Monthly Archives: September 2012

A taste of heaven….

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A taste of heaven….

I always love opportunities to gather with others who love Jesus and love His Word and love to praise and worship.  It’s one of the reasons I love my church.  But this weekend – ohhhhh – my heart is full to overflowing.

For months and months I have worked with many many women on just such an opportunity.  We prayed and planned and prayed some more.  And after hours and hours, days and days, weeks and weeks of watching ladies….. and men…..  put out so much of themselves, through their gifts and talents, their resources and time, everything was in place.  One last gathering Friday night to pray – one more time for God to pour out His Spirit….  and that is EXACTLY what HE did!!!!

Around 215 women from 22 churches came together with a common hunger….. for more of Jesus.  I for one, left full.  The worship was beautiful as we were led by two wonderful teams, by Mary Jo Nestor from CC South Orlando and Alexandria Kohler from CC St Petersburg.  The weekend opened with my Pastor’s wife, Holly Robinson from CC Palm Harbor challenging each of us to ask and expect much from our God.  Teamed with Wendy Hodges from CC St Pete, along with our special guest, Cheryl Brodersen from CC Costa Mesa – well – I will just say – we were blessed, we were fed, we were challenged and we were encouraged.

For me — once again, as so often is the case, I sat in the BEST SEAT IN THE HOUSE!!!!  I was the one person that knew just how FULLY God had shown His faithfulness.  I knew EXACTLY how HE had brought all the threads together to create a wonderful beautiful masterpiece of a weekend.  I do so love the chair He has allowed me to sit in for all these years.

Randy returned from Haiti on Friday, had a great week and was here for our long day Saturday.  Our men served these women with such love, gentleness and joy that it is with MUCH boasting in Christ that I say… they are my brothers!!!

I had the blessing of having dinner with Cheryl last night – something I must say I was really looking forward to.  Besides being Pastor Chuck Smith’s daughter, and having come and shared with us all and blessing our socks off, she has also already done a similar journey to that which is getting closer by the day for me.  She has left her home, her church, her ministry, her family, she has left all that she has known and she has gone across the ocean to a different land, a different culture, a different people.  She was understanding and she was encouraging, and I have to say – I needed to hear her words.

All this and then a wonderful time of teaching, worship and fellowship in our Sunday service today — and I will tell you that I am feeling “it” hard, really hard tonight….  the feelings that just seem to linger as I think about my next few months and actually taking that step….  deep deep breathe…..

Oh – did I tell you about sitting with all THREE of my daughters this weekend?  Did I tell you about my Kasi introducing Cheryl with a sweetness and sense of humor that just made you smile?  Did I tell you about standing next to my newest daughter, Elizabeth, watching her with her eyes closed as she worshiped our Lord?  Did I tell you about watching my husband, as he and the team of men served communion, I watched him pause, looking up the middle aisle to the podium and wiping away tears as our other daughter, Rachel shared a testimony of recalling that moment of faith for the first time.

I serve an incredibly faithful loving and LIVING God — and once again — it’s as I remember and am surrounded by HIS FAITHFULNESS from my yesterdays that makes me take that breath and look to tomorrow with an expectation of a continued show of HIMSELF and HIS GLORY that is beyond anything I can think or imagine!!!!

I will stand in His Truth and I will NOT BE MOVED!!!!!

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I WILL TRUST in YOU!!!!

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Well, I have a really busy week and needed this weekend’s message so much, I listened three times!  I WILL TRUST IN GOD!!!!  Oh Lord, I believe…. help me in my unbelief. YOU will move my mountains and YOU, Oh Lord are sufficient for EVERYTHING I NEED!!!!!

 

Just a few things I would like to ask your prayers on….

 

1)  Randy is en-route to Haiti.  He is going down there with Dan Finfrock, the founder and director of ICM and the Inductive Bible Study material Randy has used with our friends in Kisii.  He’s pretty excited, to say the least.  Please keep them in prayer, keep the seminar in prayer, keep those attending in prayer.

 

2)  We have our Fall Women’s Conference this coming weekend!  PLEASE be in prayer as we do the final preparations this week, that we will keep that ONE necessary thing – the necessary thing!!!  We have Cheryl Brodersen coming to teach and share with us and we are pretty excited.  Wendy Hodges and our own Holly Robinson will also be sharing.  We have a worship team coming from both CC St. Pete AND CC South Orlando!!!  Please pray that every detail, every step, every song, every word, every woman, every heart’s response would be EXACTLY as God would desire!!!!

 

3)  Randy & I also start this week – a missions class – that we are pretty excited about.  Pray for that, won’t you?

 

4)  This week marks the page turn…  the time that we shift gears and really press towards this change of seasons.  We both have responsibilities that have or will finish up this week.  I have taught my last Bible Study series at CCPH for this season. That’s been hard.  I’ve been so blessed these 12 years, every Thursday night (for the last 6) and a few semesters with Friday mornings too…  We’ve studied Ephesians, 1 Peter, Titus, Colossians, Galatians, the prayers of Paul, a Journey of Discipleship, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Living by the sufficiency of God, God’s Grace, Counseling God’s Way, Counsel God’s Way and God’s Way (those three were easy – I just changed the name), Jude, Revelation and probably some I’m sure I can’t remember. I have some ladies that have been there through it all too!!  It’s hard NOT to feel sad somewhat.  I’ve traveled the depth of God’s sweetest WELLS with these ladies…  together we have tasted and seen just how good HE is – our Fountain of LIVING WATER.  You don’t experience that without a knitting of your hearts together with HIS.  I do love this precious group of women God has blessed me with over these years.

 

There’s is also – believe it or not – a little change in the weather.  That has ALWAYS signaled ONE thing in my house…. FOOTBALL!!!!  I think in the last 23 years – maybe 2 years passed where we didn’t either have boys playing or Randy coaching.  And Ran’s been coaching pretty constant for the last 10-12 years.  We’ve had no two a days, no playbooks, no game films – and if I hadn’t felt that slight change in the weather – I probably wouldn’t have even known it was time!

 

SO – this is the first fall in a long LONG time that I wasn’t starting a new Bible Study and Randy wasn’t coaching Football.  Pray that as we turn this page, as we scoot to the edge of our seat in anticipation of God’s next Play Call, that NOTHING will move us from our purposed heart to obey and follow Jesus with our all.

 

Be blessed!!!!

Kari