Sunday, June 27, 2010

Church (a slight ramble)

We went to the Greenville Free Methodist Church today for their contemporary service. Got there late, of course, but was pleasantly surprised by the music as they sang "your grace is enough..." Judah joined the Kindergarten Sunday school class in the "harvest kids" area that had a barn theme with bright colors, animal pictures, and even a pretend barn to play in at the center of the room. I returned to the open area multi use room that was their sanctuary, as they started into "His love endures forever....Sing praise...Forever God is faithful!" Toward the end of the song, the music leader started to read the Psalm that inspired the song with the congregation chiming in at "His love endures forever". I filled out the obligatory visitor card and put it in the offering plate as they started to sing my newest favorite worship song I have been rocking out to in my car from the 2010 Passion cd, Awakening:

"Healing is in Your hands"

No mountain, no valley, no gain or loss we know
could keep us from Your love
No sickness, no secret, no chain is strong enough
to keep us from Your love
to keep us from Your love

How high, how wide
No matter where I am, healing is in Your hands
How deep, How strong,
And now by Your grace I stand, healing is in Your hands

Our present, our future, our past is in Your hands
We're covered by Your blood
We're covered by Your blood

How high, How wide
no matter where I am, healing is in Your hands
How deep, How strong
And now by Your grace I stand, healing is in Your hands

Very powerful song and so fun to sing!!

The pastor was a kind looking man with a slightly hard to overlook "lisp" as he started his sermon. It was about remembering... and how hard it is even for the important stuff-- like God's word. He then went into the difference between a contract and a covenant. How a contract is an agreement for something in return for something else and that a covenant is a promise from one to another... and that even if the other is not holding up their end of the bargain, that it is still our duty to continue to carry out that covenant. He illustrated it by using marriage vows as a common covenant. A covenant that many people bail on because one person doesn't hold up their end of the deal. He explained how this wasn't Christ-like as God could say over and over different ways we have not held up our end of the deal like many of those broken marriages --- "He has fallen away from me." "She doesn't respect me." "He makes fun of me in front of his friends." "She left me."
God could say all those things about us, his beloved, and still he doesn't see any of those things, any of the millions of things we do that hurt him, as reasons to break his covenant with us. I thought that was a compelling point and how that applies even outside of marriage, but with any relationship. As Christians, as those seeking to be Christ-like, we have a responsibility to uphold our covenant to each other, to those less fortunate, to those that despise us, to those that fall in and out of favor with us--- we have a responsibility to continue to love them and be Christ to them. And those in marriages, when you and your partner are at odds more than not, you have an obligation to uphold the promise you made to each other(even when they are not). just like how we fall in and out of favor with God yet he continues to keep his promise to us... we must do the same with our partner that has wronged us.

He continues on to go through a few verses that I have read before, but don't think they struck quite as strongly as they did today.

Matthew 6:14-15

14"S)">(S)For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

15"But T)">(T)if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.

Matthew 7:2

For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and B)">(B)by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you.


Yeah, have you ever not forgiven someone??? have you ever judged someone? I am pretty sure I have.... at least once or a million times.... I mean that is packing a pretty hard punch that if I don't forgive, than God wont forgive me? Or that God will judge me by the somewhat fickle and ridiculous way I have judged others??

I feel like I never was aware of this part of the deal I have with Christ. Like somewhere in that salvation and my sins are wiped clean I kinda tricked myself in to thinking that I really didn't have any accountability once I accepted Christ into my life. Like you know, I am a lowly sinner, a stupid human that will make mistake after mistake and so yeah, Christ died for all that and that is the end, but its not. I mean not entirely. He did die for me, and I am going to make mistakes, but there IS some accountability.... its not all roses and frolicking when we get to heaven. We will be judged by how we lived. Yeah if we have received Christ's salvation than we are ultimately in the door to heaven, but we all will be judged. We all will need to stand before God and I am kinda thinking that I should take the time now to re-evaluate how I forgive and NOT judge others.... might make for a more pleasant entry... not to mention that if I can learn to really forgive others, NOT judge them (as is one of my most favorite human past times i must admit), and actually treat people as though there isn't a thing they can do to make me stop loving them and sharing Jesus with them... well, I am pretty sure that is what it is all about-- our purpose in this broken and dying world.

Micah 6: 8

8 He has showed you, O man, what is good.
And what does the LORD require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God.

There IS a requirement. There is a higher calling than just "phew- I'm saved and going to heaven!" And he says it pretty clearly here in Micah. To act justly (no judging!), to love mercy (yeah that stuff God so willingly gives us which we don't deserve), and to walk humbly with OUR GOD.

Saturday, June 26, 2010

Sno Cones!!!!!!



I have been dying to get a sno cone machine for a few weeks. Last night after wandering around walmart for a while, I decided to just do it! WOOHOO!

This is what Judah and I had for breakfast : )

I am either the coolest or worst mom ever.... a line like to walk frequently hehe

It is so fun and simple. You just pop the ice cubes in the top and push down on the button and shushsushsushshsh ice shavings just start shooting out. Then add the cherry or blue raspberry flavor syrup and mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm perfect summer treat!

After photos


this is the "side yard" gorgeous!


Back porch


fun mirror in the bathroom!


bathroom


my bedroom


I love my new bedspread. The sheets are an organic steel gray from Target!


