::Being Transformed::

Say So.

Psalm 107

¹Oh give thanks to the LORD, for He is good,
         For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
    ²Let the redeemed of the LORD say so,
         Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the adversary...

From time to time, my roommates and I have told one another to "just say so!" Implying the freedom to "be right where you are at" (no judgment here!) and the empowerment that comes from approaching life from the victorious position of being redeemed. (1 John 5:4-5) We have been bought back, brought out of death into life, and set free to live life as He intended: in fellowship with our God. When we hide in our own selves, there is no fellowship. For us to speak what is true about ourselves and God is to speak from the position of being the redeemed children of God. We stand acceptable and accepted because of Christ! Who told you to be ashamed or that you had to have it all together?! It is the "adversary" or the enemy who tempts us to believe this and he has been defeated--powerless towards the people of the Lord. We must remember the Voice that matters most. When we forget we are redeemed and forget to "attend to the steadfast love of the Lord" we feel vulnerable, exposed (experiencing the reality of our not being in control), and afraid to say anything at all. When life isn't seeming line up quite right or the circumstances are unsure, or at the slightest relational discomfort or lack thereof we are quick to forget what He has done on our behalf and who He has made us to be and how He pours out His love into our hearts by the power of His Spirit alone. This is what makes the DIFFERENCE! In these days of our sanctification/transformation into the likeness of Christ we have the choice to LIVE in that reality or to try to live this life in our own feeble resources until the day He returns and completes this beautiful work He has began in us at the moment of salvation. May the reality of our redemption and new life in Christ fall afresh on us:

1 Peter 2

²⁴He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree,

that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.

By his wounds you have been healed.

²⁵For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned

to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

FREEDOM to "say so" comes from believing and receiving for yourself that you are redeemed, first and foremost. There is no way to earn or lose the love and acceptance which God freely gives us in Christ. This experience also happens in loving community. As we work out the reality of our salvation "with fear and trembling" He moves from our head to our heart what that really means. Healing comes as we move through this process by faith, acknowledging our fears and feelings, allowing the grace of God to penetrate our faulty beliefs, often through the gracious response of others towards us. Powerful. Supernatural. True freedom comes in taking off the mask of having to have it all together or be independent of God(dying to sin) and being who He has created you to be: a dependent child on Abba, Father (living to righteousness).

I was meeting with a friend this past week and it seems she has discovered what many of us know, but few of us admit. We wear a "protector" around our lives, keeping people and even God at arm's length. She knows she needs to take it off, but it's not easy. Our souls crave to be known, our Spirits cry out to drink deep from the Living Water, yet we choose to stay in what we've been deceived into believing is "safe." The TRUTH? Our God longs to BE our protector! Our Safety! Our refuge! Our HOME, but we must die to the old way of "safe" living, which is not really living at all. Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, came to this earth with the gospel message: "I have come that you may have life and have it abundantly." When we operate out of the riches and wealth of Spirit that comes from standing on these realities our life IS different! He satisfies us (Psalm 63) in this dry and weary land of the world. The Spiritual reality becomes our reality and we live in the paradigm of the life of Christ! When we stop searching for a formula and live IN CHRIST we find what we were looking for in the beginning...

Psalm 107

⁴³ Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things;
let them consider the steadfast love of the LORD.

Colossians 2

...to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding

and the knowledge ofGod’s mystery, which is Christ,

³ in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

Our direction, our step-by-step, our wisdom and knowledge, if you will comes as we seek Christ and allow His Spirit to be the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls and respond in faith to Him. When we walk as redeemed children in freedom, healing and wholeness, we WILL shine Christ brightly for the glory of His name. I pray that more and more we are a community that "says so" for the sake of His glory and that more may step into a life in Christ.

Read More 0 comments | Posted by Katie B |

Catching up [Part 2] Wrapping up our First Semester here...

new years eve:

Beth and Jason did a great job of capturing the evening. I have left my camera at home lately... but it was truly a blessing to bring in the new year worshiping our King and reflecting on what we are truly thankful for as we look back over what has happened since this time last year.

end of semester thoughts:

The question was asked... what have you seen God do this semester? It was a beautiful thing to go around the room and hear and celebrate all He has done. Matt did a great job recording the words spoken at that meeting. For me, it has been different than I thought. From the get-go I have felt 'at home' here and it's hard for me to separate the 'before' and 'after' of my life in HK. I still feel I have simply stepped into what He has called me to do and be. I am far from perfect at it but know I am growing towards fulfilling more deeply role He has called me to play in His grand story. All I can think is it's...

