you is kind. you is smart. you is important.

SO much has happened since the last time I caught you up on my life.  Life has been a whirlwind to say the least.  Sometimes I really like it that way but other times, it's nice to be able to stop, take a breath, and really reflect on life and just enjoy the journey.   So here I am, taking a few short moments out of today and simply reflecting and sharing what the past few months have had in store.

Right after camp, Justin and I got to spend some sweet time together with his family in High Point.  I was so thankful for this time together after a very busy summer.  After we spent time together in High Point, we went to Disney World with my family!!  Disney World is literally one of my favorite places on earth.  This was without a doubt my favorite time in Disney.  Family, Love, Princesses, and Magic were all in abundance.  I was on cloud five thousand. 

Magic Kingdom

Animal Kingdom in what seemed to be the weeks attire

Family!

After we got back from Disney, we moved into my new apartment in Anderson.  Living off campus was a really big decision to make this year as many students live on campus and at times, it's easy to feel disconnected.  I thought that might happen at first but after classes started, that statement was proved false.  Being a music major, I feel like I am on campus more than ever, have the best of friends here at school, and am thriving completely in my surroundings here.  The Lord has blessed me so abundantly. 

Labor Day weekend was my first trip home.  I'm not going to lie, it was kinda nice being able to spend a few days at home after being away all summer and then not spending much time at home after camp before school started.  We went to the USC/ECU game in Charlotte to kick-off what is hopefully a fantastic season for the Carolina Gamecocks.  We shall see if that theory proves true in the next couple of weeks. 

Peyton and I on the way to the game!

That weekend, I also saw an incredible movie, 'The Help.'  If you haven't seen this, I advise that you go sooner rather than later.  It is truly eye opening, inspiring, funny, and heartbreaking all in the same film.  Wonderful acting, incredible story, beautifully told.  And let's just say, I'm not eating any chocolate pies anytime soon.

"You is kind. You is smart. You is important." - Aibileen

This month has been really good.  I'm have turned in my application for graduation which if you know my situation, that almost seems like a miracle.  I'm so thankful to be graduating on time.  I am doing my best to not catch the senioritis bug and to finish strong this final year.  I almost don't have a choice.  I am taking all music courses this semester.  In a way, that's wonderful news but in another regard, it's exhausting because it's very demanding.  Pintrest isn't helping either.  

This past weekend, I was blessed to see one of my dear friends from camp, Stephanie!  She came up to visit and spend the night!  While she was here, we went to see Rush of Fools, since we worked with them this summer!  It was great to see them, catch up, and say hello!  We received a great lesson in cord wrapping and have become quite the professionals! 

I'm really trying to cook... kinda.  I have mastered smore's brownies much to the dismay of my  physical appearance.  They are just so tasty.  I have not quite mastered the  Stuffed Apple Cider Cookies.  They just didn't turn out the way I anticipated.  Tonight though, we made banana pancakes which were delicious.  This kitchen thing is a gift. 

My best friend, Brittany got engaged this past weekend!!!!  I am so happy for her and her fiance, Matt!!!!  They are truly wonderful together and so precious!  She is an incredible lady and Mr. Jennings is very lucky to have her!

That's about all that's happened in the past two months... I think.  At least the major stuff.  The Lord is teaching me a whole lot everyday, proving to me that He knows best and that I am literally absolutely nothing on my own.  While I am at school, I realize how thankful I am for my church and for the gospel that is proclaimed.  For this, 2 Corinthians 4 is a source of encouragement. "...For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus our Lord."  v. 5

This week is the last full week of school before break.  Heading home this weekend for some good family time and Harvest Day at FBC.  Then next week, I'll be leaving on a jet plane to Texas. :) Can't wait.

-kar

singing forever young, singing songs underneath that sun

Another summer of camp is done and done.  Wowie.  It's been a blast and almost surreal that an entire summer slammed packed of ministry has reached the end.  This is incredibly bittersweet time of life.  In a way I am very much at peace.  I feel much more prepared for what is to come camp than I did last summer.  It's good to know that it is possible to keep in touch with my staff members that I have grown close to.  It's been hard but I have come to realize that camp cannot last forever and that is ok.  As great as camp is, it is a season and a chapter of life.  It's a beautiful time and an incredible time of ministry but it is not supposed to be our only ministry in life. Sometimes that's hard.  Let's be honest, camp is a blast and so much fun but eventually, we are called to live our lives and put into action the things we teach week in and week out.  That definitely makes it difficult when the last week of July rolls around and you are thrown back into the real world.  This summer has taught me a lot.  It's taught me a lot about myself, the Lord, and people in general.

