The Old and the New...

It’s been another year of learning and growing through both joyful and painful times. I’ve been blessed to walk through both with some dear friends, as we’ve seen and had to trust the Lord to provide, guide, hold and carry. And of course, He has. I’ve also read and spent time meditating on Scripture and absorbing various other books. And finally, at the prompting of the Lord, my own self, and others, I’ve revisited my “goals” for the year past and the year to come. I’ll gather my thoughts on these a little better and post soon…

I look forward to a little down time over the next few days to reminisce over the enjoyable Christmas vacation trip, the happiness of friends engaged, newly pregnant, and newly or re- connected.

As we ring in the New Year, I hope you are taking time to do the same. Because the Lord is Emmanuel, He is God with us, In us and For us…He has come, Is here, and Is coming again….to make all things new.

Let the new year be a reminder that someday (soon, I pray), the Lord will return, to the sound of celebrating and ringing, to come and claim His own.

Are you One of His?

Happy New Year, be blessed!
K

The Test of Time

It's interesting how God seems to teach me things by "theme." What I mean by that is, a thought or concept will come up repeatedly in my life until I can put two and two together and actually learn from it. My friend Liz, who happens to be a missionary to Romania and I met on my mission trip this summer, sent me an email with a link to a sermon by Josh Harris (pastor and author). He entitled it "Self-Control in a Wired World" and went on to emphasize the draw and drain on our time that such things as television, email, twitter, facebook, online war-games, and yes, even blogging can be. It was a convicting thought in the face of the growing isolation, depression, and spiritual bankruptcy we are experiencing as a society.

He didn't condemn these things in and of themselves. And neither would I, per se. I understand all too well the longing to disengage my brain after a long day or few days at work. It's totally understandable to just need a break occasionally and to venture off into the world of "other." However, if you do this more often than not, and especially if you are a Christian, eventually you find yourself feeling an emptiness you just can't seem to put your finger on.

As we repeatedly peer into the lives of others (whether real--emails, blogs, Facebook, etc--or make believe--tv, internet games, etc), we are left with a subtle void and find ourselves feel provoked to jealousy, envy, sadness, depression, hopelessness, or pain at seeing the party pictures, travels, relationship stories, 'mountiantop' experiences, possesions, accomplishments or promotions of others.

Why, if we are left feeling these strongly negative emotions towards people we hardly (or don't) keep in touch with...things which scripture encourages us and URGES us (in Galations 5, Colossians 3, 2Timothy 2-3 to name a few places...) to set aside, do we really believe this is "relaxation" or escape, or by any means profitable for eternity?????????????

There are so many ways our time could be better spent.

Lately, the Lord has been reminding me over and over again something I learned a few years ago. It started with a Beth Moore bible study that encouraged us to start praying scripture. Novel? Why, actually, yes! To me, it was. But when you stop and think about it even for a second, it seems so logical...so, well, like...'duh.'

I love what she says in her book, Praying God's Word Day by Day, though. What is the best way to know you are praying God's will for your life, your loved ones, and your situations? How do you fight strongholds and gain self-control over struggles? How do you find joy in the midst of loneliness, sadness, death? By praying the very words of scripture. Praying God's words back to Him! And how do we know what to pray? Well, we have to actually READ and UNDERSTAND God's Words. I love her quote, "Beloved, you will never waste time in God's Word."

I've starting applying this in my prayer life over the course of this year through some very high and very low situations. It is so comforting to KNOW that you are praying according to God's will and purpose, and with confidence (Hebrews 10:19-25)! It's been challenging to spend time actually understanding scripture so as to pray it over areas in my life. It takes time.

Time I sometimes waste in front of my computer.

I want to encourage you to walk away from your computer at the end of a long day. Curl up on the couch or in your bed with the #1 Bestseller of all time, The Holy Bible. I pray that you would see for yourself how your life can be "filled up to all the fullness of God" as you are "strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man; so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, and that you being rooted and grounded in love may comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge," because He is able "to do exceedingly abundantly beyond what we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in all the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen."!
(Ephesians 3:14-21)

The Next Best Thing...

While I've always joked that I am the gold medalist of one-armed picture-taking, I now think I would also take the gold in having the most unfinished photo albums. I ventured into the wide world of Creative Memories at that tender high school age when the naive and the idealist collide and you feel like you will be 80 years old, looking through years of beautifully crafted pages of happy memories and fun trips.

Wrong.

Until today, I would have turned 80 and the picture record would still be stuck somewhere in 2003. However, as I've learned from years of psychology, you can't go backward, you can only go forward...you eat an elephant one bite at a time...start small...make little goals and mark them off as you go...etc. etc. etc.

Well, I'm not very motivated by all the small talk, it seems. I am, however, powerfully motivated by jealousy. Ha! Thanks to my sweet and very organized friend Ashley, who has beautiful bound photo albums from EVERY TRIP she's been on and also a HUGE hand-prepared scrap book of her first-born son, Nathan's first year, I was moved to get busy!

