Dying to Live... as a child of God by the Spirit of adoption

A Dinner filled with love

2012-02-14T21:38:00.000-08:00

This morning, my son Paul prayed and asked God to help us have a good Thanksgiving. Though he was confusing his holidays, I said a hearty amen...every day is a good day to give thanks because God has poured His grace out on us! And, truth be told, every day is a good day to love for the same reason, be it Valentine's Day or any other. And today was filled with both at our house. Love and Thanksgiving ~ this is resurrection living! To God be all glory!!!

Check out these decorations (a few of the many that are all over our house) that our kiddos made:

MJ setting our dinner table:

Bekah preparing heart shaped garlic cheese rolls and an apple crisp:

Mike brought each of his ladies a rose, which helped to adorn the table:

MJ made up menus for Mike and I:

Meet Paul, our very handsome server:

And the two most beautiful hostess's on the planet:

We were called to the table...

Here we come...

Dinner is served:

The kids had a blast decorating and preparing all the food, and we felt totally blessed to receive their outpouring of love and labors. They also cheerfully cleaned everything up before we all snuggled up together to watch Ice Station Zebra. What a wonderful day, and now I hope to go enjoy a bit of the night before sleep calls my name.

Days like this just make me fall on my knees in thanks to the God who rescues and redeems. God answered Paul's prayer...it has indeed been a good day of thanksgiving.

Wanna join the GNW club?

2012-02-12T07:00:00.000-08:00

What is the GNW club anyway? GNW stands for Grow Not Weary! And truth be told, I haven't organized an official club, but the thought has occurred to me. People grow tired of working at their marriages, tired of parenting without seeing the kind of fruit they desire, tired of trying to lose weight, tired of living with disability or chronic illness, tired of looking for employment, tired of missing a loved one, tired of waiting for an adoption referral or waiting to be united, and tired of so many things. This theme seems to enter many a conversation and I wonder if I could be doing more to encourage myself and others to GROW NOT WEARY. I think it is a challenge common to mankind.

I saw this message on facebook the other day:

That isn't a bad helpful hint, so long as you have solid reasons for holding on in the first place. I wrote a post a few days ago called A Solid Rock. Christ is always a good reason for persevering! He needs to be my ultimate reason for everything I think, do and say. When I start constructing my own agenda and goals, even if I have a list a mile long of what I think are good reasons for pursuing them, I'll end frustrated and grow weary every time because God is faithful to draw me back to Himself and expose my idols. Thank you, Jesus.

So as I think about this, I am pretty sure that the way to encourage myself and others to not grow weary is to help us focus on Christ, His ways, His heart, His promises, His ever-sufficient grace.

God tells us in 2 Peter 1:5-7 that "...giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love." That is a high call! That is a hefty to-do list in a broken world. And guess what? If our focus is the to-do list alone, I can pretty near guarantee that you and I will grow weary. The load will feel too heavy to our saved-but-not-fully-sanctified selves.

You see, verse 5 begins with this phrase: "But also for this very reason...". Ah! What reason? Let's look. In verses 1-2, we're told Peter is writing to those "who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ. He opens with the blessing of grace and peace being multiplied to them (and us) in the knowledge of God. Then in verse 3-4, Peter assures those of us who have been granted faith that "His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust."

In other words, the only way we are ever going to tackle God's "to do" list is to remember His reason. God has given us everything we need for life and godliness and also given us exceedingly great and precious promises. It is through the knowledge of Him who has called us, through His promises that we're going to grow not weary. His calling is sure, His provision is sure, His promises are sure...we can bank on it!

Sometimes weariness is used by God to expose our idols, sometimes it is a call to lean harder into Jesus and to trust His call and His promises. Ask yourself if you are constructing your own agenda or if you are following God's. We use the phrase "Get on the Jesus train" at our house to redirect any who seem to be holding to their own agenda...the Jesus train is for all those who (like Peter said so well) "have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ." He is the Conductor and He will surely get us all to our destination. Do you wanna join the GNW club? Get on board!

Gal 6:9 "And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart."

Ready learners?

2012-02-11T07:31:00.000-08:00

I am a home schooling mom. I work hard to prepare lessons for my kids. I think through what they know presently and what they still need to learn. All you moms (and dads) out there, whether you home school or not, have hopes for your kids and their futures and you give of yourselves daily to equip them and bless them, don't you? So how maddening is it to you when you attempt to teach something of value and are met with disinterest? They have a zillion things on their mind but not one of them includes learning what you want to teach them. Frustrating isn't it?

This morning I was reading in Ephesians. When I came to 1:17-19, I read one of Paul's prayers. He prayed "that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe..."

He has given and He continues to give! And He is patient. But how often do we act like distracted children before Him, having a zillion things on our minds but not one of them including learning from Him. Surely if you asked me, I would tell you that I want Him to give the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him. Surely I want the eyes of my understanding to be enlightened. Surely I want to know the hope of His calling and the riches and the greatness, etc. But when I act like I want Him to just dump it into me as if I were a bottle and all this could just be funneled in, do I really think I'm going to learn what He wants to teach? Do I really think my disinterest pleases Him?

I am thankful that much of the time my children are ready learners, cheerfully working the lessons I give. But I am also thankful for the times they frustrate me because they are like a mirror God holds up before my eyes to show me that I am like that sometimes too. It gives us an opportunity to all repent together.

Psalm 119:11-16 is one passage among many that instructs us how to receive:

11 Your word I have hidden in my heart,
That I might not sin against You.
12 Blessed are You, O Lord!
Teach me Your statutes.
13 With my lips I have declared
All the judgments of Your mouth.
14 I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies,
As much as in all riches.
15 I will meditate on Your precepts,
And contemplate Your ways.
16 I will delight myself in Your statutes;
I will not forget Your word.

Are we hiding His word in our hearts; are we declaring it with our mouths; are we rejoicing in His ways; are we meditating on His precepts; are we contemplating His ways; are we delighting in His statutes and laboring to remember His word?

He has given and He continues to give! Our Lord does teach. The question is whether we will learn? Are we ready learners, loving His Word, cheerfully working the lessons He gives?

For Fun on Friday

2012-02-10T05:46:00.000-08:00

We've been playing a memory game at our snack times for the past few days...together, as we're munching and crunching on yummy apples or pistachios, we have been brainstorming happy memories (fun times and funny times, which are not always the same thing at the moment they are lived out, but after the fact bring a smile to all our faces...like the time Mommy was filming Paul swinging all by himself when he was 11 months old and he fell off. It wasn't funny at the time, trust me, but the video is hilarious and enjoyed by all NOW that the tenderness of the fall is past). I wholeheartedly recommend this memory game because remembering happiness promotes more happiness.

This morning I downloaded oodles of pictures that have been accumulating since the first of the year so for a little more fun this Friday, I'll share a few...they capture some recent happy memories!

MJ refers to this wee pup as the "most wonderful doggie in the whole wide world" and tells him daily how much she loves him. Bringing Sprocket home has been a huge blessing for all of us! Sure he is a lot of work and he makes messes and needs training galore, but we're all pitching in and learning a lot and mixed in is so much laughter that it makes it all worthwhile.

He is even incorporated into school...he's Paul's reading buddy!

Socialization? We're for it! Even for Sprocket...

he is having fun meeting all the people

that my homeschooled kids are undersocialized by :-)

The girls have been having fun baking...

This is a pan of pear/cinnamon rolls Bekah made.

The were SOOOOOOO delicious I had two!

Coloring is still fun,

especially when your brother shares super-sized Cars pictures!

Painting -- love it!

Some of the best fun comes from being creative

with what would otherwise be thrown away.

We received a package this week

and Paul immediately wanted the box.

He turned it into his "super alien flying boat"

complete with his personalized control panel.

Hours of fun, I kid you not!

Thank the Lord for empty boxes :-)

Even Sprocket enjoys recyclables...we gave him an empty vitamin jar which he chased around for awhile, then chewed on even longer. When we realized he figured out how to open the lid, we popped a couple of doggie treats inside, resealed it and gave it back to him. It wasn't long before he got it open again. We did that over and over until he demolished the bottle with teeth marks, but oh what fun he had (and us too, watching him and cheering him on) in the meantime.

This Friday, I hope you have some fun. And take some time to play the memory game with your kids if you can...there is a wonderful pay off (more smiles, less complaints). Kids can have the tendency to remember the times you said no, the things they didn't get to do that they wanted to do...whine, whine, whine...BUT, brainstorming happy times can help them focus on the good gifts of God to them and shape the story they tell themselves. Just sayin'...

A solid Rock

2012-02-09T05:26:00.000-08:00

He has delivered us

from the power of darkness

and conveyed us

into the kingdom of the Son of His love,

in whom we have redemption through His blood,

the forgiveness of sins.
He is the image of the invisible God,

the firstborn over all creation.

For by Him all things were created

that are in heaven

and that are on earth,

visible and invisible,

whether thrones

or dominions

or principalities

or powers.

All things were created

through Him

and for Him.

And He is before all things,

and in Him all things consist.

And He is the head of the body,

the church,

who is the beginning,

the firstborn from the dead,

that in all things

He may have the preeminence.

~ Colossians 1:13-18

Last night I was talking with a friend who is going through a challenging time that confronts every dimension (physical, emotional, mental, spiritual). We talked about how precious it is to know our God is sovereign and good. There are storms that rage in the lives of Christians. I think of Job and how in the midst of his incredible pain he proclaimed that he knows his Redeemer lives. Now there is a Rock to stand on! When everything seems to be stripped away (plans, health, fill in the blank), we have a Savior who is not stripped away...a Savior who is our ever present Help in time of need...a Savior who will never leave us nor forsake us.

This morning I read this passage from Colossians. And I broke it down to read it slow. He is writing our story...we were created through Him and for Him. And all that He creates, including us and the storms of life we face in His providence are so THAT in all things HE MAY HAVE THE PREEMINENCE. My friend voiced her desire to know what it is she is supposed to be learning through all this. I suggested (whether rightly or wrongly I'm not sure) that perhaps this isn't about learning as much as it is about praising. When we can walk through trials, be they huge or small, with child-like trust and praise on our lips for the One who is our Redeemer, it is like a megaphone shouting out to all that He indeed does have the preeminence!

He has delivered us from the power of darkness. We have redemption through His blood. He has conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love...we are not about ourselves, our plans, our health, our fame, our wealth, our "fill in the blank" anymore. He has delivered us, redeemed us, brought us into a far more glorious kingdom (His). Whatever we face today, it is no surprise to Him...He is writing our story, handpicking the scenes and circumstances in love so that as part of His body we can share in the privilege of making much of Him and advancing His kingdom.

It is pretty easy to think you believe this on sunny days. But when cancer strikes, or the fruit of your womb dies, or your family is suffering from an ongoing lack of employment, etc. -- it can rock you to your core and it is then that you really realize what a ROCK our Savior is. He is our Refuge! He is our ever present Help in time of need! We can count on Him, rest in Him, praise Him even in the dark because He is always with us, giving us His grace, strengthening us with His joy, granting us His peace which passes understanding, and assuring us that He is in control and that He is good.

Peace

2012-02-07T09:18:00.000-08:00

In our family worship times for the past week or so, we've been reading the book of Philemon. What a delight! My husband printed the book so each of us could have a copy to mark up and and to take notes on. Each night he gives us an assignment for the following morning [tasks like "underline all the verbs," and "color code repeated themes using colored pencils," and "circle the names of all the main characters," and "write a summary statement for each paragraph," etc]. The idea is to help our children (and ourselves) read observantly and meditatively, to slow down enough to absorb and apply. You should see their papers...oh the fun of color coding and marking the text up and all the discussions that have ensued.

This morning as we were reading Philemon together after breakfast the word "peace" jumped out at us. How many times have we zipped through Paul's various letters and breezed right over his introductory greetings of grace and peace? Maybe you don't do that, but I'm guilty all too often to my own shame and detriment. But by slowing down, by taking time to look at each word, peace gripped us today and oh what a blessing. Just think: we were enemies of God, under His wrath and rightly so. We were completely unable to do a lick on our own behalf to restore the relationship and frankly we were so dead in our sins we didn't even care to. But God, in His mercy, provided the way of peace...He paid the price to reconcile us to Himself. We are no longer dead bones a-walking and awaiting our final condemnation. We ARE new creations (2 Cor. 5:17), created in Christ Jesus for good works (Eph. 2:10), at peace with God and filled with hope of a glorious future with Him. THAT makes a gargantuan difference to how we proceed to live.

Paul expands the idea of peace in this way in Colossians 1:20-22 (yes, we're a cross-referencing sort of family!): "...having made peace through the blood of His cross. And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight..."

No wonder thanksgiving follows in Paul's letter! How can we be the recipients of His grace and not give thanks? How can we go from guilt-laden, condemnation-awaiting lives to peace with God and not be overflowing with gratitude?

Doing "hard" for the glory of God

2012-01-27T06:08:00.000-08:00

Paul, in writing to the Philippians, comforts their hearts in a number of ways...he lets them know he thanks God for them, that he is confident that God will complete what he began in them all, that he sees them as partakers of grace alongside him, and that he longs for them all with the affection of Jesus Christ...he prays for them that their love may abound and that they may approve the things that are excellent and be filled with the fruits of righteousness for the glory of God. Then, after all that and more, he assures them: But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. ~ Phil 1:12-14

What do we do when we long for one thing and God gives us another? For Paul it was being thrown into jail for his faith, but there are all kinds of hard and unexpected things we experience in the wisdom and goodness of God, aren't there? Do we whine, chafe, gripe and complain OR do we submit ourselves to God's sovereign directing of our lives, look for the praiseworthy, and bear the fruits of righteousness for the glory of God? Do we trust that in the big picture, God knows EXACTLY what He is doing in the midst of hard?

This isn't a terribly uncommon thing...Proverbs 16:9 makes it plain that "A man's heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps." If our response is to chafe and whine, it isn't very likely that we'd be able to assure anyone afterward that "the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel." As God's representatives, His ambassadors, we shout out anything but gospel when we fail to trust the One who directs our steps. We need to rest in Christ and praise Him in all He brings, like Paul did.

That doesn't mean there are not times when we are disappointed, but what we do with it matters. Edith Lillian Young wrote a poem on this that I really like. The first verse goes like this:

Disappointment - His appointment, change one letter, then I see

that the thwarting of my purpose is God's better choice for me.

His appointment must be blessing, though it may come in disguise,

for the end from the beginning, open to His wisdom lies.

(You can read the rest of it HERE)

Paul encouraged many in how he responded to the multitude of "hard" he faced throughout his Christian walk to put their hope in God. Haven't we all be encouraged by people who "do hard" in a God-glorifying fashion? I want to be THAT kind of person...someone who can count it all joy when facing various trials. How about you? Oh may God give us the grace for the glory of His name and for our joy to trust Him always, to bend to His ways, and to desire His gospel to be proclaimed and His kingdom manifested more and more.

At the very heart and foundation of all God's dealings with us,...we must dare to believe in and assert the infinite, unmerited, and unchanging love of God. ~ L.B. Cowman

Helpful?

2012-01-21T07:10:00.000-08:00

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths,

but only what is helpful for building others up

according to their needs,

that it may benefit those who listen.

~ Ephesians 4:29 (NIV)

Verse 25 of the same chapter instructs us to "speak truthfully." How often do we get frustrated or upset and speak our minds "truthfully", but not helpfully? Are we "speaking our mind" and justifying ourselves with the sentiment, "well, it's true."? It seems like lately a number of the conversations I've had with people about relational problems they're having relate to this sort of thing. It's got me asking myself if I too am only concerned about speaking the truth or if I'm committed to speaking the truth in love? How am I doing at choosing my words in a way that is "helpful for building others up according to their needs that it may benefit those who listen"?

Here's an example of what I mean. Let's say your kids get sick on a family vacation three years in a row, and in a moment of frustration you say "I sure hope ya'll don't make a habit of this." The sentiment may be "true", but it is NOT helpful. Helpful would be to point yourself and your kids to the love of a sovereign God who is working even this out for good somehow, and to encourage all concerned to trust Him and to practice contentment with what He gives.

I love the book of Ephesians...God has rescued us and continues to work in us. He's made us one body, Christ's body. People do need to hear the truth, but not a "truth" couched in anger or ill will. We're not brought into the body of Christ to stomp on each other, but to help build each other up, to encourage each other to put off the old man and put on the new for the glory of the One who redeems.

Sprocket is home.

