Crazy Love- Spreading it around....

There is a blog i follow and read every post.Linny is an amazing woman, follower of an awesome mountain moving Awe inspiring God, mother of many adopted and fighter for all.

She inspires me and often moves me to tears. She has had many trials in her life but comes out on top and through all that she shares her heart. Truthfully, honestly and humbly with us.



It's an honor to be able to read her blog to share in her life! Love ya Linny!!!



Now Crazy love if her recent post. It's pretty much about giving back, paying it forward, offering your last dime and walking in faith.



Here are some other blogs who has amazing - chill to the bone stories of "Crazy Love"

Shayleejoy

Adoption Love

Moving to Mali

Hope for Haiti

My Heart's Cry

there are several more out on Linny's blog: A Place Called Simplicity

It takes a bold move to be able to ask for help, well I know it does for me. It's hard to be weak, and humble. Don't we always want people to think we have it all together and under control.
Okay so maybe that is just me. I have so many wants, needs, and desires that I wouldn't know where to start on asking for help. and what do you ask for? what's acceptable? I would love to go on a missions trip. That has been a true heart's desire of mine for along time now. Longing to go, to truly be humbled, to look into the eyes of those who love purely from their heart with no strings attached.

Looking around me i see alot of things, things we have accumulated over the years, things that we could live without, the abundant life we live compared to so many others yet there is always something that needs to change or has to be done. I hate living paycheck to paycheck. scrapping, living in the fear of what if we don't make it and how are we going to pull that off. I don't want to live there. God is so much bigger then that and doesn't want us to live in those places. We are to lay everything down and give it over to him. Every day when i get home from work i am reminded of the things we need:new windows, new flooring, new cabinets, new bathrooms, new doors. things need fixing and improving and updating- we don't have the time or the money or the know how. The flower beds are empty, the siding on the house needs replacing as do the gutters. It's a painful reminder yet when i think of those in Haiti living in tents and their homes that have crumbled how can i ask or want or complain. I can't.

I would love to spend more time giving back to others, just truly being his light in this world.

In what ways can you help spread the love and do you need Crazy Love in your life right now?

Contest New Living Translation Bible

The New Living Translation Break Through to Clarity Bible Contest and Giveaway
Visit www.facebook.com/NewLivingTranslation and click on the tab that says “Sweepstakes”
Fill out a simple form, take a quick Bible clarity survey, invite your friends to join and you’ll be entered to win one of our exciting prizes.
With each fan number milestone a new prize will be given away.
Grand Prize
Apple iPad 64G and a Life Application Study Bible
Awarded when the NLT Fan Page hits the fifth milestone
Retail Value: $829.00
2nd Prize - Already awarded
32G iPod Touch and a Life Application Study Bible
Awarded when the NLT Fan Page hits the fourth milestone
Retail Value: $300.00
3rd Prize – Will be awarded when fan count hits: 3500
Kindle DX and a Life Application Study Bible
Awarded when the NLT Fan Page hits the third milestone
Retail Value: $489.00
4th Prize Will be awarded when fan count hits: TBD
Apple iPad 16G and a Life Application Study Bible
Awarded when the New Living Translation Fan Page hits the second milestone
Retail Value: $499.00
5th Prize Will be awarded when fan count hits: TBD
Apple iPad 32G and a Life Application Study Bible
Awarded when the NLT Fan Page hits the first milestone
Retail Value: $599.00

Prize Eligibility – Recently updated to include more countries
Sweepstakes participants and winner(s) can be U.S. residents of the 50 United States, or residents of any country that is NOT embargoed by the United States, but cannot be residents of Belgium, Norway, Sweden, or India. In addition, participants and winner(s) must be at least 18 years old, as determined by the Company.

