I am kinda new to this site, so here is a little bit about myself.

I looooooove reading and writing. I have read the Harry Potter series at least three times (some even more) and I love rereading books. The Chronicles of Narnia, Tamora Pierce books, and Brian Jacques books are some other favorites of mine. Oh yeah - I can't forget the Harry Potter series, which kind of got me into obsessive reading when I was a wee little child. I have also attempted writing my own stories and the people that I let read them like them (at least they say they do)...

I also am officially in love with animals and music. I have a cat and a dog. I play piano (I have been for about eight or nine years) and flute. I also sing and I attempted to learn to play French Horn (it really isn't French). However, I am not continuing that line of study. (Now I am trying my hand at clarinet...)

I am top in my class at school and don't mind being called a nerd (I don't see it as a bad thing though) and I often call myself one. I have a sort of obsession with grammar and conventions and I love to be challenged in school.

I also consider myself a strong Christian (hence my pen name- in case you didn't notice, the j316 is really John 3:16). I am very active in my church and youth group.

When one of my friends told me about this site, I was thrilled.

P. S. Hey by the way I am sorry that it has been a while since i last updated my story. I have been slacking off, I know, but I have been a very busy person lately and I haven't been inspired to write anything (fanfics or my own). So, sorry but i will work on it.

P. P.S. I know that this is a kind of long profile (okay REALLY REALLY long), but I just hope you find something here that touches your heart...

or your funnybone...

Two Choices

this was an email that almost made me cry
What would you do?...you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
same choice?

At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves children with learning
disabilities, the father of one of the students delivered a speech that
would never be forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school
and its dedicated staff, he offered a question:
'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature
does, is done with perfection.
Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other children do.
He cannot understand things as other children do.
Where is the natural order of things in my son?'
I approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not expecting much)
if Shay could play.
The boy looked around for guidance and said, 'We're losing by six runs
and the game is in the eighth inning.
I guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the
ninth inning.'

The audience was stilled by the query.

The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, who was
mentally and physically disabled comes into the world, an opportunity to
realize true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other
people treat that child.'

Then he told the following story:

Shay and I had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing
baseball.
Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?'
I knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
team, but as a father I also understood that if my son were allowed to
play, it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some
confidence to be accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.

Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on
a team shirt.
I watched with a small tear in my eye and warmth in my heart.
The boys saw my joy at my son being accepted.
In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but
was still behind by three.
In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and played in the
right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was obviously ecstatic
just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from ear to ear as I
waved to him from the stands.
In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay's team scored again.
Now, with two outs and the bases loaded, the potential winning run was
on base and Shay was scheduled to be next at bat.

At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to
win the game?
Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all
but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat
properly, much less connect with the ball.
However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that
the other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life,
moved in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least
make contact.
The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed.
The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly
towards Shay.
As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
right back to the pitcher.

The game would now be over.
The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could have easily thrown
the ball to the first baseman.
Shay would have been out and that would have been the end of the game.

Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head,
out of reach of all team mates.
Everyone from the stands and both teams started yelling, 'Shay, run to
first!
Run to first!'
Never in his life had Shay ever run that far, but he made it to first
base.
He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled.

Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!'
Catching his breath, Shay awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and
struggling to make it to the base.
By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had the
ball ... the smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
be the hero for his team.
He could have thrown the ball to the second-baseman for the tag, but he
understood the pitcher's intentions so he, too, intentionally threw the
ball high and far over the third-baseman's head.
Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
circled the bases toward home.

All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'

Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to
third!
Shay, run to third!'

As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators,
were on their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to
home, stepped on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the
grand slam and won the game for his team.

'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
into this world'.

Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
forgotten being the hero and making me so happy, and coming home and
seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!

AND NOW A LITTLE FOOT NOTE TO THIS STORY:
So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people present us
with a
choice:
Do we pass along a little spark of love and humanity or do we pass up
those opportunities and leave the world a little bit colder in the
process?

A wise man once said every society is judged by how it treats it's least
fortunate amongst them.

