Pray #BringBackOurGirls

As I kept hearing and seeing news of the Abducted Nigerian school girls and the call to action, I caught myself thinking "But, what can I do?" It was easy to go through my day, listen to the news, watch  the different social media stories and simply scroll on past it without feeling a sense of responsibility at all.

I believe my lack of sense came from an overwhelming sense of helplessness and the reality that I can't really do anything to help them anyway. Then , like He always does, the Lord reminded me that He has equipped me with the most powerful weapon in the world. PRAYER. I can pray. And I call other to pray as well.

There is power in the name of Jesus. I believe this. I know this. I believe that there is no other than by which we are saved, eternally and temporarily.

I believe that that God hears the cries of His people and can save. I believe that as we cry out in the name of Jesus, he hears and responds. Pray.....Pray....Pray!!

"So Lord in Your mercy, Hear our prayer. Lord, Save those girls and all those who are in danger there in Nigeria. May their eyes be turned to you, Jesus the one and only. Comfort the mothers, comfort the fathers, comfort the families of all who are suffering. Bring healing to Nigeria. Heal their land in the name of Jesus. Amen and Amen!!"

I have Two Elbows

I have two elbows and chances are that you do to. Let me tell you a little about my elbows......

Recently I was on a photo shoot with a friend and brother in Christ that I admire. No matter what, I can always count on him. For instance, I was suppose to meet with a photographer early one morning and because of certain circumstances he had to cancel 60 minutes after we were suppose to start. Well, I was showered, dressed, make up on and hair done. I was still good to go! Naturally, not wanting to waste a good hair day, I called my buddy, Randy, and he packed up his gear, scouted out areas with me and we shot at four locations.

At the last location he asked if I had any CD's to give to the people whose space and property we LITERALLY invaded (in fact we did that at all three sites, but that's how we roll) and I said "No, I don't have any, I normally have them, but....." As I continued to explain to him the reason He said "Mia, those are just excuses. Excuses are like elbows everybody's got two of 'em." That shut me up. He was right. I was unprepared. For all the times I pack my CD's just in case I have an opportunity to share them with someone, I failed. I was NOT prepared and what I needed to do was NOT make excuses.

But, now, every-time I walk out of the house I think a bit more quickly to myself about grabbing some spare CD's in case the lady at the grocery store tells me she likes music and I am able to just give her a CD. When people speak the truth to me, I may pout my lip for a moment, but my heart hears, receives and becomes all the wiser and more aware.

Some people thrive on affirmation, I thrive on loving reproof. I thrive on people pointing out my weaknesses so I can be better. Several years ago I was at a place in my life, music and ministry where I desired so deeply to have someone who would just tell me the truth and stop telling me everything I did was good. By the grace of God, He sent those people in my life...... people that recognized I needed help, guidance, direction, honest feedback and a swift kick in the butt.

Some of it came from my friend, Mark, who is a gifted songwriter. He saw that I needed stronger songs to sing. And so He allowed me to sing my heart through his music. He offered to work with me on songs I was writing to make them better. My ministry needed someone like him and I am so grateful.

Some of it came from my producer who worked with me on the last two Tree Hill Collective Recordings. OK, he may have made me cry, but that's mostly because He speaks so much truth, pushes me harder than I have ever been pushed, challenges me on the words and notes that I sing and does not let me slack. He tells me to deal and accept certain things and face others things head on. He does not let me cower.

I thrive on that. Last week as I was leading worship at a church. I could hear His voice in my head "Why are you singing that song" "What does that mean" "Who are you singing to" "You sound like you don't care" "Did you just belch in the microphone?" Having him speak truth in my life challenges me everyday to stay focused on why I do what I do and who I am doing it for. It keeps my eyes fixed on Jesus the author and perfector.

