Kristin Hill Taylor

Seeking God as the Author of Every Story

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Knowing God deep enough to dream

July 17, 2017 by Kristin Leave a Comment

“Deep enough to dream in brilliant colors I have never seen.
Deep enough to join a billion people for a wedding feast.
Deep enough to reach out and touch the face of the one who made me.
And oh the love I feel and oh the peace, do I ever have to wake up?”
– Chris Rice in “Deep Enough to Dream”

I don’t like naps, but sometimes I feel like I’m missing out on the escaping real life with some daytime dreams. And even if I weren’t actually sleeping, my mind tends to focus on what’s happening or planning what’s to come next, letting the potential daydreams escape me.

Sitting in the pickup line at school a couple months ago, I heard this older Chris Rice song. It’s one of those that I haven’t heard in years, but I managed to sing along with like I heard it yesterday.

The words struck me, and I was thankful for the moment to remember what trusting in the Dream Giver Himself is about.

I said no to a friend this spring even though I believed her invitation was important. I knew no was right, but it was still hard.

Saying no is hard. (And, yes, sometimes saying yes is difficult, depending on the circumstances and your personality.) Slowing down and not glorifying busy is a challenge in today’s fast-moving world. Focusing on small, faithful steps is necessary in God’s Kingdom but nearly impossible in our culture.

Join me at God-sized Dreams …

where I’m sharing some ways to realize the dreams God has given you.

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One God-sized dream showed me others

June 7, 2017 by Kristin 5 Comments

I remember longing to become a mom. And then God built our family through adoption, demonstrating His faithfulness to hear the desires of my heart, even if the whole story looked completely different than unexpected.

Now I’m a mom to three kids who are 10, 7 and 1, and God took that dream and expanded it after He made it possible.

God is a god of many dreams, and I’ve seen
Him build them upon what He’s already done.

{Tweet that.}

My husband and I have had our eyes opened to needs right here in our community. That started with a couple local birth moms who chose us as parents and showed us how others in our small town live.

Then we started serving with our kids and other families. As we did, we met more people, networked with more groups, and started a small group dedicated to community service and living out our faith.

After making me a mom, God prompted me to encourage and support other adoptive and foster families. Then He used that to inspire me to volunteer at our local crisis pregnancy center. Without having journeyed with God to my dream of becoming a mom, I wouldn’t have been in a place to see the other needs around me.

Join me at God-sized Dreams …

where I’m sharing more about what happened after God fulfilled my dream.

*****

Kristin Hill Taylor - Porch Stories
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On becoming whole, together

October 31, 2016 by Kristin Leave a Comment

gsd-prayers-healing-10-31-16

Rachel was just a couple weeks old and our speaker in church talked about prayer and how it heals. While Rachel slept in my arms, I looked up “healed” during the sermon and read “to cure, to make whole …”

In that moment, as I was holding my baby – the third one that came after much waiting – I was keenly aware of what God has done through prayers to make our family whole.

I’ve told pieces of our family’s adoption story here. But the short version is God used a hard season of infertility to lead us to adoption. We adopted Cate (2007) and Ben (2009) through smooth, domestic, private processes. We spent years trying to adopt a third time and then let go of our desire after doors kept closing.

God surprised us in 2015 with Rachel.

We think our family is complete. I say “think” because I’ve learned never say never when it comes to God. But here we are, a party of five that God orchestrated.

There’s evidence of God’s faithfulness in my kids’ eyes – the girls have matching brown and Ben’s are blue like Greg’s and mine. There’s proof that God hears the desires of our hearts when I remember how we got here.

Read the rest of this part of our story at God-sized Dreams, where I’m happy to share about prayer and healing.

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About Me

Telling stories is my therapy and I love sharing them with friends on my porch.

The main characters in my stories are my entrepreneur husband, our high school girl who never forgets, our middle school boy who has no fear, and our joy-filled first-grade girl. As we live out our stories, we seek God as the author of them all.

Learn more about my story here.

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I needed this weekend. The UK Wildcats didn’t I needed this weekend. 

The UK Wildcats didn’t win this afternoon like I had hoped. But following our house full of people on Friday night, I’ve spent a lot of time on my couch, under a soft blanket, with a book, while I watch #MarchMadness. 

Yesterday I pulled “When We Left Cuba” by @chanelcleeton from my to-be-read stack and then realized it was the second in a series about the Perez family. Thanks to @libby.app, I was able to get “Next Year in Havana” immediately. 

I finished it today during commercials and timeouts. And now I’m going to start “When We Left Cuba” as another basketball game also gets going. 

