I Celebrate the Day!

LOVE these lyrics...

I Celebrate the Day by Reliant K

And with this Christmas wish is missed
The point I could convey
If only I could find the words to say to let You know how much You've touched my life
Because here is where You're finding me, in the exact same place as New Year's eve
And from a lack of my persistency
We're less than half as close as I want to be

And the first time
That You opened Your eyes did You realize that You would be my Savior
And the first breath that left Your lips
Did You know that it would change this world forever

And so this Christmas I'll compare the things I felt in prior years
To what this midnight made so clear
That You have come to meet me here

To look back and think that
This baby would one day save me
In the hope that what You did
That you were born so I might live
To look back and think that
This baby would one day save me

And I, I celebrate the day
That You were born to die
So I could one day pray for You to save my life

Easter?

We spent much of the day today driving through crowded streets, waiting in long lines and maneuvering through crowds as we tried to finish up the last of our errands before Christmas.

No idea why, but at one point in the car Connor says, "Mommy, when is Easter going to come?"

Cookie from Connor, Anyone?

Connor hoped in the car after school and before he was even seated he burst with excitement, "Mommy! I made you a cookie!" As the very last syllable joyfully left his mouth, his balloon deflated. He sat down in his car seat and with a sad face confessed, "so sorry I licked all the icing off."

Homemade Marshmallows

Debbie and I spent the day making marshmallows. Yep, that's right...homemade marshmallows. When we shared our plans with "some other" family members, they didn't hid their snickers and the jokes begin instantly. Jokes about how we would get stuck to the walls of the kitchen...we would have to call one of them to help us. Really now...IF we did get stuck to the walls by our rising homemade marshmallow fluff...would we really call one of them to help us??

I am happy to say that we made the marshmallows with out much of a sticky mess. And they were SO GOOD! However, the day didn't go down without its share of giggles...FROM US. I am going to be so bold as to share just a couple of them...

• The sugar and water are on the stove. We are watching intently as...nothing happens. We decide we should stir it in case it could scotch. Another 5 minutes goes by of constant stirring. Still...nothing. Oh! It helps if we have the burner on!
• We are almost done. The marshmallow is fluffy and yummy! Debbie mentions not having lunch. I grab a individual pizza out of the freezer to make her. Pop it in the microwave and when it beeps take it out. Much to my surprise, there isn't much of a pizza there any more. More like a plate full of burnt cheese and a little piece of dried up bread. What in the world? I have never made marshmallows EVER and they turn out great. I have made those little pizzas more times than I can count - in the microwave no less - and it ends up completely inedible. I still don't understand...
  

Soccer Game!

Summer played soccer this fall. She loved it! She did really well and both her and Connor want to play this spring. Here are some pics...
This was our first time playing with "Upward". I so impressed! They had memory verses and devotions during half time...rules for the parents and the plan of salvation laid out every single game though a reward system for the kids. It was very well done!

We would bring along a ball for Connor and Chloe

She loves these glasses...I am not sure why

Looks like they had to be separated... :)

Warming up before the game

Next year, buddy!

Something must have been really interesting on the other side of the fence

Devotions and prayer during half-time

Look at her go!!

Say "Thanks"

Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!" When he saw them, he said, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And as they went, they were cleansed. One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan. Jesus asked, "Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?" Then he said to him, "Rise and go; your faith has made you well." Luke 17:11-19

I have always kinda snubbed my nose in the direction of the "other nine". How could they be so ungrateful? How could they not even say "thank you" when they were just given an amazing gift of healing. Walking in their shoes, surely, I would have been the one to come back and say thanks.

They had leprosy after all. An incurable disease that condemned them to life alone. They were outcasts forced away from family and friends. Husbands torn away from wives. Fathers torn away from children. Declared unclean they could no longer even touch the ones they loved. Their family had mourned them as if they were dead. And they might as well had been.

But then...oh, but then they met Jesus! And He changed everything! He gave them their life back...only this time it was even better! Oh, I imagine they could hardly contain themselves as they ran to their loved ones with heart overflowing...with gratitude?

