, May 6th, I completed all my classes and didn't push it with anything. I have graduation next Thursday, May 17th, where I will be walking with my class, then full degree in December. It has been a trying semester as I deal with my headaches and the annoyance of the degree of the pain it brings everyday, but they had been good overall, and everyone close to me has been so supportive of me this semester and my time in the GAIT department at LCC as well.

Summer is in the air as I start right back at it close to a week after I end finals I start the summer semester at LCC taking a math class, and blk and white photography with a film SLR camera which my awesome cousins have so graciously allowed me to borrow as I take this class. Sadly though I will not be able to travel back to Wheaton, IL to visit my brother and sister-in-law this summer with my family due to class restraints. I will however be really looking forward to seeing them at Christmas time with they fly down to see us.

Will and Meghan are enjoying life last time I checked in Wheaton as he is going for his doctoral degree in physiology and Meghan teaches. They both have busy schedules and enjoy married life. Josh is working still for DEPS and has his puppy Ranger who is getting bigger all the time and hyper by the day. Ranger continues to bring joy into our lives and is a sweet puppy dog. And the most recent excitement in our family, Tori, the baby of the family finally got her permit! She is very excited and loves driving and had some interstate experience over LCC's Spring Break.

So, to conclude, I want to apologize for having lacked my blog in awhile and hope this update finds everyone doing well, healthy, and happy. Love to all, and God bless each and everyone! More to come about Graduation at LCC.

Meet Ranger!

Meet Ranger,

the newest addition to the Haynes crew! My brother Josh brought him home Saturday afternoon and he is the sweetest little thing. As many of you know and saw on here, our beloved Spot of 11 years died that Monday before, so Ranger has brought much laughter, and happiness to our lives. Ranger is a Yellow Lab, and is destined to be a hunting dog someday.

Spot, an amazing dog.

As I sit here and type this, my awesome dog of close to 11 years Spot, is lying out on our porch dying. It is sad for us all, but we also are very happy to see him getting out of pain. Spot was found to have lymphoma cancer. He has taken it all very well and up until the last few days, has done well for the most part getting around on his own. Today, mom had to get up the steps, and a little while ago he got up, to the door, and back down and could make it back to his house. He is now in the comfort of blankets, and thank God it isn't really cold out there tonight.

As I reflect on all the great times Spot has given us I also think to my cousins dog Buffet that was put down a few weeks ago. So there is a lot of sadness as our animals in our families are getting old and dying. Then I also think about the young, our cat Chloe, my aunts dog Jackson, etc. They are all in there prime and we have many years to enjoy them. Well friends, that's enough for now, but tomorrow looks to be an awesome day, my boyfriend Ryan is coming to church with me, then hanging out with me the rest of the day as we do fun stuff here at the Haynes homestead and then go to a friends house for a Superbowl party.

Well Well Well, yeh it's me

Well friends, I have been a slacker lately when it comes to my blog and I apologize for that. But just a brief of whats been going on since you last heard from me, things are going good so far in the semester with school. I am enjoying the work and having a good semester with all my classes so far. I am also dating an amazing guy now who also goes to school at LCC so I get to see him a lot during the week which is awesome. Church life is good but hectic. Seems like everywhere I turn around got something going on, but love it still as usual. I have a Math class on Wednesday nights so can't attend then but it's all good.

Things with my head have been bad lately or have gotten bad but I figured out I was on my computer too often and that wasn't working so I am trying to wing off of being on it do much. It's working though. Wel friends, more to come later, take care, and as always God bless.