Six months ago, I wrote a post stating that I wanted to get my hands dirty.

(Interesting to note that I also wrote posts about other big hairy audacious goals like getting married and having kids. And unfortunately I’ve got nothing to report in either area. NOTHING.)

In the post I said,

It is easy for me to dream of changing the world from the comfort of my living room couch but I lately I have felt called to do more. I want to go to the ends of the earth. And I want to get my hands a little dirty.

And I referenced a quote by Jimmy Carter,

My faith demands -this is not optional-my faith demands that I do whatever I can, wherever I can, whenever I can, for as long as I can with whatever I have to try to make a difference.

So for the last six months, I have been more intentional about finding time to serve. Serve by doing whatever, wherever, whenever.

I have sought out opportunities to pitch in locally. I have become a ‘”lunch buddy” to the-cutest-kindergartner-ever through Preston Taylor Ministries and taken advantage of a handful of serving opportunities at Cross Point.

I even investigated a few opportunities to serve internationally but nothing really was coming together, that is, until last week.

Last week Shaun Groves reached out about the possibility of me joining him, Keely Scott and a team of bloggers in Guatemala in September. Without a moment’s hesitation, I agreed.

This was the opportunity I had been waiting for, the opportunity I had been praying about, the opportunity to get more intimately involved with an organization I am passionate about. My faith was demanding that I say yes. My faith was demanding that I go.

But between you and me, I am more than a little shocked that He is enlisting my help, that He is entrusting me with this opportunity.

Acutely aware of my insecurities and fear, I find myself running to Him for strength. And in a moment of clarity come to realize that this trip is not just about what He can do through me. This trip is also about what He will do in me.

Would you be willing to pray for me, for our team? Pray that over the next few months God would begin to prepare our hearts and our minds for the trip?

And bloggers, would you be willing to help spread the word by adding a little Compassion Bloggers banner to your site? Details here.

I just love that Stephen Brewster is wrapping up the How He Loves series. A few months ago as the Senior Director of Marketing for Integrity Music, Stephen introduced me to John Mark McMillan and the song that inspired this series.

Even more, I love that Stephen, his lovely wife, and beautiful kids just moved to Nashville last week to be a part of Cross Point. God is good. And the world is small.

Find his blog here.

And his twitter here.

How He Loves is  is a declaration. It defines our relationship with God in a way that few songs dare to attempt. The concept of love is not foreign, but the realization that we are required to accept love is another thing entirely.

He Loves Us…but have we accepted and embraced that love?
His grace is an ocean…but are we willing to get wet?
He loves like a hurricane…but are we looking for the evacuation route to a comfortable place away from the storms?

Love is a 2 way street. You can be love and the love not be returned. The real relationship takes place when the love is accepted, embraced, and reciprocated.

He loves you.
He loves you today.
He loves you because of your imperfections.
He loves you without pretense, prejudice, performance, or boundary.
He loves YOU. The real you. The sometimes hidden you. The you that can be, and will be, even if you have not yet been…that person…He loves you.

God is an artist. He creates amazing art every day. He deposits great art in people to be time released creatively over his people. Gods brush of choice is to use people. How He Loves may not be fundamentally “congregational”, but creatively it challenges the very core of every person with breath in their lungs…it challenges us to confront our desire to be accepted and respond by embracing the one love that will never fail, Oh, How He Loves…

I am one of those people who has lots of circles of friends. Single girl friends, church friends, work friends, “campus” friends, Powered by Hope friends, blogging friends, twitter friends, high school friends, college friends, Birmingham friends, camp friends…just to name a few.

So naturally I have several friends who have never had the opportunity to meet. Sometimes it is easier to keep the circles separate.

But sometimes it is fun to find a few friends from two different groups and introduce them, to play “matchmaker.”

Now, I am not talking about matchmaking in a romantic way. (Although that can be fun too.) Here’s what I’m talking about:

A few months ago I arranged a happy hour with the sole purpose of introducing my friends Bryan and Suzanne Norman to Matthew and Alyson Costner. I have known “the Normans” for a few years. They are some of my favorite people on the planet. They are passionate. They love good food. And they are great for a deep conversation about anything from faith to politics or for a night out singing karaoke (You should see Bryan do Springsteen’s “Born to Run.”) (more…)

This morning at Cross Point, Pete Wilson talked about our greatest temptation as Christians. He said, “Our greatest temptation is not that which is ridiculously evil, but that which is deceptively good.”

Oh, how that rings true in my life. Oh, how I seem to place too much importance on WHATEVER is going well in my life. Oh, how I love to distort my blessings.

