Wakin' Up Hugs

One of my favorite things about being a mom are those hugs when the kids first get up.  We call them "wakin' up hugs."  This morning SweetTate came and crawled in my lap.  I told him, "I love wakin' up hugs."  He said, "Mom, I'm just going to let you hug me" and tucked his arms in between us to keep them warm.  I'm sure that he was thinking just let me wrap my arms around him, as opposed to monkey hugs--another favorite--where he wraps his arms and legs around me and can hang on all by himself even if I walk around!

I happened to be sitting at the table doing my Bible study when he came in.  His comment made me think of my wakin' up hugs with my Heavenly Father.  Some mornings I'm clinging to Him with all my might.  Other times I just need to let Him hug me.  This weekend I heard Beth Moore speak and she made the point that we have to operate out of a present awareness of His love.  That fills us up so we have what we need to love others.  If we try to love others without knowing that He loves us, we will run out of energy really fast.  His hugs come in lots of different forms.  It may be a sunrise.  Maybe a fresh insight from His Word.  Or one of His little ones coming into your arms to just be with you.

Thank You, Father, for these precious moments and the reminder of Your love for me.

Balancing Act

While I was at Colorado Springs for the Hearts at Home Conference, I spent a little time at Garden of the Gods.  I would love to go back when I have more time and I think the family would love it!  It is a place at the base of Pike's Peak where these massive red rocks seem to have been tossed out there for some reason.  This is from a distance.



Then I drove down to walk around these rocks that are just towering giants!  It is hard to get a perspective in these pictures. 

I saw pictures of this next formation and saw it on the map, but decided that I better get started home and not take the time to find it.  (Now that I have looked better at the map, I don't think it would have taken that much time.  Just FYI if you ever go and want to take that tangent road.)  It is called Balanced Rock.  Countless people stop to take pictures by this rock and no doubt try to push it over, but it still stands.  Even in this setting of seemingly out of place red rocks, this one is different.

So here is the God Stop I want to share.  I had just been to a Mom conference where I was renewed and energized to jump back into life as a Mom, and I see this picture.  In this scenic place, what do you think when you see this rock? 

Beauty, strength, awesome, balance, constant... 

I know this sounds silly, but if you were the rock, how do you think you would feel? 

Unstable, big responsibilities balanced at one point, odd--why can't I have a base like the other rocks?, easily toppled, worried that the next storm or wind, man or child would push me over... 

I don't know about you, but many days that is how I feel as a Mom.  The reality is, God placed me in this place with these people at this time for a purpose.  I am not out of place.  I don't have it all together and often feel unbalanced, but if I will keep my focus on Him, He will hold me through every storm that may come.  It is His strength that gives me stability and holds me together.  My job as Wife and Mom is imortant.  Any beauty that may come from my life is because my Creator.

This Momma says, "Thank You, God!"

(I didn't take the picture of Balanced Rock.  I found it on Rian Houston's site.)

For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him.  He is before all things, and

in Him all things hold together.

Colossians 1:16-17  NIV

Day of Prayer

I know that you thought I forgot my password, but I really didn't!  This summer was crazy busy with, you guessed it, baseball!  Then it was vacation and...you understand.  Many times I thought I would jump on here and give you a quick update, but it never happened.  Maybe I'll get to that soon, but the fall is not looking any calmer!  Anyway, these are some thoughts for today.

I'm doing Beth Moore's Bible study "Living Beyond Yourself." In one of the videos she told a story about prayer. They had a lady come in to do a devotional time for their office and she challenged them with this. "I'm going to give you each of you an index card. I want you to write a prayer request on it. Here is the deal....today is the last day you are going to ask for this particular request. After today, you are just going to thank Him for it." She gave them time to think about it, and then they had a prayer time to ask for their request. Beth said that was an intense prayer time, knowing it was the last time to ask for it! I would imagine so! Then Beth challenged us with the same charge.
I have thought about what I might write on my index card for weeks. I think I have decided on my "spiritual" thing that I really, desperately want. I just have not been brave enough to actually commit it in ink. But one thing I have decided on and will share is rain. If you live in this neck of the woods, I don't have to tell you how hot. windy. and D.R.Y. it has been this year. We have had less than 2 inches all year! That is about 12 inches below normal! I know 12 inches doesn't sound like a lot to some, but this country sure does thrive on it. And when it is not here, we are beginning to really hurt. On this day, when our governor has called believers to pray for rain, I'm thanking God for the rain He knows we need and has plans to answer that prayer.

