A legacy left well

There are no words for describing the grief felt by the loss of a dear woman, Sheryl DeWitt.
I came to know Sheryl while at Focus on the Family Institute. She had a profound impact on me and thousands of others.
If you visit the Web site set up to keep everyone informed about her cancer battle, you will find hundreds of messages describing how Sheryl impacted lives. She imparted Jesus' transforming love on every person she met. What an amazing woman, who left a legacy that will live on far beyond her short earthly years.

Easter

Jesus is risen indeed! This is why we celebrate.
And celebrate we did. (We is my friend, Katie, and me).

Here are some photo highlights, in no particular order.
Aunt Ruby's Trunk--shopping the $1 rack, hike to Hanging Lake, decorating Easter Eggs, cute dogs, coffee shop stops, visiting Doc Holliday's grave.

Check out Katie's blog to see more pics and to read about our small town Sunday dinner stop.

Colorado: You never know what you're gonna get

I love Colorado!
Though sometimes it can be annoying that you never know what the weather is going to be like, that keeps it interesting.
One day it's foggy/misty. The next day is snows, then rains.
The next day it's like summer and I get a sunburn while rock climbing and biking.

I'm also a big fan of house/pet-sitting. I don't actually sit on the pets, but they like to sit on my stuff. Zeke seems to have a liking for outdoor gear.

Well-needed Rest

Last night I became so frustrated I was in tears as I tried to write an article for my National Guard duty. After talking with a friend on the phone, I decide to give up for the evening and picked up the latest Brio magazine from my bag. I flipped through it, continuing to ponder why I haven’t been able to get a job there.

I don’t usually read the “In box” section, but a headline caught my eye: “Well-needed rest.” I thought, “That’s what I really need” right now.

I continued to read the letter to the editor:
“I just read the November article ‘Rest,’”

I realized she was mentioning the article I wrote, so I read on:

“and it was just what I needed! To be honest, I was feeling guilty about reading Brio instead of doing homework. This article reminded me that I can spend some quiet time on other things and that I don’t always have to go, Go, GO. It was so relevant o the moment, I almost cried.”
–Cassie from San Jose, Calif.

Reading her letter was so relevant I almost cried (again). I can’t say how much I needed that encouragement that writing can and has made a difference in people’s lives.

Writing that article should have made more of an impact on my life (I’d like to be able to take my own advice to really rest), so I’m glad it has helped others.

Reading someone’s comment about how the writing I did affected them is much more meaningful than seeing my name and article in print.

My encouragement to you—if you read something that makes a positive impact in your life, please tell that person. It may be the spark that keeps them going. And if you're a writer or a blogger, keep going--you're making a difference!

Encouragement brings new life

As pressure mounted and stress increased about a week ago I decided to take the day off work and go for a fun little biking adventure with KLerch.
A beautiful spring day, we hit a new trail with a map and plenty of energy and optimism. Little did we know (although we probably should have learned by now) how easy it is to get lost.
After taking a wrong turn, rather than go back we decided upon a "proposed" trail. This means no trail at all, but you can make your own.
However, it's very difficult, unless you have a chain saw, to make a trail through dry brush. At first we just thought we could walk our bikes up the hill. The trail where we were headed was visible--just up ahead! Or was it? "Well, if we can just get up to that ridge, we'll be able to see."
Soon, pushing bikes through brush became impossible, so we carried them--often above our heads.

I don't know about Katie, but I started to get exhausted and I wanted to just sit down and quit.
She however, climbed up a tree to be better able to see. That's what friends are for (at least partially), to give us perspective and encouragement, to help point us in the right direction.

We continued bush-wacking. (I rediscovered a fondness for mixing up my consonants: book washing). Intermingled with laughter at our unfortunate plight, her enthusiasm and vigor that we would eventually make it to the trail gave me hope.
And sure enough, though the journey getting there was difficult, we made it!
When our actual bike ride began, I was already pretty pooped out, but managed to get a second wind.
Seeing new spring flowers popping out of dry ground was like a loving greeting-card encouragement from God. They reminded me that beauty and hope can spring up in the midst of the parched landscape. When life seems difficult and I just want to go into hibernation, God gives me glimpses of spring time. And I want to keep going--to see what's up over the next ridge. The journey is an adventure, and the miserable parts help make it memorable!

