Looking to Him

   "And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into same the image  from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. 
2 Corinthians 3:18

     I love to watch my kids' faces when I give them a gift, or hand them their favorite toy, or set a plate of their favorite food in front of them. Just this morning, I was holding my youngest son, Sawyer on my lap and he was just sitting there looking around the room. He was content, but just kind of bored. I picked up a colorful book filled with pictures of animals and was able to watch his face as I opened it to his favorite page filled with lions and tigers. His eyes began to take it all in and they changed. I could see the joy, the excitement, and the change in his eyes.

    If you are a Lancaster Community Church person reading this, I can tell you that your eyes have been changing too. I have been leading worship for several years at LCC and here recently have I noticed a significant change. For the most part, we've all been pretty content. There have been spikes on the worship-meter over the past couple years, and we've all grown so much- we have all been learning what worship really is together. But something is happening and I can't quite pinpoint it or trace it back to a particular moment, but just the last few weeks, as I scan the crowd during worship, your eyes are telling me that you're changing. There is a new sense of seeking. There is a new wave of participating in the worship, in moving beyond singing the songs and going through the motions. The Holy Spirit is stirring. And I can see it. Some faces show incredible pain and hurt, but I watch as people push past the tears and raise a shaking hand into the air, determined to put their circumstances aside and enter the throne room of God. Other faces show an indescribable joy and elation as their hearts rush to the Father they love so much. Yes, there are a few people here and there with their hands still in their pockets wondering what all the fuss is about. But for the most part, people are entering into this beautiful time of praise each week wholeheartedly and with eyes that want to see the beauty and the glory of God. As I watched my sons face light up this morning over the book, it made me think of our time together on Sundays in the sanctuary of LCC. We are awakening. 

    What is even more encouraging for me to think about, is that Sunday morning worship is just a product of what has been occurring on a daily basis, Monday- Saturday. It is the overflow of hearts that have been looking toward Him all week long. I'm thrilled by that! I mean it! I love the idea of people throughout the week worshiping on their own, reading the Word, praying, and studying with friends in Connect Groups. I love to think about people heading out to their various daily routines with Jesus as their focus. I think all along this is what we have wanted. This is what we have prayed for. But it just feels like, to me, that it's all coming together. We are living and being the church that God has envisioned. 

    Have we "arrived"? I don't think so. I think this is only the very beginning. And that fills me with wonder and excitement. And it inspires me to keep pushing ahead with our worship teams. As I frequently say, "we can only lead people to where we've been ourselves." So I want you to know, I am fixing my eyes on Jesus. I am looking to Him as we continue to elevate His name that is above every other name. And during these weeks leading up to Easter, I am looking back at His cross. His beautiful sacrifice for us all. I'm awed at the sight of a God who loved us so much that His Son was willing to give His life for our sins. No one can see the cross of Jesus and the love He has for us all and walk away unchanged. It is impossible. 

    So let's continue to fix our gaze on Him. If you haven't been looking, He wants you to seek Him! And if you have been seeking Him, then let's seek Him even more! And let Psalm 27:4 be the cry of our hearts: 

One thing I ask from the Lord,
This only do I seek;
That I may dwell in the house of the Lord,
All the days of my life,
To gaze on the beauty of the Lord
And to seek Him in His temple. 

Finding God in the Mess

Have you ever read those Facebook status updates where a woman goes through every detail of her day- how she washed and dried and put away 36 loads of laundry, and how she has changed 17 poopy diapers so far that morning alone?


Have you ever written one? Be honest.


I will. I have!


I had a friend ask me last week why women do that. I had no intelligible answer to that question. But I've been thinking about it. And I think the situation goes deep. Waaaay deep. So if you'd like to explore this mysterious phenomenon AND learn that Jesus wants something better for us, then keep reading.


It's no joke- running a household is not an easy, neat, or drama-free task. There are some days I feel like I could lose my mind. I think the problem with being a wife/Mom/live-in maid, is that life often feels like a mixture of the movie Groundhog Day and the episode of Saved by the Bell where Jesse Spano has to take caffeine pills in order to get everything done (Here's the link to the classic breakdown...you're welcome-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bflYjF90t7c) The thing is though, that as with everything in this life, we have a choice of how we respond to the mundane, often ridiculous, never dull, seldom predictable days that we have amongst our children wiping their noses and then turning around only to have to wipe it again- washing all the dishes only to have to wash them again (and again and again), getting those clothes put away only to turn around to see another pile needing washed...you get the idea. It's a never-ending cycle. There may be a feeling of victory and closure at the end of the day when everything is all put away and lovely and sparkling. But that feeling of closure is ripped open the next morning, just like the lid of the toy box in the family room. And the toys come right back out.


Never. Ending. Cycle.