It is amazing how my perspective changes when it rains. It is more than, "Thank You, God, for the rain." It is a confident, rejoicing, "Thank You, God! I knew You would send rain! You are so faithful!"
Even as the clouds look very promising as I write this and the radar looks like it might miss us, I'm thankful that my God knows we need it and will abundantly provide the rain at just the right time.
 
Thank You, Father!

Fearless Climb

After I wrote the last post about our rock climb adventure, I got to thinking about how I wasn't afraid to do that.  I have always wanted to repel. It just looked fun to bounce down a mountain—that doesn’t paint a very pretty picture, but you know what I mean—bounce with a rope safely attached landing on your feet! It looked like too much work to climb up, but getting down looked fun! Of course, this one I had to climb to the top first!  Usually I am a fraidy cat and fear will get the best of me and I won’t even try something out of my comfort zone. So what was the difference here? I mean, I strapped that harness on, clicked on the safety rope, and didn’t even hesitate all the way to the top. Where did that confidence come from? I was motivated—I had always wanted to repel, and it is not as much fun to repel only half way! More than that, I trusted the guy on the other end of the safety rope that was almost twice my size, knowledgeable about his job, and strong enough to keep me from falling. I had no fear to go to the top.

There is a God stop here. So many times I talk myself out of climbing higher in life because I am afraid. But here is the truth of the matter. My God is huge! His wisdom is perfect. He knows me and has had a plan for me since before the world began. (Jeremiah 29:11, Ephesians 1:4) He is infinitely strong, and more than able. I just have to trust Him. How far could I go if I was so completely confident in my Father and His love for me?!

Ephesians 3:16-21
I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge--that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
 
Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen.

This might be a familiar passage. It is one of the first chunks of Scripture that I memorized, and it became so meaningful to me. I love Paul’s writings, but sometimes it gets a little wordy. Break it down with me.

He prays that the believers would have the power to grasp what?
           How wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ

And that they would know what?
          This love of Christ that surpasses knowledge

God is able to do more than in our lives if His power is working in us. What power?
          Power through His Spirit
          Power to grasp and to know the love of Christ

So through grasping and knowing the love of Christ, God is able to work powerfully in my life. Wow! That is the safety rope! I need to be harnessed in and fastened to it—grasp it and know it all the time, and especially when things get crazy. On our rock climb, SweetBoy lost his footing and the coach kept telling him to grab hold of the rope.  Our safety rope in life is God's love for us.  I can climb higher knowing His love for me is strong, sure, and more than enough to keep me from falling. If I have my safety rope fastened to anyone else, I have reason to be afraid!  But in God it is a sure thing!

Romans 8:37-39
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Psalm 94:18 NIV
When I said, “My foot is slipping,”
your unfailing love, LORD, supported me.

I can climb with God all the way by knowing His love is my safety rope and keeping my focus on Him.  His faithful love endures forever (Psalm 136)—that is what anchors me and gives me freedom to be fearless.

God Stop at the Grand Canyon

“The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands.  And He is not served by human hands, as if He needed anything.  Rather, He Himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else.... God did this so that they would seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him, though He is not far from any one of us."

Acts 17:24-25, 27

God often gets my attention with nature and teaches me something.  So when we went to the Grand Canyon, I totally expected to meet Him there.  As we were sitting at the Grand Canyon watching the sunset, we had been there all day and I really hadn't slowed down enough to think about it.  But He had been working on it all day!

When we watched the IMAX movie about the Canyon, it told the story of people who had come to the Canyon way back in history.  There were native people living there long ago.  Then explorers came who couldn't find a way across it.  Eventually some fellas on a log raft decided to float down the river through the Canyon looking for gold.  (Do you have the picture of logs tied together, kind of like a Huck Finn contraption on the Mississippi?  Good.)  One guy asked the other, "Is this the right river?" wondering if they were in the right place for treasure.  Then they heard the roar of the rapids, and despite their attempts to avoid them, the first crest and fall of the white water smashed their raft to pieces.  The man decided, "This is not the right river."

