A Year Worth Singing About.

Happy New Year! Wow, what a year! Yet again we rocked 2012 at the Schumpert Reservation the best we could.  And it worked out pretty well! As I look back over the year there is SO MUCH proof of the Lord's faithfulness and goodness, but I wanted to share just a few and take a walk down memory lane (or the past year at least).

1. 2012 started off with me praying, "Lord what do you want? Your will be done!" I slowly started realizing that I wanted know Jesus.  I wanted to live a life that made much of Him and not myself.  Soon after I was sitting in this room on this day and learned I was officially moving to NC to answer to this calling. VERY grateful!

2. In the summer this year the entire Schumpert family was able to pack our bags and head to a country that Dad and I have fallen in love with.  I was a MAJOR blessing to be able to watch every member of my family act on Matthew 28:19-20. Needless to say Peru has become a big part of our lives now, and we have already started praying for BIG God things to happen as we plan to return in 2013.

3. This handsome young man had reasons to celebrate over the summer. On the exact same day that Mom was one year cancer free (YIPPPEE Jesus!), we found out that the growth on Kyle's leg that had to be removed was cancer free! This caused major celebration in the Schumpert household!

4. I actually did move to the place that has been in our family for so many years.  The past semester has been difficult, challenging, overwhelming, fruitful, and incredible all at the same time.  I have learned more about what it means to rely on the Father for every little thing to every big thing.  The difficult times have taught me more about the sovereignty of the Lord, but it was amazing to see so much beauty from ashes.  But it is humbling to know that I still don't have it all together and figured out, and I NEVER EVER will.

5. Last but certainly not least, I get to be one proud, not so big sister of  these  Indians. But really. Every year I am thrilled to watch Kyle and Caroline grow and mature in their relationship with the Lord.  It challenges me and encourages me in so many ways.  I am beyond blessed to be able to watch as these two allow the Lord to use them in unthinkable ways! What an honor to be the sister of siblings that want to use their lives to make much of Jesus!

As 2013 approaches my prayer is that this will be a year that my purpose is to decrease so that Jesus might increase more and more.  Praying that you have a God glorifying New Year!

Anna Lauren

Stepping Up to the Command

If you keep have been keeping up with the news around the world over the past week you have most likely not missed the tragic news of the Russian ban on American adoption.  Therefore the past few days have not been easy.
My alarm clock went off at 5 this morning, and I was hitting the road running by 5:30.  Immediately I started complaining because it was too early and too cold.  The wind was whipping, and I wanted nothing more than to curl back up and go to sleep.  But the LORD.  Around mile 2 the soundtrack from "Beauty and the Beast" started playing, and I considered changing it (this is what you have on your iPod when your sister is 8). I decided to keep it on and "jam" out to it.  Looking back I was thankful to have it because it changed my mood a little.  But bottom line...I am thankful for a little girl that came into my life and turned my running playlist around.
This is what I am asking for you to do, PRAY!  With the multiple news reports surrounding us concerning the adoption ban it would be easy to sit back and say, "well, this is sad."  But the problem with that is James 1:27 leaves no room for that.  I read this past week someone commentate on this one verse she said, "The Lord could have laid many different things on James' heart. He could have said: Pure religion is to be a pastor. or Pure religion is to be married to a pastor. or Pure religion is to be a school teacher. or Pure religion is to help save the whales. or Pure religion is to be a firefighter. or Pure religion is to be worship leader. But He didn't. He made it plan and simple, 'Pure religion is to care for the widows and orphans.'"
Call me crazy, obsessed, or passionate, but the command is there.  Now what will we do?
1. Ask the Lord to make it clear how you are specifically suppose to respond to this crisis.
2. Pray for the many families that are currently in the process of adopting a child from Russia.
3. Pray for the 700,000+ children that are longing for forever families.
4. Pray for government and leaders in Russia to have a change in heart and mind.
5. Finally, pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ to step up and answer the to the command (and that includes you and me!).  Pray that we will all see clearly the reason that we care for the widows and orphans.
As the New Year approaches, I am sadden by the fact that I am having to type this out, but I cannot think of a better way to start the New Year...stepping up to the command and clinging to what we are called to do.

