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kategarcia
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Name: Kate
Country: United States
State: Ohio
Metro: Akron
Interests: Firstly, I love God and striving to live my life for Him. I love my husband, I love friends and late night talks, I love playing games, I love great TV shows (like the Office and Amazing Race), I love peppermint mochas from Starbucks and Caramel Lattes from Panera, I love hanging out with high school girls, I love music, singing, playing the piano.
Expertise: I'm not sure if I really have an "expertise". I feel like I can always get better and learn more about everything I do.
Message: message me
Member Since:
12/3/2005
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| Home Alone!Most of you know that my husband, Steve has been in India since last Tuesday. He'll get home on Friday. He is with a "visioneering" team from the Chapel and they are strategizing ways that the Chapel can specifically minister to the Dalit people of India....It's cool how they have it set up, because each person from the team is focusing on a different area. One is focusing on health care, one education, one business and Steve is focusing on the spiritual/pastoral side....how can we, as a church, meet the spiritual needs of the Dalit. For those who don't know, India is a predominatly Hindu country and they implement the caste system...a system of being "born into" a socio-economic class and people group. The Dalit people are actually considered below the caste system....lower than dogs. Because of that, education has never been available to them, they are considered the "untouchables." In the past couple of years, with much resistance, the Dalit people have united and risen up against the caste system....and because of that, church and others are now able to step in and help. I've gotten to talk to Steve once or twice and he has said that it has been an amazing time. It has been very intense...He has flown to 5 or 6 different areas of India and has met with many different church and community leaders. Thanks for all who have prayed....please continue, as he has one more full day and the travel back home begins...
I do have to say, that not once have I thought...."It's so nice for him to be gone..." I feel like I hear wives say that all the time when their husbands are away....and maybe those feelings change with having children...but, I can honestly say that there is a deep longing in my heart to see and be with my husband. I've had a fun couple of weeks, and have been able to do things that I probably wouldn't have done if he were here (like a 10 hour shopping spree with a great friend, hanging out with my girlfriends until 2 in the morning, having pretzles for dinner :)), but I still have to say that there's this constant "ouch" of him not being here....I'm so thankful that he has had this opportunity to go to India...for so many reasons. One of them being, I think it has renewed and reminded me of the deep love we have for eachother.
I obviously love and always have loved Steve, but with the busy-ness of the past few months, it has been good to have a little reminder of what life would be like without him. And I don't like it one bit!! :) How easy is it for us, as Americans, to take things for granted? We are a priviledged people - we have whatever we could possibly want at our fingertips, we worship whenever, wherever, however we desire. And with that, relationships also come so easy. I don't want to live a life of taking for granted the things that God has blessed me with: parents who love me, a wonderful husband, great friends, an incredible church, ministry that I love, a home that I can have people in, and so many more. Sometimes, we need a reminder of how much He truly has given us/allowed us to have....Steve being gone is my reminder...what's yours? | | |
| Are you pleased?Well, the DRYVE 06 mission trip was absolutely incredible!!
A brief overview:
- whitewater rafting ( on class 4 and 5 rapids!!)
- sleeping in tents the first two nights
- going to DCLA conference and learning how to connect my story with God's story and your story. (awesome!)
- splitting off in 3 different directions....one group went to Columbus, OH; one group went to Baltimore and one group stayed in DC (I was with the group that stayed in DC)
- serving a non-Christian organization for runaway teens. (Amazing!)
-coming back to Akron to "bring it back home" with ministry projects through the Akron area
-a big fun picnic for all the families at the end of the 10 days!
I'd like to share something that really resounded in my heart at the DCLA conference. How often do we walk out of a church service or a conference or a service opportunity or really anything and talk about things like the music choice or the speaker or "I didn't get anything out of it..." And how often do we walk out of something and say, "God, are you pleased?" God, are you pleased with what just took place in this building, and more importantly, in my heart?
Am I so focused on me, my needs, my desires, my my my....that my first response to all this is, "God, am I pleased?" Am I the star of "my story"? Or am I ok with a smaller role in "God's story"? I think if I answer that question honestly, I'm oftentimes not ok with a smaller role in God's story. Let's be real here....don't we all want to be the "stars"? The best student, the best athlete, the best grades, the best wife, the best mother, the best (fill in your own blank). But, is that what consumes? Am I so consumed with being the best, that I completely upstage the Star of the show? I'm still working through these thoughts, and how it looks in my life....but, I know I want my life to be defined by the statement...."God, are you pleased?"
Thoughts? Comments?