-His Invitation-

As I look back over this semester I am more and more happy about accepting it. There's something special about responding to that which the God of the Universe invites us into, and it starts when He invites us into His very life by our faith in Christ. As the song in the video below states: "...And this is grace: an invitation to be beautiful..." So there's not really an ending point here, but I remain on a journey- of sanctification, or, in other words, being made more holy, more like Jesus. Not just performing well or doing the right thing but growing in the GRACE of God. Trusting Him more. Trusting Him to be ALL I need. Trusting Him to illuminate my person to make Himself known in this world. HE IS all that is beautiful... and receiving His redemption for myself, for my failures, for where I feel I am lacking, and letting Him fill me is all I know to do--simply receive, and declare that message of reconciliation to those around me.

The promise is, "come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." He, as I surrender, will do this. Not my own independent effort but His own strength in and through me. This is true life. In knowing Christ we have something to INVITE others into. There's something in the human soul that God has mades us to desire and respond to this invitation. Ultimately from Him, but through vessels of love like us.

I pray we all discover what it is to live by grace, moment by moment, and respond as the Shepherd leads us one step at a time. He won''t lead us too far ahead (even when we get anxious to MOVE) from where he intends or keep us in the same place unless he feels its best. He is good. He knows us well and He lead us in His perfect timing. I pray you can trust the Shepherd and hear His invitation to simply 'follow...'

sentimental.
most of you probably won't watch this lovely 4 minute video, but that's ok.... i made it more for my own record anyway. For anyone that is interested- it's 4 minutes long and has one of my favorite songs by Sara Groves. (Lyrics below- full of my favorite words for today: invitation and grace...) It ties together all things and that which I desire strongly to see Him do in our world today. The value of the people God has made in His image- they need to know their worth, their purpose, and drink deeply of the GRACE He so freely gives...

Add To The Beauty

We come with beautiful secrets

We come with purposes written on our hearts,

written on our souls

We come to every new morning

With possibilities only we can hold,

that only we can hold

Redemption comes in strange place, small spaces

Calling out the best of who we are

And I want to add to the beauty

To tell a better story

I want to shine with the light

That's burning up inside

It comes in small inspirations

It brings redemption to life and work

To our lives and our work

It comes in loving community

It comes in helping a soul find it's worth

This is grace, an invitation to be beautiful

This is grace, an invitation

YOU are INVITED!!!!!!

...

Read More 2 comments | Posted by Katie B |

Catching up [Part 1] Christmas in HK

Thankfully the rest of my team is good about blogging regularly. I, obviously, am not, but enough about that... here's the Christmas rundown:

::Hong Kong's production of the Nutcracker ballet- so neat, yet they cut out the part with Mother Ginger. No one asked me, maybe they will next year. I thoroughly enjoyed the rest!
::Chinese Dessert post Nutcracker... nothing says yummy like red bean ice cream and a mango pancake with mango pudding...
::LOTS of shopping and trying to AVOID shopping because the whole of China comes out to be in the hustle and bustle... but for what end? You start to think about it and try not to get too depressed... the task is overwhelming but knowing that a few lives here have awakened to the fact that Christmas exists because of our Saviour redeems those moments...

::Baking party- Growing up I went to the Mancil's home each Christmas to decorate sugar cookies with colorful icing. Well no worries folks, we did that here and our girls LOVED it, but not as much as the LOVED making Christmas cards and ornaments. Especially those cards. Then, of course the guys on our team came by later to eat the leftover cookies and icing...

::ELF - What is Christmas without the movie elf? We had a "special showing" at our home... Jason even made tickets!

::Christmas day: Maik and I met some students at our church for the Christmas service. Some of them heard the entire story for the first time. It was great to alternate between the reading of the story and singing carols that go right along with it. The reality of what it means for this "GOOD NEWS OF GREAT JOY THAT SHALL BE FOR ALL PEOPLE" sunk in my heart as the scriptures were read in Sri Lankan, Indonesian, Tagalog, Hungarian, Spanish, Chinese, and English. These languages represent a minute percentage of the languages on this earth, many of which STILL have not heard about God's love for them and His reconciliation with them through Jesus who came not to condemn the world but to SAVE it. If you want to know more about this you can read here or here. There are 2200 languages without the Bible in their native tongues, totalling hundreds of millions of people. Then there are people groups who have no knowledge of Christ or are hostile towards the gospel or too remote to have access, or, for one reason or another, have never heard. PLEASE PRAY for God to raise people up to reach these people- 41% of the Earth's population fits in the category. Staggering, yet true...