Life is good?

I'm a big fan of the "Life is good" brand.
However, I've always thought it should be revised to: Life is hard, God is good.

My roommate recently e-mailed me the lyrics to this Martina McBride song, "Anyway." They go along great with the concept that life is hard, but God is good.

Check it out:

You can spend your whole life building something from nothing
One storm can come and blow it all away
Build it anyway
You can chase a dream that seems so out of reach and you know it might not ever come your way
Dream it anyway
God is great, but sometimes life ain't good
And when I pray it doesn't always turn out like I think it should
But I do it anyway, I do it anyway
This world's gone crazy and it's hard to believe that tomorrow will be better than today
Believe it anyway
You can love someone with all your heart, for all the right reasons, and in a moment they can choose to walk away
Love 'em anyway
God is great, but sometimes life ain't good
And when I pray it doesn't always turn out like I think it should
But I do it anyway, I do it anyway
You can pour your soul out singing a song you believe in that tomorrow they'll forget you ever sang
Sing it anyway, sing it anyway
I sing, I dream, I love, anyway...

May our lives be filled with this kind of courage.
And as we step out in faith, hope, and love, may our courage light up the lives of others, as, "Those who bring sunshine into the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves."

GMA coming soon

This post really should go on my carrieAtune blog, since it's related to music, but I already have it here and don't know if it's possible to post to two blogs at once. Anyone have a clue? I'm debating whether to consolidate blogs, since perhaps that would be easier and I don't update the other as often. Thoughts?

Anyway, back to my post.

I've been busily scheduling interviews for my week in Nashville, April 21-25 for the Gospel Music Assoc. Week and Dove Awards.

So far, I'm most excited about talking with Mandisa, former American Idol contestant who made it to the final rounds in the fifth season. Mandisa will release her debut album (Sparrow/EMI CMG) in May and book, IdolEyes (Tyndale House) in June.
IdolEyes is co-authored with Angela Hunt and gives a view into Mandisa’s Idol journey, including how judge Simon Cowell’s derogatory remarks opened up opportunities to share with women about her food addiction and God’s loving acceptance.
Mandisa is no newcomer to music. She has also traveled across the nation with various worship conferences and women’s events and retreats (Integrity Music, Living Proof Live featuring Beth Moore, LifeWay Christian Women’s Conventions) as a worship leader. Check out her MySpace to listen to her powerful voice.

I'm also excited to catch up with Chris Rice.
Check out his Web site: http://www.chrisrice.com/, which has links to his blog (good thoughts--but lots of pictures of food lately, so only visit while not hungry) and music (my favorite song is "Lemonade.") Briefly about him: Nine years ago listeners were introduced to Chris Rice and his introspective lyrics with his first release Deep Enough to Dream. Since then, he has sold more than 1.5 million units and has had 11 No. 1 radio singles. His debut venture on INO/Eb+Flo Records (“Amusing”) was a hit with media and radio, including Mainstream AC radio with a Top 5 Hit (“When Did You Fall In Love”). Chris is really excited about going into the studio again with longtime friend, producer Monroe Jones. His next project is set to release this June.

While I'm at GMA, I try to interview lesser-known, up-and-coming bands, rather than the ones everyone loves, so more to come about the newbies!

Run for One, and then some

Children’s HopeChest (http://www.hopechest.org/) is an organization I’ve been hearing a lot about recently, and God has used them and other circumstances to put orphans on my heart.

The organization recently announced the formation and launch of the Run for One training team which will raise funds and awareness to support orphans in need living in Russia and Swaziland. This year, the team will complete the Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon in Virginia Beach, VA, on September 2, 2007.

Each athlete who signs up for this program will run to benefit one child who is currently participating in a Children’s HopeChest program for orphans. Children’s HopeChest will provide team members with encouragement, monthly training plans, and professional coaching by Lisa Rainsberger, winner of the 1985 Boston Marathon and world class running coach. Rainsberger and her daughter, Meghan, are also participating in the race and raising funds to “run for one.”

Anyone who knows me knows I love to run. In the past I’ve run for fun, mostly for one—myself. After I ran the Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon in Phoenix, AZ last year I developed sciatica, which prohibited most running. Then a car accident in December 2006 smashed all plans of near-future races.

