My word for 2021

If you caught my last post, you saw that 2020 was a year I truly lived into the word God gave me...bloom! What a life changing year, where God tore the old roots out, and grew something even more beautiful in my life! Praise Him! 

So this year...as I sought the Lord for a word for 2021, I thought maybe it would be a word in the same vein. NOPE! He went a whole other direction, haha! 

The word God gave me was....drumroll please...

"WORDS". 

At first, I wasn't quite sure if I heard correctly. "Words" is a weird "word" to receive, but lo and behold, God made it quite clear that it was for me! 

If you've followed me for any length of time, you know that during my blogging heyday, I was churning out 3-4 posts a week, reaching thousands of people within minutes of publishing my posts. Every time I sat down at my computer, God just downloaded what He wanted me to write...what He wanted me to communicate and say. It came so naturally, words flowed so freely. 

But in late 2015, when it was clear a major stronghold of fear (see here) began to dictate my life and  I deleted my IG and mostly stopped blogging, it felt like all inspiration came to a screeching halt. I no longer was able to just sit down and pour my heart out into the virtual world. Looking back now I can see it was because I allowed my fear of man to cloud the vision God had for me. I went into hiding, and so did my words (or more accurately, God's words that He wanted me to write). 

As 2020 lit a match that burned down my stronghold and lightened my load (PRAISE GOD!), I now feel ready to step into a year of listening, writing and sharing. 

I'm by NO MEANS promising any literary genius, because I know that I don't have any. 

But if God is calling me to something, and HE provides the inspiration, then I know I am in good hands. May deepest desire is to walk closely with the Lord, to hear his voice, and be used in any way I can to bring His Kingdom here on earth. 

Some of the "words" I hope to write this year....

- Continuing to share more of my freedom journey (which I alluded to in my last post where I talked about overcoming a major stronghold in my life and becoming aware of an actual diagnosis which requires me to manage my thoughts in a very concentrated way) 

- Writing my children's book about the travels and journies of young girls around the world! I'm super excited for this one. While my hope was to travel to each place that I plan to set my story, I'm not sure if covid will allow me to do that, so I will rely on my memories of each place to bring me through that one!

- Writing more on motherhood, mental health (as I am a therapist), and documenting some upcoming fun design projects we have going on at our house!! 

Anything else you'd want to see me write about?? 

So cheers to a year of listening and writing the WORDS He gives me. I hope you'll come along for the journey!!

Did God give YOU a word this year?? xoxo 

Our Easter

He is Risen!! He is Risen Indeed!!
(Avie learned to say this phrase this year, and it was fun to watch her shout it with JOY!)

This was probably the most meaningful Easter I've ever had.
Funny, given the circumstance.
I had thought social distancing and covid would put a damper on it.
But not even a pandemic can dampen the brilliance of the cross,
when rightly understood and experienced.

I woke up with the sun shining on my face, my heart crying out "He has RISEN!"
and my soul exclaiming the sentiment.
There was resonance. 
We're always supposed to be excited about Easter,
but truth be told,
it's the tradition of gathered family, boisterous laughter and delicious food that normally riles me.
Not necessarily what Jesus did on the cross.

But not this year.

This year I woke a free woman. As many of you read in this post, I spent almost four years living in bondage. Last Easter Jesus begin freeing me from the stronghold, and this Easter I feel like I was FULLY experiencing the FREE and OVERFLOWING redemptive and abundant life Christ died for us to have.

You can expect to hear more about these strongholds, but for now, I'm mulling over this process and journey in my heart and asking God for clarity in how to write about it. My prayer and hope is that my experience might touch and reach out to any of you that feel caught or trapped by a stronghold. The saddest part, is that I wasn't even fully aware or had the ability to articulate what exactly was going on in my life at the time, in regards to a stronghold.

But Easter was gorgeous, both inside my heart and outside in the physical world. It was sunny and the whole world seemed to be blooming and blossoming. The air smelled sweet and the sun warm and bright.

We started the day listening to a few different services, our home church and then a bigger mega church we used to go to. To stand in my kitchen and worship the Lord, hands raised, holding a babe, was holy.  Then we played outside in our new sandbox that Kevin built on Saturday (or as I've been calling it…my free babysitter, as the kids LOVE it hahah).

