trouble.

so my friend liz gave me this louie giglio sermon to watch... now i'm a louie fan and all but honestly i really wasn't that excited about tuning into two 45-minute Passion Conference sermons on dvd.

well i finished part II last night... and i was blown away. there is this central and beautiful truth that louie reveals that i just cannot get over. i want to share it with you.. whoever reads this ha... but i'm no lou so forgive me if this doesn't sound as eloquent. (if you do have 90 spare minutes on your hands.. go get the dvd... its called HOPE- When Life Hurts Most)


John 16:33 says: "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

so essentially... louie's 90 minutes in a nutshell was this:

1. Trouble... earth-shattering, heart-ripping, life-altering, pain-staking TROUBLE... is inevitable. It. Will. Come. if it hasn't already.
2. The Cross... is the worst and the best thing that ever happened. Christ experienced more pain and suffering than anyone of us so that we might have a Savior who understands our pain. Jesus offers Himself and His cross as an anchor of hope no matter what we face in life.
3. Suffering.. then becomes something we can endure... but more importantly suffering becomes a way for us to bring His name glory.... a way for us to use our darkest moments for His fame. When life hurts most, the world listens most intently to our message... allowing us to show through our pain the goodness of the One who loves us the most.

i'm not in the midst of a big storm or tragedy right now... i don't wanna say that i feel something coming cuz i could be wrong... but if trouble is coming my way, the Lord has sure been preparing me. i really do believe there is beauty in the midst of suffering. when we suffer, we are closest to Christ... and that is exactly where i want to be.

me and my friend amanda have worn this video out watching it. the song is incredible and so is the story behind it.

KENYA.

A few pics from Kenya...

more on facebook if you have one.

Back to the States.

Yes... I've returned from my adventure in Kenya. I'm happy and sad to be back. I've been trying to process through my whole expereince so that I don't sound like a blabbering idiot when I blog about it. I'm still working on that.

I decided to conform and get a facebook... but primarily for the purpose of sharing all the pics. So you can search me... Meghan Strickland... obviously. I've put up all the pics and wrote a little about each one. I'm in the process of putting together a little write-up with pics and little stories and things I took away from my time in Kenya.

For now.. I'll just say a little bit (even though that is not easy to do)... Kenya was incredible, overwhelming, heart-breaking, encouraging, humbling, unforgettable, and many more emotions all in one. i loved it and I want to go back. The people are beautiful... in every way. But the poverty you hear about and see on tv, if youve never been, is very very real. It is an absolute different world. It's hard to comprehend. My heart was ripped out. But the joy, the faith, and the HOPE of the people is what kept my heart from breaking into a million pieces... because, it can't. You can't stay sad for long when you see how these people treat one another like family and they praise God for everything and kids love school and they take joy in the little things.

I've heard it said by friends who have gone to Africa.. but now i can officially say it and know that its true: We (Americans) may be so blessed with material things and we may have so much... but the people in Katito, Kenya have something we don't have. We say they live in poverty... and they do.. very much so.. in fact they live in extreme poverty (less than $1 a day)....... BUT we too live in poverty in America... a different kind of poverty... but poverty nonetheless.

A definiton of poverty is the deprivation of those things that determine the quality of life. We tend to deprive ourselves of true joy.. of what it means to be content in all circumstances.. of enjoying one another... of not keeping ourselves busy... of being thankful... of giving God the Glory and the credit He deserves.

Kenyans have all these things.. and they've taught me all these things and more. Now I'm just trying to figure out how to innovate... how I can bring a little bit of Kenya to America and incorporate it into my life everyday... because I cannot keep living the way I do. I must try to slow down. I must try to be grateful. I must try to care about others more. I must try to enjoy God's creation.

3 DAYSSS!

Yes!

I am 3 days away from Kenya and I don't know what to do with myself... I really don't even have time to be writing this. But I am ecstatic. God has provided in abundance for this trip... I'm so excited to see what I am going to experience and learn.

