Boring Work

I was sitting on a window ledge in a crowded room this morning, waiting to be called up so I could get a new drivers license picture. The people around me was rather eclectic; frigidity 16 year olds sat next to wrinkled faces who maybe shouldn't have been driving in the first place.

A mom and her young son walked in to the room, took a number, then began to get comfortable even though the boy was fussy from the start.

As the woman took off her son's puffy winter coat, the four year old cried and wined. "I miss Dadddddyyy!" he exclaimed with tears rolling down his face. "I know you do," his mother quietly replied while wiping her son's waterworks away.

"I really just want to see Daddy!" he said again. The boy's mom grew more embarrassed at the scene her child was making; her eyes began scanning the room to see who was watching the two of them. But her son wouldn't quit.

"I miss Daddy, Mommy! Where is he? Is he at boring work?"
The woman half smiled and replied, "Yes, Daddy is at boring work today."
"Daddy is at boring work today Mommy?" the boy said again, only this time a little louder. His mother nodded, and many of the people around them let out a laugh, myself included.

This little incident in PennDot's crowded room this morning made me think about how many people really do see their daily agenda as "boring work" and only really enjoy life at night and on the weekends. Yet God calls us to delight ourselves in Him and glorify Him in all we do. I hope I can remember that when slow days come around and I'm tempted to see the tasks at hand as menial... ;)

Joy to the World, The Lord is come!

Hoping you all have a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year,
Kristen.

"With You"

"The heavens are telling the glory of God,
and day after day their praise offer up.
Through all of creation Your glory declares,
It can not replace you, it can not compare,
With You.

The world and it's riches, I've counted but loss
My riches to know You, my glory, Your cross.
What price could be dearer, no thing did You spare.
No suffering's sweet Lord like those that I share
With You.

Through kindness You've led me, with love You've pursued
With grace irresistible drawn me to You.
Though often my heart to it's own ways does tend,
No times could be dearer than those that I spend
With You."

~Dave Brown of Portico

Processing Convictions

"Always make a practice of provoking your own mind to think out what it accepts easily. Our position is not ours until we make it ours by suffering." -Oswald Chambers

Being in a new environment in CA has presented me with many opportunities to sort through or "process" (a word I apparently use more than I realize :) a handful of different topics. I often find myself wondering, "Why do I believe this?" and "What does God's word say about that?"

It's really stretched me to search deeper into my God's truth and wrestle through things I have easily accepted before (like essentials in a church, missions, relationships, etc.) But coming out on the other side, becoming more confident in my convictions, is very rewarding.

2 Timothy 2:15 is so provoking...it says,
"Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth."

What a huge responsibility! God, please help me to see You and Your truth more clearly...

All is Calm?! ... Really??

Christmas is supposed to be a time of peace, of comfort, of quiet reflection and joy. Or at least that's what the songs tell us. But we all know the reality of the season...

Isn't it wonderful that Christ came to bring peace in the middle of chaos? I love the line in 'O Little Town of Bethlehem' that says,

"The hopes and fears of all the years are met in Thee tonight." Beautiful.

Well, no matter what your day brings today, I pray and hope that you feel the comfort of the Lord in the midst of it all.

Love,
Kristen.

Merry Christmas!

We took our lunch break today to do a Christmas staff photo shoot...
Please note the color cordination...this took lotsa time to plan, lol. ;)

Merry Christmas, from all of us to all of you!

Human Tetris Video

Hey all!

Check this out to laugh away your Monday blues...and for extra laughs, maybe even try it! ;)

~Kristen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84_QL1kEmH4

Back in CA

Well there you have it...your ingenious thoughts on why donuts have holes!
Y'all are pretty smart, I have to say!! I feel like I can't even compete with some of your ideas, but I will say that I'm surprised that no one mentioned the holes are there to save money on dough...hum...I guess we'll never know the real answer! ;)

On another note, thanks for your prayers for my trip back to CA. Everything went pretty smoothly, and I was back into the swing of things at the office the next day.

The weekend was rather eventful...
Saturday night was the annual "Fallbrook Christmas Parade" that ran down Main Street. God bless small towns, it was so much fun! My favorite part was when the llama-cart went towards the crowd of people...Good times. :)

On Sunday I went to a new church and really loved it! It felt so much like church at home, and I met some girls my age who want to help me get plugged in. Praise God for answered prayer. :)
And Sunday night I went to a Christmas concert that my roomie Sara was in. She did a fantastic job, and so did the rest of the musicians and choir. The cookies afterwards weren't half bad either. ;)

Well, our week is off to a good start, and Christmas excitment is in the air! Well, at least it is from some of us. ;) (We're working on David's Christmas cheer). And yesterday was Oreo day at Yogurt Palace, so all seems right in the world... :)

Hugs from CA,
Kristen.

