movin on out

Well this is the end of the road. I'm all packed up and we're leaving tomorrow morning for fayetteville! AAAH weird! My 18th birthday was weird enough for me but this is REALLY weird.... the end of my childhood has come :( I have a MOUNTAIN in my room of every possible dorm accessory known to man (sponsored by your neighborhood super target ha). I also have all my art supplies ready for my studio classes which I'm pretty excited about. And then there's the shoes.... oh my word the SHOES!!! I was telling a friend that I need to pray for my wretched soul because there are people in third world countries running around barefoot and shoe-less and I have a line of 20+ shoes laid out on my floor! Not okay! But everything is loaded in the cars... yes thats plural... i managed to, single handedly, fill two full-sized SUV's with my stuff! Ridiculous! We leave tomorrow morning, spend the night in a hotel and wake up early to move D and I in! It's gonna be an adventure! Can't wait to show pictures of the dorm :) Have an awesome weekend!

my morning cup

"You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit- fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name." - John 15:16

Father God,
You are everything that is good, holy, just, mighty, and powerful. Why do I continue to come back to your throne as an idolater?! If I know, believe, and understand that You are the one true God, then I shouldn't continue putting the gods of this world (facebook, internet, boys, college) before You. Even though my wretched heart will fail me daily, YOUR faithfulness will never fail me! It never has. I desire to bear your fruit that is eternal. Blot out my iniquities Lord and continue to provide the tools and opportunities I need to bear Your fruit. Thank you for loving me and using me in my brokenness! Amen.

Thought I'd share my heartbeat this morning. Hope it blesses someone. It's a beautiful Tuesday... take time to rest by the wayside- He's not in a hurry to spend time with you today :)

where can a order a rwandan baby??

I know I am traveling backwards a little but before I got the wisdom teeth out (by the way- still feel like someone took a hole puncher to my mouth ugh) I had just gotten back from Colorado with the fam jam. We were visiting Dalton because he's been working at Camp Kivu all summer as the "manny" for the Braner Family. Yes, he is the only 21 year old guy I know who can handle 5 kids all by himself. He is a stud. The Braner kids consist of Hays, Maggie, Tiki (just adopted from rwanda this year), Dax, and Gabby (adopted from rwanda a couple years ago). They are the cutest, craziest, little kiddos you've ever met. Gabby and I had quite a few photo shoots together (she loved my camera) and she is the most beautiful little girl to take pictures of. Oh and you have GOT to check out Dax's twitter.... he has the funniest one liners of my life... its twitter.com/dax_ism... jordan sparks and taylor swift follow him. These kids are legit! haha. enjoy the pictures :) have a blessed monday!

spare parts

Lets play a game called "how many surgeries can Kate have in a year!?!". Yes, I got the ol' wisdom teeth out today! It was a walk in the park compared to my last surgery but woke up as a chipmunk this time! What a great excuse to eat milkshakes and frozen yogurt all day and not have to exercise afterwards... oh wait... that's been my life for the past 4 months! HA! I don't intend on losing any other body parts anytime soon, however, I tend to be a wild card when it comes to these things so who knows whats goin next. I was unfortunately not as entertaining as my friends and family would have hoped I would be after they gave me the "good stuff". But last night I DID watch some youtube videos of people who were nice and medicated after they got they're wisdom teeth removed. Ok so I tried to upload the video but it wasn't working! UGH! so just youtube "meg ryan after wisdom teeth" if you get the time! sorry... lame I couldn't just post it :/ but I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!













