Moms Helping Moms

What I Miss About Toddler MomLife - FamilyLife MomLife Today

Greetings in this New Year of 2010!
Hope you all are enjoying the beautiful white blanket of snow outside. A bit more challenging to get around with a baby carriage/barnevogne but still fun. I hope that the New Year is off to a wonderful start for all of you and that you had a lovely Christmas together with your families.
Since coming up with this idea to start a network for International Moms in Aalborg some new little ones have come into the world. Lilian and Isaac Arthur had a baby girl Dec.9. Flo and Angela Houget had a baby boy Dec.5 And a new Thai/Chinese couple will be expecting their baby any day now as well as a Rik and Jette (dutch/danish) couple. So it is exciting to see how our little group will develop. At the present time my daughter Lily is the oldest at 9 months so it will be a few months before they can play with each other. But we look forward to organizing some play groups and some mom time soon! If there are any of you reading this that have older babies it would be wonderful to start some play groups now if you are interested just give me a call(61460076) or write on my blog.
I shared with you a bit about who I am but now I would love to hear your story, how you ended up in Aalborg, about your family whatever you would like to share so we can get to know each other a bit better. I hope to hear from some of you soon.

I am writing this to those of you out there that have received one of my cards. I wanted to explain a little bit more about my motivation for handing these out. Since having my daughter Lily this past March it has been quite a journey being an American mom living in Aalborg, Denmark. I got the idea to create a network for International Moms in Aalborg after going on a tour of the maternity ward at the hospital with a couple friend of ours. They are from Ghana and are expecting their first baby in 2 wks. Because they do not speak much danish I went with them to translate for them. During this tour I met another American-French couple who are also here short term with the husband's company. I ended up translating for them as well. After this I thought wow maybe there are other international Mom's out there who are only here for a short time and need help adjusting to being a mom in a foreign land just like me. I am just an american mom raising our half danish/half american daughter with my loving husband Kristian. But I would really like to do whatever I can to help other moms that are maybe only here for a few years and have not mastered the danish language. I think it is still very important to have contact with other danish moms and the community. But sometimes it is nice to meet others in the same life situation that we are in. It is therefore that I would like to offer whatever assistance could be helpful to you. Translating recipes, help with grocery shopping or finding the danish word for an ingredient you are shopping for, help with understanding or communicating with midwives or the sundhedsplejesker the nurses that come to visit you after you have a baby, or just to make a play group for our kids to get to know other international families. Currently I am still on maternity leave until February so my weeks are only filled with different mom groups and play groups so I am available to chat with. It would be great if a bunch of us international moms could get together and share our stories. Please feel free to email me at fullyalive1978@yahoo.com.

I just got done reading a piece by a friend of our family who lost their 20 something son last year. As I read the words of the broken and hurt mother pouring over where the Lord has brought their lives since then i am compelled to write. I cannot help but respond with tears as this evokes new feelings in my mother's heart. I look down at my 7 month old Lily as she plays on our blue carpet her dad just bought playing with her toys. She is just at the beginning of her little life with so many dreams we have for her to love Jesus with all her heart,soul, and mind. For her to have a full life. But we never know how much time we have or how many days God has promised to give to us. Sometimes I get so caught up in getting chores done or doing other things that I forget to cherish every moment God gives us with our little girl. For none of us knows what tomorrow may bring. There is so much depth to a mother's heart that I am just learning about and experiencing. It is amazing how children can create such great joy and such great sorrow. And how it must be with God our Father and the joy and sorrow we can cause Him at times too. Oh how I think this journey of being a mom will teach me so many new aspects of God's incredible character and draw me closer to Himself. My heart goes out to this mother's broken heart Lord continue to pour your strength over this family. And thank you for these eternal reality checks on what really matters in light of eternity. Help Kristian and I to daily speak the gospel over our little Lily and live it our before her in our relationship with each other.

