My Summer Job :)

These are some pictures of where I will be serving this summer! This is Camp Pinnacle, State Girls in Action (GA) camp. I attended Camp Pinnacle the summers following my 5th & 6th grade year. I LOVED it and look foward to seeing what God continues to do at a Camp like no other!

If you are reading this please take time and pray for the staff, the directors, and especially the campers who will be attending camp this summer. pray for open hearts to what our Savior will be doing! Check back here periodically this summer for updates & pictures!

One door closes the other opens..

This is what i said i was blogging about. Since i used your story in here i didn't want to post it anywhere until you had told me i could do so...let me know what you think.I'm graduating High School in 1 1/2 weeks. Last week as I was walking with a friend she suggested that we talk to 5 people about our hearts and about God in the next 5 days. I think it was just said and then we were both like ok yea, we are going to do this! Thus began this journey...First off, I don't think i've ever seen so many hurting people in the world they are EVERYWHERE!!! I don't think I ever really understood this until lately... My friend & I walked on Friday & Friday night when I was out with my parents I was talking to a friend from church, who had recently told me that she was not yet a believer, this was a wake up call to me. (We average any where from 100-130 teenagers on an average Wednesday night) I really felt God had allowed me to begin this conversation and friendship with her to show her the truth of His Word & that He really does love her, MUCH more than she will ever know! It has been an amazing journey of being able to talk with her and answer her questions and God just keeps showing me that He IS working in a hurting world. I KNOW what a BIG God I serve & He WILL prevail. She is getting so close to accepting Him and turning her life to follow Him. Its not an easy journey but its TOTALLY worth it. Please keep praying...God IS answering prayer.My second opportunity came not even 12 hours later as I was talking with another friend from church. I had asked about life as usual when I was told that she had been caught in an underage drinking 'party'. This made my heart sink as I know God has been at work in her life...or to me it seems He has. I didn't know what to think anymore yet I kept talking asking questions and just letting her know that yes she had made a mistake but that God wanted her to turn and flee from that mistake and ask for His forgiveness. Once again there was another hurting person God had placed in my path...One that the world says has it all yet she confused and mental and emotional tired of the names that the world has labeled her with. We talked about how we can't make these labels or reputations completely go away but that through HIS mercy & HIS grace we can change a reputation into a Testimony of His amazing Love & changing power!I could continue to list the opportunities they go on and on of the friends who are hurting because of family problems, Divorce, pregnancy, neglect, lonliness, confusion, fear, the unknown, the future, friends, depression, anxiety, eating disorders, self mutalation, low self-esteem, no one to care, no one to say I LOVE YOU, no one to say i'm here and i'm not going to leave you...The WORLD is full of hurting people yet, I know the one that heals the broken and the sick, give hope to the hopeless, is a father to the fatherless and give us a HOPE to get through any circumstance that comes our way. He tells us that He is the only one that really matters...He is THE forever friend..the one that never leaves the one that never disappoints and the one that always LOVES...for eternity.The past few weeks have been a spiritual low for me i'm not going to lie...but only in the sense that its VERY difficult to go through a world of hurting people..you pass them in your work place, in our schools, in public, in our churches, they are everywhere...their are hurting people searching for answers...searching for the ONE that will step in and save them from the chaios that they themselves can not handle nor control. YET how many of us truly know the ONE that brings this peace, Love, grace, mercy & forgiveness...how many of us pray regularly for our brothers and sisters in Christ being persecuted? Those in oppression? Those struggling? How many of us take the time to see the hurting all around us?I have decided to let God use my life, my gifts, and abilities that He has blessed me with to share the HOPE that MY SAVIOR gives in that FREE gift called Salvation.So I look foward to the journey that God has allowed me to have as a Child of Him. I LOVE Him soooooooo much & pray that the same will happen in others lives as they seek HIm & listen to His call.I really do believe we are fixing to see a revival break out among the unbelievers...our time is NOW...we are here for such a time as this!

