Happy New Years!!
2011 has officially begun in Turkey :) Just got back from a party, so I will blog more tomorrow. We head to Kayseri tomorrow...5 hour bus trip! We play Kayseri on Sunday, Fenerbahce on Wednesday, and Tarsus on Sunday to finish out the first h Megan
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We practiced twice today. In the morning it is normally shooting, but this morning it was a practice. So, after the first practice I took a nice nap to get geared up for the second practice. I hardly slept at all last night because of the time change, so I am hoping for a better night of sleep tonight. We have one practice tomorrow at 11:00 a.m. followed by film. Tomorrow night some of us are going to go over to Coaches house to celebrate the New Year coming. I guess it will be 2011 here, before it is in the States :) Do any of you have some New Years resolutions? I have not really nailed one down per say, but my ultimate goal is to continue to strive to grow closer in my walk with the Lord. I want to be used by Him for His glory in whatever way that looks like. I hope you all have a great rest of the day :) Megan Verse of the day:
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.— John 16:33 (NIV) Thoughts on Today's Verse...This world is a place of struggle. Yes, we can live above the struggle for awhile. We can find a way to simply ignore or re-label the struggle for a time. But in the end, the struggle will find us. But in the midst of struggle, we can remind ourselves that our victory is secure. Jesus has won! We will share in his great triumph. In case you didn't know, the final outcome is already determined and Christians "win big" through Jesus. And this victory is a forever win! My Utmost For His Highest: Once God has begun the process of sanctification in your life, watch and see how God causes your confidence in your own natural virtues and power to wither away. He will continue until you learn to draw your life from the reservoir of the resurrection life of Jesus. Thank God if you are going through this drying-up experience! Our Daily Bread: Have you lost your spiritual balance through a sinful choice, which is keeping you down? Repent and follow the God of second chances once again. Day #1 is complete in Turkey :) It is looking like I will be over here for about three months. Our season ends mid March and then playoffs start after that.Christmas break was a BLAST!! I love, love, loved being HOME :) I am away so much, that it makes it extra special when I am able to spend time at home. I got in around midnight on Monday night (the 21st). My whole fam was there to pick me up at the airport (minus Amy and Zeb though).I was dead tired after close to 24 hours of traveling, but I couldn't sleep so I stayed up until 3:00 a.m. talking with my sisters. Here is my first picture I took at the airport at midnight with my sisters :). Before we started talking, we opened up our Christmas presents to one another and to and from our parents. Monday night was the only night that both of my sisters had off, so we were opening present at 1:00 a.m. This was way past my parents bedtime, but they were gracious enough to let us do this. I will post a link at the bottom of my blog with pictures that I took while home :) I never really slept in while home because my body never really got adjusted to the time change. Tuesday and Wednesday were filled with a couple doctors appointments and then just hanging out with my family. I went to the chiropractor and then also found out I needed to get some glasses. Is that what getting old does to you? Or maybe working on my masters? No, I am kidding. I am thankful that the Lord has allowed me to do what I do. Wednesday I left with my parents to make the 8 hour drive to Indiana. We go to Grandpa and Grandma McNally's house in the afternoon. My brother and his wife Amy came in on Wednesday as well. This year was the first Christmas that our whole family was not able to make the trip. Moriah was able to fly in Christmas Eve, but Molly had to stay back in Lynchburg to work. Nursing schedules are pretty crazy during the holidays. Somebody has to work in the hospital even though it may be Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. We missed Molly, but thank the Lord for Skype...we were able to let her watch people open presents and stuff. My time at the McNally's was great!! It was great to see Grandma and Grandpa again. I miss you a lot when I am gone, and wish I could make it more often to your house. I am so thankful for the times that I am able to come and visit. We had some AMAZING food prepared by Grandma...wow...she can cook! I took a few pics of the food that you can check out from the link at the bottom of the blog. Grandpa, thanks for keeping the fire roaring...nice and toasty in the house which was great! Love you both! On Christmas Day we headed over the the Frazee's. We had some ham and turkey served for lunch. I got to see my Uncles and Aunts which was great. We always have a great time when we all get together. There is never a dull moment in the Frazee house, with all the great grand kids running around and playing...so FUN! Great seeing you Grandma and Grandpa Frazee as well. Love you too! The day after Christmas found me traveling back to Virginia with my