Fix My Eyes

Blessed & encouraged by these lyrics sung at Apex this morning.

"When my heart is weary, when my soul is weak

When it seems I can't traverse the trail before me

I survey the glory of your agony

And I find the will to fight for what's before me

Cause you ran the race enduring for your glory

I fix my eyes on you, the founder and the finisher of our faith

I fix my eyes on you, the solace in your suffering is my strength 

As I fight to follow, you're my righteous guide

And you train me to delight in all that's holy

Heal my broken body, cure my crooked stride

Throw off every weight and sin that clings so closely

I will run the race enduring for your glory

You help me breathe, you're the only life I need

You died for me, you're the only life I need"

Five Years

Five years ago today, I married the guy who was at first, my hunky neighbor, who quickly became my close friend, who then became my crush, which eventually lead to our facebook status "in a relationship", and then one day I realized...I can't go one day of my life without him...

These past five years have been full of blessings & challenges and "the truth is, love is a decision and not a just a feeling.  It is selfless, sacrificial, and transformational." -The Love Dare

Marriage is not always easy, but it's a gift, and A has been the most wonderful gift of my life.  Looking back at this snap shot video of our wedding day, it's a reminder to me of God's faithfulness because I prayed so hard that he would fall in love with me..and it worked! :)  Happy Anniversary A! Looking forward to every day of the rest of my life with you.

Babies & Derbies

This weekend I had so much fun hosting a baby shower for my dear friend Laura. Just like us, Laura and Drew moved to Dayton from Kansas City last summer and the four of us have become best friends!! Not sure if I would have survived our first year in Dayton without this sweet girl. We had a blast celebrating baby Gooden and we can't wait for his arrival!!

The fun continued later that day as we watched the "the most exciting two minutes in sports" at a fabulous Kentucky Derby party hosted by my lovely friend Alathea.  The gentlemen were dapper, the hats were fancy, and we got a rush watching California Chrome take the lead in the "run for the roses!"

Before moving to Dayton, I could have never imagined that we would have already made friends this dear. I can truly say that I love Dayton because I love the people here. Hooray for a weekend celebrating babies and derbies with the most wonderful friends. 

A Memorable Easter Weekend

I can't help but smile when I think back over each moment of this Easter weekend and the pure joy that came from time spent with treasured friends and the celebration of the resurrection of our savior.

Two of our closest and dearest friends, Larry (Lare) and Rebecca (Rebes), traveled all the way from Phoenix & Chicago to little ol' Dayton, Ohio to spend Easter weekend with us and man oh man did we feel blessed & happy to have them here.

The weekend consisted of quite a few uncontrollable laughing spells, an abundance of deep convos that were good for the soul, discovering "under the radar hipster" spots in Cincinnati, dancing the night away to good, old fashioned, live, New Orleans style jazz, good food and eating too much of it, taking advantage of many photo opps, intense corn hole & taboo competitions, and of course, an unending amount of hugs.

It was an honor to lead worship on Easter Sunday and so special to me that Lare and Rebes were here to be a part of that. And to make the day even more special, my dear worship team leader and friend, Alathea, joined us for Easter lunch. 

"You have bought me back with the riches of
your amazing grace and relentless love."

Note: Delicious Easter meal prepared by A.
Note 2: Dreamy barn wood table built by A.
Note 3: I'm married to a man of the renaissance. 

Community at it's finest.

Love that my dear friends from different communities got to meet :) 

Warby Parker photo...yep, we all have them. #signsoftruefriends

One last farewell photo...until next time...

Happy Easter :)

On Worship...

