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Today...Pray for Abby! Click on the side bar to read her story!

New Year Resolution(s)

It is amazing to me that it is already 2009! I had always heard that time begins to move faster when you get older, but I had no idea it would move this fast. Over the past year Keith and I have managed to accomplish and encounter many amazing things. Here are few that are on my mind (in random order):

1. We were married on January 26, 2008...we are closely approaching our first anniversary!
2. We spent a week in Jamaica celebrating our marriage.
3. I started the nursing mobility program...one step closer to be completely done with school!
4. The Generation Band completed their first CD.
5. We experienced God move in a mighty way through our college ministry.
6. God laid it upon our hearts to begin a non-profit ministry that provides opportunities for individuals to travel to orphanages and serve our God...See the Need!
7. Keith's father survived a massive heart attack...to God be the Glory!
8. We planned our first international mission trip through our non-profit organization.
9. We added a member to our family: A 901b. Weimaraner named Bella.
10. Keith visited New Orleans for school...said he would never go back.
11.Realized that there is nothing more precious on this earth than family!

These are just a few of the major events that occurred this past year...I know I am leaving tons out! It was a very busy year. As 2008 came to a close, and 2009 began I found myself once again making resolutions for this next year. In the past I have made resolutions that are so far out of reach I know that I will never accomplish them, but this year I have been slightly more reasonable.

New Year Resolutions for 2009
1. Become closer to God. This is by far the most important on my list. My heart is yearning to learn and know my God more. It is something that has constantly been on mind the past few weeks. God is doing so many great things in our lives, and I want to know more of Him.

2. Eat health. Much less important than the first, but what I can say. I am not going to say that I want to lose weight in 2009, but I would like to fill my body with more healthy items. This one will prove to be very difficult. Keith and I have such crazy schedules that eating usually consists of fast food on the way to where we are going or a frozen pizza because we are both too tired to cook. I know that the first step to meeting this challenge is to only buy healthy foods, so when I finally have time to go to the store that is definitely what I am going to do.

3. Complete the BSN portion of my mobility program. This one will be completed in approximately 4 months...so this one is pretty much done! Thank you Lord! I hear the master's program is a little easier, so I am looking forward to that...and to finishing!

4. Be more spontaneous! Keith will love this one! I am usually a "I need a plan" kind of person, but this year I am going to leave a little bit of that behind...or at least I am going to try.

5. Focus a bit more of my time on "my girls" in the youth department. I love my girls, but I can honestly admit that I have neglected them over the past year. We have been so busy with other things that I have failed to make time for them. I know that God has put each one of them in my life for a reason and I feel a little responsible for them now. My greatest desire would be that they would grow to be beautiful women of God, and I pray that God would give the wisdom to lead them in this direction.

6. Last but not least...to show my husband every single day how much I love him. I must say that I really believe that Keith and I have a great relationship. Yes we are married, so we do fight, but overall we are generally a very peaceful couple. I make this resolution because I know that somedays I can be harsh and moody, but I always love him. God has blessed with an incredible man, and even though he is a little hard to handle sometimes...just a little...I love him and I never want him to go a day without knowing exactly how I feel.

So here they...six things that will happen over the next year. I also plan to update my blog a lot more.

One thing that I would like to mention would be our upcoming trip to Mexico. We will be leaving the 25th of January and traveling to Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. This is part of our non-profit org. There has been concerns over safety and the condition of the border town we will be traveling to. I would like to ask anyone who reads this blog to please keep us (there will be four of us traveling) in your prayers this week. We will be leaving the 25th and return home on the 31st. Not only would we like your prayers for safety, but we also pray that God would be glorified through this trip. We will be spending lots of time with approximately 110 orphans and their caretakers. My brother and I have previously visited this orphanage and it brings tears to my eyes thinking that in only two weeks we will be there with them again. Needless to say, I can't wait. I pray that God uses us and the supplies that have donated to this orphanage to minister to these children and show them God's love.
I will post pictures when we return, but until then please check out our orgs. website and blog for new info.

Until then...

Love wins!