Romans 1:5

or="#ffffff">Make a Smilebox scrapbook

There are so many things I could say up to this point after being a Mom for almost five months. It is hard to believe our little Lily Hadassa will be five months old this month. There are so many things I have learned up til now but that will come later. I am taking up the blogging again after a break. They might be short entries as my time is not my own anymore. But that is ok because it never really was anyway it was God's. I am not sure who if any will read this but my hope is that somehow there will be some who will also share their stories about being a woman striving to live counter culturally, ministering in a different country, mothering, mentoring younger women,living life with an eternal perspective, cooking and baking recipes, travelling with a baby across the atlantic. Just to name a few of the possible conversations that could happen. I hope you will take part in the journey with me.

Just a little thought from last night. I went into our first child Lily's room to find her asleep yet crying in her sleep. She seemed scared but without really being awake. I began to pray over her and finally she calmed down and went back to sleep. This has never happened before and it made me think about the importance of praying over and for our children. When she is sleeping is the time that i find moments to pray for her life. That she will be a girl of God, that the Spirit of God will move in her heart and bring her to repentance and salvation, that Kristian and I would have the wisdom to parent her and know how to develop her gifts, encourage her according to her own love language and for the man that will be her husband some day. But I need to also remember to pray for the here and now as well with her. Like the trip we will be taking in Sept. to fly to the States and visit my family. I am so thankful that we can come to our Father at anytime with anything and cry out to Him. It is like a message I heard where he was taking about coming to God like a child. A baby can only communicate through crying. Lily can only cry when she needs something to eat, has her diaper on the wrong way, is tired or just wants to spend some face time with us. But that is also how we need to come to God to cry out to him when we need Him. I am so thankful that we can cry out to Him at anytime He just wants me to be quiet enough to hear His voice.

Here is a recent shot of my new bike my loving hubby bought me earlier this summer. This picture was taken at 11pm and its still light. The lovley long summer danish days!
We had a great summer at One our national teen camp. The Lord really showed up and worked in the hearts and lives of teens that week. The new team structure in planning the camp really allowed us all to do what God has gifted us to do.
A few days after we drove to Leipzig, Germany for the Baptist World Alliance with 6000 teens from all over the world. God really used this trip as reflection time for me personally and all that He has done in my life the past 5 yrs. I was so challenged by the fact that only a few summers back I stood at the Passion Conference in TN wanting God to use me however he wanted. I was just so desperate for Him to work in my life. I would have never thought that He would move me to a totally different country, speaking another language and ministering to students in Denmark. My heart was overwhelmed in that moment by God and His plan that always surprises us. God is so kind to give us moments like this of reflection on His goodness.

My apologies this has been such a long time coming. So I will just give a little update on what's been going on lately in my life. Today I am praising God for good health and the blessing that it is. Yesterday most of the day I spent on the couch and barfing my brains out. Not fun for someone who never gets sick but it sure makes you thankful for good health. I was even glad for the fact that I felt good enough to do dishes and bake bread today. But yesterday while not being able to do much of just laying on the sofa I was able to watch a video called the Truth Project by Focus on the Family. It was so fantastic its a video series that teaches through the fundamentals of Truth. Questions like Who is God? Who is Man? What is truth? What is reality? What is evil? Where does it come from?
It was a huge blessing to be challenged to think through these things. The one question that challenged me yesterday was . What is eternal life? The answer- knowing God.

John 17:3
Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.

Sometimes eternal life seems like something that we will only experience after we die. But the reality is that we can experience it now through and intimate connection with our Heavenly Father. Sometimes in the daily grind of ministry I lose sight of this getting way too caught up in the planning. I lose sight of truly Knowing God that is what its all about. Knowing You Jesus.

just click on the ? to see the website for our girls day Princess - Created for Freedom

I have not updated this for some time but I wanted to share with you all about a day that is coming up that I would like you all to be praying for. It is really a dream come true and has potential to effect future generations here in Denamrk.