Anna Lauren

Tidings of Comfort and Joy

So the past few days have been busy, fun, crazy, and refreshing.  It started off Thursday with being able to surprise 2 of my favorite people by coming home a little early, and Friday night was official Schumpert family night.  Being together with my family has been a wonderful, and if that was not enough 2 of my best friends came in town for the weekend! Therefore I am just now catching my breath, but all the craziness was worth it! Getting to spend quality time with my favorite people brings me so much joy and life!
On a different note, the celebration of our Savior's birth is approaching, and I have been pondering the following question lately, "what exactly is this suppose to look like?"  I am almost positive that there is not an exact answer, but I think just even over the past couple of weeks my perspective of the answer to that question has changed a little.
It started with morning worship at school when one of our lovely staff spoke up about Christmas songs being statements of worship.  I will be completely honest and say that I LOVE singing/jamming out to Christmas songs, but I had never really thought of them being worship songs.  
She brought up the song "God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman." First, I have always thought that this was a weird title for a song, and second, I had never actually paid attention to the lyrics.  Guilty as charged. When she started quoting them I was amazed at what they actually said:

God rest ye merry, gentlemen
Let nothing you dismay
Remember, Christ, our Saviour
Was born on Christmas day
To save us all from Satan's power
When we were gone astray
O tidings of comfort and joy,
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy

This is just the beginning of the song, but what an awesome picture of the Gospel! I have probably repeated this one section in this song over and over again in my head in the past few days.

Thursday when I was driving home I was comforted by these words.  I had a six hour drive home which is not terrible, but being by myself for that amount of time can trigger my anxiety.  It gives me too much time to think and allow Satan to come in and attack. But this time I was able to use this time as an act of worship.  It gave me a time to remember that my comfort and joy does not come from feeling fine, dandy, and happy 24/7, but it comes from knowing that in my deepest and darkest hours the Lord is supreme over all.  Little did I know I would need to be reminded of this truth very soon.

Friday our nation was devastated by the tragedy in Connecticut.  This is the first time I have ever wept over a national tragedy, and I remember the only thing I wanted to do was run to a school and grab my precious 3rd grade sister and hold her very close.  Like many of you, I was in a daze.  The only way I found comfort and joy was in reminding myself of what I have spent studying over the past few months. This world is filled with evil and suffering, but we have an eternal perspective.  Yet again, this song came back up, "to save us all from Satan's power, when we were gone astray." My prayer is that through our anger, grief, questioning, and confusion we will find comfort and joy in the truth that God was, still is, and will always be sovereign over all. He is the sovereign king, righteous judge, and supreme creator, and this is what should compel comfort and joy.

Sunday I chuckled a little a church when we started singing this song.  I remember thinking, "Oh yes Lord, I PROMISE I can see where my comfort and joy should lie."  It was such a blessing to be able to proclaim this song that I once thought had a weird title as a statement and declaration of praise to God.

As we prepare ourselves over the next week to celebrate the birth of the Savior my prayer is that we will not lose focus.  My favorite time is the Christmas Eve candlelight service at my church.  I will admit, yet again, that I get those warm, fuzzy feelings when everybody raises there candle, and we talk about being the light of the world.  This is 100 percent true, but most of the times I never actually take the time to think about what this means.  Our Savior left a perfect place to step into this evil world to bring light.  This is the light that as believers we must proclaim.  This is the light that brings comfort and joy when tragedy hits. This is the light that we long to one day see face to face! What a perfect way to receive comfort and joy!

Merry Christmas!

Anna Lauren

In The Beginning...

Over the past week we have been studying the gospel of John.  I knew from the very beginning that this book was going to be a struggle for me. In a good way of course.  I remember telling my roommate that I could spend a week studying just the first chapter of this gospel.  It is so rich in meaning that I wanted to take time so soak it all in.  And indeed I tried.

A few days ago I was running and started asking the Lord what He wanted me to see through the study of this book.  The first thing that came into my head was, “In the beginning...” I laughed a little because in class one day last week I seriously forgot how Genesis 1 started. Like to the point that I had to go look it up (fail at being a pastor’s kid).  I still remember where I was on my run when I started thinking about Genesis 3:15 where God tells Satan that he has a sovereign plan to destroy him. AKA Jesus.

I am not ashamed to say that the past few months have been filled with anxiety for me.  For a while I kept it to myself, and it got to the point of misery.  I specifically remember driving through Atlanta in rush hour and crying out, “Lord, I don’t understand, make it go away!” (I am sure it was a sight for the cars next to me:).

Over the past few weeks the Lord has shown me that my anxiety is His power being made perfect in my weakness.  It has led me to see that spiritual growth is realizing how much more and more I need to cling to Him.  While I would love to be able to write out that my anxiety is gone, that is just not the case.  But I can say that whether I see it or not, the Lord is sovereign over it.

So while on my run that is when it hit me, “See, Anna Lauren, I was there from the very beginning.”  This is what is so clear in the first chapter of the Gospel of John.  From the very beginning God was sovereign over all and had a perfect plan.

