Bible Bee (again)

I kind of miss the Bible Bee right now. It would be great if I was that focused on God's word all year. I know I should be, but it's so hard with everything else going on.
But hey, sign ups start in April, (you should sign up), and then summer will be here before you know it.
I can't help but throw in a shameless plug for the Bible Bee ;)
Keep on glowing in the dark,
Elora
http://www.biblebee.org/

How to Decorate a Notebook

Last time on Behind the Stone Door...
I showed you how to make a cool looking composition book with a magazine picture or scrapbook page and made mention of another post, including more ways to decorate a notebook. This is that post!!! (cue dramatic music.)

These are some other cool looking designs I've done on the front of composition books:

-Top left: I cut up an old music sheet from my church choir and pasted the pieces on top of a nice piece of scrapbook paper.
-Top right: I cut out interesting pictures and words from magazines and put them in a collage pattern on the front of the book.
-Bottom left: I doodled all over a plain piece of white paper and glued it to the front of a spiral notebook. I use this one to take notes at school!
-Bottom right: First, I laid a magazine full page picture on the cover. Then I put a blank piece of colored paper on the bottom half. Finally I added ribbon,pressed flowers and newspaper clippings and covered it with Mod Podge.
If you have any ideas for cool notebook covers to share, post a comment.I'd love to try it!
Keep on glowing in the dark,
Elora

Off the Graph Theatre

Hey everyone, I'm back home from the Bible Bee (sigh...). It's good to be back though. Today I went back to school. I thought I'd share with you something we're learning about in Bible class.

We are talking about the books of 1&2 Samuel. When Mr. Hamilton, our teacher was talking about the crowning of King Saul, remembered a video my church made last year when we were talking about these same books. I found it quite hilarious, so I thought I would share it with you....

http://vimeo.com/12566194

Keep on glowing in the dark,

Elora

As is True of All Good Things,(Except for Heaven), This Too Must Come to an End

Sadly, in fact the National Bible Bee is coming to a close. Last night, my mom and I went to a family hymn sing. It was refreshing. I learned a lot of hymns I hadn't known before. This morning, we went to a worship and prayer service with an admittedly intense pastor. After that, we got to watch our friend Olivia win the primary final round for a second year in a row.
At lunch, we attended a luncheon at which Phil Vischer spoke. He is the creator of Veggie Tales, (and most of the voices) and a new puppet series called "What's in the Bible". He spoke on making sure your relationship with God is more important than even what you are doing to serve Him.

Later, we watched the beginning of the senior final round. No one died, even though seniors are red-shirts, (sorry, I'm tired and making bad Star Trek jokes). We had to leave early to tour the Opryland Hotel. It is a HUGE hotel with a river running through it and tons of shops.

When we returned, it was time for the closing ceremony. We sat together with almost everyone from Oregon. Various awards were given and we watched a video about the inspiration for the Bible Bee, Shelby Kennedy. Finally, we sang a worship song from our opening ceremony. It was a powerful time.

All together we sang, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty! Worthy are You our Lord and God to receive glory and honor and power!"

Afterward we all went downstairs and had dessert together. I mostly had fruit, because nothing else was gluten- free. It was good to be able to hang out with and say goodbye to all my good friends from the Bible Bee. Even though I'll hopefully see them again soon, I got all emotional and almost cried. I've had a great time at Nationals, and I'm soooo glad I made it this year. Who knows what will happen next year. I can't thank you enough for your prayers and encouragement to me.

To leave you on a happy note, we saw this amazing watermelon at the dessert reception. I just had to take a picture of it. I don't know why it's so cool. Probably because it says "Bible Bee"!

Keep on glowing in the dark,

Elora

Day 3 of the Bee!

Since I last posted, a lot has happened. I went through my oral round, which was nerve-racking. I had to skip a few verses and I didn't get through all 25. After that, I was escorted to the Family Fun Room, where I had lunch and waited with my mom until all the seniors were done their oral rounds.