Ashley told me of a few websites to try such as Snapfish or MyPublisher. I had tried Snapfish in the past but didn't get far at all. I got discouraged and gave up. But MyPublisher is a downloadable program that you can work on at your own pace. One year after the fact, I decided to try my hand at this "online" photo album by memorializing a super fun girls trip to Chicago (to celebrate a birthday, see the city, and go to WICKED!) in October of '08.

So although it only took me a day to complete, this program from MyPublisher was slow, didn't have as many layout options as I was hoping, and was a little tricky to navigate at times. Not only that, but it ended up costing a pretty penny, as they only throw in expensive FedEx shipping options! Urgh.

But, I finished! I made an entire album of a trip in a day! Okay, so now, I have several other trips that need to materialize into albums instead of just a file folder on my computer. And I have the bug...of accomplishment...which is powerful...and so...I sought out another program and decided I'd try my hand at yet another album!

I downloaded Picaboo (Picassa Web Albums version of an online photobook). Clever name, and clever program! This program was quick, had several fun background options, made much more sense, and was good bit cheaper (with coupon codes). I finished my entire Romania Medical Mission trip album in just a few hours, and this album had much more of a journal feel as I had a ton to write about!! They layout options were perfect and the program was so much easier to navigate.

WOW! Two photobooks in two days!!! I'm on a roll....

But wait.

I need to be patient and wait for the finished product before I pour more money into this. Wisdom. I need to be wise! So...I will wait for the books to arrive and see what kind of quality they offer before proceeding with the China trip, the high school girls reunion beach trip, etc etc etc....

Just thought I'd share my fun accomplishments!

Quiet and Complete

So, there has been a theme in the past week that the Lord keeps sending my way as I read the Bible (Colossians), as I lift up my requests in prayer to the Lord, as I talk with my friends and as we encourage each other in our singleness. It is this: Colossians 2:10 and a commentary to follow:

"And you are complete in Christ" - 'It is a wonderful thing to be made whole and full. This means we can stop searching for identity and self-worth in the elemental and base philosophies of the world. Our future is sure in Christ because no longer are we incomplete creatures, helpless in face of an unseen destiny. Jesus Christ is the head over every power and authority, and He is more powerful than sorrow, gloom, fear, insecurity, and the need for approval.' ~Marie Chapian, Women's Devotional Bible, NIV.

We are filled.

We are complete in Him.

There are many instances lately where I do not feel filled. I care about my job and I am very thankful for it. But it does not fill me. I am thankful for my church family, but am not as connected as I have been in the past in others I've been a part of. I have close friends, but I do not have "the friend that sticks closer than a brother" currently. And lastly, often, I do not feel complete, as I am single and I am not currently dating anyone. That last line is code for: I get lonely.

As I meet with my friends to talk, quite a few have the same type of assessment of their own lives. And at times, thankfully different times, we can each get distracted or even discouraged by our longing for...something more. For a change.

But the Lord is teaching me this week, especially, that it's in those times, Scripture speaks loudly to those who are in Christ. We ARE complete. We are filled with the Holy Spirit. We have everything we need for life and godliness. We are deeply loved. We are fully known. He walks beside us, dwells within us, carries us, gives us wisdom, lights our path, lightens our load, shoulders our burdens, gives life to our mortal bodies, and takes our place in death. (I have the scripture references for all of these..if you'd like)

What more could we possibly need?

It is a deep comfort, a great joy and pleasant peace to know Him. And to be known by Him.

I have had some sweet and comforting encouragement by my friends these past two days. I have also been exposed to this verse a few different times this week: Zephaniah 3:17. "The Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing."

I love it when God repeats a verse to me through random, seemingly unrelated situations. He knows what I need and He always provides.

"Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds...Encourage one another, and all the more as you see the day drawing near..." Heb. 10:23-25

Quieted by His love and faithfulness,
K

Humbled and Amazed...

Hello!!

I got back from Romania Sunday evening and was swept away in the current of the working world before I had time to decompress (let alone unpack!). I've put in close to 60 hours this week which, on top of difficulty sleeping through the night for the first few days, left me little time to process everything I experienced in Iasi (YAhsh). Thankfully, I had the chance to relive each day through journaling on the international flight home!



As we drove each day to our villages where we would hold our medical clinics, we were delighted by the beauty of the surrounding countryside. Rows on end of happy sunflowers and corn fields! There are rolling hills very similar to Birmingham, and the weather was similar all week as well...hot!

I started this trip more out of obedience than desire. I didn't know my teammates, we didn't find a doctor until the last minute...and I was worried about communications issues because they were going to be Romanian. Doing medical screenings is out of my comfort zone as a surgery PA, and on and on... I really just gave up all expectations, and trusted the Lord to do whatever He wanted. I was going to go. And I prayed it would go okay.

HAHAHA. Wow, talk about how stupid I can be! From day one, the Lord made it quite clear that this trip was going to show His glory and put me in my place.