This summer, I met so many wonderful students.  One of the biggest blessings has been teaching 11th and 12th graders.  The Lord has definitely shown me how much he has grown me and how far he has brought me since I was personally at that point in my life.  I met students who were so incredibly solid in their walk.  Students who taught me when I was supposed to teach them.  It's awesome to see that the Lord is raising a generation of students who are passionate about proclaiming the name of Jesus with their life, that desire to make a difference on their campuses, that are called to change their major to pursue vocational ministry, or called onto the mission field.  I also met students who were struggling big time.  Many had broken home situations, relationship problems, friendship problems, deaths, separation, drugs, sexual temptation, and alcohol. It was incredible to see the Lord break down the walls in each of their lives.
For all of these students, it was incredible to see what the Lord did in Bible Study each day. This years theme was Connect and we really dove into the life of Peter. I really enjoyed studying about Peter because he was a real dude and the guy was a disciple of jesus Homeboy followed Jesus around, was practically his bestie, but we still see him make mistake after mistake.  In his mistakes though, we also see his and Jesus' relationship restored time and time again.
It was awesome to see students wake up and realize the urgency of the Gospel when teaching on Day 1 about Relating to the Lost.  Day 2 was a big day for a lot of my students because they began to truly grasp what Christ being their true authority really meant.  Day 3 and 4 really went hand and hand.  This is where I truly saw students be broken and the Lord at work.  Day 3 is relating to Family and Friends and Day 4 is Relating to Those Who Hurt Us. Well, common sense tells us that typically people who really and truly deeply hurt us are those who we are closest with.  It was so awesome to see students understand what true forgiveness really means.  It's something I still struggle with even to this day but Biblically we are commanded to forgive an unlimited amount of times and when we forgive, we are to let go.  Every week I was convicted and reminded time and time again that the Lord forgives me every single day and doesn't hold one thing against me?  If the Lord who created this universe and me and who is perfect can offer this type of forgiveness, I must forgive those that hurt me and ask forgiveness from those people that I hurt.


My staff was wonderful this year.  It was a group of true beauts who really loved the Lord and enjoyed sweet times of fellowship!  It's never easy to say goodbye.  Ever.  But what is fortunate that many of us live close to each other and there are means and ways of communication.  Nobody really understands the bond your staff has until you actually experience it.  It's practically impossible to explain.

My body is very exhausted even still.  Although I have been finished with camp, I have still been extremely busy.  I was able to reunite with family on Monday as well as my friend Christy.  Then yesterday, I had lunch with Caleb then I drove to Spartanburg to see Sara Ashley and stayed the night with her.  Then today, I became a grown up.  Kayla and I signed the lease for our apartment today.  It was really exciting because it means I am starting a brand new chapter of my life!  I'm really excited to se what the Lord has in store for this year.

The next two weeks  are slammed packed.  This weekend is Sara Beth's and Tripp's wedding!  Then I am furniture shopping for my apartment and going to see Justin and his family and take a little roadtrip to the beach!  Then we will go to my house next weekend and leave for Disney World!!!  Princesses!  Mickey!  Minnie!  Magic!  Wooooo!!!!  I can't wait!  It's going to be wonderful to spend time with the people I love the most.

Prayers still going out for Justin and his Fuge staff at North Greenville as they finish camp on Saturday and my sweet friend Jeanette and her staff who are working Centrikid at Anderson who finish on Friday!  Finish strong friends!

-kar

so little time.

Wow.  Camp season is officially back in full swing.  One week down, six to go.  In a way that's absolutely crazy to think about.  Let me rewind, take you back to the past, and bring you up to date on all the happenings.

May.  School ends.  Thank goodness.  I was so ready to be done and done. The few weeks in between school and camp were filled with sweet times with my family , friends, and Justin.  Fast forward to the middle of May.  It was time to go to Panama City Beach for program training for Fuge!  It was a wonderful time of laughter, hard work, and just great energy before camp season started.  It was wonderful to see old friends and spend time together with them.

Program Training- a long weekend for directors, development directors, rec directors, financial directors, site directors, program directors, actors, backpackers, video producers, and missions mobilizers to train in their specific element of camp.

Then, the Ridgecrest and NGU team made the long drive back to the Carolina's to get camp ready before our staff arrived!  We spent from Monday to Thursday morning unloading, counting, decorating, moving, and just doing whatever needed to be done to make camp run smoothly!  Then... here came the staff!