I am writing today to ask that you join us in praying
for a very special day that is coming up October 20.
About a year ago God really placed on my heart the
desire to make a day event for just girls all over
Denmark. A day where they would hear some great
speaking and leave understanding more of their
identity in Christ or hearing about it for the first
time. So praise the Lord it is happening next Saturday
from about 5:30am ET -2pm ET. I am asking if there
are some of you who would be willing to pray for us
and for the girls coming. As of today there are about
30 girls signed up. It might sound small but for a
first time event its an ok size, not that it matters
anyway.
But I have attached a list of the girls names that
are coming so that you can specifically pray for them
and that God would really work in their hearts this
day.
-That they would leave truly grasping that they have
worth in Christ and that He has set them free from the
things they struggle with.
- And I would also ask they you pray for me too that I
would not lose focus being worried about all the
details. Even though this is something i love doing
and organizing sometimes i can get freaked out by the
plannning and i seriously DO NOT want to do that. I
really just want this day to be a quality day for them
and most of all that they leave feeling very
treasured.

Thank you so much for your prayers. I really believe
there is strength in prayer and that your prayers will
make a difference in the lives of these
girls! I cant wait to write again and tell of the
great work God has done!

Psalm 39: 4-7
"LORD, remind me how brief my time on earth will be. Remind me that my days are numbered, and that my life is fleeing away.
My life is no longer than the width of my hand.(Imagine that yes i just looked down at my hand and well thats not very big when you think about it.)
An entire lifetime is just a moment to you; human existence is but a breath.
We are merely moving shadows, and all our busy rushing ends in nothing. We heap up wealth for someone else to spend. And so, Lord, where do I put my hope?
MY ONLY HOPE IS IN YOU!"

Well the Lord certainly reminded me of this last thursday as i was on my way to the church to meet up with a girl to talk thru 1 timothy. Its kind of crazy cause i never go through red lights on my bike. But for some reason on this day I thought i could quickly make it through the yellow very very soon to be red light. But no. But thankfully the guy who hit me was not travelling at a very very high speed. But i got hit on my right side and knocked me off my bike. As soon as i got knocked down i quickly got up to avoid getting hit again. Amazingly only by Gods protecting hand i did not hit my head and only have bruised ribs. The ladies that saw it happen wanted to call an ambulance but i pleaded with them not to i hate hate ambulances and have never been in one before. and this was not going to be the first and i could move my arms and legs so i thought it was a bit over the top. So i gave my number and address to the guy so the insurance could pay for his side mirror. then i kept walking to the church still in shock. i wasnt feeling so bad so i waited til after i was done meeting her to tell kristian. he didnt appreciate that so much that i waited a few hours to tell him what happened. now i know to call the husband first he was so sweet though and had taken great care of me. the pain didnt come til later that day it hurt everytime i laughed and took a deep breath. so the next day i went to get checked out at the doctor. i am so so so greatful for Gods protecting hand. I have never experienced Gods protection over my physical life like that before. I am thankful that even though i had to learn the hard way God had his hand on my life. God's grace over our stupidity whether it be going through a red light or our sin is so huge.
The past few days i have been a little more content with all the little things we can sometimes take for granted and just enjoyed life a bit more. Like just relaxing making dinner for my honey and me, walking a bit more slowly (cause it hurts if i breath too hard) down the street, but its been kind of nice walking in the hope of life God has given.
Hope you all can walk in that HOPE today too without being hit by a car to teach it to you. Never thought i was so thick skulled that i had to learn things the hard way but maybe i did this time.

this new song i added has been a huge encouragement to me lately and a reminder that no matter how i might get disappointed with people around me God will never disappoint and that He is our true source of Hope when things seem like a spiritual standstill in the lives of people you are working with.