However, with good chiropractic care, massage therapy, and what I consider a miracle from God, I’m feeling almost at 100%. I’ve been swimming and biking, and even running with little pain. (It’s sitting that’s still a problem—but I can deal with that.)

So, now I’m presented with this opportunity—and it makes me so excited!

I’ve never raised $4,000 before, and that’s probably the most intimidating factor.

I would really appreciate prayer and guidance whether this is where I should focus my time and energy. We’re having a staff informational meeting next week, and CHC is looking for commitments close to that date. Another factor I’m weighing is the desire to go on my first mission trip this year. Can I do both? If I had to choose one opportunity (I don’t have a specific trip picked out, but was considering one with CHC), which should it be?

Your input is appreciated.

Here’s a bit more about Run for One and CHC:
Run for One is being organized in remembrance of Katya Toschakova, a 15-year-old orphan who took her life after entering the outside world without guidance or hope following her departure from a Russian orphanage.

Children’s HopeChest establishes programs for younger children living in orphanages and older children, like Katya, who are navigating the transition into adulthood. These are abandoned children who will never be adopted into families.

HopeChest programs give them ongoing guidance, support, skills, and hope. Without such intervention, these orphans fall into crime, prostitution, drug abuse, alcoholism, or, like Katya, suicide.

Quotes: Living in Hope

The very least you can do in your life is to figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live inside that hope. Not admire it from a distance but live right in it, under its roof.
—Barbara Kingsolver

If, every day, I dare to remember that I am here on loan, that this house, this hillside, these minutes are all leased to me, not given, I will never despair.
—Erica Jong

How things look on the outside of us depends on how things are on the inside of us.
—Park Cousins

There is nothing like a dream to create the future.
—Victor Hugo

What I like to do on my lunch break

I'm thankful for 60-degree weather in March, a bike, the ability to ride it, a workplace with flexible hours, mud, showers in the workplace, a great biking buddy (who likes mud even more that me--see it in her teeth!) And what am I doing in this picture? Guess you had to be there.

Mocha Club

I decided to give up trips to Starbucks for Lent--and to send that money to a good cause.

I just joined a web site called Mocha Club, where you can give up the cost of 2 mochas a month, or $7, to help orphans, refugees, and those affected by HIV/AIDS in Africa.

Did you know that 6300 people die every day from AIDS? Here is what blew my mind - in All of Africa, $7 gives clean water to 7 Africans for a year. In Kibera Kenya, $7 gives 3 meals in a day for 9 orphans. In Bulawayo Zimbabwe, $7 would put two kids in school for a term. It's those kind of things that made me realize this is something I can do. So I've felt convicted to move from the talking to doing category. You can join my online team by clicking HERE and we can keep inviting friends so the team continues to grow at $7 per person.

They also give detailed updates once a month as to what the money is doing in Africa.

And do you know of MATT WERTZ? Here's a cool incentive he's offering - if you join our team now, you'll also get a FREE download of his entire new album, Everything In Between. Cool, huh?

Let me know what you think.

Free pancakes today, Fat Tuesday

From KRDO news:

IHOP is doing what it can to fatten you up on this "Fat Tuesday".

It's National Pancake Day and IHOP is giving away a free short stack (three good sized cakes) of their buttermilk pancakes--for a good cause.

IHOP is hoping those who come in to get the free pancakes will donate money toward the Childrens Miracle Network. The non-profit helps sick children get the medical treatment they need by treating everything from pediatric aids to cancer to a child injured in a car accident. If you do donate today there's even more of an incentive than free pancakes. "We hope that they donate. They get free pancakes no matter what they do but we hope they come in and donate and if they do we also give them a 20 percent bounce back coupon to come in and see us again." says Patty Tennant Operations Director of local IHOPs.

Last year IHOPs around the country raised more than 300-thousand dollars for Childrens Miracle Network. This year the goal is to raise more than 500-thousand dollars.

To get the free pancakes you can go by any IHOP TODAY between 7 am and 10 pm.

Beware of early daylight-saving time

Congress lengthened this year’s daylight saving time by four weeks in the name of energy efficiency. The decision is likely to affect numerous computer systems preset to change the hour on the traditional date.

