Homemade Sweet Potato Fries

Fall is finally here! While anything pumpkin is a favorite fall food of mine [insert white girl joke here], I also love sweet potatoes!  My grandfather, Pop, is one of the greatest gardeners I know and last time I went home, he gave me 15 home-grown potatoes that I had no clue what to do with. After multiple trials and errors, I have come up with the perfect sweet potato fry recipe. It is quick, easy and a great snack or side item for all your fall festivities! 

Sweet Potato Fries

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 25-30 minutes

Serves 2 per potato

Ingredients: 

1 sweet potato (for each additional potato, double recipe) 

olive oil

1/4 tsp sugar

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp paprika 

Directions: 

1.) Preheat oven to 450 degrees F and line a baking sheet with tinfoil.

2.) Wash potato, cut off ends, and slice with a large knife into medium "fry-like" wedges- don't slice too thick or it will not cook all the way through. You can peel the skin off if you prefer but I like to leave mine on.

3.) Spread out wedges on baking sheet and drizzle the wedges with olive oil. Make sure you cover both sides of wedge with oil but they don't need to be drowning. 

4.) Mix dry ingredients and sprinkle evenly on both sides of the wedges.

5.) Bake for 15 minutes, then remove wedges and flip them to their other side. Bake an additional 10-15 minutes, depending on how crispy you like your fries. 

Get some catsup (or if you want to get real crazy, some marshmallow fluff), serve and enjoy!

Experiencing God

I started this blog to talk about my life. What God is doing, how I am growing, and fun adventures I am having. But it strayed from that when I have tried to get all preachy and that was not the goal.  So, today I am just going to simply state what God has been revealing to me in the past few weeks since I’ve been back at school.

God has been teaching me about prayer in unfathomable ways lately. It started the first week of school when my friends Mike and Murray moved into their new apartment that did not have a washer or dryer and they informed me that they had begun praying for one. Foolishly, I thought to myself, “That is kind of a silly thing to pray for.” and that was the last thought I gave about it… until the next week when their landlord showed up at their door saying, “I have this extra washer and dryer I need to get rid of, do you boys need one?” Boom. Free washer and dryer. WHAT?!?! Like seriously? Talk about ye of little faith on my part.

The next week, I was dropping something off at Mike and Murray’s house, had a conversation with Murray for a bit, decided it was time to leave, and realized I had locked my keys in the car. This is not a new occurrence for me.  This had to have been my 4^th or 5^th time locking my keys in the car and every time, I try to break into the car on my own before epically failing and calling a locksmith. We called the locksmith and he said it would be $50… I am in college…. “ain’t nobody got money fo dat.!” I knew I would have to pay it but I decided to attempt to break into the car anyways. But first, Murray stops me and says we need to pray about it. Pray about getting into my car? The car I have tried to break into multiple times already? Ok…? Can you guess what happened? Me, Murray, a wire hanger, two crowbars and 15 minutes later, the door is open. Jaw. On. Floor.

This happened on a Wednesday night so by Sunday night, I had decided that I had been putting God in a box. Sure, I prayed about abstract things but I never got that specific. I never trusted like that. So Sunday night at CO Prayer, my friend Javona shared that she had been praying every morning that God would use her to glorify Himself that day. That really spoke volumes to me so I decided to give it a whirl and prayed all day for God to use me. That day at lunch, I got to share the gospel with my friend Madison and sitting there at Chick-fil-a, in the middle of Russell Union, we prayed and she made Christ her Lord and Savior. It was one of the most joyful things I had ever experienced. It taught me that sharing the gospel IS experiencing God. I could not stop smiling and rejoicing.

If that wasn’t already awesome, the next morning I woke up with a sore throat and sinus infection but I was supposed to go give a campus tour for Southern Ambassadors. The whole way there I prayed and prayed and prayed that no one would show up for the tour so I wouldn’t have to talk about campus for an hour with a sore throat. I walked in and there was one family waiting to go on a tour. Feeling defeated and complaining in my head, I decided to pray anyways and thank God for the opportunity to be a Southern Ambassador. Next thing I know, in walks two more Ambassadors. They had three guides for one family so they sent two of us home. God still answered my prayer! Even though it wasn’t quite the way I thought he would. It was the cherry on top to a nice two-week span of God teaching me about prayer and my lack of trust in Him.