May your day, be a Shay Day.

A Teenager's View of Heaven

17-year-old Brian Moore had only a short time to write something for a class. The subject was what Heaven was like. "I wowed 'em," he later told his father, Bruce. "It's a killer. It's the bomb. It's the best thing I ever wrote.."

It also was the last. Brian Moore died May 27, 1997, the day after Memorial Day. He was driving home from a friend's house when his car went off Bulen-Pierce Road in Pickaway County and struck a utility pole. He emerged from the wreck unharmed but stepped on a downed power line and was electrocuted.

The Moores framed a copy of Brian's essay and hung it among the family portraits in the living room. "I think God used him to make a point. I think we were meant to find it and make something out of it," Mrs. Moore said of the essay. She and her husband want to share their son's vision of life after death. "I'm happy for Brian. I know he's in heaven.. I know I'll see him."

Brian's Essay: The Room...

In that place between wakefulness and dreams, I found myself in the room. There were no distinguishing features except for the one wall covered with small index card files. They were like the ones in libraries that list titles by author or subject in alphabetical order. But these files, which stretched from floor to ceiling and seemingly endless in either direction, had very different headings.

As I drew near the wall of files, the first to catch my attention was one that read "Girls I have liked." I opened it and began flipping through the cards. I quickly shut it, shocked to realize that I recognized the names written on each one. And then without being told, I knew exactly where I was.

This lifeless room with its small files was a crude catalog system for my life. Here were written the actions of my every moment, big and small, in a detail my memory couldn't match.

A sense of wonder and curiosity, coupled with horror, stirred within me as I began randomly opening files and exploring their content. Some brought joy and sweet memories; others a sense of shame and regret so intense that I would look over my shoulder to see if anyone was watching.

A file named "Friends" was next to one mark ed "Friends I have betrayed." The titles ranged from the mundane to the outright weird "Books I Have Read," "Lies I Have Told," "Comfort I have Given," "Jokes I Have Laughed at ." Some were almost hilarious in their exactness: "Things I've yelled at my brothers." Others I couldn't laugh at: "Things I Have Done in My Anger", "Things I Have Muttered Under My Breath at My Parents." I never ceased to be surprised by the contents.

Often there were many more cards than I expected. Sometimes fewer than I hoped. I was overwhelmed by the sheer volume of the life I had lived. Could it be possible that I had the time in my years to fill each of these thousands or even millions of cards? But each card confirmed this truth.

Each was written in my own handwriting. Each signed with my signature.

When I pulled out the file mark ed "TV Shows I have watched", I realized the files grew to contain their contents. The cards were packed tightly, and yet after two or three yards, I hadn't found the end of the file. I shut it, shamed, not so much by the quality of shows but more by the vast time I knew that file represented.

When I came to a file mark ed "Lustful Thoughts," I felt a chill run through my body. I pulled the file out only an inch, not willing to test its size and drew out a card. I shuddered at its detailed content.

I felt sick to think that such a moment had been recorded.

An almost animal rage broke on me. One thought dominated my mind: No one must ever see these cards! No one must ever see this room! I have to destroy them!" In insane frenzy I yanked the file out. Its size didn't matter now. I had to empty it and burn the cards. But as I took it at one end and began pounding it on the floor, I could not dislodge a single card. I became desperate and pulled out a card, only to find it as strong as steel when I tried to tear it.

Defeated and utterly helpless, I returned the file to its slot.

Leaning my forehead against the wall, I let out a long, self-pitying sigh.

And then I saw it.. The title bore "People I Have Shared the Gospel With." The handle was brighter than those around it, newer, almost unused. I pulled on its handle and a small box not more than three inches long fell into my hands. I could count the cards it contained on one hand.

And then the tears came. I began to weep. Sobs so deep that they hurt. They started in my stomach and shook through me. I fell on my knees and cried. I cried out of shame, from the overwhelming shame of it all. The rows of file shelves swirled in my tear-filled eyes. No one must ever, ever know of this room. I must lock it up and hide the key.

