Monday, November 23, 2009

Praises Galore!

Hello Everyone!

I hope you are all enjoying the start of a short week for most! Happy Early Turkey Day!

God is being soo good to me on this trip that I'd love to share with you what's been going on:
1) I've received some donations from churches and people I've met here which is AWESOME to see God provide financially for me!
2) REALLY blessed to have spent my first week with the Sailsbery Family - Kent, Pat, Kristen, and Brooke! (pictured below) They rock! Kent is the pastor of Northwest Community in Arvada and their family was soo welcoming and soo nice! I felt like another daughter by the time I left!
3) Had interest from youth here and emails I've received about internship opportunities next summer! I would LOVE to have a mini-staff again and be able to see people grow their walks with the Lord!
4) Looks like we'll have TEN straight weeks of teams in New Orleans starting Mid-Feb to Mid-April! God is AWESOME! Please pray about coming down to help cook, supervise teams, and to see God at work during this time! email me if interested katrinarelief@efca.org
5) Scotty V is IN Denver!!! He was my new orleans team leader in March 2008 and I'm looking forward to seeing him and his family this Wednesday!
6) Denise, my boss's wife, is doing an awesome job prepping food for the next 3 weeks we have teams! I can already feel the burden of food coming off of my shoulders! She is my ANSWERED PRAYER!

Please pray as I continue to meet with people and this weekend I'll be speaking to Eastern Hills Community Church in Aurora Saturday night and both services Sunday morning! Please pray God would use me and begin preparing hearts to hear how He's working in NOLA and pray for for boldness as I continue asking for people to come alongside me!

Thanks so much for reading and praying! I know I couldn't do this without God and without your prayers and support and love!

Love yall!
Katie
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.
1 John 5:14

at Red Rocks Amphitheater

Me with Pat and Kent


Kristen and I after our walk in the snow!

Brooke and I "sitting" on SNOW! :)

Monday, November 16, 2009

100 Crashing Jetliners

So I'm reading The Hole in Our Gospel by Richard Stearns, the president of World Vision...he writes for you to imagine you woke up this morning and the headlines read "one hundred jetliners crash, killing 26,500 people." He goes on to say that now imagine this happening everyday...everyday 26,500 people are killed...but the sad thing is it does happen...26,500 kids die everyday of preventable diseases...yet this doesn't make the front page.

I knew this book would probably challenge me but I had no idea it would challenge me like this...to remember that every child, either the child across the street or the child across the ocean, is a child of God and that God's heart breaks when any child of His is hurt...Richard's prayer is that his heart would break for the things that break God's heart, and I pray that for me and us as well...

My trip to Denver has been such a blessing so far..it's been great getting to know the Sailsbery family and they have been soo kind and hospitable! I'm very grateful! The teams were awesome last week too! Ms. Daisy's home is getting ever so close to moving in and the warehouse received its occupancy permit without a fuss...God is GREAT!

Please pray for me this week:
I've got some meetings this week and I'm speaking at Mountain View EFC Thursday night, Calvary EFC on Sunday morning, and Christian Church of Broomfield Sunday night. Please continue to pray that God would use me to let people know how He's working in New Orleans and how they can partner with me to further His kingdom! Please pray for confidence as well as I ask for supporters. Pray too that in everything God's name would be praised and He would receive ALL the glory!

Thanks muchos!
Katie :)

Monday, November 9, 2009

I'm usually not this honest...

Hi Everyone!

I hope you are all doing well. My Brooklyn Park guys have gone home after a great week of spending time working and getting to know people in the neighborhood along with pretending to be my dad and offering parental advice.

Praise this week: knowing that God loves me and takes care of me

Prayer Requests: I'm usually not this honest but I need prayer!
I really have 3 challenges right now and desperately need prayer for all 3:
1) FOOD - I HATE food...I hate being in charge of food, of buying food, preparing the menu, running to Wal-Mart and Sam's club...it's just too much for me and the fact I don't like food is making me not enjoy my job right now. I need help. I can't do this on my own.
2) SINGLE - I'm single, and right now, I'm finding it hard to be content in my singleness...this comes and goes but it's just a challenge I have right now. I know God has me single for a reason and I need to enjoy being single.
3) FUTURE - I have NO idea what my future holds...I'm with Crisis Response for sure until next summer and I still have NO idea what I'm doing next and because I've been so busy with work I've hardly had time to even investigate my future. I just have no idea what it is God would want me to do.

I was able to address these issues at staff meeting today and looks like we're going to find kitchen help for me. I have teams for 3 weeks starting Nov 30th. Let me know if you're interested.

This week I have 8 from Appleton EFC from Appleton WI and 5 from Northwest Community Church from Arvada CO. Saturday I head off to Denver..please pray as well for God to use me to meet people and I'd have boldness in asking for support.

Thanks everyone for reading this and being willing to pray for me!
Love you guys!
Katie :)



"There is no one holy like the LORD; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God." 1 Samuel 2:2

Sunday, November 1, 2009

Imagine what we could do if we were truly united...

Howdy!

Well last week was awesome! The teams were such a blessing to have around and even enabled me to have Wednesday completely off! I did NOT expect that but God knew I needed it and I praise Him for His provision of rest! I will say Satan was at work last week, causing division between the 2 teams but God is stronger and God is mightier and by the end of the week there was a solid unity between them that only through Christ could have happened! Praise the Lord!

This week I have a returning team from Brooklyn Park EFC and I'm on kitchen duty! Most of my food has been prepped by the awesome cooks last week, Judy and Diana, and tomorrow Robin from Castle Rock Church is going to help me make jambalaya! God is good!

Praise: Teams in New Orleans doing God's work and reaching out to His children!
Prayer: energy and motivation to do God's work to the best of my ability. Also I need to get out my November newsletter this week so please pray I'm able to get that done. Let me know if you want one!

Also I'm headed to DENVER!!! From Nov 14th to 30th! I'm soo excited to see the churches there that have come down and hopefully continue raising support for me to do God's work here! Please pray that I would be able to trust God with all the details and I would go where He leads me.

Thanks so much for reading and let me know how I can be praying for you!
LOVE!
KHooks

How good and pleasant it is
when brothers live together in unity!
It is like precious oil poured on the head,
running down on the beard,
running down on Aaron's beard,
down upon the collar of his robes.
It is as if the dew of Hermon
were falling on Mount Zion.
For there the LORD bestows his blessing,
even life forevermore.
Psalm 133