2012-01-06T05:55:00.000-08:00

My family brought a puppy home yesterday, a little male fluff of energy we named Sprocket. He's half Westhighland Terrier, half Toy Poodle, otherwise known as a WestiePoo. My hubby grew up with a dog, but this is a first for me and the kiddos.

All three kids are playing with Sprocket and getting smothered with kisses. Laughter has been filling the air for hours. We're all amazed to see the difference between yesterday and today....moving from somewhat reserved to downright playfully aggressive. The kids have been setting up obstacle courses for him and throwing a ball to see him figure out how to get to it...he seems to be a smart little guy. [Note: these pics were taken yesterday so the obstacles are not shown here.]

The Lord gave us some stretches of sunshine between rain showers yesterday that allowed us to take him outside for playtime...

For the inquiring minds, he is doing good in the potty department, learning where we want him to go outside. He went to bed in his crate without a peep for a few hours, then whined for a 10 minute stretch after being taken out for a potty break, then zonked back out for 6 more hours, waking up happy and playful. Not bad at all for a first night in our estimation.

My guess is that school (in terms of reading, writing, arithmetic) for us in the next few days is going to largely happen during puppy naps, but learning is always happening and I think this puppy is going to teach us some important lessons that can't be learned in the books.

With thankfulness to God for this good gift, we're off to the next lesson...

Desire and Treasure and Life

2012-01-01T06:43:00.000-08:00

"I believe that prayer is the measure of the man, spiritually, in a way that nothing else is, so that how we pray is as important a question as we can ever face." - J.I. Packer

"How we pray reveals the desires of our hearts. And the desires of our hearts reveal what our treasure is. And if our treasure is not Christ, we will perish." - John Piper

To desiring and treasuring Christ in 2012!

In umbra, igitur, pugnabimus.

2011-12-10T09:21:00.001-08:00

Yesterday, my girls and I were sitting in our Latin class when our teacher introduced us to this week's Latin phrase: "In umbra, igitur, pugnabimus." When I saw the translation, I laughed out loud. It means "Then we will fight in the shade." I think the teacher, who is one of my dearest friends, must have understood the question behind my laughter (the question of "why in the world would we learn THAT phrase?"), because she simply looked at me and assured me there was a great story behind it.

In August of 480 BC, the Spartan king Leonidas was holding the pass of Thermopylae with a Greek force of 7000 against a much larger army led by the invading Persian king, Xerxes I. Herodotus (a Greek historian) recorded that there was a Spartan soldier who was told that the Persian arrows would blot out the sun, but instead of being fearful at such a thought, he simply responded with courage and optimism, "So much the better, we will fight in the shade."

All of a sudden, the phrase seemed like a good one to learn. The story reminded me of a quote I like by Winston Churchill...

But optimism by itself isn't what I'm after. I need optimism's foundation. After we got home, Mike read to us out of 2 Kings about the threat of Assyria's king against Hezekiah...talk about bigger armies! But Hezekiah rightly went straight to the Lord with the news. Assyria had overpowered the surrounding nations, but Hezekiah prayed like this:

"O Lord God of Israel, the One who dwells between the cherubim, You are God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. Incline Your ear, O Lord, and hear; open Your eyes, O Lord, and see; and hear the words of Sennacherib, which he has sent to reproach the living God. Truly, Lord, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands, and have cast their gods into the fire; for they were not gods, but the work of men's hands — wood and stone. Therefore they destroyed them. Now therefore, O Lord our God, I pray, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You are the Lord God, You alone." ~ 2 Kings 19:15-19

God delivered...God did things they would have never imagined. The only reason I can be an optimist in a world filled with the brokenness brought about by sin is because I serve a God who loves the world He created for His glory...the Living God who redeems, resurrects, and rules...He steps in! He does unimaginable things for His glory.

Because our God is who He is & He reigns, no matter what circumstance we face we know we are in it by His decree with a good purpose behind it...let us be those who look for the opportunities to trust God and to make much of Him.

Power Thought #10

2011-11-27T12:31:00.001-08:00

I Live in the Present and Enjoy Each Moment

[Unlabeled quotes aretaken from the book PowerThoughts, by Joyce Meyer.]

The aim of this chapter seems to be to get us to live in the now and to do so with joy. John 10:10, John 15:11, John 16:24, and John 17:13 are listed out to emphasize that Christ desires us to be filled with His joy. The author wrote about a lesson learned by Brother Lawrence. "He found kitchen work to be very distasteful, but learned that if he did it for the love of God, he was able to practice the presence of God in the midst of it. this same principle was applied to every facet of his life and practicing it enabled him to enjoy life in a superior manner. He turned what could have been a boring, mundane, miserable existence into one that was admired and coveted by many. People wanted his simplicity, joy, peace, and profound ability to converse with God while doing everything he did."

We live in a driven society. We're a multitasking generation. And our lives are a messy blur much of the time. We need to carefully set our minds to live in the present and enjoy each moment. Her challenge is to "give yourself to what you are doing" and "to appreciate each moment that you are given as a rare and precious gift from God." If you're listening to your children, listen - don't be planning your grocery list. If you're kissing your husband, do I even need to say it? Be all there! Not all multitasking is evil by any stretch, but it can be.

"The ability to e-mail and text is certainly convenient and has enabled us to communicate much faster, but if we let every little beep of the phone or message that announces 'You've go mail,' be the controlling factor in our lives, we will end up frustrated and often appear to be rude. Listening requires your attention and pretending to listen when in reality your mind is on ten other things is not only rude, but it does nothing to build good relationships."

The author also stresses that many of us have to let go of the past, that we need to choose our battles, and should recognize that we cannot meet everyone's expectations. If you do a study on "joy" in the Bible, you'll find that it is linked in large degree to fellowship with God and His people. There is joy in knowing that God's grace and Christ's blood is sufficient to wipe out our debt...I love what Paul says in Philippians 3:13-14 "...one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." So if your past haunts you, forget it in the sense Paul means here and press forward in Christ. If you're a people pleaser and you're frustrated all the time because you can't meet everyone's expectations, take a breath and remember it is Christ who purchased you with His own blood and it is to Him that you'll give account...get your marching orders from Him and then give yourself to whatever He puts into your hand. He is big enough to handle the expectations of others.

Her last exhortation in this chapter is "Don't wait to enjoy yourself." Some people break their life up into segments thinking things like "this is my work, and when my work is over, I will enjoy myself." Our TGIF society lends itself to that kind of thinking...living for the weekend. If that is you, remember the lesson of Brother Lawrence and learn from him...seek the presence of God in each present moment He gives, and enjoy Him in it.

Cora

2011-11-27T10:12:00.001-08:00

In my post titled PreconceivedIdeas, I said: "After weeks, I finally walked over to thenursing home to introduce myself and that began a most incredible journey...thetruth of the matter is that God knew I needed these older ladies in my life asmuch if not more than they needed me. But that's a story for anothertime."

Another time has come...

About 16 years ago, I met Cora. She was in her 80’s and had lived in nursing homes for 30 years. She was blind, diabetic and had numeroushealth difficulties that contributed to her mostly bedridden state oflife. It pains me to admit that my heartwas not in this meeting. I had feltcompelled by the Spirit to go to this nursing home to spend time with theelderly and read the Bible to anyone interested, but I had come up with everyexcuse possible to avoid obeying my gracious King. And if you really want to know the blacknessof my heart at the time, I was more than mildly unsettled by the reality thatthe first person I got introduced to was Cora.

Within minutes, Ihad judged by her impeded speech that she was no longer intelligible. The yearsand ailments had taken their toll on her outward body. She was hard to look at and even harder tounderstand, and the odor in the room turned my stomach. Foolishly, I whined at God. “Why am Ihere? How am I supposed to evencommunicate with her?” It was not a good first day!

Looking back now, Iknow that it was really ME that was blind…blind to God’s good purposes andblind to beauty that a foolish eye can't see. I’m horribly ashamed now to even admit thatall I saw that day was a disfigured, lonely old woman, whose body was fallingapart, taking up bed space at a nursing home. I dared to question God as to why He even had her still breathing. My evaluation of the situationcalled into question God’s goodness and His purposes…how could He let someoneremain like that for SO LONG? “Just takeher home, Lord.” Her lot in life seemed cruel to me.

I had fears at thatpoint in my life of growing old and being abandoned and the day I met Cora Ifelt like those fears were confirmed & nearly consumed me. So much exploded in my mind in the hours and days after our firstmeeting. BUT God had pulled out His scalpeland had begun to do surgery on me...all I knew then was the pain of the first cut. I hadno idea what God was going to do. I hadno idea that He intended to give me a very special gift of friendship with thiswoman, and open my blind eyes, and cast away my fears, and grow me incompassion.

God encouraged mewith Zech. 4:10 to not despise the day of small beginnings. Small beginnings? “You mean you want me to go back there,God?”

Compelled by HisSpirit, I went back, week after week. God began to peel back the scales from my eyes and over time I came tosee just how beautiful Cora was. It’strue that her speech was impaired, but she had a patience about her that wasremarkable and she would try and try again until I could understand what shewas trying to say. And God grew mypatience in the listening.

God tells us thatHis people still bring forth fruit in their old age (Psalm 92:14). I am convinced that I am one of Cora’s manyfruits by God’s grace.

The Apostle Paulwrote from prison and told us to “rejoice in the Lord always, again I sayrejoice”...Cora, imprisoned in her own dilapidated body, did that. She was one of the most joy-filled peopleI’ve ever known though her circumstances were FAR from desirable. I could tell many stories about Cora and thescripture truths she illustrated for me through her very real trust in God, herprayer-warriorishness, her contented spirit in accepting from God whatever Hishand brought her, and her hope of being with God through all eternity. She understood that “this momentaryaffliction is not worthy to be compared with the glory that awaits us in ChristJesus.”

I was SO WRONG inmy thinking and evaluations that first day. And God was and is SO GRACIOUS. God is the Giver of life and as long as He gives it, He has designs forHis glory and our good in the course of every breath and every heartbeat. Cora’s life, to her dying breath, was filledwith meaning and purpose and fruitfulness. Yours will be too. Mine will betoo. Because God is who He is, andbecause His word to us is sure. We canrest there, in His arms, ALL the time (young or old, weak or strong, clothed ornaked, hungry or full, chained or free, prosperous or poor, vibrant or inpain).

I look forward tobeing able to see as clearly as Cora now sees. What a precious gift her friendship was for the two years God gaveit. Truth be told, it is a gift that keeps giving. A gift I didn’t even want. How many gifts of God do we foolishlyresist? I’m so glad that His graceovercomes my foolishness!

The other day I sawsomeone sign a comment they had made on a blog with “Still on the Potter’swheel,” followed by their name. STILL ONTHE POTTER’S WHEEL…yep, that’s me! Then andnow. Lord, please keep molding me intoYour image.

Power Thought #9

2011-11-17T06:30:00.001-08:00

I pursue peace with God, myself, and others.

[Unlabeled quotes aretaken from the book PowerThoughts, by Joyce Meyer.]

We've lingered long in this chapter, using various portions as springboards for morning discussions around the breakfast table. Sin breaks relationship and multiplies destruction...in our fallen state, that comes naturally. But peace? We need a lot of practice...we need to pursue it. God tells us in Psalm 34:14 to "Depart from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it." In Romans 12:17-19, we're instructed to "Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men."

Notice in both of those passages, departing from evil/doing good is connected with the pursuit of peace. The author's starting point is rightly that we must recognize that we are sinners in need of a Savior; we must believe Jesus died for us, taking the punishment we deserved upon Himself. Then she jumps right into this idea of departing from evil/doing good (according to God's definition, not whatever we want to call good or evil apart from His Word). "We must always come clean with God," she says. As we work to put off the old man and to put on the new, we will still sin and when we do, we need to run to God (see 1 John 1:9). God is good and kind and merciful to the contrite of heart, to those who call upon His name...believe that and confess your wrongs and move forward in His grace.

"...focusing on my faults only increased them. I had to learn how to focus on Jesus and what He had done for me, and I had to truly believe that He loved me."

With God, forgiveness works one direction: God forgives us. What we broke with our sin, He fixed with His sacrifice and loving forgiveness. God never needs our forgiveness, but He does invite us to pursue peace with Him. Our end has to do with departing from evil and doing good, and that too is done only in dependence upon His grace. Soak that in because we can only give what has first been given to us.

As we pursue peace with other people, we all get the opportunity to seek and to extend forgiveness, to love and be patient and make sacrifices. The author gives a few helpful hints on how to improve our relationships with others:

Maintain peace with God and yourself...understand the grace extended to you and you'll be better prepared to pursue peace with all types of people.
"Don't expect people to be perfect, because they won't be." If you think everything needs to be perfect, you are "destined to be frustrated and discontented most of the time. Don't spend your life trying to make the impossible possible. People have faults and there is no way around it! No matter who you are in relationship with there will be times when they will disappoint you, so plan on forgiving frequently."
Plan to enjoy the uniqueness of others. God has given us temperaments and strengths and weaknesses and interests that differ from one another...this is His design. Appreciate others for who they are; don't try to make them into what you want them to be.
Look for opportunities to encourage and celebrate the handiwork of God in others. Avoid being a nit-picky faultfinder. There is certainly a place for loving admonishment when needed, but this point is describing the one who is always snarking at others about how they left the light on or they missed a spot when they washed the car.

"Most people want peace, but they don't do what they need to do in order to have it."

May God help us to want and to do...

"as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone"

(Rom. 12:18)

How to do the next thing...

2011-11-16T07:35:00.001-08:00

It has become a regular practice in these recent months for me to log into a site called A Holy Experience where posts are written almost daily by Ann Voskamp. She is a sister in Christ who I have yet to meet, but whose influence I am welcoming with something akin to hunger. This morning I poured a cup of tea and pulled up a chair for my daily dose. My hubby is sleeping in (a rare and precious treat for him) and I took some time to meander through her archives...lingering here is just what the Doctor ordered.

I was drawn to a post titled "When perfectionism and to-do lists overwhelm." (I highly recommend it.) This morning, seagulls soar and oceans roar for me, but can I glean in these quiet moments some help for the typical days of my life when to-do lists run longer than the hours in the day?

"When the problems before you seem to loom larger than the Power behind you, the purpose in living can fall right out from underneath of you."

My mind interacts with her written thoughts...I think of Peter walking on the water when his eyes are fixed on Jesus and how he sinks when he looks away from Him and to the storm. I read and soak in the emphasis on trusting God and praising Him as we do the next thing. And because time allows I follow the link she has for "do the next thing" and it takes me to an interview with Elizabeth Elliot. From there, among other things, I savor this poem which she quoted:

Do it immediately,

do it with prayer,

do it reliantly,

casting all care.

Do it with reverence,

tracing His hand

who placed it before thee with earnest command.

Stayed on omnipotence,

safe 'neath His wing,

leave all resultings,

do the next thing.

My next thing today isn't pressing in on me...the Lord is giving us rest. But might I remember this in a few days when the onslaught of activity and demands hit once more? Oh that I would keep my eyes fixed on Jesus!

The Waves obey Him

2011-11-16T07:11:00.001-08:00

Licorice spice tea to sip. The sweet aroma of a glowing ginger pumpkin candle filling the room. I sit next to 10 feet of window looking out over the Pacific ocean feeling unspeakably happy. The roar of its crashing waves speak to me of my Father who says "this far you may come, and no farther." The waves obey Him.

In my last post I mentioned friends, the Masers. It has been four months since they last held Caleb. Four months since the courts declared Caleb to be a Maser. Four months of waiting for the waves of paperwork to reach their resting place on the shoreline. Yesterday God made it clear that this paperwork trial could only come this far and no farther...they're cleared and tomorrow they leave to go to Ethiopia to bring their son HOME. Yes, the waves (literally and figuratively) obey Him.

You can read Melissa's own words here: falling-on-my-knees.

Jonathan and Melissa Maser and family...we are rejoicing with you over what God has done and will continue to do!

orphans no longer...joy!

2011-11-14T08:47:00.001-08:00

For anybody who has followed my blog for very long, you know that one of the things our family really loves to do is to help orphans become members of Christian families. Here is an amazing video that David and Erica Shubin put together to share with their church body for Orphan Sunday...it it, you'll see a number of the families featured that we've been so privileged to come alongside in their adoption journeys. Some of you have joined us in those journeys...thank you!

I cannot watch this without tears of joy flowing. We continue to rejoice that Silas and Zahra are now Shubins, Abby is now a Walser, Karis is now a Waulk, and Caleb is now a Maser.