Many people aren’t even aware of the change, which takes effect Mar. 11. Devices such as cell phones should automatically update. But Microsoft cautions that some of its older products—including Windows XP SP1 and Windows NT4—will require manual updates. The company’s Web site provides detailed instructions on how to update various products. As a fallback, Microsoft says customers should double-check meetings scheduled electronically during March and April 2007.

One more reason to stay away from Peter Pan

A salmonella outbreak that has slowly grown to nearly 300 cases in 39 states since August has been linked to tainted peanut butter, the Assoc. Press reported.

The Food and Drug Administration warned consumers not to eat certain jars of Peter Pan or Great Value peanut butter because of the risk of contamination.

Officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said they believe this to be the first salmonella outbreak associated with peanut butter in U.S. history. How salmonella got into peanut butter is still under investigation.

I am a HUGE fan of peanut butter, so this is kind of scary. However, I'm kind of a peanut butter snob and won't eat the kinds like Peter Pan with lots of sugar and hydrogenated oils. So I see this salmonella incident as just one more reason to stay away!

The affected jars have a product code on the lid that begins with the number "2111," made by ConAgra in a single facility in Sylvester, Ga., the FDA said.

The largest number of salmonella cases were reported in New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Tennessee, and Missouri. Symptoms of salmonella can include diarrhea, fever, dehydration, abdominal pain and vomiting. Fun!

Starbucks new promotion: designer t-shirts

To show customers how easy it is to customize their beverage of choice, Starbucks created a new campaign--letting fans choose drink elements incorporated into the design of the shirts, including drink size and flavors.

The cost and shipping are free. However, only a limited number of shirts are available each day.

Starbucks offers more than 5,000 drink combinations.

The campaign runs through Feb. 28 and is designed to ease the intimidation factor of ordering a beverage and get customers to try something new.

Fashion designer Mychael Knight has been tasked to create icons that will be placed on the T-shirts. MyStarbuckstshirt.com includes a link to a list of popular drinks and celebrity favorites and details about Knight.

Life's Story

Last night a friend and I went to the $1.50 theater (less money than renting!) to see Stranger Than Fiction, which has become a new favorite. The main character, Harold Crick suddenly starts hearing his life being narrated by the author who’s controlling it. “Little did he know” of his “impending doom.”

When he starts to accept that he’s going to die, Harold starts living the life he’s always wanted. I walked out of the theater challenged to live—really live the rest of my days. I don’t know that I’m going to die soon, but I do know my days are numbered.

I’m glad I know and trust my narrator to create my life story in the most loving way possible.

This morning I read Proverbs and Psalms 13.
Proverbs 13:12 (Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life, NLT) is often quoted, but it particularly struck me in the aftermath of yesterday.

I walked over to the Focus on the Family bookstore and picked up a Brio magazine. I realized this was the issue my sixth (I think?) article appeared—the one they used as part of my job interview last summer.

Once again I questioned why God has placed insurmountable obstacles in front of me and working at what I believe to be my dream job. And my best friend is going on a mission trip with them this summer, but I can’t go because of my current job’s demands.

However, I was encouraged when I read an article in our magazine’s “Why We Do What We Do” section, in which the author had a mission from God, but He kept saying “wait” or “not now” until 12 years later when circumstances lined up and she was ready.

Psalm 13 says: “O Lord, how long will you forget me? …Restore the sparkle to my eyes or I will die…But I trust in your unfailing love.” (1,3,5)

Feeling for Bones review

Bethany Pierce / Moody Publishers
Subject: Contemporary Fiction
p $12.99 ISBN: 9780802462886

When her dad loses his pastor job and the family relocates under his aunt’s mercy, 16-year-old Olivia watches her surroundings spin out of control. Money is scarce, dad stops attending church, mother becomes more controlling, they constantly argue, and she has to share a room with 6-year-old sister Callapher.
Olivia becomes obsessed with controlling her calorie consumption and pasting idyllic images on the bedroom wall. “Every page was another promise that life could become what it should, that I could be beautiful,” she says.
Near-tragedy and a death bring the family closer together, and Olivia slowly learns to accept love and care from her mother and her heavenly Father—who in the final pages becomes real to her and miraculously heals her disorder.
Recommend to young women and their mothers searching for a palatable tale of a teenager’s striving for beauty and struggle with anorexia.

