It's Been a Good Week!

Hey Everyone,

I hope you're all enjoying the change of seasons. Autumn is my absolute favorite! I love the fall colors. The oranges, deep reds, golden yellows, etc. The crackle under your feet as you walk on fallen leaves. The nip in the air that brings out the sweaters, sweatshirts, long sleeve jammies and your favorite pair of boots. Knowing that it's the time of year for college football which means that college basketball is right around the corner. (Go Heels!) There is really nothing about Autumn that I don't like!

If you think about what Autumn really is, it's a death. All those blossoms and colorful plants that bloomed in spring and held on through summer (even when we had a drought), have given way to the cold snap. Those beautiful fall-colored leaves are dying as they share their last burst of color before falling off the tree and covering the ground.

Though the winter days are barren, save for the green of the pine needles on so many of our trees in North Carolina, this death signals a hope for new birth and growth. We know that, just as Autumn signals death, Spring brings with it rebirth. In just a few short months, after we've endured the harsh blasts of cold air and snow, tiny green shoots will rise up through the ground, new leaves will begin to form on the trees, and soon, Spring will be alive with new birth.

Two thousand years ago, a tiny baby was born, so we're told in "the bleak mid-winter" (isn't there a Christmas carol about that?). Jesus was born to a virgin girl in order to live to die. He grew up with the help of an earthly mother and father and a Heavenly Father that allowed Him to become fully human and while still being fully divine. During the spring of his life, he worked with his father, Joseph, as a carpenter. He watched his mother, Mary, go about her duties taking care of her home, loving and nurturing her children. He sat at the feet of teachers of the Law, all the while being the fulfillment of the Law in human form. The spring of Jesus' life was the time he grew into adulthood and learned all the things we, as humans, experience. The joys, the trials, the pains, the laughter, the fears, the loneliness. Jesus, during the spring of his life, felt and experienced life on this earth that He watched being spoken into existence.

As Spring turned to Summer, Jesus began to take on His role as teacher and to share with others the love His Heavenly Father has for our fallen world. There were miracles, disciples, Pharisees, traitors, demons, parables, children, followers, detractors, mockers and devoted believers. As Jesus and His followers traversed the rugged terrain to share the message of God's love, Summer's heat began to bear down on them. He was challenged, criticized, mocked and called a blasphemer. The people who criticized could not see that the person they despised was Love come to earth. The scorching heat of summer led to a shocking betrayal by one of His closest followers as Autumn's death began to beckon.

Autumn, just as it must for flowers and leaves, turned deadly for Jesus. He was sentenced to death in order to take on the sins of mankind and serve as payment for the wages of sin and death that each of us so rightly deserve. As Jesus willingly chose to die on the cross and to fulfill His purpose in coming to earth, Autumn came to an end with the death of Jesus. But there was now such good news! Never again would man have to face his own Autumn with no hope of Spring to come.

As you look at the last remnants of fall colors in the leaves, yes, there is death occurring. But, close your eyes, and picture the Spring. For it is surely coming.

"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven." Ecc. 3:1

The Wisdom of General Patton

"Don't measure a man by how high he climbs but how high he bounces when he hits bottom."

Recalls to mind that Scripture from Micah that I so love now: "Do not gloat over me my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will rise. Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light."

Do good things,
Kara

Come Together, Right Now

Hello Everyone!!

I hope you're all enjoying a relatively quiet few days, now that the election is over. No more negative campaign ads, lots less yard signs congesting the highways, and life can resume some sense of normalcy.

In case you're wondering, Mom won!! YAYYYYYY!!! She was the only Democrat in Cabarrus County to win her campaign. YAAAAYYYY!!!! I am so proud of her! In a county that is totally red for the most part, at least one result turned the county BLUE!! (I like to think of it in terms of a shade of Carolina blue!)

Based on my last post where I decided I was going to put my trust in God, and rest in the fact that He establishes His leaders, you might would have thought that I would have been at peace and restful the day of the election and that awaiting the returns would have been a cake walk.

Well, if you think that, you'd be wrong! On election night, I was given a beautiful example of how my thought process can develop into panic and anxiety. I was stressed out all day, quite snippy in some of my comments, and just in a worried state the whole day. What I SHOULD have done with that worry was take it and pray over it, speak words of encouragement and life over myself, and remind myself that I can trust God that His will would be perfect for this situation and any others that I came into contact that night.

I should have, but I admit that I did not. By the time our family made it to Troutman's to watch the returns, I was really keyed up. It didn't help that I received a phone call from an ex-boyfriend whose name will remain unspoken who said when I answered, "SO...are you a nervous wreck yet?" Well, I should have risen up and rebuked those words!!

I should have, but I admit that, unfortunately, I did not. I focused on them, and it did not help matters much at all. I went into the restaurant, and no less than 5 minutes later, my stomach was a literal wreck. I was feeling sick and went to the bathroom, and the panic really began to set in. I had to leave; I just had to. My dad, bless his heart, drove me to my house (about 5 minutes away). I was speaking all kinds of reallly crappy stuff about myself: "I am a total disappointment to you guys." "I can't do anything right." "I should never have come." "I've just let everyone down." (If you're in Lifeskills or have taken it, you should be thinking arrested development and shame spiral right about now. If you're not or never have been in Lifeskills, YOU SHOULD TAKE IT!! Shout out to the Cozads!)

My dad, again bless his heart, said, "Nope. We're gonna get you home. You can be sick at home and then, we're gonna go back to Troutman's." Well, to tell you the truth, I didn't think that was going to happen. But, and here's where I will choose to celebrate some victory, I spent about 45 minutes at home (and glad I did...I love my bathroom!), and then I got into the car and we went back to Troutman's where we stayed until more than half the returns were in!! YAYYYY for me!!

I choose to celebrate the small victories these days. What seems like such a non-important thing to many, going back to a restaurant after leaving, is for me a victory. Instead of giving into the fear, I began to think positive thoughts and remind myself that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (I even sang the FAM JAM song!), and I made it!! It wasn't the ideal night, nor was it the way I would have wanted it to be, and I'm sure it wasn't what my mom had envisioned as her last night of election returns on the ballot, but it was a small victory for me and a HUGE V-I-C-T-O-R-Y for mom!!

Now, I'd like to share a bit of my own personal perspective about the Presidential race. Many of you know that, yes, I'm a Democrat. So, now I feel free to say that, yes, I voted for President-elect Obama. I chose him back during the primary while Hillary was still the front-runner for the Dems. I've wrestled with some issues that he brings to the table, but in the end, I believe that he has the ability to bring this country together and will help to re-establish our place among the nations of the world. But that's not really what I want to share.

What I feel so impressed to share with you, my faithful readers, is that to quote 3rd Day, "We've got to come together"....it is our responsibility as Americans, whether we voted for the person elected or not, to support our President. We should pray for him, his family, the people he places around him to advise him, the members of his Cabinet, etc. My guess is that I am EXTREMELY outnumbered at my church in my vote for President, and that's totally ok. I didn't vote for President Bush; however, I did pray for him. Our system of democracy is the best thing going. If we believe that God ordains His leaders, then Barack Obama was His choice for our President at this time. I believe that is reason enough for us to join together, as Americans and as Christians to pray for a fellow Christian who will soon be entrusted with the most difficult and most powerful position on earth.

Off my soapbox now....