::After church we went to the Deans and had delicious cinnamon rolls and a secret santa gift exchange. It was really fun to share in that time and receive our "stockings" (ok, upside down santa hats) of goodies! Thanks, Deans!!

::Then came another really special part: Celebrating Christmas with several students for the first time and with friends who may be the only Christian in their family or away from their family. We gave gifts, sang some carols, and read Jesus' story from the book of Luke. It's so neat how when the Father is present you truly feel like a family! Oh, and just for a little culture, look at this link to see a picture of how we had dinner: RACLETTE! It's an indoor grill common in Switzerland, so of course Maik had a couple lying around where we could sit around and eat a LOT! It was a BLAST! If you ever come across one, buy it and have a party- it's like BBQ and FONDUE all together. Yeah!

::I finished the day by skyping with Mom, Dad, Jack and Grace... and even my sweet Grandad who just couldn't believe that I was still in Hong Kong if he could still see my face on the screen. Technology is amazing I tell you.

So all that to say, Christmas was awesome here. It was hard to register that it was actually December 25, yet it was nice to really focus in Him and not being caught up in the world's Christmas, but simply caught up in Christ, the burden of others to know Him in the midst of a materialistic city, and for them to see that HE is the treasure more than anything we obtain here on earth. When I grasp that truth, I find such freedom to be surrendered to Him. I pray this freedom is yours, too!

Read More 2 comments | Posted by Katie B |

yum chai//tea house//dim sum//hong kong

Here's a little clip of Mom and Dad's most cultural experience... take 2 minutes and check it out :)

Read More 0 comments | Posted by Katie B |

FOUND it...

I can honestly say I have found His true, abundant life! When my focus is here:

24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

This verse from Matthew 16 came tonight as a relief and comfort after saying bye to Mom and Dad after an awesome 10 days together. It was great to share my world with them and watch them experience it all. It doesn't make it any easier, but it does anchor my soul with a hope that is indescribable. It allows me to see THROUGH any sadness and difficulty even if I don't move immediately out of it. What can else can one do in response to this but FOLLOW? It doesn't make sense to the world that we (my parents, brother, sister, and I) would live to far apart, but what if he has us apart to ultimately draw more into the family for ETERNITY?! Is it WORTH it?! YES x 100000000, YES! What if our TRUE family (TRUE meaning that which is of the Sprit, that which LASTS) looked like this:

or this:

If what we are ultimately going towards is THIS:

9 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” 11 And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.” (Rev. 7)

Then why not live it now- this is THE bigger story that all our lives are being woven into. THIS is what He has made us for: WORSHIP!

Revelation 14:12 Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.

This is God's economy...

Matthew 19:

28 Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name's sake, will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life. 30 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.

Thanks, Mom and Dad, Jack and Grace, for enduring and for blessing me to go and praying for me to return... it means so much to me! Thanks for promising to trust Him in the meantime- IN HIS PRESENCE IS THE FULLNESS AND WHOLENESS THAT COMES FROM HIS JOY!!!

Read More 1 Comment | Posted by Katie B |

Aren't they cute?!

This is Mom and Dad's first visit to the Avenue of Stars on their first night here they are jet lagged but still look great! We have also visited the most crowded place in Hong Kong (Mong Kok), the highest point in HK (Victoria Peak) and ridden every type of public transportation! We are having a great time. More to come later...

Read More 0 comments | Posted by Katie B |

And the adventure begins...

Mom and Dad have arrived. After terrible weather that prevented them from getting to Atlanta on time, to the merciful staff that opened the gate back up for the Tokyo flight, a little Ambien and decent amount of stress they have made it with smiles on their faces. (Who would want luggage anyway...) I am kicking myself for not taking a picture of the arrival but the moment was sweet.

What will we do today? See the area "nearby" where I live life everyday... and possible make it downtown to go "bus carolling" with our church. IF the jet lag doesn't take over.

Not sure if this link will work... but worth a try-
Bus Caroling with ECC last year...

Read More 2 comments | Posted by Katie B |

A special day...

Happy Birthday MOM!

I am so happy you are coming here so I can tell you in person!

