What's a Kritty Krub?

I moved to Louisiana the summer after my freshman year of college to work as a church youth intern. Looking back, I can't believe I moved away to another state to go work in a town where I knew no one. I moved in with a family I had never met. There were no college kids where I lived, either, so I was either mentored or I was mentoring. Feeling a certain calling, I ventured to Benton, Louisiana. And what started off as just a summer job ended up becoming a year-and-a-half adventure. In that time, I learned a lot about myself, who God is and how His people are called to love deeply. And I developed one of the coolest friendships.

My first and closest friend there was a 15-year-old girl named Christie Tubbs, a.k.a. Kritty Krub. Despite a four year age difference, we clicked immediately. And she quickly became my loyal sidekick -- I couldn't shake her even if I had wanted to. I could tell you some fun stories about this girl and some of the great moments we've shared. She's one of those kind of friends you make that you'll know the rest of your life. But what I'd love more than anything, though, is for the world to experience an ounce of faith this girl possesses. She moves mountains. It hasn't always been the case, though.

One of the hardest parts of leaving Louisiana was saying goodbye to my dear friend. We've kept in touch through the years, but never enough to satisfy close friends or to sustain a deep friendship -- that is until recently as we pick up where we left off. Over the five years that have passed, Christie hit a rough patch. And after only recently being pulled out of the crap called her life, she received disturbing news on her birthday -- she's got cancer.

Now 23 years old, Christie has Hodgkin's Lymphoma. In a nutshell, this is a cancer that affects your lymphatic system. The good news is that it's not in her bone marrow. The doctor's say it's Stage 2. Christie says, "God's bigger than cancer." It's kind of ironic to me how she's been the comforter to me and everyone else around her. And moreover, her faith is incredible. She's an absolute inspiration. It all goes to show that God's glory is displayed no matter what -- despite our circumstances, despite who we are.

I'm blogging about her because she's a huge part of my life, and I'd just like my friends and family to pray for her and her family. She starts chemotherapy next week, and her strength is going to be shot. So start praying for peace, patience and strength -- all of which come only through relying on God.

I also invite you to check out her blog as she writes about what she's going through. I hope you'll be as inspired as I am.

http://christieblogsalot.blogspot.com/

Love and Peace!