Well the question of why women feel the need to post their grievances for the world to see got me to thinking. And when I get to thinking, it's downright dangerous. I've come to the conclusion that we shouldn't complain about the life God has given us. "But it's soooo haaaard to do this everrrrryyy dayyyy!" I hear you.



If we shouldn't complain and feel downhearted, then what should our attitude be? (And please, if you post something about laundry or poopy diapers on Facebook, don't feel like I am going to judge you. I'll probably slip up and pop one on there myself sooner or later.) If we look at Jesus' life, we know He was and is the ultimate servant. He said specifically that He came to serve (Matthew 20:28- "even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”- Jesus actually died for us...kinda makes our laundry woes inconsequential, eh?) He showed his love through serving others tirelessly. He got down on his knees and washed the filthy feet of His own followers (John 13). He didn't complain. He didn't put His hand to His head in dramatic fashion, hoping for someone to notice His difficulties. He didn't want sympathy or crave a pat on the back. And we can learn from this. All of us.






Jesus' ultimate goal is to get us, His followers, to actually follow Him. And in so doing, to become like Him. Imagine it. It makes the heart soar and the head spin. A word to the ladies reading this, Jesus wants us to be like Him. So in your daily sacrificial duties, and trust me, Mom-of-3 boys that I am, I understand that there are sacrifices- let's look to Him as our example.






Let's be last. With willingness.


Let's bind up those little hearts and wipe away those tears. With compassion.


Let's serve our husbands well and meet their needs. With submission.


Let's complete our tasks throughout the day. With joy.






That's a day well done. That's something to be proud of. That's the kind of day that sheds light into the darkest corners of our hearts and shines right out of our front doors to the rest of the watching world.






Guys. You're not off the hook. If you are a husband, encourage your wife as she grows in this area. Be helpful. Don't fall into the excuse that you're a guy and you just don't know how to clean. Everyone can learn this simple skill :) While I do believe women are better predisposed emotionally and mentally for such tasks as child-rearing and the running of a household, I also believe that marriage and life together is a team effort! So do what you can to lead your family as a team. Recognize your calling to encourage, equip, and love your wife as she learns to serve willingly and well. Roll up your sleeves and wash some dishes. And pick your dirty socks up off of the floor by your side of the bed. Please. Work together! I promise it will be a challenge, but the results will be phenomenal.






I do believe that we learn so much from God in the day-to-day. Those are the real deal, rubber-meets-the-road kind of experiences. He is longing to meet us there. He wants to take us under His wing and show us a better way. He has given us a beautiful example in the life of Jesus to follow.






I'd love to write more, but as you can guess, I have a lot of work to do. Spiritually AND physically. So let's all commit to start looking at our days differently. Whoever you are, whatever you do and wherever you find yourself today- let us serve. Let us give. Let us find Him in the mess!

I Will

    I've been looking at my life a lot lately and wondering how it can possibly get any more crammed full of stuff. I'm sure many of you reading this feel the same way. In the course of my day, there are so many things I wish I could be doing, but I find myself with so many "Have-to's", that I can't get to the "Want to's". This struggle makes a person like me introspective and evaluative. What am I doing? Where am I wasting time? What is important?

    The problem is that I have come to the conclusion that it's all important! I can't delete my Mothering and household responsibilities. Someone has to wash, dry, fold, and put away laundry for 5 (but often, it feels more like 25). Someone has to pay bills, clean toilets, change diapers. It's me. I'd much rather spend my day at the piano working on songs, or soaking up the Word and writing.

    Someone also has to learn to rely more on the power of God to maintain a positive attitude about the "have-to's" and that's also me. It does no good to anyone for me to get that disgruntled, entitled feeling as I'm making round 2 of breakfast for the day for little hungry mouths JUST as I had finally had a chance to sit down with my journal and Bible finally open, pen in hand.

     I'm asking God to remind me daily that this is a season. A season of extreme maintenance and work. Some days, it's hard work. Some days, it's frustrating that I haven't even accomplished the "Have to's", let alone had time to think about the "Want to's." I am learning that there can be peace in the chaos. I have learned that it is necessary to mesh "time spent with God" into both the "Have to" column AND the "Want to" column. I can't get through the day in one piece without Him. It's non-negotiable.

     And today, as I read Psalm 101 with a fussy baby who just had shots yesterday (and today a resulting fever) bouncing on one knee, a 4 year old at my shoulder saying "Mom, why, why, why..." I was able to block it out in the 30 seconds it took for these words to come alive off of the page. It was like God was saying "Here is what is important for you, Carrie Crawford, today, right now." And I think He wants to say these words to all of us. Here are the lines that jumped out from Psalm 101 and here are the things I WILL do with my life and with my time. Instead of getting so worked up about what I need to do, want to do, and the fear of failing to accomplish any of it,

I will sing of steadfast love and justice; to You O Lord, I will make music. 

