Don't Forget to Flush

There really are not enough words or exclamation points to adequately express how excited I am today!!!! As much as I want to break my Facebook addiction (everything in moderation), there is something awesome in the way it allows us to track down just about anybody from our past (sometimes that's a blessing...sometimes it's a curse.)

Today, it was a blessing!

I have not talked to this gal, Shannon (the white girl in the picture who played the black street smart girl way better than I did in this production, lol) since November of 1998 when we did the show "Little Shop of Horrors" together. I am so grateful and a bit overwhelmed with joy to have been able to talk and share with her the impact she made on my life.

During the run of this show, when I was living in complete disobedience, she was the only one who knew about my sin. She had the courage to tell me I was wrong, that I needed to repent and the decency to speak truth to me as an ambassador for Christ all while extending her love and friendship. A great example of speaking the truth in love!

In a day when so many are scared to speak truth, this spunky, lover of Jesus, showed no fear in confronting my sin. That seed, her voice, rang in my heart for YEARS. Every time I share my testimony, still to this day, I remember her voice of truth, her courage and lack of fear......Today, I got to thank her for being a light in my journey. I praise God for her and the courage she dared to show in my life.

And if I can quote her as she again encouraged me today and reminded me of the new creations we are and our need for daily renewal...our daily bread.....she so eloquently said........"We all have a floater, that one piece that just won't flush"  (I remember why I loved this gal so much.) Thank God that he flushes it away and makes us new!!

So, my friends, don't forget to flush daily. 

Remember we have the Master Plumber waiting to renew us and make us new!

You can check out Shannon's career and follow what she's up to these days. God continues to use her in the church, in her family, through her creativity and her gift of entertainment and more energy than I will ever have!

You can like her on Facebook
Shade 'N Shannon

The Tempo Players "Little Shop of Horrors Nov. 1998
Shannon~Allyssa~Mia

His Call~His Will

"God called Jesus Christ to what seemed absolute disaster. And Jesus Christ called His disciples to see Him put to death, leading every one of them to the place where their hearts were broken." ~Oswald Chambers

I don't know about you, but for what I have been going through this week, the conversations I have been having with my husband alongside my prayers and cries to Jesus, this hit the nail on the head.

God , through His son Christ Jesus, by the power of His Holy Spirit has again met me where I am at, reminded me of His grace, His perfect love and sacrifice and has once again encouraged me to abide in Him, to trust Him and to be all about His good and perfect will.

I am always amazed how He brings the right Bible passage at the right time. It's like He wrote it all down just for me...oh wait, He did! And He did it for you too, just for YOU!!

May you be encouraged by God's Word in Luke 18:31-34 today. And may the devotion by Oswald Chambers add a bit of insight for you as well. God Bless!~ Mia  

Luke 18:31-34 

Jesus Predicts His Death a Third Time

31 Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. 32 He will be delivered over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him and spit on him; 33 they will flog him and kill him. On the third day he will rise again. 34 The disciples did not understand any of this. Its meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about.

The Bewildering Call of God~Oswald Chambers

08

05

2013

’. . . and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be accomplished.’ . . . But they understood none of these things . . . —Luke 18:31, 34

God called Jesus Christ to what seemed absolute disaster. And Jesus Christ called His disciples to see Him put to death, leading every one of them to the place where their hearts were broken. His life was an absolute failure from every standpoint except God’s. But what seemed to be failure from man’s standpoint was a triumph from God’s standpoint, because God’s purpose is never the same as man’s purpose.

This bewildering call of God comes into our lives as well. The call of God can never be understood absolutely or explained externally; it is a call that can only be perceived and understood internally by our true inner-nature. The call of God is like the call of the sea— no one hears it except the person who has the nature of the sea in him. What God calls us to cannot be definitely stated, because His call is simply to be His friend to accomplish His own purposes. Our real test is in truly believing that God knows what He desires. The things that happen do not happen by chance— they happen entirely by the decree of God. God is sovereignly working out His own purposes.