It has been one of the most joyful experiences to be apart of the Apex worship team. Ever since joining the team, I have experienced a renewed desire to dig deeper into what it means to genuinely worship "in spirit and in truth" (John 4:24)...Being on stage and leading in front of a lot of people shouldn't be the driving force of what causes you to take a deeper look at your life and the state of your heart...that desire to live a life of genuine worship should always be there whether you're on stage or not...but I have to admit that along with this new calling of musical leadership in my life, I have felt challenged in a good way to evaluate my life, my heart, my words, my actions, and ask the Lord to "search and know my heart...and see if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting." (Psalm 139:23-24) And of course, when we ask God to show us the offensive areas in our life, it's not a surprise when he brings them to our attention pretty quickly which I have experienced. In my recent pursuit of the true meaning of worship, I've been reading "Worship Matters" by Bob Kauflin. It's simple but challenging when he says:

"It doesn't matter whether we're leading a congregation, driving our car, or sitting alone in our bedroom. Everything we do should be governed by one goal--to see Jesus Christ praised, exalted, magnified, lifted up and obeyed." 

A.W. Tozer says basically the same thing in a different way...

"So I’ve got to tell you that if you do not worship God seven days a week, you do not worship Him on one day a week. There is no such thing known in heaven as Sunday worship unless it is accompanied by Monday worship and Tuesday worship and so on....We come into God’s house and say, “The Lord is in His holy temple, let us all kneel before Him.” Very nice. I think it’s nice to start a service that way once in a while. But when any of you men enter your office Monday morning at 9 o’clock, if you can’t walk into that office and say, “The Lord is in my office, let all the world be silent before Him,” then you are not worshiping the Lord on Sunday. If you can’t worship Him on Monday you didn’t worship Him on Sunday. If you don’t worship Him on Saturday you are not in very good shape to worship Him on Sunday."

I am challenged, humbled and made aware of how I all too often fall short of worshiping Him with every area of my life. The honor and privilege I've been given to lead worship at Apex has reminded me how worthy He is of my constant worship and adoration and how unworthy I am to represent Him...but it's his unrelenting grace that has allowed me to use one of my greatest loves, music, as one form of worship & ministry in my life. 

My Prayer This Week

"I need You, to soften my heart; and break me apart. 

I need You, to open my eyes; to see that You're shaping my life.
I need You, to pierce through the dark, and cleanse every part of me.

All I am, I surrender. 

Give me faith to trust what You say,

That You're good, and Your love is great.

I'm broken inside, I give You my life. 

I may be weak, but Your spirit's strong in me. 

My flesh my fail, my God you never will."

-Elevation Worship

Rwanda

"Rwanda is a verdant and beautiful country, often referred to as, “the Land of a Thousand Hills” and, “the Switzerland of Africa”. Rwanda is about the size of Vermont, but hosts a population of about ten million; its population density is the highest of any country in Africa and currently has one of the world’s highest birth rates. Unfortunately, UNICEF estimates that there are nearly one million orphans and vulnerable children; children are primarily orphaned due to poverty."

-www.visitingorphans.org

And I'm going!!!

This summer, June 27-July 8, I have an amazing opportunity to visit several orphanages in Rwanda, Africa.  Through a lot of prayer,  Andrew and I both feel strongly that the Lord is leading me to be a part of this trip. This mission trip is organized by a Christian non-profit ministry called Visiting Orphans.  Our team will use music and worship to build relationships with the children at the orphanages. We will also bring food and other items that the children need such as shoes and school supplies. The main purpose of the trip is to spend time with these children who are in desperate need of love and attention.

If you would like to be a part of this team through your prayers, encouragement, and financial support, it would be a great blessing to me and the children I will minister to in the orphanages.  

Prayer Requests: Please pray that I will be able to communicate God’s love to the children we meet. Please pray for safety for me and my team throughout our travels and that we will remain healthy.

Financial Support: The cost for me to go on this trip is $3,900. This includes my flights, transportation, lodging, meals, insurance, translators, and the food and supplies that we will purchase and bring to the orphanages. If you are able to support me, donations can be made online at www.visitingorphans.org under the DONATE link. Under Fund Category-choose Rwanda June/July 2014 Leader: Wilson and where it asks for you to preference your donation to a specific team member, type Jenny Brochu. 

"Pure religion in the sight of God is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress..."

James 1:27

Thank you for your prayers, encouragement, and support.