Our team headed to First Baptist Church Iasi on Sunday morning, where we were ushered to the front rows of the sanctuary. They were finishing up bible study so we inturrupted, and couldn't understand a thing. In just a few minutes, a girl my age came from the other side of the church, sat behind me and tapped my shoulder, asking if I would like her to translate the service! We were introduced as a team and invited to sing a song up on stage (I was warned the night before and had brought my guitar. I picked "Here I Am to Worship" because everyone on my team knew it). The youth were in the choir loft behind us because they had just come from traveling on a choir tour, and as I began playing and we started to sing, they immediately joined in behind us ...in Romanian. Someone jumped on the piano and started accompanying as well. All together, in English and Romanian, with a guitar and piano, we sang praise and worship to the Lord...it was quite the moment.

As if that wasn't enough to put me in my place, the girl who sat behind me (her name is Miha) was also introduced as a visitor and got up to give a slideshow presentation of the people she is reaching in E. Asia. As I watched, it was all too familiar. When she sat down, I told her I had a friend working with the same people and mentioned her city that I had visited last summer. Miha's eyes got big and she said, "That is my city, what is her name???" I told her my friends' name and she not only knows her, they are very dear friends! Incredible. She just so 'happened' to be visiting the church on this day (she is Romanian and actually lives two hours away but came back to visit this church because she became a believer there in college), 'happened' to sit behind me, and 'happened' to live in the same city in E. Asia where my good friend lives that I went to visit last summer. Only God....

She was able to come back to our hotel with the Pastor and his family for lunch. We were able to share more of our stories and our mutual friendship. And I now have a new friend!


And this was just the first half of the first day...

K

Ridiculously Short update...But...

Hi~ I'm checking this from Bucharest, Romania!!

We just left Iasi, Romania and I cried for 30 minutes because I became surprisingly close with my 21 yo translator, Laura, and the Pastors wife, Denise. I met Pastor Florin and Denise and their 3 children, David (16), Andrew(11), and Estera (7) and have been amazed at how their WHOLE family serves Jesus Christ and shares the TRUTH of the gospel in such a dark country. I have had some amazing experiences this week and I've never felt so much like family with anyone in such a short amount of time as I have with Laura and Denise. These Christians have so much struggle for Truth in such dark blackness of Orthodox religion. It blankets the country with such a heaviness...and yet the Christian Evangelicals are strong in faith and passionate in missions...it's utterly amazing. I'm speechless.

I will blog more about the specific amazing stories from my trip when I get home. For now, I still can't get my head around this trip...it may take a while.

I get back in the states Sunday night. Please pray for our safe travel...

And we are bringing a young Romanian guy, Raoul (21) back to the states for his first time. He's studying to be a worship pastor and will be spending time at the church of Brookhills and with some friends in SC and CA. Pray for him...he has a lot of adjustments up ahead!!

With Love and Brokenness,
Karen

My heart in my hands

So, I leave in less than three days for another country, where I will be stepping into a completely different culture with a rich, deep and dark history, in an attempt to communicate the love of Jesus Christ through my hands in the form of daily medical clinics in rural towns outside of Iasi. I feel rather unprepared.

As a team, in preparation for the trip, we are going through a personal prayer journal called "ignite3 your prayer life" by Jim and Kaye Johns. They are e3 missionaries that have printed some simple prep materials for the e3 teams. This journal uses the five fingers of our hand to walk through the Lord's prayer, ascribing an WORD to each finger to accompany the principles taught by Jesus in this model prayer from Matthew 6:
"Our Father...(v9)" - our palm, as RELATIONSHIP
"hallowed by Your Name..." - our thumb, as WORSHIP
"Your kingdom come, Your will be done..." - our pointer, as SURRENDER of our lives to Him.
"Give us this day..." our long, as ASK for God to meet our needs.
"Forgive us..." - our ring, as CONFESS our sins daily to Jesus.
"Deliver us from the evil one..." - our small, for PROTECTION.
"for Yours is the Kingdom and the Power and the Glory forever. Amen." - returning to the palm in WORSHIP.

At first, I felt it pretty basic. But as I continue to work through the daily devotions on each page, I am being challenged, humbled, and encouraged to truly evaluate my heart.

- page 5 "As we begin, let us recognize that active service for God is not the same thing as spiritual intimacy. Empowered service...is the result of an intimate walk with God, not the cause."
- page 11 "Name some of the ways you want to yield your mind, heart, will, attitude, dreams and goals to God in surrender." Ephesians 4:22-24
- page 16 "Need to forgive: We are to ask God to forgive us as we forgive others."
Does anyone come to mind? Do you have anger, resentment or grudges? Ask For His grace and strength to forgive unconditionally..." Ephesians 4:26-27,32

And finally, pages 28,29, is where I'm camping out:

- "We must all grow in our understanding of the faithfulness of God to find the persistence and boldness to continue in prayer-sometimes for years-without giving up. Jesus said we must not give up (Luke 18:1)
- "God honors obedience (1 John 3:21-22) The apostle John makes it clear that we cannot separate the lifestyle we live from the prayers we pray. This does not mean we have to live perfect lives, but obedient lives - confessing our sins so that our prayers are not hindered. (James 5:16)


I'm thankful for the time to prepare my heart to serve. I'm excited though apprehensive because of the element of the unknown. I'm looking forward to seeing the light of the Truth of the Gospel Message break through the darkness of a post-communist country to bring New Life in Christ to those who had no hope (Ephesians 2:11-13).

