A vessel for the Lord to Use

I am continually being reminded of how what I have in the Lord is a gift and how I can and need to share that gift with other people.  I am also continually learning how to listen more to the Holy Spirit to talk to people.  Sometimes it may seem like the most inopportune time, or such an awkward place, but those are the moments that make the difference.  Taking conversation to the next level, beyond just saying "hi", but really meaning your words, engaging in conversation and asking questions about their life!  My friend Kaycee and I have been experiencing this a lot this past week.  Talk about random places..last night it was at Taco Bell!  We spoke with the girl who took our order at the counter, and then we went and sat down.  I didn't really think anything of it, but when we sat down and started eating, she came around and Kaycee and I both got that look in our eye of: "we're going to talk with her and find out her story"...so we did!  She is a hurting girl.  A girl crying out for someone to listen to her, she has a longing for something more, she just doesn't know what it is... So before we left, I told her that we would be praying for her and that we would come in next week to see how things were going.  

Who knows the impact Kaycee and I had on her last night?  But the Lord knows what she needed to hear and when she needed to hear it.  This is true of so many people.  We might not the impact that our words have on someone, but I am at a point in my life where I am continually offering my life and my body as a vessel for the Lord to use to touch people where they are.  Join me? 

Please Pray...

Please pray for my boss' family.  Chuck is up here in Tennessee and his family is still in Flordia.  They had to stay there until their house sells.  Now they are in the middle of Hurricane Fay.  Cris, Chuck's wife, is there with their two daugthers, Tally and Tristan.  Please pray that their house does not sustain ANY damage whatsoever and that they remain safe as well!  

thanks, I'll keep you updated!!

Birthday Celebration!

Lisa Hall is a friend of mine; yesterday was her 27th birthday and we had a grand celebration!  She didn't want to have a big celebration for herself, rather she wanted to gather her family and celebrate the Lord, how good He is and what He is doing in her life and all of our lives!  The mere fact that she is celebrating her 27th birthday is a miracle in itself because just 3 weeks ago, she was in a nasty car wreck.  Her car was rolled 3 times and totally crushed, EXCEPT for the drivers side.  The Lord had HIS hand on her during that wreck and she has only minor injuries compared to what could have happened.  We are celebrating the LORD and His goodness and protection in her life!  So last night was not only a celebration of her life, but an offering of praise to the LORD.  We spent a good portion of time in worship, like I said, just praising God for who He is, and receiving from the Lord.  And in the mist of a time when you would think we should be speaking over her, Lisa started speaking over us, challenging us, and just sharing her heart and the Lord's heart to us.  Once she finished that, we sang some more and Ten we spent time praying over Lisa; Declaring healing over her L1 vertebrae, speaking words of prophecy over her life and just covering her.  

It was not your "typical" birthday party, but it was so much better!  So perfect for where she is in life right now!  I mean, why not celebrate and praise the Lord  on the day you were born, it is because of Him that we each are still drawing breath on this earth!  

I walked away from that party different than when I walked in.  The Lord met me there and is rocking my face off (that is a Lisa-ism..haha!)

So Happy Birthday Lisa!  I love you and I believe everything that was spoken over you last night is from the LORD!

weekend

well, this weekend was a blast!  It started off on Friday night with Small Group.  We were over at a friends house and we had fun talking about different things, but then we dove straight into what was going on in our lives, and we took everything to the Lord in prayer.  I am constantly moved and amazed how prayer ties people together and bonds them!  I love my SG!!!

Then Saturday was a "long milage" day in our training.  We ran 5 miles.  It was tough, but i didn't feel like I was going to die during it.  After, I had some weird vision things going on, but quickly my running buddies prayed for me.  After a quick shower, I raced over to NewSong Cool Springs for the start of a wedding day.  I was asked on Friday if I would be willing to assist a photographer, Meishach Moore with a wedding on Saturday.  Of course I said yes!  It is something I have wanted to do for a while because I want to gain the experience that comes from assisting.  It was a great wedding, and a very long day, but at the end of the day, I was so happy to have been able to learn from Meishach, and to have been able to bless Robby and Ferris Owen on their day!  I must have done something right, because Meishach asked me if I would like to assist him again sometime?  again i said YES!  so i am assisting him again this coming saturday.  Hopefully the Warnock/Owen wedding was the first of many to come.  After the wedding, I went to Baja Fresh with some of my friends, and we ended up having a dance party in the parking lot.  so fun!  Sunday was church, naps and dinner... very relaxed, but spent with great people!