Plane Rides and donuts

Hey all,

I head back to San Diego early tomorrow morning. The four books I jammed into my purse should hold me over on the flight, but I covet your prayers all the same. :)

But until I get a chance to write again, I want to leave you with a question which was inspired my friend who will remain Steve Praz. :)

A few of my friends and I were walking around Philadelphia (best city ever, might I add even though a good cup of hot chocolate is at times hard to find :) and Praz asked us this amazingly thought-provoking question...

"Guys, why do you think that donuts have holes in the middle of them?"

We were stumped. After a minute of thinking, some answers were tossed around, but no one could confidently say why donuts have holes...

So, what do you think? Are the holes in donuts for decoration, for a better grip, or something else? Don't be shy; I'm really curious of your thoughts, and no cheating... ;)

Kristen.

Photography Page

I've got a new site in progress for some of my photography work.

Just click the "My Photography" link on the right to view the page. :)

~Kristen.

Psalm 121

The other night I was feeling a little low. This time in my life has been really exciting and rewarding, but sometimes I feel overloaded from all that God has called me to. I felt tired, and stretched by the commitments in my life. Then the Lord directed me to Psalm 121:

I lift my eyes to the hills, from where does my help come?
My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot be moved, He who keeps you will not slumber,
Behold, He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord is your keeper, the Lord is your shade on your right hand.
The sun shall not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.

The Lord will keep your life from all evil, He will keep your life.
The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.

God was reminding me that all of my strength to do what's before me comes from Him. And just imagine how encouraged I felt when someone read that very Psalm aloud the next morning at church! I felt so touched that God brought that back to my attention...

He is such a faithful encourager!

~Kristen.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving! There's nearly too much to be thankful for...
At least we think so! :D


(some of the cousins...)
Many blessings to you,
Kristen.

Blessings of the day-to-day...

It has been so awesome to reap the benefits of working from home for the past week and a half. Some of my highlights have been...

-Talking with my Dad and beating him at UNO

-Shopping and watching BBC's North & South with my mom (a must-see for any girl, and for any guy who wants to impress any girl, lol)

-Spending time with friends over coffee, dinner, or just playing (crazy) games at my house.

-Going to an Eagles game with some friends on Sunday. It was pretty cold and rainy, but it was so much fun!

-Hearing the train from my house and seeing all the leaves turn nearly every color. And walking my puppy in the woods.

-Also it's been so great to have a bit more time than usual to read, journal, and reflect on all that has happened since I moved to California. That's been a blessing.

What Oswald Chambers says of glorifying God in everday tasks has inspired me.

"The tendency is to look for the marvelous in our experience," he says. "It is one thing to go through a crisis grandly, but another thing to go through every day glorifying God when there is no witness, no limelight, no one paying the remotest attention to us...If you are rightly devoted to the Lord Jesus, you have reached the sublime height where no one ever thinks of noticing you, all that is noticed is that the power of God comes through you all the time."

May I live this kind of life...

~Kristen.

Tour Recap #4 - The Benefit!

Finally, here are some photos from the big night!
(Photo credit goes to Dad :)

Hope you enjoy!!

~Kristen.

Tour Recap #3

Ok, so we didn't goof off the whole time... ;)

Here are some photos from some of our speaking engagements and meetings...

~Kristen.

Tour Recap #2

The Padden family was most gracious to us by letting us invade their home for the past week and a half. I realized that on the first night when I was thinking, "I've never met these people before, but I'm walking around their house in my pajamas." LoL

Anyhow, the Paddens live near a beautiful lake, and we would often take walks there in our down time. It was gorgeous, especially in the peak of fall. Here are some pictures from our time there...Hope you enjoy! And thank you Padden family for your kindness!

Tour Recap #1

The NJ/PA speaking tour was a great success! It's been since China that I have felt that busy, but it was well worth it! :D

The BMH staff spent the week speaking to lots of people about what we do and how they can get involved. We had breakfast, lunch, and dinner meetings, spoke at Bible Studies, small groups, and churches. And of course we managed to fit some fun memories and laughter in too. :)

I'm going to post some photos from our tour throughout this coming week, but to start off here is a photo of some of my close girlfriends that came to my house party last Tuesday. :)

All for now...
God bless,
Kristen.

Busy Week

Hey all!

Guess what? I got into PA on Thursday night! Since then I've spent some time with my family and caught up with some friends, but starting tomorrow it's back to work for me!

Please pray for the BMH speaking tour that's happening in New Jersey and Pennsylvania this upcoming week. Our goal is to reach new ears about the problem of orphans in China and tell people how they can get involved. Please also pray that the visiting Californians don't freeze to death in our gorgeous Autumn weather here on the east coast, lol. ;)

Thanks and hope to see some of you soon!

~Kristen.

You're Invited!

I wanted to invite YOU and all of your friends, neighbors, co-workers, starbucks barista's, and anyone else you know to...

***BRING ME HOPE'S BENEFIT ON SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 10TH AT 7:00 PM!!!***

IT WILL BE HELD AT FELLOWSHIP BAPTIST CHURCH IN MT. LAUREL, NEW JERSEY (

1520 Hainesport Road) AND THE NIGHT WILL INCLUDE DESSERT, THE BAND "UNSPOKEN" (www.myspace.com/unspokenmusic), A VENTRILOQUIST AND A CHANCE TO HEAR MORE ABOUT BRING ME HOPE.