I am a better worship leader, piano player, singer, writer and leader because of what the people in my life have dared to do for me....speaking truth in love, the hard not so fun truth. I love it. I need it. Do I accept it easily all the time? No, sometimes I pout my lip, sometimes I walk out, sometimes I cry, (my husband, Bob, knows this best as He is my biggest truth-giver) but just about every time, I come back a whole lot stronger and a whole lot wiser than I was when I first started.

For that I thank these brothers in Christ. I could not walk this road without you!

So it leads me to this. If I appreciate truth so much and the fact that people dare to give it to me, am I loving people the same way by speaking truth to them? For me the answer lately has been yes, but it has been hard. And when it is difficult, I just remember how much I desire truth and desire to do the same for others as God leads me. #LoveGodLoveOthers

Who loves you in truth and who are you loving the same way?

God has nothing left for me

There are things that I know and there are times when these things that I know hit me in such a profound way that it changes me completely. I sing songs like "In Christ Alone" where I belt out the lyric "The wrath of God was satisfied." I read the Word of God which says "There is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus" I rejoice because my faith lies in the resurrection and the truth that Jesus died for my sins and rose that I might live with Him eternally. That's good stuff.

But, this past Sunday when the Pastor was preaching he said these words "If Jesus took the punishment of the world and received the FULL wrath of God at Calvary, Is there any wrath left for my sin?' The answer is NO, there is nothing left for me. So, now when I sing these words... "Till on that cross as Jesus died, The wrath of God was satisfied. For every sin on Him was laid; Here in the death of Christ I live." ...I sing them reminded of the depth of His love and the completeness of Christ's Gospel. God has no wrath left for me for I am in Christ Jesus!

There is a special joy in being part of a Sunday church worship team, especially when you do multiple services. We open up the service with music, we worship, we get to listen to the Pastor preach and then we get to do it all over again, but the second time, we lead the worship from a place of having been preached the Word of God and the words we sing take on a new meaning!

This past Sunday when I sand the song "Man of Sorrows" in the second service, my heart fluttered and my eyes welled as I sang the truth of God's wrath being fulfilled with a deeper understanding and renewed passion. If it were up to me, we would have done five more services, listened his sermon five more times and sang the songs with a new passion every time.



"There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh,could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you." Romans 8:1-11

*In Christ Alone by Stuart Townend and Keith Getty

The importance of realizing that God's wrath has been satisfied in light of this song LINK

Our First College Graduate

Today, my husband and I were able to witness our firstborn walk the stage and receive His diploma. From the heart of this college drop-out, I have to say I stand in admiration of my son, Chris, for this accomplishment and all the hard work he did to make it to this day.

As parents who have not adopted the practice of paying for our children's college (mostly because we simply can't) seeing how he worked diligently to save his money, put himself through two years of Community college debt free and go on to the University for another three years, work hard to earn as many scholarships as possible and not have to take out massive loans is pretty impressive to this Mom & Dad.

So I stand in admiration not only for the excellence he showed in his studies, but everything it took for him to be able to thrive, succeed and finish his education as a Magna Cum Laude honored graduate.  Just so proud of my baby boy!

And I am very thankful for a place like Grand Canyon University that not only educated and trained him to be a leader in secondary education, but nurtured him in his faith and walk with Christ. Seeing his relationship with the Lord bloom over these past few years has by far been the most rewarding treasure in my heart.

Today was a good day, and seeing him walk the stage blessed my heart.

As a side note, he wasn't planning to walk, but when he was online trying to pay graduation fees, he couldn't navigate off the page to pay for fees without purchasing a cap and gown. Since he didn't have time to figure it out, he just decided to buy the cap and gown and walk. So for that internet navigation error, I am thankful! Thanks internet glitch, you made my day!

Proud Parents

                   Our Babies Aaron, Chris, Miriam          

                                                                                                 

 Glad someone brought flowers

                                                     

Chris and his friend Tracie

Commencement Address ~ Maj. Dan Rooney, USAF (Ret,)

                                                              Dinner at Spinato's

Backroom Prayers- "You See Me Through"

Oftentimes, I sit in my backroom with my piano and make up songs, not to record or sell, but simply as a way to worship my Lord. This is how my music ministry started (sitting at the piano singing prayers to my Savior) and this is what will never change. My songs are prayers to my Lord..... Imperfect, flawed, not completely structured, but simply what comes out as I sit and worship. This is what I prayed today. 