Do you suppose...could it be... just maybe...they weren't ungrateful? Maybe they could simply not wait to touch family and friends they had not had contact with in who knows how long. To hug wives, hold children, kiss away tears of joy! To share the news they are no longer dead! Share the amazing story of the One who gave them their life back!

Maybe, just maybe they were very much like me. So busy enjoying the gift...appreciating the gift...relishing in the gift...even sharing the gift, they didn't have time to say "thank you" to the One who gave them the gift in the first place.

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Mine was...well, an answer to prayer really. My prayer today is that I never again get too wrapped up in enjoying life that I forget to stop and say "thanks" to the Giver of all good things!

Pumpkin Patch!

Remember Me?

Long time no blog, huh?

I haven't abandoned it, I just feel a bit lost at where to start again. I have so much I want to say...SO much! It has been a roller coaster of couple of months. Lots of family time, lots of God things! Our God is so amazing and unlike anyone else! He is moving and working all around...have you felt it too?

So...I am gathering my thoughts today in hope that there will be some kind of order to this, and I WILL be back! I am so thankful for the long weekend coming up and hope to get all caught up by the end of it.

I hope you will be back too!

"Who am I, Lord God, and what is my house that You have brought me this far? This is why You are great, Lord God. There is no one like You, and there is no God besides You..." 2 Samuel 7:18, 22

Mercy, Lord, Mercy!

There were two blind men sitting by the road. When they heard that Jesus was going by, they cried out, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” The crowd told them to keep quiet, but they shouted all the more, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” Jesus stopped, called them, and said, “What do you want Me to do for you?” Matthew 20:30-32

Like a blind beggar calling out to the Savior for mercy so my heart longs to see the touch of the Merciful One on our country. I cry all the louder, longing to have Him gaze upon us with His grace. As the election nears, as the economy plummets, I daily have to force myself to remember Who rules over this entire universe. Tomorrow, come what may, God will still sit on His Heavenly throne.

From His lofty view, there is nothing hidden. He sees in its entirety the evil that hovers over our nation. He sees the evil that consumes our hearts. Even those called by His Name, covered in His blood have cheapened the price He paid for grace. Willful sins reflect our ungrateful hearts. By our unholy means we take our Lord’s Name in vain again and again.

Pointing our finger everywhere but ourselves, we look for people to hold accountable for our dire situation. The homosexuals, the pro-choice, the government, Hollywood, the church…who is at fault? Surely, it is not me.

“Out of the depths I call to You, LORD! Lord, listen to my voice; let Your ears be attentive to my cry for help. LORD, if you considered sins, Lord, who could stand?” Psalm 130:1-3

No one. No one is without sin. All have sinned and without grace, no one can stand before our holy, sinless God. The only one that carries no blame in any of this is the only One that can offer any help.

Banks crashing around us, gas and grocery prices rising, hurricanes devastating our cities, hospitals filled with the dying, and our streets are crowded with homeless. Our circumstances are like the roaring waters surrounding Peter as he attempted to walk on water. It doesn’t take a prophet to look around and realize we are sinking. We expect Congress to bail us out. We believe hope lies in a new administration.

“Look at Me!” I hear the Lord calling to us. “Stop looking at your situation and LOOK AT ME! The Maker of Heaven and Earth….the Ruler of the Universe…I AM the Only One who can rescue you.”

“I lift up my eyes to You, to You whose throne is in heaven. As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master…so our eyes look to the Lord our God, till He shows us His mercy. Have mercy on us, O LORD, have mercy on us…” Psalm 123:1-3

With our knees to the ground, let’s set our gazes high. Humbled and begging, let us cry out to our Savior. Only from Him comes our redemption. Only in His grace…only in Him not giving us what we deserve…only in Him can we find hope for our country. Look up! Cry out! "Mercy, Lord, mercy!"

God Speaks

Countless times, I have heard the voice behind me telling me, "This is the way; walk in it." I have heard Him speak to me directly about big things: who I should marry, where I should work (or not work), where my children should go to school. I have heard His voice over small things: times to pray for a friend, a Bible study to take, when to speak and when to stay silent.

