Aria just turned one a few weeks ago and I can hardly believe she’s almost walking!

It feels like yesterday we were bringing her home from the hospital, bathing her for the first time, feeding her around the clock and waiting for that first, oh so perfect smile J

Fast forward 12 months and she’s become her own little person, full of personality and spunk…she just cracks me up.

For her first birthday, David and I took her back to the hospital where she was born and had our own little picnic on the grass outside.  We wanted to tell her the story of how she was born eight weeks early - because she couldn’t wait to meet us - and how for five weeks Daddy and Mommy drove back and forth to the hospital to visit her before finally bringing her home.

After eating some dinner, it was dessert time!!  I’d baked her a little carrot cake cupcake and for the first time in her life, Aria experienced the taste of sugar!!!

For FIFTEEN minutes, she sat there on the blanket, consumed with every mouthful.  Mummy and Daddy didn’t even get one glance.  Usually Aria is very sweet with sharing her food too but this time – oh no…there was no chance she was going to share even one crumb!

I can’t believe it’s almost the end of January and nearly time for the BECOME CONFERENCE!

I’m so excited because this Friday I’ll be hanging out in Minneapolis with a bunch of high school girls.  The weekend will be jam packed with makeovers, manicures, hairstyling, limo rides with friends and all kinds of fun.

I’ve been busy preparing two messages to share and my minds been filled with stories from my teen years.  Sleepover parties, boys, the dreaded pimple in the middle of my forehead – the memories have all come flooding back.

I’m hoping the girls will be encouraged, uplifted and filled with a greater understanding of who they are in God.  If you’re reading this please pray for the girls attending and for all involved.

Thanks and God Bless!!!

Brie J

Have you ever wondered why Jesus was only in full time ministry for approximately three years?  I have!  Jesus was on earth for 33 years and yet the bible only talks about him being in ministry for a short period of time. 

I was just reading Matthew 4.  Jesus is walking by Lake Galilee and it says he began to preach saying, “Change your hearts and lives, because the kingdom of heaven is near.”  Only three years of preaching on this earth and THIS is what he preaches about! 

Now think about this with me, one way of looking at this is, if Jesus was preaching this message about the kingdom of heaven being near approximately 2000 years ago, shouldn’t it be the hottest topic to preach now?  I don’t know about you, but I haven’t heard many sermons the last few years that focus specifically on this relevant fact! 

I must say, reading this verse (Matthew 4:17) encourages me beyond description.  When I truly focus on the words and what they mean, I’m overwhelmed with excitement.  “THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS NEAR.”  Can it get any better than that (other than it actually being here!)? 

So what are we doing about it?  What am I doing about it?  It’s a challenging question that will leave me deep in thought for the rest of the day.  Almost like a wake up call and a chance to reassess my life and pray I’m in complete step with God.  I only want to do what God calls me to do.  I want my life to count, I want to make a difference, I want to be His hands and feet.  Help me God, help me to know your ways, teach me your truths and lead me in your way everlasting. 

I pray today we will TRULY seek God for direction.  Let’s pray He continues to reveal to us the desires of His heart. 

God we want to be a part of your grand plan so help us to know what part to play.  May we serve you with joy in our hearts, no matter what our circumstances and may You be glorified in all we do.  This is our prayer.  

Love Brie x    

It was a beautiful sunny day and the streets were lined with traffic.  My car smelt like freshly sprayed hairspray and left over pizza as I pulled up to my seventh set of red lights.  As I looked in the revision mirror and applied last minute lip gloss, I couldn’t help but feel a rush of excitement.  I was about to enter the on sight recording of ABC’s Extreme Home Makeover!

This TV show just so happen to be one of my favorite TV shows, and I couldn’t believe they were actually in Mobile Alabama!!!  They’d moved in to town to build a brand new home for a special family, and I’d been asked to shoot some behind the scenes footage for the building company - Heritage Homes!  I thought “this will be an eye opening experience”…but I had no idea what was about to unfold.

Over the next three days I watched as five framing crews, four sheet rocking companies and two plumbing crews rallied together to build a brand new home for the Gaudet family.  Hundreds of bricks went flying through the air as two different masonry companies worked from different sides of the house.  I made sure to stay clear out of the way with my hard hat on!

I was amazed at how many people from the community came to help! Churches and community groups came from all over town.  The excitement in the air was contagious and the energy and enthusiasm everybody shared was incredible.  Before we knew it, the new house was built IN LESS THAN ONE WEEK and this family’s life was changed forever!