Our staff is really awesome.  Each person brings something completely different to the team and it's really cool to see how the Lord is going to use each one of them.  We started training week in full swing.  Bible Study training, set up, missions training, etc.  Then before I knew it, dress rehearsals were starting and camp was only one day away.

Camp week one was wonderful!  The Lord was so good!  We had 650 campers this week.  Landon Dowden was camp pastor with Jared Espy and his band leading worship!  It was really cool to hang out with those guys and get to see them serve the Lord!  My group this week was awesome!  They were a very rec oriented group meaning they loved rec and got a ton out of rec.  Hearing the stories on the last day of how the Lord moved in each one of their lives was so exciting!  Join me in prayer for these students as many are going to college in the fall or entering their senior year of high school.  This group may or may not have won the Fuge Cup this week as well! :)

Next week is going to be absolutely insane!  We jump to 1400 campers with 14 special teamers (people who have worked camp before and cannot work a full summer but can work a few weeks.  They come in and lead Bible Study groups and tracks).  It's going to be absolutely insane!  We are moving to the big auditorium with Sammy Nuckolls preaching and Rush of Fools leading worship!  I'm really looking forward to my aunt's church being here this week!  It's going to be wonderful!  It's going to be crazy!  Praying expectantly!  

Living in His goodness alone,
kar

All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go

Well,  here we are.  Tomorrow (technically today) is the big day!!!! In approximately 18 hours, I will be up up and away flying across the Atlantic Ocean to the other side of the world.  That's crazy.  I'm so very excited but also a tad nervous.  One thing I know is that it is going to be an incredible adventure.  The Lord is going to move in so many amazing ways.  I expect such big things and cannot wait to see what He is going to do.  I'm just thankful I am going to get to be apart of it.  Thank you so so so much for your prayers and support.  It has been overwhelming, and comforting.  I have truly seen the Lord provide and move in so many ways in preparing for this trip.  It's such a blessing.


Just a heads up on what we will be doing while in Africa.


Who is going? : A group of staffers from Lifeway's Fuge Camps.  We are spread over different states and many of us will be meeting for the first time at the gate to board our flight!


When are you leaving and returning?: We leave tomorrow, Friday, March the 11th at 7:10PM from Atlanta.  We will return to Atlanta on March 20th bright and early sometime around dawn.


Where exactly are you going?: We will be in South Africa and have three different teams.  One will be in Johannesburg, one in Cape Town, and I will be serving in Soweto.


What exactly will you be doing?: The team I am apart of in Soweto will be doing several different things.  We will be attending church services on Sunday and being apart of them.  During the week we are going to be prayer walking, doing girls and boys clubs, doing a soccer club, and hanging out with people from the church, ministering to them and getting to know the culture. Another large part of why Fuge sends staff members on these trips is so we can go and then share with our staffs about our experiences during the summer so they can tell campers.  This will be the first of five years that Fuge will partner with South Africa for their missions focus.


Why exactly are you heading all the way across the world?:  Well simply put, we have been called.  When the Lord calls, you cannot run away from that. We are going because our lives have been radically changed by Jesus Christ and we have a passion to share His love to every race and every nation.


How are you going?  Well, we're hopping on a plane... ;) just kidding.  Well not really, that's how we are going but I am going because of many people's support.  Like I said earlier, the Lord is so so good.


"I really want to know what is going on during the week and specifically how I can praying, will you be in contact with America?"   From my understanding we are going to have limited internet access.  I don't really know what that means so I am going in with no expectations.  I will do my best to at least give an update or two on here or on my facebook.  If not, I will have a world phone and be in very brief contact with my dear precious mother and Justin every once in a while.  Not much but they can update you on what's going on.  Most of you readers are friends with either one of them, if not both.  Please do not be offended that I am not calling you.  Number one, I'm not going to have time to have tons of phone conversations, hello, I'm going to be in Africa.  Number two, it's not el cheapo to call from South Africa.  So uhhhh if you want to take that phone bill cost up with Hoppy, be my guest. :) I will tell you all about the wonderful experiences upon my arrival to the United States. 