this morning i was reading in lamentations and wow talk about gaining perspective. let me just give you a glimpse of life in Jeremiahs world suddenly my situation seems much better. here is where Jeremiah is at: "I am the one who has seen the afflictions that come from the rod of the LORD'S anger. He has brought me into deep darkness, shutting out all light. He has turned against me. Day and night his hand is heavy upon me. He has made my skin and flesh grow old. He has broken my bones. He has attacked me and surrounded me with anguish and distress. He has buried me in a dark place, like a person long dead. "this is coming from a guy who warned these people for years that this day of destruction would come. imagine ministering to people that just would not confess their sin, see their need for Gods forgiveness and turn from their sinful ways. how frustrating for jeremiah working amongst such a people as this. even though much suffering had come upon them that still did not get through to their stubborn hearts. so its easy to see why he was so discouraged here. maybe thats how you feel like you are just not getting through to the hearts of those around you, that those people just keep choosing destructive habits to fill the void in their life. or maybe its you maybe you are the one choosing lesser gods that are keeping your heart calloused. God is offering HOPE TO YOU! no matter what the situation HE HAS HOPE TO OFFER YOU, HOPE THAT CAN ONLY COME FROM HIM!

here is what keeps Jeremiah from going off the deep end of his difficult days surrounded by the darkness of sins of rebelliousness and people that keep disappointing him, here is what keeps him going and what will keep us you and me going as well! Praise God that He is our unfailing source of HOPE!

"I will never forget this awful time, as I grieve over my loss. Yet I still DARE TO HOPE when I remember this:
The unfailing love of the LORD NEVER ENDS! By His mercies we have been kept from complete destruction. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each day. I say to myself, "The LORD is my heritance; therefore, I will HOPE IN HIM!
THE LORD IS WONDERFULLY GOOD NOT JUST GOOD BUT WONDERFULLY GOOD TO THOSE WHO WAIT FOR HIM AND SEEK HIM"

Here are the lyrics to the song You Are My Hope by Skillet
listen to the song on here and let these words sink in!

"You Are My Hope"

Times are hard
Times have changed
Don't you say
But I keep holding on to you
It's hard to keep the faith alive day to day
Leaning on the strength I've found in you
You're the hope of all the Earth

You are my hope
You are my strength
You're everything
Everything I need
You are my hope
You are my life
You are my hope
You are my hope

Far beyond what I can see or comprehend
Etching your eternity in me
Nations stream and angels sing, "Jesus reigns"
And every knee bows down
You're the hope of all the Earth

You are my hope
You are my strength
You're everything
Everything I need
You are my hope
You are my life
You are my hope
You are my hope

Carry on and I sing of how
You love and I love you now
All the times that I start to sink
You come and you rescue me
You are my hope
You are my hope

May your heart be encouraged today because regardless of how you feel God is offering you HOPE!
to hear the song check out my MySpace page.
http://www.myspace.com/kylenedk

this is a little exerpt from a book called 31 days of praise. this entry really hit this newlywed in the heart. reminding me of the first and greatest love ever. and that no person can ever take His place or else all goes amok.

"Thank you Lord for the people who are a blessing to me... for family andfriends and neighbors, for little children, for brothers and sisters in Christ, for colleagues and leaders, for pastors and teachers...and for others: our doctor, the postman, the plumber. Thank You for the many ways You use these people to meet my needs, brighten my path, and lighten my load.. to enrich my knowledge of You, and to counsel or correct or nourish me, builiding me up in the faith. How good and how pleasant itis to enjoy rich fellowship with those who love You. Thank You for bringing people into my life!
(this was so true when amanda gaumer came to visit we developed a new sisterhood. as you can see here hugging ronald mcdonald)
Yet Lord I also thank You that even the people I most admire have flaws-that only You are wonderful through and through, with now ugly edges, and that people, even at their best, cannot meet my deepest needs...that at times they misunderstand, they disappoint, they expect too much, or they cant be available when I need them. This makes me even more glad to have You as my best Friend, my wonderful Counselor, my ever-present help in trouble, immediately available around the clock, seven days a week. How wonderful that I belong to You, the pure,unpolluted Source from which all downstream loves flow. So I delights in people here on earth; but first and last I come to You, the only perfect Person, the only ideal Person, the only One whose love is flawless...the only One who is worthy of my highest praise. O God, who is like You? There is none to compare with You!
I thank You for the friends who've failed
To meet my souls deep need
They've driven me to the Savior's feet
Upon His love to feed.