Peace, Love, and Kidney-shaped clouds. Either God is trying to tell me that my kidney is in heaven with Him or im supposed to move to Africa! Im totally game for either message :)

the power of testimony

I have spent the last two weeks intensely working in the K2 kitchen. It was much harder than I thought it would be. I found it difficult finding my purpose sometimes while washing pots and pans on "bacon day" (aka three 5 ft stacks of pans coated with interminable grease). It was hard to see the fruit in my work, especially when I have a heart for discipling girls and somedays the only connection I got with younger girls was, "how much blueberry fluff do you want?" . I knew the Lord gave me a story to tell of His power and His sovereignty and His healing. I daily asked him to provide an opportunity to share my testimony and by about the 10th day I was there I began to lose heart but I just kept praying. Finally, on the last night, all the kitchies and i were doing crafts in the cabin and somehow I think someone asked if I'd share mine. It was all the Lord. I had been praying that when the moment arrived to share HIS story, that I would have the right words to say to put the focus on Him and not me. God provides. When I finished sharing, the girls response was such a blessing to me. They immediately turned to praise God and not my "neat story". It made me think of Romans 1:20 "For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse." Meaning that when people look at God's creation, He reveals his divine nature and power so that there is no excuse not to worship Him then and there. I feel like the same is true for testimonies. God writes EVERYONE of us an amazing story so that we can share of how his invisible attributes, eternal power, and divine nature. It is such a tangible way to witness to non believers as well. Our testimonies are such a blessing and encouragement to each other so don't be afraid to share yours.
Well thats my nugget. I'm actually leaving for the airport in an hour for Durango, Colorado to visit Dalton (my big brother). He's been gone all summer and can't wait to see him :) Have a lovely thursday!

off to K2

I know I have not been faithful to the blog lately so I apologize. I am about to leave for Kanakuk Kamps to volunteer at K2! I know I know... my last post was just about getting back from kamp but now I'm going back! If I could only explain my love for kamp... it is easily my favorite place in the whole wide world. Whenever I go through the front gates, my heart starts racing with excitement and then I feel like I'm gonna be sick like I'm about to give a speech! haha! Maybe I just sound nutty but Kamp has THAT big of a place in my heart... It's like th master bathroom of my heart... my sanctuary! My bff from kamp, Laura Talton, came in town a couple days early before we drive down to kamp together. Laura is from Alabama and prolly best way to describe her is Charlotte LaBouff from Disney's The Princess and the frog (don't worry I provided a picture to jog your memory)! She is the most darling southern belle you'll ever meet. We will be gone for 2 weeks and I dont know if I'll be able to post while I'm there so this might be a "see ya soon" kinda post. But one thing that would absolutely make my day would be if I got letters from yall! I can't describe what a blessing it is to get mail and care packages (just a heads up- you usually wanna send it early bc mail is slow). my address is...

Kate Phillips
20 K-2 Drive
Lampe, Missouri 65681

Hope to hear from you! Can't wait to tell you all about it when I get back! Well it's 1:05 and I was supposed to leave 5 minutes ago! O boy! Be praying for safe travel! ciao

How've ya been old friend?

Well i havn't posted anything in FOREVER! What is the deal?!!? Get your act together kate! Thought I would catch everyone up on my "summer of george" (please don't tell me I'm the only one that still watches seinfeld). This weekend I got back from volunteering in the K1 kitchen. What a blast!!! My highlight of the trip was definetly getting to know Kirby Merrill, a 24 year old gal with Down's Syndrome. We ended up having more in common than I thought... we both love quick trip hot dogs, Lady Antebellum and Faith Hill, we both have to make our beds right before we get in, our brothers are rooming together at KU next year and the list goes on. She has such a heart for the Lord and His word.... I would always find her with a gazillion highlighters and her open bible. I admire the way she so eagerly dives into the word and strive for that same eagerness. love ya kirbs :)
In other news.... I'm working on Rush stuff right now and getting all my recs ready! ATTENTION ALL SORORITY BABES: if you were a Pi Beta Phi, Kappa Kappa Gamma, Zeta Tau Alpha, or Chi Omega then God Bless your soul because i would LOVE to send you my resume and get a rec from you!!! I would be eternally grateful :) I'm sweatin over here trying to get as many recs as I can muster up!
What else is new?.... hmmm.... oh I'm nannying for a family this week so if anyone has suggestions of fun places i could take the kiddos or activities we could do, LEMME KNOW! To conclude I have a little prayer request- I'm having really sharp pains in my incision area that are abnormal for me so be praying we can figure out whats goin on or that it will go away! Thanks for tunin' in :) Have a fantastic Thursday!