EVERYBODY'S INVITED AND IT'S FREE! WE WOULD LOVE TO SEE YOU!!! :D

~Kristen.

(kristen@bringmehope.org for more info)

(Here are some photos from our San Diego Benefit last week!)

Sara & me

Sara, my 8 year old roommate, cracks me up. She really makes me laugh...

Yesterday she was on the phone with someone talking about the evacuations, and I overheard part of her conversation...

"We're at home now until 'the worse comes to the worse'...We managed to get back home because we drove behind the policemen and they didn't even see us!" ;)

Grandpa (who is staying with us right now too) also made me laugh today when he told someone on the phone that, "We are fine, except the only thing is that we're out of marshmallows! And everyone else seems to be out of marshmallows too..." lol.

It's been good times in the midst of everything going on...It kinda feels like some sort of strange family vacation, with lots of eating, watching movies, and fort-making. Praise the Lord for keeping us safe.

~k.

CA Fire Update

Well, It has been an unexpected last few days, that's for sure! We're talking wildfires galore, evacuations, and hours of waiting...but, we are safe!

I've never been this close to a natural disaster before. There was a fire right through Fallbrook (and it's still lingering actually.) Yet we are doing fine, though the fires have affected so many friends out here, and some people I know have even lost their homes.

God has been really teaching me about not holding onto material things. All weekend long, my things have been temporarily taken away from me...my laptop was broken, my ipod was missing, and a bag of my things was left at a church after our benefit (which went great by the way! :) But all of that is replaceable.

Even as I was packing to leave yesterday, I realized that everything I own is not that important (thought I did go for my favorite books and journal first, so now I know how to answer the question, "What things would you grab if there was a fire. ;)

So thanks for your prayers and calls. It's always really encouraging to know you're thinking of me!

Love and hugs,

Kristen.

Southern Califronia Fires - Please Pray!

Since yesterday there have been growing wildfires in the area, and the Santa Ana winds are keeping firefighters from making much progress.

We tried to evacuate this afternoon, but the roads were so crowded that we turned back and came home. After dinner we're going to reassess how things are and decide if we should to relocate for the night.

Please pray for our safety. And also please pray for peace for all of us here too. It is hard for me to remember that God is in complete control, even when I see the images on TV or the smoke clouds in the sky. But the Lord reminded me that He is in control, and He will get me wherever He wants me no matter what.

It's also a great lesson that stuff is just stuff. As I was packing my bags in case we do leave, I realized everything I own is replaceable. (Though it was very revealing when the first thing I packed were my books ;) Anyway, amongst other things, what a great lesson that heaven is my real home.

All the same, please do pray. ;)

Love,
K.C.

Dead Sea Scroll Visit

On Tuesday, a group of us headed to the Museum of Natural History in San Diego for a really cool opportunity to see the Dead Sea Scrolls.

A picture of people matching together thousands of little pieces of the scrolls really hit me; It made me think of how God's word is preserved over time and that His truth has and will go forward no matter what. :)

And it was just amazing to see Scripture from a few thousand years ago. What a highlight to look at the scroll that had Psalm 121 written on it, and then to read those same verses in my own Bible later that day. How cool! :)

Hope you have a great day, and I'll try to write a post-report of our benefit dinner soon! Please pray for us if you think of it. :)

~K.

Showers of Blessings

One month ago I moved to California, and I can’t believe all that has happened since then!

Every day brings new joys, lessons, and ultimately experiences that have grown me so much already. In fact, just the other day I had a “learning opportunity” when I accidentally sent our electronic newsletter out before it was fully edited. Woops!

But life has been so encouraging! Just yesterday a few friends and I went to the infamous Yogurt Palace for an afternoon treat. Right before we left, I checked with my friend to see if he wanted us to bring anything back for him. He told us to just call him once we knew what the flavor of the day was. “It’s black cherry on Wednesdays,” I told him. “Wow, you know you’re really part of this town when you know the flavor’s of the day at Yogurt Palace,” my friends teased. ;)

God has been so kind in His provision to me, and I was thinking this morning about how much I love being able to walk so closely to Him. This month has also been full of new experiences, laughter, and joy.

I can really relate to Ezekiel 34:26 which says, “I will bless them…I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing!” That’s totally how I feel right now! Blessings seem to await me around every corner. Blessings of really meaningful work, new friends, and learning experiences. Wow, the Lord is just SO AMAZING!

Thank you so much for making this opportunity possible! Knowing y’all are behind me in this is such a huge encouragement, and people are already being touched by hearing about the orphans. Praise the Lord!

Love from CA,

Kristen.

Weekend Wedding

My host family's daughter got married this past weekend! It was such a beautiful ceremony and reception, so I wanted to share some photos I took with y'all.

Much love,
k.