Death by Association

"Be on your guard against men" (Matthew 10:17) because "Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light" (2 Corinthians 11:14). Oh how the enemy comes to kill, steal, and destroy (John 10:10). He doesn't play. He is on a mission and it is to destroy us ~ our joy, victories, right to overcome in Christ. We have to be on our guard. The body of Christ has a right to live victorious and to speak life over death. Sometimes we live in defeat or find ourselves in pits because of people we surround ourselves with*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Where we end up in life could be because of who we choose to be around. Some of us may miss Heaven just because of association."


Lord, we praise You. We praise You for who You are and because of the power You pass on to us until we join You in Heaven. Thank you that we do not have to walk this life without the power to overcome~You give us a right to live victorious, and I pray that we choose to be victorious and free from the bondage of sin. Lord, we do not want to mess around anymore. We do not want to flirt with things you clearly have nothing to do with. We want all of You. Trusting You, resting in You because we know it is going to be worth it. You are worth it.

 Gonna Be Worth It

Memories for the Journey

With our manicured nails raised in the air, mama and I would listen to this song when we would take our morning walks at Walloon Lake ~ praising God and talking about how much we adore Him...the journey He has brought our family on. We were in such awe of His faithfulness that we paid little mind to cars driving by or to the people walking beside us (I can only imagine what they thought). You see, in our minds, it was just us and God. Two people, yes, but with one heartbeat and it was beating towards Heaven. Those conversations only prepared me for the pain of today. I may not "get God" but I KNOW my God. He is faithful.  

Beautiful by Shawn Mcdonald 

 

Our Heaven on earth - Walloon Lake

 

 

Jesus, it's all about you but you are so all about us*

The Lord led me to these verses and there is no denying. Take a breathe, get ready to receive His words, and let them fall on you as they have me.

"Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them, and that I myself may be in them." Jesus speaks in John 17:24-26


Jesus just wants us. Jesus just wants our hearts. He just wants us with him, for eternity. Oh how he loves us. Reality is...Him. Glory.

A Modern Dady Esther, Mary, and Martha ~ a Kimberly Hatch

Lord have mercy on me if I make this entry about any one person, even my mom. I would like to submit to you that this entry is far beyond a person; it is the work God did in a person's life. We are not beyond being used by God. Below is an article written about my mother, Kimberly Hatch. Get lost in God as you read this. Get lost in the things he can do. Look at the legacy we leave when we but...see him. Quite frankly, I would be embarrassed to leave any other legacy.

< Pay particular attention to the metaphor she gives her small group girls at the end of the article. The metaphor is about a plane. I can assure you it is no coincidence as this metaphor she gave was days before the accident. >

Published: July 4, 2011 3:00 a.m.

‘God scooped her up’

Kimberly Hatch lived all her life in service of others 

Gina Zimmerman

Her name was Kimberly Hatch. She was the wife of Dr. Steve Hatch and a mother to four children and one son-in-law whom she dearly loved.

To hundreds of women of all ages she was affectionately known as Kim (or Mama Hatch), an honest and committed friend and spiritual mentor. Her visage was as beautiful as any top model, but it was her soul that was so entwined with her Christ that made her attractive.

Many who knew the story of Kim’s early life wondered why she wasn’t bitter. Over time she had come to embrace every circumstance as a gift. And she lived for a greater purpose.
She walked alongside and purely loved those who were broken and downtrodden. For she had her eye on the prize, and her eternal focus kept her moving forward. 

Two weeks ago, she traveled to Joplin, Mo., with a friend and three young women. They went with prayer as their only preparation. She listened to the miraculous stories from the survivors, prayed with each of them, and was visibly moved by the massive devastation. The entire event was documented on video. At night, as the women got ready for bed, she tenderly washed each of their feet. And on Wednesday, as she was driving away from the affected area, she told the group that she felt more comfortable living amidst the wasteland. She epitomized C. S. Lewis’s “a glorious ruin.”

Her life meant nothing apart from her complete contrition and surrender before God.
Kim exuded love; she remembered details about people, and she spoke the truth often with illustrations.

Last month, a girl in one of her small groups expressed how depleted she was with life. Using the story of a small plane, Kim explained that each of us has two gas tanks. When one is depleted, you simply pull the switch and gas from the other tank flows through you. When both tanks are empty, you may believe you are crashing. But you are not really crashing. God is right there scooping you up and embracing you with his strong arms and bringing you closer to him.

