Fill in the blank.

Next week, Christopher and I are headed to the ARC conference. It is a conference for church planters, and I could not be more excited! It will also be Christopher's first experience on an airplane! So i thought it would be appropriate to share a little fill in the blank about travelling!

1. My favorite place i've ever traveled to is ...the Czech Republic. Prague is just beautiful!



2. Italy is somewhere I'd love to go someday.

3. I pass the time on a plane (or bus, or car ride or train) by muisic + books.

4. My three must-haves when I travel are a customized traveling playlist, a Nicolas Sparks novel, + FRIENDS!

5. My favorite travel companion is the hubs! I love sharing new places and experiences with him!

6. The craziest thing that ever happened to me while traveling is Bolivia missions trip... On take off, some birds were swallowed up by the engine. We ended up stuck in Bolivia an extra day, taking a Bolivian airline home the following day. Only this plane was small, so we had stopped for fuel in Peru and Panama. This led us to miss our connecting flights in Miami. Our group made up of 60(+) high school students were split up in to groups of 10 or so. My group had to fly to Chicago AND THEN Dulles. Within 24 hours I had been in Bolivia, Peru, Panama, Miami, Chicago, and DC. whewww!

7. The most exotic food I've ever tried while traveling is anything I ate in India. I'm not really sure of some of the things I ate...


8. If I could live anywhere else, I'd live in Charleston, SC for its southern charm!


9. I have been to 19
states in the U.S.

Who can be against us?

Originally, I had planned on this post being one of those amazing, encouraging posts, filled with all of my profound revelations I came to during the 21 days of fasting. Instead, I'm finding myself in need of some encouragement and profound revelations.

Yesterday was cra-cra.

I'll separate this story into thirds.

1/3-panic.
My mom woke me up around 9:30 with a phone call. "I think I just broke my foot," was all she said then made noises filled with painful gasps. And I panicked. All I knew was that I needed to throw on real clothes because I would most likely spend the morning in the ER. I raced over to my parents house to find my mom with a throbbing foot, laying on the couch. She had dropped a weight on it while working out. We hobbled to the car, and I spent the morning at good ole Fauquier Hospital. After about an hour and a half we found out it wasn't broken. Thank goodness!

2/3-hair cut.
This was a very pleasant part of my day. My hair is looking fresh and healthy. woo! If you need a hairstylist, you need Carissa. (And if you say that I recommended you, you get 10$ off and I'll get a free cut!)


3/3-more panic.
For the past week Chris and I have been house-sitting. My grandparents went on a cruise to the Bahamas, so we got to hang out at their house with Felix their cat. :) After the haircut, I came to their house to find that they had gotten back, so I packed up my stuff, and headed back home. I spent the next few hours cleaning, doing laundry, and unpacking. I then decided to get some work done, so I finally made my way into the living room. Something was weird. Finally I realized the TV console had been pushed out on one side. When I walked up to the TV I realized the playstation was gone. Hmm. I called Christopher to confirm that he hadn't touched anything. And then I panicked for the second time. Again I found myself bolting to my car and racing to my parents house.

When Christopher and the cops arrived I came back to the house to realize that not only was the playstation gone, but so was my laptop, the PA system that came with Chris's drum set, and my Cannon XTi. boo.

Later our friends Stephanie and Kenny came over with some guns and some tips on how to scare away anyone else who dared break in. Even with a shotgun within arms reach, it was hard to fall asleep, and we ended up spending the night back at my parents. (Thanks Hopie for your bed!)

I'm so thankful we weren't home when all this happened. That we were safe at my grandparents with the attack kitty, Felix.

But it's interesting, I know I'm not the only one who had an interesting Monday. There were people in our church going through emergency surgeries and things of the like. Oh how the enemy likes to attack us when we think we are so strong. Right after we've fasted and sought after the Lord. He knows our weaknesses and how to make us feel trapped.

Romans 8:26-31
In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.

What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?



On another, totally unrelated note. I am so happy to have this back in my life.

The Mid-Fast Blog Update.

Its funny how when you ask God to do something, show you something, or for something; he always seems to answer.

Now, its most always not the way you expect or have planed out in your head. Actually its probably the opposite of what you expect.

This week Christopher's boss cut his hours. He went from a full time, salary paid manager to a part time, hourly manager. stinky. The upside is that I have a whole extra day to sleep in and snuggle with my babes. The downside is we pretty much only have enough money to pay our bills and eat macaroni and cheese. Now, I'm usually okay with mac n cheese, but this Daniel fast has got me eating pretty much nothing...

Anyway. While when I heard the news I first felt that panicky, butterfly-in-your-stomach-y, nauseous feeling, I then just began praying. And the phrase that I kept hearing in my heart was simple.

The Lord is my Portion.

He is all that I need. I have always known this, but today, it brings me to tears. My confidence is in the Lord.

Matthew 6:30

But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and green and tomorrow is tossed into the furnace, will He not much more surely clothe you, O you of little faith?

I am assured, and I expectant that Jesus will fill my needs.


So keep reading folks, cause God is bound to do something soon. :)
And its gonna be awesome.

What's next?

So lately, and by lately I mean post-graduation, my life's purpose has seemed to be muddied. The day to day has a way of distracting me from the big picture. This being said, I know that God has a plan for my life, that it's unique, and that it's awesome. I just have no idea what that will look like.

While both Christopher and I's jobs are knowingly temporary, we have come to a kind of crossroads. Neither of us know what the next chapter of our lives will look like, or even what we should be pursuing. It's times like these when it's clear how much we need Jesus to trust in and rely upon! Who needs to worry when He already knows the future! We are just along for the ride. :)

So starting Sunday we are participating in 21 days of fasting with our church, The Sound. I've decided to do the Daniel fast, which is basically just fruit and veggies. Chris and I have decided to make this one of our prayer focuses during the fast- for God to be preparing us for our future and give us a dream for the future.

My dad often says that sometimes we are just too full to ever feel hungry. I am so ready to feel that hunger after the Lord and to spend time focusing on how to glorify Him with my life and my marriage.

Stay tuned!

Thursdays are the best.

Let me tell you why.

It's Chris and I's day off.
We sleep in.
Have coffee together.
Sometimes at starbucks.
Sometimes it's red truck.
Sometimes its the good ole cheap kind from my kitchen.

And we generally don't to anything productive for the rest of the day.

It's glorious.