A mini update :)

Hello all!

Geez I'm behind!
Okay...here's a mini update on life.

-Lost 15 pounds as of last Thursday! woot! Who knows if tomorrow will be as gracious. haha. this week has been crazy and not the "healthiest". Oh well...It's part of it!

-Work is great! I don't remember if I said it in the last post or not....no more working at Portrait Innov....I'm just working at the Cafe now. It was just too stressful for me. I'm loving working at Goodness Gracious though.

-I've been hanging out with my childhood best friend a lot lately :) Brooke and I have known each other since we were 18 months old. I love her like a sister. I'm so glad we're hanging out again.

-In other realms.... just.... :) haha...I'll elaborate more on that soon. maybe. ;)

Over all, life is good...summer is relaxing....and I'm happy.

I promise...a better blog will come soon. :) Patience, my dears!

Love. Love. Love.
Katie

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Crosses and the Future :)

John 17: 20- 26 "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in You. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. Father I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and the know that you have sent me. I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them."

....Above is a seriously amazing portion of scripture. I wrote a blog on it on myspace a long time ago and it just popped into my mind today. So I went back to my myspace (for the first time in weeks) and looked it up. Yup....these verses still amaze me. :)

Here is what I wrote about it on myspace back in October...

"Okay...If you haven't read the verses at the beginning of this, please go back and read it. If you have the time, read all of John 17. I've been in awe of this chapter for the last week. First of all, the fact that Jesus prayed is just really interesting to me. But that's not what I'm wanting to talk about... Context of the chapter: Jesus is praying right before he is about to be arrested. From a purely human standpoint, if I were praying right before I was about to get arrested and be crucified, I know it'd completely be a selfish prayer begging for God to change his will. The thing that amazes me is that Jesus spends 5 verses praying for himself/ the situation....the next 20 verses are for his disciples and his followers (aka you and I). The above verses are the ones that really stick out to me. I begin to sense just a little bit of the complete passion of Christ here. The fact that Jesus, son of God, wants us, wretched sinners. Note that its that He wants us...not that He needs us. I don't know about you but I have done nothing at all to make Jesus want me...if anything, all my actions should make Him not want me....but that's not how it works.... He wants me. and wants me to experience His glory and the love of the Father. I'm so amazed by that....I'm so unworthy."

Yeah. Thats about right! haha...I'm constantly amazed by the little surprises I find out about God. I love that I don't understand Him...in a weird kind of way. It makes my spiritual life that much more exciting. :) On another note.... I've been feeling burdened lately about the future. There is so much that that I want to do in life. I've always had a passion for missions. When I was younger I interpretted that into me being called to be a missionary. I've come to realize that is still a huge burden of mine. Although it may not play out as I thought it would. Life is funny like that. While I would love to grow up, marry a preacher and spend the rest of my life doing ministry stuff...who knows if that is the way God is going to work things out. For all I know He could just want me to be like Nate and Dawn from West Virginia who every summer travel to Canada for the summer and do missions work up there while fall-spring they carry on normal lives.
Who knows...all I know is that I cannot wait for it to happen....to find the man God has for me and live life with him, to fulfill as much as I can in this breath of life of God's will for me, to raise a family, to see God work. It's all so exciting :)
For now though, I must be patient. Easier said than done...I'm one to get frustrated fast but I'm working on it :)


--Above is a cross I made :) The different peices are from broken plates, glass etc. It was my first attempt but I'm pretty happy with how it came out. I'd love to become better at making them and make them for people :) Hmmmm....We shall see what comes of this new project!

That's all for this week. I hope ya'll have an incredibly blessed week.

Love. Love. Love.
Katie

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Tomorrow will take care of itself...

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." -Matthew 6:25-34

-I know its one of the most common verses to quote when worry consumes you but sometimes I think its those "common" verses that can really speak to you if you slow down enough to listen to them again.

Now a lot of my ramblings tonight may just sound...well...stupid. but I'm in a rambling mood. Feel free to click the little X at the top at any time and go on to better things :)

I worry way too much for my own good. To other people it comes off as me being dramatic but thats not so. I sincerely freak out when it comes to making decisions. I stress to the point of becoming sick and then some. It's just no good for me but I can't help but worry that somewhere along the way I'm going to make one little decision thats going to totally mess up everything. I'm so scared that I'm going to make a wrong decision that I often just avoid making the decisions until the very last possible second. I hate this and it's something God and I are going to have to start working on. I cannot think of a reason or "root" to all of this. It's just emerged in the last few years. I was not like this in high school. I don't think I had a care in the world then. (boy, wasn't that nice?) but for some reason in the last 2 years I've developed this....mistrust? (i'm not sure if thats the right word) of everything/one/situation.