Here ya go!  Now you know.  Please keep our team in your prayers.  We are so excited but there are definitely a few nerves in there.  The Lord always watches over his children though.  It's going to be such a beautiful time of service and I cannot wait to share how the Lord moves.  It's going to be incredible.


in You we die, in You we rise
-kar

I'll dream of you and count the days

Well, here I am again.  Apologizing to the world that I haven't blogged in awhile.  So I sit here and think, why do I have to apologize?  Am I obligated to share my thoughts with the entire world?  Or is this just a little bonus?  You know, like the icing on the cake.  Whatever you consider my thoughts, if for whatever reason unbeknownst to mankind, they are a necessity to your life, or if they are just something to brighten your day, here ya go!

This time last week was quite more exciting than this week is.  This time last week, I was getting ready to take my trip to the big state of Texas.  I flew out last Thursday night very late after Concert Choir.  I flew out on Thursday instead of Friday because our frequent flyer miles could not be used on that Friday in February, go figure.  So oh darn, I got to see Justin that much sooner!  (ps. if you don't like reading about love, skip this paragraph.)  The one downfall of having to fly out on Thursday was that I had to miss Kayla's recital.  But never fear, I know she did wonderful and looked beautiful!  I had a lovely weekend in Texas.  It was lovely to spend time with Justin and just be together.  I had not seen him in over a month and a half which was starting to get pretty tough.  Not impossible, but as Jack Johnson says, 'it's always better when we're together.'  It was a great time in Texas.  We went out to eat, a lot.  Justin took me to eat fondue for dessert.  It was so yummty.  Then for Valentine's Day, he took me to get a massage.  Pampered.  Glorious.  Then we rented Invictus because I am going to Africa in two weeks!  We hung out with Travis and Victoria (JSH roommate and girlfriend).  I met several of his friends and got to see Erica and Ross!  Hooray!  I love Texas.  A lot.  It's starting to grow on me more and more each time I go out there.  Yeehaw!

Now, since I told you that we ate lots of food, never fear!  I joined the YMCA.  So long to my hatred towards exercise.  I am going to kill exercise with kindness and make us have a good relationship.  It must happen.

Also on Monday, Mommty and I went and looked at the apartments I am going to be living in next year!  Hoooray!  So exciting!!!  I feel like a big girl... kinda.

Last week I was introduced to the musician Tyrone Wells.  I regret not knowing his music until now.  I personally enjoy it.  You should youtube him and see for yourself.

Today was a great day.  I got to sleep late, only had two classes, and got a little bit of work done.  Can't expect too much.  I needed a little time though to rest from my Texas trip though.  Oh yeah, and Dr. Watson's recital!

I leave for Africa in two weeks and one day from the time this is posted.  March 11th is the big day!  It's getting so close.  I am getting so excited but it still seems so surreal at the same time. I don't think that I will believe I am actually going until I get on the plane.  Or maybe until I set foot out of the airport in Johannesburg.  The Lord is so good.

Basketball games start tomorrow.  I haven't been able to go to practice yet.  Sorry team!   Go Space Jam!

Survivor has started again!  Glory! Hallelujah!  Glee is midseason!  Do not hate!  And The Bachelor is almost over again!  He FINALLY sent that Michelle home and next week they are journeying to South Africa!  How appropriate!

Bath and Body Works new fragrance "Carried Away" is lovely.  It smells SO good.  Yummty.

My guitar playing has gotten much better.  Still not a world famous musician but I know more than four chords.

I am one season and two movies away from finishing SATC.  This is depressing.

Heading home this weekend for the last time before I head to the other side of the world.  That's scary because I have to get everything I can remember from home ready to go!  It's really happening!

I promised myself I would go to bed earlier tonight.  And here it is, midnight and I'm just sitting procrastinating FROM SLEEP.  This is bad.  Goodnight moon!

-kar

Life Update... What a Lame Title.

Well, since I have a bit of downtime I suppose I shall blog... even though "I don't have anything to do." :)  I have all kinds of stuff I could be doing but rather I feel compelled to update you, the reader, about my life.  Feel special.  :)

Since I last blogged, nothing major has happened really but then again, how do you define what is major?  What makes something a major event in one's life?  After all, what is an ocean to one might be a drop of water to another. So rather than trying to decide if the events of the past week are major, I'll just tell you about them.  Sometimes, it's the little things in life that can make someone smile and that's my goal: putting smiles on people's faces one day at a time.

I am back in Anderson for my Junior semester.  I'm starting to feel a VERY early symptom of senioritis.  A huge case could break out any moment.   That's not a good thing.  Fortunately I have pretty good and schedule enjoyable classes.  Even my 8am is a beneficial class that is going to be very useful.  I just don't enjoy waking up at the crack of dawn but I suppose it's just preparing me for camp morning meetings!