That week I was reminded of what can be achieved when people pull together to make something happen.  I felt so blessed to be able to witness the transformation of the Gaudet’s family’s home, and to see the difference it made in their lives.

I’ll never forget it!

Check out the latest video and see the behind the scenes footage.

I can’t believe I’m back in America!! I just flew home from Australia a few days ago, and I’m slowly recovering from jetlag J

I had the best time eating mango’s everyday and spending quality time with my family.

One of my highlights I wanted to share with you was the last 4 days of my holiday.  My mum, and my younger sister and I all took a trip to visit my grandparents (about a 15 hour drive).  It was the first time we’d been on a road trip like this in years, and I couldn’t wait to experience some good old quality girl time.

Growing up, we would always stay at our grandparent’s house for Christmas, so most of my favorite memories were spent in their county town called “Narroma.”

Now in this little town, there’s an incredibly popular beach called “Bar Beach.” It’s right inside an inlet so there aren’t any waves.  But the best part about this beach is the HUGE rocks you’ll find stretching out like a massive pier into the water.  

As a kid, one of my favorite memories was jumping off this one particular rock.  I’ll never forget I had to climb over at least 25 other rocks just to make my way to it.  Once my feet found the perfect flat surface, I could dive into the deep, aqua-blue sea, with no hesitation. 

So it was no surprise that within 24 hours of arriving at my grandparent’s house, my sister and I found ourselves on our way to Bar Beach ready to revisit some of our favorite childhood memories.  I was going to jump of the rock!

It was a beautiful hot sunny day and people were everywhere.  When we finally arrived at our destination, we weren’t the only ones.  Hogging our rock was a big group of what looked like ‘9 year old boys,’ doing flips and all kinds of crazy stunts into the water.  They were having so much fun, I wondered if they’d ever let us have a turn.  

Eventually though, I found myself on the edge of the rock, starring out into the beautiful crystal-clear water.  I was lost in a wonderful train of thought, when suddenly I was completely caught off guard by a little freckled face boy yelling;  

“So are you going to jump or what?” 

I couldn’t believe it.  I nearly laughed out loud because I was shocked he actually said that!  But then I felt this overpowering pressure to jump.  All eyes were on me, and I couldn’t back out now!  

So I jumped!

For the rest of the trip, my sister and I would often repeat the little boys comment to each other “So are you going to jump or what?”  

I can still hear his little sarcastic voice in my head, half menacing, half comical.  But you know what, it makes me smile.

It’s a simple question, but now that I’m back in America writing this blog, it reminds me of this New Year.  Am I going to hesitate and question the plans and direction God has for 2008?  Or am I going to jump out in faith - trusting He has everything under control?  

It may seem scary at times to trust God and take the plunge, but in the end, it’s the best step we can take.  He already has a plan for our lives.  If we let him take the lead, our future will be better than we could ever imagine! 

Jeremiah 29:11 

I can’t believe the time has FINALLY come! Tomorrow I’m going to wake up and catch a plane to LA - and then a 14 hour plane trip to Australia.  I’m so excited, I can hardly contain myself! I haven’t been back to Australia in almost three years now, and I can’t believe I’m about to experience four, fun filled weeks with my closest family and friends.   

Believe it or not, Christmas day is sometimes the HOTTEST day of the year.  We wake up, open presents, have lunch, and then go swimming at the beach.  It’s crazy because while you guys are sipping on cider and snuggled up with sweaters and slippers around the fireplace, we’re guzzling lemonade and slapping on sunscreen!  Quite different in comparison.

So MERRY CHRISTMAS to all of you, and I hope you have a wonderful HAPPY NEW YEAR – whatever you’re doing! 

I can’t wait to write my next blog, and tell you all about my Australian endeavors.  

Until then…lot’s of love, 

Brie x

So here I am in Dallas Airport.  It’s mid afternoon, Friday November 15th, and I’m on my way to a Revolve event in Portland, Oregon.  I’m sitting at a great little cafe called Cool River.  The waitress just served me tomato basil soup and a house salad.  It tastes great, but I’m wondering if I should have ordered the chicken panini.

I can’t help myself from watching all the people hurry by.  Business men in suits.  Mother’s carrying children and pulling little pink suitcases.  Teenagers dressed in the latest fashion, listening to ipods.  And the most darling old couple, holding hands as they walk to get a coffee from Starbucks.  I could sit here all day and just watch everybody.  I’m so fascinated!