#KHTreads #basketballseason #weekending #bookstagram #reallife #booklover #librarybooks #KindleOasis #Kindlebooks #favoritethings
What a fun night! Basketball is best with friends What a fun night! Basketball is best with friends and food. So thankful for all these provisions and others in my life. Oh and a Cats win is icing on the cake. 

#MarchMadness #weekending #basketballseason #bettertogether #choosingJOY #BigBlueNation
You know it’s #MarchMadness when Greg Taylor pos You know it’s #MarchMadness when Greg Taylor posts on Facebook — and a picture at that! — and puts his radio/TV degree to work figuring out how to improve the viewing setup. 

#reallife #basketballseason #wifelife #choosingJOY
I had no idea just how deeply I would be affected I had no idea just how deeply I would be affected while studying Genesis 1-2. Going back to the beginning and seeing how God created, ordered, and filled the earth has been exactly what I didn’t know I needed, especially as a mom. 

For quite a while now, I feel like I’ve been living a day at a time. I used to be able to see my life in larger chunks of time and anticipate and prepare accordingly. Now, I slap things on the calendar and then deal with them as they come. Navigating life with two teenagers and a first-grader is the best and hardest thing I’ve ever done.

Honestly, this moment-to-moment living has been good for me and helped me rely on the God who created the stars and rivers that still exist in our world. Focusing on where I am helps me take slower steps, trust God to provide, and remember I’m not in control. I’ve felt an internal shift with my relationships — with my husband, kids, and friends. I’ve felt behind on laundry and dishes and piles of papers. But I’ve also felt a refreshed nearness to God. 

I’m going to rest here while believing God created life and light when there was only darkness and continues to order my days. 

#livingfaithfully #choosingJOY #momlife #faithlife #preceptstudy #genesisstudy #genesis #beginnings #reallife #PorchStories
My friend @ashleelyoung told me about this memoir, My friend @ashleelyoung told me about this memoir, but I knew nothing about Sutton Foster or her story beforehand. She’s a TV actress and Broadway singer and dancer who processes her life — complicated family life, love, loss, spotlight, infertility, adoption, motherhood — by creating. She creates in the kitchen, on stages, with yarn, with paint, with her hands, and with her mind. But her story really is all the experiences and emotions that inspire her creative work. I enjoyed this one. 

#KHTreads #memoirs #bookstagram #booklover #audiobooks #audible #bookreview
Also from the weekend: Shout out to @lifehousemurr Also from the weekend: Shout out to @lifehousemurray for putting on the fabulous @beautiful.you.conference with @meggpam from @shelivespurposefully. My girl and her friends had a great time together and my momma heart is thankful this is how they chose to spend a Saturday morning. 

#momlife #girlmom #teenagers #weekending #livingfaithfully #choosingJOY #latergram
Yesterday was one of my favorite kids of days with Yesterday was one of my favorite kids of days with some of my favorite friends. Kids played inside and out, the TV was never on, and new memories were made with old friends. Plus we ended the night with our ninth year of Little Hands Trivia Night. It was our worst finish ever, but we still had such a fun time! 

#bettertogether #weekending #livingfaithfully #choosingJOY
I’ve told you about Cate’s basketball season, I’ve told you about Cate’s basketball season, but we celebrated it (and the other middle and high school players) last night. What a joy, truly! She was surprise with the Lions Award for her overall approach to the game and her teammates. 

This context is basketball, but the bigger community and broader learning that happens are ultimately even more important. And, hey, middle school boys, you were also so much fun to watch! I’m so thankful Ben was part of that team. 

Shout out to the Schroeders for Tim being the coach of four teams and all the family time sacrificed as well as the other coaches and families who made it all possible. 

Give me a little break, and then I will be ready for more Lions and Lady Lions basketball to come! Scheduling for the fall and winter will start soon. 

I’m so proud to be part of New Covenant Christian Academy! 💛 @ncca.lions #momlife #girlmom #boymom #basketballseason #livingfaithfully #choosingJOY
Once again, I stayed up too late finishing a book. Once again, I stayed up too late finishing a book. 

“Half Way to You” by @jennifergoldauthor was my #FirstReads choice from Amazon this month and I dived right in. I loved it! This is a multi-generational story full of love, heartbreak, friendships that span decades, and travel. The story is told as a reclusive author shares her real story with a young podcaster who has personal and professional interest. The way the lives is woven together is brutal and beautiful. 

#KHTreads #AmazonFirstReads #bookstagram #booklover #KindleOasis #kindlebooks #readersofinstagram
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