The semester got delayed three days because of a huge "arctic blast" that swept the southeast.  You would think that's great, right?  Well in a way it was.  I mean, who doesn't love their winter break extended nearly a week?  Well, number one, Anderson University waited until like 5:30am to cancel classes on Monday.  That was a major fail.  Fortunately my boyfriend had not started classes so he still had his days and nights confused. He is also an hour behind so he stayed up all night and kept checking the news website!  He called me as soon as he saw the announcement of no classes so Jeanette and I didn't have to leave our cozy beds to check our computers!  Boyfriend points!  The snow days were fun.  I watched two entire seasons of Sex and the City and went on an adventure the third snow day and bought the third season.  Anderson University, being the scholarly institution they are,  decided class was necessary so the eager beavers told us on Tuesday afternoon that we would "resume normal operating hours on Thursday."  Now, that was not smart because the side streets into campus were a solid sheet of ice.  I mean you could have gone figure skating.  A delay would probably have been in our best interest  but alas, classes resumed.  Then, in the following days, we found out that we, Anderson University, a COLLEGE who does not have a required number of days that we must attend class, must make up our snow days.  Yes, yes you read that correctly. So we, the Southern Baptist college, will be attending class on Good Friday.... because that's incredibly logical.

I went home last weekend because it was a birthdaypalooza!  We celebrated Granddaddy's 89th birthday and also Colin and Brenna's!!!  It was so much fun!  It was nice to see my entire family.  November and December spoils you because you spend so much time together during the holidays and then it's all over so quickly!

I started guitar class this week!  I can now play four chords.  Em, A7, G, and D!  This weekends plans include getting a guitar because it's kinda hard to take guitar class without a guitar.  Just saying.  I really want a pink sparkly one but I kinda feel like my teacher will laugh at me and not take me seriously if I waltz in with one of those.  But hey, Elle Woods turned out just fine,  maybe I could too! :)

My Africa money was sent in today!  I am so so SO overwhelmed at the Lord's provision through this.  This is such an example of faith, trusting, and waiting on the Lord.  Thank you SO  much to those of you reading who contributed financially and even more importantly thank you SO much for your prayers in the coming weeks!  I am getting so excited.  We fly out in less than fifty days.  I will be serving in Soweto and we also will have a team of people in Johannesburg and in Cape Town.  Please continue to cover this in your prayers.  Pray expectantly.  I cannot even begin to fathom what the Lord is going to do there but I know this.. it is going to be big and it's going to be full of life change.  Pray for the people of South Africa.  Pray for their hearts and that many of them will begin a relationship with Jesus Christ.  That eternal promise they receive is going to be so much better and greater than a small meal or clothing we could possibly provide them with.  Pray for boldness for our team.  The Lord is going to present so many opportunities so pray that can openly and effectively communicate the Gospel with these people!

That's really about all there is going on right now.  I'm home again this weekend so I'm typing this with my puppy yapping in the background.  She's so sweet!  Oh and little Anna started eating real food today!  She's on her way to becoming a person with teeth!  :)  It's looking like it's going to be a busy semester.  Not a bad one, just a busy one.  Maintaining focus could be hard at times but then I ask myself, is too much focus a bad thing?  Could one be so focused on something that everything else just passes by in a blur?  Maybe that's what I should be concerned with.  Only time will tell...

-kar

Kairos.

Well, here we are.  Another year in the books.  Another year of change, of progress, of success, of failure, and of opportunity.  As I sit here on New Years Day (note- that's when I started this blog... I finished on the 6th.  Slacker me) and reflect over the past year, I am amazed at where the Lord has brought me and the things He has done. I supposed I could define this year by the word Kairos, which is greek for 'defining moment.' This year has been full of moments that the Lord has crafted.  The way he shaped these events, opportunities, and circumstances over the past year  has been such a beautiful thing.

Here's an overview of the past year.  Naturally we are going to do this in Katie fashion and make it completely out of order and just in the way my brain thinks it.  Here we go.

In the concert/theatre world: I had the lovely pleasure of meeting the great Sutton Foster and seeing her in concert.  Absolutely amazing.  I saw Disney Princesses on Ice.  Heavenly. I also had the pleasure of seeing Jersey Boys.  Phenomenal show.  I also saw Mary Poppins.  It made me smile.  The choreography in that show is absolutely incredible.  I did not make it to the theatre world as much as I wished this year but hopefully 2011 will bring much satisfaction when it comes to the theatre world.  