I will ponder the way that is blameless.

I will walk with integrity of heart within my house.

I will not set before my eyes anything that is worthless.

The laundry pile may overflow, the piano keys may go untouched for the day, the dinner might not look like a magazine cover. But I am going to make these things of Psalm 101 happen. And I know He will help me.

His Number One Fan

    Our church is in the middle of a series about Sex. It's a great series that looks at a topic many churches shy away from. When I think about the awesome relationship I have with my husband and then read on Facebook or hear stories from friends about their relationships and how very awful they are, it saddens me. It's not the way it was meant to be, friends. Sex and it's misuse (or non-use) is a big part of marriage problems. Fear not though, I am NOT going to dive into a discussion of sex from Carrie's point of view and share my nitty gritty details. Instead, I just want to talk about my own attitude toward my husband and I hope what I share is encouraging to other wives (or wives to be) out there.


    I love my husband. He is the best man I know. Is he perfect? No. But he and I have a strong marriage built around our faith and trust in God, so even in his shortcomings (he will love to read this next part), which I can honestly say are few (you're welcome, Jarrod), there is grace in my heart to accept him as he is and to love him. Completely and totally.

    Early on in our marriage, I made a decision that in order to have a successful marriage, I needed to be my husband's number one fan. If anyone knows a pre-teen girl (or has ever been a pre-teen girl), then you know that they develop ecstatic crushes on different movie stars or boy band members. For me, it was New Kids on the Block all the way. Jordan Knight was my dream guy. I had his picture on my wall and I wore t-shirts and giant buttons with his smiling face emblazoned across them. My Dad and brothers would taunt me about him, but I remained steadfast in my admiration for him. I was a fan. Thankfully, I grew up a little and realized maybe he wasn't all that amazing. I fell in love with a real person at age 16 who later became my husband. And he could sing too (thankfully not as high as Jordan Knight and, quite frankly, in retrospect it's more than a little troubling that Jordan could so effortlessly sing like a woman, but I digress).


    That devotion that I held for a person I didn't even know as a 12 year old pales in comparison to the love I have for my husband today. But back then, I learned what it takes to be a fan:

First of all, you have to be passionate about the object of your affection. You have to be proud of who they are. 

Secondly, you need to know all you can about them. Get to know them and understand them more than anyone else can. This means you have to talk! Put down the iPhones. Turn off the TV. Look at one another. Talk. 

Thirdly, you need to support them. In practice, that means when other ladies are complaining about their husbands and their many downfalls, you maintain a positive attitude toward your husband. It doesn't mean there aren't things that irritate you about him, it just means that you display respect for him as a person by not discussing his dirty laundry or his bad habits. Would you want your husband to sit around with his guy friends and talk about things that irritate him about you? I didn't think so. When you're together in public, resist the urge to speak negatively, even if you are joking, in front of others. This is something that God worked on in my life early in our marriage. There is nothing funny or clever about demeaning your husband to get a laugh. He craves and deserves your respect, not your insults. Ladies, we need to build up our husbands every chance we get, not tear them down.

    When you make respecting your husband a priority in your marriage, you will see a difference. When he can sense that you are passionate about him and dedicated to making your marriage a strong place where the two of you can be sheltered together from the chaos and confusion that surrounds in this world, you will see a difference. Marriage is not always extremely easy, but it doesn't have to be difficult either. If you're struggling in your marriage, I advise you to seek professional counsel. But something every wife reading this can do to boost their relationship with their husbands is to increase the respect you show him. Wives, think about the way you treat and talk about your husband. Ask God to reveal any area of your marriage in which some respect needs to be injected. You will make mistakes. My mouth works before my brain has had a chance to think things through entirely from time to time. Because we are all human, we don't expect perfection from our husbands and they shouldn't expect it from us. But in those times, you can apologize and learn. You can be a better wife. You can and should be your husband's number one fan.

A Brand New Life

Isn't it amazing how God transforms our lives and makes them new? We've had a whole lot of "new" in our house the past few days through the blessed gift of a new baby. Everything has changed. Every outlook I had on life is different now. Every moment takes on a greater meaning. I sit and watch my baby boy's mouth make it's funny frowns or it's slowly curling smiles (or is that gas? I choose to think he's smiling...) I praise God for the gift that he's given and think about what the future will hold for this little guy who loves to eat but needs to work on his sleeping habits. He is brand new. He has a completely blank slate in this world. Every option is open to him and now all he needs to do is walk out the path that the Lord has laid out before him. So many unknowns along the way...so many questions. But the one thing that will be constant on his journey is the love of the Lord that will always be there as a guide and comfort in his life.


We are all faced with this same situation on a daily basis. Perhaps it's a little less dramatic than being a newborn baby and having your entire life in front of you, but nonetheless, we all have a new chance every day to start fresh.


