I am sure I have mentioned this before, but one of the ways that God often speaks to me is through music. There is one artist in particular I know I can turn to if I want to hear what God has to say to me. In fact, there are times when I have consciously avoided the music of Keith Green because I know God will talk to me and I am not in the mood to listen! Of course, that only makes Keith’s songs play relentlessly in mind until I turn on one of his songs.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a Keith Green CD any longer. I had one. Well, I had a tribute to Keith Green that a lot of his friends had done. Don’t have that now, not since I ran over it with my desk chair. Luckily, I can find videos of his performances on You Tube. This week, I even found a 7 video series about Keith, his Life Story. After watching that, I have come to a conclusion.

I want to be like Keith Green.

Oh, there are aspects of his life that I am happy to skip. Like the drug use and the professional singing (which you should be thanking God that I don’t want to do!). I don’t like flying much, either, so I would be happy to skip the whole plane crash thing. But those are just events in his life, scenes in the story that made up his life. They are things he overcame, things he enjoyed, things that God used. They are just things; they are not who Keith was.

Keith was a vessel, a passionate vessel filled to overflowing with God’s love. From the moment he met Jesus, Keith was on fire for Him. His enthusiasm was fanatical. At times, he came on so strong that he pushed people away. He didn’t let that deter him. Keith leaned on God and let Him work I him, through him, and on him, until Keith was at a point where he could reach others with God’s love. There is a song by Chris Sligh that reminds me of Keith Green. “Empty me of me, so I can be filled with You.” That is what Keith did. He pushed his own wants and desires aside so that Jesus was able to fully shine through him. If you don’t believe me, all you have to do is listen to one of Keith’s performances. God called him home on July 28, 1982. After 27 years, his music is still touching lives, still affecting hearts. God is still speaking through the words and melody’s that Keith Green performed.

That is what I want for my life.

I want the words that I write to reflect the love Jesus has for me, for you, for the world. There is a reason that I am able to write believable stories. It’s not because I am all that special. It is because Christ wants to be glorified. God speaks to me through music. He speaks to others through written word. If He wants to speak through the words I put on paper, I want to allow Him to do that.

Thirty years after I am called to Heaven, praising God right beside Keith Green, I want the life I lived here to still be inspirational to other Christians. I want my love and passion for God to be remembered.

I want to be like Keith Green.

It’s raining this morning. Big surprise. It’s been raining in Jackson on and off (mostly on it seems) all week long. My 5-year-old son spent some time on the love seat, staring out the window. At first, he was annoyed with the rain. “There is nothing fun to do when it rains,” he moaned to his brothers. “Mommy won’t let us run and jump and get loud in the house.” (Yeah, I know, I am such a mean Mommy.) Anyway, he soon turned around and said, “Mommy, I have been thinking. I’m wondering just where rain comes from and I think I know.”

That got my full attention. After all, the same mind that announced last night, “I know what happened with the Civil War!! Two teams got together with guns and tried to shoot guys on the other team. And that wasn’t real easy, because they had to do it without shooting the horses.” So of course I was anxious to hear where he figured out that rain comes from.

And I was not disappointed.

According to my son, the angels have a huge pool in Heaven. They use the water in that pool to fill clouds, which they then throw at each other like water balloons. When the “balloons” pop, it rains. Then the clouds spread out and cover the sky. That is why the sky turns grey when it is rainy.

One thing you can’t deny about my boys—they sure do have imaginations! Wonder where they get them from….

Probably from my husband, since I still have mine!!!

Freecycle is awesome! I don’t know how many of you have a freecycle group in your area. If you have one, I would highly recommend that you join it.

Just what is freecycle? It is a group where people are able to “swap” items that they no longer need. Anything from toys to books to pets to furniture is just given away to families who can use it. During my time as a part of the Jackson, MI group, I have given away a gas stove that I no longer needed and received a full size bed frame and mattress that we needed. Most of the time, the items on the list are used. Every now and again, though, something brand new comes through the list. One of the most amazing—at least to me—things that has been offered on this list came through over the weekend.