parents and Moriah. We got back to Lynchburg in the afternoon. I was able to go to Walmart and get stocked up for things to bring back over here. I went to bed kind of early to get a good nights sleep since I was flying out the next day. Monday came oh so fast! Thankfully my flight was not until 5:00 p.m., so I was able to wrap up any loose ends that I had. My flights over here all went very smooth. I flew from Roanoke to Chicago and then from Chicago to Istanbul, then Istanbul to Adana. I arrived last night around 9:00 p.m., which is 2:00 p.m. your time. Praise the Lord I was able to sleep fairly well last night. I slept in today until 11:00 a.m. and then we had practice at 2:00 p.m. Practice wasn't too bad, but I could definitely tell I was tired. Well, I think I may go to bed early tonight. We have two practices tomorrow. One practice from 9:45 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. and then another one at 4:30 p.m. I hope you all had wonderful times with your families :) P.S. Link is at the bottom of the page. God bless, Megan Verse of the Day: [Jesus said,] "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am."— John 14:1-3 (NIV) Thoughts on Today's Verse...He's coming back! As much as the world likes to remember Jesus' first coming during the Christmas season, we need to remind them that his Second Coming will be even greater. We want to be prepared -- lives dedicated to his glory and hearts full of expectation at his coming. My Utmost For His Highest: You can never be the same after the unveiling of a truth. That moment marks you as one who either continues on with even more devotion as a disciple of Jesus Christ, or as one who turns to go back as a deserter. Our Daily Bread:The world will know by our love for God and others that He is great. ___________________________________________________________________________ Here is a link to some pictures I took while home:http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2368041&id=55710205&l=dcbc8f909f *There are some pictures where you will see some fine cuisine prepared :) Don't get too jealous ;)!! Megan It has been awhile since I have last blogged. I had a wonderful time at home visiting friends and family. The time went super fast, and I couldn't believe it was time to head back across the water so fast. I just wanted to write a quick update and let you know I made it back to Adana, Turkey safe and sound.
I will update tomorrow about all the FUN things I did while home, and I will also post a few pictures :) God bless you ALL!! Megan This is Moriah blogging again :) It is currently almost three in the morning. I worked tonight from 7p-11 then was sent home on call because our patient census was so low.. So, needless to say now I can't sleep. Megan made it home safe and sound Monday night around 11:30 PM. For once she did not have any major delays to which she and us were VERY thankful for! We are gearing up to make our egg rolls. They are sooo delicious! It is usually a New Years Eve tradition but since Meg probably won't be here for New years we are going to make them early. And that day is TODAY! We also opened up our family gifts last night because Molly can't come to Indiana for Christmas and I will be working the other nights. So that was fun getting to see what everyone got each other! I am sure that Meg will get on here in a day or so to update her blog herself but I just wanted to let everyone know that she made it SAFE AND SOUND! We love having her home! Have a WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS!
Two days until I start my trek HOME :) One game stand between me and getting ready to go home. The flight to Istanbul went great today! We got to the hotel (Holiday Inn), which is really nice, and ate some lunch. Shortly after lunch we headed out to practice. Practice also went well. Tomorrow we play against Besiktas at 3:30 p.m. After the game I will be going to a hotel closer to the airport to spend the night with a couple of my teammates. I will try to update tomorrow after the game. I am not sure if the hotel will have free internet or not, but I hope so. Holiday Inn has free internet, and it is good too. A lot of hotels have free internet over here in Turkey believe it or not, but a lot of times it is sketchy. Looking forward to coming HOME soon :) Okay back to listening to the Liberty Lady Flames basketball game!! It is 23-21 at the half. Liberty is playing North Carolina Central. GO FLAMES! God bless, Megan Verse of the day: [Zechariah said,] "Praise be to the Lord, God of Israel, because he has come and has redeemed his people. He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, as he said through his holy prophets long ago."