Thanks for your prayers!

T-minus 9 days and counting!

Salut!

A while back I wrote a blog about a medical mission trip opportunity to Iasi, Romania through the Church of Brookhills and E3Partners. Well, we are just around the corner from our departure date, and the trip has changed faces multiple times....

We’ve had a few obstacles to overcome but it seems that things are finally smoothing out. The Lord is providing and I am finding peace!

We began with about 25 interested people. After the economic downturn and the difficulty in finding a doctor to sponsor our trip, we are down to 13 people, leaving only 9 on the evangelical team and 4 on the medical team...an optometrist, two nurses, and myself, the "nurse" PA. I was very discouraged and unsure of whether even to go. As I prayed and waited though, the Lord began to move. In small ways at first... At our second meeting we were asked if anyone played a musical instrument to help with team worship while there. I was the only one who raised my hand and turns out, will be taking my guitar (those of you who know me, know that one of the main reasons I learned to play was for things like this). In a subsequent meeting, we were told we still didn't have a doc and therefore couldn't even take prescription medicines....again, discouraging. Well, through waiting and more prayer, we have found a Romanian doctor to work with us! And when we prayed for money to purchase the prescription meds, we learned a week later, someone had donated $700 to buy prescription medicines and eye glasses. Our team leader got some great deals and we even came in under budget for these items!

On the home front, we’ve had generous donations of over the counter medicines and supplies from friends like you. And, I just found out last week that we have some Romanian medical students eager to join in our clinics, as well!

I've learned so much already about depending on the Lord to provide, move, show up, and take control! It's been convicting and a powerful reminder that stepping out in faith is an act of Trust in the Lord and an act of Worship as well. He is Who He says He is, and He will do what He says He will do...

I can't thank you enough for your generous support, faithful prayer and sweet encouragement.

Multumesc! Dumnezeu sa te Binecuvinteze!

(Thank you! God bless you!)

Karen Connor

kconnor7@yahoo.com

A lesson in spiritual horticulture...

As a child, I was introduced to the blessing of the "green thumb" by my mom. She loves house plants and we have plenty. I remember specifically growing avocado plants from store bought avocados. We would dry, then float the seeds in a clear glass full of water until they sprouted roots. I'm sure she planted them after that, but the growing was always the most interesting part. I remember, too, the night my parents were very excited, grabbed the flashlight, and made my brother and I rush to the pool deck where they shined the light on our very first pineapple sucker bloom (they had planted the sucker from a pineapple our neighbors had hand carried from Hawaii), and we kept watch as the pineapple grew large enough to eat!

I've been blessed to have a relatively green thumb myself. I enjoyed growing peppers, rosemary and grape tomatoes last summer (and eating them in my salad). I am currently growing some teddy bear sunflowers and my own avocado plant from a seed I bought to make guacamole :)

To be honest, though, this post is a bit overdue, because the real lessons for me came a few months ago. In early spring, my apartment complex groundskeepers drastically pruned the crepe myrtle trees that line the pool. It was such a pitiful sight. I remember learning about pruning from my parents as a child. And though it looks so wrong, I also remember the results from years of watching my parents care for their own trees in our front yard.

As I thought about the now pitiful, naked, stick-trees, and the avocado seed floating in water in my apartment window, seeminly lifeless, the Lord impressed a very valuable lesson on my heart.

There have been seasons in my life that have been ordinary and normal. There have been season that have been crazy busy with studying or moving or new jobs, or some combination of all. And there has been a new season as of late, that I have never experienced to this extent, called pruning.

I would qualify my life as a new Christian at age 14 through college as 'growing spiritually'. I would describe some points in there as pretty normal as well. There have been some moments of pruning, for sure. And even a few uprootings and replantings! But right here, right now, in this season, I very much feel like this picture.

The beauty of this picture is the fact that every thing this plant needs to sprout new shoots, grow new leaves, and bloom abundant flowers, is happening under the surface of the ground. In the roots. There is amazing life in the roots. And though the pruning leaves the tree looking vulnerable, fruitless, and even lifeless, it is anything but!

Honestly, I've felt like there is nothing happening at times in the past two years. I've felt fruitless, and sometimes even lifeless. I've been painfully pruned in some very big areas. However, it seems every time I start to get even a little down about where I am with the Lord, He gently reminds me of this picture. And of the life He is cultivating, enriching, and sustaining under the surface. SO THAT, in His perfect timing, there will be new shoots, fresh leaves, and abundant flowers...

'For I am sure of this, that He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus...And I pray this: that your love will keep on growing in knowledge and every kind of discernment, so that you can determine what really matters and can be pure and blameless in the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.' Philippins 1:6,9-11

My Perfect Day

Today was one of those rare special blessings from the Lord. And definitely NOT my typical Monday. In fact, compared to last Monday, it was the exact opposite! Last Monday I worked from 630am until almost 8pm. Got to love hip fractures!