But then as I pushed away the tears, I saw Him.

No, please not Him. Not here. Oh, anyone but Jesus. I watched helplessly as He began to open the files and read the cards. I couldn't bear to watch His response. And in the moments I could bring myself to look at His face, I saw a sorrow deeper than my own.

He seemed to intuitively go to the worst boxes. Why did He have to read every one? Finally He turned and looked at me from across the room. He looked at me with pity in His eyes. But this was a pity that didn't anger me…

I dropped my head, covered my face with my hands and began to cry again. He walked over and put His arm around me. He could have said so many things. But He didn't say a word. He just cried with me.

Then He got up and walked back to the wall of files. Starting at one end of the room, He took out a file and, one by one, began to sign His name over mine on each card. "No!" I shouted rushing to Him. All I could find to say was "No, no," as I pulled the card from Him. His name shouldn't be on these cards. But there it was, written in red so rich, so dark, so alive. The name of Jesus covered mine. It was written with His blood. He gently took the card back. He smiled a sad smile and began to sign the cards…

I don't think I'll ever understand how He did it so quickly, but the next instant it seemed I heard Him close the last file and walk back to my side.

He placed His hand on my shoulder and said, "It is finished." I stood up, and He led me out of the room. There was no lock on its door. There were still cards to be written.
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."-Phil. 4:13 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." If you feel the same way forward it so the love of Jesus will touch their lives also. My "People I shared the gospel with" file just got bigger, how about yours?

You don't have to share this with anybody, no one will know whether you did or not, but what do you feel in your heart?

Ruth

Ruth went to her mail box and there was only one letter. She picked it up and looked at it before opening, but then she looked at the envelope again. There was no stamp, no postmark, only her name and address.

She read the letter:

Dear Ruth:

Im going to be in your neighborhood Saturday afternoon and I'd like to stop by for a visit.

Love Always,

Jesus

Her hands were shaking as she placed the letter on the table. 'Why would the Lord want to visit me? I'm nobody special. I don't have anything to offer.' With that thought, Ruth remembered her empty kitchen cabinets. 'Oh my goodness, I really don't have anything to offer. I'll have to run down to the store and buy something for dinner.' She reached for her purse and counted out its contents. Five dollars and forty cents. Well, I can get some bread and cold cuts, at least.'

She threw on her coat and hurried out the door.

A loaf of French bread, a half-pound of sliced turkey, and a carton of milk...leaving Ruth with grand total twelve cents to last her until Monday. Nonetheless, she felt good as she headed home, her meager offerings tucked under her arm.

'Hey lady, can you help us, lady?'

Ruth had been so absorbed in her dinner plans, she hadn't even noticed two figures huddled in the alleyway. A man and a woman, both of them dressed in little more than rags.

'Look lady, I ain't got a job, you know, and my wife and I have been living out here on the street, and, well, now it's getting cold and we're getting kinda hungry and, well, if you could help us. Lady, we'd really appreciate it.'

Ruth looked at them both. They were dirty, they smelled bad and frankly, she was certain that they could get some kind of work if they really wanted to. 'Sir, I'd like to help you, but I'm a poor woman myself. All I have is a few cold cuts and some bread, and I'm having an important guest for dinner tonight and I was planning on serving that to Him.'

'Yeah, well, okay lady, I understand. Thanks anyway.' The man put his arm around the woman's shoulders, turned and headed back into the alley.

As she watched them leave, Ruth felt a familiar twinge in her heart. 'Sir, wait!' The couple stopped and turned as she ran down the alley after them.' Look, why don't you take this food. I'll figure out something else to serve my guest.' She handed the man her grocery bag.

'Thank you lady. Thank you very much!'

'Yes, thank you!' It was the man's wife, and Ruth could see now that she was shivering.

'You know, I've got another coat at home. Here, why don't you take this one.' Ruth unbuttoned her jacket and slipped it over the woman's shoulders. Then smiling, she turned and walked back to the street...without her coat and with nothing to serve her guest.

