ALY ALLEN | THE BLOG

tomorrow, at church, i'm singing this song: i love the message, and i love how it's the perfect song for me to be singing right now, in this season of my life.  out of the six potential songs that i shared with our worship pastor, this is the one that he chose for me to sing tomorrow. couldn't be more perfect. it's not a coincidence either, that's for sure... anyway, my favorite part about the song? in the chorus, it reads like this: Hallelujah, hallelujah whatever's in front of me help me to sing hallelujah Hallelujah, hallellujah whatever's in front of me i'll choose to sing hallelujah this is so true for me. how about you? there are times when "disaster" strikes and i need Him to remind me- "sing Hallelujah, this is for your good and for my glory. it is best and it is not a surprise to me. this is part of the plan. choose to see what I have for you." there are other times when i choose to sing hallelujah. not out of emotion, no...

my daughter has her second cold of her life. [not bad, considering she's almost two].  i hate when she's sick. not because she wakes up in the middle of the night, or because she wants me to hold her more during the day. i know the time is coming quickly when i won't be able to hold her at all and i'll long for these days again. so i don't begrudge it, i love it. anyway, i hate when she's sick because i can't do my usual cold regimen with her. there are a few things i can do, but most of them, i can't. she's just too little: 1. gargle with half hydrogen peroxide/ half water as soon as i feel it coming on. about 4 or 5 times a day or until the sore throat eases away, which is usually within a day, if i catch it soon enough. i think it just kills all those germs that are waiting to attack you. [not sure she understands the concept of gargling yet?] [photo credit] 2. bombard my system with vitamin D and vitamin C.  vitamin D is a miracle, i believe. i...

well, if any of you were curious about the outcome of the Lovelyn's plea for our help , that i wrote about in my last post ... $1700 needed to be raised to fund the one well at the one facility.  but, of course , in the way that only He can, and in the way that is so true to His character, God has blown us away. the total raised was   $5661. 27 that's over three times what was needed. to Him be all the glory.   [photo credit] after all that they've suffered  [and will likely continue to suffer]  i can't help but think that these children, who will finally be gaining access to clean drinking water, would  so  appreciate the promise of  Revelation 7:17   [so much more than any of us could ever really appreciate] "For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; He will lead them to springs of  living   water .  And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. ” i hope that some of you were able to contribute! y...

i just put my little girl down for her nap. while we prayed, I thanked Jesus for clean water... at the mention of water, of course, she asked me for water. i looked around and there was a sippy cup on her dresser, one outside her door, two across the hall in my room, and undoubtedly three more scattered around the house. we are blessed.  we are fortunate.  we are  wealthy. and when i say  "we" , i don't just mean  me. i mean all of us. just having access to clean water is a luxury that many children do not know. what are we doing with all this wealth, as thousands of children are dying every day and we're concerned with the latest fashion trend that we must own or who was the best dressed at the grammy's or what new reality show everyone is talking about? sometimes our lives are so unrealistic and absurd that i can't even believe it. i hope sometimes you get stirred by the gross injustice and gaping discrepancy, too. when you're stirred, i hope that you a...

a few months ago, i think it was december, i glanced out the window during a particularly difficult day, and i noticed them. in the dead of winter, peeking out behind a dormant tree: bright orange, beautiful poppy colored flowers, blooming in the middle of winter. but more importantly for me, in the middle of a desolate and stormy winter that had ravaged its way through my weary heart. those little flowers were blooming quietly, just for me, straight from Him. yesterday, i noticed them again and went out to take a photo... lo and behold, the clouds parted and the sun shone on these tiny white flowers, popping up on the dormant tree that sits right in front of the orange flowers. little white blossoms, symbolizing new life, hope . bringing beauty and bringing glory to the bare branches. i scanned the bank and noticed purple blossoming in the iceplant [shown in first photo] and pink sprouting from another little tree that i didn't even know existed in my backyard. God is good. i lov...

about four years ago i started listening only to christian music. one day, i just decided to make the switch and see what would happen. i downloaded a bunch of music that i liked and burned it onto CDs that i kept in my car. you guys, it made such a huge difference in my life. i would arrive to work in a better, more peaceful mood. i would get to school and feel focu sed. so many things started changing, when i began to feed my mind with praise while i drove. [i used to drive a lot more than i do now]. you know philippians 4:8 , right? Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. i wanted to do that. i had become a negative and cynical person and i didn't want to be that way anymore. i didn't realize that the music i listened to, even if it was just on in the background, made me depressed and grumpy and c...

for valentine's day, i thought i'd repost something from the archives [back before anyone was actually reading this, april 2010]. it's really really long, and i'm actually quoting myself for most of it. so it's really like a post out of the archives out of the archives. disclaimer: i think maybe i was a little more direct back when i wrote the quoted part. i think i also said some things that aren't quite right, but overall the message is good. it was written about four years ago, so just keep that in mind :) anyway, here goes: i love how God teaches us things in certain seasons of life, and brings those lessons back to us when we need them... i wrote this a little over two years ago (on my myspace page, back when people had a "myspace"). every now and then, God gently reminds me that i was once on a quest to LOVE others with a passionate, unwavering, and unconditional love. that i was going to seek out people who were hurting and needed something...

