Breast Ironing of Young Girls in Cameroon

It doesn't matter how much I read or witness about the conditions in Africa, I'm always startled anew when I read yet another article or watch yet another video of injustice. This time it's in Cameroon in West Africa. There, one out of four girls experiences breast ironing because their parents believe that it'll prevent them from being sexually desirable and therefore prevent their teenage daughter from getting pregnant. As the video explains, teenage pregnancy is a major issue in Cameroon and the government there is failing to recognize that as well as breast ironing that is being done. What's needed is sexual education classes as well as punishment for the men who are taking advantage of unwilling teenage girls for their own sexual pleasure. But instead, these girls suffer because the root of the problem is failing to be identified and treated.

Watch the video...but I also warn you that there is nudity involved.

Juvenile Dermatomyositis - You can help!

When I lived in Columbus I attended Grace Central Church in the Victorian Village area of downtown Columbus. God provided me with great community and teachings that were the start of my understanding what the Gospel really meant. My pastor there, Greg, was a man of character who spoke constantly spoke words of wisdom into my life through his sermons. I also served on the worship team there on occasion and had the privilege of singing with Greg's wife, Charity. I'm telling you all of this to tell you about their son, Sam. You see, Sam has an illness called Juvenile Dermatomyositis (JDM). Sam is a super cool kid. I remember Greg telling stories about Sam in his sermon on occasion. While I no longer live in Columbus, I keep in touch with people from Grace Central through facebook, blogs, email, etc. (all the typical 21st century communications) and have come to learn that Sam is a very intelligent kid who LOVES Star Wars. That all seems normal except with JDM Sam lives a life of pain and fatigue. He has to go to the doctor on a weekly basis to get an IV. I'm pretty sure that's not the way life should be for a kid. When Sam goes outside to play he has to take more precautions than most kids. The sun can make his condition even worse so he wears long sleeves and pants and a hat. Can you imagine how that can be rough in summer?

So why am I telling you all of this? Well for a couple of reasons. First, I hope that you will be praying for Sam (and all kids with JDM) to be healed. I remember my childhood as one filled with worry-free joy. Shouldn't all kids have that experience? Second, and most importantly, you can help in a tangible way. Cure JM, an organization that is dedicated to finding a cure for JM is up for a Pepsi Refresh grant. Currently the are in 12th place but by the end of July (such a short time away!!) they need to be number 2 in order to get the grant. All you have to do is log in and vote. That's it. It's simple. I've voted every day for a couple of weeks and I can tell you that you don't have to worry about Pepsi sending you spam email. So log in on your email, your parents, your siblings, WHOEVER. Vote, please, for this precious kid and for all the kids out there living with JDM. With a few clicks you can change lives. No money required from you.

So here's the link: http://www.refresheverything.com/makejmamemory. Remember you must LOG IN first before you vote. And you can log in with multiple email addresses. Also, you can vote once a day. So please continue to log in and vote. Tell your friends and family. IT'S EASY. And then browse around and vote for other ideas you support (just don't vote for any other in the $250k category). With just a click you're changing lives.

And check out the video I made of pics of Sam I got from his mom, Charity. Isn't he one of the cutest kids EVER?!? Seriously. And I think after dealing with this disease and keeping that super cute smile on his face his DEFINITELY a Supehero!! So vote. Now. Do it for him. Please. And as you do it, please pray that he'll be healed. Thanks friends!!

Sam the Superhero!! from Kristi Kratzer on Vimeo.

Knowing His Strength

When I listen to music, I usually become obsessive about a song or an album until I listen to it so much that I wear it out. I've gotten to that point with an album that was just released last week. Everyone should drop everything they're doing (okay...finish reading my blog post, first) and go download Audrey Assad's album "The House You're Building". Seriously, this might be one of the best albums I've listened to in the past few years. Her lyrics are incredibly insightful and pull at the strings of the heart. And her voice is amazing. Go to itunes now and buy it.

Anyway, she has a song on the album called "Run Forward" that I listen to multiple times a day. And there's a line in it, in particular, that I've really been thinking about over the past few days. It keeps coming back to me. She sings "You made me afraid, thank you. I've gotta thank you. Because now I know His strength." And the more I've meditated on that the more I've come to realize how true it is in my life. So often I find myself dwelling on the bad things in life, on the hard moments, on the things that make me sad, frustrated, confused, afraid. But as I stop to think about it I realize how far God has brought me from those things. How in absolutely every instance He has shown His presence (not always in ways I've expected) and made Himself known.

