Fairy Tales are Boring...

Have you heard? I surpassed the fairy tales! How can anything be better than a fairy tale?

A fairy tale is predictable.

It’s oddly “perfect”…but what about all the beauty that is found in imperfection?

 It’s plain, the glitz and adventure of a fairy tale is planned and posed.

Its sallow.

I don’t want any of that. I want more. I found more. His name is Dru Colson! I have learned so much this last year about myself, love, commitment, pursuit, compromise, patience, service, life, and my Jesus! Most importantly I’ve seen and understood the love of Christ in a richer form.

How did we meet? Those of you who don’t go to church with us don’t know all the details…

I work with the students at my church. Youth ministry is my passion! I’ve been working in youth ministry for 10 years now!

At this point in my life, my single life, I had thrown up my hands. I had been setup with everyone but the pope with no results, I’d long past the college playing field of love, I battled the ever creeping thoughts of what’s wrong with me, and I have to admit…I was peeking around on what the world calls “Internet Dating!” No I’m not kidding, sadly enough. (Don’t try it, it’s depressing).

I had asked God why? When? Where? Am I to be single? How many more lessons in single life do I have to learn?  What else do I need to do? What am I doing wrong? What is it that You are waiting on me to do or complete?  I’m almost 30, how is it not time yet?

There wasn’t a detailed answer. He simple just said, I promise.

I promise.

I finally had said these exact words to God: “He will have to walk through the doors of my church!” It came out as frustration and sarcasm yet I meant it. And I believed it. I believed He would send my husband in that manner. I held on to this belief, slid it into my heart and pushed forward.

Then…on a Wednesday night in December of 2009 Andrew Lee Colson walked in the doors of my church. He was known that night as “DJ Dru”.

I didn’t even meet him that night. However, I did notice his interactions and heart for our students. I am protective over them so I paid close attention to how positively he interacted with them and how they responded in return.  I approached him the following Sunday and thanked him for what he did with our students earlier in the week.

And at this point I was thinking nothing in the manner of this could be the guy. I was kinda closed off, I knew the guy was going to have to do cartwheels, begging and maybe even slapping me up the side of the head to get my attention.

Friendship. Through our involvement in youth work we quickly became partners in ministry and close friends.

And the story only gets better from there! So you’ll have to wait for another blog!...

Hurricane...Life

Life...sometimes its as if your life is house that's sitting in the middle of a hurricane!

I've been there, whenever everything that can go wrong does and everything beats on you. I also have family that went through a super devastating hurricane, Hurricane Andrew of 1992. As I recall their story of those long hours in the safety of the large family closet...their story meshes with some thoughts I've had in trying to encourage someone.

Your life is a house that is sitting in the midst of a hurricane...a nasty, horrific one! Then there's the closet in the middle of that house where you find yourself hunkered down for safety. That closet is your spirit, your relationship with precious Jesus!

Your house is being beaten...its bumped, knocked, slammed, bruised, shattered, broken, soaked, scarred and even destroyed. You are found in your closet seeking refuge from the storm that has come against your house, your life. Its safety and security that you seek in that closet. Yes, you can still hear the winds whipping, the thunder rolling, the hail pounding, the roof ripping, the walls peeling...but you stay in your closet where its safe! Being in the closet doesn't take the storm away but it makes it alot easier and there's hope...hope even if the only thing left standing is the closet, your spirit and your Jesus!

So run! Run to your closet! Jesus wants to meet you there in this storm and stay with you through all of them! He's your consistent hope when hail falls upon your house, your life! He's your consistent hope when nothing else is!

She's About to Pop!

This was the first maternity photos I've taken and it was a blast! The shoot was up in White Springs so we had to take a few pictures out by "Fat Belly's" resturant! We captured a few photos with the whole family too! I'm happy to announce their little boy...who actually was a very big boy has arrived and both he and Mommy are doing well!

Just Like Family

There's only a few friends in your lifetime that become like family and the Jacksons are just that...family! For Christmas this year Dru and I decided to surprise Jon and Vanessa with some new photos of Tori and Carter! We had a blast on this cold winter day in White Springs!

Guatemala Support

Dear Family and Friends!

It is with great excitement and anticipation that I announce I will be heading to Guatemala on a mission trip in less than 55 days! Wow! I have longed to go serve and love on the people of the Buena Vista, Guatemala village for over two years now.

My best friends, Jon and Vanessa, began serving and taking trips to this village back in 2009. Along with Ki4tK Ministries, the student and college ministries of my church have became greatly involved in both raising support and going to serve there!

The missionary family that leads the ministry down there are natives of Lake City so it makes this ministry and opportunity much more personal! Their ministry is called DeepStream Guatemala (http://www.deepsteamguatemala.com/). The ministry has two main arms:

1) A Boys Sports Academy where the goal is to bring up godly men of character with education and work ethic in order to bring lasting changes of hope in their village.

2) Meeting the needs of the poor in the village through providing food baskets, small gifts such as clothes and then larger gifts such as building homes for families (the homes in the village are made of scraps of cardboard, crates, and corn stalk with dirt floors).