All this brings me to today, where the rest of my family and I are waiting anxiously to hear the results of an MRI for my brother, Will. Will is one of the most talented high school athletes I’ve ever seen, and no, I’m not just saying that because I am his sister. He is only a junior and has been looked at and offered scholarships to multiple schools already. Last year, he tore his ACL and was out all season and Friday night at his game he injured it again. My heart is broken for him and I know he is hurting and upset. But I also know that he trusts in the Lord and knows that God has plans to prosper him and not to harm him, and to give him a hope and a future (Jer. 29:11).  But I’m asking that you join with me in praying for him. Even if the results of the MRI aren’t what we hope, pray that Will (and my parents) will have strength and be encouraged by the fact that even of Will never plays football again, it is by far the best thing that could happen to him because it is God’s plan and His plans hold things that are greater than what we could ever imagine.

But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.  

Philippians 3:20-21 

The Discipline of Grace | Book Review

I absolutely LOVE to read and one of my favorite things to do is share books with other people! When I finish a book, I am going to begin posting a short review to let people know my thoughts about it or what the book taught me in hopes to inspire others to pick it up and read it!

I recently completed the book The Discipline of Grace by Jerry Bridges. I started it in the spring for my Campus Outreach discipleship group and it took me this long to finish because it ended up being one of those books that you couldn't read straight through, you had to put it down every few pages and think about/reflect on what was being taught...

The subtitle of this book is, "God's Role and Our Role in the Pursuit of Holiness." How often do we find ourselves sinning and then saying, "It's ok. There's grace!" Romans 6:1-2 says, "What shall we say then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?" This book helps to clarify what our role vs. God's role in our growth as we experience grace and grow in Christlikeness.

A few of my favorite quotes from the book:

"Your worst days are never so bad that you are beyond the reach of God's grace. And your best days are never so good that you are beyond the need of God's grace."

"We should delight in God. We should eagerly anticipate fellowship with Him during the quiet time and even throughout the entire day. It is healthy to want to gaze upon His beauty and to seek Him in His temple."

"The greatest sorrow and burden you can lay on the Father, the greatest unkindness you can do to Him is not to believe that He loves you."

"We cannot effectively pursue holiness without the Word of God stored up in our minds where it can be used by the Holy Spirit to transform us."

I definitely suggest checking this book out! Partner it with the Word, don't elevate it above the Word! Let me know if you'd like to borrow my copy!

On another note, I finally signed up my blog on bloglovin'! Many people have asked how to follow my blog and this is it! Bloglovin' is a great way to view and follow blogs and you can set up your own account without having your own blog! Check out the link in the side bar or click here!

P.S. It's game day in the Eagle Nation!!!! HAIL SOUTHERN! And no place else!

The Girls of 518

Before we left Summer Beach Project, we were encouraged to reflect over all we learned this summer in the few weeks leading up to school starting back. As I began looking back over all the talks we had, the bible study and prayer trainings and even times I studied the Word on my own, I realized that nothing I learned this summer would leave an impact on me like the girls in room 518. Living with 4 other girls in a hotel room for 9 weeks had to have been one of the most frustrating challenges I’ve had to face. God revealed so much of my own personal sin, grew me in patience, kindness and humility, taught me how to hold my tongue and used each girl in a unique way to impact my relationship with the Lord. This blog post is dedicated to them because I want everyone else to know how awesome they are!

Cami Gresham

One of the first things I remember Cami saying to us was, “I am going to mess up. I am going to fail you as a leader.” That spoke volumes to me. Cami took on the challenge of leading four very self-motivated, hardheaded, goal oriented women. Cami did such a great job of challenging us in specific ways that were catered toward our personal walks. We weren’t just girls that she was supposed to talk to about “Bible stuff” but she genuinely wanted to know what we were struggling with and wanted to help us. The times that she did mess up, she took criticism humbly and thanked us for it. How many people do you know thank people when they are criticized? I could go on and on about Cami but the thing I learned the most from her was her genuine delight in the Word. Every time we began to read the Bible, she got so excited! There would be a joy on her face and she would just want to read more and more and more! I pray that I can continually delight in God’s Word like she does. Finally, have you heard this girl sing and play her ukulele? Ask her to play Bonnie Blue. You won’t regret it!

