Bits and Pieces

      Well, as per usual (apparently), it’s been... quite a while. So much has happened since I last wrote. But I saw this wonderful picture on Facebook that made me want to share something huge that recently occurred.      Like most Christians, I have some extended family members who don’t know Jesus. All my life, my parents, mentors, and pastors have told me “Don’t stop praying for people. God can always touch their hearts and soften them.” So all through my life, I’ve prayed for these people who are so special to me. But anyone who has been a Christian for any amount of time knows how frustrating it can be when God answers a prayer with “no” or “not yet.” Especially when He answers “not yet” and He makes you wait for years and years and years.      I’m not going to lie, things started to look bleak. No change happened. It had been over 10+ years, and I was tired of praying and not seeing results. So I gave up. I decided that th...

Well hi there!! It’s been a hot minute since I’ve posted. This senior-in-high-school thing has been keeping me real busy lately, and I feel like I have no time for, well, anything except for school! (Okay, and maybe work and a little bit of time on the piano...) But I’m back now, and I think I’ve got a topic you can relate to. ;) Like I said above, I’ve been super busy with school. It’s actually been super stressful, and I'm not gonna lie, I’ve cried quite a bit. My workload this year has been nothing like it’s been before, and with all the emotions of having so much school, falling behind, and not understanding much, I’ve complained. A LOT. And not just in my heart or to myself. To my mom, my family, my friends, my co-workers.... it just doesn’t stop! Once I get started, it’s a massive snowball effect. And as I complain to others, they begin to complain, and then everyone starts to complain and things become really messy. I’m sure you can relate, whether in the field of schoo...

Wow, time flies, and I’ve been gone for just a bit! Part of that has been due to school, work, and other engagements, but part of it has been due to lack of ideas. So... if you have something you’d like to see me write about, please leave it in the comment’s section, and I’ll definitely consider it.  But for now, let’s start the actual post. This is different from what I usually write about, but it has definitely blessed me—thus the reason I wanted to share. So let’s discuss the “Psalms of Ascent Challenge”.  DISCLAIMER: I’d like to make it very clear that this was not my idea. Who came up with it? I’m not sure. But it’s good!! Alright, so what exactly is this challenge? Well, that’s very simple. It’s a 14 day challenge (but you can stretch it out as needed) in which you read the Psalms of Ascent (Psalms 120-134). Each day, you read one Psalm and answer three simple questions using the text. Who is God? What does He do? What does this imply about m...

Wow, how time flies! It seems like just yesterday we rang in 2017, but now we’re a few days into 2018! Looking back at my 2017, I see that a lot went on. My niece was born. I got a new best friend (see previous post to learn about the special kiddo). I had a lot of great times with my amazing family. I had to let go of some important friendships, while I was able to strengthen others. I got hurt, but I laughed a lot. I got good grades. I went to a lot of football games. I made some hard decisions. I hung out with some great people. And on and on. The list is endless! But looking back—despite all that—I feel disappointed. My 2017 was missing so much. I focused on a lot of the wrong things. I didn’t pursue God like I should have, and, ultimately , that made my year lacking in so many areas. Looking back at 2017, I see a lot of blessings, but I don’t see much growth. I don’t see a person who truly strives to follow God and lives to be a mirror for Him. And, for tho...

It’s been awhile since my last post, and quite honestly I thought that my next post would be a song I’ve been working on. But this is where God led me instead. Today’s post will be a story that I never thought I would tell, but I hope it can touch you like it has touched me and cause you to look for the little things in life that are God’s biggest blessings. In my church, there are several little kids. I’ve spent some time with all of them, but there are two brothers especially that seem to always have my attention. (This has been going on for about a year or two.) After church, we will begin to clean up and then they will beg for me to take them downstairs on the elevator or give them airplane rides or play puppies with them—or something else! (And to be honest, it’s so interesting to actually focus on how interested kids are in the seemingly small things like that. Just an extra though I guess.) Recently, the older boy has become really attached to my younger brother (Samuel...