Becoming the Crown Jewel Conference 2009

BCJ '09 was amazing as always. Becoming the Crown Jewel is a local girls conference that was begun with the desire to show girls that they belong to the King and that they are His Princess'. This was my third year attending the conference and it was such an amazing time as always! We study three topics during the weekend: Royalty, Purity & Loyalty. This year our main focus was on GRACE. Christ extends us Grace each day, we also talked about our salvation and the speakers focused on reminding us that being 99.9% sure that we were saved really wasn't enough. We needed to be 100% sure that we were truly saved. Throughout the entire amazing weekend the best part was finding out on Sunday morning that 6 girls...yes 6 girls were welcomed into the kingdom of Christ! Yes, we have 6 New Sisters in Christ!


Brandy, Emily & me

The Mojo Princess' (Stephanie, Stacy, Victoria & Sarah)

Brandy, Emily & Me (My little sisters)

New Orleans Mission Trip

Mission Trip to New Orleans...was AMAZING. A 13 hour ride there and home didn't phase us. We were there to serve God and help the people of the First Baptist Church of Chalmette, LA. We were able to continue the progress of so many that have come before us and it was AMAZING to see how many churches and groups had come for the common purpose of helping this church finish the structure so they could have a place to meet. Wednesday night we had the privledge of worshipping in their sanctuary for the first time since Hurrican Katrina hit. It was such an honor to be able to sit in that dusty,unfinished sanctuary and see the God being praised all around us! It was an experience i won't soon forget! While approx. 40 of our students were in New Orleans our other students were at church on Wednesday night. During the service back home our students prayed for us that were on this mission...1 hour later we had a student accept Christ on our mission trip! We came home with a New Brother in Christ!!!

We do serve an amazing God! He is deserving of all of our Honor, Praise & Glory!

Behind all of these people is the First Baptist Church of New Orleans. Two years before Hurricane Katrina hit this church located from downtown to the present location of this building. One day the architect came to the pastor and told the pastor that he had been praying and felt led ask the pastor to raise $20,000 more dollars to raise the foundation of the building, for if they raised the foundation and the damns ever broke then they church wouldn't flood. The church raised $20,000 more dollars and raised the foundation of the building. Two years later Hurricane Katrina hit and the First Baptist Church of New Orleans was the only structure that did not flood! They were able to house disaster relief, red cross, and other disaster crews. Had the church hadn't prayed & that church hadn't had the arcitect they would have had to go 20 miles out to find a structure that hadn't been flooded.

Katlynn, Me, Brandy & Lauren

My Group in New Orleans

The Family of Christ! :)

Some of my room (Macy, Brandy, Sarah, Me & Des)

Me & Brandy hanging tiles.

Easter 2009

Update: Heres the pictures i promised & what a bittersweet moment it was! The 6 of us && oh how i pray this picture continues to grow & grow:)

Gabby assisting in the baptism of her step-dad

Gabby assisting in the baptism of her mom

One year ago this is what was happening...

Easter Sunday 2008...my best friend & I had just gone intot he baptism pool with these 2 new sisters in Christ.
Me assisting in the baptism of Gabby Lory.

Lauren assisting in the baptism of Kiersten Close.

Tomorrow same time as one year ago, Gabby will be stepping back into that same baptism pool to assist in the baptism of her mom and step-dad.

What an awesome God we serve?!

"The Living Word" Drama....FYI I serve an AMAZING GOD!

Tonight was the first night of a drama produced by my best friend, it was performed by the youth drama team, childrens choir and adult choir. I just want to first and foremost say. I serve THE God of the universe b/c of WHO He is to me! He didn't have to but he chose to die upon a cross for me! So anyways. for months we have all been preparing for a night that we were praying would change out lives and the lives of others around us...So Sunday we stayed after church and worked from 12:30 til like 5:30 then we went out to eat! We had a blast while all along working for the kingdom of God! Mondays forcast said it was supposed to rain, theni t rained on Tuesday night then Wednesday morning...all the time we kep praying for the rains to stop so that we could put on our drama with little problems. So it was 80% chance of rain on Tuesday morning but Wednesday morning the chance dropped to 30% ... i did a dance in my kitchen b/c i was so happy! Anyways...So lets call that prayer answer number 1. We set up 197 chairs for people to sit in (we normally average around 120) and prayed that we would fill all of the chairs. We did &&& brought out all of the chairs that would fit...266 chairs!!! with approx. 275+ people there! Lets says that answered prayer number 2. We held an invitation time during the first song no one stood up i was just in shock about how you could see something like that and not be moved...we were praying for lives to be radically changed...so my best friend radioed and said stephanie i'm coming down...with me waling down one isle and her down the other we met at the front & met Jesus there. She poured out her heart...it wasn't jsut a drama to us. It was the real life that Christ went through for each of us. He did it for you and for me. It was AMAZING to sit at his feet tonight & know that He WAS there! Lets say that was answered prayer number 3!I'm sure their are so many answered prayers that i didn't even accnowledge & i pray that their were lives that i have yet to find out about...i pray that is the case! If ANYONE knows anyone of a decision that was made tonight. Please let us know! We want to rejoice with you. One last thing. Satan was there tonight...But GOD WILL REIGN FOREVER! A choir memeber relayed to me afteward that during the Hallelujah Chorus song the tape kep restarting itself (for those of you in music you know that doesn't just happen) he finally had to unplug the machine to get it to play. CHRIST WILL ALWAYS HAVE VICTORY OVER DEATH! NOTHING CAN STOP HIM! Thank you God. Thank you for being there tonight with us. Thank you for the sacrifce that you made. we would be nothing without you, we couldn't have done this drama without your provision and help. We give you ALL of the Honor, Praise and Glory from tonight. We praise your name! Thank you Lord.Amen

