pray for the hearts of many.

I want to thank you so much for offering to pray for my camp trip to Rockbridge. It is such a gift knowing that I have people surrounding me who have the same heartbreak over high school students that I do. I woke up this morning for the first time excited for this camp trip. I think previously I had been distracted by numbers, health forms, checks, cash all the dumb details that go along with taking kids to camp but now I am excited, I am breathing easily and cannot wait to be with these kids. I am really excited that Hickory is taking about 25 kids on this trip and all of Chesapeake is taking close to 200!!!


Of course I would love for you to pray for all the kids on this trip but selfishly please pray for these 10 girls of whom are ALL first timers, I wanted to include a little something about each so you know what to pray for.

Stephanie- she is conforming to this world quickly and easily, she believes goodness will get her into heaven and is EXTREMELY worried about what others think of her and won't let go.

Elyssa- quiet reserved and she has never been able to make the choice to live for Christ it was just told to her by her family, pray that this is the week it becomes hers.

Kelli- Kelli goes through the motions of going to youth group, church but sees her faith being based upon legalism. She is a girl who will thrive with all the crazy stuff we do at camp pray that the Gospel becomes hers not something distant or an obligation.

Amber- She is moving to Texas two week after we get back this could be the last time she ever hears the Gospel. She is another that will thrive in the insanity and is a bit boy obsessed.d

Francesca- I had to beg her parents to let her come she is Catholic and her mom isn't the biggest fan of out of Church ministries, Francesca is bound by legalism and doesn't see that Christ a freedom giver.

Megan- Probably one of the most intimidating freshman I know, she is really quiet and secretive if that makes any sense, pray that she would open up I literally know nothing about her.

Bailey- Megan's best friend pray that they don't seclude themselves from the rest of the group.

Hallie- She grew up with an extremely stern mother, and knows the right answers knows what to say and how to say it.

Emily- This girl is so precious to my heart, pray she wouldn't sit in club thinking she has already heard this all before and tune it out pray she would hear it for the first time.

Haley- Pray that her absent minded nature wouldn't put up more walls around her heart than are already there, she has such a sweet sensitive heart and I pray that the truth of Christ would penetrate it deeply.

Lastly for me:
Pray for boldness, that I would NOT be afraid of these girls that I would live with these girls that I would run HARD with them and that I would really be able to put them at a crossroads. I want to treat this trip like it is my LAST chance with each of these precious girls. Please pray for my physical health I am worried about how I will do on the obstacle course as well as this hike we are doing in the morning.

I am sitting in our office right now as all the other schools are figuring out cabins and who to put where and of course my pride is being pushed but I am so thankful that I get to be in a cabin with 10 girls that I love so so deeply and that I don't have to worry about splitting them up or not being with all of them.

Thank you so much thank you thank you. I will try to send a little update mid-week.

Ezekiel 34:1-16

Giving your life away... that is what these sweet women to the left did for me when I was in high school and even into college and of course even now. Carrie was my Young Life leader (red hair) she would have me at her house every weekend for sleep overs would take me to coffee would take me on errands to her office everything, Meghan (second from the right)is my best friend, she also was my fake leader in high school for a semester and this woman loves me so incredibly well, just last week I was crying outside of the post office to her on the phone and she encouraged and loved me and pushed me into Christ. Lesa, I was able to love and disciple when she was a freshman and I was a senior in high school and Heather (far left) did that very same thing for me when I was a sophomore and she was a senior... giving your life away...

What the heck does that even look like now? I have been learning so much about what this means over the past few days, to give it all to share it all and to have no remorse or regret for it. SO many times when I have told people that I am being convicted over giving my life away they tell me "thats all you do Katie" oh gosh what a sweet lie. In my brain I am thinking about how I can shine, when I can get a break, when I can do this or that or how this will give me the best outcome instead of dying to everything that includes me and giving it to you, to them.
I think often about my afternoons recently and it has been incredibly hard for me to go to the school, admitting that here is really humbling because of course I want to hide that from everyone. I haven't been able to get enough courage to go there the past week and a half!! Don't get me wrong I have picked girls up from school but I've gone around the parents loop to get them I didn't inconvenience myself by parking in the student lot and getting out of the car to walk amongst students, no sir that was too much for me this week. I can't figure out why this is happening right now, they are in their final weeks of school and I just can't make it... I pray that this is the last time I say this to anyone but I pray for the feeling of urgency that is so often talked about.

I realized this last night that I see often times my high school students almost like an enemy that I have to make an allie instead of seeing them like myself, struggling, trying to live this life but for so many of them it is for a different mean and by my giving my own life away they can maybe see where real, full life comes.
My heart is overflowing with Christ and why would I not want to give that overflow away? I want to give it away to stop hoarding my heart, stop hoarding my life and die to myself. I pray that as I get ready for camp I can become more aware of dying to myself and giving my life away.

Reading Ezekiel I found such a sweet vision of our God the saving God we know:
"For thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered, so will I seek out my sheep, and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land. And I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the ravines, and in all the inhabited places of the country. I will feed them with good pasture, and on the mountain heights of Israel shall be their grazing land. There they shall lie down in good grazing land, and on rich pasture they shall feed on the mountains of Israel. I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord GOD. I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice.

He will search for them, He will love them He will rescue them from ALL the places where they have been scattered... I breathe that in and cannot comprehend how His entire life is for us... how I pray the same for me.

For now the Lord is humbling me... deeply and fully... thankfully.