People keep asking me if I'm ready. As far as physically getting packed and all that... I'm getting there. But mentally, emotionally, and most importantly spiritually "ready"... wow, I don't know. My prayer has been.. God, prepare me. Prepare my heart, Lord. But I just don't think there is anyway for me to be fully prepared.

I know the statistics. I've read about the poverty. I've heard first-hand accounts. I've seen real footage of the people in Kenya. And those things have affected me deeply...

But I haven't met the people that make up those statistics. I haven't hugged the child I send money to each month. I haven't experienced life in Africa. I cannot prepare myself for this. And I can't imagine how this trip is going to affect me... because Africa has already found a place in my heart... now my compassion can only grow more.. as the people in Katito, Kenya become real to me. I cannot wait to return and share with you.



"Let my heart be broken with the things that break the heart of God."
-Bob Pierce, World Vison Founder

Don't move.

"Therefore, my beloved brothers..

be steadfast,

immovable,

always abounding

in the work of the Lord,

knowing

that in the Lord

your labor IS NOT in vain."

-1 Corinthians 15:58

God is engraving this scripture on my heart right now.  I really mean that.  I've almost never felt more certain of God speaking through his word than now.  The crazy "coincidences" like randomly committing this verse to memory recently.. the fact that a girl stood in the middle of a service at Mercy House to read it... opening my bible up to the exact verse again and again.. my best friend sending me a word of encouragement via text message today and of course the message being 1 Corinthians 15:58.

I've been praying for God to reveal His significance behind this verse to me.  He is slowly but surely beginning to show me... well maybe its more like I'm slowly but surely starting to listen.  

I'm in austin.  The beautiful diverse city I will be moving to in the fall.  I love the city.  I am constantly reassured that this is where God has me to be.  In the past few days of being here I have befriended people of many ethnic groups and cultures and beliefs.  I have met a Jewish person, an atheist, a Muslim, a who-cares-about-religion type.  I love these people I have met.

However, I must remain steadfast.  I pray for encouraging believers here in Austin like the friends I am so blessed with at home.  

God's word is truth.

His word is real.

His word is alive.

Thank you Jesus.

You are my Rock.

GRACE.

oh where to begin... i have a million and one things to blog about. let me just say.. this last month has been crazy.. but wonderful.


well big milestone #1... i graduated high school. Praise the sweet Lord!

i am also preparing for Kenya in July... yes yes and yes!

i have UT orientation in a few weeks which only means that i am getting closer and closer to being in Austin.. probably my favorite city.


so that's the rundown of big events.. not to mention ten million things in between. But on to more important things... like big JC. o yes it always goes back to Jesus.

so my friend Lauren recently re-introduced me to this thing called GRACE. its a strange deal this "grace". it is completely irrational. it is not fair in anyway. it cannot be earned. it is free to all. it is the center of the Gospel.

i say she re-introduced GRACE to me because it seemed as if me and her both forgot about this beautiful idea... well not really an idea, but a reality we had simply disregarded. i realized that legalism in my life had begun to take the place of grace. For a short period i had started to become somewhat of a legalist.. which i would have never never have called myself... but it was true. and legalism resulted in judgement... which in turn resulted in my lack of ability to love others unconditionally... and before i knew it grace was no longer something i even understood (not that we ever truly can)... but better said, grace was something i didn't let myself experience because i was trying to be a saint by my own strength.

Legalism is such a terrible terrible cycle.. and a tiring one at that. Its an exhausting way to live. But GRACE... now grace... Grace is a most beautiful place to live. And by "living in grace" that does not mean living by license.. not in the least bit. It is realizing and accepting that I am a sinner just like my neighbor... i can never do anything to be better than my brother or sister... i can never do anything to be good enough for God... all i can do, is accept His Grace. And in that grace i am made clean.


GRACE.
i need you//

kenya update.

umm.. can i just say God provides! yes.. yes He does.

with the help of my mom and good friends, we have reached the halfway mark for my trip! $2000 in a little over 3 weeks. Praise God!

Here's a little behind the scenes in my "sweatshop" as some call it.

oh yea.. and here's a few photos of the bro... big bday weekend. Go mike!