The collage-age girl wrote down every word that evening. Two nights after the accident, she shared with her small group that she believed Kim wasn’t really crashing. “God just reached down and scooped her up.”

A modern day Mary, Martha, and Esther

Waiting on God to Unfold ~

Topsail Island, NC Summer 1010

Above is a picture of my sweet family. Shown (left to right) is Kimberly Hatch, my mom; Maria Hatch-Bowersock, myself; Grandma Anna; my 98 year old Great Grandma, Josephine Russo; my cousin, Rachel; my brother, Austin Thomas; my sister, Brittnee; my youngest (yet tallest) brother, Austin James; and my daddy, Stephen Hatch (the kindest, sweetest doctor and dad).

Some of my favorite memories with my family are flying up to our lake house in Northern Michigan. My dad is a pilot and owns a small airport in our hometown. My brother, Austin James and I are the most fond of flying with our dad. It is a small little plane, which is not as enjoyable for my sister, brother, and mom. Mom tends to get sick so she rather drive, but my dad's motto is "why drive when you can fly". :) 

On June 24th my brother, Austin James, mom, dad, and our two doggies (shown below) all flew up to the lake house for a weekend getaway. I opted not to join because that Monday I was driving back up with mom and Great Grandma for the week of the 4th of July. Mom had called me that Friday to talk because she had just got back from serving in to Joplin, MO with some of the small group girls she leads. I remember our conversation very clearly as we were planning for the week ahead at the lake. We talked about working on the flower garden and decorating for the 4th of July. Mom is my dearest, deepest, and closest friend so spending time together is always so enjoyable. We are constantly talking, laughing, and hugging. 

Before they took off for their weekend getaway, mom sent us this text: "Love to all as we are taking off to the lake. Will be thinking of you. ox". I quickly and jokingly replied back, "stop leaving us!" I knew I would get my week with her starting that coming Monday so I wasn't too concerned about them leaving for a short weekend. 

That evening my husband and I had a romantic evening planned. I was so distracted by cleaning the house that I didn't realize it had been hours since I have heard from my mom or dad, which is not normal. At 11:30PM I received a call from my Papa, which left me deeply concerned. I had missed the call but received the voicemail that asked me to call him immediately. My Papa was in Spain on his 50th wedding anniversary. For him to be calling me in the middle of the night was not only unusual but horrifying. As I went to call him back, my phone went dead. The five minutes it took to charge my phone seemed like five hours. I started pacing the room as I tried to reach him. I knew, I just knew but I couldn't believe it until I heard it. I didn't get a hold of him the first few times calling, so I started screaming and crying as I became frustrated and scared. I was shaking so heavily that I thought I would collapse. "Lord why, not this, not this!" I finally reached Papa..."Maria, there has been a plane crash. Your mother and father are dead". I started wailing, "Papa no! No!" All I remember is him telling me to be strong and to go over to the house and tell my siblings. I hung up the phone and fell to the floor, screaming, and crying. Jason walked through the door a few minutes after. He heard me and ran into the back room. As I sat on my floor limp all I could get out was, "My parents are dead". We both sat there for as long as I let him hold me, crying and weeping. "How can this be" is all we could get out of our mouths. 

We calmed ourselves down as much as we could and drove over to my parents house where I found my sister. I saw my younger brother's (Austin James) car in the driveway and asked Jason to go in the house, find him, and bring him outside where he would meet my sister and I. We had to call Austin Thomas home as he was at a friends. Jason never did find Austin James. We figured he was at a friends so we called and left him a message. After I gave Brittnee and Austin Thomas the news, three men pulled up and started walking up the driveway, who turned out to be close friends of Dads. They hugged us immediately and just let us cry. I told them we can't find Austin James to give him the news. They looks at me a little stunned. "Maria, Austin was on the plane with your parents. He is in critical condition. We are waiting to hear if he is going to make it through the night." At that point, I walked over to the grass and about lost it. "How much more, Lord! Our family is gone!" 

