Oh Mondays

It's just been one of those Mondays! But I know the week will get better! Hope your Monday was fabulous!

Psalm 7:17 Friday

I will give to the Lord the thanks due to his righteousness, and I will sing praise to the name of the Lord, the Most High.

-Psalm 7:17

Things I am Thankful for This Week


1. My parents are coming home tomorrow!
2. The safety and stability in the US when watching the news of northern Africa and the Middle East
3. Weekends to catch up on laundry, cleaning, reading, and TV
4. Books! I just love books! I picked up The Pioneer Woman's new book last night and love it just as much as her blog and cookbook!
5. Sushi from Miyabi's (I will be picking some up tonight!)


What are you thankful for this week?

LOVES

Things I love today...

1. The short size at Starbucks
2. Warmer winter days
3. Commander-in-Chic nail polish
4. Dry Shampoo (for those days when an extra 20 minutes in bed sounds fantastic)
5. Students who repeat directions for me after I have said them 50 times


What do you love?

Pursuing More of Jesus

My bible study is doing Anne Graham Lotz's book Pursuing More of Jesus this semester and it is incredible. The study takes a look at the intimate relationship Jesus had with his disciples, especially at the end of Jesus' days here on earth, and suggests our life should look the same. We have only completed through week 2 and I can't say enough good things about this book. Lotz is an incredible woman of faith who deeply desires a intensely close relationship with the Lord. The way Lotz writes about Jesus and his interactions with the disciples and us will move you. Lotz has an incredible way with words and the book is also very visually appealing.

Chapter 2 covered how Jesus not only identified with his disciples, but also identifies with us. Lotz goes on to say that we should so desire to identify with Christ that his tears of joy, love, grief, pain, and blessing should be our tears. Lotz discusses the story of Mary, sister of Martha and Lazarus, breaks her alabaster jar over Jesus' feet and wipes it with her hair. This is symbolic of Mary's tears of love for Christ. Mary literally gave up everything by breaking her jar over Jesus' feet in an act of love for him. The jar itself would have been a part of her dowry and in breaking it over his feet she is saying that he is all she needs. This begs the question, what is my alabaster jar? What am I holding back from him? Am I willing to give everything I have in love for him?

Lotz ends the chapter with this picture of the breaking of The Alabaster Jar. What a beautiful picture of God's all consuming love for us.

"In the early light of creation's dawn, the Father held His Alabaster Jar. It gleamed with the beauty of the Morning Star and was scented with the fragrance of the Rose of Sharon. It was His most precious possession. As His omniscient eyes looked down the years that stretched out before Him into generations and centuries and ages and millennia, He knew...

The Father slipped into the darkness of the world He had made and loved. The hands that held the Jar with such tender, eternal love, relaxed and opened as He placed the Jar ever so gently on the small manger bed of hay. During the years that followed, the beauty and glory of the Jar were shared and admired by those who had eyes to see.

And then, with hands that were trembling yet certain, the Father once again picked up His Alabaster Jar. And on a hill so far away from His celestial home--a hill that was cold, barren, and bleak, swarming with an angry mob that was unruly and obscene--the Father smashed His Alabaster Jar on a rugged, wooden cross. As the contents of flesh and blood were poured out and the fragrance of His love permeated human history forever, our tears were on His face..." (Lotz 38)



What is your alabaster jar? Are you willing to pour it out as a love offering to Christ?


Lotz, Anne Graham. Pursuing More of Jesus. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2009. Print.

Cruising in the Caribbean

My Fabulous Parents. Aren't they good looking!

My wonderful parents are on their first non-children trip lasting longer than 3 days in over 30 years. They have not been away for a week without us since their honeymoon. Mind you they have taken plenty of 3-4 trips here and there, but no trip long enough for them to melt their cares away. What's even more fantastic about this trip is that they are on a cruise and have absolutely no way to connect to anyone in the states (obviously unless it is an emergency). No phones, no email, no contact. I can guarantee you they are both loving it and hating it.

VBS

WOG

Young Married Bowling

My parents live to serve those around them. They both work at the church and everyone who works with them loves them. My dad is the minister to young married adults and the leader of the contemporary worship. My mom works in the children's ministry. She is lovingly known as Mama Dawn. Before being minister to young marrieds my dad was a college minister. To say that their schedules were jammed pack would be an understatement.

My mom and I are best friends. We talk 4-5 times a day through text, calls, and email. I see her at least two times a week. We talk about anything and everything, serious to silly. My mom is caring, loving, supportive, encouraging, funny, a rock, a servant, a hard worker, a fantastic cook, a loving wife, and most of all a woman after God's own heart. She will love you until it hurts her and do everything in her power to bring you closer to the Lord (even if that means some tough love on the way...she may be small, but she packs a punch with truth). If you have never heard my mother's testimony I encourage you to make time with her to hear it. She was raised in extremely difficult circumstances, but she grew to love and trust God with everything she has. She is truly an inspiration to me.

See what I mean...our joy of picture taking!

My dad and I are strangely similar, which makes our relationship interesting to watch. We both love each other very much and because we are incredibly similar it is sometimes difficult to understand how we show our love to each other. My dad is extremely hard working, dedicated to his ministry/wife/family, talented, driven, stubborn, independent, intelligent, encouraging, funny, giving and supportive. If my mom errs on the side of love, my dad errs on the side of truth. Its amazing how they balance each other out. When my dad puts his mind to something he is going to get it done with 110% effort. My dad has poured his life out serving college students and now young marrieds. He is a man after God's will for his life. He desires nothing more than to be following after God, leading others to do the same. My dad is my rock of truth and love in Christ.

My Beautiful Family

My brother and I couldn't be more blessed with our parents. We grew up in a home that desired the Lord's will. Even in times of financial difficultly I never saw my parents wavier. Even when giving up the job at Apple meant losing financial stability my parents trusted the Lord would provide. When my dad took the job in Columbia at Shandon I saw my mom rise to the occasion. She may not have liked it, but she was going to support her husband's decision. In the ups and downs of life my parents always sought after the Lord. My parents are quite the team. They are running after God with abandon and I couldn't be more excited as to where it will take them. I am blessed by their leadership and example! I hope to one day be like them!

Mom and Dad-

I hope that you are having a fabulous time! You deserve nothing less! I love you very much and can't wait to hear all about it! Don't worry about anything or anyone here! (Even though you have people checking in on us mom ha ha). We miss you, but are doing great!

Love you tons!

Kristin

PS. See what I mean...aren't they fantastic!!