every time i buy something from the thrift store [which is very often] and repurpose [or spray paint] it, i can't help but think that Jesus would have been a thrifter/repurposer. he was a carpenter, yes, but i think he would've enjoyed finding old stuff, fixing it up, painting it, and giving it new life and a new home just as much as he enjoyed creating something from scratch. He wouldn't walk into Pottery Barn to buy the brand new, expensive sofa table. no, i think He would set out on a mission, searching from thrift store to thrift store, until He found  just  the piece He was looking for. and very likely, it would be the piece that no one else wanted... the worst of the worst with chipped paint. it would be falling apart, on its last leg. the dented and broken piece in the back of the store that might as well be cut up and used for scraps. something that needed lots of fixing up. but He wouldn't care. He would know how beautiful it would be once He was finished w...

you guys, i've been trying to write this post for weeks. it has been an ever-evolving "draft" for almost a month. i don't really know why, exactly. can't put my finger on it. was it too vulnerable? maybe... and then today i read this post  by Jon Acuff [Stuff Christians Like]. it got my wheels turning again, and i came back to this draft. to my surprise, i had already written a lot more than i remembered. so anyway, here goes: let's face it: none of us are ever going to be perfect. we mess up daily, and sometimes we sin BIG. i was always the good girl. always followed the rules, wanted everyone to know me as the responsible and mature one with my head on straight. i liked that attention. i always dressed modestly. i always did the right thing... almost. in my later high school days,   i allowed temptation to lead into sin, and i did things that i knew God hated. and i kept doing them, knowing that he hated them. i almost didn't know how to stop. i was ...

 i've been bombarded with this same message from Isaiah almost daily, whether through Bible study or the various books that i'm reading, conversations with friends... it also seems to be a recurring theme around the blog world these days. in case you didn't already know,  music is the language of my soul.   and   this song [ At the foot of the Cross , by Kathryn Scott] is my anthem, for this season of my life: At the foot of the cross Where grace and suffering meet You have shown me Your love Through the judgment You received And You've won my heart Yes You've won my heart Now I can Trade these ashes in for beauty And wear forgiveness like a crown Coming to kiss the feet of mercy I lay every burden down At the foot of the cross At the foot of the cross Where I am made complete You have given me life Through the death You bore for me I'm laying every burden down I'm laying every burden down isn't that beautiful? listen to it here  [if the below video doe...

we did go to the park wednesday, for the record. i forgot my camera but i took a few lame photos on my phone. i have to say i was proud of myself for keeping the "appointment" even though it was 50 degrees and crazy windy. i didn't plan well, either. no heavy coat or gloves or anything. so we only stayed about 30 minutes. at least it wasn't crowded [because no one in their right mind was going to be outside with a small child]. anyway , today's appointment: have a picnic in the backyard for lunch i know, you can barely read the list... oh well. i can't really tell if reese enjoyed it. she was tired and starving, so she basically concentrated on the task at hand- - scarfing down her food. either way, i enjoyed myself. sun shining and birds chirping, enjoying God's creation in our humble little yard with my precious girl who is growing up way too quickly... is that a run-on? anyway, here's the proof: on the menu? guacamole, broccoli, grapes, dried cranbe...

for anyone who's here in san diego [probably not many of you, but just in case...] i'll be at "birds of a feather" this saturday from 3-5. it's an event that my best friend is helping to plan at her church, that brings women together to share their art and talents with one another. it will be set up sort of like a boutique or craft show, except there's nothing to buy. you just come and get inspired and learn lots of new things! i'll be making flowers and headbands and, or course, checking out all the other awesome and talented women that are there. it's free, but they do ask that you bring gently used clothing that they can donate to the organization "rachel's house". [oh, and there's free childcare, btw] Birds of a Feather : An Expo of Talents, Passions, and Like Interests of the Women of Existence from Existence Church on Vimeo . Existence Church 7686 Miramar Rd San Diego, CA 92126 Look for  Sid’s Carpet Barn  and head to the ware...

the aroma of roasted peppers marinating in the fridge is wandering into my little office. baby's asleep and i'm at the computer.  laundry is churning in the next room over [okay, the garage] i'm looking at my to-do list.  i'm totally a list girl. my daily to-do list is usually only 3 or 4 really important things that absolutely have to get done.  because there are so few, they usually get done. i have completed two of the three items on my to do list today. the third? go to the park for at least 30-45 minutes last night, my husband and i sat in the jacuzzi and relaxed.  just chatted.  about everything and nothing.  and we got to the subject of how the day went...  [it wasn't a good day, so there was some good material] like most husbands, he's always taking my problems and handing me solutions, instead of just listening. this night was different though. he listened and listened, and acted like he totally got me. things like: i work part time.  i ...