As I gathered myself together, I went into the house to find it empty, which you would think is what I expected; however, we have two dogs that are loud and do not tolerate people entering their home. I just wanted to collapse. I remember looking at Brittnee, my sister, and asking, "the dogs were on the plane, weren't they?" She cried and shook her head yes. My "how much more, Lord" turned into "are you done, yet!". Lord have mercy on my soul as I write this. 

On June 25th, 3:30AM what is left of our family and some of our close friends  stood in the kitchen, looking around the house and envisioning where mom and dad used to be smiling and laughing. We just look at each other in disbelief. The worst hours of my life ~ a nightmare. 

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* A Glimmer of Hope

As I said, we have two dogs. One was a 10 year old sheltie named Ali and the other is a rather large goldendoodle/laberdoodle named Braidy. Two days after the accident my sister couldn't stop thinking about the dogs. No one mentioned if the dogs were okay. I told her they were gone, but she couldn't accept that because she didn't hear it from the people at the site. Without any of us knowing, she called 911 and inquired about the dogs in the plane accident. They were able to confirm the death of the sheltie but never found a goldendoodle. When she told me this, we were both in shock because he is a big dog and you can't miss him. We all kinda laughed and joked, "wouldn't it be like Braidy to survive a plane crash?!" Well friends, he did. After days of looking for him, some of our dear friends who live in Petoskey were able to locate him (thank you microchips!) Braidy dog has been on the news and is now known at the miracle dog not just because he survived a plane crash but because he has NO injuries (interior or exterior). >FMI www.indianasnewscenter.com/home/Hatch-Family-Dog-Survives-Plane-Crash-124606364.html

A perfect stranger told my grandpa, as he shared the survival of Briady, "you don't understand...if this dog survived this means your grandson will live." I shared the same thoughts with this perfect stranger. I am confident in what God is going to do in and through that boys life. He is currently making huge progress and getting a lot of care at an amazing hospital. (FMI www.caringbridge.org/visit/austinhatch) 

Braidy and Austin James up at the Lake House 2010 

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"Time will heal" ~ I would like to say this is such a false statement. Time, in this situation, only makes it harder. I am expecting my first child and every day I want my parents with me on this journey. I don't ever see time healing, nor do I want to heal. However, I know and have to believe God will unfold this nightmare into something beautiful. 

I cried out to God last week, 'Lord, I don't want to be a part of an event that will impact lives for a season. I don't want to be the family that people look at and say what an example and strong family ~ look at all they have been through yet no lives are changed. I want this to wreck your kingdom or I want NO part of this. Take me home.' He hasn't taken me home, so I trust he has plans that will be unfolded. It is no coincidence the Lord encouraged me to start this blog a while back and title it Beauty from Ashes. He has brought so much beauty from so many ashes with this family ~ I don't intend him to stop now.

We need prayer warriors for the rest of our lives. As you read this story, please take it upon yourself to pray for this family as we embark on a life that we never anticipated, pain that we were so unprepared for. Thank you, thank you for your prayers.

Braidy

Ali Girl

This Is My Story, This Is My Song

Psalm 40: 2

He lifted me out of the slimy pit,

out of the mud and mire;

he set my feet on a rock

and gave me a firm place to stand.

(emphasis made)

Third Day~Blessed Assurance 

Furious

I am just down right furious at the lie the enemy feeds us that we are of no use to fulfilling God's kingdom. As if we have committed the ultimate sin and are now worthless. It gets so nasty that we end up disqualifying ourselves from God's plan <without the assistance of the enemy>. I am by no means above this wicked scheme. In fact, I constantly have to feed myself truth and force myself to believe I am more than...(insert bondage here). Speak it until you believe it!


An exert from my most recent daily devotional:

How wonderful that we serve a God who formed us and therefore understands our frailty and susceptibility yet has grace-filled plans for us. ~Patsy Clairmont

How often do we go around disqualifying ourselves from God's plans for our lives? We can accept that he will forgive us, but we cannot imagine that he can still use us for his purposes and glory. That's a lie, dear sister. Not only does he forgive-he knows our weakness and still have glorious, God-sized plans for our lives. Don't let your past dictate your future. 


We do not need to keep going back to our past. If our past is destroying us, stay away! Protect your relationship with God because that's your safety. Be willing to let go of friendships that are unsafe, places that tempt you to compromise, and hobbies that you have no business partaking in. STAY AWAY.

Romans 12:9-21