Sweepstakes Starts
March 17, 2010 @ 10:24 am (PDT)

Sweepstakes Ends
April 30, 2010 @ 10:24 am (PDT)


Wait, there’s more!
Visit http://biblecontest.newlivingtranslation.com/index.php for a chance to win a trip for two to Hawaii!
Here are the details:
Choose one of six passages of Scripture from the New Living Translation and consider:
How do these verses encourage you to know God better?
What is God teaching you in this passage?
How does this passage apply to your life?
Submit your answer and you’ll be entered to win.
Just for signing up: Everybody Wins! Win a Free .mp3 download from the NLT’s new Red Letters Project. It’s the dynamic, new presentation of the sung and narrated words of the Gospel of Matthew. You win the download just for entering! Or choose to download the NLT Philippians Bible Study, complete with the Book of Philippians in the NLT.
Every day, one person will win the best-selling Life Application Study Bible!
The grand prize: One person will win a fantastic trip for two to the crystal clear waters of the Turtle Bay Resort on Oahu’s North Shore in beautiful Hawaii.

Compassion Bloggers in Kenya

The Compassion team landed in Kenya yesterday and they are all starting to write posts and update us. My heart just aches and goes out to people around the world. God certainly has been stirring something up in my lately to go on a trip, not a vacation but someplace where I can see his beauty and get real.

Over the years I have taken so much for granted and just relied on things well that others don't even know what they are. Running water, toilets that flush, garbage disposals.... light switches. the little things in our every day lives that we have and over look.

What i would give right now to put myself in someone else's shoes to see the grace, mercy, joy and hope real and alive. I see it now sometimes but I believe what Jennifer McKinney has captured in her pictures is REAL and is ALIVE... it doesn't get any more pure then this.

http://www.mycharmingkids.net/

Compassion Bloggers,
Thank you for making 'Help Haiti Live' a success! More than 30,000 people tuned in to see at least a portion of the concert streamed live at HelpHaitiLive.com. Thousands were donated and because of that many Haitian families will continue to receive the care they need in the wake of January's quake. Thank you. 'Help Haiti Live' would not have happened without your on-line support.

THIS MONTH:We turn our on-line attention this month to Kenya. Six bloggers are joining me and our staff in Nairobi March 4-10 to see the ministry of Compassion firsthand and post about it daily in hopes that hundreds of readers will sponsor Kenyan children on-line.

YOUR ASSIGNMENT:
1. Pray: For safety, health, families we leave behind, children awaiting sponsorship, hearts and minds of readers to be opened by God to trust and give.
2. Post: About the trip on your blog, Twitter, Facebook, etc. Link to http://compassionbloggers.com/kenya where the world can see every post, pic and video from our week in Kenya.
3. Read: Follow our blogs, link to posts you like, and encourage those who write them. Every kind word helps.Thank you in advance for making our fifth Compassion Bloggers trip a success for the children of Kenya.

Want to go on a trip with us? Got to http://compassionbloggers.com/get-involved and fill out the 'Take A Trip' form.

Shaun Groves
Blogger Manager
CompassionBloggers.com
Compassion.com
1-888-435-3336

A Friend's Haiti Update

SO HE SAID, "GO FORTH AND STAND ON THE MOUNTAIN BEFORE THE LORD "
AND BEHOLD, THE LORD WAS PASSING BY! AND A GREAT AND STRONG WIND
WAS RENDING THE MOUNTAINS AND BREAKING IN PIECES THE ROCKS BEFORE THE LORD;
BUT THE LORD WAS NOT IN THE WIND.
AND AFTER THE WIND AN EARTHQUAKE, BUT THE LORD WAS NOT IN THE EARTHQUAKE.
AFTER THE EARTHQUAKE A FIRE, BUT THE LORD WAS NOT IN THE FIRE;
AND AFTER THE FIRE A SOUND OF A GENTLE BLOWING.
WHEN ELIJAH HEARD IT, HE WRAPPED HIS FACE IN HIS MANTLE
AND WENT OUT AND STOOD IN THE ENTRANCE OF THE CAVE AND BEHOLD,
A VOICE CAME TO HIM AND SAID, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE, ELIJAH?"
1 KINGS 19:11-13
Scripture used by Haitian pastor in Port-au-Prince Church on Sunday February 7, 2010