Well, days like today not only make up for those "last Monday"s, they compensates for the rough part of my job, in general. (Because my schedule parallels my doc's schedule for the most part, and he's been out of town since noon on Friday!)

Okay, so I've been asked in the past what my definition of the "perfect" day would be. And yes, I'd love to be in some far away place, or on a beach, with a best friend and absolutely NO responsibility and no cell phone. And maybe my iPod and a good book. But I couldn't do that forever. I actually like being productive. And useful to society. And using the gifts and talents the Lord has blessed me with, oh, and earning my keep, if you get my drift. Thankfully, I do love what I do. I may not love how MUCH I have to do it, but I love the underlying art and skill of surgery as well as the interaction with most of my patients, and the quick healing of their pain from less than two hours of surgery. And seeing their delight at my pretty scar (I can't sew clothes, but I sure can sew people!! I know, it's not normal to be excited about that. Such is the life of the surgeon and the knife!)... Anyway, orthopedic surgery can be very rewarding.

So back to my day. I got to sleep in somewhat, and actually woke up before my alarm because, well, it's sunny and I wasn't tired anymore. I made some coffee, didn't have to take a shower because I didn't plan on being at work long...but I'm jumping ahead. So, slept in, no shower, coffee, and out of curiosity, I turned the TV on to see the weather. To my delight, up pops Stephanie Walker with the 3 day forecast! Talk about instant gratification. COOL! (That never happens...you usually have to listen to the traffic, the news, blah, blah, blah...comercial...oh, and the minute you step away to get your shoes, you missed the weather....). Got to talk to my roommate as she headed out the door for a run (yes, this is a rare spotting :)...and then headed off to work, myself. Just before rush hour. Loving my ten minute drive, I listened to some David Crowder Band nice and loud, and since I was fully awake, sang right along.

Since it was still early, I caught up with my office manager, checked my email, and weighed myself (I do it most every Monday on the "doctor scale" since I don't own one). Then I headed up to the hospital to see my five or so patients. Normally, I'd have 30 - 45 min to see them and put out whatever fires were awaiting me after a weekend of someone else doing rounds. But today I had two hours. So I did all my own dressing changes, I chatted with Mr. D who's been with us for almost three weeks now and just wants to go home...and I did, totally, have to put out some fires. Then I mosied to the OR to see if my other PAs needed anything. Was able to give "report" of said fires so as not to allow situations to become a liability to us or the hospital. And then headed back to my office for a last swing through and preparation for tomorrow.

On my way home, I talked to Shireen and planned some time before lunch to hang out and catch up. She was out by the pool at the Hampton Inn (refer to her blog for quite the story!)...and I got to catch mr. Rhys awake and happy! We had a great time catching up and I headed home to eat lunch with my roommate, Stephanie.

We ate and chatted at the kitchen table, which was great and needed. Then headed to TCBY for some after-lunch YUM! We sat outside in the cool/sun and ate our yogurt with goosebumps! It was probably THEE most beautiful day we've had in weeks. I can't get enough of blue sky, puffy clouds, and a cool breeze.

I came home, took a nap (yes, if you know me well, THIS is probably the #1 qualification for the heading to this blog :).... woke up and indulged in some of my leftover Chocolate Truffle Tower cake from Cheesecake Factory last night...and then went for a 4 MILE RUN!!!! I couldn't believe how amazing it felt outside! (I wanted to run father but the blister on my left arch strongly objected). :(

At home, I swept off the back porch, washed all the pollen off the table, chairs, and rocker, and planted some teddy bear sunflower seeds! Had a yummy fried egg sandwhich for dinner and now, I'm headed to the shower and to bed to work on my Bible study.

Waking without the alarm, coffee, friends, music, work, friends, nap, chocolate, running, house work, and Scripture.

My perfect productive day.

Thanks Lord. Good Night.

Worlds Apart...

In less than a month, I've had two amazing opportunities because of my job. Two of the surgeons I work with have blessed me with two polar opposite cultural experiences!!

A first: Dr. Johnson took my friend Crystal and I clay shooting at Selwood Farms. It was my first shot gun experience and my second time ever shooting a gun (hand gun in the past)... We shot a 20 gauge Cordova that belongs to his daughter. We were thankful to have Dr. J and his friend Jason, who shoots competitively, show us the ropes...and keep us from shooting our eyes out, or anyone elses! Enjoy...

Blessing 2: Dr. Adkison graciously offered me and a date two tickets to the Starlight Gala here at the Allys Stephens Center. The honored guest for the evening was none other than Queen Latifa!!! I had JUST seen The Secret Life of Bees (which is a very cool movie), and was floored to be invited to such a prestigious evening. It was to benefit VIVA HEALTH which is the main fundraiser for UAB hospital here. I took my friend Jeff Matthews and enjoyed everything from Jazz to Blues to funk and a little of comedy in between! The Queen puts on quite a show and her talents are from A to Z...acting, singing, song writing, producing...and Jenny Craig!! haha...(that was her joke by the way). Sweet.

I'm humbled by my job on a dialy basis. And blessed more than I deserve.


(You can click on the collage to see an enlarged view.Enjoy the pics!)