My Life Lately...

"Stephanie, hey are you saved?" "Yea." "Well you seem like it." Yep thats the converstaion that happened between me and a girl in my class today.
God. Thats the one word that describes my life. Hes what keeps me going and keeps me motivated to continue to do the work that Hes called me to do. Hes been teaching me a lot about His people and how the best way to reach them is to love them first and foremost. When we love and accept people they are more inclined to listen to what we have to say about our relationship with Christ. Brandon Heath's song Give me your eyes has become my prayer when it comes to being in the world without being of the world.
Looked down from a broken sky
Traced out by the city lights
My world from a mile high
Best seat in the house tonight
Touched down on the cold black top
Hold on for the sudden stop
Breath in the familiar shock
Of confusion and chaos
All those people going somewhere,
Why have I never cared?
Chorus:Give me your eyes for just one second
Give me your eyes so I can see
Everything that I keep missing
Give me your love for humanity
Give me your arms for the broken hearted
Ones that are far beyond my reach.
Give me your heart for the ones forgotten
Give me your eyes so I can seeYeahYeah
Step out on a busy streetS
ee a girl and our eyes meet
Does her best to smile at meTo hide what's underneath
There's a man just to her right
Black suit and a bright red tie
Too ashamed to tell his wife
He's out of workHe's buying time
All those people going somewhere
Why have I never cared?
ChorusI've Been there a million times
A couple of million eyesJ
ust moving past me by
I swear I never thought that I was wrong
Well I want a second glance
So give me a second chance
To see the way you see the people all along

This song has become my prayer that I would learn how to see people through the eyes of Christ. And honestly its working...when we choose to look through the eyes of Christ we see who they are not the mistakes that they've made.

A few weeks ago we had a special family with us refered to as The Hitch Family. What an inspirational family but whats most inspirational is that they don't want to be looked upon as the 'perfect' family they just want to be the gateway for some people to hear the message of Christ. I had the opportunity to visit and talk with this family while they were down and have had the privledge to pray for Mrs. Kathy and Sterling as they have been in Haiti this past week (and will be coming home late tomorrow night). I Never underestimate the power of prayer nor do I hold prayer lightly. I believe that Prayer CAN and DOES change things! When we take time to talk to God he does listen to us!

Prayer is the one place that you can say anything you want to our God. He is my Best Friend the one who knows all about me and for that i am thankful. At church lately I have had the opportunity to get to know and talk to people whom I normally would have no interactions with. A few weeks ago I was asked the question why I would choose to begin a friendship with someone. And honestly all i could say was that it was all God not on my own will could i ever choose to love and accept people the way that I can when he's prompting me and telling me too. Isaiah 6: 8 says, " Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me." My passion in life is to go as He leads and calls and I'm so excited that He is there accepting me each day as I fail, picking me up, dusting me off and using me.

I'm so excited about the ways that God is using me and the ways that I am able to serve Him and to encourage others along the way. I LOVE to encourage others and pray for others I feel it is so important! Encouragement is what I feel like God has put me here for at this time and i'm excited about what He is calling me to do in the future. God is my life & my first love.

Any thoughts??? Share what God is doing in your life too! I'd love to hear about it!