'Thank you lady! Thank you very much!'

Ruth was chilled by the time she reached her front door, and worried too. The Lord was coming to visit and she didn't have anything to offer Him. She fumbled through her purse for the door key. But as she did, she noticed another envelope in her mailbox. 'That's odd. The mailman doesn't usually come twice in one day.'

Dear Ruth:

It was so good to see you again. Thank you for the lovely meal. And thank you, too, for the beautiful coat.

Love Always,

Jesus

The air was still cold, but even without her coat, Ruth no longer noticed.

It's All in a Deck of Cards

A young soldier was in his bunkhouse all alone one Sunday morning over in Afghanistan. It was quiet that day; the guns and the mortars, and the land mines, for some reason hadn't made a noise. The young soldier knew it was Sunday, the holiest day of the week. As he was sitting there, he got out an old deck of cards and laid them across his bunk. Just then an army sergent came in and said, "Why aren't you out with the rest of the platoon?"

The soldier replied, "I thought I would stay behind and spend some time with the Lord."

The sergeant said, "Looks like you're going to play cards."

The soldier said, "No, sir, you see, since we are not allowed to have Bibles or other spiritual books in this country, I've decided to talk to the Lord by studying this deck of cards."

The sergeant asked in disbelief, "How will you do that?"

The soldier replied: "You see the Ace, it reminds me that there is only one God. The 2 represents the two parts of the Bible, the Old and New Testaments. The 3 represents the Father the Son, and the Holy Ghost. The 4 stands for the four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The 5 stands for the five virgins that were ten but only five were glorified. The 6 is for the six days it took for God to create the Heavens and Earth. The 7 is for the day God rested after working six days. The 8 is for the family of Noah and his wife, their three sons and wives, in which God saved the eight people from the flood that destroyed the Earth for the first time. The 9 is for the lepers that Jesus cleansed of leprosy. He cleansed ten but nine never thanked Him. The 10 represents the Ten Commandments that God handed down to Moses on tablets made of ston. The Jack is a reminder of Satan. One of God's first angels, but he got kicked out of heaven for his sly and wicked ways and is now the joker of eternal Hell. The Queen stands for the Virgin Mary. The King stands for Jesus, for He is the King of all kings. When I count the dots on all the cards, I come up with 365, one for every day of the year. There are a total of 52 cards in a deck, each is a week - 52 weeks in a year. The four suits represent the four seasons: spring, summer, fall, and winter. Each suit has thirteen cards, and there are exactly thirteen weeks in a quarter. Hearts reminds me of God's everlasting love. God is more precious than diamonds, and he will also store up treasure in heaven for me. Spades reminds me that Jesus was buried, but on the third day he rose from the dead. Finally, clubs remind me that Jesus was beaten before he was crucified. So when I want to talk to God and thank Him, I just pull out this old deck of cards and they remind me of all that I have to be thankful for."

The sergeant just stood there and after a minute, with tears in his eyes and pain in his heart, he said, "Soldier, can I borrow that deck of cards?"

-Originator Unknown

I added this part because I just thought of it and liked it Give God what's right - not what's left.

Man's way leads to a hopeless end - God's way leads to an endless hope.

In the sentence of life, the devil may be a comma, but never let him be the period.

The church is prayer-conditioned.

WARNING: Exposure to the Son may prevent burning.

Plan ahead - it wasn't raining when Noah built the ark.

Suffering from truth decay? Brush up on your Bible.

Compassion is difficult to give away because it keeps coming back.

Give Satan an inch and he'll be a ruler.

Be ye fishers of men - you catch them and He'll clean them.

God doesn't call the qualified, He qualifies the called.

Read the Bible - it will scare the Hell out of you!

Stop telling God how big your storm is. Instead, tell your storm how big your God is. (My personal favorite)

This is some funny stuff I found on a profile:

If you can read this message, you are blessed because over two billion people in the world cannot read at all:

I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor

of the hmuan mnid. Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy,

it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt

tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl

mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid

deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh?