Week 1: PORT-AU-PRINCE JAN 19, 2010
I leave for Haiti on a small jet with a team from Medical Teams International. The transportation and fuel is generously provided by a private company. We fly high above the other air traffic at 44,000 ft. and descend upon Port-au-Prince.
We are given only a few short minutes to land and de-board. Each ‘slot’ on the tarmac is timed and accounted for. Aircraft quickly land and take off making room for the next arrival. The roar of helicopters, jets and massive Air Force cargo planes is deafening. UN vehicles and armed soldiers are everywhere. I see the American flag on a military ATV and am thankful that my country is already on the ground, responding to this disaster. I can’t help but notice all the Hearts for Hope HAITI wounded Haitians sitting under a tarp, lined up in chairs with casts and crutches, as though curiously watching this theatrical buzz of activity at the airport to pass away the time. Later I learn that these are only a few of the thousands of hopefuls…trying
to leave the country. I leave the airport, my pocket full of torn papers with names and addresses scribbled on them…given to me by desperate people in the mob that presses in on us while we wait for transportation to headquarters.
King’s Hospital in Port-au-Prince has about 25 beds…and new cracks in the walls that are being checked frequently by engineers.
The building is yet unfinished. It wasn’t scheduled to open quite yet, but the earthquake changed that plan. Patients with broken bones, burns and unseen emotional trauma arrive in a constant stream. Many post-ops have their ‘bed’ outdoors in the dirt under the trees. Because of fear, many others would prefer to be outdoors. When the aftershocks come, they find their way
outside… quickly. A young man in his 20’s is admitted, screaming in anguish and pain over his crushed great toe. The wound is infected. He will have to have an amputation. As I care for him, he breaks out in a familiar song, “This is the day. This is the day that the Lord has made, that the Lord has made. I will rejoice. I will rejoice and be glad in it”…He moans intermittently through the verses. This is the strength only God can give. I am amazed. In the operating room, the surgeons are completing their 4th amputation for the week. Then his case will begin.
I scrub into surgery with Dr.Lou Zirkle and his team. There is no electricity, no suction, and no X-Ray. The operating room is hot and humid. None of these obstacles seem to matter. Dr. Zirkle is gaining world renown for his SIGN method of internally fixating femur fractures in developing nations…and this disaster has provided hundreds of cases for his marvelous method to be
put to use. At the end of the long day and only 2 cases, I am sopping wet and exhausted. Placing all my weight on the broken legs to give traction for several hours while the surgeons worked is quite a workout.
One little girl particularly moves our staff to action. She comes in with serious burns to her face and neck. She had felt the initial shaking of the quake and ran out of her house, only to be run over by a car, the hot exhaust pipe severely burning her fragile body. Miraculously, she got up and ran back into the house to save her mother just before the house collapsed. MTI is able to
get her on a flight to Florida for follow-up burn care and grafting.