In 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 it says:

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

We experience the power of Christ in our weakness. When we are strong we find ourselves relying on Him less and less. So as I reflect over the past 7 months of this year so far, I'm thankful for the hardships that have been tossed my way. I'm thankful that I have witnessed the power of Christ working in my own life. I've witnessed His healing grace, His neverending love. And of course, I'm also thankful for all the good times in life...they are all the more sweeter as I see now that they are a gift from my savior.

Anyway, listen to the song. And of course, buy the album.

Sharing the table

I've been reading "The Ragamuffin Gospel" (although admittedly not very regularly), and as I've expected along the way, it's pouring Truth into my life. It's hard Truth, but refreshing Truth. Anyway, tonight when I was reading I found something that really resonated with me. Brennan Manning began to explain how meaningful it was that Jesus sat down to dinner with people--with sinners--with the lowly. Not only did he sit down to dinner with the lowliest of the low, but he invited them to dinner. This wasn't just a simple act of kindness, this was a special invitation. He explains that in first-century Palestinian Judaism it was illegal to associate with people in different social classes meaning that dinner was definitely out of the question. Christ shook the very foundation -- the law -- that society at that time was built on.

Manning goes on to share this:

In the Near East, to share a meal with someone is a guarantee of peace, trust, fraternity, and forgiveness--the shared table symbolizes a shared life. An Orthodox Jew's saying "I would like to have dinner with you" is a metaphor that imples, "I would like to enter into friendship with you." Even today an American Jew will share a doughnut and a cup of coffee with you, but to extend a dinner invitation is to say, "Come to my mikdash me-at, the miniature sanctuary of my dining room table, where we will celebrate the most sacred and beautiful experience that life affords--friendship." That is what Zacchaeus heard when Jesus called him down from the sycamore tree, and that is why Jesus' practice of table fellowship caused hostile comment from the outset of His ministry.

For some reason, I just really love this picture. Like that's what it really means to feast at the table of Christ. To share in communion with fellow believers. To break bread together in community. To share life together.

One of my absolute favorite things in the entire world is conversation with a friend while enjoying a good meal. And now I think I understand a little bit why that's always been such a comfort to my soul and something I look forward to. I think it's because that's what Christ intended community to be. To invite people into every aspect of our lives.

But as I type this I'm convicted of who I bring to my table. Yes, I bring my friends, my brothers and sisters in Christ, to my table. And I believe that's good. We need community. We need those special bonds and relationships. But the thing is, Christ didn't just invite the disciples and his family to share the table with him. He invited the lowliest of the low to his table. Am I putting up a wall around my table? How can I let others in...not just to have dinner with me, but to have a relationship with me? How do I have community with the marginalized? And not just charity/pity relationship, but real and honest community? How do I love the way Christ loved?

Nashville...Oh how I love thee.

I spent the Independence Day Weekend with one of my favorite people in Nashville, TN--my friend Sarah! Sarah and I met in December when we traveled to Africa together on a Mocha Club Trip. I'm so thankful for the friendship that God has given me. I've been truly blessed. The long weekend was so wonderful. We did a lot of fun stuff throughout the weekend (including eating a TON of delicious food!!), but the best parts of the weekend were just good conversation.

So here's the recap of our fun weekend. And yes, I did fall in love with Nashville while I was there. Such a fabulous city.

Thursday Night:

I arrived in Nashville at 9:30 and we headed straight to the movies to see Eclipse. You see, I was adamantly against all things Twilight related until Sarah came to visit me in April. We spent 2 of the nights during her visit watching the Twilight movies. After that, I was hooked. And it worked out perfectly that I was going to visit Sarah just days after Eclipse came out in theaters. So, loaded down with Sour Patch Kids, Fruit Gems, Reeses Pieces, Popcorn, and Diet Coke, we hit the theater. It was great!

Friday:

Sarah had to nanny in the morning so I tagged along. It was great having coffee and conversation and catching up on life. I really think that every Friday morning (heck, every morning, in general!) should start with conversation and coffee with a best friend. For lunch we headed to a place called Barbara's Home Cookin' in Franklin. Seriously, this place was amazing. The homemade rolls were delicious. The sweet tea was AMAZING. And the food was so, so, so good! Barbara's is the most unassuming place ever. It's a little house alongside the road, but dang is it good!


Next, we went grocery shopping because Sarah (Langiappe Personal Catering...check it out, good stuff!!!) had a catering job that weekend for a church. After that, a much needed nap was in order. And then we hit the town. We ate dinner at a place called The Local Taco. It was delicious. Seriously, so good! Then we drove around Nashville for a bit when I spotted...LIGHTENING BUGS!! So of course, I made Sarah stop so I could try to catch some. We stopped at a really cute park in Nashville and I took these fun pictures. And then we met up with one of Sarah's friends and hung out in Nashville.



















