This Is Kristin

~Last night we were able to go to the “Behold the Lamb of God” concert by Andrew Peterson and a Group of other great musicians. I love the story of these songs, and that there are so many talented musicians performing. This is Brody’s third year attending, and my second. We’ve made it our tradition to go every year. While the music was the same as last year, they changed up the artists that were performing. Last year Derek Webb and his wife Sandra Mc Craken were apart of the show, and his voice in particular adds so much emotion and passion to the performance, so I was a little sad that they were not apart of it this year. It was still so good though, and I was thrilled to see Jill Philips perform, her voice is by far one of my favorites. Sara Groves was there again this year, along with her husband, on percussion. Bebo Norman was also apart of the show this year, so that was a nice treat, he’s been a long time favorite in our house.
All in all it is a great show, a really good Christmas story, songs that take you throughout the bible. I fully recommend the CD to add to your Christmas collection.

~Remember those women I talked about on a previous post? …and also the update in November?
Well, I received another update, from a friend, about these two women.

~The one woman who had had cancer throughout her body, and then returned to only have them find it in part of her body, went to Disney world with her family for Thanksgiving, and is now back on chemotherapy and doing well.

~The other woman, was looking like she only had about a week left, about a month ago, but is doing better, and was even able to ride a horse recently!
It will be so wonderful for these women to be able to spend Christmas with their families. I am convinced that God is blessing them day by day, so keep praying!

When Blue and I were flying home, we saw so much beautiful landscape. From the wide green stretches of land and rivers in CA, to the rocky red land, and grand canyon over Arizona. The world is so big, that even from that height we could not see all of it, but we were not close enough to see a human being. As we flew into Nashville at night, we saw the many lights of the city, too many to count. I was reminded once again, at how massive this world is, and on top of that, how many people are in it. I thought about my own personal life, and how complex it is, I thought of the stack of Christmas cards to send out, and how each of those represented more lives that are also very complex. I was in awe once again at God’s involvement in all of our lives. How does He do it? How does God have so much patience with me? How does He teach me lessons through mundane tasks? How does He weave together these stories of our lives?
I was reminded of the verse, “what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?” (Psalm 8:4)
I am in awe of God’s ability to be in the intricate details of our lives, and I am making an effort to recognize Him in those details, and trusting Him with them. This season is about wonder, not about busyness, not about list making, not about gift buying. This season is about the realization of God’s ability to do the unthinkable, to marvel that He cares, to rejoice, and remember the beginning when Jesus entered this world, and to sit back and realize what He accomplished for us. Even when life seems to distract me from my effort to marvel, I am trying to remember that He is there, in the details, weaving together the story for good. There is so much to be in wonder of with God.

~What are you in wonder of this season?

I have an etsy store, and it is called, generosity. I have had this idea to sell things I make in order to be able to give more financially to various organizations, and the people around me that need help. The time has gotten away from me, and Dec. 7th has happened upon me quickly, and I have been working on this idea for months now. So I decided to go ahead and post what I do have, and I’ll continue to add more as things are made.
I have attached an organization to each item, so that you may know where your money will be going.
Right now there are four scarfs, and I am currently making some more. I have a few cute aprons that are waiting to be finished up, and some paintings that are drying. I will continue to add things as I make them, so check back regularly!
~For now, check it out!

~My friend Jessie just returned from Burkina Faso, with her friend Journey Mama. You must read her account“When you go to West Africa,” and follow up later at the LJ urban blog to hear more about what they did over there!

“To understand the heart and mind of a person, look not at what he has already achieved, but at what he aspires to.”
– Kahlil Gibran

~My mother in law is very good at having traditions. One of her traditions is having ornaments for every family member specific for that year. For instance, if they played baseball that year, they would have a baseball ornament. It always amazes me at what kinds of ornaments she is able to find. Tonight I was able to be apart of the tradition of hanging them onto the tree, as I have in the past when we lived closer by. I loved the memories that came forth as I hung my families’ ornaments. The pregnant bear that symbolized my pregnancy with my first son, the little house for our first home, the gardener lady for the year my grandmother passed away. I know that every ornament brings back memories for each of us individually, and as we hung them, had our personal memories, and personal ways of placing the ornaments on the tree. Then we stood back and looked at the now full tree, and it represented a family, full of diversity and seasons of life, but each ornament together created a beautiful symbol of what we are. I love that tradition, and I love that she takes the time every year, all year long to find the perfect ornament for each of us. It means a lot to me, to be apart of this family.
I want to start some traditions with my kids, and I think ornaments are a fun thing to do.

~What are some of your favorite Christmas traditions?

Today I bought some files, and filed a lot of papers.
I had dinner, and “christmas” with my mom, and we both laughed harder than either of us have in awhile, at Blue making a frog face.
Tomorrow is all about goodbyes, that is always the hard day at the end of the trip. I am so ready to be home though, I miss my husband and boys too much.

I love our church here in CA. This was the church I began my relationship with Jesus in, the church where my husband and I dated in, and married in. It’s where we grew the beginning stages of our family in. It’s a place where familiar faces are all around me, and arms are continually enwrapping me. I soak up the teachings of the pastor like a sponge, and I enjoy his family and their friendship. The church has grown over the years, and it’s grown a lot over the two years that our family has been gone. With that growth, new and amazing people have entered the congregation, and it continues to carry the feel of family. They do so much for their community, and are in the current stages of building a park, softball field, and soccer field as an extension of their church. It’s such a great church, and I am so grateful to be able to come back here, and get rejuvenated again.

~I spent half the day in a busy city, in traffic, in and out of lines, and I spent the evening at a small town light parade. It’s amazing how different the two are. There is an appeal in both to me, I think. I like that in the city, there’s things to do a short distance away, I like that its exciting, and moving.
I like that in this small town light parade, I could pick out my high school teacher as he walked past, that I noticed people I knew in the crowd, and that knew me. I liked to hear the kids yell out to their friends as they passed. I liked that people were happy to be where they were, not eager to leave, or to have you get out of their way. I like the idiosyncrasies of small town people, that there is a uniqueness to nearly everyone around you.
I have grown up most of my life in small towns, and I’ve dreamed of living in cities. I like both. I don’t think one is better than the other, I think they both serve a purpose. I like going to cities, visiting, walking through, hanging out in them, but I like that to come home, whether here or at my home in TN, it is to a small town.