Lamentations 3:22-23 says:

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
His mercies never come to an end;

they are new every morning;
great is Your faithfulness.


Whatever lies behind you and whatever lies in front of you, if you have put your trust and your life in Him, the Lord is going to be there every step of the way. He has new things beyond your imagination- even bigger than your shallow, current dreams.


Take a step into the new.

10,000 Reasons

Hello Friends,


It has been a really long time since I have had the time to sit down and write...or should I say since I have MADE USE of my time to sit down and write. Life gets busy, doesn't it? Well, I hope to share some encouraging words today with you that have been on my heart.


I love the story of Jesus feeding the 5000. I love how at the end, not only did everyone get fed, but there were also baskets of food left over. The blessing of God in our own lives is like that. He meets our every need according to His will and then pours out even more. I'm sure many of you reading this are going through some struggles and wishing that moment of needs-being-met would just happen already! But it will. Maybe not on your time schedule, or in the way you would expect, but God has promised that He always comes through, and He will. 


We've had a lot of medical bills stretching us thin the last few months- both from Cohen's May surgery and also from our new monthly payments for baby Sawyer. Yes, we had enough money to pay every bill and feed every mouth, but there sure wasn't much left over! This has forced us to really prioritize our spending as well as truly rely on God. And God has provided in extremely unexpected ways-and in abundant ways, much like the leftover baskets of fish and bread.  I've always known the Matthew 7:7 verse, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you", but now I believe it. God loves to prove Himself faithful to us, and does so time after time. If we will place God in His proper place of authority in our lives, not only speaking and singing words of worship, but also living out lives that show we worship Him, He will always make a way, often in unexpected ways. 


If you have time, I encourage you to listen to the song "10,000 Reasons" by Matt Redman and read the lyrics. Such a powerful song of thanksgiving and a testimony of the Lord's faithfulness to us. As the song says, there are (at least) 10,000  reasons for our hearts to be grateful to God today. Stop and thank Him for all He has done, all He is doing, and for the bright future ahead that will also surely be filled with His blessings and beautiful presence.


Listen here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jYLTn4fKYQ


"10,000 Reasons (Bless The Lord)" by Matt Redman

Bless the Lord, O my soul
O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name

The sun comes up, it's a new day dawning
It's time to sing Your song again
Whatever may pass, and whatever lies before me
Let me be singing when the evening comes

Bless the Lord, O my soul
O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name

You're rich in love, and You're slow to anger
Your name is great, and Your heart is kind
For all Your goodness I will keep on singing
Ten thousand reasons for my heart to find

Bless the Lord, O my soul
O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name

And on that day when my strength is failing
The end draws near and my time has come
Still my soul will sing Your praise unending
Ten thousand years and then forevermore

Bless the Lord, O my soul
O my soul
Worship His holy name
Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name

Jesus, I'll worship Your holy name
Lord, I'll worship Your holy name

Sing like never before
O my soul
I'll worship Your holy name
Jesus, I'll worship Your holy name
I'll worship Your holy name

Raising a Generation to Be the Hands and Feet of Christ

Hello Friends,


I have been so burdened for the people of the horn of Africa. I know there are problems all over the world and even in our own country, people are having trouble getting by. But these photos of starving children, similar in age to mine are heartbreaking. As I was looking through the news online this morning, my oldest son, Silas, came and sat on my lap and looked with me. He instantly started brainstorming all the ways we could help these people- some of his better ideas were to put some Ramen Noodles on a toy boat and sail it to Africa :) and to give them all the extra zucchini from our garden. I loved it! I loved having that conversation with my son about how we can help people and how we can do the work Jesus has asked us to do. 


We aren't going to send Ramen noodles via toy boat or ship a box of zucchini, but we did decide to donate money to Samaritan's Purse, an organization working diligently in Kenya to distribute much needed food. Being a one-income family, we don't have lots of extra money to spare, but we want to help. Jarrod and I have decided that in an effort to raise our boys and let them see that there is a bigger world, a hurting world, a suffering world that desperately needs them to do all they can to help, we're going to sit down every payday as a family and discuss an area of the world that needs our help and our prayers. And then we're going to sit as a family and make a donation online to an organization we trust in that area. I know it seems like a drop in the bucket when you look at the overall situations in our world, but it's at least doing something. I pray that my kids grow in their capacity for compassion and are driven to be generous to others in need. I know all of you parents wish that for your kids- well let's start modeling it and letting them participate in the merciful, life-giving work that Jesus deeply wants us to do. I would encourage all of you to think of a similar family activity that inspires generosity and grows compassion, not only in our kids, but in us too. 


Blessings to you all! 


"What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, ‘Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.”
-James 2:14-17


“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence ...” 
-John 3:16-19