As I prepare myself for the Christmas season, this is what I want to compel my worship of the Savior.  The sovereignty of God with a perfect plan through and extraordinary Savior.

Anna Lauren

P.S. Shout out to my Auburn friends that are procrastinating studying for finals by reading this! You can make it!

Laugh Along the Way.

Welp, today is a big day in the Schumpert family! Yep, the head of this reservation is turning the big FIVE-0H!! Yes, you heard me right.  The man you all know and love is having a birthday!  If you don't my dad than you are missing out on a lot.  Seriously.  You would probably be a lot skinnier because you would have laughed a lot more, and you would probably have been impacted in a way that would change your life forever.  What more could I ever want in a dad?  A dad in the business of laughter and loving Jesus.

I have learned many many lessons over the years of being raised by this fabulous man.  Like when all else fails and you don't know a lick of Spanish just ask Dad (He's the expert).  Or when everyone around is loud and you need to get their attention just yell, "Shut up, lets pray!"  But I think the most important one of all is, "It's all about relationships."

Dad is one of the very few people I know that can build a relationship with a person in a matter of minutes.  Our family is constantly out in public, and you can look around and find one family member missing.  "Where is Dad?"  Sure enough you can hear that loud voice talking with someone he has known for years or a random stranger he just met.  The man has some serious skills.  

It has been such a high honor to witness the relationships that Dad has built over the years, but most importantly I love watching his relationship with Jesus.  This household is blessed to have a father that leads by a Godly example. 

Today this house will laugh, celebrate, and rejoice! I pray that I will constantly remember who is the foundation of all the joy that is present in this family.  Only by His grace!  

I pray that we will constantly remember that life is all about relationships.  I pray that we will mend the broken relationships, and that we will rejoice in all the ones that He has blessed us with! 

Oh and laugh along the way.  That's what this family does and we didn't turn out too bad....

Happy Birthday Dad!!!!!

Laughing a lot!

Anna Lauren

7 Years Ago.

I really do not know where to begin. It all started 7 years ago.  June 13, 2005, changed my world. For good.
We were riding in a van in China when received a call that she was waiting for us. For a forever family.  We walked in the civil affairs building, and there she was.  Lost.  Confused.  And beautiful! Yes, this, my friends, would be the child I would be able call my best friend, my snuggle buddy, and my sister. She would forever be a Schumpert! (like it or not;)
I love love love sharing the story of what happened to my life on June 13.  It not only impacted mine and my families lives but also many others.  This was the day that I was able to grasp what it meant to be adopted by God the Father.  You see Caroline did absolutely nothing to become a Schumpert.  We took her in, and her complete identity changed.  Did she deserve it? No. Did she earn it? No.
In the same way, we were once in need of a new identity.  We are crucified in Christ and we no longer live, but Christ lives in us! HALLELUJAH! Did we earn it? There is NO possible way. Did we deserve it? HA! Absolutely not! But it was by His grace that He took us in so that we could cry out to Him, "Abba, Father!"
The doctrine of adoption constantly blows me away. We are loved by God the Father.  It is that simple, but yet so hard to comprehend.  We were once lost and confused, but by His grace we are able to be wrapped in His arms!  This is good good news!
The first time my mom ever held Caroline she was crying tears of joy and saying, "She's beautiful."  I cannot think of a better picture of how the Father holds us.  Can you imagine this? You are held by God, Creator of the Universe, and He says, "You are beautiful and perfect my child."

So much is running through my head right now.  It blows me away! I will be eternally grateful for this day.  Not because of Caroline, but because of the Creator who created Caroline! To Him be all the glory, honor and praise! Forever and Ever!


Happy Gotcha Day!

Anna Lauren

"See you Sunday" -Jesus

This is a story that leaves me speechless every single time.  Be humbled as you journey through the most powerful weekend in all of history!


 ¹ Now when morning came, all the chief priests and the elders of the people conferred together against Jesus to put Him to death; ² and they bound Him, and led Him away and delivered Him to Pilate the governor.  ³ Then when Judas, who had betrayed Him, saw that He had been condemned, he felt remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders,⁴ saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” But they said, “What is that to us? See to that yourself!” ⁵ And he threw the pieces of silver into the temple sanctuary and departed; and he went away and hanged himself. ⁶ The chief priests took the pieces of silver and said, “It is not lawful to put them into the temple treasury, since it is the price of blood.” ⁷ And they conferred together and with the money bought the Potter’s Field as a burial place for strangers. ⁸ For this reason that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day. ⁹ Then what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: "They took the thirty silver coins, the price set on him by the people of Israel, 10 and they used them to buy the potter's field, as the Lord commanded me."