My mind races as I try to figure out everybody’s destination.  Are they traveling on business, or experiencing their vacation of a lifetime?  Are they visiting family and old friends, or are they on their way back home?  So many questions, so many thoughts.

I wonder if anybody’s looking at me right now as I eat my soup and salad.  Is anybody feeling sorry for me sitting on my own?  Does anybody wonder what I’m writing as I scribble all over my page?  Does anybody have the time to stop and notice?

Life goes by so quickly, and we all seem to be so busy and distracted with our own lives.  Sometimes I can’t even find the time to email my closest friends back in Australia, and I feel terrible for not making them a priority.  But that has to change.

I don’t want to be so caught up in my own little world, that I miss what’s going on around me.  I don’t want a day to go by where I don’t appreciate life - or family and friends - or the fact that I have a roof over my head, and food on the table.  I want to live life to the full, and really see people for who they are.

At the end of the day, life is made up of conversations and experiences, and we get to choose who we want to notice.  We get to choose who we want to focus our attention on, and we get to choose the people we let into our lives.

It’s up to us…so let’s choose wisely.

About an hour ago, I was sitting at the computer when the door bell rang.  I wasn’t expecting anyone, so the first thing that went through my head was “oh great… I bet it’s some sales person trying to sell me something.”  My second thought was, “I’m glad I changed out of my pajamas!” 

I ran down the stairs and peeped through the window to see who was there.  Standing on my doorstep were seven teenagers and one adult dressed in matching blue t-shirts.  Skeptical still, I opened the door to see them holding little pamphlets and thought “I bet they want money for something.”  But I couldn’t have been more wrong.  

To my surprise, one of the teenage girls handed over her pamphlet and said, “Hi we’re from the Harvest Church, and we’d love to serve you by doing some free yard work.”  I couldn’t believe it!  I stood there for a few seconds waiting for her words to sink in - and then the biggest smile spread across my face.  They didn’t want a donation or anything in return… they just wanted to bless me! 

Before I could even respond, one of the girls started to wash the outside of my house windows, and all I could say was “Thank you SO much!  Can I get you anything?  A drink of water?” I was dumbfounded!   

While they worked in the 90 degree heat, I wandered back inside the house, still in shock and still smiling.  I ran up the stairs to peek through the bedroom window, and I was reminded of a time when I was a teenager and did some missionary work overseas.   

Our church took a group from Australia to Canada, and we spent one of the days doing community service.  We washed windows and cleaned people’s yards too - but instead of doing it with a positive attitude like the young people in my front yard, I tried to get out of it.  I was hungry and tired and I wanted to go eat lunch. 

Looking back now, I wish I hadn’t been so selfish.  I wish I’d taken it more seriously.   These young people working tirelessly in my front yard were being a huge blessing right now, and it makes me wish I realized how much of an impact being a servant can have.  Back then, all I could think of was myself when I should have been reaching out to the people who really needed my help. 

I ended up asking if I could get a photo with some of the guys and girls from Harvest Church. They were so much fun to be around and I could tell they had the right attitude.  I wanted their picture to remind me just how important it is to reach out and serve others.  I hope they know how much they blessed me.  And I hope they know I was reminded to be more like them. 

Brie x  

I love writing down random thoughts. About 2 minutes ago I was actually sitting by my window in the spare room upstairs. I was looking out at the trees and thinking about all the different things I’ve been through over the last few years. I started to write down some thoughts on paper, but then moved to the computer.

So here I am, sitting in the most comfortable black chair, starring at my computer screen and writing my first official blog.

One of the biggest changes in my life has been getting used to living in a whole new country. I’ve been in America for almost three years now and it’s SO different to living in Australia!

I remember when I first moved to America, I couldn’t believe there was drive through banks, drive through Smoothie King, drive through pharmacies and basically drive through everything! We don’t have any of that in Australia.

Your cheese is totally different to ours. Yours is kind of a white color or a serious bright orange color and ours is yellow. I was scarred to eat American cheese when I first saw it, but I think it tastes all right… now that I’m used to it!

If you’re ever thinking of buying perfume, makeup or any kind of cosmetics in Australia… DON’T. It’s so ridiculously expensive over there, and I had no idea until I moved here. Same with shoes! Shoes are SO cheap in

Also, you call green peppers, green peppers…but we call them capsicum. I know, weird hey.

So there’s been a lot to get used to but you know what…it’s an exciting adventure to be living in another country and I love it. I know this is where God wants me to be and I couldn’t imagine life without America being a part of it.

I can’t wait to write again soon and share some more random thoughts.

Hope you have the best week!

Brie x