My career, my relationships, my church, my family, my online community, my wealth, my health, my comfortable existence – each are blessings. Each are blessings that I have ungratefully distorted. Each are blessings I have ungratefully distorted by making them seemingly MORE IMPORTANT than He who so generously bestowed them on me. (more…)

Sometimes I am just plain GROUCHY.

It is NOT PRETTY, but it is TRUE and REAL.

Yes, I know. I don’t really have ANYTHING to be grouchy about. All my fundamental needs are being met. I have a wonderful job, a loving family, and this fantastic group of friends. I belong to an incredible church. And I live in a country where I am allowed to dream of possibilities and work to make them a reality. I am set. Life is good.

But that doesn’t stop me from having days where the grouchy feelings cascade over me, mind and soul.

And today is one of those days where I am a little worn out with it all. Seriously…

I’m sick of being single. Sick, sick, sick of being single.

I’m sick of hearing that my friends wished they knew a man who was worthy of me. (I mean, what IN THE HECK does that mean?)

I’m sick of failing to find the right balance between doing too much and being really tired of being still.

But mostly, I’m sick of listening to myself complain.

So…

I am going to start thinking of things that make me smile. (Yes, I have probably seen The Sound of Music one too many times.)

I am going to think of things that are undeniably happy like…

Exploring the glorious Hill Country of Texas with my wide-eyed and totally precious nieces. (more…)

Disclaimer: If you wanted something light and fluffy today, this post is not for you. But you can go here where we are discussing “guilty pleasures.”

Disclaimer 2: If you wanted something that was poignant and tied up with a pretty bow, this post this blog is not for you. But you can go here where I at least make a concise point.

Most of the time my thoughts are linear. You know the kind? A + B = C?

But everyone once in awhile when something big happens my brain just gets stuck, stuck in a circle. And I keep processing the same thoughts over and over, and over. I just can’t seem to make sense of them. I just can’t come to any kind of definitive conclusion.

And, as you can imagine, the “thought death-spiral” is quite frustrating. It halts productivity. It drains energy. (more…)

It is December 21 and for some strange reason it is just now hitting me that Christmas is around the corner. (Although I’m still not quite sure what has happened to 2009?) Regardless…I am finally starting to feel festive.

I am just plain giddy as I think about the week ahead. Here are just a handful things I am looking forward to: (more…)

This is the third post in my “Drafting Blueprints” series. The series is prompting me to think through what I want to do with my life as a first step for creating a life plan. I have already tackled getting married and getting fit.

So here we go, Part 3…I want to get my hands dirty.

It is easy for me to dream of changing the world from the comfort of my living room couch but I lately I have felt called to do more. I want to go to the ends of the earth. And I want to get my hands a little dirty. (more…)

On Sunday morning, I was in Birmingham so I found myself at Church of the Highlands instead of being at Cross Point for the culmination of Faith, Hope, and Love. And candidly I was somewhat relieved because Pete Wilson has been packing each Sunday full of punches straight to my gut.

God has been seriously speaking to me this year about my finances, or as he keeps reminding me, His finances.

I grew up surrounded by wealth. (Really for those living in the United States and reading this on a computer screen, we all grew up surrounded by wealth.) And I’d be the first to admit that generosity is not something that comes naturally to me. Well that is not quite accurate. I am generous with my time and with my knowledge, but not so much with my money or my things. I tend to act all stingy, like they are “mine.” (more…)

I went into Catalyst with some incredibly high expectations. And I did not leave disappointed. I left exhausted, like every ounce of me (body, soul and mind) was stretched to the absolute limit, but not the slightest bit disappointed. Brad Lomenick and his team have certainly figured out how to produce a WOW event.

As you can imagine, I need some time (like a year) to process everything I experienced, but here are some quick highlights:

• Hanging out with friends, new and old at Brad Ruggles’ Bloggers Meetup. The event was a wonderful testament to how powerful social media in building community.
• Hearing some strong and passionate Christian voices like Matt Chandler, Reggie Joiner, Andy Stanley, Dave Ramsey, Louie Giglio, and Priscilla Shirer. Each left their “mark” on me.
• Worshiping with 13,000 believers. One of the most moving moments of the entire conference was when Todd Fields led us in his beautiful rendition of It is Well.
• Spending time with my boss, Michael Hyatt, and his daughter, Megan, and the entire Cross Point Church staff. I am so blessed to have all these people in my life and I am thankful for every moment that they invest in me.
• Watching a grown man in a leotard dive (or more accurately perform a belly flop) from 35 foot high platform into a baby pool. Don’t take my word for it, you can watch it here.

And some quick pictures:

More details about Catalyst ’09 aka #cat09 to come. I promise.

If you attended, what were some of your highlights?