open house

Tuesday, October 9



it's funny how often time we compartmentalize our lives.
there is work time, play time, ministry time.
and it's really quite silly, to be honest. 
i look at jesus.
to him, it was all one. 
just time. 
to be. 
{JT sitting on Kev's lap for hours while we had company. so many hours in fact that he passed out and slept in kev's arms. too precious}

shouldn't ministry, or mission, be inched into the very fabric of every walking moving breathing moment we have? 

jesus, 
the one we pray we model,
seemed to always do his best work in the most human of circumstances. 
in his walking, in his drinking, in his eating. 

jesus needed water and sat at a well. 
hello woman at the well!
boom, 
miracle,
her life is transformed,
her town hears the gospel. 
and all because human jesus needed a drink. 
there he goes, using his humanly needs as a chance to love and share freedom. 
literally.  

{one night after Bible study, a few students stayed around to talk. So we made waffles, cause that's the normal thing to do, right? }

the divine happens to 
occur along the way. 
unexpected. 

{chef jojo helping me make peach cobbler. seriously, how can you resist that face?!?}

some really wonderful people wrote
"{these moments} will seem like interruptions, but if you begin to look for God's fingerprints in your day and in every relationship, in every coffee shop, in every conversation you have with your neighbor, there's a good chance you will begin to see God's incarnational presence" 

incarnational.
"to take on flesh"

and so we pray that we take on the flesh of Christ. 
the one who was never in a hurry,
never shooed anyone away.
but was an open house to 
the hurting, 
the broken,
the lost,
and the deprived. 

all along the way. 

a few weeks ago,
i ran home from the gym, and being that it's been hotter than the blazes this Fall,
i was a drippy mess. 

new neighbors moved in below us, and as I headed down the path towards our house, a man walked along side me that I didn't recognize. 
"hi" I beamed, "i'm katie, I live above you"
"francisco" came his reply with a smile. 
"do you have a new baby?" I asked with curiosity at the cute squeals and cries I had been hearing. 
"yes, do you want to meet her? come on in..."

now i had a to-do list longer than life, AND was making puddles from all my sweat. 
but this was a miracle- an invitation to do life with my neighbors. 

i walked in, and looked around. 
there she sat, proud mama and sweet baby. 
carmen and victoria. 

i washed my hands (and arms too!)
and held victoria for 45 minutes while I chatted with Carmen. 
despite our varied life stages, we were kindred spirits. 
i left feeling SO alive and inspired. 
this. 
this is why i moved into the neighborhood. 
to incarnate the love of Christ in relationship. 
movement towards Christ on a journey with others. 

i'm so glad my busyness didn't affect the spontaneous. 
christ owns time, and as his daughter, i have it. 
lots of it. 

so may we walk and talk and love as one. 
no compartments.
just one big open house. 

so may we surrender our time to Abba's
and may he stake a sign,
that boldly proclaims
"OPEN HOUSE"
on our home
and more importantly our hearts. 
and may the fine print read, 
come in
come in
for there is always room in the kingdom.

{story time with JT}
{precious time with our sweet god-daughter}

live as an open house today dear one. 
not a compartment. 

much love,
Katie 

"the word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. we saw the glory with our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory, like father, like son, generous inside and out, true from start to finish. "
- John 1:14, the Message 

22 comments :

  1. This is exactly how we should live--and it's how God works too! Not in our scheduled "ministry time" but in the every day, at random, unexpected times. I always pray that when situations or opportunities to bless people come up, that I won't be too blind or too busy to see them, but that God will give me the ability to recognize all of life as an opportunity to love and serve.

    ReplyDelete
  2. what a great reminder! and there is no doubt that you have the gift of compassion and hospitality and what a great example you are setting! I need to work harder at putting my own schedule aside and take advantage of opportunities God gives me!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Love this. "Live as an open house." It is SO easy to get caught up in the everyday to do list and forget to be open to what God may want to do. This is beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I love this. Seriously one of my favorite posts of yours. This is definitely something we all do. Thanks for the reminder.