Caleb is legally a Maser, but we still need to pray him HOME. He is in Ethiopia waiting for some paperwork to clear to allow him to travel...it has been a long, painful wait...please PRAY for him and his family to be able to be united very soon.

A special thank you David and Erica for producing this wonderful video! We love you and yours...so glad these adoption journeys have linked our lives together in friendship.

18 years...

2011-11-12T08:18:00.001-08:00

It started at the alter on November 13th, 1993.

18 glorious years of doing life together...

what a gift!!!

I am so.so.so thankful for the partner God gave me.

Til by death we do part in this land of our sojourning,

With the daily grace of God supplying our every need,

"Grow old along with me,

the best is yet to be."

Preconceived ideas?

2011-11-12T05:29:00.001-08:00

Thekids are scattered away overnight with friends for the fun of it...meat issimmering to tenderness on the stove top as my list of things to do stares atme from the whiteboard. Somehow we managed to plan an insanely busy dayonce the time-scheduled events begin, but for now I am enjoying a quiet momentof reflection. This is what I'm thinking about...

Thereis a scenario that plays itself out around here...I suspect you canrelate. Say you're working on something really exciting, likelaundry. The basket is filled with warmness and you're just beginning toswitch yet another load of the wash over to the dryer when one of your childrencheerfully comes up and asked if help is wanted. Help? Sure. A conversation like this may be involved:

Child: “Can I helpyou?”

Parent: "Yes,would you please run this hamper down to my bed, dump it out and bring thehamper back to me?

Child (with poutyface): “But I wanted to empty the washer.”

Parent (notsnarkily, but kindly - in an attempt to help the child understand what theirless than cheerful whine of a response is really communicating): "Do youwant to help or do you just want to do what you want to do and call ithelping?"

Child: "SorryMommy, I'll run the hamper down."

Personalizing thisa bit, I asked myself the question: As I run to my Father to offer myself inservice, how quick am I to cheerfully do what He asks of me? Do I go toHim in prayer with my preconceived ideas of how I want to serve? Do Ipout or make excuses when the opportunity He's giving me isn't what Iwanted?

One time springsto my memory. In my newlywed days I had some time on my hands. Mikeand I were praying about various ways I could use that time to minister toothers. Very clearly, almost as if the idea was being pressed physicallyupon my chest, the thought of developing relationships with some elderly womenat a nearby nursing home and reading the Scriptures to them kept overtaking thethoughts of other things that felt much more appealing to me. I came upwith all kinds of excuses...my sister had worked at that nursing home when Iwas a young girl and I would sometimes run her lunch over to her...it stunk inthere...just sayin'. I felt awkward around older people. "I'mnot the one for this job," I told God day after day. I wanted to start aBible study with some high school girls or you can fill in the blank with justabout anything except what I felt like God was asking me to do. I'mpretty sure I heard my Father ask me: "Do you want to help, or do you justwant to do what you want to do and call it helping?" Now this is alittle tricky because there is no "thus sayeth the Lord" verse in theBible telling you "do this, not that" in situations like this, but Ikid you not...as Mike and I prayed, we both "knew." Afterweeks, I finally walked over to the nursing home to introduce myself and thatbegan a most incredible journey...the truth of the matter is that God knew Ineeded these older ladies in my life as much if not more than they neededme. But that's a story for another time.

I think of thelaundry example above and so often the things I ask of my children frankly fallinto the utilitarian category...the job just needs to get done and they areable bodies. Of course I care about THEM, and the jobs are also about training them up to love and serve God, but with God, He's so clearly and perfectly transforming us, making us more andmore Christ-like. That is the front burner issue. He's building His kingdom and preparing Hisbride. All the opportunities He puts before us to serve are opportunitiesfor us to trust Him and to display His glory and grace working in and throughus. Let's trust that He sees the big picture...trust that He loves uswith passion...trust that as He asks us to bend low it is because that is Hisway of lifting us up.

"For whoeverdesires to save his life will lose it,but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it." - Matthew 16:25

Do you want tohelp?

What is God askingyou to do today? Are you pouting orjumping into His plan?

Power Thought #8

2011-10-23T05:46:00.000-07:00

God meets all my needs abundantly.

[Unlabeled quotes aretaken from the book PowerThoughts, by Joyce Meyer.]

This chapter is an encouragement to trust that God does and will continue to faithfully "provide whatever we need in every situation." My mind springboards to question: Do I believe that? All the time? Oh that I would. How about you?

I often refer to a quote by Thomas Watson from his book, All Things for Good: "If it is good for us, we shall have it; if it is not good for us, then the withholding of it is good." In the big picture, when we look back through the clear lens of glory, I am convinced that we will be in full agreement with God that He indeed was, is, and always will be wholly good and that He provided faithfully and abundantly everything we needed in every situation while He gave us breath on this earth. But how do we fully agree NOW, while yet in this broken world filled with sin (ours and others) that blinds our eyes to His glory, His goodness and His perfect provision? By faith! By choosing to see His provision via the lens of His Word, not by the discontent longings of our deceived hearts that have believed the serpent's tongue.

I wrestle. The power thought is worthy to say out loud, and to labor to weave into the warp and woof of my being. It's needful. God does indeed meet all my needs abundantly, and yet so often I don't take care to see it. I don't take time to thank Him, like the 9 lepers who failed to return after He healed them (Luke 17). Our "grace-sleuth" game is helping (referred to in this post)...helping me to notice what God so graciously gives.

I read the words in this power thought chapter and in between the author's words, God grafted many others from various sources, and He brought clarity to my mind. Though parts of this chapter were helpful, I flinched at other parts. That's okay. In every book I read, I try to glean what is edible and dismiss that which would not be good to consume.

And as I glean, I find God feeding me, reminding me that He IS good, and He DOES meet all my needs abundantly. I want to walk with eyes of faith...will you join me in trusting the goodness of our Father to meet all our needs according to the riches of His grace?

We can glean from the crop of man-books, but we can feast upon God's Word where every bite is nourishment for the soul...here are a few passages that will help us put on the power thought "God meets all my needs abundantly."

Phil. 4:14-20

Deut. 8 (all)

Ps. 84:11

2 Cor. 9:6-11

Ps. 36:5-10

Happy Birthday Paul

2011-10-21T05:47:00.000-07:00

Ann Voskamp quotesG.K. Chesterton as having said:

“Here dies another day

During which I have had eyes, ears, hands

And the great world round me;

And with tomorrow begins another.

Why am I allowed two?”

She then goes onto ask “Why doesn’t anyone ask thatwhy question? Why are we allowedtwo? Why lavished with three? A whole string of grace days?” ~ taken fromher book, 1000 Gifts.

Oh how thankful Iam to God for a whole string of grace days with my son, Paul, who is sevenyears old starting today!!! Last night,the kids and I took a stroll down a photograph laden memory lane…wanna join us for the quick version?

Paul’s homecoming (he was 3 days shy of 7 monthsold):

We had over 40 people join us at the airport...those moments, though forever etched into this Mama's heart, seem a distant memory. The years have come so quickly.

One:

(oh, was I supposed to eat it?)

Two:

(my favorite two guys in the world!)

Three:

Four:

(rough and tumble, through and through)

Five:

(celebrating with a cousin/buddy - they are five days apart in age)

Six:

(a park party with a number of good friends)

and today, my son is SEVEN...

He woke up early this morning

(after having trouble going to sleep last night)...

yes, he is a wee bit excited about celebrating his birthday!

We'll be doing the celebrating later,

like when everyone else is awake,

but since he's up I had him pose in all his bed head glory for ya'll.

Paul is a living, changing, growing gift that God has placed in my open hands to nurture and raise for His glory...every day that He gives is a new gift, a new opportunity to delight ourselves in God. He has blessed us with a whole string of grace days. And we are grateful.

Father, thank You for each day you've given, for knitting THIS boy into our family by adoption, for beginning a good work in him and for your promise to finish what You've begun...may he become more and more like a tree, planted by the rivers of water that brings forth its fruit in its season.

Happy birthday, Son!

We love you!

Thanksters or Cranksters?

2011-10-18T06:59:00.000-07:00

"The great purpose in life is not to stay alive, but to magnify - whether by life or by death - the One who created us and died for us and lives as Lord of all forever, Jesus Christ."

- The Misery of Job and the Mercy of God, pg 9, by John Piper

Above my kitchen sink, I have a spiral 3X5 card notebook in which I have written various Scripture passages and quotes I want to think on as I do my dishes. The above quote is currently the one I have it opened to. As is often the case, when I am chewing on a quote, God will lay open from many sources things that relate or add light to the thought. This morning, I read a few short chapters from Loving the Little Years, by Rachel Jankovic...one was titled "Thanksters and Cranksters." Which of these two labels is characteristically true of me? Of you? What magnifies our Lord?

Let us aim to be "thanksters" today, and to magnify God in our every circumstance, whether by life or by death.

snuggle time

2011-10-17T07:04:00.000-07:00

Less than two weeks from now, tickets in hand, my oldest daughter and I plan to go to the Steven Curtis Chapman/Andrew Peterson/Josh Wilson concert. To say we're looking forward to it is an understatement...we're stoked!

To help us get ready, Mike surprised me last week with Andrew Peterson's more recent album "Counting Stars." We have most of his older music, and love it! As is tradition, we curled up on the couch together to listen through the new album, lyrics in hand, sharing our thoughts song by song as they played. I love any opportunity for snuggle time with my man! Add good music, and it just gets even better. Andrew is poetic and is able to convey truth through stories and song in a way that reaches me...we both found much to enjoy on this new CD.

Steven sings a song to Mary Beth, his wife, to remind her she is changing the world one little heart beat at a time. Andrew wrote the same theme from a different angle in his "Planting Trees" song...be encouraged to change the world, to plant trees...snuggle up with someone you love and listen to this:

Power Thought #7

2011-10-16T11:26:00.000-07:00

Speed...more to do...life whirling past. Duty driving, joy eluding. Fatigue unending. Gasping for air. Tears falling without warning. Weeks ago, in this unstable state, I asked my husband if I could go spend a few days with Bible and notebook, in a place of quiet rest and beauty. He nodded agreement and plans were made. Our children stayed with friends and family, my husband worked hard each day and endured a lonely house out of love for me, and I went to prostrate myself before my Father where He tenderly massaged my aching soul and refreshed me in His Word and love. This was the view from my window:

Lovely, isn't it? Three days/nights of the ocean's roar and beauty, lesson's from God's Word and prayerful walks, simple meals and rest, yes rest in every way. I came HOME, breathing peacefully and focused and ready to enter into the life God is giving me with joy once more.

The next day, the kids and I sat down to open up our next Power Thoughts chapter. Turning to it, I laughed out loud. As soon as I read the title to them, we were all laughing, and giving God thanks for continuing the good work He has begun in me (and all of us). There is no denying it, I am certainly a work in progress!

Power Thought # 7 is: "I am content and emotionally stable." Of course there would have been zero humor to the title had we begun it a couple week's prior when I was an emotional wreck, but THAT day, it was funny! Let's dive in...as has become my pattern, any unlabeled quotes aretaken from the book PowerThoughts, by Joyce Meyer.

I think the heart of what she has to say in this chapter is that though emotions are here to stay, we need to learn to manage them and not rely on them. We need to live by principle in contrast to our feelings, like trees firmly planted by the waterside. She talks about emotion's power to deceive and how they can wrongly "urge us toward haste" whereas God tells us to be patient, to grow in wisdom and self-control and to walk according to His sure Word.

She makes an insightful connection between emotional instability and discontentment. Next time you feel emotionally unstable, ask yourself if you are focused on what you do not have, or what you wish you had. Discontentment may not always be fueling the instability fire, but I know without a doubt that it does sometimes. If in a raw moment of honesty you answer "yes, this is true of me," begin a list of all the things God has blessed you with and begin thanking Him out loud for them. She encourages us to count our blessings.

At our house, we've been playing a little "grace sleuth" game for the past couple of weeks where we remind ourselves each morning that since God is holy and we are sinners, we deserve His holy and eternal wrath, but instead (because of His overflowing love and grace) we get: cozy beds and abundant food and tastebuds and hugs and carpet squishing under our bare toes and gifts of knowledge and forgiveness of sins and transformation by God's good grace, and on and on. We're all recording our "grace gifts" in a journal and sharing them with each other, joining hearts and hands in giving Him thanks. Instead of instability and whacked emotions, we are experiencing joy and a growing trust in our Sovereign Father who gives us every spiritual blessing and provides our every earthly need in Christ. Thankfulness to the Giver, trust in God's unfailing goodness toward those who call upon Him, and contentment are mighty stabilizers!

I do not recall her mentioning this, but I've found in my life as I reflect on this power thought that there are certain warning signs...signs like when I begin to press so hard and fast that time in God's Word is laid aside, rest is minimized, convenience foods become my body's only fuel and there is no time to exercise (not to mention sharp tongue, clenched jaw, tightness of chest, etc)...and when these warnings, these signs that I'm growing discontent are unheeded, instability is surely my frame or soon will be. And thank God! This too is grace, a tool in God's loving, disciplining hand to awaken us to the insanity of our racing down the road that leads away from Him. Jesus tells us in Matt 11:28-30 to "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

Here are a few other verses to meditate on as you put on "I am content and emotionally stable":

1 Tim 6:6-8 Now godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content."
Phil 4:11-13 "Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."
1 Thess 5:16-18 "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."

Blessings,

Connie

When does your day begin?

2011-10-02T05:45:00.000-07:00

Mike and I werein a bookstore recently (shock, I know!) and he handed me a book that hethought I may like to peruse so I stood there in the aisle and skimmed itquickly...it didn't take long for me to determine that I didn't want to readthe whole book, but one thing I read spoke a word of encouragement to me. The author posed the question: When does your day begin? Is it when youdrag your hiney out of bed? Is it when you pour a cup of that beloved drugof choice, coffee? When? What does God tell us about when our daybegins? From Genesis 1, we read...

· So the evening and the morning were the first day.

· So the evening and the morning were the second day.

· So the evening and the morning were the third day.

· And so on…”evening and the morning” = day.

Our day beginswith rest, not a cup of coffee. God gives rest, He strengthensfirst. It was simply an encouragement to me to be reminded of that. Perspective matters.

In the OldTestament, man was commanded to work six days and rest the seventh…isn’t itbeautiful that with the coming of Jesus who is making all things new, our weeknow begins with rest and then we work 6 days. In God’s original creationHe gave us rest first in the day, and in the new creation He gives us a day ofrest/worship before asking us to do a single lick of labor. Our weekdoesn’t start with a to-do list, it starts with gathering with our Savior inour Father’s house with all our family in heaven on earth to worship and praisethe God of all grace! Our day doesn’t begin with the “drug of choice” toget us moving and able to take on the day, it begins with rest given by ourFather to prepare us for the new day He is graciously giving us to live out inHis presence open handed to receive all He gives, with joy, for His glory.

To God be allglory! May He give you rest as you gather with His people to praise Himtoday!

Power Thought #6

2011-09-24T07:36:00.000-07:00

I trust God completely;

there is no need to worry!

[Unlabeled quotes aretaken from the book PowerThoughts, by Joyce Meyer.]

Hello Bloggy friends! I found a lot of value in this chapter. Truth be known, I am a recovering "worrier", on the road to trusting God completely. Here is the "quick meal" version, for those of you following along and wanting to get the gist of each chapter without having to read the whole book. God is certainly worthy of our trust...may He give us all the desire and grace to trust Him more completely each day, and a distaste for worry.

“I have heard many people say, ‘I just can’t help it; I am aworrier.’ The truth is that they chose to worry because they did not know howto trust God. We become good at worryingbecause we practice it and we can also become good at trusting God if wepractice it. Let your first response inany situation be to trust God, not to worry. Speak out loud and say, ‘I trust God completely; there is no need toworry!’”

“Trust requires some unanswered questions, and being satisfied toknow that God knows what we don’t know. We know in part, but God knows everything. He is never surprised or without a solution.”

“It is one thing to know that we should not worry, but it is quiteanother to stop worrying. One of thethings that helped me let go of worry was finally realizing how utterly uselessit was. Let me ask you some questions:How many problems have you solved by worrying? How much time have you sent worrying about things that never evenhappened? Has anything ever gotten any better as a result of your worryingabout it? Of course not! The Bible is full of sound, proven advice fordealing with worry. For example theapostle Paul teaches us to be anxious for nothing, but in all circumstances tolet our prayer requests be made known to God with thanksgiving (see Philippians4:6). He then encourages us by sayingthat the peace of God will fill our hearts and minds (see Philippians4:7). The instant you begin to worry orfeel anxious, give your concern to God in prayer. Release the weight of it and totally trustHim to either show you what to do or to take care of it Himself.”