ACRES OF HOPE

I went through a really difficult time a year and a half ago and found one of my saving graces in keeping my thoughts in check was writing scripture on my wall by my bed. It has been really neat to see what the Lord has done with it. I picked a passage from Hosea among a few others. The other day, my friend Crystal told me there was a song of the passage I picked. And it happens to be from one of my favorite artists (well, two, technically!)... Enjoy!

ACRES OF HOPE
by Shane Barnard and Robbie Seay

He will allure her
He will pursue her
And call her out
To wilderness with flowers in His hand
She is responding
Beat up and hurting
Deserving death
But offerings of life are found instead

She will sing
She will sing
Oh, to You
She will sing as in the days of youth
As You lead her away
To valleys low
To acres of hope
Acres of hope

Here in the valley
Walk close beside me
Don’t look back
For love is growing vineyards up ahead
You have called me master
And though you’re in the dark here
Call me friend
And call me lover and marry me for good

She will sing
She will sing
Oh, to You
She will sing as in the days of youth
As You lead her away
To valleys low
To acres of hope
Acres of hope

How the story ends is
Love and tenderness in Him
Not safe, but worth it
So the valley’s up ahead
Or the ones we live
We’ll sing together
We’ll sing together

We will sing
We will sing
Oh, to You
We will sing as in the days of youth
As You lead us away
To valleys low
To acres of hope
Acres of hope

“Lord, sustain me in the valley. Give me ears to hear Your sweet tender voice and lead me in to acres of hope in this dry and weary land.”

"Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her. There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. There she will sing as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt. ‘In that day,’ declares the LORD,’you will call me 'my husband'; you will no longer call me 'my master. (Hosea 2:14-16)

You can listen to this song by following this link: http://www.imeem.com/people/8_0K90/music/uv_uRnIG/shane-and-shane-acres-of-hope/

Blessings!

Indiana Jones

Having grown up in my brother's shadow, meaning he had possession of the TV control on most occasions, my childhood was marked by shows and movies such as Knight Rider, Air Wolf, and Indiana Jones. Of the latter, the scene that sticks in my mind most is the scene from "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade." On his adventures to find the Holy Grail, Indy comes to the edge of a cliff, a huge cavern, that appeared to be thirty feet across, without any visible way to reach the other side. As the music intensified, Indy read the instructions from His father's diary. The final test required Indy to "step out" in faith. Trusting his father's instruction, and all he knew at that moment, in what seemed to the audience as insanity, Indy stepped off into the void. To his amazement, his foot came down on solid ground! (It turns out that there was a bridge across the cavern but because the rocky texture of the bridge perfectly matched the facing wall of the cavern, the bridge was invisible from Indy's perspective). Great scene...

Well, I feel a little like Indy this week. Here's the story...my very first compelling toward missions came as a college student at Idlewild Baptist Church in Tampa, FL. Some men were visiting our church to talk about what the Lord was doing in Romania. They were missionaries there and it was the first time I ever truly felt my heart moved for a certain country and people group. I had wanted to be a doctor and someday do medical missions since I was in junior high, and one of my main motivations in finally becoming a PA was to someday do medical missions. But this experience of truly feeling pulled specifically toward Romania stuck with me. Well, fast forward almost 10years, two mission trips to other countries later (Dominican Republic and Belize), and an eye opening trip to China to visit a friend...and I have recently been presented with the opportunity to not only go on a mission trip to Romania, but on a MEDICAL mission trip, no less.

The trip is with a church I do not belong to, but trust; with a group of people I do not know, and though it is a medical trip, we have yet to find a sponsoring doctor to lead the trip. This is a test of faith for me.

I've prayed for over six months about the possibility of going on a mission trip this year. I had about four different options. This was the only medical trip, one of the other ones coincides with a wedding I can't miss, and one of them is a little out of reach. The passionate people at Brookhills have pursued me consistantly to be part of this trip. I have the time, the money, and the desire to go. The only thing I don't have is concrete confirmation of the details of the trip. The doctor, the type of medical work, what I'll actually be doing. I've sat on these unknowns for a while, waiting and praying. And it is time to make a decision. After meeting the team, learning about the strategic partnership with E3ministries, and the 8 year relationship with the city we are going to in Romania, as well as the long term discipleship followup that new believers will receive through the local established congregation there, I know that the Lord is asking me to "step out" and trust Him that the bridge will appear (aka the details of and during this trip!). Funny, because one of the main evangelism tools we will be using is the Evangicube...which illustrates wonderfully how Jesus is our bridge to God...


I filled out my application, which reserved my flights, and submitted my letter to my boss and docs requesting the time off.


On Christ the solid Rock I stand.

Snow Holiday

I woke up this morning almost like a kid at Christmas. Weather reports for the past few days reported possible snow for today. My first thought after checking the clock at 7am was, "I wonder if it's SNOWING!" With that thought, I jumped out of bed and hurried to the window...I even had to stop for a second because I got dizzy! Sure enough, I was elated to find not only a blanket of white, but quite a bit of snow actually falling! You see, here in Alabama, it's a rarity. It only snowed for two mornings last year and none the year before. So I really do equate it with a holiday. It may only happen once this year.