(Mom is being really brave, facing her fears, and flying for 14 hours to visit and I'm so excited. Dad's visiting too, but it's not his birthday nor does he have to face as many fears... Ya'll pray please! )

I am sure we will have much to share about our adventures- this will be the first time we've seen each other for 5 months! Can't wait to report back on the experiences...

So here's a theme passage for that lovely trek across a bajillion timezones... it's amazing what God gives us when we trade in our fears for praise.

Psalm 34

¹ I bless God every chance I get; my lungs expand with his praise.

² I live and breathe God;

if things aren't going well, hear this and be happy:

³ Join me in spreading the news;

together let's get the word out.

⁴ God met me more than halfway,

he freed me from my anxious fears.

⁵ Look at him; give him your warmest smile.

Never hide your feelings from him.

⁶ When I was desperate, I called out,

and God got me out of a tight spot.

⁷ God's angel sets up a circle

of protection around us while we pray.

⁸ Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see—

how good God is.

Blessed are you who run to him.

(from the MESSAGE)

Lord give me the grace to RUN...

Read More 0 comments | Posted by Katie B |

A Prayer for Today...

I have to acknowledge in these days that all I can conceive or do or dream about is so
small compared to Him and what He desires to do. I don't wanna settle for living out
of my "natural" talents or abilities for this is self-reliance that eliminates my
relationship and need for Jesus, even if I do it for the "right reasons."

I don't want to be deceived into living a life independent of God based on my
virtuous talents. The risk in that is that it would be meaningless or in vain-
it would be of a substance that is not Him. I want to die to myself, and
bear fruit that lasts, and the only fruit that lasts is that born of the Spirit.

Each season I learn a new facet of this- I AM being transformed- which is what all this is about, that, from glory to glory, we would be made into the likeness of Christ- magnifying God and making Him famous. This is not self betterment, improvement, or perfecting what I already have "going for me." No, this is death and turning from my attempts to be the Lord of my life and surrendering to Him, receiving from HIm, and living IN HIM.

These days are full of evaluation, planning, dreaming, executing those
plans and dreams, and all that comes with it. I pray that ALL that we do is
born of the Spirit- with an eternal quality that blesses the heart of God
and makes the Bride increasingly more pure and beautiful.

(inspired by Watchman Nee's Normal Christian Life and Tozer's Knowledge of the Holy )

...and of course there's a song to go with it...

Trade our human dreams/For what we cannot see

What our hands can hold/For eternal things

Give our moments for/Endless glory

’Cause we wanna be the ones who follow where You lead

We are believing there is more that we've not seen

So lead us on, lead us on

To light and revelation

Lead us on, lead us on oh Lord

Lead us on, to Your heart

Your purpose and Your passion

Lead us on, to Your heart oh Lord

‘Cause we wanna be the ones who follow where You lead

‘Cause we wanna be the ones who hear You when You speak

We are believing there is more that we've not seen

-Kristian Stanfill

Living in the hope that only Jesus can bring...

Read More 0 comments | Posted by Katie B |

Law of Diminishing Returns...

I don't know if the title is the right term to use, but it fits in my mind, for my purposes. No offense you to Mickey D's lovers out there, but according to my appetite this is what i have found to be true:

When you first arrive in a foreign country it's a beacon of comfort, then it becomes the go-to when you are past your 'i love asian food honeymoon stage' and then...

it just makes you nauseous.

[I don't know if it's the new dose of McD's in my system or what, but I find myself chugging ginger ale like it's going out of style... ok not that bad but I do crave it to settle my stomach.] Ashamedly I hit this restaurant up about once a week, sometimes more, whereas I NEVER did in the US. The 10% satisfaction at this point is just because it's something to put in a hungry tummy. If you are thinking about bringing a DELI or a BIG BLUE BAGEL shop to the New Town Plaza (our local mall) any time soon, I think NOW is the time! Our team could probably single-handedly keep you in business. I know someone out there's dreamin' about a sandwich shop in Asia... I know I am. So there's my random post for the month. I'll have something more substantial for you later. Maybe something more akin to fruit and vegetables and not greasy fried food. That's substantial, right?

Read More 6 comments | Posted by Katie B |

photo 'round up'

Just wanna catch you up again on some fun things that have happened the past few weeks:

Here we have a roof top BBQ- quite a fun time to gather friends and be able to connect with them and they with one another. Students from different univerisities that we have met while here came and shared food together: from hamburgers and hot dogs to fish balls (like meat balls, but fish and maybe some other stuff) and some funny mushrooms, it was a real feast!

