Oh Nebraska :)

So I'm here in Nebraska... It's 45 degrees outside, the leaves are changing, the sun is shining, I'm listening to C-music (don't judge me!), and I'm surrounded by people who love me unconditionally. I mean, it's pretty wonderful :)

I do all my best thinking in Nebraska (where it's quiet and there are minimal distractions), and the Lord has been revealing some pretty wonderful things to me. Are you ready for this, friends?

1) OBEDIENCE. I'm not sure how many of you know this, but I was very close to taking a year off between my undergrad and Seminary. When I visited Southwestern for the second time last February, the LORD made it extremely clear to me that I was to go in the Fall. Even though I knew His call, I didn't really trust His timing, His sovereignty. I still worried about my application, my church letter, my acceptance - I mean I was terrified. This past summer I went to Nebraska to work at a treatment center with 12 teenage boys that had an array of disorders, and it was the most difficult and challenging task the LORD has ever laid before me. I absolutely loved it. I fell in love with with everything the LORD was doing through me with these kids; it was absolutely incredible. Saying goodbye to all of them in August was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do, and there was a voice in the back of my head still saying, "Katherine, don't go to Seminary... Stay here and work... The LORD clearly wants you here..." And the crazy thing is, I really wanted to listen to Satan. I lived in disobedience this summer - I didn't spend time with God daily, I let my work consume me, and I pretty much pushed God away every single day. The LORD really protected me in August when I stepped out in obedience and left a job that I absolutely loved, where I was making good money and changing these kid's lived - and moved to city where I knew no one and had nothing.

There's not much to say after that except I am so grateful for God's grace. I am exactly where I need to be right now at Seminary. I thought it was going to be a lot harder going back this past week and seeing those boys again. It was hard leaving them knowing that I would most likely never see most of them again, but there was peace that comes from the LORD when you're walking in the center of His will. That peace that transcends all understanding.

2) GOD'S LOVE. Last weekend when I was in College Station, I visited my old church. Butch, the pastor, preached an incredible sermon about God's love for us, and the LORD has really set his words on my heart this week. God's love is unrelenting, unconditional, and sacrificial. Christ's grace is far greater than our sin... God sees us as His masterpiece. His image. His likeness... Biblical love is a no-strings-attached commitment. We never have to question him or doubt His love because the cross settled it. Period.

3) CONTENTMENT. This is an area I struggle in continually... Being content in all circumstances: when my relationships fall apart, when I'm faced with financial difficulties, when I hear bad news, and when I'm tired and broken. I wrote this in my journal a couple of mornings ago: "My worth and my love for you shouldn't change! Why can't I understand that? Who do I fear change so much? Why can't I just be confident and content in you- even when my world is caving in around me? Father, how I desire to love you above ALL things - how much I desire to seek Your face and praise Your name even when my heart feels like it's breaking...". Easier said than done, yeah? That's my prayer though... And it's what the Lord desires for us.

"But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power for Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong." - 1 Cor. 12: 9-10

4) FRIENDS. I'm not even sure where to begin in this category. Holy golly how the LORD has abundantly blessed me with incredible followers of His way that pour into me and encourage me in my faith! God has given me community in Fort Worth so quickly. The friends that I have made here are all so different, but the LORD has brought all of us together so perfectly. My weeks are filled with so much laughter, spaghetti, pallets, movies, deep conversations, trips to Starbucks and Sonic, and joy!! The friends that God has given me in Fort Worth really make that city feel like home. I mean, how many friends would wake up at 3:40 am (after having gone to bed around 1am) to take someone to an airport an hour away (thanks GIL!!). Even though I'm loving my time here in Nebraska, I can not wait to be back home :)

"I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done; I ponder the work of your hands. I stretch out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land." -Psalm 143:5-6

"You have given me the shield of your salvation, and your gentleness made me great. You gave a wide place for my steps under me, and my feet did not slip." - 2 Samuel 22:36-37