If we are in fellowship and oneness with God and recognize that He is taking us into His purposes, then we will no longer strive to find out what His purposes are. As we grow in the Christian life, it becomes simpler to us, because we are less inclined to say, “I wonder why God allowed this or that?” And we begin to see that the compelling purpose of God lies behind everything in life, and that God is divinely shaping us into oneness with that purpose. A Christian is someone who trusts in the knowledge and the wisdom of God, not in his own abilities. If we have a purpose of our own, it destroys the simplicity and the calm, relaxed pace which should be characteristic of the children of God.

~My Utmost For His Highest

Finishing That Thought....

So it has been a few weeks since I returned from my whirlwind weekend  which looked a little like this....Friday night concert in Pittsburgh, PA for the LWML National Convention, a Saturday noon set in Prescott Valley, AZ and then an evening concert opening for Casting Crowns, followed by a next day fly out to San Antonio TX to speak and sing to 27,000+ youth at the Alamodome for the National Youth Gathering. Wow, looking back, I think about all that God packed into that weekend and I am blown away.

Since then I have been on the road traveling with family and now I sit, finally processing all that God did. I stand amazed.

There is still so much inside my heart that I can't express, so I am going to get to the punch and tell you what blew me away the most. It pretty simple actually.

God answered my prayer!

My prayer was this.."Lord, may your Spirit pierce the hearts of your people the way that YOU desire and not the way that I may want to. Will you change them, will you change me and speak to us with what you want us to hear and not the points that I want to get across"

He did it! The stories that I heard in response to my words and songs that weekend confirmed that only God could have spoken to their hearts in such a way, only God through His Spirit can sink that deep.

Only God could have set me on stage during the worst migraine of my life (and I have had many) and taken the pain for away that moment so that I could sing with all my heart to share His message through song. Only God! Only God!

As I said to a crowd of 27,000 as they cheered when I told them of the victory Christ had in my life,  I exclaimed "THAT'S OUR GOD!"

That is our God, That is what He does.... Our God, Our God!!

Amen and Amen!

Now, if you like pictures and fake hashtags..#ENJOY!

Speaking at the Alamodome, San Antonio TX

Yes, that's me in the background. Not embarrassing at all...NOT!

LOL

Walking through the Convention Center meeting so many wonderful people

Singing "How He Loves" at the NYG Post Mass Event

One of my favorite things...Talking to people!
#NYG #San Antonio

This lady surprised me and made my day. One hug from Terry Kieschnick, former First Lady of the LCMS and your smile grows a little bit bigger!
#NYG #San Antonio

Met some youth from our alma mater, Walther Lutheran High School, Melrose Park, IL
#San Antonio #NYG

 An amazing women of God, Jessica Stevens, shared with the gathering the  miracle that God did in her life
#NYG #San Antonio

 Ran into a group from #Chicago~ My hometown
#NYG #San Antonio

Great time meeting so many people

#NYG #San Antonio

Even met a cousin that I had never met before
#NYG #San Antonio

Getting to see my long time friend, Kim
#NYG #San Antonio

 Jason Gray amazing artist who sang that night as well with Casting Crowns
#ELEVATE Music Fest AZ

 Waiting to sound check with Jonny Diaz in Prescott Valley, AZ

Performing at the ELEVATE Music Fest, AZ opening for Casting Crowns

Got to eat lunch with hundreds of women that came to hear our story of grace

#LWML PA

 My husband and I share our testimony in Pittsburgh, PA LWML Convention

 Debbie, who I first met in Nashville, drives in to be my roadie extraordinaire for the night in PA

#lifesaver

Thought #1

I have a feeling that it is going to take me a few days to finish this post. It has been a whirlwind of a week and I have so much in my heart to share that I'm not even sure how to get it all out. I am going to write a few thoughts just to get them down and I have no idea what this will look like after I process my thoughts, rewrite what I have written and hear more from the Lord.

The one thing that is pressed so heavy on me, especially after spending four days with 25,000 youth and hearing so many stories of brokenness and pain, is this.... Ultimately, our youth (and all of us) don't want us to fix them or give them all the answers..... they just want to be heard, to know that they matter, to know that their feelings matter.... simply put, they just want someone to listen and to know that they are loved regardless.

Maybe that's enough for this post, maybe I don't even need to write anymore, maybe I just need to stop talking and simply listen.