I have attached a video of a trip from last summer for you to see the ministry and village with your own eyes!

I’m beyond excited to jump on that plane and go! I write to you today to first to share this beautiful ministry with you! Second to ask for your prayers of support as we prepare and as we go. Our trip is March 31-April 7, 2012. Pray for our team to hear clearly from God on how we specifically are to reach, love and serve the people over the six days we will be there. And third I write you to ask for your prayerful consideration of supporting me financially as I still have a large amount to pay for email me at colemarieg@hotmail.com and I will send you a form sharing with you how you may support.

Again this has been a prayer and desire of mine to go for over two years. It is awesome to see why God has waited until now for me to go! Feel free to ask and I’ll share all those details!

Thank you! Blessings!

Nicole Griffin

"Small" Christmas

It's that time of year! Can't you see all the ribbons, glitter and colorful packages that poor from under the tree...but not so much at my home as a child.

I was thinking today I don't remember making big wish lists for Christmas as a child, nor even in recent years. I grew up happy and with plenty. Never in need or deprived. However, in some people's eyes they may say I had a small Christmas, due to the lack of multiple and large gifts. We weren't the Johnsons, we lived on the common pay check to pay check family budget. One decent car and when fortunate enough to have a second car, it usually required a laying on of hands each morning before hitting the road. We shopped for only what we needed that week, it was completely enough. And until my sister and I were older, my mom stayed home with us rather than bringing in a second income.

My mom's goal was to give us one realistic main gift that our little hearts had been hoping for that year and then a few little things. I say realistic to emphasize that she'd get us a gift that was useful or we'd actually play with for longer than a week and of course one that we could afford...so it may not have been name brand or the hottest color but it accomplished its purpose no doubt! And happy we were!

And guess what hungry America? I'm now 29 years old and have never felt deprived or sad because of what some would say I lacked materially. I may have lacked in the mountainous amounts of gifts that others received. But I never lacked in joy, I have happy memories of the holidays!

...................................................................................................................

A group of girls and I are reading through Colossians together and today we were in chapter three. The message reads like this: "...killing off everything connected with the way of death...doing whatever you feel like whenever you feel like it and grabbing whatever attracts your fancy!"

My 'little fancy' may never have fully been satisfied as an endless dreaming little girl. But more importantly I have memories of contentedness. I believe that foundation of "small is plenty" has grown me into a woman who finds herself content with little. Content with simple. Yes, I still have my needs and favorite things like Starbucks and scarves....but I feel confident that there's not much I can't live without or that I can't wait for.

Then built upon the foundation I received from home is my awareness and knowledge of those who severely lack, those in poverty. I've seen it with my eyes. Smelt it with my nose. Touched it with my hands. And heard of much, much more with my ears from those who have gone into streets and countries where I have yet to step.

So many may say I lack...but if we would really, really open our eyes then we'd see that I overflowed in abundance as a child. Gosh the American eye...stomach...desires...and more. It's just ridiculous...and even more ridiculous is how we get caught up in it. Yes, I said we...I have my moments, honest.

So are you caught up in the shopping frenzy? Did I get enough? Did you just swipe your 5th credit card so you could get your child their 17th gift on the list of 34 this year? Did you get up with the moon on black Friday to fight in line for the big deal...that maybe you really didn't need?

I pray I continue to seek and never lose sight of contentedness in the small and simple. my loved ones and friends will continue to challenge and encourage me so.

A small Christmas I'll hold in my hands but more important is the large Christmas I hold in my heart! Thank you Jesus for the largest and greatest gift I'll ever receive...Your LOVE!

He Can!

Gosh I remember struggling for weeks...it was Old Testament 101 with Dr. Lee, my first semester in college. We were in the book of Exodus. Of course if you are familiar with Exodus you think of Moses and Pharaoh. Moses' story is always one that encourages and tells you to go and fight...nothing is too big with God on your side.

However, what I struggled with was Pharaoh. Why did God harden Pharaoh's heart? I was just stumped with it...for weeks. I could hardly get anything else out of the class for the next few weeks. I remember asking and discussing the issue with friends. Why would God intentionally harden someone's heart? No one gave me an answer that satisfied me at the time. I basically agreed with myself and spirit to drop it after a few weeks, to let it go. Trust in our God...I mean obviously now thousands of years later I see it all worked out. He had a plan and purpose...and it was accomplished and He received the glory and His people were saved!

I thought of this struggle just the other day and God spoke to me a whole new lesson...
If He can harden such a powerful man's heart and it affect thousands of people...then where is my faith that He can do just the opposite? That He can soften the heart of the lost people in my life. Their hearts may have been harden for years along with being shattered and broken...but He can soften them. Doubt in them...no its more like an honest doubt that little me can do nothing to soften their heart. I'm not the Creator, All powerful, All knowing, Love, Master, Ultimate sacrifice...I'm just His daughter. He can soften!

Lord, I give these precious hearts to you. I want so much more for them! I want to see them captivated and overwhelmed with You! You alone can rescue! You alone can soften the nastiest callous heart!

Believing.............