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| Well....we are leaving in less than 24 hours for our DRYVE mission trip!! I'm SOO EXCITED!!
Let me tell you about my crazy day. I was doing some laundry, getting ready for the trip and all of a sudden I hear a gurgling in our downstairs bathroom...hmmmm... I wonder what that could be. So, I called my dad (dad's know everything :)) and he said, look in your laundry room (which is our basement). So, I open the door and what do I see? A flowing river of sudsy water....I'm not exaggerating when I say there was probably 2-3 inches of water!!! AHHH!!! so, of course I start laughing because that's what I do when I don't know what else to do :) I called Steve and he came home from work. Luckily, we got it fixed quickly....a guy came out with this big machine and he pulled roots (from the trees in our front yard) out of our "main pipe" (whatever that means!) so, that was a scary moment - but, we made it through! :)
Then, we had Blister tonight where we played volleyball and Amish golf...and a very scary storm decided to join us. It was so beautiful!! We all sat under the shelter and played while the lightening danced through the sky...amazing!
So, that was my crazy day! Please pray for us over the next 10 days. With 101 of us going on the trip, there is a lot of potential for craziness....and a lot of potential for major life/heart change. We'll hope for a lot of the latter!
Please pray specifically:
- for safety : we're going to be driving a lot with a 20 vehicle caravan and being in Washington D.C.
- for flexibility and willing hearts for the students and the leaders
- for untiy among our student ministries as well as the specific 3 groups that will divide after the conference
- for an amazing, unforgettable time!
You can check out what is going on by going to chapelyouth.org. To see my specific group, go to www.chapelyouth.org/06red/. We'll update it regularly with pictures, testimonies, prayer requests and updates.
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I'm totally slacking on this posting thing...I'm going to try to be better at it. We'll see how that goes :)
Well, with summer here, I am so excited thinking about the mission trip that is going to happen in just 2 weeks. I can't give all of the details because we have chosen to not tell the students all of the details...hopefully that will be an opportunity to trust God and His plan for each of their lives!! All I can say is: it's going to be awesome!! What I can tell you is we are going to a conference called DCLA. We are going to be led in worship by David Crowder and his band...we are going to get to hear some awesome leaders teach and it is going to be an amazing time learning how to share Christ with our friends. From there, our group is going to split into 3 groups and travel to 3 different locations to "continue" the missions trip. It's just going to be great! I can tell you all about it when we get back!! :)
We've also been going to LOTS of graduation parties recently. Those are SOOO fun. I love getting to meet the graduate's family and friends. It is awesome to celebrate with them...sad because they're leaving the high school ministry but exciting to watch them begin a new season of life. (not to mention fun volleyball games and Amish golf! :))
Well, I have learned a lot about myself in the last month...I thought I'd share a few things with you:
-- I love having people over to my house and serving them food
__ I like to start projects, but not finish them
-- I am energized by significant conversations with people
-- I feel like I learn something new that I love about my husband every day :)
-- I can't expect to live an abundant life if God is not number 1.
What have your learned about yourself over the last month? It's important to take time and reflect...who is God in your life? what are your strengths? your weaknesses? what is important to you in your relationships?
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| Yesterday I spent the day out in our garden...I never was the "gardening-type" before we moved into our house in Ohio. I think because there is such a drastic temperature difference in Ohio between winter and spring, you can actually watch flowers bloom right before your eyes. In North Carolina (at least at my house), it wasn't really like that...it was just so hot all of the time :)
It was so fun to be outside in the beautiful sunshine - it's amazing how weather can affect your moods. As I was outside there were people on walks, kids on bikes, birds singing. A very big difference from a few weeks ago when it was raining and gray. I started thinking about what it means to really have joy. Joy is not dependant on weather or a mood or a circumstance or situation. True joy is the ability to see the good in things, even and ESPECIALLY when they seem bad. But, how easy it is to put our joy in situations. Things seem great when the sun is shining and the "world is all as it should be." But what about when it's gray and raining - not just literally, but in our hearts. I don't think that God wants us to put on fake smiles and act like everything is ok in tough times. I do think that He wants us to find our joy in Him - to find the good in the bad.
That is my prayer for this upcoming week. Steve and I, along with the high school seniors are going down to Mississippi for a week. We're going to help out with the Katrina Relief. I can't imagine the pain and devastation that we are going to see. My prayer for these people is that God would give them joy beyond their circumstances, beyond their pain. My prayer is that our team could be a vehicle of that joy. I'd love it if you would pray the same way for us. I can't wait to let you know how it goes when we get back! | | |
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