Beach.Beach.Beach!!!!

Living in California for 21 years has its advantages.  One of them being that the beach is super close!  Living in San 

Deigo, I was about 10 minutes from the beach and living in Orange County, I was about 5.  

Moving to Tennessee changed my perspective on the beach and how much I absolutely love it!  Being landlocked is a new experience for 

me... I don't know what to do with myself because I can no longer just go to the beach whenever.  The nearest beach to me is 13.5 hours..yes HOURS... away.  So NOT COOL!!!!  Even though it is so far away, I got to go to the beach this past weekend!  A friend and I went to North Carolina for the weekend and camped on the beach.  It was a very very long drive, with lots of laughter, but after driving all night, we finally arrived.  This was my first time ever on the East Coast!  I was really excited about that because I have officially been coast to coast!!!!  East coast beaches are a lot different from West Coast beaches, the waves aren't as big, and there were not as many people (which is fine with me)!  The place we camped is called Hammocks Beach State Park, and it is actually on an island.  We had to take a 15 minute ferry ride to the island and then hike 1/2 a mile to our site.  It was soo worth it though!  Walking up and down the beach, collecting sea shells was such sweet time with the Lord. 

 Although I was with a friend, we didn't feel the need to talk, so we just walked together.  Again, the Lord met me at the beach and spoke some amazing things to me.  

Anyways, after 13.5 hours, I got my beach fix and I might be good for another few months.  You can take the girl out of the beach, but you can't take the beach out of the girl!

Here are some more pictures from my trip out there!

Picture descriptions from left to right, top to bottom:

the coastline, me taking pictures, the waves, a fence on the coast, some seashells, us standing in the Atlantic, Megan (kiwi) and me in the ocean!

Talents

I realized today at just how many talented people I have in my life.  I am so blessed to know these people and to also have them pouring into my life.  The Lord knows what I need and who I need it from and He is bringing me together with those people at critical times.  He has given us all gifts and talents that are to be used to glorify His name.  

I am a photographer. No where as good as I could be, but I am always looking for ways to increase my knowledge and skill in this area.  Since I have started attending NewSong, I have been put in touch with many professional photographers and we are starting to build relationships.  A couple of them have said that I can assist them on some shoots and learn.  One of them is Amy Conner (check out her work here), and another one is Meishach Moore (check his stuff out here).  I am excited to see how the Lord uses them in my life, both personally and professionally.  I know that it is going to be good because the Lord is knitting me together with people that will help me grow.  

Other connections I have made are: Dave Pines, Stoney Noell, Chuck Peters.  The great thing about these connections is that I know I have people I can go to when I have questions, need support, or if I need something done!  The Lord has blessed me with talented people around me for me to grow.

Training

About a month ago, I decided that I was going to train for a half marathon (13.1 miles) with my roommate and some people from church. I've spent the past month in the gym, trying to get ready for the first day of training...which was Saturday...we met at a local park in Franklin...there are about 15 people training for this. We did a 3 mile run...and it suprisingly, it wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be. about 3/4 of the way through it, i started cramping up, but I kept pushing through.
This experience is not only challenging physically, but spiritually too. As I was running, I realized how this was a representation of what happens in our spiritual lives. Every day is a battle between my spirit and my flesh. My flesh wants to do one thing, but my spirit wants to do what the Lord wants. Running these 3 miles, my body wanted to stop so many times, but I had to push through the flesh and keep focused on finishing. I've found that running provides great time to pray and have some time with the Lord.(even if I am just praying for the pain my legs are in! ha!)
The training is not an easy process, but it is a great thing. I am not running the race for time, I'm just running to finish. It is something I have wanted to do for a while now, and when the opportunity came with this group from church, I jumped on it!

So all that to say that training is under way and in 12 short weeks, I will be going to Atlanta to run in this half marathon! I will update weekly to share how the training is going!