“Filling my mind with good thoughts is easier than trying to emptyit of negative ones.”

Some verses that relate:

Matthew 6:25-34/Luke 12:22-31

Hebrews 13:5

Philippians 4:6-9

Proverbs 3:5

Matthew 11:28

Galatians 5:16

1 Peter 5:6-7

Blessings,

Connie

PS: I read a post by Greg Lucas this morning that certainly relates and is well worth reading...you can find it here.

Fun Quote Day

2011-09-10T20:37:00.000-07:00

It's "fun quote" day! Here are a few I've liked over the years:

"Where the heart is willing, it will find a thousand ways. Where it is unwilling, it will find a thousand excuses."

~ Arlen Price

"Will you look back on life and say, "I wish I had," or "I'm glad I did"?"

~ Zig Ziglar

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."

~ Lao Tzu

"Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure...than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat."

~ Theodore Roosevelt

"Those who wish to sing, always find a song."
~ Swedish proverb

"The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
~ unknown

"Some people walk in the rain... others just get wet... "
~ Roger Miller

"A cloudy day is no match for a sunny disposition."
~ William Arthur Ward

Power Thought #5

2011-09-05T20:06:00.000-07:00

I love people and I enjoy helping them.

[Unlabeled quotes are taken from the book Power Thoughts, by Joyce Meyer.]

In this chapter we are reminded of the generosity of God toward us. The Bible tells us that we love Him because He first loved us (1 John 4:19). God has put His love into the hearts of His children, and the point of this chapter is that we are designed by Him as He makes us new in Christ to be dispensers of His love.

The author contrasts stingy folks with generous ones. A stingy person characteristically looks out only for himself and his own interests, does not like to share, only gives when he feels he must (reluctantly or grudgingly), and his focus is often “what about me?” Contrast this with someone characterized by generosity – he looks and listens for opportunities to help or encourage others and cheerfully takes initiative to meet the needs when able, his focus/desire is to be a blessing to others.

“I encourage you to begin to think on purpose about how you can be a blessing to the people around you...it does not have to cost money although at times it may; it does not always have to take much time; and it does not have to take an enormous amount of energy. Blessing people can be quick and easy, but it won’t just happen. You have to do it deliberately. At times what God asks us to do may be more costly to us in time, effort, or finances than at other times, but either way we need to be ready to be God’s ambassador on Earth. Use what you have in the service of God and man...I am not talking about only putting money into an offering at church on Sundays. I am talking about doing things for people in your daily life – people you work with, people in your family, people you like and people you may not particularly like, people you know and people you don’t know, and those you think deserve it as well as those you don’t think deserve it."

I'm a very visual and symbolic sort of soul so I really liked this word picture: “I am reminded of a bottle of hand lotion I have, one that has a pump on it. When I press the pump, it dispenses hand lotion. That’s the way I want to be with blessings. When people come near me, I want to dispense something good, something that will benefit them.”

She offered some inventory questions to help us see where we might need to grow a more generous spirit:

*   How well do I tip? If I were a waiter or waitress, would I want to wait on myself, based on the way I tip?
*   What kinds of gifts do I give? Do I give the cheapest things I can find? Do I get anything just to meet an obligation or do I sincerely look for what I believe the person receiving the gift would enjoy?
*   Do I freely and frequently encourage and compliment other people?
*   Am I willing to share what I have?
*   Do I hoard possessions or do I give away what I’m not using?
*   When I have opportunities to give to those less fortunate than I am, do I give generously? Do I do as much as I can or as little as I can?
*   If I’m with someone who has a cold and runny nose, and I have been carrying around a package of tissues for weeks, do I give that person only one tissue, or do I offer the entire package so they will have plenty?
*   Do I give someone else the best-looking steak at dinner or do I keep that one for myself?

We could ask all kinds of questions to “help us locate our level of generosity.” But really, if we’re honest, we know we all have room to grow in this arena and that the opportunities to practice abound. “Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity to express love.” So let’s practice! Let's think intentionally of others. Let's look and listen for ways to be a blessing dispenser and be one. If we become aware of areas where we are stingy, let's repent and move forward in grace. As Hebrews 10:24 puts it, “let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works.”

“Think and say, ‘I love people and I enjoy helping them.’” Here are some passages that relate:

Gal. 6:10

Mark 8:34

1 John 3:16-18

Matt. 5:44-48

Heb. 13:16

2 Cor. 9:5

Prov. 11:24

Acts 28:10

Hebrews 13:5

2011-09-02T17:40:00.000-07:00

My husband read Hebrews 13:5 to us tonight at dinner, which says: "Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you.'" He went on to share some mighty good words with us about the centrality of Jesus in our lives. Words I needed to hear once more!

The kids and I went to stay with a friend for the first few days of this week and guess what verse my friend had plastered in her kitchen? Hebrews 13:5 (well, the second part of it anyway!). She had it written in an amplified version and I loved it so much I copied it down in my Bible: "I will not, I will not, I will not in any degree leave you helpless, nor forsake you, nor relax my hold on you assuredly not." This was the very message I needed to have poured over my frazzled soul, and my gracious Father hugged me with it at my friends house, and then again tonight through my sweet husband.

He will not relax His hold. Amen!

An inexhaustible fountain...

2011-08-31T18:52:00.000-07:00

The following is a quote I like from Hunger for God, by John Piper:

“One might think that those who feast most often on communion with God are the least hungry. They turn often from the innocent pleasures of the world to linger more directly in the presence of God though the revelation of his Word. And there they eat the Bread of Heaven and drink the Living Water by meditation and faith. But, paradoxically, it is not so that they are the least hungry saints. The opposite is the case. The strongest, most mature Christians I have ever met are the hungriest for God. It might seem that those who eat most would be least hungry. But that’s not the way it works with an inexhaustible fountain, and an infinite feast, and a glorious Lord. When you take your stand on the finished work of God in Christ, and begin to drink at the River of Life and eat the Bread of Heaven, and know that you have found the end of all your longings, you only get hungrier for God. -- The more deeply you walk with Christ, the hungrier you get for Christ…the more homesick you get for heaven…the more you want ‘all the fullness of God’…the more you want to be done with sin…the more you want the Bridegroom to come again…the more you want the Church revived and purified with the beauty of Jesus…the more you want a great awakening to God’s reality in the cities…the more you want to see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ to penetrate the darkness of all the unreached peoples of the world…the more you want to see false worldviews yield to the force of Truth…the more you want to see pain relieved and tears wiped away and death destroyed…the more you long for every wrong to be made right and the justice and grace of God to fill the earth like the waters cover the sea. If you don’t feel strong desires for the manifestation of the glory of God, it is not because you have drunk deeply and are satisfied. It is because you have nibbled so long at the table of the world. Your soul is stuffed with small things, and there is no room for the great.”

canis, canis - dog

2011-08-27T09:50:00.000-07:00

A few posts back, I randomly mentioned that our family was considering the idea of welcoming a puppy into our midst...who would have thought that making such a decision could create such turmoil??? Emotions ran deep as the pros and cons list grew on both sides, and it was a daily challenge to place family unity for the glory of God above the diversity of personal opinions/desires on the matter. But on the up side, God used the whole experience to grow us individually and as a family as we rode the roller coaster of hopes, practicalities, and tears together.

The decision? At least for now, no doggie! Here are a couple pics of me taking the kids to say goodbye to our furry little friend:

This may seem unrelated at first, but in our Latin class, when we are learning the new vocabulary for the week, the teacher reads the new Latin word in its nominative and genitive case, followed by it's English equivalent. The week the decision was made, we were all sitting in class dealing with various levels of disappointment, when the teacher introduced our third new vocabulary word for the day and said "canis, canis - dog"...sounding very much like "Connie's, Connie's dog." Strange glances were exchanged all around, but I took to heart God's providence that day. Cody Machen (that's what we named him) will not be our family dog, but God used him to teach me more about His love, loving others/dying to self, family unity, and submission; and in a way, I see him as my dog, a loyal little messenger from my Father.

"canis, canis - dog"

Power Thought #4

2011-08-26T21:08:00.000-07:00

I am difficult to offend.

[Unlabeled quotes are taken from the book Power Thoughts, by Joyce Meyer.]

I was offended by this chapter. Not really. Once again, the author offered some helpful hints for us to consider as we renew our minds according to God’s Word and I’ll focus on those. Some comments were right on target - ouch! Faithful are the wounds of a friend, right? (Prov 27:6)

The basic idea in this chapter is to encourage us to not be easily offended, overly sensitive, bearing grudges sort of people, but rather to be vessels through which the mercy of God might flow to others. Amen.

“We have convinced ourselves and set our mind to fail at one of God’s most important commands, which is to forgive and pray for our enemies and those who hurt and abuse us (see Luke 6:35,36). We meditate too much on what the offensive person has done to us, and we fail to realize what we are doing to ourselves by taking the bait of Satan. Keep remembering that being offended will not change the person, but it does change you! It makes you bitter, withdrawn, and often revengeful. It keeps your thoughts on something that does not bear good fruit in your life.” Hmmmm...it's getting a little warm in here.

She presses us to believe the best of others. “We tend to be suspicious of others and we often get hurt due to our own imagination. It is possible to believe someone hurt you on purpose when the truth is they were not even aware they did anything at all and would be grieved to know that they hurt you…Resist the temptation to question their motives or to think they hurt you intentionally. Believing the best about others will keep offense and bitterness out of your life and help you stay peaceful and joyful.”

She talked about times when temptations to become overly sensitive tend to rise (when we are exhausted, under a lot of stress, or doing the PMS thing, for example) …if you can avoid conflict and get a little extra rest at these times, great, but regardless you should be aware that fatigue and hormones are not excuses to sin and you should guard your heart, mind and tongue…tell yourself “I’m going to obey God and not harbor hurt and offense.” Tell yourself “I will not be easily offended.”

“The Bible tells us to walk in the Spirit (see Gal. 5:25) and in order to do that we must manage our emotions rather than allowing them to control us. We must take responsibility for our responses to daily events, especially the little offenses that tempt us to be angry…Life is too short to waste one day being angry, bitter, and resentful…Anything God has given us, such as forgiveness and mercy, He expects us to extend to others. If it comes to us, it should flow through us – and that should be our goal. When we are offended, we need to quickly call to mind the fact that God has freely and fully forgiven us, so we should freely and fully forgive others.”

She spends quite a bit of time talking about forgiveness. We should never harbor bitterness, we should always stand ready and even eager to forgive. I liked this quote: “Refusing to forgive is like drinking poison and hoping it kills the other person”.

Another helpful thing for me in this chapter relates to not taking personally that which is not intended to be taken personally. What do I mean by that? Well, let’s say my hubby comes home from work after a hard day and is quiet and not his normal, cheerful self. My mind can immediately begin to hunt through the filing cabinet of the past few days looking for what I might have said or done to upset him…my operating assumption is “I must have done or said something wrong.” The result: frustration, a sense of isolation, and lots of other yuck, but never anything good. THAT is a bad operating assumption. We have a relationship in which we talk to each other when there is a problem between us. WHY would that be my assumption? Honestly, it is probably vanity, like that ole song that says “you probably think this song is about you….you’re so vain.” May God deliver me! My girls get tempted in this same way…they sometimes perceive my tiredness at night as me being upset with them and they have been known to lay awake trying to figure out what they have said or done to upset me, imagining all kinds of things, when I’m not upset with them at all…I’m just tuckered out and wanting to get to bed. This chapter, even though I didn’t care for portions of it, has been useful in helping us become aware of these temptations (and others)…it has helped us to grow in believing the best about each other and to work at clear communication, taking each other at our word.

If you’re following along, I hope there was something helpful here for you too. The next chapter is one of my favorites…it’s titled “I love people and I enjoy helping them.” Come on back to check it out in a week or so.

Thanks for stopping by,

Connie

Power Thought #3

2011-08-18T06:46:00.000-07:00

I Will Not Live in Fear.

[Unlabeled quotes are taken from the book Power Thoughts, by Joyce Meyer.]

“There are many ways Satan uses fear to steal from us. For example, the fear that we will not be accepted as we are causes us to develop phony personalities that stifle our true selves and hide who God has made us to be. The fear of failure prevents us from ever trying new things or stretching ourselves to do more than we feel comfortable doing. The fear of the future can cause us not to enjoy today…[Fear] can absolutely paralyze us and in its more advance stages can drive us to do things that are completely irrational.”

There are all kinds of fears – “fear of pain, fear of discomfort, fear of lack, fear of sacrifice, fear that life is going to be too hard, fear of losing friends, fear of being alone, fear of losing your reputation, fear that no one will understand you, fear that you’re missing God, and on and on. Fear is the enemy’s perversion of faith. He says, ‘Believe what I’m telling you. This is not going to work. Your prayers aren’t any good…you are a failure.’ Fear always tells you what you’re not, what you don’t have, what you can’t do, and what you’ll never be. But Romans 8:15 says, [changed translation to NKJV] ‘For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, "Abba, Father."’ You do not have to live in bondage to fear or allow fear to control your life. You can be bold, courageous, and adventurous.”

Disclaimer…when fear is being talked about here, it is not referring to the proper fear of God that we all should have or the kinds of fear that God has given us for our good such as being afraid to lean over the edge of a cliff without restraints. She is talking about the kind of fear that God means when He says repeatedly in the Scriptures to “fear not” because He is with us… those fears are kind of like roadblocks along the path He has called us to walk for His glory that need to be overcome by faith in Him.

So what does she recommend we do?

She encourages her readers to “catch it early.” Choose a “fighter verse”, a sword to pull out the instant you begin to feel afraid. Meditate on various fighter verses and stories God has given us that relate to courage and overcoming fear when you are NOT afraid so you will be more prepared to stand against it when it comes.
She talks about “power twins” to help defeat the spirit of fear. They are “I pray” and “I say.” The idea here is that as soon as you begin to be fearful, pray and ask God to help you overcome by faith in Him. And say “I will not fear!” or whatever verse you’ve committed to memory to move beyond fear to faithfulness.
She also talks tells us to “Do it afraid.” “When the Bible says, ‘God has not given us a spirit of fear,’ it does not mean we will never feel fear. As a matter of fact, when God said to so many people in the Bible, ‘Fear not,’ He was basically telling them, ‘Fear is going to come after you. You are going to have to deal with it.’…Courage is not the absence of fear, it is progress in its presence.”

Here are some related passages from the Scriptures:

Rom. 8:15

Rom 8:31-32

Ps 118:6

2 Tim 1:7

Acts 20:22-24

Acts 21:13-14

Heb 2:14-18

Isa 41:10

Isa 43:1-3a

All of 1 Sam 17, especially 17:40-47

Thanks for stopping by,

Connie

In the air as I write this...

2011-08-17T19:46:00.000-07:00

My plan was to write the post for Power Thought 3 tonight, but instead I want to share a few pictures from earlier today and ask you to join us in praying for our friends, the Niemans. They left this morning for S. Korea where they plan to live for 2 years.

I will so miss Mira!

Our families have schooled together for 2 years (1x weekly),

vacationed together for the past 3 years,

and just plain like to be together.

The whole family will be sorely missed,

but I trust God has lead them to go.

It was a mix of excitement and sadness today.

Here are my kiddos with hers

(from left to right, we see

my Rebekah, her Leah, my MJ, my Paul, and her Jesse)

Mira and Ryan checking their baggage in.

Our fellow co-op "sisters" were there too...

an international bunch to be sure.

Melodie and I were born in America,

but Sonila (on the far left) grew up in Albania

and Mira was raised in S. Korea.

We love the multi-cultural interaction

as we all seek to follow Jesus,

the One who reigns over all the nations!

Enjoying our final moments together,

at least for a season.

The girls' group shot ;-)

The boys' group shot ;-)

And the family of four are off...

Will you join me in praying for their safe travel, for God's peace and leading as they transition in so many ways as a family, and for fruitfulness in their time there...that God would be pleased to work in and through them for His glory?

Thank you,

Connie

ps...We decided to start taking two weeks instead of one on the Power Thoughts...one week felt like we were rushing through. So much is going on here (seeing friends off, deciding whether to add a particular puppy to our family [yeah, crazy right?], starting school back up in full swing, etc), but I will make every effort to get the post on the next power thought written soon for those of you who are following along.