Yaeh and I awlyas toghuht slpeling was ipmorantt! tahts so cool!

If you could read that put it in your profile!

If you spend multiple hours each day reading or writing or a combination of both...copy and paste this on your profile.

For me, crazy is a loose term. Crazy is when you stare at a pencil and laugh when someone asks you what you are doing that is so interesting about the eraser. Crazy is when you have an hour-long sob fest, and then start singing and dancing when your favorite song comes on. Crazy is when you do or say a completely random thing, like "Do you ever wonder where the eraser bits go?" or having a thumb war with yourself. If you're crazy, copy this onto your profile.

If you have ever tripped over air, copy this into your profile.

92 percent American teens would die if Abecrombie and Fitch told them it uncool to breathe. Copy this into your profile if you would be in the 8 percent laughing their butts off at the others.

If you or your best friend is insane, copy this into your profile

If you have ever pushed on a door that says pull (or vice versa) copy and paste this into your profile

If you've ever started laughing at something that is remotely funny and can't stop copy and paste this in your profile

If you've ever asked a really stupid, obvious question, copy and paste this one your profile.

If you have ever tripped up the stairs, copy and paste this into your profile.

If you absolutely KILLED yourself laughing when Gazzy said "'I vill now destroy de Snickurs bahrs!' then copy this to your profile!

If you think Fang is hot...copy and paste this on your profile.

If you have ever run into a door, copy and paste this into your profile

Admitting you are weird means you are normal. Saying that you are normal is odd. If you admit that you are weird and like it, copy this onto your profile.

If you've walked under something that was about two feet above your head and ducked anyway copy and paste this is your profile

If you haven't died yet, copy and paste this onto your profile.

Ninety-eight percent of teenagers have tried smoking pot. If you're one of the two percent who hasn't, copy this and paste it in your profile.

65 percent of teenagers would rather watch TV than read. If you are one of the 35 percent how would have their nose in a book, copy/paste this to your profile.

SEVERUS SNAPE IS GOOD! I STAND BY MY GREASY HAIRED POTIONS MASTER! POST THIS IN YOUR PROFILE AND SPREAD THE TRUTH!

If you could easily finish one novel a day, copy this onto your profile.

"People who say anything is possible haven't tried to slam a revolving door."

When life gives you lemons, make apple juice, then laugh while people try to figure out what the heck you did.

One day your prince will come. Mine? Oh,he just took a wrong turn, got lost, and is too stubborn to ask directions.

You know you live in 2007 when:
1.) You accidentally enter your password on a microwave.
2.) You haven't played solitaire with real cards in years.
3.) The reason for not staying in touch with your friends is that they dont have a screen name or myspace.
4.) You'd rather look all over the house for the remote instead of just pushing the button on the TV.
6.) Your boss doesn't even have the ability to do your job.
7.) You read this list, & keep nodding and smiling. (nod nod)
8.) As you read this list, you think about sending it to all your friends.
9.) And you were too busy to notice number 5.
10.) You actually scrolled back up to check that there was a number 5. (doh!)
11.) & now you're laughing at your stupidity.
12.) Put this in your profile if you fell for it. And you know you did.

If you believe in GOD the FATHER, GOD the SON and GOD the HOLY GHOST, put this in your profile!

Even when you cant see Him, God is there! If you belive in God put this in your profile.

There's nothing wrong with arguing with yourself. It's when you argue with yourself and LOSE when it's weird. If you agree, copy this and put it in your profile.

If at one time you misspelled or forgot how to spell a word less than four letters, copy and paste this onto your profile.

If you think that being unique is cooler than being cool, copy this on your profile.

If you're a band geek and proud of it! Then copy this into your profile!

if you believe that doing drugs, alcohol, disobeying your parents and swearing is wrong please copy this into your profile

If you like to write, copy/paste this into your profile.

If you've been on the computer for hours on end, reading numerous fanfictions, copy this onto your profile

If Fanfiction to you is what MySpace is to other people, copy this into your profile.