Full box of Driscoll Raspberries....
A "vintage" picture of Asher...
Precepts Bible Study, Philippians and Joy....
And this new song which has been on repeat..........
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Friday, February 22, 2013
Avery Elizabeth
My niece was born yesterday morning. A day to remember that the littlest things and moments can change our lives.....
My prayer for Avery has been that from her very first breath she would know how completely LOVED she is.....
I can't wait to meet her. And watch her grow into all that she has been created for...
My prayer for Avery has been that from her very first breath she would know how completely LOVED she is.....
I can't wait to meet her. And watch her grow into all that she has been created for...
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Settled? I Hope Not
It seems like most people want to know right now...where are we living, are we settled,how long will we be here....
Since we sold our house so quickly, we had to scurry to find a temporary place to live and we needed to find it in about a day! I walked in to my church a couple of weeks ago and saw a friend I hadn't seen in a long time, she had signed up to hear my teaching. One of my first comments to her was that I would be leaving as soon as I was done and spending the next couple of hours in search of an apartment for us to live in the interim between closing on our house and finding the next one.
She just "happened" to have a townhouse that she desperately needed to sell but graciously offered to rent to us to help us out.
Wow.
I'm not sure if you've had moments like those....where there is NO earthly way to deny that something greater, more powerful, outside of the bounds of our conceptualization of time and resources....and since there is no way in denying that God is moving, and actively working all things out for the good of those who love Him...then the only proper response is to FOLLOW that movement.
And so we did. We followed my friend to her town home (perfectly distanced between all of our life activities). We followed the prompting to rent, even if for only three months. We followed the Spirit as we packed and moved and cleaned. And now we are continuing to follow the Spirit of God as He prompts us to purchase this home.
So are we settled? I hope not. We are moved. Boxes are unpacked. Beds are made. The refrigerator is stocked. But settled? Nope.
The truth is that I am not sure that we will ever have the feeling of being completely settled or completely comfortable again. I kind of think God is doing this miraculous thing in our lives....bringing the Gospel alive in us. Creating in us a heart that desires more than our comfort. Creating a heart (not just some words in the book) that is in constant pursuit of becomin a true disciple. A true follower of Jesus. Resting and finding contentment right now in this home and the challenges before us, but simultaneously listening and ready for His voice as He called Abram, answering His call as Isaiah and desiring His presence in Jesus.....
"The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you."
-Genesis 12:1
"Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!"
-Isaiah 6:8
"Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men."
-Matthew 4:19
When I began this blog, I asked God to reveal in new depths what Paul meant when He said in Philippians....
"I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being CONTENT in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want."
He is revealing His ways. Shaking and steadying my world daily, by His all sufficient GRACE. He is FAITHFUL and TRUE.
Since we sold our house so quickly, we had to scurry to find a temporary place to live and we needed to find it in about a day! I walked in to my church a couple of weeks ago and saw a friend I hadn't seen in a long time, she had signed up to hear my teaching. One of my first comments to her was that I would be leaving as soon as I was done and spending the next couple of hours in search of an apartment for us to live in the interim between closing on our house and finding the next one.
She just "happened" to have a townhouse that she desperately needed to sell but graciously offered to rent to us to help us out.
Wow.
I'm not sure if you've had moments like those....where there is NO earthly way to deny that something greater, more powerful, outside of the bounds of our conceptualization of time and resources....and since there is no way in denying that God is moving, and actively working all things out for the good of those who love Him...then the only proper response is to FOLLOW that movement.
And so we did. We followed my friend to her town home (perfectly distanced between all of our life activities). We followed the prompting to rent, even if for only three months. We followed the Spirit as we packed and moved and cleaned. And now we are continuing to follow the Spirit of God as He prompts us to purchase this home.
So are we settled? I hope not. We are moved. Boxes are unpacked. Beds are made. The refrigerator is stocked. But settled? Nope.
The truth is that I am not sure that we will ever have the feeling of being completely settled or completely comfortable again. I kind of think God is doing this miraculous thing in our lives....bringing the Gospel alive in us. Creating in us a heart that desires more than our comfort. Creating a heart (not just some words in the book) that is in constant pursuit of becomin a true disciple. A true follower of Jesus. Resting and finding contentment right now in this home and the challenges before us, but simultaneously listening and ready for His voice as He called Abram, answering His call as Isaiah and desiring His presence in Jesus.....
"The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you."
-Genesis 12:1
"Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!"
-Isaiah 6:8
"Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men."