End of an Era

Sometimes, I just like reading what my husband writes. I love him so....Enjoy reading a bit from his heart as he shares a note after his last game of the season.

 KOEHNE'S CORNER WEEKLY NOTE

As many of you know, coaching is one of my true joys in life. On Saturday, another season came to an end as our boys basketball team was eliminated from the playoffs. Just like every year, it is tough to walk into the locker room after the last game and say thank you to the seniors as it is the last time I will get to coach them. This year’s senior class has special meaning as they were the first group to start with me at Valley.

On an even more personal level, it was difficult as it was the last game in which I coached my own son. In fact, after 13 straight years of coaching one of my 3 children in some sport, that era came to an end on Saturday. When I think about the countless hours spent at little league practice, in the gym, on the football field or at the tumbling gym, it is hard for me to imagine that part of my life has passed by. Thankfully, what hasn't passed by are the memories or the lessons taught and learned during those experiences.

I don't think I could ever coach at a place where I couldn't share my faith and the truth about Jesus Christ. As I talked Saturday with the players, I could honestly tell them that while it hurts to lose and fall short of our team goal, in the end that doesn't really matter. The only truly important thing in life is their relationship with Jesus. 

Through the season we had I hope that the players’ faith was able to grow and they trust in Him more now than they did 4 months ago. As a coach I have learned that while wins are nice, the only true victories are the hearts won over for Christ. 
~BOB KOEHNE~ 

The Best Worst Giver

I have said many times "This was the best Christmas ever", but this year I really mean it. This was the best Christmas ever!!

My husband and I are not big on shopping or getting caught up in the hustle and bustle of the Holiday season. We try to take it slow, lay back and try to keep things in perspective. This year turned out much differently than other years in that no one made it to a store to do ANY shopping and the amazing part of it was that none of us felt any pressure to either.

So where does this leave us? Let's see, Christmas Eve we attended church, came home and had a wonderful family dinner and then gathered around the tree where there were a few cards from some family. Now feeling a bit of the pressure, unbeknownst to the other family members everyone quietly proceeded to go wrap their "gifts."

Well, it turned out that we all had the same idea...lets sneak into peoples room, find things that belong to them and wrap them up! And that's just what happened.

As the kids began to open there frantically wrapped presents we all quickly realized that each gift was a joke waiting to happen. My daughter laughed as she opened a box with one of her slippers in it, a half eaten candy bar, an empty CD case and some clothes pins.

As the gift event went on, we turned each turn into an opportunity to laugh, each laugh bigger than the one before.

Being a competitive family, it became a sort of competition to see who gave the best "Worst" gift. Even the gifts that we gave our kids (which was a envelope with some cash) had a used item from their own room and was met with tons of laughter.

I guess what made that Christmas Eve so special, obviously, was not the gifts, but truly the time together laughing and loving each other. While we didn't plan to do a gift-less Christmas, I tell you, it just doesn't get much better than this.

So we already have plans for next year.....The gift giving competition. Find the best worst gift from Goodwill and carry the title for a year of "The Best Worst Giver". Granted, this may not work in most families, but for us, Koehne's, it works just fine!!

What Day Is It?

I feel as though I entered a cave and three days later suddenly emerged. Not sure where the last three days have gone, but I do know that there has been a lot of long hours, work and some amazing music going on. Please know that I am not complaining  Camping out in a recording studio is probably one of my favorite places on earth!!

Watching my producer get the very best out of the musicians who are already at the top of their game is a thrill to watch. The creativity and the expertise is pretty astonishing. What also amazes me is how through the direction and wisdom of my producer Jeff McCullough, I am also able to give my very best. It is a growing and stretching experience for me to be pushed vocally and emotionally in ways I have never been pushed before and see the fruit of that captured in sound.

Thank you all for the persistent prayers. It is humbling to see how God responds. His faithfulness is overwhelming. Thank you for going to the throne on behalf of me, my family, the ministry of music and all of us that are pushing through to see this to completion.

God is so much bigger than it all and it is truly an honor to be a part of something that he is doing.

PRAYER REQUESTS
Continued health and strength as we finish off the vocals
For our families at home
Doors to open so that many have the opportunity to hear this music