Then I ran to the dress rehearsal for our musical presentation in the opening ceremony.

Next, all of the contestants then gathered for the processional. We lined up in our divisions in height order, (yes, I was at the back of the line). Each of us went up on stage and got a medal, then had our pictures, (single and collective), taken many times. When the Primaries were done, I ran into the hallway to line up with the choir.

Our presentation went really well. It was a mix of orchestral music, an 85-person choir and scripture reading.

We saw a video from Joni Earekson-Tada, and Kirk Cameron shared his testimony and encouraged us. But everyone was really waiting for the semi-finalists to be announced. Someone named Mr. Bob Lepine announced them, but the guy who introduced him sounded like he said "Mr. Bible Bee".

Anyway, two primaries from Oregon, Isaac and Olivia, made it into the semi-finals. Also, one of our juniors, Luke made it in.

To ease any tension you may be feeling, I didn't make it to the final rounds. I wasn't really expecting to, so I wasn't too disappointed. I'm just a little sad that the Bible Bee is over for me this year. At least I get to relax the rest of the time we're here.

Today, (which is technically day 4, not day 3), we went and saw Olivia and Isaac compete in the semi-finals. Olivia made it in to the top five, (but we weren't worried about her), and Isaac got seventh. They both did really well.

Later my mom and I went to a mother-daughter tea party, then we went out and explored the city. We walked all the way to the Titans stadium and took some pictures for my dad and brother. I'll have to post some of the pictures on my next post.

I'm having a great time; thanks again for all your prayers!

Keep on glowing in the dark,

Elora

To Continue...

Yesterday, after I last blogged, I went to registration for the competition. We got a tour of the main contest area, got signed in, and picked up two new Bible Bee shirts, (soon I will have a Bible Bee shirt for every day of the week). We also got a gift bag and a secret envelope. It really isn't that secret, all it contained was a map, a schedule, name tags, tickets and other informative things. I just felt like calling it secret. Then we rushed to have dinner and get to the rehearsal for today's opening ceremony. I am singing in the 85-person choir and reading some scripture for the presentation about God's word. There is also a big orchestra. It should be fun!

I heard that they will be recording it, so if it gets posted online, I will put a link to it on the blog.
Today, I woke up at 6:45, had breakfast and studied some last minute verses. Then, I went into the written test round at about 9. I think I did pretty good, but who knows. I can't believe I'm actually at the National Bible Bee! This is it!!!

Now I'm waiting for my oral test round, where I try to say 25 passages in ten minutes. I'm a little nervous; this is the hardest part for me. Thanks for all your prayers!

Keep on glowing in the dark,

Elora

My Amazing Journey (Pt. 2)

So, to continue the story I started on the last post, we landed in Nashville. The first thing I noticed is that EVERYTHING is music here. We took a taxi to the hotel where the Bible Bee is being held. As soon as we got out of the taxi, some of our friends from Oregon ran up to us and said hi. I wasn't sure we'd be able to find anyone, so that was cool.

This morning, we had breakfast at a cafe near our hotel. My mom ordered grits, and I tried some. They were pretty good. Then I put blackberry jam in them and that made them even better, (for those of you who don't know, grits are a sort of corn porridge thing).

After that, we worked on a few stacks of verses.

Below is one of the music signs we saw. This one is in front of our hotel. There are also music notes and instruments in all the art and carpet design. The elevators even have Beethoven's 5th Symphony on them. I especially liked these signs because they are shaped like guitar picks.

Oh no! I stood next to the "No Standing" sign! That's like getting stuck behind a truck that says, "Construction vehicle, do not follow." It isn't even a good picture ;).

Keep on glowing in the dark,

Elora

This Time Last Year

At this time last year, November 13th, 2010 at approximately 2:30...

- My brother was playing his championship football game against Hillsboro.

-Olivia from our group in Hillsboro was busy winning the primary division finals at the National Bible Bee.