-Matthew 4:19
When I began this blog, I asked God to reveal in new depths what Paul meant when He said in Philippians....
"I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being CONTENT in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want."
He is revealing His ways. Shaking and steadying my world daily, by His all sufficient GRACE. He is FAITHFUL and TRUE.
Friday, February 15, 2013
Same Team
"Christ’s sacrifice was indeed an act of unselfishness, however, it
was an act of LOVE first. The successful intent was the salvation of
humankind, it was not a side effect on the road to another goal.
As a Christian with a desire to become more like Christ, the goal is not to abstain from as much worldly pleasures as possible and hope that a life of sacrifice will get us entry into heaven. The goal is to receive the good gifts of theHoly Spirit , which enable us to see others the way Christ sees them and to live a life of love, joy and peace."
-William Knelsen
I kind of think this is so true. Valentine's Day was yesterday and the word LOVE was all around our house. Yet, today at 6:30pm something else attempted to rummage around our house. It was just a LONG (but GOOD) day, I had to drive a lot of miles that I don't normally drive because of things that were completely out of my control and by the end of it all....I turned inward.
By the time I picked up Brandon from his office at 5:00 I was ready to unleash....and I did. Everything became his fault....the traffic, the truck repairs (and having to pick it up), having to go to the grocery store, not organizing things CORRECTLY...you know....EVERYTHING was his fault!
As I folded laundry in silence while he rearranged bedroom furniture (correctly)....he finally turned to me and reminded me...."We are on the same team....I love you.".
We love this statement because when things get tough and we just CAN'T seem to communicate no matter how hard we try, because of stress or exhaustion or weariness or whatever.....this simple statement ALWAYS brings us back to home base. It began a couple of years ago and it has never failed us since.
Tonight was no different.
We were back on the same team, free of resentment and anger, as quickly as we had arrived. As hard as I try, when my head knows but my heart doesn't want to obey, to always put others before me and to TRY to be unselfish.....I still fall short.....when my goal is anything other than LOVE through the good gifts that the Holy Spirit gives....I will never see the fullness of all that He intends for my spirit to SEE and I will continue to abide on the other team....MY OWN TEAM OF ONE.
"We are on the same team...I love you." Just try it......
As a Christian with a desire to become more like Christ, the goal is not to abstain from as much worldly pleasures as possible and hope that a life of sacrifice will get us entry into heaven. The goal is to receive the good gifts of the
-William Knelsen
I kind of think this is so true. Valentine's Day was yesterday and the word LOVE was all around our house. Yet, today at 6:30pm something else attempted to rummage around our house. It was just a LONG (but GOOD) day, I had to drive a lot of miles that I don't normally drive because of things that were completely out of my control and by the end of it all....I turned inward.
By the time I picked up Brandon from his office at 5:00 I was ready to unleash....and I did. Everything became his fault....the traffic, the truck repairs (and having to pick it up), having to go to the grocery store, not organizing things CORRECTLY...you know....EVERYTHING was his fault!
As I folded laundry in silence while he rearranged bedroom furniture (correctly)....he finally turned to me and reminded me...."We are on the same team....I love you.".
We love this statement because when things get tough and we just CAN'T seem to communicate no matter how hard we try, because of stress or exhaustion or weariness or whatever.....this simple statement ALWAYS brings us back to home base. It began a couple of years ago and it has never failed us since.
Tonight was no different.
We were back on the same team, free of resentment and anger, as quickly as we had arrived. As hard as I try, when my head knows but my heart doesn't want to obey, to always put others before me and to TRY to be unselfish.....I still fall short.....when my goal is anything other than LOVE through the good gifts that the Holy Spirit gives....I will never see the fullness of all that He intends for my spirit to SEE and I will continue to abide on the other team....MY OWN TEAM OF ONE.
"We are on the same team...I love you." Just try it......
Thursday, February 14, 2013
I AM....Love
I want to be close, close to your side
Where heaven is REAL and death is a lie
I want to hear voices of angels above
Singing as one
Hallelujah, Holy Holy
God Almighty, The Great I Am
Who is worthy, none besides Thee
God Almighty, The Great I Am
Lyrics From-"The Great I Am"
On this Valentine's Day my heart was there....in that place where fear is no longer present and peace abounds so that love may be the reality.
Thankful today for Abe Lincoln, this handsome smile, Thai food and the Great I Am.....just to name a few....