Saturday:

We ran to Alan Jackson's house. Yep, that's right. Alan Jackson lives 2 miles from Sarah so we went for a morning run and ran to his house and back. And let me just say that Franklin, TN is so incredibly beautiful. And the weather during our run was so wonderful. Then we cleaned up and headed to downtown Franklin for brunch and shopping. We ate at Meridee's Bread Basket which once again was delicious. Then we went to lots of fun shops in Franklin. (Apparently T.Swift was there 2 days after we were. Darn it.). Pictures of Downtown Franklin and bricks in the sidewalk from the Judds. Cool!















Then we headed to the church to do the baking and prepping for their event that they were having on Sunday. It was so much fun working with Sarah. She's an amazing culinary artist. Seriously. In the time it took me to make my cookie recipe, she had made her cookies, cut up all the fruit, put nuts and mints in bowls, made punch, made a cheese ball, plated the cheese ball and cheese cubes, and cleaned up. She's pretty much awesome at what she does. So if you need a caterer for an event or just want a nice home-cooked dinner sometime, check out her website, www.lagniappepersonalcatering.com. Here are some quick pics I took of our finished product. Sorry, they aren't great pics...I took them while we were rushing out the door.

The spread:

Strawberry Shortcake Cookies (major YUM!!):

Peaches 'n Cream Cookies:

And more of the spread. Check out those fruit baskets that Sarah made!! So cool. Oh, and those cheese balls were pineapple cheese balls. Your mouth is watering, right?:


And this is a picture of the cross outside the church. I just couldn't resist because it was so beautiful!!
Saturday night Sarah's parents made dinner and it was DELISH! Then we put our boots on (well, I did!) and headed out with Sarah's sister Claire and her friend Hannah for some line dancing at Wildhorse Saloon. So. Much. Fun. And Sarah and I stopped at Paradise Park for a short bit, too. It's a bar themed after a Trailer Park. Awesome. Ha!

Claire, Hannah, Sarah, and me at Wildhorse:

Yes! It is definitely Nashvegas! Table at Paradise Park:
Sarah and I at Paradise Park:

Why thanks Nashville, I'm glad I'm here too!

Sunday morning we got up bright and early to run a 10k in downtown Nashville. SO MUCH FUN!! I got to take fun pictures of Nashville and Sarah ran her very first 10k ever! She did GREAT! It's so much more fun to run with friends than by myself. Pics from our race:

Getting ready to run:
Sarah's a bit nervous:
Downtown Nashville. Beautiful:
After the race. Yay we did it!!

Then we slept. A lot. Which is what Sunday afternoons are meant for anyway! And then we headed downtown for the 4th of July festivities. We were planning to watch the free Trace Adkins concert, but it was so crowded that we ended up leaving and going to eat dinner at SATCO (San Antonio Taco Company) which we both believe was a good decision.

Picture of me with a cool guitar downtown Nashville. Yes, sometimes I act like a tourist. And pics of SATCO. Yum. Seriously, yum.



















Then when we were leaving SATCO, Sarah got a hold of my camera. And things got a little crazy...hahahaha. Love these pictures.

And then Monday we ate a delicious breakfast at Pancake Pantry which is a MUST if you visit Nashville. And did some shopping around Hillsboro Village. We went shopping at Pangea which is officially my new favorite store, plus a bunch of other cool shops.

We grabbed a quick bite to eat (yes, I told you we ate A LOT) at Bread & Company before heading back downtown to meet up with a group of people who collectively make up People Loving Nashville. Every Monday night, they gather together to cook dinner and serve it to the homeless community of Nashville. I'm not going to lie, this was by far my favorite part of the entire weekend. It was so great to be part of the greater good, to see God's hand at work in the community, and to love our brothers and sisters in Christ. I really believe this is what Christ has called of us...to love and serve others in need without passing judgment or condemnation on them. I really really really hope to have the opportunity to serve with them again and to love the people of Nashville again.

I couldn't have asked for a better weekend. God is good and I am so blessed...even when times are hard...I know I'm blessed, loved, claimed.

One last picture of me and my best friend! Thanks Sarah for a great weekend!

Oh, and be sure to check out Volunteer Traditions and Suineg Consulting. Both are great Nashville companies that I give a thumbs up to.

So. Stinking. Funny.

This video makes me laugh so so hard. Like seriously, so funny. And awkward. And hilarious. Good gracious, I love laughing.

Enjoy.

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Nashville!!!

I'm leaving in 7 hours to go see one of my bestest friends!! I couldn't be more excited!!!

Be prepared for entertaining stories!

Oh yeah, have I mentioned we met in Africa? No big deal :)