Week 2-BALOOSE, SUBURB OF PORT-AU-PRINCE
Dr. Steve, Carol, RN, and I are assigned to Baloose. The sight is the private grounds of the Haitian Baptist Seminary in a hilly suburb of Port-au-Prince. It is estimated that anywhere from 2,500-4000 people are camping on the grass here at night. We have come to provide medical care. It is just one of literally thousands of IDP (Internally Displaced People) camps in and outside of the city. Sheets, tarps…and star-studded sky providing the shelter for these wounded people. The night I arrive, I hear singing outside my window; I decide to go see where this ‘choir’ is practicing. As I walk down the hill, hundreds of people crowd the grounds. Standing and singings praises, their hands are lifted high in the warm night air. They are dancing and swaying to the worship music flowing out of an outdoor PA system. I join them. There is little room to move. I will never forget the feeling of this night’s experience. It is a taste of heaven in the midst of a hellish nightmare. Only the touch of God can bring such a sweet melody to a thousand broken hearts. Patients sit in chairs waiting all day to be seen by our little team. This is when I am reminded of the prayers being said on my behalf. Where does my strength come from? Where does this love come from that flows from the depth of my being? His presence is felt. I listen to countless heartbreaking stories. A 24 yo woman complains of a head wound. “A building collapsed and hit me in the head.” I remove the dressing from 42yo Sergo’s arm wound to find bone exposed and huge chunks of muscle cut away…an incredibly complicated injury. Amazingly, he has full use of his hand. We refer him to another facility where he can receive the care he needs. An 11yo girl sits on a chair in front of me, trying to hold on to the squirming 1 month old baby in her skinny arms. She is obviously ill at ease with the infant. She tells me that she is the only person able to care for the baby whose family perished. Her complaint, “The baby is not eating”. Loveson, 28y, a handsome young man, winces as I remove the poorly placed stitches from his crushed nose. His wound is infected. His face is seriously disfigured. I talk to him about the love of the Lord. He looks at me and says, “I am a Christian. I know God allowed this to happen to me because he knew I would be able to handle it.” Another young girl holds her little waif of a sister, Coraly, in her lap. I have to give Coraly painful wound care. It is so hard to inflict more pain on this precious little one…but I know it is for her good. She is one of 5 sisters
left to fend for themselves after losing their mom and 15 other family members. No dad is in the picture. Little Coraly, may Jesus help you and be your Mommy and Daddy. Francise and Tranquile are 2 elderly women in their ~80’s that Carol and I find on the grass in the heat of the midday sun. They seem so helpless just sitting in the midst of the crowd, baking to death.
They are both suffering from mild dehydration. We hang a couple IV’s on them and get them to a cooler spot. Jean, 25y, tells me how he crushed his finger while digging through the rubble of his home. I can smell alcohol on his breath and sense a profound despondency in his demeanor. As I suture his finger, I share the hope of Christ with him. I feel a deep love and compassion
for him, knowing that I, too, once turned to alcohol to deal with pain. It is so natural to talk with him in a nonjudgmental way. But for the grace of God I go. He returns for wound care several days later with a huge smile on his face sharing that he surrendered his life to Christ. Tears of joy flow from my eyes. In one day, we admit 7 patients to the Israeli hospital. Two are woman with broken pelvises who somehow find their way to our station. They have been untreated since the quake…2 weeks of living with an untreated broken pelvis. We return to headquarters in Port-au-Prince. I join a team with the 82nd Airborne Unit that has made field assessments and is accompanying our medical volunteers to IDP camps where people have not received medical attention. Several of the clinics we hold in the next few days have tense moments when we are grateful for what seems to be overkill at first: a group of fully armed soldiers in combat attire fending off the desperate crowd.

Weeks 3 & 4-LAOGANE AND OUTLYING MOBILE CLINICS
I guess Laogane is pretty close to the epicenter. Getting there is a sport: trying to get through mobs of people, traffic and cracks in the pavement. Our team spends several days at a time there. Some days the trip between camp and Port-au-Prince takes an hour. Some days it takes over 2 hours. We sleep in tents on the grounds of the Ayuda à Haiti (Help Haiti) headquarters:
a Non-profit organization from the Dominican Republic. We are joined by humanitarian aid workers from around the world. The make-shift mobile hospital is just a big circle of open tents. Examiners take their places and the hundreds of patients who are checked in early in the morning wait under tarps for their turn to be seen…sometimes all day. I seize the few
minutes I have in the morning before heading to my examining tent to sit on a broken block, and sing songs and witness to the hundreds of people gathered there. Their laughter and smiles fuel me for the long day of work ahead. It is in Laogane where I learn about the MRE: meals ready to eat (the soldiers clue me in on the best ones) and also that SOS means “Save our Ship”. In Haiti, it is a cry for food and water…or any attention at all. Handmade signs are everywhere.
At the mobile hospital it becomes clear that my dental tools might come in handy. Dr. Steve encouraged me to bring a small set. “Bring them just in case…you never know!” he said wisely before we left the US. So, in the midst of disaster relief, I find myself extracting teeth, with my audience of wishful patients growing each day. To prevent a riot, I develop my own system
of turning patients away. I draw numbers out of the hat at the end of the day, reminding my patients, “I am not God!” I guess the hardest part is knowing the disappointment of those I can’t treat. I am reminded that these people, in the midst of all their other suffering, are victims of chronic abscesses and tooth pain. Few of them have had any dental care at all before
the earthquake. Charles, 6y, comes with half of his face twice normal size as well as his eye nearly swollen shut. He has a fever of almost 103 degrees. I have a special drug that I am able to give him to sedate him and make the extraction extremely easy. Pus flows from the wound. His mother is so sweet and caring, so attentive to him. After he gets his antibiotics and medical
intervention for the fever and abscess, they are on their way. Once again, I am grateful I have something to offer these people that blesses them. We go even deeper into the rural areas to hold several mobile clinics. On 2 occasions, we actually hold clinic at the sight of voodoo temples. Apparently this area is known for its heavy concentration of voodoo practice. While we are treating the witchdoctor as a patient, our souls are being bathed with the sounds of worship from the tiny Christian church on the other side of the hedge. It is such an obvious example of the light dispelling the darkness. I only get ‘violently’ sick once…and just ‘regular’ sick another time. It is a small price to pay. At the headquarters in Portau-Prince, I have made some very special Haitian friends. It is the group of people who live and sleep outdoors on the grounds of the mission. The kids are particularly fun. When I get home at the end of the long hard day, or have been gone for several days and return, they all run up to me, take my bags and guitar…and are ready to ‘play’. I fight the urge to crash out and go outside to join them. We dance. We sing. We color and make crafts. I am so glad I don’t give in to my physical exhaustion…just yet…this is too precious of a moment to pass up. Commercial flights to Haiti are supposed to begin again on the 19th of February…just in time to take me back. It was just too perfect a ‘fit’. As I return to the devastated nation I left behind, I am reminded of a Scripture:

“BY MY GOD, I CAN LEAP OVER A WALL.”
PSALMS 18:29

It seems so a propos in the lives of those Haitians in whom I saw such tremendous inner strength, strength that came from their unwavering faith in a God that has helped them “leap over a wall”…the wall that came crashing down upon them.

Thank you for your prayers and financial support.
All His in 2010 –Kris

2-19-2010

When I originally signed up to be apart of the 40 day challenge I didn’t write a lot. I honestly thought I would never get in and be selected. I wrote the bare minimum as I was also afraid to really live out loud and let others know what was really going on. How do you admit you’re not healthy and that the lifestyle you are living isn’t the best? During that time I had been praying to God to help me with the family weight and health issues. 4 out of 6 of us in our house are overweight and not active. I knew it wasn’t something I could change on my own so I kept praying. Right about that time I had also been telling my husband I really needed new tennis shoes. Then the phone call came, I was one of the 8 qualifiers for the 40 day. It started becoming real but so did all the lies, “why would you be picked, you aren’t anyone they would be interested in, you can’t do this, others deserve this more then you, you really don’t want everyone to know how overweight you are, you are going to make yourself an outcast.” But I pushed through it with strength from God. I pushed and I put myself out there, I asked friends and family for support and votes. They answered and so did the listeners and others following along. I was chosen to be one of the final 4.
The journey began- God answered those prayers and cries for help. I got my new shoes. My 2 older daughters are very interested in the bootcamp and what I am doing and want to do it with me. My husband has been very supportive. The challenges and tests came along with this process. Sickness, kids, life, it was all very real. About 4 weeks in I did want to quit. Just like I normally would with anything. It starts to feel as no one is really watching or cares and it would be so easy just to stop and not do this anymore. I’m still here still leaning on Our Father and seeking his strength.

What I realized during this 40 day challenge is it’s not about the workout, shoes, spa the radio station, listeners, it’s all about God. From a Beth Moore study the 5 Faith Statements:
1.God is who He says He is.
2. God can do what He says He can do.
3. I am who God says I am.
4. I can do all things through Christ.
5. God's Word is alive and active in me.

It is all so very true, as long as I keep my focus on God and not the failures my weight, inches, struggles it becomes easier. It’s not without pain but the freedom is amazing.
I want to win this challenge and be the grand prize winner because I want to use this to Glorify God and further his Kingdom here on Earth. I want to be his light and help others succeed.
So Many people are alone out there in the darkness like I was seeking and grasping for anything- I want to be the hand that reaches out and offers them something that they need…Love, Support, Life!
There is a song currently playing on Spirit that truly has been my anthem song during this challenge:
Before the Morning- Josh Wilson
Do you wonder why you have to
Feel the things that hurt you I
f there’s a God who loves you where is He now
Maybe there are things you can’t see
And all those things are happening
To bring a better ending S
omeday somehow you’ll see you’ll see
Would you dare would you dare to believe
That you still have a reason to sing
Cause the pain that you’ve been feeling
It can’t compare to the joy that’s coming
So hold on you gotta wait for the light
Press on and just fight the good fight
Cause the pain that you’ve been feeling
It’s just the dark before the morning
My friend you know how this all ends
You know where you’re going
You just don’t know how you’ll get there
So say a prayer
And hold on cause there’s good for those who love God
But life is not a snapshot
It might take a little time but you’ll see the bigger picture
Once you feel the weight of glory
All your pain will fade to memory It’s just the hurt before the healing
Oh the pain that you’ve been feeling
It’s just the dark before the morning