On the basis of His grace

2011-08-11T20:17:00.000-07:00

"Every day of our Christian experience should be a day of relating to God on the basis of His grace alone. Your worst days are never so bad that you are beyond the reach of God’s grace. And your best days are never so good that you are beyond the need of God’s grace."

(from Transforming Grace, by Jerry Bridges)

Isn't that a good quote? It offers hope when hopeless, and it encourages humility when tempted to pride...and oh how sweet it is to relate to God on the basis of His grace!

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you (Rom 16:20),

Connie

From Psalm 104

2011-08-10T19:40:00.000-07:00

Bless the Lord, O my soul!
O Lord my God, You are very great:

You are clothed with honor and majesty...

Who makes His angels spirits, His ministers a flame of fire.

You who laid the foundations of the earth...

He sends the springs into the valleys;

They flow among the hills.

They give drink to every beast of the field;

The wild donkeys...

birds...

He waters the hills from His upper chambers;

The earth is satisfied with the fruit of Your works.

He causes the grass to grow for the cattle,

And vegetation for the service of man,

That he may bring forth food from the earth,

And wine that makes glad the heart of man,

Oil to make his face shine,

And bread which strengthens man's heart.

...birds

...the stork

...the wild goats

...the rock badgers

...the young lions

seek their food from God.

...man...

O Lord, how manifold are Your works!

In wisdom You have made them all.

The earth is full of Your possessions —

This great and wide sea,

....innumerable teeming things,

Living things both small and great...

These all wait for You,

That You may give them their food in due season.

What You give them they gather in;

You open Your hand, they are filled with good.

You hide Your face, they are troubled;

You take away their breath, they die and return to their dust.

You send forth Your Spirit, they are created;

And You renew the face of the earth.

May the glory of the Lord endure forever;

May the Lord rejoice in His works...

I was reading this Psalm tonight and the whole thing reminded me of Acts 17:28 which tells us that it is "in Him we live and move and have our being."

I've had a number of positive comments about the story that I shared in my post Power Thought # 1. I'm so glad. As you might recall, the conversation that followed the command to jump up and touch the ceiling went like this:
me: Honey, did you obey?
daughter: yes, Mama
me: Could you do it alone?
daughter: no
me: Honey, we can always obey God, but we always need the strength He gives us. We can't do it alone.

It is SO true that we can only obey through Christ who strengthens us. BUT, do we "get" that it is ALWAYS true. Some of us might be tempted to think that we only need to rely on God for the "big stuff" or when we're called upon to do "hard" for Jesus. So for people like me who in practical every day living have fallen repeatedly into the temptation of thinking I can do a whole lot "on my own," there is another exercise I'd like to add.

I'll call it "bend down and touch the floor." If that was the command and you obeyed it, how would you answer the question "Could you do that alone?"

Is there really any strength that we have that isn't given to us by God? We live and move and have our being in Him. If He takes away our breath, we die. Every heartbeat is a gift. Every functioning nerve and muscle and joint and tendon and the blood flow and everything else that is needed for us to bend over and touch the floor is a gift. May we grow in thankfulness to Him for the strength He supplies for EVERYTHING we do!

No wonder the Psalmist ends his consideration of God's wonderful works with these words...let's join him.

I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;

I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.

May my meditation be sweet to Him;

I will be glad in the Lord.

May sinners be consumed from the earth, And the wicked be no more.
Bless the Lord, O my soul!

Praise the Lord!

Power Thought #2

2011-08-07T21:53:00.000-07:00

God loves me unconditionally!

[Unlabeled quotes are taken from the book Power Thoughts, by Joyce Meyer.]

There is a truth we need to grasp in this chapter. We need to "get" that there were no conditions we needed to meet before God loved us...HE MET THE CONDITIONS. He sent His Son to bear the wrath that we deserved and to clothe us in His righteousness. It is IN CHRIST that we are made new creations (2 Cor. 5:17). It was before the foundation of the world that God chose us, predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself and made us accepted in the Beloved (Eph 1:3-6). If we are in Christ, we HAVE His love because He has chosen to GIVE it...we can rest in faith right there, and enjoy the love of our Father. Let it sink deep into our bones!

He's given us right standing with Him, but the problem is we know we still sin against Him and feel our "wrongness." So let's talk about that for a minute.

I have three children...I love them all very much and they are all secure in that love though they don't always "feel" secure. Occasionally when they do wrong, instead of coming to me, telling me about it and asking me to forgive them (which I stand ready to do), they may start writing me little love notes and excessively offering to help with the jobs around the house, all the while acting insecurely. I've been guilty of the same sort of thing in relationship with God: times when I have pridefully attempted to sweep my sins under the proverbial rug (ignore them, just let "enough time pass", or justify myself in some way, as if that solves anything with a holy, omniscient God) and just work harder to earn His favor. And I bet I'm not alone. So when I notice that one of my kids is insecure (or I note it in myself), I've learned to turn to a verse like Proverbs 28:13 that reminds us "He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy."

There is a dangerous way to view "unconditional love" and I want to mention it just briefly...it is to think somehow that since God loves us unconditionally, it doesn't matter what we do. Paul warned against this presumption in Romans 6. It is NOT an invitation to licentious living. But if we are truly in Christ, we can rest assured that God does love us and will continue to complete the good work He has begun in us. Even when we mess up. Proverbs 3:12 tells us "For whom the Lord loves He corrects, just as a father the son in whom he delights." Hebrews 12 quotes this proverb and uses it to argue that if we are chastened by the Lord, He is dealing with us as sons...it is an evidence of His love.

My love for my children doesn't vanish every time they do wrong...but they don't always feel secure because sin blinds and deceives. God's love for us doesn't vanish every time we do wrong either...in fact, His love is perfect and He assures us of it. Listen to 1 John 3:1 which says: "Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!" Do we trust and believe that? Or are we listening the the enemy? Our right standing is based in Christ, not our own performance. Let's have our actions flow from that confidence!

Those who believe, those who are IN CHRIST, those who God foreknew and predestined to be conformed to the image of His son (Rom 8:29), can and should trust God's love and walk securely in it. "The more we experience God's love, the more we desire to do what pleases Him." So go ahead and write Him love notes and offer to help around His house, but do these things and all that you do in response to His love, not in an attempt to earn it. There is a big difference between those two approaches...with the first, our attention is fixed on the love of the Father and there is great joy and security; with the second we tend to be self-focused and striving for joy but not experiencing it because we're too busy feeling condemned and unworthy.

If we're feeling insecure, we need to believe 1 John 1:9 that tells us "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Confess and forsake your sins and find mercy BECAUSE HE ALREADY LOVES YOU!

This week, renew your mind with thoughts like:

* "I am chosen in Christ, and in Him I am blameless before God."

* "I am a new creation in Christ."

* "God loves me...and I am made right with Him through faith in Jesus."

"When you awake in the morning, lie in bed for a few minutes and thank God because He loves you and will be with you all day, in everything you do."

Here are some more relevant verses to chew on:

2 Cor. 5:17, 21

Eph. 1:3-15

Ezek. 11:19-21

Eph. 2:10

Deut. 7:6-8

Acts 13:48

Rom. 8:28-30

1 Peter 2:9-10

Rom. 8:1

1 Cor. 1:26-31

I'll leave you with this prayer by the Apostle Paul:

"For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height — to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God." -- Eph 3:14-19

Blessings,

Connie

Bullwinkles

2011-08-03T14:29:00.000-07:00

In May of this year, my kids joined up with 5 others to form the Under His Wings team and did a fund-raising walkathon for the Pregnancy Resource Centers. I wrote about it here. These eight kids raised $5,256.67 and received an award for being the top fundraisers in their age group. Their prize? A trip to Bullwinkles Family Fun Center! Woo hoo! And they got to take their parents along too, and let me tell you, we all had a GREAT time together last Tuesday when we enjoyed an all day Extreme Day Pass.

Today will be a heavy picture day...

The team enjoying a picnic dinner together...

the 8 kids with a little sister who wasn't old enough to be on the team.

Paul starting out on the rock climbing wall

MJ and Mrs. Nieman on the go-carts

Getting ready to play one of our many games of Lazer Tag

The whole day was received as a gift, but we felt like we got an extra kiss from God when we discovered our passes worked in the video games area. The arcade was not supposed to be included on the Exteme Pass so we asked the manager about it. He told us that our cards had somehow been loaded with bonus cash and for us to go have fun using it. With a thanks to the manager, and a "thank you Jesus" offered up, we proceeded to play, play, play. Here's Bekah and Lizzy showing us how to run this race.

My hubby in the batting cages (which was another area not covered by the Extreme Pass, but we all had plenty of bonus cash to cover it if we wanted to take a swing at it. My arm was SO SORE the next day because I swung about a hundred times too many, but I sure had a good time...I loved the batting cages!)

Bekah and I before we raced...we loved the go carts too!

MJ on the sky walk being true to her drama-queen-self ;-)

Paul on the bumper boats...he was a mighty good shooter!

We took a gazillion pictures, but I'll end with this one of the kiddos enjoying their double decker ice cream cones. It was a sweet day of refreshment, laughter, and friendship sharing for our three families.

Power Thought #1

2011-08-02T10:21:00.000-07:00

The first "Power Thought" in the book I referenced here is:
"I can do whatever I need to do in life through Christ."
That sounds very much like Phil 4:13, which says:
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

Her main point here is that we can trust that wherever God leads us, He will enable and empower. "The secret to being able to do what we need to do is realizing that we cannot do it alone; we can only do it in Christ."

As I was reading from this chapter to my kids, they all said it reminded them of a little exercise I've had them do on occasion.   Years ago, one of my darling children was failing daily to obey in a particular area...daily instruction and discipline was happening, but no change of heart or action could be detected. I sat frustrated in the living room one night praying for her and pleading with God to show me how to reach her little stubborn heart, and an idea came to mind. The next day I tried it out...

I told my daughter that I was going to give her a command and that she needed to obey it, and that she could NOT say "I can't" when I told her what it was. Then I told her to jump up and touch the ceiling. She knew she couldn't do it, but she also knew she shouldn't say "I can't" so she stood there dumbfounded, not knowing what to do. I let her skirm for a moment. Then I gave the command again and this time told her that she was not to say "I can't", but that she could say "help me." A smile of hopefulness came immediately upon her face and she quickly asked for help. As she jumped, I gave her the lift she needed and she triumphantly touched the ceiling.

A conversation like this followed:
me: Honey, did you obey?
daughter: yes, Mama
me: Could you do it alone?
daughter: no
me: Honey, we can always obey God, but we always need the strength He gives us. We can't do it alone.

Then we talked about the recurring problem and how we need to ask God for help. We did, and He answered with grace. That day there was a change of heart and action; joy replaced frustration and painful discipline...and my little girl and I both had a big lesson in our need to do all things through Christ who strengthens us. Each of my kids have had the opportunity for this lesson, and sometimes they've taken turns jumping up to touch the ceiling with help because they love the truth it displays and they just plain need simple reminders. Don't we all?

That's what this book has been for me. Are you drowning in the sea of negative nasties or facing some sort of hard that "feels" too hard? Believe God that you CAN do all He calls you to do THROUGH CHRIST who strengthens you. Take the simple lifebuoy His Word offers you to keep your head above the waters that threaten you until He brings you out to a broad place (2 Sam 22:17-20). Throw away your excuse bag. "Go get a 'can-do bag' and fill it with biblical, faith-filled reasons you can do what you need to do."

Here are some other passages that relate to this Power Thought...meditate on them and be strengthened in Christ today to do all He calls you to do.
John 15:1-8
Heb 12:1-2
Isa 40:29-31
Isa 41:10
2 Cor 12:9-10
Eph 3:14-21
Eph 6:10-18
Col 1:11-14
Rom 8:31-39

Blessings,
Connie

God strikes straight blows with crooked sticks

2011-08-01T20:52:00.000-07:00

A few months ago, one of my dearest friends gave me a copy of a book she thought might prove helpful to me. And it did! Remember all those "negative nasties" I mentioned in my last post? Well, I was being bombarded and I wasn't winning the war when she handed it to me -- I didn't think I had time to start a new book, but because of who it was who gave it to me, I jumped right in. The author's message was timely and God used it to strike a straight blow!

So, what is this book? Well, before I tell you, I want to say this. I've gotten some pretty strong reactions from people in my circles when I've mentioned the name of the book and it's author...shock, oh shock. It's true that I like Puritans and other dear ole dead guys who wrote with a depth and reverence that I cannot get enough of. Men like John Bunyan, Jonathan Edwards, Thomas Boston, and many others...wow! There are a few living people like John Piper and Ed Welch and Paul David Tripp that draw my attention often as well because their message is always Christ-exalting and centered in the Word of God. So people who know me, know that I like meaty books. But for the record, I believe God can use whatever and whoever He wants as His messengers and though it is true that I favor the above mentioned authors, I read widely. Jesus was the only perfect man...the rest of us are crooked sticks with which He is incredibly able to strike straight blows. Every one of us has room to grow, but we also all have things to contribute to the body of Christ. So let's be gracious with one another and put away our snobbery. Let us be humble contributors and thankful receivers, all by God's grace and for His glory.

Okay, so the book is titled Power Thoughts, and it was written by Joyce Meyer. Her stated goal is to give "you tools that can make you strong where you have been weak, triumphant where you have been defeated, positive where you have been negative, courageous where you have been afraid, and successful where you have failed in the past." She makes it clear that our thoughts powerfully influence us and emphasizes our need to be transformed by the renewing of our minds according to God's Word (Eph 4:23; Rom 12:2). Proverbs 23:7 says "For as he thinks in his heart, so is he." She has 12 "Power Thoughts", none of which are necessarily new to anyone who has been walking with God for very long, but they are good reminders and come packaged with a vivid description of the battlefield of the mind and how important it is for us to put on the whole armor of God. The book is not written with the depth of any of my favorite ole dead guys and I disagree outright with some of the peripheral comments she writes, but I personally found her main points very helpful and think many others would benefit too.

"Your mind can be a junkyard or a treasure chest...you can make it one or the other by deciding whether you will think thoughts that are negative, cheap, common, and low or thoughts that are positive, pure, honorable, and valuable in God's eyes. You can think 'power-enhancing' thoughts or 'power-draining' thoughts." Her encouragements to meditate on God's Word, to take seriously the battlefield in our minds, to tear down strongholds and to be intentional in our thinking are worthy of our attention. She offers some simple tools to put to use in our lives as we attempt to take every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ (2 Cor. 10:5).

Last week I started working my way through the book again, this time with my kids and two girlfriends. We want to take one week to chew on each power thought, sharing selections from the book and working on memorizing applicable scripture together. Once a week, I hope to write a little bit of what I've gleaned the previous week for your encouragement as well. So next time Lord willing, I'll tell you about Power Thought #1 and share a little story that relates.

Sweet dreams are calling my name...good night!
Thanks for stopping by :-)

2 Samuel 22

2011-07-28T21:18:00.000-07:00

Do we know, trust, and praise God like David? Do yourself a favor...get yourself a cup of coffee (or some other beverage of choice) and sit down to read 2 Samuel 22.

I have a few things to note: First off, take a peek at his numerous descriptions of the Lord. Can I say with David that He is my rock, my fortress, my deliverer, my strength, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold, my refuge, my Savior, my lamp, my support, and more? As a believer in Him, washed in the blood of Jesus and clothed in His righteousness, and one who He has made to be His child by adoption, yes...I can say these things. Yet so often I identify with the father in Mark 9 who was troubled (in his case, he had a child in need of healing)...after Jesus assured this man that all things are possible for him who believes, he responded with "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!" That's me crying out too: Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!

Next, chew on verses 8-20. David talks about how he cried out to God when distressed and that God heard him…and not only did He listen to David, he arose on his behalf with zeal. God is NOT an impersonal being that doesn't care a lick for His creation...He's given His own name to a people that He redeemed with the blood of His own Son, and He is jealous for them. In verse 8 He's angry and His anger is directed against David's enemies...He shakes heaven and earth, kindles coals, sends out arrows and all kinds of other marvelously violent things until we get to verses 17-18: "He sent from above, He took me, He drew me out of many waters. He delivered me from my strong enemy, from those who hated me; for they were too strong for me." This is one of the verses that really stood out to me and I think it was because I was under attack at the time and pretty close to despair. A few months ago, I was waging war in the realm of what a friend and I came to call the negative nasties of the mind...my circumstances were filled with blessings, but my oh my was my mind ever under attack (temptations of bitterness, anger, fear, discouragement, confusion, disappointment, and feelings of inadequacy didn't let up for a period of months). It became clear that "they were too strong for me" even as I daily gloved up, read God's Word, and prayed. One day, God lead me to this chapter and encouraged my soul. And as you can see, months later I am still digesting it with pleasure.