Sorry I've been gone for an eternity!! Shortly after my last post, I had surgery and then things with my family just got super crazy, but I'm back now for part two about plans! I saw this two weeks ago, and just had to snap a shot! When we trust God and His plans, we may be in less-than-ideal places. . . But just like this flower, we can flourish because He has us and is working everything for His glory and our good! Alrighty!! If you haven't read my previous post about plans ( right here! ), I encourage you go do that right now and then come back here! There's so much to say about plans (especially God's plans!) and we've barely scratched the surface already! Here, we will continue to discuss plans (still only scratching the surface) by looking at some examples from the Bible. Throughout all ages, God's people have had some crazy times, but He always came through for them. His perfect plan allowed them to face trials but come out preserved and ...

*NOTE* : Before I begin, I want to warn you that a lot of this post may seem like repetition. It's true that some of it is. But it's repetition that we all need to hear-- Truths that we should never forget. So even though I'm sitting here freezing because the window next to me is open, it's fifty degrees outside, and I'm in shorts and a T-shirt, I have good news: Summer IS coming! Yes indeed! In fact, here in MA we are supposedly have 90 degree weather coming our way this next week! Well, the forecast could be wrong, but I've got some hope. In light of that hope, let me say again that summer is nearly upon us! Officially that is. Some of us are already out of school and it feels like summer is already here, but technically summer doesn't begin until June 21. . . But that's just a technicality, right? Right. So! In light of summer--and for my first post in a while--let's talk about plans.  What are your summer plans? People have prob...

People. They're everywhere. So many of them. Everywhere you turn. People. They have many strange abilities. They can build. They can destroy. They can laugh. They can cry. They can make nightmares. They can make dreams. People. They can tear each other apart. They can make new life. They can love. They can hate. They can argue. They can complain. They can make you lose yourself. People. So many people. So many powerful people. In one time or another, we all lose ourselves. Maybe it's in a relationship, friendship, job, school.... whatever! There's always one point in life where something about ourselves comes into question. Am I good enough? Am I pretty/handsome enough? Am I important? Am I valuable? Am I loved? Am I necessary? And the list could go on and on. Do those questions sound familiar to you? Valentine's Day just passed, and it was a really rough day for me. I went to work and saw all these happy people. Couples that seemed so perfect and j...

Here's a cool little saying: "Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard." To some of you, that's probably something new to hear, but most of you have probably heard it some... if not a lot. Well, I've heard that a lot from my older brother when he's speaking about playing football. It made sense in the context that he said it in, but I never thought it would apply to me. Oh how wrong I was. Story time!!!!! And yes. . . We are FINALLY back to a musically related topic. So if you were to talk about Currans to any person that knows anybody in my family well, you probably know that we are a very musically talented family. Not bragging, but that's what people say. Between singing, piano, guitar, and violin playing, we're like a mini band! Well, every Wednesday we travel a half hour to our piano teacher's house, where we learn how much our practice from the previous week payed off. If we diligently drilled our pieces and fell ...

September is nearly upon us, and we all know what that month is associated with: school. Oh yes! The word dreaded by some scholars and loved by others. For some people, school has already started, and for others, it’s not in progress yet but still “dangerously” close. Every year around this time, scholars everywhere make plans on how to have a successful semester. Some plans fail; others succeed. However, plan or no plan, a student can have a great school semester and year by making a list of tips for himself/herself to follow. Much easier than a long, drawn out plan, right?             So without further ado: my top tips to a successful school year. 1.       Have fun with preparations. Usually in August, teachers, parents, and students are all at the stores (or online) purchasing the items they need for the next year. Pencils, pens, notebooks, binders, planners – you know how it is. Of all time...

Wow! It's been a looooooooong time since I've blogged. Between finishing up school, working, being a big sister, and a number of other things, I just haven't had the chance to sit down and write. I have a few pieces that I've begun (so you can look forward to those!) but I decided that since I'm sitting in a car, driving through New York (although I will be home when this is posted), it would be a great time for a day-in-the-life post. It might not be super interesting, so I apologize for that. First, I must start with a little information about Curran Family travelling. Since we have such a large family, air travel is simply too expensive, so we avoid it as often as possible. Nowadays, our travels take us to places like Michigan, Indiana, or Florida, although we occasionally visit other areas. All those places take our family between 15 and 30 hours to drive to. Those things being said, let me take you on the journey of a usual travelling experience in my life. ...