I love the part-it can’t compare to the Joy that’s coming. So much truth in that line. This challenge hasn’t been about just losing a few lbs or inches it’s been about battling my way out of the darkness to walk and live out loud in the light. I want to continue that. I don’t want it to end here. I am coming out of the valley through the desert. In the end it’s not about my looks, my hair, my clothing it’s about how I lived my life and did I live it from my heart and allow the spirit to work within me to Glorify God.

I turn 40 in a few weeks the past 40 years have been amazing. I pray my 4 kids (15, 13, 5, and 1) don’t have the challenges and struggles I did growing up. I pray that this challenge was a spring board for our lives to change so we can continue to live healthy lifestyles and be more active. We have been watching the Olympics and one thing I have been learning during that is sometimes it’s not the most popular, or the favorite sometimes it’s the under dog, the quietest one that has the most amazing story and gift to offer.

Praising God for everything he has given me!!! To him all the Glory
Thanks to all our sponsors and supporters during this- truly amazing challenge and I so much appreciate the time, effort, money and prizes we have been given during this challenge.

Hebrews 12:1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Voting- final week

The voting has started- its the final week of this journey.
As I reflect back over this challenge I am so amazed by the blessings. A Week ago I was ready to call it quits but right now I feel so full of life and joy i can't describe it. I have enjoyed working out in the morning and getting healthy and creating new habits. Mark with Aim To Be Fit has been wonderful. He has been working closely with my PT Kathleen Young at PT Pro to make sure I am not doing anymore damage to my neck/shoulders but still getting the top benefit from the workout. He is constantly coming by and checking on positioning and making sure I am working the muscles correctly to benefit me. My kids and I have enjoyed going to Taco Time. We were just there yesterday.It's been a nice benefit.

I love how the 40 Day challenge ended right as we moved into Lent. Another 40 days and an awesome reminder in our lives of how to give things up and sacrifice. I've learned alot about sacrifice and giving things up over this challenge.

I wasn't sure if I truly wanted a lifetime membership but sitting here today and looking back I can see how much I have changed and how much my family and I would benfit from a lifetime membership and I want to be selected as the grand prize winner.

Each of us ladies are already winners. They have been a huge blessing during this challenge. Each of us with our own stories and different lifestyles but all loving God and giving him all the Glory.

I was able to work out once with each of the Ladies - I loved it. Kat came to one of my bootcamps at shorelines and I went to Everett to Ginny & Katie's bootcamp. I got to see each one of the ladies in motion and enjoyed the companionship.

Good luck to all you listeners- you can continue to follow me and my journey on twitter at Tammiego or on my blog: http://allinadayof.blogspot.com/

Hebrews 12:1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God

Encouragement

God wants us to boast in our weakness so he gets all the glory, and to show us, we have done these things by the power of God, not human power but God power...Turning is not all we have to do, we need to sweep our mind clean of all the lies we have believed, and believe God instead...filling our minds with truth... Rewallpapering our minds with that which is in the word of God... Then we will know the truth and the truth will set us free....


That is why we have a great High Priest who has gone to heaven,
Jesus the Son of God. Let us cling to him and never stop trusting
him. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he
faced all of the same temptations we do, yet he did not sin. So let
us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will
receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need
it. (Heb 4:14-16 NLT)

Prayer: LORD, it is difficult to comprehend that You really
understand the pain, frustration, discouragement, and so many other
things that I feel. Yet, You do. Help me understand this and see You
not just as God and Lord, but also as my friend, companion, helper,
encourager, and One who really understands and cares about the bad
days as well as the good. In Jesus' name, Amen.