— Luke 1:68-70 (NIV) Thoughts on Today's Verse...What God does in Jesus is not a surprise. Yes, it was unexpected, but the "hints" and prophecies of his coming are found all over the Old Testament. The holy prophets had spoken about it "long ago." But more than the prophets, Jesus' coming is God keeping his word. Jesus' coming is God's answer to his promises. That's why Paul can say that all God's promises find their yes in Jesus and it is through Jesus that the "amen" is spoken (2 Cor. 1). In Jesus, God comes, God ministers, God cares, God saves, God redeems, and God keeps his promises. My Utmost For His Highest: God may cause our circumstances to suddenly fall apart, which may bring the realization of our unfaithfulness to Him for not recognizing that He had ordained the situation. We never saw what He was trying to accomplish, and that exact event will never be repeated in our life. This is where the test of our faithfulness comes. If we will just learn to worship God even during the difficult circumstances, He will change them for the better very quickly if He so chooses. Our Daily Bread: Jesus Christ is the Key that unlocks the Word of God. How is everyone doing? I am doing well :) Had one practice today that went well! After practice we watched some film. This afternoon has been filled with packing and also I made some banana bread for the trip to Istanbul for the team. Tomorrow we head to Istanbul. I sent my paper in today, so I am done with classes for a week :) I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!! Megan Verse of the Day:
An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."— Matthew 1:20-21 (NIV) Thoughts on Today's Verse...Jesus first had to become the sins of the people before he could save them (us) from those sins (2 Cor. 5:21; 1 John 4:10). His own people rejected him before his forgiveness could be received. Jesus' gift of salvation was incredibly costly to him. It is a reminder of two great truths: God loves us incredibly and salvation is a precious gift. In Jesus we know and experience both truths! My Utmost For His Highest: The only thing that can possibly satisfy the need is what created the need. This is the meaning of redemption— it creates and it satisfies. Our Daily Bread:GOD'S LOVE THROUGH MEDuring a devotional session at a conference, our leader asked us to read aloud 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, and substitute the word “Jesus” for “love.” It seemed so natural to say, “Jesus suffers long and is kind; Jesus does not envy; Jesus does not parade Himself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek His own . . . . Jesus never fails.” Then our leader said, “Read the passage aloud and say your name instead of Jesus.” We laughed nervously at the suggestion. “I want you to begin now,” the leader said. Quietly, haltingly I said the words that felt so untrue: “David does not seek his own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. David never fails.” The exercise caused me to ask, “How am I hindering God from expressing His love through me?” Do I think that other expressions of faith are more important? Paul declared that from God’s perspective, eloquent speech, deep spiritual understanding, lavish generosity, and self-sacrifice are worthless when not accompanied by love (vv.1-3). God longs to express His great heart of love for others through us. Will we allow Him to do it? To love our neighbors as ourselves Is not an easy thing to do; So Lord, please show us how to love As we attempt to follow You. —Sper Living like Christ is loving like God. Today was another good day :) We had lifting this morning and then one practice this afternoon. I worked on my paper some this afternoon and then finished it up tonight. I spent a solid couple of hours hacking away at it. I will look it over tomorrow and then turn it in :) So glad to have the big project complete. Break time is almost around the corner. Two practice and one game stands between me and going HOME!! So excited :) I hear a lot of places in the States got snow today or last night. Enjoy the white stuff, but also stay safe. Best place to be is inside the house, next to a nice and cozy fireplace, and reading a book. Have a wonderful rest of the day!! Tomorrow I pack for going home and for our game in Istanbul on Sunday. We will be leaving Saturday morning. Megan Verse of the day: Mary said, "My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior ... the Mighty One has done great things for me - holy is his name." — Luke 1:46-49 (NIV) Thoughts on Today's Verse...While Mary's submission to God's will costs her in ways we can never imagine, for Jesus to come to life in the hearts of people today our attitude must be the same as her attitude was on this night of miracle and mystery. We too, must be willing to be the Lord's servant and offer him the praise of our lives and of our lips. In Jesus, the Lord has done great things for us! My Utmost For His Highest: We don’t have to fight or wrestle with God, but we must wrestle before God with things. Beware of lazily giving up. Instead, put up a glorious fight and you will find yourself empowered with His strength. Our Daily Bread: The Lord wants to show Himself to us, thus giving us a truer vision of ourselves, a deeper need for His grace, and a greater commitment to live and speak for Him. What a miracle! And then there were FIVE!! YAY :) Today we scrimmaged Tarsus. Tarsus is in our league and they are about 45 minutes away from Adana. The scrimmage went really well. We ended up coming out on top which was good :) I didn't to a whole lot today. After the scrimmage I ate with some of my teammates. We ate Mercemik Koftesi (lentil meatball) for lunch. Here are the ingredients: *it is really good!! 1 cup red lentils 1 liter of water 2 cups fine bulgur 2 onions 1 cup olive oil 1.5 tbsp pepper paste 1 teaspoon black pepper the desired amount of paprika 1 cup hot water 1.5 tbsp tomato paste 1 bunch parsley 6-7 stalks green onions 1.5 teaspoon salt lettuce or arugula I am only 3 practices (one Thursday, Friday, and Saturday) and 1 game (Sunday) away from coming HOME!! I can't wait. I hope you all are having a great week so far! Happy HUMP day to you all. Megan Verse of the day:
The angel said to [Mary], "Do not be afraid, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever."— Luke 1:30-33 (NIV) Thoughts on Today's Verse...Jesus is identified by many names stated or implied in the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John). Notice how Jesus is identified in just this one passage: child, son, Jesus, great, Son of the Most High, King, son of David, and leader of Israel (Jacob). Jesus exhausts all descriptions, and yet chose to be limited to imperfect descriptions by becoming human. But this flood of names and descriptions helps us find Jesus as our Savior in every trial and blessing of life. Jesus is Savior for all seasons. My Utmost For His Highest: Always make it a practice to stir your own mind thoroughly to think through what you have easily believed.Your position is not really yours until you make it yours through suffering and study. The author or speaker from whom you learn the most is not the one who teaches you something you didn’t know before, but the one who helps you take a truth with which you have quietly struggled, give it expression, and speak it clearly and boldly. SO TRUE!! Our Daily Bread: Humbling ourselves before the Lord (James 4:10) and asking Him to show us our heart will help us to recognize our own submission problems. Lord, help us to submit to You, To follow and obey; And give us strength to fight the urge To do things our own way. —Sper True freedom is not in choosing our own way, but in submitting to God’s way. How is everyone doing?? Hard to believe it is less than a week until HOME :) I am so excited! Today was a good day :) We just had lifting and then we had the afternoon off. I was able to do some work on my research paper. I hope to finish that up within the next few days. This evening I was able to talk with Shanna, Shannon, Sidney, and Brittney as we discussed the "God's Space" book. SO amazing how technology allows you to talk to multiple people at once on different continents and in different time zones. Tomorrow we scrimmage Tarsus and then we have one practice on Thursday and one practice on Friday. Saturday we head to Istanbul to play Besiktas on Sunday and then fly HOME on Monday!!! Have a wonderful day!! Megan Verse of the day: God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you."— Luke 1:26-28 (NIV) Thoughts on Today's Verse...Wow! Such a familiar sentence packed with emotion. An angel comes to Nazareth to visit and speak with a young woman engaged to be married. Before the history shattering news is announced, she is given one key reminder that will be truer than she could imagine, "The Lord is with you." My Utmost For His Highest: As long as we try to serve two masters, ourselves and God, there will be difficulties combined with doubt and confusion. Our attitude must be one of complete reliance on God. God’s mark of approval, whenever you obey Him, is peace. He sends an immeasurable, deep peace; not a natural peace, “as the world gives,” but the peace of Jesus. Any problem that comes while I obey God (and there will be many), increases my overjoyed delight, because I know that my Father knows and cares, and I can watch and anticipate how He will unravel my problems. -Really liked this!! Our Daily Bread: Where’s Johnny’s Cap? A story is told about a family that went on a picnic by a lake. At one point, their 5-year-old son waded into the lake, stepped into deep water, and sank out of sight. None of the adults in the family knew how to swim, so they ran up and down the shore in panic while the child bobbed up and down and screamed for help. Just then, a man happened by who sized up the situation, leaped into the lake, and rescued the boy. He climbed out on the bank with the child, who was frightened but unharmed, only to hear the mother ask with irritation, “Where’s Johnny’s cap?” So often we focus on small disappointments that cause us to grumble and complain rather than focusing on the wonderful things God has brought into our lives, not the least of which is His everlasting love and eternal salvation. When we complain about the small dissatisfactions of life, we’re asking, in effect, “Where’s Johnny’s cap?” Paul wrote, “In everything give thanks” (1 Thess. 5:18). We may not be thankful for everything that comes our way, but we can give thanks in everything. It may be difficult to be grateful when we lose our job or our health fails, but we can be thankful for the good that God has brought to us in this life and grateful for the life to come. As endless as God’s blessings are, So should my praises be For all His daily goodnesses That flow unceasingly! —Adams Instead of being preoccupied with our problems, let’s praise the Lord for His blessings. |
Info:I am currently playing basketball professionally. The Lord has blessed me with so many opportunities. I hope to be able to share some of my experiences with you! Archives
February 2017
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