Jesus before Pilate

 ¹¹ Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor questioned Him, saying, “Are You the King of the Jews?” And Jesus said to him, “It is as you say.” ¹² And while He was being accused by the chief priests and elders, He did not answer. ¹³Then Pilate said to Him, “Do You not hear how many things they testify against You?” ¹⁴ And He did not answer him with regard to even a single charge, so the governor was quite amazed. ¹⁵ Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to release for the people anyone prisoner whom they wanted. ¹⁶ At that time they were holding a notorious prisoner, called Barabbas. ¹⁷ So when the people gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you? Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” ¹⁸ For he knew that because of envy they had handed Him over.
 ¹⁹ While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him a message, saying, “Have nothing to do with that righteous Man; for last night I suffered greatly in a dream because of Him.” ²⁰ But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and to put Jesus to death. ²¹ But the governor said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.” ²²Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” They all said, “Crucify Him!” ²³ And he said, “Why, what evil has He done?” But they kept shouting all the more, saying, “Crucify Him!”
 ²⁴ When Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing, but rather that a riot was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this Man’s blood; see to that yourselves.” ²⁵ And all the people said, “His blood shall be on us and on our children!” ²⁶ Then he released Barabbas for them; but after having Jesus scourged, he handed Him over to be crucified.

Jesus Is Mocked

 ²⁷ Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole Roman cohort around Him. ²⁸ They stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him. ²⁹ And after twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand; and they knelt down before Him and mocked Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” ³⁰ They spat on Him, and took the reed and began to beat Him on the head. ³¹ After they had mocked Him, they took the scarlet robe off Him and put His own garments back on Him, and led Him away to crucify Him. ³² As they were coming out, they found a man of Cyrene named Simon, whom they pressed into service to bear His cross.

The Crucifixion

 ³³ And when they came to a place called Golgotha, which means Place of a Skull, ³⁴they gave Him wine to drink mixed with gall; and after tasting it, He was unwilling to drink. ³⁵ And when they had crucified Him, they divided up His garments among themselves by casting lots. ³⁶ And sitting down, they began to keep watch over Him there. ³⁷ And above His head they put up the charge against Him which read, “THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.”
 ³⁸ At that time two robbers were crucified with Him, one on the right and one on the left. ³⁹ And those passing by were hurling abuse at Him, wagging their heads⁴⁰ and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” ⁴¹ In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking Himand saying, ⁴² “He saved others; He cannot save Himself. He is the King of Israel; let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe in Him. ⁴³ HE TRUSTS IN GOD; LET GOD RESCUE Him now, IF HE DELIGHTS IN HIM; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” ⁴⁴ The robbers who had been crucified with Him were also insulting Him with the same words.
 ⁴⁵ Now from the sixth hour darkness fell upon all the land until the ninth hour.⁴⁶ About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACHTHANI?” that is, “MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?” ⁴⁷ And some of those who were standing there, when they heard it, began saying, “This man is calling for Elijah.” ⁴⁸ Immediately one of them ran, and taking a sponge, he filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and gave Him a drink. ⁴⁹ But the rest of themsaid, “Let us see whether Elijah will come to save Him.” ⁵⁰ And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. ⁵¹ And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split. ⁵² The tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; ⁵³ and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection they entered the holy city and appeared to many. ⁵⁴ Now the centurion, and those who were with him keeping guard over Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and the things that were happening, became very frightened and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”
 ⁵⁵ Many women were there looking on from a distance, who had followed Jesus from Galilee while ministering to Him. ⁵⁶ Among them was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.

Jesus Is Buried

 ⁵⁷ When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus. ⁵⁸ This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him. ⁵⁹ And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, ⁶⁰ and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the entrance of the tomb and went away. ⁶¹ And Mary Magdalene was there, and the other Mary, sitting opposite the grave. ⁶² Now on the next day, the day after the preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered together with Pilate, ⁶³ and said, “Sir, we remember that when He was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I am to rise again.’ ⁶⁴Therefore, give orders for the grave to be made secure until the third day, otherwise His disciples may come and steal Him away and say to the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last deception will be worse than the first.” ⁶⁵ Pilate said to them, “You have a guard; go, make it as secure as you know how.” ⁶⁶ And they went and made the grave secure, and along with the guard they set a seal on the stone.


Matthew 27

"See you Sunday" -Jesus

Big Change. Bigger God.

