Kara's Collection

Kara’s Collection: “You go and do likewise”

Kara’s Collection: “You go and do likewise”

from an article originally posted November 3, 2014…

There was a man trying to justify himself to Jesus.... Isn’t that all of us? Justify. Jesus justify us. And that is exactly what the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus has done. It has justified our living, given value to our hurting, and walked with us through our suffering. But a gentleman was struggling with how he should love, what love looked like. The man in Luke 10 came to Jesus, but I love what it says—he came trying to justify himself. I see so much of that in my own response to Brittany, in the response from our culture. We want to reconcile, to understand, to wrap our minds around all that is broken. And we simply can’t. We feel the brokenness of loss, the devastation of disease, and we long to understand all that is circling our minds. We want simple answers, simple harsh responses to those who might disagree with us—no matter where we sit on this issue. We are all hurting. We are all wrestling with the meaning of our breaths, our moments, our suffering, our living.

Kara’s Collection: Known, Truly Known

from an article originally posted October 31, 2014…

I was kept awake last night from the pain that radiates in my bones. I have the proper pills to help me in my pain, but I simply tire of them. I woke this morning tired and grouchy. I have not left my bed. My oldest has entered the bed beside me, my guy is doing work in the chair next to the bed, and I have been slowly reading through Galatians this morning. It has done my heart great good. It has refreshed me. I love the direct and shaking words of Paul. They have shaken me from my selfish and self-focused thinking. They have lifted my face this morning. Let me share the verse that is loving my heart this morning.

“But now you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world, whose slave you want to be once more?”
— Galatians 4:9

Paul goes on to beg them not to forget Jesus, His abounding love, His sacrifice. He begs them not to return to their former living. But what I love in this verse is where Paul says, rather to be known by God. To be known is to be met specifically. And in the words of Galatians, I hear the sweet admonition of the Spirit that begs me to remember truth, to stop looking to myself, but to look at Jesus. Oh, there are days I need shaking. Days I need the gentle words of Scripture, and days I need the in-your-face, remember-truth words of Scripture.

Next week is another scary snort (PET scan), next week is another treatment, next week there is grace. I believe it is already there. Next week the report will be read if this battle is being won, if this aggressive treatment is working, or if we need to change our game plan. But next week, I am also called to remember truth, to receive the story that is given, and to trust, to trust, to trust Jesus with my moments. I fight to open my hands. I struggle to receive the hard, but I am known. I am intimately known. And in that knownness I find great peace. God is not overwhelmed when I pour, and pour, and pour out my weary to him.

Today marks the end of October. We will move our fire pit to our front yard. We will meet new neighbors, we will enjoy the delights of our community tonight. We will place seats around our fire and hope to capture some of the lives of those in our community and neighborhood. Tonight also ends the first month of my book being published. What a wild and amazing ride it has been. You all have shared my story, looked for grace, loved and encouraged my heart as you have read our story. You have met your loves in looking for grace and living in kindness. You have given my book to friends, shared it with the brokenhearted in your life, and loved me with your amazing feedback. I am thankful. I am humbled. I am awed at the ways Jesus is using the sharing of my heart to open doors into your hearts. Thank you for buying The Hardest Peace. Thank you for writing such gracious and beautiful reviews of the book. Thank you for sharing my journey with those in your life. It has been such a privilege to hear and meet so many of you. Thank you. October has been a beautiful and amazing whirlwind.

I pray tonight you have the opportunity to love and meet your neighborhood. I pray you get to smile in the young faces that come to your door and radiate the beauty you know in Jesus. I pray as you meet your neighbors and love them with your brand of beautiful Big LOVE. I hope to meet and warm a few new faces by my fire tonight. Some of you darken your doors on this day. The freedom we are given in Jesus is to do that or to open wide our doors and meet the faces that come tromping to our door. There is liberty for us all—I do not wish to start a debate on this issue. Simply tell you that tonight, the fire pit is moving from the back yard to the front yard, and the Holy Spirit in my soul will be meeting the faces that enter the warmth of my fire with the known grace I enjoy today... Even when today is hard. I am known, and I hope to share that knowing, loving, pursing Jesus with another today. Jason is on daddy duty walking the neighborhood, then he will join me by the fire in sharing the real warmth we know in Jesus and kindness simply by being a good neighbor.

Kara’s Collection: The Bishop’s Respect Life Dinner

Kara’s Collection: The Bishop’s Respect Life Dinner

from an article originally posted October 30, 2014…

Last night I had the honor of being recognized at the Bishop’s Respect Life Dinner. My dear friend Caia Hoskins has been my champion in life, in my writing, in my sharing of the story that suffering is not a mistake. She loves the unborn babies in our community and is a passionate advocate for life. I have the great privilege of doing life with this passionate woman.

Kara’s Collection: The Beautiful Rough Road

Kara’s Collection: The Beautiful Rough Road

from an article originally posted October 27, 2014…

Waiting, waiting, I have been waiting to feel better. I keep looking around the corner of this disease to find the sunrise of normal to rise. Yesterday, I turned to Jason and asked him what it felt like to feel normal. I asked him what if felt like to not feel weak. I feel like I’m starting to forget. Instead of embracing the moment of feeling a bit better, I’m beginning to panic over the coming treatment. But I remember enough of normal living and loving to long, long, long for a day of normal. I plan normal days, dream of events where we are all present and strong. Not huge strong, but sweet walk-on-a-fall-day strong, sit-by-a-fire-with-a-book strong, laughter-through-tears strong. He turned to me and said, I forget normal too; I have a wife with cancer.

Kara’s Collection: Future love—the art of cherishing life

Kara’s Collection: Future love—the art of cherishing life

from an article originally posted October 23, 2014…

Since the birth of my first daughter, I have written my journals in light of them one day being read. They are simply a family history. The small, silly moments captured, the hard journey in life we have traveled. The honest assessment of each day. So I have journal after journal capturing the essence of our life. One day soon I will reread them to remember those exhausted, amazing days of life with my littles. It was important writing, because in the midst of sleep deprivation, it’s hard to remember. I look forward to revisiting those most precious years I captured in my journals. One day my children may want to read that journey. Maybe not, but it will be there for them. I was always careful to journal with freedom. Some weeks I would write and write, some months the entire month would pass before I would write. But I gave myself freedom.