Proper Priorities

Hello Holland First and those in Blogland. There is a young lady that attends Holland First when she is not traveling with CTI Music ministries. She had something happen to her that would have probably made others mad and seeking revenge, but not this young woman of faith. Read her story below and be blown away by a young lady with PROPER PRIORITIES! (Pastor Mike)

Used with permission................

Hello All,
What a last few weeks it has been for me. Since last writing you all I have been through Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Nebraska, Iowa, and Illinois on tour and then have just spent a week at home over Easter time. Today is the first day on the road again for our final tour with CTI which will last 5 weeks. It will take us all over the south and east coast states and we will be returning to our base in Willmar on May 17th. The time spent on the road has been such a time of growth for me and I am constantly learning more and more each day what God has for me and how He is asking me to live and love. The Winter Tour ended well with many opportunities to share our love with those who didn't know. It was amazing to watch as God brought people into our lives who didn't know about His love and grace and we were able to share that with them. God is so faithful.

For break I headed home as well as spending some time in Toronto, Canada. The break was much needed for me and my brain to simply rest and relax a bit after many intense months on the road. I felt like the time spent on break was rejuvenating as well as a time to pray and think about what the next few months with CTI will be like as well as preparing my heart for all that is next for me. But I want to take a short time now and share another story that happened just Monday night on my drive back to our base in WIlmar, MN. Monday morning a friend of mine, Eric, & I took off from my parent's house and drove back to Willmar. When we got to Minneapolis we decided to stop for dinner before finishing the last few hours of our drive. We went in and ate and when we returned to the car we saw that the window had been smashed and shattered. We looked at one another and didn't know what to do. Then I took a look in the backseat and noticed our backpacks were no longer there - they had been stolen. As "people on the go" we carry many important things in our backpacks so we both lost our laptops, external hard drives, chargers. Eric also lost his PSP, a Nintendo DS, ipod, and camera. I lost my entire journal I had been keeping from this year as well as other books and memories. I didn't know what to do and then Eric looked at me and said, "Carrie, it's just stuff. We are safe and it's just stuff. We have Christ and that's all we really need." Immediately I was at peace. Sure I was upset after having lost all my photos ever taken since my freshman year in college, my journal from the year, my music, and other memories that are irreplaceable… BUT Eric was and is right. I still have Christ and He is all I need. After taking care of the police report and those things we got back in the car and drove to Willmar. Along the way we really felt like we needed to be in prayer for the people who broke in and stole our things. So we spent time in prayer for them and I will again now.

"Father, YOU are all we need. You give and you take away. And right now I don't know who it is that took our stuff but I pray that you would show yourself evident in their lives. I pray as they go through our things they see our Bibles and read them. That they read my journal and see that although following Christ is not "easy" You are faithful and You are worth it all. I pray that you would touch their hearts and lives and through this theft they could see YOU and your LOVE. I don't know about their needs and lives but You know them and love them just as much as you love me so use this experience to bring them to YOU - the only one who can fill the emptiness with life and love. If it takes my stuff to be stolen for the sake of their souls, take everything of mine! Everything is yours anyways Lord. I trust you and your plans. AMEN!"

Anyways, it's been quite the journey these last few days of coming to the realization that although my physical memories are lost and most likely will never be returned to me Christ is doing new things in my life and I will continue to make new memories remembering along the way that Christ is the ONLY thing I need and when all else is stripped away He is all that matters.

So I challenge you all to look at your lives and ask yourself is Christ all I need? Am I putting things and stuff before Him? What would happen if all was stripped away? Could I still praise Him and love Him and trust that His plans are better than mine? I hope you will look and be able to say "Christ YOU are all I need, You are all I want."

I'll keep you all posted as I travel all around for the next 5 weeks and write again soon with details of my summer plans with CTI. Thanks again for all your support through prayers and finances… you guys are the reason I am able to be here with CTI growing in the love of a faithful God.

He's all we need,
Carrie Joy