Since I was already awake, I felt it perfectly fitting for a snowy day to make some hot coffee, open the blinds of my large apartment window, and curl up on the couch with my bible. I felt led to read Psalm 19 for the very reason that weather is one of the most awesome displays of God's power: "The heavens declare the glory of God and the skies declares the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech and night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world..."

On first attempt to leave for church, I had to clear three inches of snow from all my windows, the hood, and headlights of my car. Unfortunately, my hands were frozen and burning rather quickly. As I sat in my car and the snow fell hard, I reconsidered the safety of my endeavor (the south is NOT prepared for snow and Bham is particularly hilly)...I chickened out and went back inside.

And hour later, I was getting a little stir crazy. So with a quick prayer and some gloves, I made my second attempt. It was such a beautiful, peaceful drive. And when I got to church, there was a small but intimate crowd. The Associate Pastor led in greetiing the congregation with a word that made my entire trip worth it, which was followed by a song that poured grace over my heart. He said in paraphrase, 'I believe the storm outside is a parallel to what we are doing in here. The snow is a perfect picture of the righteousness of Jesus Christ in our lives; the beautiful and pure whiteness has blanketed the landscape, covering over everything (even the dirt) underneath, and it is breathtaking.'

Afterwards, Abba and Jason sang this song. The words are so true of my past week, and of my life in general. I'm reading an incredible book right now called Disappointment with God by Phillip Yancey. More on that to follow. Enjoy:

You Are Still Holy By Kim Hill

Holy, You are still holy
Even when the darkness surrounds my life
Sovereign, You are still sovereign
Even when confusion has blinded my eyes

Lord, I don't deserve Your kind affection
When my unbelief has kept me from Your touch
I want my life to be a pure reflection
Of Your love

And so I come into Your chamber
And I dance at Your feet, Lord
You are my Saviour
And I'm at Your mercy
All that has been in my life
Up 'til now
It belongs to You
You are still holy

Holy, You are still holy
Even though I don't understand Your ways
Sovereign, You will be sovereign
Even when my circumstances don't change

Lord, I don't deserve your tender patience
When my unbelief has kept me from Your truth
I want my life to be a sweet devotion
To You

And so I come into Your chamber
And I dance at Your feet, Lord
You are my Saviour
And I'm at Your mercy
All that has been in my life
Up 'til now
It belongs to You
I belong to You

And so I come into Your chamber
And I dance at Your feet
You are my Saviour
And I'm at Your mercy
All that has been in my life
Up 'til now
It belongs to You
I belong to You
You are still holy
You are still sovereign
You are still holy, Lord
You are still righteous
You are all-knowing
You are still holy

At the moment...

I'm listening to this song over an over. I listened to it probably 5 or 6 times in a row on my drive home yesterday. Sometimes it made me incredibly peaceful, some it brought tears down my checks. Mostly, it resonated through me as the cry of my soul at this place in time. Be all my hopes, Lord.


Only You

By: David Crowder Band

Take my heart, I lay it down
At the feet of You Who's crowned
Take my life, I'm letting go
I lift it up to You Who's throned

And I will worship You, Lord
Only You, Lord
And I will bow down before You
Only You Lord

Take my fret, take my fear
All I have, I'm leaving here
Be all my hopes, be all my dreams
Be all my delights, be my everything

And it's just You and me here now
Only You and me here now

You should see the view
When it's only You

Click here to watch and listen to this song...and enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPs-2hn5ZOg

~Birthday Excitement~

Well, when all is said and done, I handled turning 31 MUCH better than turning 30! I had a sweet 'girls night out' at Cocina Superior, grabbed "mall cookies" for dessert, and headed back to my apartment to play celebrity Taboo...fun times were had by all. (And I'm very impressed by Sarah Dunn's knowledge of modern pop culture!!)

Saturday was a little more, shall we say, interesting. Heidi and I planned to meet at Ashley's and head out to Moss Rock Preserve for a fun little hike (on what turned out to be one of the most beautiful days I've seen around here for what seems like FOREVER!). Unfortunately on the way, Heidi got a ticket. So arriving late, we all jumped in her car since she had Isaiah, who wasn't feeling well that morning. Arriving at the Preserve, Heidi was in the process of unbuckling Isaiah from the car seat when he threw up. Fun. So she got him out and set him on the ground where he puked a couple more times. Ashley and I helped get him cleaned up and suggested we go back. Nope! When he seemed settled enough, we loaded him in the back pack (complete with do-rag and sweater) and headed off for our hike. He promptly fell asleep and we actually had a great hike!

After the hike, we picked up some chicken salad from Ashley Mac's in Bluff Park and ate out on Ashley's back deck. On the way home, my car started steaming from the upper right side of the hood. I pulled over to check under the hood and realized my radiator had exploded and radiator fluid was everywhere. Some nice man (Thanks Mr. Kelly!?!) pulled over to help, filled my radiator full of distilled water, and found the hole in the upper hose. I drove to the Goodyear in Vestavia and had both hoses replaced. My roommate brought me home but I had to ride my bike back to get my car. It was my first use of my new Mountain Bike I got for Christmas...go figure!?