Lately, I have felt as if I have been walking in between Malachi and Matthew. God has been disturbingly silent.

It has not been for lack of questions. There have been MANY. I have blindly slammed my face against hard cement...only to wonder why God would have led me down that path just to be redirected so quickly.


Where do you want me, Lord? What can I do for You? Do you want me to sit quiet? Do you want me to get busy? I will do whatever, I just need to KNOW. More than anything, I need to know You are pleased with what I am doing. Please, God speak.

That was my prayer this morning. I prayed it as I got in the shower. My mind never once stopped swirling with thoughts...Is that You, Lord? Was that from You?

I busied myself with preparing my children for school. Packing lunches, dressing little bodies. Backpacks in hand, we headed out the door. As I always do as we wait through the car line, I prayed for my children...while focused on them, my own request was still very present in my mind.

I begin to blame myself. I needed to go home and hit my face. I needed to show God how desperately I needed Him.


I don't like the silence, Lord? I can't take it one more day.

Two car lines later, both kids were dropped off at school. My desire to go home was great, but I had a much needed errand to run - so I headed in that direction. My eyes took in sights all around me...hoping to gather some information...something God would use to show me where He wants me. Would it be a homeless person? A child?

Then my phone rang. God? I suppose it could have been. But it was my dear Mom making her morning call to check on me. Just small talk for a couple of minutes. Over the course of that conversation my mind had gone from searching for God's direction, to searching for the DMV. I hung up with only that on my mind.

It was then I noticed I had a text message. I usually only text my husband...so I expected it to be him. Opened it and read:

"Good morning! Just wanted to wish u a blessed day. God loves u and knows ur heart."

It was from my sweet mentor friend. She sent it without too much thought, I am guessing. A simple greeting...but it spoke volumes of Truth to my earnest heart.


"God loves u..." I have walked with God...really walked with Him for about 16 years now and just recently became very acutely aware that I have no clue how much God loves me. If I did, how much more willingly would I surrender it all to Him and trust Him fully?


"... and knows ur heart." A scary thing. Yes, my heart longs for Him like no other. It cries out, "Earth has nothing I desire but You." But my actions...ouch. They don't always portray that. Which in turn, reflects the state of my heart, doesn't it?

It wasn't where I was looking, but God did indeed speak. The message He sent me today wasn't the one I was looking for. It wasn't a billboard telling me to go to Africa or a phone call from Heaven saying I needed to stay home. I didn't get any solid directions...other than to the DMV.

But I did find peace. Not because my questions were answered. But peace in the midst of all the uncertainty. I still don't know what God wants me to do. But I do know He loves me. He knows my heart and maybe He is pleased...or maybe He just loves me anyway.

For now, I rest in that.

Welcome Fall!

Today is the first day of fall! I can hardly believe it, but you can actually feel it all the way in Florida! Even in the heat of the afternoon, my car thermometer said we didn't break 80 degrees. That has to be a first in a very long while. (Now if it would just stop raining...)

A few of my favorite Fall things (in Florida):

• wearing jeans and not sweating to death before even stepping outside
• cool evenings and maybe even a few cool days
• school activities and field trips
• October - on my top 3 list of favorite months
• pumpkin patches
• our candy bowl again being full (it has been dwindling since Easter)
• not so many creepy crawly things around - particularly reptiles
• watching late night Packer games with my hubby
  
• DARK evenings and LIGHT mornings - how things are suppose to be :)

What are some of your favorite Fall things?

America at the Crossroads

You may remember my post by the same name back in July. In it I shared my notes from Kay Arthur at the Deeper Still conference where this sweet lady brought what I believe to be a prophetic message. After I posted it, I received some emails asking for permission to share the info or asking how to get that message. I have wondered the same thing...

Today, I visited one of my favorite websites (oneplace.com) and right there on the front page was Kay Arthur's message "America at the Crossroads". I haven't listened to the entire message yet, but it appears to be much of the same content. Each segment is about 25 minutes...lengthy, but time well spent.

OK, I am going back to listening... If you don't have time to listen, please at least join me in prayer. Our country needs it, especially as November nears.