Our enemies may not be the same as David’s…maybe ours are just a bunch of negative nasties in the battlefield of our minds, but we can be assured that our God will arise on our behalf because He’s chosen us before the foundation of the world to be His. Just like David, our enemies may be too strong for us, but they are not too strong for God who hears us when we cry out to Him in our distress. We are His workmanship. We can have the same confidence in God that Paul had when he wrote Phil 1:6 “He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.”

The last thing I want to note here is something mentioned in verse 20: "He also brought me out into a broad place; He delivered me because He delighted in me." I'm one of those people who can beat myself up pretty good. I KNOW I'm a sinner and that God is holy. I relate to the "I'm a worm" and "stiffnecked" sort of verses pretty easily so when I get to a verse like this, my first thought is "why in the world would He possibly delight in me?" It blows my mind. I frankly have a hard time believing it. But He does! He made me....I'm His workmanship. He's redeemed me and has given me new life in Christ for His glory, a new life that pleases Him and glorifies Him. And the reason He gives here for delivering me is "because He delighted in me."

If you are His child, He delights in you too. He's your rock, your fortress, your deliverer, your strength, your shield and the horn of your salvation, your stronghold, your refuge, your Savior, your lamp, your support, and more.

May God use 2 Samuel 22 to encourage you and me to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus (as we're also encouraged to do in Hebrews 12:1-2)...let us take every thought captive to the One who loves us, gave Himself for us and will continue to zealously arise on our behalf against our enemies because He chose us to be His and He delights in us. "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief."

Thanks for stopping by,

Connie

speak well

2011-07-25T20:23:00.000-07:00

Take a look at these comments of a wife to her husband:
"Why are you late again?" (spoken with a sharp accusative tongue)
"I see you still haven't finished the project you said you'd do. Knowing you, it'll never get done."
"If you don't like they way I cook, why don't you fix dinner from now on!"
With comments like these and many more just like them, how much do you think that husband looks forward to coming home?

Now, take a look at these:
"Honey, welcome home...I can see from your face you had a rough day. Thank you for taking the weight of the world on your shoulders and working so hard (spoken kindly and with hands massaging his neck). Wanna talk about it? Can I get you a drink?"
"Projects always seem to take longer than we hope they will when we start them. I know the need for all the Home Depot trips can be discouraging, but you're a winner...I know you'll persevere! I'm so proud of you for taking this on when you have so many things competing for your attention. It means a lot to me. Thanks Honey."
"Hey Babe, I'm making the menu for next week...do you have anything you want me to make sure I include on it for you? Would you like some more of those ribs you said you liked a couple weeks ago?"
Do you think these kinds of comments might have a different effect?

True confession: I like to proofread because I get paid for what comes very naturally for me (being critical). But as one who wants to grow in Christ-likeness, I have self-consciously worked at restraining my critical thinking and words except in places where there is godly reason for it, and though I have to admit I have a ways to go, I have (by God's grace and with the enabling of the Holy Spirit) made progress and am tasting the sweet fruits of it in my family and friendships.

How do we talk with our spouse? How do we talk with our children? Do we encourage and build up or are we tearing down? Are we looking to the 20 things that we can say something positive about or harping on the few things that we don't like? Even when we do need to bring correction, there is a big difference between a razor-edged "Would you pick up your own stinkin' socks?" and a kind "Honey, it would bless me if you put your socks in the hamper." There is much power in our tongue. God tells us in Proverbs 18:21 that "Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit." One way or another, if we're talkers, we're going to eat the fruit of how we talk. Is the general pattern of our words life-giving or life-taking?

I know this is written simplistically. But if you are finding your home life to be somewhere in the range of miserable to business-like at best, you just might take an inventory of your speech. If you note that you tend to be critical and harsh, confess it and seek the forgiveness of your spouse and/or your children and any others you speak that way towards. Ask God to forgive you and to help you use the tongue He gave you wisely and kindly for His glory. Commit yourself to look for ways you could bless, encourage, build up, and speak the truth in love, and practice every day. A barren land can become a beautiful oasis with the introduction of life-giving water.

People of a Second Chance

2011-07-13T15:40:00.000-07:00

Q ideas is an internet site that provides a number of videos and materials under the heading "Ideas for the Common Good." I was introduced last week via a video that two of my pastors posted a link to (well worth watching, you can find the 12 minute presentation on the church's role in ending extreme poverty here). But after watching THAT video, I hunted around to see what the OTHER "Q talks" looked interesting and stumbled upon an 18 minute interview called "People of a Second Chance" with Ted and Gayle Haggard. Wow!

Maybe the name Ted Haggard and "Wow" don't seem like they should go together in your mind...maybe the sins of his past have left a bad taste in your mouth and you've written him off as a public figure who has fallen irrevocably from God's good grace.

For me, it's a beautiful story of a couple that is working together (repenting and forgiving) as they press on to lay hold of Christ Jesus and all that He has laid hold of for them. It's a wonderful part two to the post I wrote yesterday. They both know they have things behind them to lay aside, to forget from different angles as they give themselves to seek Christ individually and as a couple. It convicted me, and at the same time the words of grace spoken so clearly by Ted and Gayle encouraged me to want to be among those who repent of my own sins, forgive others of theirs, and move forward in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. If you can make the time, watch the video...I'm hoping that the message is taken to heart by us all for the glory of our God.

Reaching forward

2011-07-12T19:36:00.001-07:00

Phil 3:12-14 "Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."

History is a wonderful account of God's story, His working out His plan in time and space. Without contradicting the beauty and glory and wonder and necessity of history, it is sometimes a part of reaching forward to forget those things which are behind. How many of you have heard of the three steps forward, two steps back cycle? Even though there are setbacks, the overall trend is still one of progress. But what about the two steps forward, three steps back cycle? That sounds more like failure than progress and in some arenas of my life, I'm familiar with this.

About 5 months ago as I meditated on this verse, I thought about how Christ did not lay hold of me so that I can stay in failure cycles...He's my victorious Savior leading me into victory, setting me free where I've been captive, etc. I started thinking about how in order to press forward, I needed to forget some things or put them behind me (not let them drag me down again). This has affected areas as dorky as weight loss to matters much more important like relationships.

How many of us have been hurt in a relationship and allowed bitterness or anger or distrust to skew our vision to the point that anything that person does is eyed by us with suspicion? Are we forgiving and putting things behind us, pressing forward to greater unity and joy in our relationships? God makes it clear that He wants us to experience the sweet joy of fellowship and the glory of working together as His body. The Devil is the one that wants us to stay bitter and angry and to build walls that feel impenetrable. Who are we going to listen to? We really ought to repent if we're the offender and forgive if we're the injured...we should give each other the freedom and encouragement to grow and to press forward, to lay hold of Christ. The Apostle Paul assures us that he was not yet perfected and neither are we...we will sin yet and will be sinned against, but let's deal with it lovingly and quickly and move on. Paul was serious about pressing forward -- the goal was and still is the prize of the upward call of Christ. With the joy of the Lord as my strength, I'm serious too. How about you?

sweet blueberries and a very good day

2011-07-11T17:17:00.000-07:00

I was thinking this morning about my family (while weeding the garden) and how I so want us to be like a fruitful garden for the glory of God. I had just picked a handful of blueberries and gobbled down their pure sweetness. The strawberries are producing, the zucchini are getting ready to explode, and more yummy things are in process. I have often thought about the weeding side of gardening and how it pictures our need to pull things like bitterness and anger and hurt and distrust out by the root in our lives. But today, as I nibbled on tasty blueberries and enjoyed a bit of the harvest, I thought about how I got to do that because there was a day that I planted something good, and God blessed it. I shared my thoughts with my kiddos at breakfast and we agreed to deliberately look for opportunities to plant blessings in each others lives, to plant words of kindness and encouragement, to look for ways we can take initiative to ease burdens as we become aware of them if we have the ability to do so. The Lord has graciously blessed our efforts and it's been a really GOOD day!

Caleb

2011-07-05T20:55:00.000-07:00

Our pastor preached this past Lord's Day a wonderful sermon titled "And You Shall Not Steal". In it, he talked about how we ought to desire wealth/property (but not in the "prosperity-gospel-so-we-can-go-on-living-selfishly" sort of fashion). You can listen to it HERE.

Tonight, I finished reading a book that a friend gave me recently, and in it the author emphasized the importance of what she called "prosperity with a purpose." It isn't wrong to want property and wealth in and of itself...seeking prosperity for the sake of unrestrained selfishness or via ungodly means is wrong, but wealth is desirable to equip you to lovingly meet the needs of others.

Sandwiched in between that double-witnessed message, we got the exciting word earlier today that our friends, Jon and Melissa Maser (who are in the process of adopting a little boy from Ethiopia) got their court date. Caleb, the little fellow they want to adopt, is now 10 months old and stinkin' cute (I cannot post a picture until they've passed court, but I've seen some pics and cannot wait to be among those who get to smooch his sweet chubby cheeks). In just 16 days they have been given permission to board a plane and be on their way to meet him for the first time. God has provided each step of the process as various fees are needed, always giving His people the privilege of being part of this amazing story He is writing into their lives, and the life of this little boy who soon will know the love of a family all his own. I'm excited to see how He will provide once more as a few thousand dollars are still needed in order to purchase the plane tickets. We are doing what we can, thankful that we have so that we can give.

I'm letting you know of the need so you can join me in praying for them to trust the One who provides us with all we need to follow where He leads us. Having been there/done that, so to speak, I know the temptations to anxiety. I'm also letting you know in case the Lord lays it on your heart to play a part financially. You can make a donation of any size by visiting their blog and making use of their Paypal button (or you can email Melissa at masermel@yahoo.com to find out other methods if another method is preferable to you). Rachel and Erica have written posts about this too and are doing an Ipad giveaway for those who make donations...see either of their posts to see the details of how to enter...they are also friends of mine and I assure you this is not a scam...they will pass all funds on to the Masers. Both of their families also adopted from Ethiopia recently and they are excited to help one more orphan lose that status and gain a family who will love him and raise him up to love & serve Jesus. I'm excited to help too. If you are as well, please do what you can in the arena's of praying, giving and spreading the word.

Thanks for taking time to stop in,
Connie

What time is it?

2011-06-04T20:52:00.000-07:00

Let's see what time it is....hmmm...not quite yet, but soon - very soon, it will be time to celebrate a very special young lady's birthday! Okay, truth be known we started to celebrate today even though Bekah will not officially be 9 years old until tomorrow (technically, she was born in Korea and it is already the 5th there, so maybe it is her birthday...tricky, eh?). This is Bekah sporting her new watch...notice it is light blue, which just happens to be her favorite color.

We've had a fun day in 85 degree sunshine...our first really warm day of the season. It started with Paul's t-ball game, and then when we came home the water guns came out. Within minutes we had three very soaked and happily squealing kids chasing each other through the yard. The laughter and lightheartedness of it all -- I totally loved it!

After cleaning up, we all enjoyed a wonderful dinner which B chose -- yummy pull-a-part chicken, savory cheesy potatoes, a Caesar salad, and some fresh from the oven homemade buttermilk rolls. We all agreed she has good taste!

And what is a birthday celebration without presents? I suppose it is possible, but we've yet to try it. Our tradition is to give gifts equal in number to age until they are 10 so Bekah surrounded herself with her pile of gifts and began opening them. She was pretty excited about the watch shown above, but maybe even more so about this silver chain:

She has a heart pendant from a previous birthday that she's been LONGING to wear again, but her other chain broke...the look on her face was precious when she opened this.

None of us are big cake lovers so we opted years ago to pick a dessert of choice...we've enjoyed donuts, apple pie, ice cream cake, Dairy Queen blizzards, cheesecake and other things, but I don't think any of us have ever chosen cake since we offered an option. Bekah's choice this year was chocolate dipped Drumstick ice cream cones...simple, yet delicious!

At the end of the little family party, she wanted me to take a picture of her with all her presents around her...the other two jumped in and smooched her on the cheeks (which is NOT typical, but Paul and MJ thought of it at the same time and threw themselves on her... it gave us all reason to have a good laugh).

So, in just a few short hours, my sweet 8 year old will be 9. And what a fine 9 year old I suspect she'll be!

We love you Bekah Boo!

We are so glad you are a part of our family.

There is joy to be had and glory to be displayed

2011-05-28T07:47:00.000-07:00

My friends, the Masers, are in the adoption process and this week they received their referral call about a 9 month old boy in Ethiopia. I have been carrying their family picture around this week to show my friends (along with a picture of Caleb, the little 9 month old they want very much to bring home), asking my friends if they'll join me in helping them raise the funds still needed in order for them to say yes. I've posted and reposted on facebook. They have many other friends doing the same. On Tuesday, they still needed $6,100...today they are down to just less than a $1,000. Praise God! And thanks to all those who have already come alongside them. They are at their "now or never" moment (see my previous post), and they want very much to say yes. We are happy to do all we can to help. God already knows how He is going to provide and I fully believe He funds what He favors so I want to make it really clear to ya'll that I never post these things out of desperation, but rather as opportunity to spread the glory of God's name and to increase the joy of His people.

You see, I know both ends of the fund-raising adventure. I know the humbling and sanctifying and awe-inspiring side of being a receiver (as well as the agony and frustrations of it)...we didn't fund raise with our first two adoptions, but with Paul we did (anybody who knows Mike and I very well know we are "buy only what you can afford, pay cash, no debt but the smallest mortgage possible sort of folks"...it was big time out of our comfort zone to fund-raise and we are in no hurry to do it again, but we would if God called us to because through it He taught us so much and drew us closer to Himself). We also know the joys of being givers...our family has found great delight especially in helping other Christian families to adopt for a myriad of reasons, but we also like to give to missions and Christ-centered disaster relief, etc. because God gives us life and breath to transform this world for the glory of His name and being cheerful givers in these areas is one of the ways we do that.

When I was a kid, I used to steal quarters from my sister so that I could buy gum for myself (yes, she knows and yes, I have long since repented). I was interested in me, and didn't mind injuring someone else to advance my own desires. Sound pretty common to man? God graciously offered me (and you) these corrective words in Eph 4:28: "Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need." Notice that the good work of our hands, our labor, is so "that [we] may have something to give him who has need." God's word is gracious and good...do we believe it? Or do we listen to the world that tells us that our labor is about getting a bigger house or sportier car or whatever else we are interested in for ourselves? Now I don't want to be wacky here...we are also instructed by God to provide for the needs of our own households (and some of you are struggling to do that very thing...be faithful there, dear friends!). We're also told by God to enjoy the fruit of our labor. So don't go feeling too badly if you enjoyed some ice cream with your kids and got your mortgage check in the mail on time! But what I've learned is that there is a great joy in laboring to have something to give to others too and as we're enabled by the grace of God to do so, I want everyone else in God's kingdom to know the joy that comes from cheerful giving.

SO, when I post an opportunity like I am today to come alongside someone, to give to them freely, I ONLY want you to do so if you can do so cheerfully and unto the Lord. God owns it all...we do not need any reluctant or grumpy givers...we are not desperate! God is our Father and He funds what He favors...I'm not one bit worried. God's people are His instruments of mercy and He tells us that the world will know we are His by our love (which is really His love flowing through us...we can only give what we first received). There is joy to be had...there is glory (the glory of our great God and King) to be displayed...if you desire and are able by the grace of God to help my friends say yes to Caleb, please hop over to their blog where you will find a Paypal donation button or you can email Melissa Maser at masermel@yahoo.com to get their address if you'd prefer to send a check.

Thank you,
Connie

Now or Never

2011-05-28T07:15:00.000-07:00

"Nunc aut numquam", that is the Latin phrase we learned yesterday...it means "now or never." On a seemingly small scale we face these "now or never" moments every day...we never get "this" moment back again and what we do with it leaves its mark. But sometimes we face significant "now or never" moments.