When I got home, I was so antsy and the weather was so incredible, I went for a four mile run. Ah.

I got dinner with Jeff at Baha Burger (can you believe they were out of sweet potato fries?!) and then we watched WALL-E (which by the way, is quite the disturbing little animated film).

It was a great day and I can't believe how beautiful the weather was. So thankful to have enjoyed it practically all day long!

The End

What Wonderous Love Is This, O My Soul

It's been a full few weeks and I have learned so much that I feel like I've barely had time to process it all. But it's been incredible.

I few weekends ago, I did something very un-Karen-esque...totally spontaneous, and well worth the craziness. I drove to Atlanta (Woodstock actually) on a Sunday after church to see "Travis Cottrell and Friends" (Cindy Morgan and Beth Moore!) in concert and filming for a new live CD/DVD. I stayed with my friend Karen that night, and had a great time catching up. Waking up at 4am to drive back to Birmingham for work at 730am Monday morning (and pretty much risking my life because I was too stubborn to pull over and get coffee even though I was totally nodding off!?!?!) was totally worth watering a friendship, the amazing concert worship experience, and wise words from Beth Moore. All I had to write on during the concert was a Publix receipt...but here are just a few things I needed to hear from this woman:

Sometimes we resist true worship because we don't feel real...whether we are feeling betrayed, confused, doubting, etc. But our transparency is our liberty!...to come in our true state -- as broken people in need of mercy. However, we must come willing to receive. If we are honest with ourselves, there are times we just don't want to do this. In those times, we must cry out to the Lord, "HEAL MY 'WANT TO'!" Come, pour out your all to Him, so as to make room for Him to pour Himself in.
If you've been devastated and brought low because of something/someone in this world, and you stand up again, and Jesus is the only One you see...you've stood up in victory. You've won!
And lastly: Even Peter needed a "shut-up-and-listen" talking-to from God. If you want to know Who Jesus is, see what God has to say in Scripture about His own Son. "My Beloved." God declares His love for Jesus to Peter, right there on the top of Mt. Sinai (see Matthew 17) Flip over a few pages to John 15:9. Jesus is speaking to His disciples: "Just as the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you, abide in My love."

Do I 'abide' in the love that God the Father has for me, His child? Do I believe it? If I can grasp that kind of love, it will change how I see God, how I see others and definitely how I see myself. "Oh righteous Father, although the world has not known Thee, yet I have known Thee; and these have known that Thou didst send Me; and I have made Thy name known to them, and will make it known; that the love wherewith Thou didst love Me may be in them, and I in them." (John 17:25,26)

"The mystery that has been hidden from the past ages and generations; but has now been manifested to His saints, to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of Glory." Colossians 1:26,27

What wonderous Love is this.

A Future and a Hope (Jer. 29:11)

We stole the phrase "The sisterhood." My three friends, Kim, Crystal, Sarah and I have been through loss, transition, moving, relationship troubles, and lots of spiritual growth over the past three plus years of our shared friendship. We've rung in the new year together since 2006 (well, Sarah joined us a year late)...and this year was no exception. However, we've begun a new tradition over this past year that has proved challenging, changing, and encouraging. It's worth sharing, for sure!

At the beginning of 2008 we each shared and recorded each others goals for the year in five catagories: Physical/Health, Financial/Stewardship, Spiritual/Ministry, Friends/Family, and Work/School. We met again six months later to go over our goals, update, evaluate where we were, and encourage each other in our slacker areas! It's been a great year of change, challenge, travel :) and growth for me personally. But the greatest blessings have been to look back and see where the Lord has changed Sarah's direction (she landed at FSU?!), provided a need (mentors for all three of my friends!), taken away relationships, and brought some new ones, all the while, growing our trust and dependence on one another, and most importantly on Jesus Christ, the Author and Finisher of our faith.

This year, as I review the goals I've set, I am reminded of the verses I stood on as a high school senior: Proverbs 16:9 "The mind of a man plans his way but the Lord directs his steps." And Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord...to prosper you and not to harm you...to give you a future and a hope."

I have a lot of hopes for this new year. I want to find rest in Christ alone instead of striving to do, be, serve, and accomplish. Though this past year was very enjoyable, with lots of travel, time with friends and family, and lot of answered prayers for family members and friends, there were times this year that I tried to fit things together that didn't fit...to serve where God hadn't provided opportunity, to pursue relationships God didn't allow to prosper, to get involved with ministries that didn't necessarily have a place for me. There were a number of closed doors, confused prayers, and standing still when I thought I should be running!

But this year, I want to be convinced that I am serving out of obedience and not just desire. I want to know where He is leading me and be confident of His calling. I want to bring Him glory in small acts of obedience at work, in big acts of faith in trusting Him to open the door for medical missions, and even in buying a house if He provides in that area.

Mostly, I just want to know Him more and grasp more fully the depth of His love for us, so that I can truly show love to the people I see every day.