The year kicked off with a trip to Passion 2010.  Phenomenal speakers, great worship, and a intense time with the Lord was a great way to begin the new year!

Through this year I have learned how precious and dear my family is to me.  While I often catch grief for  all of this, I could care less.  I spent nearly my entire summer away from them.  Not only did I spend it away from them, I was often out of contact with them (which if you know my mom and I, that's rare).  I don't regret being where I was this summer in any way shape or form (we'll get to that in a moment) but the Lord definitely revealed to me how supportive, loving, and wonderful they are.  Because of this, I have spent many of my weekends this semester at home to kind of make up for that time and I am one hundred percent ok with this.  I don't feel like I have been slighted in anyway shape or form in "the college experience." In SO many ways, I have gained so much.  As I left to go back to school today, I realized how very precious every single day is.

I played intramural basketball early in the year with the lovely Pink Ladies.  So much fun, even though I was terrible.

My Carolina Gamecocks decided to show up for the most part this season minus several really important games.  Needless to say we can hold our heads high for a great bowl bid, beating the number one team at the time, a stomping of the local tigers, a SEC East title, and no players getting put in the pokey.  Despite a loss for the SEC title and a heartbreaking bowl game, it was a great year to be a Gamecock!

This year I met the most incredible man in the entire world, Justin Hernandez.  I am so SO thankful that he is in my life.  While he is down in Texas and the distance makes things difficult sometimes, there is no one in this world I would rather be with.  He is an amazing man of the Lord and not only do I have a wonderful relationship with him, but I have gained wonderful relationships with his parents and sister!  We have a long road ahead of us but I cannot wait for what the Lord has in store!

I would be completely remiss if I did not say that FUGE was easily the event in my life that brought the most life change.  Never ever in my life have I experienced the Lord in the way I did this summer.  The summer began in May when I went to program training for acting this summer.  I had no clue that when I pulled into Ridgecrest, my life was about to be drastically changed.  The camp theme this summer was Kairos, which is the greek word for Defining Moments.  My life literally had hundreds of defining moments this summer. First, I had the pleasure of meeting 30 strangers.  Little did I know that on that day in May that these people would become a second family, a support system, and many of them lifelong friends.  The Lord is so precious.  Then I got to be a part of life change in student's lives.  It was amazing to see the Lord break down walls week after week and see them surrender their lives to their Heavenly Father.  I had the pleasure of teaching seventh and eighth grade Bible Study.  Week after week I learned new truths as I taught these students about Kairos moments in people's lives such as Jonah and Hannah.  It was so beautiful to see them learn from these stories and people and connect something that happened thousands of years ago to something they were going through in their lives.  Camp is a moment that changed my life forever.  Not a day goes by that I do not talk with at least one or two people from camp this summer or that I am somehow reminded of some funny camp moment or story.  I am so thankful and SO blessed that I had such an incredible summer full of intentional ministry to students.  My life has been forever changed.

Movies worth noting (in my mind):

Toy Story 3- The end of an era.  I cried.
Avatar-  Pretty good.  Didn't completely get the hype but still- wonderful.
Despicable Me- Agnes.  No more questions.  Wonderful.
The Fighter- Great story.  Wonderful acting.  Realistic.  Amy Adams.  Deserves Oscar Nods

Books worth noting (again in my mind)
I don't read much so....
The Bible.  The Word of God.  Living. Active.
Choosing to See- MaryBeth Chapman.  Wonderful book by a beautiful woman of the Lord.  This book has opened my heart to the idea of potentially adopting children one day.  She explains their process so clearly and how beautifully the Lord has worked in her and Steven Curtis Chapman's life.  She also shares how their family has grieved yet also celebrated the life and loss of one of their daughters.

Songs again worth noting (note- some of these were not released this year, just impacted my life this year)

You're Beautiful- Phil Wickam.  Solid lyrically.
Mama's Song- Carrie Underwood
Savannah- Relient K
Beautiful Things- Gungor
Africa- Toto
Sing Over Your Children- Matt Maher

The last two are noted because they remind me of an amazing opportunity coming up!  This spring break  I will be headed halfway across the world to SOUTH AFRICA to share the gospel with the people of Soweto.  The Lord has been preparing me my entire life for this experience and I absolutely cannot wait what He has in store!

That makes me excited about what is to come in the next year.  It's gearing up to be a great year!  With South Africa,  Texas, camp this summer (back at Ridgecrest, by the way!), this semester, and starting my last year of college.... it's going to be crazy yet full of Kairos moments for sure.

xoxo
-kar