Several years later, another expedition team made their way down the river.  There were three boats with three men in each one.  They made it through the first set of rapids...barely.  The next set cost them a boat and a man.  The next set they decided to take it cautiously and walk around it as best as they could.  When they came to the next white water, three men decided they were done and walked away.  They liked their odds in the wilderness of the Canyon rather than the raging river.  They were never heard from again.  The rest of the team went on through the rapids--the last set they encountered. 

The movie showed modern vacationers riding rubber rafts on the rapids with screams of excitement.  I have been on a rafting trip in Colorado and it is very fun!  But I can imagine how not being in right equipment, not knowing the river and terrain, and not having a guide would be terrifying!

Now let's switch perspectives to the rim.  On our Ranger Guided Tour she pointed out some "green tufts" on the Canyon floor.  "How tall do you think they are?" she asked.  (In the top half of this photo.)

They are 80-foot Cottonwood trees that look like something an ant would crawl right over and never blink!

At one point we could see part of the river and the rapids.  They looked like no big deal from here.  But if that tree is that size, they were probably pretty significant when you are in the middle of them!

Here is another thing.  I don't know if you can tell from these pictures or not, but there is a pattern in the Canyon to some degree.  The way the river winds through the Canyon might look random from the Canyon floor, but from the top you can see how the curves and jut outs make the same formations.  There is a Designer who has a plan.

So what is the point?  When I'm in the middle of the raging water of life, I feel like the rug has been pulled out from under me...I wonder if I'm on the right river...I feel unequipped...I want to bail and abandon the original plan...I feel alone.  But the truth of it is, I am more than just a minuscule part of creation.  God knows my name!  He knows exactly the situation I am in.  He is with me!  He knows what is around the bend.  To Him the future is history!  He has given me exactly what I need so I am equipped.  He has a plan for me and no matter what happens, He will work it out for my good and His glory if I will cooperate.  When I set my heart, mind, and eyes on God, He will give me His perspective. 

These are some of my memory verses that I have been working on this year that also came to mind as I was thinking about this.

Psalm 34:4

I sought the LORD, and He answered me; He delivered me from all my fears.  (NIV)

Philippians 4:19

And my God will supply your every need according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus. (NET)

Isaiah 26:3

People with their minds set on You, You keep completely whole, steady on their feet, because they keep at it and don't quit.  Depend on God and keep at it because in the LORD God you have a sure thing. (The Message)

Judges 5:21b

March on, my soul; be strong! (NIV)

Father,
Thank You so much that You are a big God!  Huge!  You work on the majestic, grand scale and the human scale.  You know me and love me any way.  I am blown away by a glimpse of Your love!  Thanks for meeting me here, and reminding me that no matter what may happen, You are still in control.  Help me to keep my mind set on You and keep going.  Thank You that when we seek You, You promise that we will find You.  I love that about You!  Thanks for a great day with my family and with You.  In Jesus' Name...Amen.

Christmas Recap

I know January is almost half over and my decorations have been down for almost a week, but I know me...  I'll be scrapbooking in a month or so and look back here to jog my memory and if it is blank I'll be in trouble!  So if you'll bear with me, here is a recap of our Christmas 2010.

It started off with a Mavericks game with the Lastname family.  That was fun.  I had not ever been to a professional basketball game before.  One observation...as a general rule, basketball fans are tall!  This 5 foot nothing chick felt like a shrimp!  I'm just sayin!  The Mavs won and we had a good time--even with the tall people.  :)

Then we had our Christmas celebration with the Lastnames.  We had a choice for lunch of potato or taco soup.  YUM!  Yes, I had both!  The cousins played and had a great time as usual, then we called them in and we all gathered around.  SweetDoll read the Christmas story and did a really good job.  She only stumbled over Aminidab and said "Aminadibble."  haha  I thought it was cute!