A woman posted two backpacks, filled with new school supplies. The backpacks were used by her children last year, but the supplies were all brand new. I sent the woman offering them a note off the list to thank her for posting that. I told her I would not be able to use them (somehow, I don’t think my 8-year-old and 5-year-old sons would like to carry backpacks with Hannah Montana and High School Musical on them), but that I thought it was awesome that she would offer something like that. She wrote back and said, “Five or six years ago I was adopted by a family for Christmas through the Salvation Army program. I had also gotten food from Harmony Baptist church. For the last two years, I have been stable enough to help others at Christmas, donate food and back to school items, etc. My daughters and I also do bell ringing for the Salvation Army. These programs were there to help me and I want to help others now that I can.”

I still can’t figure out which I am more impressed by—the thoughtful gift this Mom is passing on to another Mom or appreciation she is showing.

It’s sad, I know, but there are a lot of people who accept a “hand-out” because they think they are entitled. They don’t stop to think about others who need help. And when they get back on their feet (though there are some that I know of who don’t plan to ever be on their feet—not so long as someone else will pay their way), a lot of people don’t stop to think about those who helped them. The mother I spoke about above may not know exactly who helped her family when they needed the help. I am sure she has thanked them the best that she can.

And one of the best ways anyone can thank someone is by passing on that kindness to another.

What better way to experience a good book than to enjoy a delicious cup of coffee along with it?

At least that is my favorite way to do it! There is not much enjoyable that curling up on the corner of the couch with my Aladdin mug filled with a steaming hot flavored coffee and a good book on my lap. I know I am strange about some things. But not this, right? There are others out there who feel the same way. There have to be!

This love of coffee and books has led me to a new venture. Don’t worry—I am NOT going to stop writing! I have too many stories in me, too many voices in my head begging to be heard that I don’t see how I can ever stop writing! But I have found a company with an awesome coffee product. I am happy to be a part of it!

Kat’s Coffees & More is nothing new to me. About four years ago, I was a consultant. Personal issues (plus my lack of motivation for running a direct sales business) caused me to stop. Recently, I came across the website again. I placed an order for some of my old favorites (the Blueberry Cobbler coffee is AMAZING!) and picked out a few new flavors to try (Angel Lace Cookie sounded intriguing). The cost to become a consultant is minimal, so I signed on again. If I make money at it, great! I mean, who in this world is going to say no to extra money?? But that is not my main goal. I’ll be honest—I want to get a good coffee at a decent price!

I am sharing my new business with all of my readers, though. You can check out the products at the Kat’s Coffees & More website and place an order on my personal order page. Be on the lookout for reviews of different products on my website.

“Classy” and “redneck” are two words I never thought would go well together. Thanks to Amie Pollard, I now know better.

Do you know who Amie Pollard is? She is the mother of one family on the NBC show Great American Road Trip. Last night, after consistently coming in second to the Coote family in the King of the Road Challenges, the Pollard family won a challenge. As a reward, Amie, her husband, and their two children we able to spend as evening in a suite at the Mandalay Bay Hotel in Las Vegas. Though clearly happy that her family had won this prize, Amie said that she didn’t think she could fully enjoy it unless the other two families still in the game could join along. Wow. To me, that was a classy, gracious thing to do. They had earned the right to have a lovely evening alone in tha suite, away from their RV. Yet Amie wanted to include the others. That really endeared her to me.

As for the Coote family…. Oh, I shouldn’t even get started! The attitudes they displayed—the parents cursing at the kids and each other during the Hoover Dam challenge, the son taunting the other contestants, the mom acting like she’d lost the Hope Diamond when the daughter dropped a piece of paper, the daughter rudely stating she would rather stay in the RV than be near the winning team—were completely uncalled for. I can understand being disappointed at losing. All of the other contestants on the show had felt that at one time or another. But to be so rude about it is just unnecessary. Posters on some NBC message boards point out that it was the kids and not the parents who refused to join the Pollard and DiSalvatore families in the suite. The parents sure didn’t do much to discourage the children, though.

Like it or not, everyone on television has the chance to be a role model to someone watching them. While I am sure Amie Pollard and her family have their faults, this classy redneck is one role model I would not be ashamed of.