Here are a few of us at a HOT POT restaurant to celebrate Joe's birthday. These people have truly become dear friends and we really enjoy fellowship with them. If you haven't tried hot pot... well, you should! Boiling flavorful soup with meat, potatoes, noodles, and more and more. (Yep we got the 'all you can eat' deal!) They had fish balls there too- that and pigs blood - but we didn't partake in that. The pig stomach was ok...

Next, "the girls" on the peak. In case you haven't been to most of the rest of our team's blog, we took our friends to the top lookout site in Hong Kong. It's always amazing to visit there and to see others experience it for the first time. Awe inspiring to say the least...

You can see Cat, Cecilia, Malorie, Claudia, Christy, Me, Vicki, and Mary Reading... I love these girls!

This is me, Vicki, and Stella after our Mong Kok shopping trip in front of a statue that i really don't understand.

Then a group of us at "high tea" again... with a few new friends.... sharing an afternoon together.

Here we are acting like a starbucks advertisement- we keep this place in business- especially this one, which is by the harbor and has an amazing view. Amazing conversations followed this photo, just in case you were wondering.

Last we have a shot from a wedding Maik and I had the privilege of being a part of: His friend from Germany married a girl from Hong Kong. The wedding was a beautiful testimony to Christ in their lives. I was able to put my dozen bridesmaid experiences to use directing and structuring the ceremony and Maik used his pastoral and preaching skills officiating. I was also pretty proud I was able to hop on and off stage in heels, play guitar and sing and not fall. Success! (oh and we ate goose feet (see I'm holding it with my chopsticks) and sea moss too... traditional Chinese wedding food.. quite exciting!)

In all our goings and comings, activity and conversation, I can say that we are enjoying the privilege of being here in Hong Kong. The Lord has placed amazing people around me to work with and amazing students to share life with. I pray we can continue to grow together and that we will understand the depths of what it means to be "the branches." (John 15)

⁵ “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶ Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned. ⁷ But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted! ⁸ When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father.

⁹ “I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love. ¹⁰ When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. ¹¹ I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!¹² This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. ¹³ There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. ¹⁴ You are my friends if you do what I command. ¹⁵I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me. ¹⁶ You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name. ¹⁷ This is my command: Love each other.

Read More 4 comments | Posted by Katie B |

a big little side story...

Here is a progression of our living room in pictures... because of one brother in the local body of Christ who chooses to live his life unto God instead of himself, "storing up for [himself] the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that [he] may take hold of that which is life indeed" through his generosity. He is the arm of God to us by providing our furniture for our flat. Real life evidence of what the church is designed to be, and the blessing that follows. Our sacrifice to move here is not as huge as that which many others make, but I can tell you that we have experienced the abundant life that He has promised for those who trust Him. Not to mention the fact that we happily deflated the airbeds we lived on for a few weeks until our "real" furniture arrived... Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

1 Timothy 6:

⁶But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment.

⁷Forwe have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either.

⁸If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content. ⁹But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. ¹⁰For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

¹¹But flee from these things, you man of God, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness.

¹²Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

¹³I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who testified the good confession before Pontius Pilate,

¹⁴that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ,

¹⁵which He will bring about at the proper time--He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, ¹⁶who alone possesses immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see To Him be honor and eternal dominion! Amen.

¹⁷Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy.

¹⁸Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share,

¹⁹storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed.

^{John 16:}²³

In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. ²⁴Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.

Here are a group of girls, putting this furniture to good use, experiencing the joy that comes from the One who thought of it in the first place... Asking for more joy and for everyone to experience that goodness for themselves! This IS "life indeed."

Read More 1 Comment | Posted by Katie B |

transforming love...

I got the chance to share a little bit of my story at the English class where we volunteer and have met some great friends! I thought I might let you in on what we talked about...

and... to keep it interesting... (and hopefully share life-giving words)

Yes, that's me in my "easter parade" tutu when I was five. It brought about some laughs, but I hope the image stays in our minds of this life-transforming truth: my life is worth His life because that's the price He paid to redeem us!

"Christ is the revelation of [God's] love. He is the Son of His love, the gift of His love, the power of His love. This Jesus has sought on the cross to give an overwhelming proof of His love in His death and bloodshed, so as to make it impossible for us not to believe in that love." -Andrew Murray

Lord, make it impossible, by your grace, for me to doubt your love. Make it more than possible for the world to receive it.