After we exchanged gifts, the kids went on playing and the adults continued to visit.  Later I realized that the kids were not so obsessed about the presents before or after--oh they enjoyed them, but it was the being together that made it a special day.  I loved it!  Other special moments were being with Mamaw and carolling with the church group.  I think that is the first time I have ever carolled with a jam box and song books! 

I wasn't feeling well the last evening we were there and missed out on a hot dog roast at my BIL and SIL's house, but everyone enjoyed that too.  Then it was time to go home to wash and pack again! 

But before we left for my family, we had our "just us" gift exchange.  SweetTate had patiently waited for a really long time to see what was in that big box!

SweetDoll made the boys owls for their gifts.  She said, "I hope they don't open it and say, 'I like the bat.'"  SweetTate opened his and the first words out of his mouth were "Thanks for the bat!"  Oh well.  We tried didn't we SweetDoll.

I got just what I wanted--a Rangers shirt! 

And SweetHeart was too funny playing with the boys and SweetTate's new hotwheels Criss-Cross-Crash.  "It zooms!  It goes fast!  It crashes!  It doesn't get better than that!" 

Moon Dough...have you seen and felt that stuff?  It is weird!  But it is pretty cool!  We had a good time playing! There are perks to having kids!

Then it was off to my family, and this is where it gets interesting.  The original plan was to go on Thursday to Granny and Papa's.  Then we would all go to the aunt and uncles' houses down south on Friday and come home on Sunday.  We arrived at Granny and Papa's on Thursday and all was well until my SIL got sick.  Maybe it is just a little tummy bug, no big deal, we'll leave Friday afternoon instead of Friday morning.  Then my brother got it.  OK, maybe we'll go Saturday.  Then they weren't feeling up to going and it was Christmas and we didn't really want to travel on Christmas...but their flight left from that city.  So we decided to just stay at Granny and Papa's until Sunday.  (Papa and SweetHeart got a touch of it, but the rest of us stayed well. Whew!)  By Saturday they were feeling a little better.  The plan down south was to have enchiladas for Christmas dinner, but we were missing Granny's dressing, so we had planned to have it Thursday before we left, but it wasn't thawed out, so we had it for Christmas dinner--since we were still there.  You can see how we made it to plan Z!  Everyone did feel better in time to exchange gifts and that was fun too.  SweetDoll got an American Girl Doll with a horse big enough for her doll to ride!

SweetBoy got spy gear that he wanted.

Then Granny opened an American Girl Doll too!  Those two were too cute playing dolls together.

(I never liked playing with dolls and Barbies too much.  I don't like doll hair.)  Sunday came and we traveled home and they went south to see the rest of the family and catch their plane.  However, it snowed a bunch and their flight was canceled!  So they got a bonus day with family down south!  Everyone eventually made it home safe and sound after a...quirky...Christmas!  Don't get me wrong, we missed seeing our family that we don't get to see very often.  But all things considered, it was a good Christmas.  God had a plan from the beginning--even to the fact that we had dressing for Christmas!  (It would have been great to have enchiladas with the big family, but I'm just sayin!)  And Granny had already taken off work Monday, so it was no big deal when they stayed south until my brother's plane left a day late.  I just love that about my God!  Even when we think we are off schedule, He works it out.

Merry Christmas 2010!

Kindness

Whew!  I finished my scrapbook projects!  Sort of.  Getting them actually ordered has been...um...challenging to say the least.  Getting my computer, the internet, and the CM website to cooperate has been difficult.  But they are done, and they will be ordered soon.  I should have them in my hands within the month!  That is one thing that is difficult for me with digital scrapbooking is having something tangible to show for the time I've spent on it.  I can't wait to see it!  That has consumed me for the past couple of weeks so on to other things.

I completely didn't realize it was the 15th and time for a new memory verse when I posted last time.  I have a new verse picked out, but like many other things, I have let that slide and I need to nail down the ones I'm supposed to have been working on before I add to it.  So I'll see you on the first for the next Scripture Memory Team!