In class yesterday, I was thinking of my son Paul in particular...there was a time when we had his referral information in front of us, a time when he was still an orphan being cared for by the foster system of S. Korea, a "now or never" time of agreeing with God that He was grafting this little man into our family forever. He's sick again this week (though you'd never know it in the day time...he is prone to fever-less pneumonia that rears its ugly side only at night...in his 6 short years he's had it about 10 times, along with lots of other respiratory gunk that gives us snuggling opportunities). As I sat in class, learning our new phrase (yes, I'm learning right along with my kiddos), I silently gave thanks to God for Paul, and for His grace in knitting our lives together. The previous night he didn't cough his guts out alone...he had me with him, comforting him, snuggling, rubbing his head (it calms him) and reading him stories in the night as everyone else in the family slept...this little guy is a family member who knows the strong bonds of a mommy and daddy's love, not to mention two pretty wonderful sisters. That "now or never" moment 6 years ago changed the course of our family's lives and his and we have no regrets.

Praise

2011-05-20T07:05:00.000-07:00

Have you ever known someone that is gifted in encouragement? Someone that you are seriously just blessed by every time you are around them? God be praised, I've been blessed with the friendship of a handful of such encouragers in the course of my days (maybe because I'm the kind of person that is in constant need of encouragement???). One such dear soul went to be with our Lord, and now gets to rejoice in His presence. Recently, I gained possession of a book she owned titled 31 Days of Praise, by Ruth Myers. Each day that I pick it up I am reminded of her because the praise of our God regularly bubbled out of her, even in the face of great adversity and pain...she is sorely missed. I want to share Day 5 from the book with you...may we all become overflowing fountains of His praise!

I magnify You, O Lord; I exalt Your name, for You are great and highly to be praised. I praise You for the glorious splendor of Your majesty and the power of Your awe-inspiring acts. Your power is unlimited...absolute...beyond imagining. You are able to do immeasurably more than we can ask or dream of. "There is nothing too hard for You." Who is like You, "majestic in holiness, awesome in praises, working wonders?"

O Lord Most High, You rule over the heavens and the earth, for You made all things by Your great power, and You keep them existing and working by Your mighty Word. You are exalted high above every star and galaxy in the entire cosmos...yet You are also "the God of all mankind," the great, personally present, personally involved God who loves, rescues, and takes care of all who trust You. You exercise Your gracious authority over all nations -- and over each individual in all the world. There is none like You, the true God, the living God, the everlasting King.

I praise You for Your sovereignty over the broad events of my life and over the details With You, nothing is accidental, nothing is incidental, and no experience is wasted. You hold in Your own power my breath of life and all my destiny. And every trial that You allow to happen is a platform on which You reveal Yourself, showing Your love and power, both to me and to others looking on. Thank You that I can move into the future non-defensively, with hands outstretched to whatever lies ahead, for You hold the future and You will always be with me, even to my old age...and through all eternity.

The wonder of Life

2011-05-14T18:14:00.000-07:00

Life is amazing! God knits us together in our mother's wombs and it boggles my mind to think about it...I mean really, how does He do it? A fertilized egg to hands and feet and hair and chubby cheeks and bones and skin and heart beats... I love the wonder of it all. And this week we got to welcome a new precious girl into our extended family when my niece Leah gave birth to Cunera Grace Marl...without question the incredible workmanship of our loving and gracious Creator! Just look at her and join us in praising God:

Don't you just want to kiss those little chubby cheeks?

Okay, kissing the forehead will do...good job Mama.

Of course we all took turns holding her and loving on her. Here are a few more pictures of me and my peeps doing just that:

My beloved hubby, best friend, lover, true companion, and much more...I'm sure glad God made him!

yep, I got a turn too, a pretty long one actually:

We are still oohing and awing over here...we're so, so, so happy she is on the outside where we can begin to enjoy her on a regular basis. And we think the number nine may prove significant at some point in her life because she was born on the 9th, in room 9, with 9 people in the room at her birth, weighing in at 9 pounds even in the 9th hour of the night...how is that for a little fun trivia?

And sticking with the theme of life, we joined many others in downtown Portland to be a voice for life today as the blood of innumerable little ones continue to cry out to God. Yes, not every little one He knits together gets to see daylight and be loved on and oohed and awed over. The lies that fill our land in the name of women's rights and the blood shed occurring daily against the image bearers of our God yet in their wombs ought to move us to action and prayer. Yet we think "why bother if I'm not the one doing it","why lift a finger if it isn't affecting me"... oh, may God have mercy and may He grant us repentance! I thank the Lord for the Pregnancy Resource Centers and all those who do pray and act, sharing the truth in love, reaching out with compassion to those who are being pressured from without and within to kill their babies, sharing the gospel and advocating for the lives of those God has knit together to bear His image in this world. Today was a good day of gathering with such folks!

I am so proud of the Under His Wings team! Eight kids ranging in age from 6-10 raised $5,256.67 this year for the PRC. I pray that God will continue to grow their hearts to do battle in their generation against abortion and for life, for the glory of His name. And I pray more people will come to see this as a national problem because our land is covered with blood that cries out to God and He hears...what will YOU do this year to make a difference?

Here they are being presented a certificate for being the number one fund-raising team in their age bracket...Lars Larson, a well-known radio talk show host was here to hand out the awards this year!

And Larry Gadbaugh, the PRC CEO, was kind enough to pose with them too...thanks Larry!

A fine looking army if you ask me!

Celebrating Mother's Day

2011-05-07T19:29:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is Mother's Day. I get to celebrate the joy of mothering three beautiful people because their first mothers chose to carry them in their wombs, labored to give them birth, and for various reasons arranged for them to be adopted. There are many women who do not choose life for their unborn children...we continue to give thanks to God for all of our children's first moms!

It delights me to the depths of my soul to see my kids joining up with five of their friends to form a Steps for Life team this year. My kiddos have taken to heart the opportunity do to this walk-a-thon from their earliest days...God has given them all tender hearts to help "babies in the name of Jesus." Last year they linked up with three of their friends to form a team, and this year their team grew by two more. Doesn't that just make you want to dance or sing or raise a celebratory glass? I don't "make" my kids do this...they are eager! And they bless me to my core!

So 8 kids, ages 6-10, plan to walk THIS COMING SATURDAY in the Steps for Life as the team titled Under His Wings. Their goal is to raise at least $5,000 and as of tonight's tally they are just about $500 shy of that goal. If God places it on your heart to sponsor any or all of them, here are links to all their fund raising pages where you can find easy instructions on how to make a donation, and information on the work of the Pregnancy Resource Centers. If you can't support them with money, will you join us in praying for the event?

Thank you so much,
one joyful Mama

MJ Meyerdierk – http://www.ministrysync.com/event/website/?m=613294

Rebekah Meyerdierk – http://www.ministrysync.com/event/website/?m=613346

Paul Meyerdierk – http://www.ministrysync.com/event/website/?m=613351

Elizabeth Adams – http://www.ministrysync.com/event/website/?m=613360

James Adams – http://www.ministrysync.com/event/website/?m=613366

Jonathan Adams – http://www.ministrysync.com/event/website/?m=613370

Jesse Nieman – http://www.ministrysync.com/event/website/?m=613378

Leah Nieman – http://www.ministrysync.com/event/website/?m=613381

Easter Cookies

2011-04-23T07:31:00.000-07:00

Our family has enjoyed making these the past few years...it is interactive, provides another opportunity to talk together about the sacrifice of our Savior, His amazing love for us, and His call for us to follow Him. I share them today because if you are interested in doing them, you start them tonight (waking up to the empty tomb cookies in the morning).

Rejoicing in the One who not only died, but rose again...He is risen, He is risen indeed! Thanks for stopping by ;-).

EASTER COOKIES

You Need:

1- cup whole pecans

1-teaspoon vinegar

3 egg whites

pinch of salt

1-cup sugar

zipper baggie

wooden spoon

tape

Bible

Preheat the oven to 300 (this is important-don't wait 'til you're half-done with the recipe)

1. Place the pecans in the baggie and let the kids beat them with the wooden spoon to break them into pieces. Explain that after Jesus was arrested, He was beaten by the Roman soldiers.

Read John 19:1-3

2. Put the vinegar into a mixing bowl. Let each child smell the vinegar. Explain that when Jesus was on the cross and He became thirsty, He was offered vinegar to drink.

Read John 19:28-30

3. Add the egg whites to the vinegar. The eggs represent life. Explain that Jesus gave His life so that we could have life.

Read John 10:10-11

4. Sprinkle a little salt into each child's hand and let them taste it. Put the rest into the bowl. Explain that this represents the salty tears shed by Jesus' followers, and the bitterness of our own sin.

Read Luke 23:27

5. So far the ingredients are not very appetizing. Add 1 cup of sugar. Explain that the sweetest part of the story is that Jesus died because He loves us. He wants us to know and belong to Him.

Read Psalm 34:8 and John 3:16

6. Beat the egg whites with a mixer on high speed for 12 to 15 minutes, until stiff peaks form. Explain that the color white represents the purity in God's eyes of those whose sins have been cleansed by Jesus.

Read Isa. 1:18 and John 3:1-3

7. Fold in the broken nuts. Drop by teaspoons onto a wax paper cookie sheet. Explain that each mound represents the rocky tomb where Jesus body was laid to rest.

Read Matt. 27:57-60

8. Put the cookie sheet in the oven, close the door and turn the oven off.

9. Give each child a piece of tape and seal the door. Explain that Jesus tomb was sealed.

Read Matt. 27:65-66

10. Go to bed. Explain that they may feel sad to leave the cookies in the oven overnight and that Jesus followers were in despair when the tomb was sealed.

Read John 16:20-22

11. On Easter morning, open the oven and give everyone a cookie. Notice the cracked surface and take a bite. the cookies are hollow! ON THE FIRST EASTER, Jesus' followers were amazed to find His tomb empty.

Read Matt. 28: 1-9

A foundation, not an eraser

2011-04-15T10:29:00.000-07:00

Imagine a target with "loss" as the bulls-eye...it may be the loss of a job or loss of a loved one or some other painful loss, but how many of us would take our arrows and shoot at this target voluntarily? Yet we all experience grievous situations, though we never aim for those seasons. Sometimes those come directly related to carelessness or sin on our part (loving to sleep in conflicts with getting to work on time just one too many times!). Sometimes we experience what we might call a victim's pain (a drunk driver T-boned you, leaving you disabled). There are a gazillion scenarios being worked out in our lives ranging from stubbed toe sorts of pain to heart-breaking, gut-wrenching, soul-searching varieties. And somehow God is working all of these together for the good of those who call upon His name...and somehow believing this doesn't erase the pain, but it gives us a foundation to rest upon so that our circumstances do not crush us as we take the next step of faith, holding tight to His hand, trusting Him to draw us ever closer to Himself either in the pain or by delivering us from it.

This past few weeks it seems like loss and painful situations are swirling around like a hurricane...miscarriages, facing much "ugly" in pursuit of a daughter, loss of work, life-flight emergency, serious illness, private struggles and so much more! This morning as I was talking with one of my girls about a very real loss she is wrestling with, we both came to the place in the midst of hugs and tears of knowing that the pains God gives us are never wasted. We're thankful He is totally trustworthy as He sends us these "gifts"; thankful that He sets the limits and carries us through; thankful He is our Father who loves us and gives us His all-sufficient grace every day.

Clinging to Him,
Connie

All in a day...

2011-03-17T19:50:00.000-07:00

A couple of days ago, we were just enjoying a regular ole ordinary kind of day...working on schoolwork, doing chores, you know, the "normal." Melita grabbed the camera and took a picture of Paul reading to me:

What fun it is to watch my youngest begin to read "for real" after many months of working on laying the foundation! He is growing in his abilities every day. Isn't it absolutely amazing how much a little one learns in just a few short years?

Later that day, Melita was working on a portrait. My girls went to an art camp this past summer for four days and discovered they really liked portraits. We asked a very talented young artist at our church (who happens to specialize in portraits) if she would be willing to teach my girls. She graciously agreed (thank you Kerilynn), and every two weeks the girls are itching for their next lesson! They blow me away with how much they have learned in such a short time...it was my turn to grab the camera:

When I walked into the next room, I happened upon Bekah sitting on the floor sewing...she loves to figure out how to create things with just about any medium, but this round she picked some material from a tote of scraps we have to make a doll pillow.

I love the privilege of being home with my kids, a privilege I know not all women share. I am very grateful! Of course there are challenges, but God's grace always proves sufficient and the joys are incredible as I watch these three wonders of God's creation, made in His image, learning and creating and giving and praising and growing into such lovely young people.

I wasn't going to include this at first, but the kids laughed so hard at this little video that we made and they thought I should share it with you so you could have a good laugh too. Here's the background...one of our dear Florida friends, affectionately known as Mrs. B, called us one day to tell us her famous duck joke (well, she's maybe not famous, but she's well known for this joke in her circle of friends). Melita and I were out running errands yesterday and we came home to discover Paul and Bekah had been having fun acting this out. They wanted to show us, and immediately I knew I needed to grab the camera once more (so I could share it with Mrs. B, of course!). Laugh away...we do every time we watch it:

All in a day, or two,
Connie

Doorposts

2011-03-15T04:52:00.000-07:00

Today I want to direct all of you to a new blog that Doorposts just launched. I've mentioned this company a number of times recently...I do occasional proofing/editing for them. For the next 10 days, they will be doing some fantastic giveaways...go here to learn more.

This is what they say about TODAY's giveaway: "...Today’s giveaway is a copy of Plants Grown Up or Polished Cornerstones (winner’s choice). This book is a complete, Bible-based character training resource you can use with your sons (or daughters) from age four or five on up to adulthood. Hundreds of Bible studies and other practical projects are all organized under fifty different Biblical character qualities we want to encourage in our children."

These are wonderful resources! Don't miss your opportunity to win a copy. Their blog just may be one you'll want to earmark and visit again and again. Hmmm....I wonder what tomorrow's giveaway will be...help keep spreading the word for the next 10 days for the opportunity to win some tremendous tools.

One Less

2011-03-05T05:26:00.000-08:00

THIS post is all about shouting some hallelujahs and doing a bloggy-celebration-dance and drinking some virtual glasses of celebratory drinks together BECAUSE the Shubins are now FULLY FUNDED. Praise God from Whom all blessings flow! In less than two weeks, David and Erica will get on a plane and go meet Zahra, a little 4-ish year old girl destined in the wisdom of God to become a member of their family. Please hop over to Erica's blog to bask in the radiant joy oozing out of her pores. What a year it has been! I'm still crying happy tears here over knowing that Zahra will soon know the family who loves her deeply already, the family who has fought for her and prayed daily for her and worked hard on her behalf and have promised to do so all the rest of her days as they receive her as a gift from the Lord into their number.

Thank you, thank you, thank you to all who have prayed for the Shubins and for Zahra as God does the work of knitting their lives together via adoption (don't stop now!), who have contributed financially to help knock down the obstacle of fees standing between little Z and her family, who have written notes of encouragement along the way, or have become a part of this story in some other way. What a privilege God has given us! When we were in the process of adopting our son Paul, we set up an account that we named "One Less Orphan." One more "less" at a time is a big part of our family mission...seeing orphans grafted into Christian homes where they will be raised up to know, love, enjoy, and serve the King of all kings is our family's middle name, you might say. So we're rejoicing today because after a year of praying and working and encouraging, we know that in a couple short weeks now there will be "one less!"

On another happy note, this past week my girls and I got to spend some time with another little one you may have read about at Christmastime on my blog. She has an amazing story too! I'll leave you with just a few pics:

Me, getting to hold little Harper Noel Marl for the first time :-)...

She's already a couple months old.

Crazy days kept me away far longer than I wanted,

but I sure enjoyed soaking her in on Sunday.

My precious Melita,

also known as the junior baby hog

(I still hold the "queen baby hog" title),

getting to snuggle up with her.

My Bekah, thrilled to get a turn

(yes, Queen baby hog and Junior baby hog CAN share).

Oh, and this is her blog debut in her new glasses.

Isn't she adorable?

Oh, and speaking of adorable, check out this last picture:

Amanda (Mommy) and Harper, both glowing!

We continue to praise God for knitting little Harper Noel into this family!