Read More 0 comments | Posted by Katie B |

I love these people...

Here are a few of the many new friends we have made since we got here. They are truly a joy to be around. And when I say I love these people, of course my love is not limited to just the ones that you see in these pictures... but here are a few great people you should meet! We had lunch at a food court nearby Polytechnic University and below is a Tea Party at our flat! It's so exciting to be in community here!

Read More 0 comments | Posted by Katie B |

"Be to Do"

This really resonates with me these days... after working in full time ministry for years, still there is pressure to show results (which are so important!) but if the means deny the power of Christ for our own lives all can be lost and we will burn out. More than ever before He is forcing me to press into Him, who calls us to BE TRANSFORMED (a lifelong journey, thus the name of my blog) -so that- we would know his good, acceptable, and perfect will. Hopefully this will be a window into what life is like for me and maybe speak to your mode of living and walking with Him. Read the original article here from Dr. Scott Rodin on ChinaSource.

How do you find that balance in a job that is measured solely by doing? That is the challenge we face, and you will need to fight that battle first on a personal level. Restoring the balance between being and doing is the first and most critical responsibility of any worker in God’s kingdom. The enemy will deceive us into thinking that God desires our doing first, even at the expense of our being.

If you believe this statement, then let me ask how well that priority is reflected in your daily schedule. Does your work life reflect God’s priority of forming and shaping you to be a child of God, that you might do the work of the kingdom? How much time are you spending intimately in the Word of God, in prayer, in devotion? In what ways do you make yourself available daily for God to take you on the journey of the transformation of your heart?

Far too many pastors and ministry leaders who are called to be sowers of the Word of God enter each day with empty seed bags. We cannot sow what we do not have, and what replenishes our seed bags is not our doing but our being; our availability to the movement of the Holy Spirit to bring us to deeper faith, richer fellowship and greater understanding.

Maintaining this balance will require you to fight this battle in your place of work. In a system that expects us to be doers, you will have to battle to find and maintain the balance of the faithful leader in God’s kingdom.

When we are operating and whole and healthy people in Christ, we can then have a sustainable ministry and life bearing eternal fruit, that only He can manifest in and through us. (John 15)

Romans 7:(AMP)

⁴Likewise, my brethren, you have undergone death as to the Law (the high Holy standard of God that causes sin in us drive us to live in a system where we are having to "do" something in order to "be" something) through the [crucified] body of Christ, so that now you may belong to Another, to Him Who was raised from the dead in order that we may bear fruit for God.

⁵When we were living in the flesh (mere physical lives), the sinful passions that were awakened and aroused up by [what] the Law [makes sin] were constantly operating in our natural powers (in our bodily organs, in the sensitive appetites and wills of the flesh), so that we bore fruit for death.

⁶But now we are discharged from the Law and have terminated all intercourse with it, having died to what once restrained and held us captive. So now we serve not under [obedience to] the old code of written regulations, but [under obedience to the promptings] of the Spirit in newness [of life].

May I hear ever so clearly the promptings of the Spirit as I seek Him more than a formula or result. Jesus, be the result.
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[ I know cookies are not necessarily sustainable fruit , but if it's your first time to ever work with cookie dough and bake them yourself, you come pretty close to heaven on earth, especially if it's with good friends!! Meet my friends Stella and Claudia. They're the best. Also, having an oven after being without one for 3 1/2 months is awesome too. ]

Read More 1 Comment | Posted by Katie B |

YES!

He IS everything! He is worth our lives because He is THE LIFE!

"...I have come that you may have life and have it abundantly." John 10:10

Read More 0 comments | Posted by Katie B |

Pictures telling the story...

When I have these huge gaps in blogging I find it difficult to even know where to start... so I saw that I actually took some photos this week and wanted to share them (and of course they also are a great tool to show you a bit of my life here).

On a random note, Malorie and I have been dreaming about these...And now that we have an oven (most HK kitchens to not come with one, so we invested in a mini one. So far i know it can at least bake cookies!) It might be a real possibility to have biscuits!! It's always fun to take the challenge on of "can we make this like we do at home". If anyone has any great biscuit recipes, send 'em our way.