Anyways... It's got to stop. Just in the last few weeks I've been stressing about some decisions I have to make and it's getting to be ridiculous. I absolutely hate how much I let worry consume me. I know this should be an "easy" decision. That 5 years from now its not going to matter what I decided....then why can't I make up my mind?

So thats where the verse at the top comes in. I told my parents goodnight and went to bed (early for me :) and this verse popped into my mind. I almost shut it out...but decided to look it up and read over it. Sure enough I knew it was God talking. Why do i even worry about this? He so beautifully clothes the flowers what makes me think He won't provide for me in everyway I need (note: not want.) ? I guess this is the beginning of working this little situation of mine out. With God's help I'm going to stop this ridiculous amount of worry that consumes me and just trust.

On that note, I'm asking for prayer. I've got a situation I need to figure out and make a decision on soon and I just don't know what the right thing to do it. I need prayer for clarity from God....for Him to just make His will known. Please and Thank You! :)

Moving on....Kairos. :)
So I've been without a real home church for about 6 months. It's such a weird feeling but has taught me so much. Recently Jill, Brooke and I started going to Kairos at Brentwood Baptist on Tuesday nights. It's an amazing young singles/college ministry. The awesome thing about it is that college aged people from several different churches meet together...it's weird that even though I probably only know 5 people in the whole building of hundreds of people, I feel at home. I feel like I could talk to any person there and they would listen. It's truelly an amazing ministry. and worth the drive :)

I believe that is going to be all for the night. I got called in to work at GG cafe tomorrow so I need to get some sleep. Goodnight, all!

Love. Love. Love.
Katie

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TEN!

I've officially lost 10.8 pounds! woot. Took a while...Let's hope the next 10 don't take as long! :)

I'm resting up from training at Goodness Gracious and getting ready for a busy weekend at Portrait Innovations so no long posts today :) Just thought I'd tell ya the good news!

Love. Love. Love.
Katie

There's my Sadie baby :) She loves sleeping on my chest while I'm on the computer. Isn't she cute?

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Missions, Jobs, and Kittens

Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame. This poor man called, and the LORD heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them. Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. Fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him lack nothing. The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.
Psalm 34: 5-10

Hello!

Goodness...I'm sorry that it's been a while since the last post. Life has been a little busy lately.

Updates:

1. I'm now working at Portrait Innov. It's been interesting! haha. All the training is a little overwhelming. We shall see! I only work Saturdays and Sundays right now.

2. I'm starting another job tomorrow. Goodness Gracious Cafe. Im hoping to pick up a few days there during the week and see how that goes. I know a lot of the people that work there so it should be good.

3. Kairos...It's an amazing College/Young Singles ministry at Brentwood Baptist that I went to last week. I looooved it. I think God is using that ministry in huge ways. I'm going back tonight with Jill and Brooke.

4. New kitty :)

Isn't she adorable? Her name is Sadie. She's 4-5 weeks old and TINY. haha. I have to feed her kitten formula by the bottle but shes so worth it. Right now she is sleeping right under my chin curled up close to my neck. haha...She's too cute!

Thats all as far as updates go...Life is busy obviously. I'm just trying to keep up :) I'm still figuring a lot of things out...jobs, church etc. but it's faling into place. I'll try to keep you more updated :) I just got behind.

Currently on my mind is Missions. I've always had a desire tobe involved in it. I surrendered to God's call the summer before 10th grade. I'm still figuring out what God exactly wants me to do with it but I know He will show me in time. Who knows :) I just know we serve an amazing God and I can't wait to see the places He takes me in life.

Something I enjoy reading is the Life Journals of Jim Elliot. I pick it up every so often and read a chapter or two. He was an amazing man with a heart for the lost like none other. Also...theres a movie about his life called "End of the Spear". I encourage everyone to watch it.

I think thats all for tonight :)

Love. Love. Love.

Katie

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