So like I said yesterday there were two good good things that happened in my life within 24 hours.  The first being the celebration of one of my friends birthday!  It was such a perfect celebration.  Now second thing... 

First you should know that thoughts are running though my little mind wayyyyy faster than I could possibly piece them together.  So with that being said, hang tight. It's coming.

As most of you know or have read, the past few months have been tough for me.  I have been sick, but through it the Lord brought about one of the biggest blessings.  I have been saying that I will one day share, but I have had to keep it a little secret (which was super hard).  Well, guess what?! Today is the day!

After lots of prayers and waiting....it official! I AM MOVING FOR A YEAR!!! Yep you heard that right. Shocked? So am I, but let me explain.

During the new year the Lord starting tugging at my heart, and I knew something had to change.  I seriously didn't know what or how.  I just started praying for a very very clear sign, but it was not coming.  I remember sitting in Bible study one night and my leader was talking about the importance of knowing the Bible.  Not just reading a little here and there but really knowing it.  She was explaining how so many times we become obsessed with secular books, but we have failed at really knowing the Word of God. So Paige if you are reading this I will never be able to THANK YOU enough for saying those words that night. Seriously. 

After hearing and meditating on those words it became clear to me that I was trying to proclaim and live something I really didn't know.  So what did I do? Pray. A lot.  I was home one weekend, and I started to discuss all this with my mom.  She reminded me of this program that focuses solely on studying and knowing God's Word.  I remember that she had mentioned this to me a couple of years ago, but I just threw the idea out the window.  But this time I listened, and I started to pray.  Soon I could not stop thinking about the possibility of studying the Bible for a year.  

Fast forward a couple of months later, and  yesterday I was sitting in Katie and Elizabeth's room when I received an email.  I had been accepted to attend this school in the fall! Yes! It's true! I will be moving to Lake Lure, North Carolina for a year to study the Word of God!  Does that place sound familiar?  Yep, it just so happens to be the place that I have grown up all my life, and I have dreamed of the possibility of being able to live there one day.  Now that dream is soon to be a reality! Only a sovereign God!

So here I am at a stage in my life that I can't help but praise Him for giving and taking away!  My good health was taken away from me for the past few months, but He was giving and working in all of it! Yes, He is good! 

Stay tune for more about this super exciting new chapter in my life, and I will fill you in on more details.  So just in a matter of months, I'll be blogging from the mountains of North Carolina. YIPPPPEEEEEE!

Ready to sing from the mountain top!

Anna Lauren

Seeing His Glory

It has been a couple of weeks since I have blogged, and A LOT has happened in just those few days.  Don’t worry I have not forgotten about the story of Ruth, but I want to spread it out until Easter.  It is the PERFECT story to journey us through Holy Week, and so therefore I have it planned out perfectly.  Yeah, who knew Anna Lauren could plan?? Now I just have to stick to it!  With that being said, I just wanted to share what the past couple of weeks have consisted of. Nothing over the top. Just the pure sovereignty of God! (okay that alone is over the top!)

So the past few weeks I have....

Cried some. Laughed a lot. Been lazy. Witnessed a very successful Centerpoint Challenge.  Had spring break. Soaked in the sun.  Enjoyed my spring break at home...with my parents.  Seen some doctors.  Got burnt.  Studied a lot.  Loved on some siblings.  Had some trials.  But had some major triumphs.  Struggled.  Been captivated even more by His grace.  Had supper with Tim Tebow.  Gone power walking. Wondered how people enjoy power walking.  Had to stop running.  Missed my family.  Grown even closer with my friends.  Started reading again.  Been heart broken for the 163 million orphans.  Begged my parents for my siblings.  Longed for Peru.  Seen Act of Valor.  Appreciated this country even more.  Voted.  Had some scary moments. Clung to The Father.  Seen beauty from ashes. 

and through it all HE WAS AND IS SOVEREIGN!

Brothers and sister, take a moment to rejoice with me that God has been faithful and sovereign over the past two weeks of your life (actually before you were even formed in your mother’s womb, but lets just talk these past two weeks.)  No matter how great our needs were, His grace was sufficient.  He was and is worthy of our praise over every trial and victory we have encountered over the past two weeks.  This is GOOD GOOD news!

I love Exodus 33:20, “But He said, “You cannot see My face, for no man and see Me and live.”  Moses was hungry to see the glory of God.  Earlier he had a glimpse and wanted more!  He longed to see the splendor!  Praise God that we don’t serve a God that just gives us those giddy warm feelings but a God whose glory we cannot even fully fathom and see.  It would simply take our breath away!

Sing and Rejoice!

Anna Lauren