-I was in the heat of my black belt test.

I got invited to Nationals last year, but I didn't go. I had a bunch of inner turmoil about it at the time, because I never expected to be invited to Nationals. Unfortunately, my black belt test was at the same time, on the same day, on the other side of the country. I had to make the decision to do my black belt test, because I had been working toward it for so long.

Now I see how God is working out everything in His timing. I was supposed to go to my black belt test last year and learn the things I learned and be a light to the people around me. But this year, I'm supposed to go to the Bible Bee.

I guess all that turmoil wasn't really necessary. He knows what He's doing. And I can't wait to see what He has next for me.

Keep on glowing in the dark,

Elora

After the Bible Bee...

Since the beginning of this amazing yet time consuming adventure called the Bible Bee, there have been some things I wanted to do that I put off such as...

- Practicing guitar

- Writing stories as frequently as I used to

- Reading a lot

- Trying to join the swim team

- Doing extra credit math homework (hmmm... somehow I haven't missed that so much)

- Going to our worship team's "Spark Nights"

- Sending out stories for publication

- Getting my learner's permit

- Editing my last book and working on a new one

- Ect, ect, ect....

So, these things have gone on a list I call the "After the Bible Bee" list. "After the Bible Bee" is also my favorite and most commonly used prepositional phrase, ( yes, I have a favorite prepositional phrase. You know you do too.)

But as the Bible Bee in Nashville draws nearer and nearer I realize what a friend of mine so poignantly stated: "Elora, after the Bible Bee, you'll MISS the Bible Bee!" (She said this using her very superior oratory skills). It is so true. I know myself; when it's over, I'll be sad and wonder what to do with myself. Then I'll get back to doing what I always do: memorizing verses and studying the Bible! I have a lot of AWANA verses to catch up on, (I put those off 'till after the Bible Bee too), and I'm thinking of starting a Bible study with some of the high schoolers and jr. highers from church.

But that's all after the Bible Bee. I'll have time to think about that later. For now... I'm leaving for Nashville in three days!

Let's let the Bible Bee begin before we think about it being over!

Keep on glowing in the dark,

Elora

P.s. It will be intense...

Re:Creation

Right now, I am listening to Steven Curtis Chapman's new album Re:Creation. It just came out today. He "recreated" some of his old hits and, of course wrote some new songs. It is really great and I highly suggest it! (Yes, I was counting down the days/hours/minutes to its release.)
Keep on glowing on the dark,
Elora

My First Rejection Slip

I was actually kind of excited to get this today. I probably won't feel that way next time, but for now, I'll try again and see what happens then.
(Ha ha ha! Now I'm an official writer!)
Keep on glowing in the dark,
Elora

Too Excited For Words

I admit, I am counting down the hours

I am so ready for it to be June first, which is when the Bible Bee stuff should arrive. That marks the begining of the Bible Bee for me. I will be memorizing 800 verses before August 27th, so I'm starting right away. There are about 363 hours left.
By the way, if you still want to sign up, it's not to late. You have until May 31st. Sign up as soon as you can!
Keep on glowing in the dark,
Elora

100

On April 27th, 2010, I wrote a short story that was actually short. Since then, I have made sets of stories, ten at a time. Last night, I finished the tenth set.
I wrote 100 short stories in one year! Sorry, I'm kind of excited.
Hmmm.... Maybe I should post one on here. Let's see....

