The Pursuit: 30 Days---Day 9

List 10 people who have influenced you and describe how.

The same rule that has applied for previous posts apply to this one as well... and all of the posts in the future....these are in no specific order!

My family: that is kind of a given! They are always there supporting me, encouraging me, cheering me on, putting up with me...and on and on. You all are a huge part of my life! And my brothers make me laugh like nobody else! Never a dull moment with us!

Stacy Morgan... now Roberts: I believe she is a huge part of how my relationship began with God. Before getting to know her, I believed in God but I didn't really know what it meant to be a for real "Christian". To daily walk with the Lord, to have a relationship with Him. She always made time to meet up with me (even though she didn't have to do that) and just talk about whatever and answer any questions I may have had! And she would pray for me! I am so thankful to have had her in my life! It was a real blessing.

Amanda Keenan....now Reimer: She is my best friend! Now we are both living in separate places and don't talk on a super regular basis, but it is always so great when we do see each other! It's like we never were apart! But she is the person who was always inviting me to bible studies and youth group. Though I didn't realize it at the time, and I didn't really participate in any of the conversations, looking back they were such a blessing to be a part of! I am realizing now how much of an impact they had on my life. So thanks Amanda! :) But besides that, she is just a joy to be around and she really loves Jesus! I have so many great memories with her and I hope that one day we can live close to each other again and see each other on a regular basis. But in the meantime we are back to only being 3 hours apart so that is progress!

Cheri Bunch: She led some of the bible studies that I went to with Amanda! She is so closely connected to God and it is very obvious that she loves the Lord! She was always so encouraging and really passionate about Jesus! She is such a sweet and kind lady. I know I keep saying this, but she was a real blessing. Though I never said much of anything at bible study (I was trying to take it all in!), I got so much from every single meeting! I always walked away feeling encouraged and excited about life and God and wanting to know Him better....wanting to have the same kind of relationship with Jesus as she did.

Ariona Taylor: Her relationship with the Lord is inspiring. She is always wanting more of Him, wanting to draw closer to Him, to know Him better. She's a prayer warrior! She has such a great connection with the Lord and is always asking Him to call her out on stuff, and when He does, she prays about it, has other people pray about it, and she tries to break away from it. She truly seeks to be like Jesus, to have the heart of Jesus! Ari is filled with so much joy...it's contagious! And her laugh...it's wonderful! And in most cases by the time she is done laughing, everyone in the room is laughing which leads to her laughing harder, then everyone laughs harder, and before you know, it's been 30 minutes of nonstop laughing and you have had your ab workout for the day! :) She is a person who people instantly connect too and feel comfortable around. She is just an all around true joy to be around and I am so glad to call her my friend....:)

Stefanie Glaubitz: God knew what He was doing when He brought her into my life. I have gained so much....a wonderful friend, a job at a cupcake store, living at the Chi Alpha House. The last two things were just bonuses but really just having her as my friend has been a real, you guessed it, blessing! :) Sorry, I can't say it enough! In writing this blog I knew it before, but it is just reminding me how good God is and the people He has placed in my life I am just so grateful for! But anyway, Stefanie, too, loves the Lord. She is always wanting more of Him. She is passionate about the Lord and His will for her life and following where ever He is leading her! She is always so encouraging and has just the right thing to say. She is so much fun to be around and is always up for an adventure! And she too is a prayer warrior! When she says she is going to be praying for you, she really means it! Oh...and she really brings out the blonde in me. It seems as though I have the most goofiest/embarrassing/random/weird moments when I'm with her! And she doesn't let me forget them...:)

Louie Giglio: I don't know him personally...but I feel like I do! I have heard him speak before and have listened to several podcasts of his...He is doing huge things and not for himself or to bring fame to His name, but everything He does is to further the Kingdom. To bring fame to God. To share Christ with the WORLD! The Lord really speaks through Him. He is so sensitive to the Spirit...it's so cool. Every time I hear a podcast or hear him speak or read anything of his, I think it can't get better, but it always does! He always says what I need to hear at that time. It's kind of incredible....God just blows me away! He seriously amazes me!

Francis Chan: He too I don't know personally...but again I feel like I do. I have read his book Crazy Love and have heard him speak a few times. He's not afraid to share the truth...even if it's not what you want to hear. Even if it steps on your toes. He is so passionate about Jesus. He isn't concerned about things of this world, he lives his days for Jesus using the Bible as the "road map" I guess you could say. And by that I mean, we all can read the bible...but do you apply it to your life? Do you really live it out? Instead of just talking the talk, are you really walking out by faith? In James it says, "Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." That has been encouraging, awesome, challenging, scary and rewarding for me all at the same time!

My dear friends: unfortunately I don't have the time to go through and list all of you guys and how you inspire me. But you do. Every single one of you more than you probably know! If your name is not listed here, it's not because I have forgotten about you. Names just keep popping into my head of who and how you have inspired me, but it could get pretty lengthy if I were to type it all out...and would take quite sometime! But...a shout out to my Chi Alpha family, if any of you are reading this, I miss you tons!! You guys are awesome! All of you are on this list for sure...you guys have impacted my life in so many ways!!! I'm so thankful for my time spent being apart of the ministry Chi Alpha! You changed my life!

That is the thing about questions like these...how do you narrow it down to just a certain number of people? It's impossible to do. So I am just going to stop here. Because even if I were to list two more people, that's not enough. Plus I have to do some other things before I go to sleep tonight. So until tomorrow, goodnight! :)

And thank you to those of you who take the time out of your day just to read my blog. You are fantastic! To end, here are some pictures of some of the people who inspire me! Some you have probably already seen but I felt like showing again I guess! haha. Enjoy!