Judah's toys


Judah loves his room especially his couch


the lovely Jeanette made me some awesome magnets to make sure I dont forget home!


Isnt she beautiful!?


View of kitchen and dining room from back door


kitchen - good size with a TON of cabinets



Living room bay windows.


front door. I love my key hook!


Living room


view from front door


home away from home : )

I thought I would share how the house looks now after all the hard work of Mom, Kari, Josiah, Tommy, and Anna.

Monday, June 21, 2010

Moving In



Here are a few tips for your next move-
1) HIRE MOVERS! - seriously one of my best decisions. 2 men for 2 hours saves you probably 2 years of back pain and trouble. I had a team in Columbus to load me and one in Greenville to unload.
2) DO NOT DRIVE THE U-HAUL all by yourself - yeah so i drove the big uHaul truck from Cbus to Greenville and found that a) its a big truck therefore very awkward to maneuver. and b) driving big trucks with limited choice of other entertainment or music can drive one a little looney (i found myself praying aloud in panic when we couldnt find a gas station such as "Do Lord or DO Lord oh DO you know where a gas station is?" when I was on "e" and then when in snail moving traffic, found that I feel liberated enough to rap and throw gang symbols because im so far off the ground that no one would be looking at me.
3) FAMILY IS AWESOME- yeah my WHOLE family chipped in from cleaning my apartment in Columbus (Thank you Aunt Judy, Uncle Rich, Jeanette, Jesse, Kari, Dad, Mom, Tommy, Anna, Tania, Kevin, and Josiah!) --- Tommy, Anna, and Kari followed me to Greenville to help me move in and get settled, and Mom and Josiah arrived today to help me unpack some more!!!! I dont know why it is that you all love us so much, but your help is above and beyond and I am truly, truly grateful.


So we did make it to Greenville with little to no problem aside from that noted above. Tommy really was helpful in getting things put together (bunk bed) and figuring out that we needed things like 3 prong plug connectors (aka the orange things) and smoke detectors. When we arrived at the house, we met the property manager and she showed us in the house. It was pretty good except that the shower had recently been gutted and was totally operational. Yikes! So here it is Monday --- and I havent had a shower since I left Columbus on Saturday. I finally broke down and washed my hair in the sink with ice cold water (yeah the hot water wasnt working either!) and a little sponge bath with paper towels (as everything is still packed and hard to find).... God bless the contractor that is working on the house because he showed up Sunday morning (Father's day and all) to continue working on the shower. As he has worked on the different things on this very old house he seems to find more and more problems -- ie. the gas water heater not lighting because it was rusted close. He has been a trooper and come to the house at 7:30 am every morning and worked until night to get everything done. I am so excited to shower it is not even funny!!!!!! I am sure anyone around me feels the same.

Well that is all for now... I have more to tell but am sleepy. I will leave you with some "before" pictures. Hopefully will have some "after" ones tomorrow!

****** no pictures.... apparently tethering with my blackberry doesnt allow me enough juice to upload pictures.... anyone know how to fix this!?!?! annoyed!

Love- Kat and Judah


PICTURES!!!! through some major practice in patience i was able to get these uploaded. enjoy!


my room. it was poop brown and now it is seductive silver


Judah LOVES his room and his bunk bed!


My faithful workers bedding down for the night in the servant quarters


Painting!




oh wow, what a mess


bird cage!


Living room


painting makes people crazy... here is the proof

Saturday, June 12, 2010

Overwhelming Love

My Church family put on a surprise ice cream social last Sunday evening. They made me believe it was a typical praise night and I started off the service in the sanctuary singing "Lay it down" by Jaci Valesquez. After that Pastor Gary announced that he had something important to discuss with the church but felt that we needed to go to the fellowship hall so we would be closer together. I dont know why my mind instantly goes to the extreme negative but I started to get nervous and brief but vivid pictures of the church closing came to mind as we all made our way to the fellowship hall.

Once in there Pastor then announced that we were here to talk about Katrina. Still a bit slow I looked up in shock, and then realized that they had all been up to something. Pastor started by saying that the church would really miss my "moves" as I guess I get a little into the worship and have been known to dance a bit in service. I was afraid that instead of a goodbye party, this was going to be more of a roast as a few chimed in with different anecdotes depicting my "crazy antics". Instead it turned into a ball and bugger fest as one after another each one of my (church) family members spoke up with words of kindness, encouragement, and things that they will miss or have enjoyed about Judah and I. Not many dry eyes. I still am sitting here a week later totally amazed and overwhelmed at how many people love and support us.

Each one of you means so much to me. I really have grown so much under the care and support of my Cornerstone Christian Church family. You all have given me an opportunity to serve the Lord in new ways such as singing in the worship group (CCC TRIO!!!), allowing me to unleash my goofy side as one of the crazier VBS teachers, and most of all just loving me --- scars, antics, and all! Judah has also grown in learning more about our powerful and awesome God through Sunday school (Ms. Heidi rocks!) and Junior church.

Tomorrow will be my "last" Sunday before I move to Illinois. I will take lots of pictures and post a few of these beautiful faces that make up my lovely Cornerstone Christian Church family. My first objective once the boxes are unloaded is to find a "temporary replacement" church family in Greenville. Although, they will never compare to my CCC peeps back home.