Being Brave
by Elora


People always tell me I'm brave, but I'm not always brave. No one's always brave. Mama's not always brave either, especially since Papa got arrested. Sometimes she needs to go into her room to cry and pray. I help her make meals and watch my brothers and sisters a lot now.
They still get scared too. Miki has a lot of nightmares about when they took Papa. I was scared then too. We were just having church, like we do every week. I was sitting with some friends who go to my school and Papa was preaching when the police came in. They ordered us all to come out. Then they burned the church and ripped our Bibles. Miki was crying and holding onto Mama when a big man yelled at him to be quiet. Finally, they left anyone go. Everyone but Papa.
Yesterday, we were walking to school. I saw a man like the ones who took Papa away. I wanted to run up to him and scream, “What did you do with him?! Where did you take my papa?!” But I didn't.
As soon as I got home, I saw Mama cooking. She was crying. I was crying too, because kids were making fun of me about Papa being in prison. My friends were sometimes afraid to talk to me. Mama and I hugged each other hard,and cried for a long time.
When we stopped, I said, “I want to do something to help Papa, but there's nothing I can do.”
“That's not true, Sasha,” Mama replied, “There's one thing we can always do.”
So we prayed.

Keep on glowing in the dark,
Elora

Bible Be

I want to tell you about a great opportunity to be in the word of God this summer! Last year, I was part of the Shelby Kennedy National Bible Bee. It is going on again this year. The Bible Bee is kind of like a spelling bee, but with Bible verses instead of spelling words. It was an amazing experience for me in the word of God. I learned so much and grew closer to God through it. For the verse memorization, the Shelby Kennedy foundation sends you Bible verses to memorize. If you are ages 7-10, they will send you 250 verses. Ages 11-14 memorize 500 verses (that's the group I was in last year). If you are High School age, 15-18, they will send you 800 verses(that's what I'm doing this year). If you only want to compete in the local Bible Bee, then you can memorize less verses. However many verses you memorize, though, you are still getting the word of God into your heart. The local competitions take place in local churches on August 27th. The highest scorers go on to the National Bible Bee in November. Also , with the verses, you will get a Bible Study on a certain book of the Bible, you study this by yourself and as a family. On the day of the Bible Bee, you will have a written quiz on this book. Every week or month you will meet with your local Bible Bee church to practice verses with other kids. I you are interested, check it out on : http://www.biblebee.org/ This is a tremendous undertaking, and it takes a lot of hard wok and commitment, but I think the rewards of learning to love God's word are worth it. Keep on glowing in the dark, Elora

Windowsill Garden

When I grow up, I want to be.....

I decided to plant some flowers this spring,(mostly inspired by biology class). Since it is so cold outside, they're in my windowsill. It's exciting watching them start to grow,(and interesting from a scientific perspectie too)! The top picture is some wildflowers and the bottom are sweet pea plants.

Tonight

Tonight:
-I helped my friend Mikayla with her homework.
-I finished writing a story called, "Back to Light".
-I went to Taekwondo and started learning my Black Belt form.....
That's right, my BLACK BELT FORM!!!!!
Indeed, I made it through 51/2 of testing on Saturday. Master Lee tied my black belt at about 5:30. I almost cried. It was an awesome day!

Keep on glowing in the dark,
Elora

Not that I'm counting down the hours or anything....

I'm still nervous, but I'm finding that the closer the test gets, the more excited I'm getting. It's an odd phenomenon indeed, but a good one. By the way, there's thirty-eight hours left:)!
Keep on glowing in the dark,
Elora

500

On Wednesday night, I finished memorizing my verses for the Bible Bee!
It was about eleven at night, when I laid down on the bed and declared, "I memorized 500 verses this Summer!!" Then, with a little less glee, I got up and reminded myself, "now I have to review them all." I can't believe the Bible Bee is next Saturday! Aaaaaaaggghhhh!!!!!
Yep, welcome to my summer...
Keep on glowing in the dark,
Elora

Weeks, Not days!

Our local Christian radio station is putting on a concert with a bunch of Christian artists on August 28th. They've been advertising it all summer, but now, I think they're a little too excited.
Just the other day I heard a commercial that said FishFest, (The concert), was only a few days away. In reality, it is still a few weeks away.
It freaked me out for a second, though, not because I am going to the concert, but because the Bible Bee is on that same day.
It can't be in a few days, I still have verses to finish!
Weeks, The Fish. Weeks, not days.
Keep on glowing in the dark,
Elora