Aubrey (Baby Aubs) Danielson

First, I want to applaud Aubrey for being the least lazy of all the 518 girls. This girl not only did the usual SBP stuff but also consistently woke up at 6:30 to exercise for Athletes in Training, had a job selling fireworks, and had multiple internships during the summer. Her schedule made me tired! This just shows how driven Aubrey is. Aubrey also loves people. She shared toward the end of project that loving others is something she struggles with but you would never ever know that. Aubrey would always be the first to hug you after a long week, ask you how your day was going and bring you McDonalds fries on the way home from work when she knew you were craving them (Thanks love!). She was also my partner in crime in spontaneity this summer. Whether it was jumping from the pool to the hot tub to the ocean, fully clothed, 15 minutes before curfew, constructing a SBP bucket list, or convincing my room to drop what we were doing and go visit a lighthouse on the other side of Daytona, Aubrey was the ringleader and I love that about her. Aubrey plays soccer for USC Aiken and I’m so excited to see how God uses her this semester to lead the girls on the soccer team!

Everley (Bev) Perryman

I don’t think you could have two girls more similar than Everley Perryman and I. My first thoughts were, “Oh, we are so similar! We are going to get along great this summer!” HA! We slowly started to realize that we both like to be in charge, we both like things going our way and we are both incredibly passive aggressive.  This was NOT a good combination. God put us in a room together because we were mirrors of each other. When Everley and I interacted, our sin was revealed to us through the other person and then reflected back to us. We saw the sin in each other and at first that caused bitterness and tension but then once we were both able to talk about it and begin pealing back each other’s layers, I realized how much of a blessing and God-send she was for me. Once we finally got done comparing ourselves to each other, I learned that Everley is an incredibly strong woman. Seeing her begin to break down walls and slowly let us in on things she was struggling with was amazing and I literally saw God refine her over the summer. I was also so encouraged by her dedication to writing in her prayer journal every single night. No matter how late it was, Everley would not go to bed without writing in it and that definitely challenged me. Some other things the room learned from our sweet Bev: how to properly tuck in a shirt, to always go to the mirror when you need rebuke, encouragement, or simply someone to talk to and that you don’t need much talent to become an incredible song writer.

Rachel LeGear

If you want your mind blown, ask this girl to share her testimony with you. It is one of the most beautiful stories of redemption I have ever heard! Rachel was our room’s sweetheart. She is probably one of the most selfless people I’ve ever met, always putting others before herself. In the midst of frustration and anger in the room, Rachel was always the one who kept her head on straight, who never had any rude remarks and who I never once, the entire summer, saw get angry. While Rachel and I seem like we don’t have much in common, we found out towards the end of the summer that we are a lot more similar than we thought. We both struggle with seeking the approval of others. Both in very different ways, but it was something that bonded us and left us with a two hour conversation in the Laundromat about whether we are seeking God’s approval or man’s (Gal. 1:10).  I also saw God work in Rachel’s life this summer and He challenged her with an INCREDIBLE opportunity for the fall that I won’t share on here because I’m not sure who all she has told. (But I’m sure if you asked her she would love to share it with you!) I know God is going to do incredible things with her in her next three years at Georgia College. I get excited just thinking about it!

Cami-Cam, Aubs, Bev, and Rach: As you all know, I have a slight musical obsession. (Thank you for bearing with me on days that I needed to burst out in song and dance.) And I think there are some lyrics from the song “For Good” from Wicked that sums this up perfectly.

I've heard it said,

That people come into our lives

For a reason

Bringing something we must learn.

And we are lead to those

Who help us most to grow if we let them.

And we help them in return.

Well, I don't know if I believe that's true

But I know I'm who I am today

Because I knew you.

If His Grace Is An Ocean, We're All Sinking

I had the absolute privilege of photographing the baptisms of over twenty college students this morning. 

Waking up early on our only off day and getting soaked trying to take pictures was totally worth getting the chance to celebrate with my brothers and sisters. Capturing the joy in their faces was a precious reminder of how The Lord delights in me. I cannot stop smiling as I look back through these pictures and I wanted to share some of my favorites! 

The Summer I Smelled Like Coffee

If you follow me on Facebook, you have probably seen the ridiculous amount of pictures I have been posting from Socials and Group Dates from Summer Beach Project. If you follow me on Twitter, you’ve seen my tweets about all the different things I overhear old men say at Starbucks on a daily basis. At this point you might be asking, “What the heck is she actually doing this summer?” Well, this post is to tell you EXACTLY that! 