Then we went over to my parents house (We have been quarantining with my parents). My dad made a roast lamb, and my mom had a delicious spread and topped it off with angel food cake and strawberries. Is angel food cake an Easter tradition for anyone else?

We then hid the eggs so Avonlea could hunt for them! She loved it so much, it was adorable. We did about 3 rounds of easter egg hunts, haha! My parents still always do a scavenger hunt for us kids (even though we are all in our 30's, haha! We always get candy and a Christian book, so sweet.

What did you do this Easter? Sending you lots of hugs and blessing: )

birthday love in newport beach

this past weekend Nate-dawg and Jenna surprised me for my birthday. 

{which is next Saturday, march 9th}

they took me and Kev on a boat cruise in Newport bay. 

it was a gloriously sunny day.

we sipped mimosas 

and laughed a lot. 

we talked and toasted one another

and just let the wind take us further and further into the bay. 

at one point i just looked around me

at the beauty of the sail boats passing by,

and the paddle boarders and kayakers,

and just soaked in the peacefulness of the surroundings. 

and i almost teared up. 

for i felt such freedom, such peace. 

i felt safe in the company of these beloved people.

i felt beyond loved.

and mostly i felt thankful, because safety and freedom and peace haven't always been mine. 

and I think there is something extremely beautiful to be said about 

our loving Father making

all things new. 

as I laid my head on Kevin's shoulder,

i whispered to Abba 

a feeble thank you.

but meant it with all my heart. 

what joy there is in counting our blessings! 

happy week dear friends:) 

love Katie 

"It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. 

Stand firm, then, and do not let 

yourselves be burdened again 

by a yoke of slavery." 

- Galatians 5:1

Rest, the place of filling, healing and freedom....

{just one picture from greece....so many more to come!}

today i have the sweet privilege of guest posting for a dear blog friend named Natalie. 

Natalie blogs over at heart stirrings, and always has the most thoughtful and provoking posts. 

my post is about the importance of rest and sabbath. 

REST with the Holy One 

is LIFE with the Holy One

you can read it here. 

may we feel recharged in the Lord's presence today:) 

happy sweet wednesday to you all. 

I will be on the Azusa Pacific Campus the entire day for global vision week! 

woo hoo! 

love katie 

here's to love

This weekend took me by surprise in that our calendar rendered rather open. 

and with that, i spent a lot of time feeling ever so loved. 

truly reflecting on all the goodness that comes with being the apple of someone's eye. 

kev and i snuck away to one of our special "k" dates as we like to call them. 

with a basket of unknown surprises for the other, location disclosed till departure. 

and to that i say,

here's to a love that laughs at all, even himself. 

here's to a love that plays scattagories like it's going out of style, because he knows it's my favorite. 

here's to a love that washes dishes because he wants to serve me. 

here's to a love that allows me to crawl into his lap and cry, often. 

and here's to a love that doesn't judge or fix, but that encourages and inspires. 

what a love. 

and yet, as I took it all in, i realized

that i was in the arms of someone who loved me even deeper. 

that layed it all out for me on a wooden cross 

taking all that broken and ugly and sinful yuckiness. 

that sin that i hide from,

that covers me in shame. 

HE bore that. 

and I am justified AS IS. 

this weekend I had a bit of an epiphany-

I have been pronounced blameless. 

that nothing I do can make God love me more. 

I am most love-able now.

 and now. 

and now. 

the past that likes to haunt and cling,

and make me strive to DO GOOD and EARN

can be shut down now. 

closed. 

bye bye. 

because LOVE deemed me perfect on that cross. 

and to that I say,

here's to a love that says your confidence isn't in your performance, but in the cross

here's to a love that wholly justifies us and clothes us in the righteousness of Christ

here's to a love that shouts "katie, you are completely free!" 

here's to a love that covers us in grace not condemnation

here's to a love that gave it all. 

a love that asks us to live and orient our lives around the cross. 

because that is freedom. 

here's to love friends. 

muah, 

love Katie