You know I'm a Beth Moore junkie, so it will not surprise you that I signed up to go to the simulcast last Saturday.  (It is not really about her so much as I know I'll be with the Lord and learn something new of Him.)  I had been looking forward to it for a while, and all week long, God kept telling me, "I've got a Word for you on Saturday."  So I was really anticipating what Beth might be teaching on.  It was going to be a crazy busy weekend--the ballgame was FAR away so SweetHeart went to that and we went to Mom & Dad's.  I wanted to use the internet at Mom's to get my scrapbooks uploaded on Friday so I could get in on the sale that ended Monday, the simulcast was Saturday until 4, SweetBoy was showing his lamb at the fair at 4, the in-laws were coming in...crazy busy.  So Friday, I finished my books and we went to the big city.  Daddy went with me to the office to upload the books.  One went fine, but the other one didn't.  I flattened it some (I don't know what that technically is, but I think it compress the files).  It didn't work.  Flattened it some more.  Still no go.  Mind you that every time I went through and flattened it, even if I spent 30 seconds on a page it was 100 pages, so it took about an hour, and at least 30 minutes a try to upload it.  At 4:30 AM I woke Daddy up from his short nap and told him it wasn't working.  He tried a few things, and by 5:30 I told him we had to quit and go home to get some sleep.  After 2 hours sleep, I went to the simulcast thinking I would be too tired to hear what God had prepared for me.  He had me at hello and I think I only yawned once!  Here are the points that she made about the Law of Kindness:

Proverbs 31:26 NKJV
She opens her mouth with wisdom, and on her tongue is the law of kindness.

The "law of kindness" is translated from the "Torah of kindness"--This woman lives by the instruction of God.

This is important to study because
1) we live in a mean world, and we have to choose to not get mean with it,
2) she "openeth her mouth." (KJV)  We are going to open our mouths.  What will come out?

8 tastes of Biblical kindness
1)  Kindness is not a weakness.
2)  Kindness is not an action.  It is a disposition.
     * There is a difference between nice, and kindness. You can fake nice. You can't fake kindness.  Nice originates from Latin meaning ignorant or not knowing.  So they said, "She is nice because she doesn't know."  But kindness knows full well, and being aware of the situation makes a decision to reflect the Father empowered by the Spirit.  (Luke 6:35-36)  In a particular situation, I have tried to fake nice, but I hate that.  I need a change of heart that acts out of kindness empowered by the Spirit.
3)  Kindness wears down when we do.
4)  Kindness looks pain in the face.
5)  Kindness is a Savior!
6)  Kindness has a good memory.
7)  Kindness craves an outlet.
8)  Kindness leaves a legacy.

It was all good, but that one part is what is echoing in my head this week.  There is a situation that I needed some direction on and that speaks exactly to it.  My God was faithful and strengthened me to hear it even though the enemy tried to keep me up all night to miss it. 

Well, I made it to SweetBoy's show with plenty of time.  He didn't place, but he and the lamb did well in the show.  And I had to go back Monday to Mom's to try to upload my book again (I crammed all week long to get it done by Friday so that I wouldn't have to go Monday.  Oh well.)  I had to break it down into two books, but it is ready to order...yes, after all that I missed the coupon deadline.  It's a long story...ok, longer story.  But hopefully I will have my books soon!  And I'll be practicing kindness, so it will be my disposition when I need it and I won't have to try to fake nice.

Which way, Mom?

God stop in the mountains...When we were camping, the kids and I went on a hike.  SweetBoy and SweetDoll headed out and blazed the trail.  SweetTate was the leader for the two of us, but we were quite a bit behind the big kids.  Sometimes there was a fork in the trail or maybe the grass was tall--as tall as he is--and he would say, "Which way now, Mom?" 

God got my attention in that moment that my job as a mom is very important.  He has entrusted me with these kids and it is my job to steer them in the right direction, and teach them how to make those decisions. 

It also reminded me of the time last fall when we went to the corn field maze with SweetDoll's class.  That was way over all of our heads and we got totally lost! 

Thankfully, one of the makers of the maze was on a tall stand watching us.  She was trying to give us directions, but when we got really, really lost, she came down and led us out.  I feel like I'm in over my head as a mom a lot.  I'm so thankful that God is watching out for me to give me directions in His Word.  And He promises that He will be with me through it all.  He is so faithful and close enough for me to ask, "Which way now, Abba Father?"