What is Summer Beach Project?

According to the SBP Official Website, “The Summer Beach Project (SBP) is a summer opportunity where you will live, work, play & learn with other college students for nine weeks in Daytona Beach, Florida. Each student works a full-time job during the day & participates in Bible studies, evangelistic outreaches, discipleship groups, ministry training, fellowship, & other activities during the week. This demanding, yet challenging schedule creates an ideal environment for students to grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ & develop ministry skills & leadership qualities.”

So pretty much, I’ve been spending my summer in Daytona with 130 other students from GSU, GCSU, VSU, Mercer, GRU, USC-A and USC, drinking from a spiritual fire hydrant and working in Starbucks. Now, I’m not an actual Starbucks employee. The wonderful Morgan Family graciously hired me to be an “Item Update Manager” for their company Roundeye Supply. What this means is that I sit in Starbucks at my computer and update descriptions of different products on the Roundeye Supply website.  This leaves me and everything I own consistently smelling of coffee and me consuming much more caffeine than anyone ever should but I love it and I am so blessed and thankful for this job.

Aside from working, I’m learning things like how to have a gospel-centered view of the Christian life, learning how and why to spend time alone with God daily, learning how to clearly share the gospel and my personal testimony, growing in fellowship with amazing new friends and learning the value of discipleship as God’s way to reach the World.

Stay tuned for future posts about what I learned in more detail in the next few weeks!

Why did I choose SBP?

As a college student, the options are endless as far as what to do with your summers. In elementary school, I attended Camp Winshape at Berry College every summer and absolutely loved it! Not only did I have a blast at the camp every summer but my younger brother, Will, surrendered his life to Christ during one of his summers at Winshape so the camp means a lot to my family.  It was always a desire of mine to work there so I applied in October of 2012 and wouldn’t find out if I got the job till spring of 2013.

In the mean time, I got involved with Campus Outreach at school. Jes Epting began to disciple me (which is a completely separate story of God’s sovereignty that I’d love to share if you’re interested.) and SBP was something brought up multiple times. I had friends who had been and had an amazing summer and I knew SBP would be an awesome opportunity.  I ended up getting the job at Winshape and literally had 24 hours to decide if I wanted to take the job or if I wanted to do SBP. After 24 hours of prayer, pros/cons lists and receiving wise advice from parents and friends, I chose SBP. While both options were GOOD and I was confident that my walk with the Lord would be challenged at both, SBP was the BEST choice. I need to grow in how to lead college students to Christ during this season of my life. Beach Project was by far the best outlet to accomplish that.

What do we do?

During the day, students are diligently working all over Daytona. We have students at McDonalds, Daytona International Speedway, Steak and Shake, Hollister, and Miller Lite, just to name a few! Nighttime is when we have the “meat” of Beach Project. We have awesome training sessions on prayer, how to study the Bible, evangelism, discipleship groups, and stewardship. Saturdays we get the chance to go out on the beach and share the gospel. Weekends also include socials and group dates. These provide chances for the students on Project to have fun, fellowship and get to build lifelong friendships. Ultimately, Summer Beach Project is a perfect combination of growth in your walk with God and having an absolute blast. 

I know this post was long, but hopefully it provided a little more clarity as to what exactly I’ve been up to the past two months. As of today I have one more week in Daytona and while I’m so sad to be leaving, I’m excited to see my friends and family and begin to apply all God has taught me back on campus! For more info on Campus Outreach or Summer Beach Project, click here or feel free to ask me anything about my experience with them.  

Welcome to Beautiful Dependence!

I’ve been dreaming of this blog all summer long! With the help of the lovely Pam Bearden with Flourishing Designs, I am finally able to introduce Beautiful Dependence!  Pam worked so hard to help me design a blog that reflected my style and personality and I think she did a fantastic job! Blogging is something I've had a desire to do for a long time so with some encouragement from friends and a wonderful blog design I am finally able to make it happen. 

Beautiful Dependence is a lifestyle blog that includes a little bit of everything. You can look forward to some DIY, fashion, recipes, book reviews, features on friends, attempting to become a better photographer and a lot of me sharing how Christ is sanctifying me through different life experiences.  I cannot wait to begin blogging and hope I am able to post consistently! Feedback is very appreciated. To learn more about me and my vision for the blog click here!