Welcome to my "Backroom Prayers"

"You See Me Through" by Mia Koehne c.2014

You are My savior and I need You every hour.
You part the waters of my sorrow and my doubt.

You see me through
You see me through
You see me through
And I will worship You

Trials and temptations come all common to this world
But God your faithful giving strength to do Your will

You see me through
You see me through
You see me through
And I will worship You

Though I may wander, I may fall
Your grace sufficient for it all
My sin so calloused and so mean
Your mercy flowing like the stream of life
Now I'm alive!

You are My Savior and I need You every hour.
You part the waters of my sorrow and my doubt.

Fossil Creek Adventure

Easter Monday!
My husband, nephew and daughter (aka, the Principal, the Biology teacher and the student) all had the day off. So, we spent it being led by one of our favorite staff members, Joe, as he gathered a group of high school students to head to Fossil Creek near Strawberry, AZ.

It was a nice drive up north. A nice drive, that is, until the last 15 miles of bumpy dirt road that we maxed out at 15 miles per hour. About half way in we saw that our first van had stopped and the kids appeared to be looking over the cliff.

Obviously we were curious, so we got out to join them. So began our first lesson in driving on bumpy roads with no rails and steep cliffs. 

Lesson 1: Don't drive over the cliff.

Old fallen car

The Girls

The Boys

After an hour drive on the road to the creek, we quickly realized, it was all worth it. Every bump!

I think what blows my mind is how in the midst of the desert, if you follow just the right path, you end up in what seems to be a tropical paradise. The water was clear as glass, with electrifying shades of blue and green. I forgot that I was in Arizona and for a moment though I was back on the sandy shores of Haiti. 

Upstream. (The trail we would take)

Mr. G (the Biology teacher/my nephew)

 Downstream                                       Upstream   

At this point we began hiking. I had heard rumors of hiking adventures with Mr. Richter (our trip leader), most of which can be summarized by the fact that even if there is no path, the land can still be hiked.

Lesson 2: You don't need a path when you can see the top of the mountain. Make you own path!

So the first group went ahead followed by my group which included my husband and two other young men. We quickly figured out that the only way (that we could see) was straight up the river as we saw no path and much of the ground was thick with bush (and bugs). I am thankful that there isn't (much) video footage of me trying to make my way upstream. Trying to get my footing on slippery rocks, sudden depth changes and a strong current make for an interesting trek. Here is the first current that I tread through safely. However, this same current on my way back actually picked me up and pushed me against the rocks and down the little fall. I gained a new appreciation for water, rapids and currents. Very powerful!

Lesson 3: Respect the power of water

The rapid that got the best of me!

Venturing on to our second destination was a favorite for the students as they enjoyed the water, the view and the jumps!

 It was a great day. Fun to be with the students, fun to be with my husband, daughter & nephew, fun to experience a bit of paradise in the desert with the people that I love and respect.

Hubby, Bob & me

Kendra & My daughter, Miriam

Today was worth every bump and bruise. 

At this point, I have to over share, so I am giving you warning to turn back now if you want to leave this story on a high note.

As with every adventure and journey there are always a few mishaps. We had a bunch, as this is what happens when you hike the untrodden trail and make your way up stream and downstream grabbing on to branches and anything else that will keep you from going under. ENJOY!

The Ouchie Segment

(All in a days adventure)

Lesson 5: “How you climb a mountain 

is more important than reaching the top.” Yvon Chouinard

Happy Easter 2014

Jesus Has Risen-The Good News-The Gospel-Our Salvation

Matthew 28:1-10

"After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 

There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.

The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”

So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them,“Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

The Gospel saves. John 3:16 

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, 

that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."