I raise my eyes toward the mountains.

Where will my help come from?
My help comes from the LORD,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
He will not allow your foot to slip;
your Protector will not slumber.
Indeed, the Protector of Israel
does not slumber or sleep.
The LORD protects you;
the LORD is a shelter right by your side.
The sun will not strike you by day,
or the moon by night.
The LORD will protect you from all harm;
He will protect your life.
The LORD will protect your coming and going
both now and forever.
Psalm 121

Divin' In!

Here is a little theme music to get you ready for these pics:

I'm divin' in

I'm goin deep

In over my head I want to be...

Yep, that was pretty much a belly flop!

My kids are loving swim lessons!  Today after lessons, they wanted to go off the diving board without the lifeguard teachers down there.  They had to show me they could jump in and swim by themselves in the shallow end.  Then we headed for the deep end.  SweetDoll said, "You'll come in if I need you, right?" 

"Absolutely, Baby, but plan on making it yourself.  Don't jump planning on me getting in the pool fully clothed, but I will if you need me."  And I took off my watch and shoes just in case.  She made it!  Then SweetTate wanted to.  He did ok until he went off the slide and just did circles in the water instead of coming to the side.  Another mom and I were there to reach him and thankfully he made it to the side and we stayed dry!  After that I told them it was enough of the deep end for today.

Here's my little God stop for the day...I watch the kids in the swim class play in the shallow end, jump off the side to their teachers, learning to swim, and having fun.  Then they move to the deep end and a few of them freak out.  Their concern is that the lifeguards will let them drown.  SweetDoll even said, "I was a little worried when we first went off the diving board that they would let me drown."  Even after she had seen them catch and help every single one and knowing that it is their job to be there.  One girl was fine the first day, and freaked out the second day and was fine today.  Her mom said she was tired yesterday.

I have walked with God a long time.  I know His faithfulness.  I know it is His character to love me, to work in me and work things out for my good, to protect me...I know I'm one of His children.  So why do I freak out when He calls me to do what I perceive as a hard thing (especially when I'm tired, I might add)?  Learning and living 1 Corinthians 13 is hard, especially to someone who is hard to love.  I guess I have tried it in my own strength and my own depleted supply of human love, and only spent a lot of energy gasping for air and going in circles.  I have to remember that God is right beside me, reaching out to help.  I don't even have to ask if He will jump in to save me, He already did!  He will give me everything I need.  He pours His love into my heart by His Spirit, and I have to tap into that source (Romans 5:5).  If I'll learn from these kids, it will be much more fun if I do it and learn His way! So into this river of God's love...

I'm divin' in

I'm goin' deep

In over my head I want to be

Caught in the rush

Tossed in the flow

In over my head I want to go

The River's deep, the River's wide

The River's water is alive

So sink or swim I'm divin' in!

~ Steven Curtis Chapman, "Dive," Speechless Album

The Springtime News in Pictures

I'm saving the best for last here, so if you don't have a lot of time, scroll on down.

With Spring comes one of my favorite flowers--bluebonnets.  When we went south for Easter, the bluebonnets were not out yet. I was a little bummed that we wouldn't see any and that we wouldn't get our annual picture.  Then we found some right here!  And they were gorgeous! 

Spring also means baseball at our house.  I have learned to enjoy it.  I even look forward to Opening Day.  (Yes, that is capitalized because it is an official celebrated holiday--at least in our house!)  Little league happens a little differently here, and SweetBoy has moved up a league to kid pitch and that is different.  SweetDoll is still waiting to hear when they start, so for now it is just SweetBoy playing.  He is playing some really good defense and has gotten several hits so far.  Play ball!

