Winners Announced

swnging

Well, that was fun!

Thanks you all for entering the Giveaway Extravaganza last week! I am so grateful for your participation! If you are a new subscriber, and/or twitter or facebook follower, welcome and thank you. I am so grateful for you!

The winners are:

Lullabies: Lindsey (Little Missionary Girl)
Adventures in Odyssey: Vicky Arnold
She’s Got Issues: Melinda

Congrats, my friends! Please email me within 48 hours, at kris (at)alwaysalleluia.com with your U.S. Mailing address so I can get these goodies off to you!

A Few Of My Favorite Things {Giveaway}

lullabies_album

Back at the Allume conference in October, Trina Holden and I got to chatting about the blogging mastermind group she is in, and a couple weeks after the conference she extended an invitation to me, to join her group (prayers answered!).  Today I’m joining with these amazing Ladder Bloggers (that’s the name of this fantastic group of ladies I blog along side of) to share a very personal giveaway with our beloved readers.

A bunch of us have each chosen a few of our favorite things to giveaway on our blogs, and we’re all linking to each other, like a giant, progressive ‘dinner’ of giveaway goodness. The Holydays of Christmas draw nearer with each sunrise, and there’s much prep to be done, in our homes, (and in our hearts). This is a fantastic opportunity to knock a few things of your Christmas list! I’ll share ‘directions’ to their ‘homes’ and goodies in a minute, but first, my gifts to you…

I’m so excited to share some of these goodies with you!

First Up:

Lullabies

The band is PAGE CXVI, and the album is Lullabies. (<– go there and give it a listen, I’m pretty sure you’ll like what you hear.)

What I love about this band is their commitment and passion for re-recording old Hymns and making them accessible to a new generation. Hymns hold a treasure trove of not only beautiful poetry, but sincere words of worship that inspire and humble us when we sing them, and allow the words to fill us. I have all of their Hymn Albums, (1-4)

Another awesome thing about this group, is that they allow you to preview their music before buying it, right there on their site. I love this feature so much. They recently teamed up with Derek Webb (from the band, Caedemons Call) and produced 9 songs on an album called B-Sides. The entire album is free, if you go HERE.

I’m giving away their latest album–which also happens to be their first children’s album. (Oh. Yes. I. Am.)

{The giveaway for Lullabies consists of your choice of either the Blue or Pink cover CD, which they will ship directly to you.}

Next up are two books from my kids favorite series, Adventures in Odyssey. AIO comes from Focus On The Family and is a wonderful resource to help engage kids in their faith and with the world around them. We have many episodes of the AIO Radio Theater, and honestly, I cannot count the hours my boys have spent listening to those stories.

Last year, we discovered that AIO now has books for young readers. (Hallelujah!) The series is called AIO Imagination Station Books.

Today I’m giving away books 5 and 6 in the series. You can jump right into the series because each book gives a little summary of the previous book. These are so good, don’t be surprised if you find yourself purchasing the rest of the set

{This giveaway consists of one copy each, of book 5 and 6 in the AIO Imagination Station Books series.}

Finally, I read and reviewed Nicole Unice’s latest book, She’s Got Issues, a couple months ago, and was delighted to receive another copy in my goodie bag at Allume. This book is relevant and real and totally accessible to every woman, whatever you issues may be. Nicole is a generous soul who is as real and honest as they come. I learned from, and loved this book.

{This Giveaway consists of one paperback copy of She’s Got Issues.}

 

To be entered for this giveaway, simply leave a comment on this post telling me which item you’d like to win. You may leave a comment for all three items if you like. If you follow me on twitter , Pinterest and/or like my Facebook page, let me know in the comments and you’ll gain an extra entry for each additional comment Subscribers gain two entires (be sure to tell me in the comments if you subscribe)!!.

PLEASE READ: This Giveaway is open to U.S, residents only (my apologies to my international readers) Winners will be notified via email and will have 48 hours  to respond or another winner will be chosen. All winners will be selected at random.

All set? OK, now it’s time to visit the other Ladder Bloggers!

There is so much goodness {and so many chances to win!} if you’ll just follow me as we visit…

Visit each of my fellow bloggers to enter for their individual giveaways!

Giveaway will be open till 12am EST on Sunday, Dec 2nd. Winners will be announced on each individual blog.

This giveaway is hosted by a group of friends who call themselves the Ladder Bloggers. We are a mastermind group, seeking to go deeper with our readers even as we ‘climb higher’ with our writing and blogging skills. We believe no blogger should blog alone! For more info about how our group works, tips for starting your own, and to meet the rest of our group, please visit this page.

*This post contains affiliate links.

On Growing Up

upclose copy

My 17th birthday is the last time I remember having my two closest friends at the time, together with me. We’d been growing steadily apart in the months leading up to that summer. They chased boys and attended parties I wasn’t supposed to know about, while I chased Jesus and found sanctuary in an actual sanctuary.

By the time I left for college, we’d speak in shallow tones, like strangers. It was weird. And sad.

For my 19th birthday I found myself living back at home, having left college with grades too low to transfer, with an engagement ring on my finger and a fiance living three states away. That was a long summer.

I spent my 25th birthday swollen and growing increasingly uncomfortable, pregnant with my first child, and losing my best friend due to the toxic mixture of envy, jealousy and misunderstandings, piled high with an unhealthy dose of immaturity, and likely a touch of spiritual warfare too.

That was a hard year.

Today’s another birthday, I suppose it’s not terribly unusual to feel the wanderings of nostalgia, to watch the past in retrospect.

I’ve made a lot of mistakes. I’ve been given a lot of gifts. I’m still very much a work-in-progress.

I’m reading two books right now about what it means to make Jesus your Everything, and how discipleship is Hazardous. In the time I’ve known Jesus He’s surely cost me what has at times felt like everything–friends, dreams, status. I’ve watched it all tumble. Thank God.

Thank. God.

This summer, I find myself homeschooling four children, preparing to kick off another year as a ministry leader, overwhelmed by the enormity of all the gifts heaped on me by a God who’s teaching me to live with my hands and heart open–

My word this year is trust– the lessons roll in steady, but so many friends are here, cheering me on, holding my hands, sharing the burden through fellowship and prayer.

You’re part of this journey. 

Thanks for joining me. Thanks for sharing your heart, your time, your encouragement–you’ll never know what it means to me.

Here’s to another year, ripe with opportunity to experience the grace of God, the love of friends, the joy of salvation.

Ya’ll bless me.

“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. John 15:12-15

“The next best thing to being wise oneself is to live in a circle of those who are.” C.S. Lewis

How do you feel as you reflect on where you’ve been? Where’s God leading you these days?

*this post contains an affiliate link
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