    ReplyDelete
  5. John 1:14 has been a theme for me recently. I always appreciate your rawness in your writing...I always come away with my gaze turned back toward Abba. Thank you for sharing this, sweet friend!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Love love love this, Katie. About your home being open- it is such a testament to the truth that nothing is our own. Our homes are the Lords, and should be used to serve the Lord by serving His people around us. You and your husband are an inspiration, my friend!

    ReplyDelete
  7. this is you to a tee! thanks so much for walking the walk and being such an example to me. love you!

    ReplyDelete
  8. This post gave me goosebumps! What beautiful kiddos :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. *sigh** If you only knew what your writing does for me... I don't know how you do it but day after day, I leave your post feeling convicted, and yet completely at peace. I think the peace comes from knowing that you've managed to convey something that I know in my heart to be true, but am allowing myself to become overcome with things that don't matter. Thank you beautiful lady, you have blessed me more than you know <3

    ReplyDelete
  10. Oh Katie, you are such a great example of a willing disciple, even when you are dripping with sweat! :) So inspiring. Keep listening to God girl, I know He is going to bless you beyond your wildest dreams!

    ReplyDelete
  11. WOW, katie, you are such an encouragement.
    this post was written at such a perfect time.

    I've been thinking, now that I'm back in school, how I can witness and encourage my classmates/new friends.
    I realize I need to just be me as I know Christ lives in me. He will shine, he will love, he will move.
    I have to yield my old self everyday, die to myself everyday in order to live as an open house

    thank you for this!

    ReplyDelete
  12. This is beautiful and perfect! I love it! You are so right.. && I completely agree with you. Thank you for reminding me of such a pertinent truth. I know that God is smiling down on you at this moment. He is proud of you :)

    ReplyDelete
  13. Wow! Speechless- so beautifully said.'ve been thinking a lot about you and Kev. The brief conversation we had on Sunday after church totally sparked something within my heart. I can't wait to get to spend some time with you! Que Dios los bendiga!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Great lady katie! I love that "Its no use walking anywhere to preach unless our preaching is our walking". Yesterday a woman sat in my matatu and started asking questions about my life. I told her about how God brought me a wonderful kenyan husband and now I am a full time wife. she was thoroughly surprised that I delighted in my marriage and put God in the centre (especially considering all the shady white/black relationships around here). We had a great chat till I had to get out. Seriously, lets preach it in everything we do (even if we are dripping with sweat - welcome to my world!)

    ReplyDelete
  15. katie. seriously. does god just send you emails with everything i need to hear and then you post them on your blog? this is so true and you are loving the world (yes, even the blog world) through jesus. thank you for your obedience and for speaking truth. happy wednesday sweet friend. i think we need that skype date sooner than later. what do you think?

    ReplyDelete
  16. Katie, this is SO beyond beautiful and inspiring! You always find the best ways to encourage others to be in Christ and help His kingdom to spread. Oh, words can not even describe how much I loved this post! Thanks girl :)

    ReplyDelete
  17. It never ceases to amaze me how you convey such encouragement and conviction in such few words =) Thanks for sharing and keep it up!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Wow. You are the most beautiful picture of what it looks like to let Jesus be fully part of your life. It is so convicting and so spellbinding to watch you doing exactly what Jesus said to do. And what you said about Jesus doing everything in the most human of circumstances will certainly be used at our missional comm. tonight. LOve you-can't wait to one day meet you. Love, Anna

    ReplyDelete
  19. This? This is amazing! Girl, God is so proud of you right now. You are an incredible inspirations, not only to the world but to other Christians. This is EXACTLY how we should live.

    ReplyDelete
  20. This is beautiful! It's so easy to get caught up in our busy schedules and miss out on community like this!

    ReplyDelete
  21. Hey sweet friend! I haven't stopped by in a while so I have a lot to catch up on! It is always such a breath of fresh air - truth and encouragement to read your posts. Thank you!! I hope you are well and have had a great weekend. Happy Monday! Sally xoxo

    ReplyDelete
  22. girl. i am being sucked into your story. i just want to go back and read it all. i want to meet you. i feel like you and your husband would be kindred spirits with me and mine. i will probably be stalking around here for a while. . . wishing we lived closer so we could sit down for waffles. ;)

    xo

    ReplyDelete

I LOVE hearing from you friend:) Your comment will make my day!