So here is the big news.  Two years ago, SweetDoll began to understand what it meant to be a Christian--that God is the only true God, Jesus is God's Son, Jesus took care of our sin on the cross, He rose again, He lives in us, and we will be with Him forever in Heaven one day.  Last week she decided to tell everyone and show that she was a Christian by being baptized.  So this last Sunday, our family came in to celebrate this very special occasion with us.  Our pastor said parents smile and are proud when their babies are born, but it is even more so when they become Christians.  I believe that is true.  One of the sweetest moments was when SweetDoll came back into the sanctuary after being baptized, SweetBoy met her half-way with a big hug--he was pretty proud of her too. (He held her even before I did when she was born, so it was appropriate that he got this first hug!)  We had four generations present and it was a sweet celebration!

After lunch we had a few gifts for SweetDoll.  She gave her brothers hugs for the necklace they gave her.  I missed the first one, but I got these!

Miracle on the Highway

OK I mentioned this a few weeks ago, and the craziness has calmed enough to tell the story. I'll get back to unpacking the last few boxes in a bit. :)

Our vacation this summer got off to a slow start, but God's hand was in it all the way! We packed the van the night before and were ready to roll early the next morning. SweetHeart needed to run a few errands and drop his truck by his parents, and we would pick him up on the way. So he left first. The kids and I piled in the car and as I turned the key we heard click, click, click. Evidently having the doors open with the lights on had drained the battery! When I dialed the cell phone, SweetBoy answered in the van--obviously it was not with my hubby! It was early and I didn't want to bother the neighbors, so we waited. I went back in to finish up some dishes and do a load of laundry. (Tell me why there is always dishes and laundry to do!) The kids were outside and saw our neighbor out. We asked if she could jump start the battery and she graciously helped us out. That saved us at least 30 minutes over waiting for SweetHeart to come back. That is an important 30 minutes!

We picked up SweetHeart and trucked on along and things seemed fine. By late afternoon, SweetHeart decided something wasn't quite right and we stopped for a new battery, which happened to be the last one they had for our van! They installed it and off we go! About 45 minutes later it was close enough to supper to stop. The van started right up and we decided to go on to the next town where we had hotel reservations for the night. There is nothing between where we are and the next place, about 70 miles or more. We got 45 miles from our destination and the van dies completely! We are on a 2 lane road with narrow shoulders, but we coasted to a wide spot, a driveway for the pasture, a safe place to be off the road and the kids could run a little. And we had cell service where just around the corner it was iffy. Perfect timing!

We had been stopped for maybe 10 minutes when a tow truck passed us going the other way. SweetHeart flagged him down and he turned around. The tow truck driver, Darren, said that he was on his way to another call that only needed a belt, but he had driven the tow truck anyway. If we were still on the side of the road when he came back by, he would help us. We did call the road side assistance, but they said it would be about 3 hours before they could get someone to us. Thank you, but Darren will be back by in about 45 minutes! So here we are...

going on the tow truck. Did I mention that it was a crew cab big enough for all of us?! As we were going, Darren said, "Let me call my buddy at the auto parts store and see when he closes." Oh, I also forgot to mention this is Friday of 4th of July weekend? Most places were closing at noon! But his buddy would be open until 8:00. With the time change we should make it with 15 minutes to spare! I told you that 30 minutes was important!

Darren dropped the kids, the dog and I off at our hotel. I thought I had my wallet with my ID and money with me in the diaper bag, but of coarse, it fell out in the van! The lady at the front desk believed me when I told her our situation, and she had compassion on me. As she watched the big kids and Daisy run around outside, she said, "I see you need a place to settle, here is your key."

Meanwhile, Eric was with the van at the parts store. They had one alternator left for our van, and they owner started to install it for us. But by then it was getting dark and part of it was tricky to install, so he wanted to do it in the morning. He said he would try to find someone who could do it for us the next day--the 4th of July! While SweetHeart was walking back to the hotel, Darren called and asked if we had someone to install it for us. He told us that one of his employees was going to a call early the next morning and could install our alternator on the way. Sure enough, he came and did just that the next morning. SweetHeart remembered that we had replaced the alternator not too long ago, and it cost us about the same for the battery, tow, part, and labor this time as it did at the mechanic at home!