I'm grateful too, through all life's way
No one could satisfy,
And so I've found in You alone
My rich, my full supply!
by Florence White Willett
hope this encourages some of you today!

at our teen service this past sunday my heart was overwhelmed by the moving of the holy spirit in my heart. as i sat in the back where students can come to be prayed for but i could not hold back the tears. gazing over the crowd seeing students praising God with everything they had was so encouraging especially after hearing the testimony of a guy that God has truly done and is doing a work in his life. when i first came he was one of the guys who grew up in the church but never wanted to be too christian. but this past summer something changed God really asked him what he was doing about the faith he was proclaiming he had. he is one of those guys who puts on a tough mask but is really thinking through a lot more then he lets on sometimes. this past january he started for the first time to read through the bible which caught me really by surprise. but he has been meeting with kristian and another guy weekly to talk through what they have been reading. sitting in the back of the sanctuary that night i was just overwhelmed with joy as well as shame because sometimes it seems like we dont see any change and i know it shouldnt matter but frankly sometimes it is discouraging. but God by His Spirit ever lovingly humbled me and showed me how wrong i have been and how much He is working even if it is in ways i cannot see. my heart grieved for my lack of faith but it was as if God was saying "stay faithful kylene, keep trusting me, keep waking up every morning and depend on me this is not too big for me". earlier that day another women approached me too sharing her concern for her daughter who seems so hard and prideful that she cant seem to reach her. she came to me asking for advice cause her daughter and i have been getting together on a weekly basis. she too needs to come to a place where she can let her guard down put down the mask and really show her heart. please pray for wisdom for me as we talk together that God would melt her. God is definitely wanting to do something here with her she is such a beautiful, extremely creative and talented young women. but her hard shell makes it difficult for people to see that. i know that i can only trust in God to know what to say and how and when to say things to challenge here thinking. but please pray about this i cant do it on my own. and pray that the enemy would be far from this situation and that i could effectively convey the message of abundant life to her precious heart.

Psalm 37 The steps of the godly are directed by the LORD. He delights in every every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will not fall, for the LORD holds them by the hand. Dont be inmpatient for the LORD to act! Travel steadily along his path. He will honor you, giving you the land.


listening to the prayers of some brothers in Christ yesterday really provoked my heart. why wasnt i crying out to God like they were, what happened that my prayers have become so shallow, why is it that i have allowed so many other things to get in the way, why is it that my first thought is not on God when i get out of bed, i remember when this was a reality in my life but lately that has not been true. and its probably the reason the other night i needed to hear God say He loves me through the audible words of Kristian because i was not strong enough to fight off the lies the enemy was trying to feed me. How does this happen how can you know truth in your head and then find it almost impossible to live it out in your life. its when you are not connected. when you are not loving God with all your heart, soul and mind. when you are not focusing all your attention on loving God and loving your neighbor. it happens when you are in the midst of one of the most lost countries in the world and lose sight that God CAN do the impossible and start listening to the deceiver tell you that nothing you are doing matters that your efforts are hopeless and that it will take centuries for God to move in people that are so content because the government provides everything for them that they cant see their need for a Saviour. i can see now just the darkeness that has been surrounding me but there is hope and i praise God for His way of breaking through and reaching down into the water and pulling me out of this floating numbness. its a scary place to be but i am so thankful for using His children to speak truth into my life and once again communicating his immeasurable love for me. about a year ago i had a dream one night that kristian my husband and i were walking in a forest when all of a sudden i found a little pond where all these people were being held under the water. they were alive but had to be set free. so without a thought kristian dove into start freeing all these people and i remember standing on the edge hesitating a bit. but then i jumped in too and starting setting them free. i have never had a dream like this before and i havent since then but lately i think i have been the one that needed to be set free by Gods truth. the truth that God loves me unconditionally just as i am and i can do absolutely NOTHING to make HIM love me more or less. He sent his Son for goodness sake to die so we could be made free. this is what i have been forgetting the awe of the rescuing message of our amazing God. the wonder and amazement that lies in this story. and that we cannot rescue others if we ourselves have not been rescued first. God did the rescuing of our souls first but if we fall back in the water because of choosing to spend time watching tv instead of connecting with our God or choosing to sleep and extra hour instead of getting up and taking a walk or run outside with God, or looking to our friends, boyfriends, husbands,wives to fill that soul connection we are longing for that is when we become just like all the others waiting to be set free in the pond. This is why today I am praising God for the truth from Psalm 37 That though we stumble we will not fall for the LORD holds them by the hand. He is the one who lifts us out of the water to new life in Him. He never lets go of us. And that if we are loving God He will direct every step and DELIGHT IN EVERY DETAIL OF OUR LIVES. In Him my heart delights. Period