Where heaven is REAL and death is a lie
I want to hear voices of angels above
Singing as one
Hallelujah, Holy Holy
God Almighty, The Great I Am
Who is worthy, none besides Thee
God Almighty, The Great I Am
Lyrics From-"The Great I Am"
On this Valentine's Day my heart was there....in that place where fear is no longer present and peace abounds so that love may be the reality.
Thankful today for Abe Lincoln, this handsome smile, Thai food and the Great I Am.....just to name a few....
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Behind and Forward
| It is FINISHED....Abilene Court is officially SOLD and we are officially moved! Sunday afternoon, our little family, spent some time saying goodbye to every room (and closet...per Asher's request)....we each shed tears in our own time realizing no matter how exciting, adventurous or certain the future seems.....goodbye will always be hard. But hard as they are, they are not without purpose. Paul says it best in Philippians 3.... "Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the UPWARD CALL OF GOD IN CHRIST JESUS" I loved that house. I love that it was our first major purchase together and that we learned the joys and pains of painting tall ceilings and scraping wall paper. I love that I learned to cook in the kitchen and clean in the bathrooms. I love that we brought home our first son to a beautiful and peaceful nursery and that we learned to swaddle on our living room floor at 3am. I love that we were blessed with enough space to host our families for holidays and birthday parties. I love that we cried our eyes out together in our bedroom the day a brain tumor was revealed and simultaneously prayed that healing was in our path. I love that we taught Asher to walk, talk, ride a bike, kick a soccer ball, shoot a basket and pray. I love that house. I love those memories. But the TRUTH is that I love Jesus more. I love that He calls us forward by His gentle Spirit preparing us in truth and righteousness to love more deeply. I will give up anything to follow that call. "...forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead..."  |
| Where we brought Asher home from the hospital |
 |
| Where we welcomed many guests |
 |
| Our first home improvement project and we survived! |
 |
| The last load |
Saturday, February 2, 2013
Edify
Yesterday, my mom and I had one of the best lunches we've had in a long time. For the past three years, if we went to lunch we were always accompanied by, at least, two other little bodies, Asher and Brody.
And the years previous to that there was just no strength in the communication of our relationship. One of us, at some point, would offend the other and the lunch would be done.
If you have a great relationship and always have, with your mom....this might not relate to you. Or if you live in the same town, and lunch dates with your mom are a regular event....you probably won't relate either.
But since our history has always consisted of one or both of the above mentioned.....yesterday was a day I will always remember and a day that I can honestly say has been a deep prayer.
The stars just aligned since I decided to make the trip without my boys
and Brody spent the day at school...it was my mom and I all day.
The highlight was our hour and a half lunch at the Thai Time Cafe. It consisted of Jasmine tea and the lovely dish pictured below....but most importantly our conversation held the weight that would choose to edify one another. As we listened to each other, I realized that the Holy Spirit was dwelling within both of us ....where there was tension in our topics there was also GRACE to hear words coming from the very heart of God and to respond in faith.
Yesterday, God continued to heal both of us....He showed us where we have been, where we are headed but most importantly.....through all the junk.... He had never forsaken us....His grace which drowns both of us daily has carried us through....
....from darkness to light....from chaos to peace....from tearing down to building up.....from anger to deep, abiding love for one another.
Today, I can only hope that one day there will be more days than not when I get to share lunch and life and the power of Christ within relationship with my mom!
And the years previous to that there was just no strength in the communication of our relationship. One of us, at some point, would offend the other and the lunch would be done.
If you have a great relationship and always have, with your mom....this might not relate to you. Or if you live in the same town, and lunch dates with your mom are a regular event....you probably won't relate either.
But since our history has always consisted of one or both of the above mentioned.....yesterday was a day I will always remember and a day that I can honestly say has been a deep prayer.
The stars just aligned since I decided to make the trip without my boys
and Brody spent the day at school...it was my mom and I all day.
The highlight was our hour and a half lunch at the Thai Time Cafe. It consisted of Jasmine tea and the lovely dish pictured below....but most importantly our conversation held the weight that would choose to edify one another. As we listened to each other, I realized that the Holy Spirit was dwelling within both of us ....where there was tension in our topics there was also GRACE to hear words coming from the very heart of God and to respond in faith.
Yesterday, God continued to heal both of us....He showed us where we have been, where we are headed but most importantly.....through all the junk.... He had never forsaken us....His grace which drowns both of us daily has carried us through....
....from darkness to light....from chaos to peace....from tearing down to building up.....from anger to deep, abiding love for one another.
Today, I can only hope that one day there will be more days than not when I get to share lunch and life and the power of Christ within relationship with my mom!
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