We had planned a fun stop along the way, but because of the expected rain, decided to go on to our campsite where the rest of the family was already. But all things considered that was OK! On our way up the mountain it began to rain. We were discussing all that God had done to work things out from the timing to the parts to the people. By the way, if you were one of the people Darren or his employee was on the way to help, I'm sorry that you had car trouble, but God was working things out! After recalling all of those things, we were thanking Him, and asked, "While You are at it, could you let it stop raining so we can unload the van?" He did!

I was studying Esther and God's providence. Beth Moore pointed these verses out.

Ephesians 1:11 tells us that God "works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will."

Philippians 2:13 says that God "works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose."

Romans 8:28 reminds us that "we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose."

I shared several months ago that we were waiting. Well, we were waiting on a new job. And at the time this story happened, we were still in the middle of that wait. This was a perfect example and reminder that God works it out, He works it in, and He works it good! To orchestrate all that had to happen in perfect timing within 24 hours...of course He can handle the situations that have to happen to put us in the place He has planned for us to be. My God is amazing and I love Him so! And I know that He loves me!

While we were waiting on the tow situation to pan out, we had a great view. I didn't think about it until we were driving away. But I got this shot on the way home. By the way, I posted these close together so if you didn't see the highlights of our vacation, scroll on down and enjoy some pics!

Know Him in the Wait

This morning I was reading through part of my journal from last fall. I thought I would share this hands-on lesson I learned about worry. Last October I went on a field trip with SweetBoy's class to the pumpkin patch. I had to drop the little one's off at Aunt’s so I was just going to meet the class at our destination, as did several other parents. There were several of us there waiting… and waiting. Someone called the school and asked if the bus had left yet. Yes, it had. And we were waiting…and waiting, and my imagination started going nuts with “what if’s.” But I stopped and called SweetHeart, the principal, because I have an inside track! I asked him, not just if the bus has left but “Where is the bus?” Yes, we knew the bus had left, but we were at the wrong place. The bus and the kids were at the park where they had planned to be. We just missed that information.

So here is the lesson…do I worry about _______? No, talk to the One who knows and has the right answers, power and authority to handle the situation. Even if I don’t know the right question to ask, the Holy Spirit intercedes for me. Sometimes that means I just need to wait for the plan to unfold. I’m where I need to be—just wait. What do I do in the wait time? Know Him there!

One of my memory verses this year has been 1 Corinthians 2:9-10,

“However, as it is written: ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind hasconceived what God has prepared for those who love Him’—but God has revealed it to us by His Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.”

That is a quote from Isaiah 64:4. In Isaiah, it describes God as the One “who acts on behalf of those who wait for Him.” Part of loving God is waiting on Him.

I had no idea the changes we would be facing now and the waiting we are in. This is a good reminder for me to know Him and wait for His plan to unfold.

A Weekend Only God Could Plan

Our spring break adventures were around here because we had a trip planned for this past weekend instead. It was my daddy's parent's 60th wedding anniversary and we, along with lots of our family and friends, were planning to make the trip to the celebration. Mom worked really hard on all the details of getting everything ready, and made sure everyone else had what they needed too. I helped Mom do a digital scrapbook for them that turned out pretty cool. It told their story from growing up and getting married with their young family to their grand- and great-grandkids. Everyone was included, even the newest great-granddaughter born last month. Anyway, much time and preparation went into this weekend. But God had a different plan.

The weather guys were forecasting snow the day of the party. As it got closer, the snow amount increased and the wind became a factor until it was a blizzard warning. The kids, my Dad and his brother and sister and their spouses, made plans to be there early before the storm. We had some conflicts that we could not go early, but if it didn't snow much and we could make it Saturday, we planned to go then. The snow came as predicted and we didn't go, but this is what God had planned. A cousin happened to be in the hospital, and her dad, who lives far away, stopped in to see her--she was surprised! My grandparents and their kids and spouses spent a weekend together at their house--that had never happened (without the rest of us there). My brother "got stuck" here because his connecting flight was canceled. In the between time of deciding to stay here and when I could get him, a cousin picked him up and Brother got to hang out and help him for the day. And Brother and I have not had time just us since I got married 15 years ago. Everyone was safe and not out in the storm. Only God could have orchestrated all of those unique opportunities because we would not have. He truly cares about the details of our lives! Even if things don't turn out the way we plan them.