Psalm 37 The steps of the godly are directed by the LORD. He delights in every every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will not fall, for the LORD holds them by the hand. Dont be inmpatient for the LORD to act! Travel steadily along his path. He will honor you, giving you the land.


listening to the prayers of some brothers in Christ yesterday really provoked my heart. why wasnt i crying out to God like they were, what happened that my prayers have become so shallow, why is it that i have allowed so many other things to get in the way, why is it that my first thought is not on God when i get out of bed, i remember when this was a reality in my life but lately that has not been true. and its probably the reason the other night i needed to hear God say He loves me through the audible words of Kristian because i was not strong enough to fight off the lies the enemy was trying to feed me. How does this happen how can you know truth in your head and then find it almost impossible to live it out in your life. its when you are not connected. when you are not loving God with all your heart, soul and mind. when you are not focusing all your attention on loving God and loving your neighbor. it happens when you are in the midst of one of the most lost countries in the world and lose sight that God CAN do the impossible and start listening to the deceiver tell you that nothing you are doing matters that your efforts are hopeless and that it will take centuries for God to move in people that are so content because the government provides everything for them that they cant see their need for a Saviour. i can see now just the darkeness that has been surrounding me but there is hope and i praise God for His way of breaking through and reaching down into the water and pulling me out of this floating numbness. its a scary place to be but i am so thankful for using His children to speak truth into my life and once again communicating his immeasurable love for me. about a year ago i had a dream one night that kristian my husband and i were walking in a forest when all of a sudden i found a little pond where all these people were being held under the water. they were alive but had to be set free. so without a thought kristian dove into start freeing all these people and i remember standing on the edge hesitating a bit. but then i jumped in too and starting setting them free. i have never had a dream like this before and i havent since then but lately i think i have been the one that needed to be set free by Gods truth. the truth that God loves me unconditionally just as i am and i can do absolutely NOTHING to make HIM love me more or less. He sent his Son for goodness sake to die so we could be made free. this is what i have been forgetting the awe of the rescuing message of our amazing God. the wonder and amazement that lies in this story. and that we cannot rescue others if we ourselves have not been rescued first. God did the rescuing of our souls first but if we fall back in the water because of choosing to spend time watching tv instead of connecting with our God or choosing to sleep and extra hour instead of getting up and taking a walk or run outside with God, or looking to our friends, boyfriends, husbands,wives to fill that soul connection we are longing for that is when we become just like all the others waiting to be set free in the pond. This is why today I am praising God for the truth from Psalm 37 That though we stumble we will not fall for the LORD holds them by the hand. He is the one who lifts us out of the water to new life in Him. He never lets go of us. And that if we are loving God He will direct every step and DELIGHT IN EVERY DETAIL OF OUR LIVES. In Him my heart delights. Period

i am sitting in our apartment gazing at the blanket of whiteness that keeps falling outside. its funny now its our chance to get blasted with a blizzard. but if you think of it please keep us in your prayers today til saturday because we have about 30 kids coming today for Collision a teen camp we are hosting. pray they arrive safely and that God speaks into their hearts and lives through His Word.