That "W" word at the right side of the screen still defines our time here. I am able to be thankful for this word and what it means in my life because it has broken my own will again, brought me to surrender... again.... and opened my heart and hands to receive what the Lord has for me. Join me in praying for vision and clarity in these days. I want to see what Father is already doing around me and simply do that wholeheartedly. I like the mission statement of Oak Mountain Church in Birmingham... that they desire to be a people who "seek grace from God, share grace in community, and show grace to all." Not only in the meantime, but for all I do I pray pray pray that this emanates from my life in such a way that is transforming to myself, my community, and all that I meet. Waiting on Him for my every next step has been an amazing discipline of listening, walking by the Spirit, and choosing to love what and who He loves.

Next is a snap of [some] of our lovely staff team.... sitting at the kids table. Ready to take our spiritual gifts and personality inventories. We meet each Monday morning to plan, pray, dream, and scheme of what He has for us each week, and let me tell you, He has assembled some amazing people. It's always a beautiful thing to see how God has given people each a unique gift and passion. I am humbled and blessed to be a part of the work of art He is creating in and through our team.

I don't have a picture, but you can check out the ones of my more diligent photo taker teammates. I got to spend some time waiting on a delivery from the lovely IKEA (cheap quick furniture that we are so thankful for) and praying for a friend whom I met for lunch. Think of her as I got the chance later that afternoon to share about His love and purpose for life and that He would do a work in her heart.

Here is the window in the chapel at Chinese U. Historically, it was made of some Christian colleges that originated in mainland. We were told that the curtains are pulled back at the end of the service, illuminating this cross and reminding the people that the Light is Coming! This idea that Christ WILL return stirs my heart in a way that few things do. I long for Him to do so, and may we live like it's about to happen tomorrow... Revelation 22-¹⁷The Spirit and the Bride say, "Come." And let the one who hears say, "Come." And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.

Stanley Market is one of my favorite places that I got to share with these fine friends:

The weather in HK is finally at the little-to-no-sweat level for the most part. Mid to high 80's/mid to low 70's... that's 31-22 Celcius for you metric system people. (I am trying to get used to that...) You will also see the "Three Lucky Guys" in this other picture. They are part of a great group of friends we have met. We called them this because of a Chinese belief:

The symbolic Three Star Gods- Fu Lu Shou signifies the importance of Good Fortune, Prosperity and Longevity in the Taoist aspirations and traditions. With rich cultural roots, Taoist concept goes back to the age of the Ming Dynasty and the deities of Fu Lu and Shou were considered to represent these attributes and are today equally revered. Today Fu Lu Shou is considered as a single term to represent these three attributes to living a good life.

And it truly is a good life here- I wouldn't trade it for anything. I hope to share more soon, but for now, enjoy the photos!

Read More 3 comments | Posted by Katie B |

this resonates.

I hope that those of you who read this blog have also received my monthly update in your inbox recently. (If you did not and would like to, just email me so I can add you to the list.) If you read that you will know the background for this. A word that our team has talked about over and over again is "wait". We have been exhorted to do this so much and have been forced to do this because of our unique circumstances that I almost hate to even hear the sound of the word wait. I tend to get antsy, rarely like to linger, and am often ready just to "get the job done." Listening to this song this morning had new meaning to me today after sifting through what it really means to wait through our experience this month. When all my flesh wants to just run after something, and He asks me to sit, I have no choice but to do that. My will is broken, and I surrender to Him because He knows best. Brooke Fraser says it better than I, but I love how she articulates this process.

You'll Come

I have decided I have resolved to wait upon you Lord
My rock and redeemer shall not be moved- I'll wait upon you Lord

As surely as the sun will rise
You'll come to us as certain as the dawn appears

You'll come let your glory fall- As you respond to us
Spirit reign flood our hearts with holy fire again

We are not shaken we are not moved. We wait upon you Lord
Our Mighty deliverer my triumph and truth- I'll wait upon you Lord

Chains be broken, Lives be healed
Eyes be opened, Christ is revealed

My prayer is that the last two lines will be the results of our waiting on the guidance of our loving Father and our resolve to not be shaken because we are not moved by things looking differently than we anticipated. There is a bigger goal in mind and there is much in store for our hearts and those that we engage with. We are not hanging on to a ministry or definition of that, we are clinging to Him. He is FAITHFUL to COME TO US (Hosea 6), FILL us (Romans 15) and FLOOD our HEARTS (Romans 5)! Join me in asking for MORE.

Read More 1 Comment | Posted by Katie B |