Too skinny

photo: Bernat Armangue / AP

There’s been more in the news recently about models and actresses being “too skinny,” when previously the message has been “you can never be too skinny or too rich.”

It’s a well-known fact among womankind that models set an unrealistic standard—and the quest to be thin can be deadly. The most recent wakeup call came when Brazilian model Ana Carolina Reston died in November 2006 at age 21. She was 5 feet 8 inches tall and weighed just 88 pounds, and had a BMI (body mass index) of 13.4.

Italian designers in December agreed to health and age guidelines for runway models, The Associated Press reported. Now New York City Council member Gail Brewer wants fashion houses to ban any model with a body mass index of less than 18.5 -- the cutoff for the World Health Organization's definition of "normal." (up to 24.9)

Brewer said she wants models to be educated on nutrition and designers to encourage healthful lifestyles. "We want the designers to offer some clothes that are a little bit more robust," she also told CNN, "and we certainly don't want people under the age of 16 to be modeling.
Models are often women’s mirrors—who they compare themselves to. I’m not saying this is how it should be, but I certainly think it’s time for culture to start recognizing the impossible and unhealthy ideal that’s presented on the runways.

Models don’t need more education about nutrition. I think they know how to eat, but they choose not to because they’re not allowed to if they want to keep their profession. The rules of the profession need to change, so models portray an image of beauty and health.
However, if women want to see an image of beauty and health, perhaps fashion models are not the best role models in the first place. I want to look to models like Mary, Elizabeth, Ruth, and Esther (in the Bible).

Younger women join convents

From The Washington Times
By Jocelyne Zablit

One was a successful corporate lawyer, another a Mercedes-Benz driving businesswoman and a third a Navy officer who steered warships and hunted down cocaine smugglers in South America.
They are among a growing number of women in their 20s and 30s across the United States who have shed high-powered jobs, career ambitions and boyfriends for a nun's veil and a life devoted to the church. Though the trend is by no means spreading like wildfire, several Roman Catholic communities throughout the country say they have noticed a surprising and welcome phenomenon in the past decade as younger women join their ranks.
"The inquiries in recent years have been coming from younger and younger women, most of them in their early to mid-20s," said Sister Agnes Mary, mother superior at the Sisters of Life community in New York.
The Catholic community, which counted seven members when it was founded in 1991, has grown to 52 women who live in six convents scattered throughout the New York area. A seventh convent is planned within two years.
"I think young women are searching for something, and culture is not giving it to them, so they are turning to God," said Sister Mary Karen, 33, the superior at the Sisters of Life Formation House in the Bronx, where 18 women are being groomed for a life of obedience, poverty and chastity. They include a Yale graduate, a former Navy officer, a former medical student, an opera singer and a Web designer.
All have college degrees, are well-traveled and were more cosmopolitan than cloistered growing up.
They have abandoned cell phones, IPods, daily Starbucks runs and, in some cases, fiances for dormlike rooms, or "cells" as they call them, and a wardrobe that consists of a veil and habit. "I was in the Navy for a total of 10 years because I wanted to do something great with my life, but I realized I could never be passionate about it," said Angela Karalekas, 28, who entered the convent in September and will receive her habit and new religious name in June. "I was raised Catholic, but my decision has been hard on my father and three brothers."

Answer me this: What's the appeal?

Stronger Than You Think review

Kim Gaines Eckert / IVP Books (InterVarsity Press)
Subject: Pastoral Helps; Women
p $15 ISBN:9780830833733
Women who long for wholeness, admit something is missing, and are willing to engage on a journey toward emotional healing are stronger than they think, Gaines Eckert says. As a practicing counselor, she uses helpful examples and real-life situations. Her realistic approach offers tips, suggestions, activities, and images to assist readers on the journey, but acknowledges there’s no quick fix to life’s deep pains and difficulties.
“God’s intent is not to help us avoid pain and maximize pleasure,” she says. Rather, God intends to help us grow up in Christ, as we find wholeness in community with Him and others.
Stronger Than You Think is ideal for group study, as each chapter concludes with “Tools for the Journey,” and the concluding section is dedicated to discussion/reflection questions. Readers who take the message to heart will find Stronger Than You Think worth far more than the suggested retail price.