Working towards "One less" as God enables,

Connie

Crazy Days

2011-03-04T05:50:00.000-08:00

Good morning Bloggy Friends,
     I mentioned awhile back that our family was facing some changes. So true! Here is the biggie. My dear hubby is a route/salesman for BBU (commonly known as Oroweat) and recently he was shifted to being a relief driver which requires more flexibility than the two of us "like to have routine in our lives" sort of people, along with our precious children, seem to muster up naturally. Believing with all our hearts that this is from the Lord to grow us, among other things, and thankful with all our being to have a job, we've been working at making the necessary changes in our lives (with much needed grace from the Lord) to receive this daily unpredictability with joy. My husband is a planner...he's a "make a plan/work the plan" guy! Now from day to day he does not know until the day before what route he is going to be running, when he will need to get up or go to bed, if he'll be working with someone or running solo, etc. And the ripple effect is like a wave crashing down on the whole family. Will he need a short or long nap when he gets home (thus requiring our activities to be very quiet for the duration), and how will the events of each day flow in relationship to his ever-changing needs? It makes planning MANY things interesting :-). But I have to say, the Lord is rich in mercy! He has blessed us with good communication, unity of mission as a family, and joy in the journey as He walks us through this latest adventure together. Instead of seeing the limitations (resulting in frustration, dissatisfaction, and bad attitudes), we're trying to see how God is working this together for our good -- because that is what He promises to do, isn't it? The result has been growth in working as a team, increased joy in God, and thankfulness to Him from whom all blessings flow!
     Another temporary change was that I agreed to proof/edit Doorposts' revision of For Instruction in Righteousness. I work from bell to bell already, so trying to sneak in a 40 hour project might be considered by some to be a sign of insanity, but again, the Lord is gracious. He has given me a skill and I REALLY enjoy working with Pam Forster on her projects that are geared towards equipping parents to train their children up to love and serve our Amazing God. She has afforded me the privilege for the past 10 years or so. Thank you, Pam...I really do count it a privilege! The demands on my time have increased since those early years, and I very well may be crazy, but the job is DONE and yesterday I handed the book back to Pam...it is her turn to have some fun, making all the corrections/changes and then off to the printers it can go. I encourage you to consider their products. I have recommended them before and will probably do so again (and no, she doesn't pay me to promote their works...I do so simply because I think they're helpful).
   The kiddos are taking swim lessons for the first time and LOVING it. T-ball for Paul is coming up. The girls take piano, art classes, practice with the girls' choir, etc. There are doctor, dentist, orthodontist appointments, etc. Life is so planned and scheduled...so many things to juggle in between homeschooling, hubby's work, care of the home, etc. I am wearing a compass pendant on a chain this morning (and have been for the past couple of weeks)...it is my reminder to live "by the compass and not the clock", as a friend recently encouraged me to do...to be directed by the Master of Life, not my little-kingdom-of-me-to-do-list. All the to-do's and schedules or lack thereof need to be subjected to His plans, and His plans are good and do-able with His grace.
     So changes, yes. These are crazy days, but good days. We continue to taste and see the goodness of the Lord in our lives. He is with us! Whatever the day holds, it comes from His hand as an opportunity to enjoy Him and make much of Him...there is NOTHING I would rather do. I yearn to know Him better!

Thanks for stopping by,
Connie

Four things seemingly unrelated

2011-02-21T12:29:00.000-08:00

Hi there.

First, the winner of the book giveaway is (drum roll please)...Dawn Wright! Congratulations Dawn, I'll send it your way this week (Lord willing). I think you will thoroughly enjoy the stories!!!

Second, I'm proofreading a revision of Doorposts' very first book titled "For Instruction in Righteousness." The author is my friend Pam Forster, and I want to encourage you all to go to Doorposts website and check out their materials, designed as parenting tools for raising up godly children. We have and make use of a large number of them and am happy to recommend them.

Third, one of the reasons I take on short-term jobs like proofreading is to help raise some funds for those who are adopting. My friend Erica, who I have mentioned a number of times before on my blog, is getting very close to being able to go to Ethiopia to meet her daughter Zarah. I'm full of anticipation to see how God is going to provide the remaining needed funds...I know without a doubt that He is able. I'm so glad my Father has enabled my family to be a part of Zarah gaining the status of "member of the Shubin family" with all its accompanying rights and privileges like having a mommy and daddy to tuck her in at night, having someone to run to when she scrapes her knee, being prayed over and taught about our Mighty God daily, and on and on. I just got off the phone with Erica about an hour ago...what a joy she is! I wish you could all know her. I love this gal...if any of you want to be a part of Zarah being able to come home, please hop over to Erica's blog and do what God enables you to do in this beautiful story He is writing.

And fourth, a couple nights ago one of our sweet young friends broke her arm badly. She had surgery yesterday and we went to visit soon after she was coherent again. More than once tears were brought to my eyes as I heard her parents tell of her singing hymns to herself while lying in great pain, of her commenting that she was glad it happened to her and not her littler sister, and other sweetnesses that are wetting my eyes again as I think of them. Difficulties often show ones character much more clearly than easy days, and I just want to go on record saying how thankful I am to God for knitting the hearts of this young lady with those of my daughters in friendship...our whole family loves her whole family, truth be known! We are grateful for your example Rosemary! Keep singing sweetheart...Jesus knows what He is doing.

God bless you readers...thanks for stopping by!

Into the Mud - a giveaway

2011-02-07T17:07:00.000-08:00

Hello friends in Blog-ville,

Have any of you heard of the book Into the Mud by Christine Jeske? One of my nephews bought me a copy for Christmas (thanks Chase!), and I devoured it with delight before the New Year dawned. It is a book filled with true stories of Africa...the people of South Africa in particular, their lives, and God at work in their midst. I laughed, cried, pondered, learned, and was encouraged in so many ways.

In fact, I enjoyed it so much that I bought another copy to give away here. Want to know how to get into the drawing? Here's the scoop:

1. Become a follower of this blog (if you are not already).
2. Tell me you'd like to be in the drawing (you can email me, FB me, or leave a comment below).
You're in. It is THAT easy!

To get your name in the bucket more than once, you can:
* Help spread the word on Facebook. For each DAY that you do it (and you let me know you did), you get an entry.
* Blog about our giveaway (This will get you 3 more entrees...again, let me know that you did this)...If I'm not a follower of yours yet, please let me know your link so I can check out your blog. Thanks.

We will aim to pick the winner on Feb. 21st so you have two weeks to get your name in the bucket.

things that SEEM to move cross to the godly

2011-02-05T21:21:00.000-08:00

"As in a watch, the wheels seem to move contrary one to another, but all carry on the motions of the watch: so things that seem to move cross to the godly, yet by the wonderful providence of God work for their good." - by Thomas Watson in All Things For Good

Are we trusting the sovereign goodness of our Father when we find ourselves facing hard fill-in-the-blank times? It may be a day by day, minute by minute exercise, but there is no question as to the trustworthiness of the One who calls us to trust Him.

"Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!" - Mark 9:24

Paid in Full

2011-01-20T09:38:00.000-08:00

"If I reject the crucifixion of Christ for my payment, I will be crucified every day till the debt is paid. Forever." - John Piper

How thankful I am to Jesus for paying my debt...He is my Joy, my Rock, my Treasure, my ever present Help...as Rich Mullin's put it, His is my One thing!

How thankful I am to know God as my Father because He, before the foundation of the world, chose to make me His by adoption.

I'm stopping in on my blog to let you all know that I am alive and well, but I am working at warp speed doing all my Father has put into my hand to do. Your prayers for my family as we make some adjustments would be appreciated (details may follow, Lord willing I get some time to write them). Thank you.

I pray all is well with you. Thanks for visiting ;-)

The King of all kings has spoken...

2011-01-06T09:59:00.000-08:00

Do you avoid certain passages of the Bible with your small children? Recently I heard it recommended that parents skip "inappropriate" portions of the Bible when reading to/teaching their kids. I suspect folks mean different things by that line of thinking and though I am aware of some of the arguments, I haven't heard any that I buy. Our family plows through whatever book we're studying as a family, giving thanks to God for it and asking for the Spirit to guide our discussion. As the children grow, so does the depth of our understanding together, but we do not have a category of texts that we label as inappropriate for any age.

With that said, as an adult that has been reading/studying/delighting in God's Word for 30 years, there are still many texts I grapple with and am eager to grow in my understanding of. There are hard texts. There are passages that I read and do not understand yet. I want to know more and more the God I worship, the One who created all that is visible and invisible for His glory, the One whose infinite wisdom is far beyond my finite comprehension, the One who gave Himself for me that I might be with Him for all eternity.

I give thanks to God for the church He brought me into membership with. The leadership of our church does not shy away from "hard" or "uncomfortable" texts. This past Sunday, Pastor Ayers read Judges chapter 19 (I'm sure this would fit into some people's "inappropriate for children" category). This is one of those portions that I still grapple with every time I come to it. He preached perhaps the most helpful sermon I've ever heard on chapters 19-21. But before he preached, he read it and prayed along the lines of thanking God for THIS TEXT, which is His Word.

Praying with thanksgiving and the humility that understands that we NEED the Spirit to teach us...THAT is the best starting place! Aren't we tempted at times to come to God's Word thinking we can stand as judge over it, deciding what is good and acceptable and what parts we should just skip over because they offend our sensibilities? Or do we approach it like any other book, thinking we can reason out its meaning on our own? Is is just me or are you tempted to sometimes want to read only the parts you deem as "useful" or "exciting" and ignore or skim at best other portions because they're either hard to understand or you have no clue why they are in the Bible in the first place (genealogies, descriptions of the construction of temple, etc). I know I have to remind myself when these temptations ensue that ALL of the Bible is the inspired Word of God...it is ALL there for my correction, instruction and training in righteousness. If I don't "get it," or if it offends my sensibilities, the problem is NOT with the text or the Author, it is with me. Praying with humility and thanksgiving is a very good weapon for fighting these kinds of temptations.

The King of all kings has spoken...it is not for us to plug our ears to any of His Word, but to submit ourselves to ALL of it with joy in the One who has spoken it to us in love.

Here is a link to the sermon if you would like to listen to it too.
Thanks for stopping by, Connie

Happy New Year

2011-01-01T08:40:00.000-08:00

Happy January 1st, 2011 to all my friends in Blogville!

We have two New Years Eve traditions (in addition to gathering with friends, praying together, playing games, enjoying their company, eating a lot, and staying up way later than we normally do). These are all things we do on other occasions throughout the year, but there are two things special to New Year's Eve.

Before midnight strikes, we gather in a circle on the living room floor to share things from the past year we are thankful for. We turn out the lights and pass a candle from person to person, giving everybody an opportunity...whoever has the candle, gets to do the talking. Themes of thankfulness this year included things like: having loving family and friends, a gospel-proclaiming church to be a part of, various fun times God gave such as a trip to Bullwinkles and camping, the growth God has given us (spiritually, emotionally, physically, mentally), ministry opportunities God gave us and the fruit that was born for His glory and our joy, the privilege of being able to stay home with our children and home school them for the Moms, and having jobs for the Dads in which they can honor the Lord and provide for their families.

Our second tradition is to pour glasses of whatever fruity drink is desired among our available options and to take turns making toasts as we look forward to the new year God is bringing us into. We have much to anticipate because we have our hope in God, who rules and reigns with justice and mercy. Throughout the Christmas season we sing things like "joy to the world, the Lord has come, let earth, receive her King....He comes to make His blessings flow, far as the curse is found." And "Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given." I worship this Son, who will see only increase to the government upon His shoulders. I adore this Son, who "rules the world with truth and grace, and makes the nations prove, the glories of His righteousness and wonders of His love." I believe this is what we can continue to look forward to in 2011...may He give us growing faithfulness to Him this year, a boldness to proclaim Him to those He brings us into relationship with, and a love that serves others near and far with His wisdom and grace.

Happy New Year to you! I'm off to enjoy my friends who happen to still be here this morning, and my family...they are all waking up now. Thanks for stopping by.

How can you be in two places at once?

2010-12-29T07:06:00.000-08:00

Do you have a bucket list? I don't officially, but simply because I never thought to write one. If I did though, I'm pretty sure that "being in two places at one time" would have been on it; that is until recently when I would have been able to cross it off.

You see, my friend Erica Shubin introduced me to a few of her friends from church about a year or so ago (Mrs. B, Rachel Walser, Melissa Maser and Christy Waulk), and friendships started to forge. We all love the Lord, which laid a mighty good foundation. We all have a heart to see orphans grafted into Christian homes and are working and praying to that end in various capacities. I didn't think I was short of friends, but God knew what a blessing these gals were going to be to me and gave me a few more to enjoy. Thank you, Father! I live in Oregon and they live in Florida...we've not YET met face to face (besides Erica who I knew here in Oregon before she moved to Florida), but that has not stopped us from communicating often. Mrs. B and I are like the ra-ra squad, cheering the Shubins, the Walsers, the Masers, and the Waulks on as their families pursue adoption. Locally, my family is also currently cheering on more Shubins, and the Marls. What a delight to get to be a part of each of these stories of love! What an amazing God we serve who sets the solitary into families! But I divert (due to excitement about such things).

Well, in two short days, the Walsers get to board a plane bound for Ethiopia where they will soon gather their Abby-girl into their arms and bring her home with them. And recently there was a shower to celebrate little Abby, as we all anticipate her homecoming. The morning of the shower, I was at home getting ready to go to my niece Leah's for a candle party we had planned to raise funds for the local Shubins and Marls when I got a phone call from Mrs. B. She called to tell me she was printing out a picture of me so I could be at Abby's shower. Very sweet! I was giddy all day about being able to be there, at least in flat form. Of course I had to ask the party gals later what kind of time I had (I reportedly had a blast! and I believe it).

Here is beautiful Abby!

Erica's oldest daughter Nichol made sure I had a good time

(thanks Nichol, love you friend...

I think I'll need to be at Zahra's shower too...hint, hint)

Rachel, getting ready to open the present we sent

Mrs. B reading the story that went with the gift

(thanks Barbara)

When we learned from Rachel's trip to meet Abby

that she loved purple,

my girls made a scarf and necklace for her.

How my girls bless my soul with their sweet spirits!

Can you find me?

I'm sitting on Christy's shoulders :-)

These gals know how to make someone feel special. Please join me in praying for the Walsers as they make another trip to Ethiopia and for Abby's homecoming. There will be great transitions to go through, but I believe with all my heart that the grace of our God will prove sufficient in them all.

The other really fun news is that while in Ethiopia, the Walsers will get to love on Zahra. Who's Zahra? She's a 4 year old princess in the same orphanage as Abby who will be grafted into Erica's family as soon as all the legal i's can be dotted and the t's crossed (oh, and the funds raised to complete the process). How cool is it that these two four year old girls will be joining two families in the same church? Way cool! Please pray for the Shubins too as they wait upon the Lord to bring Zahra home.

Thanks for stopping by and joining in the fun,

Connie

Almost 10

2010-12-24T11:04:00.000-08:00

MJ's birthday is the day after Christmas and USUALLY we spend it together as a family in a mellow, day after Christmas, sort of fashion. This year we opted to be a little different. Our good friends, the Coombs, were blessed with the addition of an out-of-the-womb daughter Wednesday night. We have an action-packed-plan for the next few days so the idea came up of going to see the new baby and then coming home to celebrate a very special girl's birthday early...an idea that stuck.

We were very thrilled to meet Silvia...isn't she beautiful?

Getting to hold her and give her sweet kisses was worth the traffic issues of getting there...even with three kids in the backseat saying "are we there yet?; I've gotta go to the bathroom; I'm thirsty," etc.

Congratulations dear friends...we continue to rejoice with you! When we came home, we switched gears to celebrate OUR daughter (born 10 years and 4 days before little Sylvia).

Happy almost birthday MJ...we love you more than words alone can express!

She'll be 10 on the 26th!

Every year, our tradition is to give the kids presents

equal in number to their age.

(That is until their 10th birthday,

so this is the last round of that for this one!)

The birthday person in our family gets to pick their dessert...

she wanted Costco's cream puffs this year.

She was pretty excited about these shoes!

Isn't she beautiful too?

Our family continues to rejoice over her!

Mixin' it up

2010-12-20T07:47:00.000-08:00

What is one of the first things that happens when we have a family or two over to visit? Typically, the kids gather together and begin to play, the ladies venture to the kitchen and the guys hang out in the living room or out on the patio. At church, I witness something similar...groups form: pockets of women here, smatterings of men there, and kids chasing each other wherever there is floor space. Often people gravitate towards others of their gender and age group. And that isn't necessarily a bad thing (at least not all the time), but it is fun to mix it up sometimes. Last night afforded such an opportunity.

One of the ministries of our church is to visit elderly people in a nearby Assisted Living Residence. Our family has not been as involved in this as we would like to be due to schedule conflicts, but occasionally we are able to participate and it is always a joyful time. Last night was particularly fun as we gathered together with gifts and music and the word of our God with the aim of blessing the residents and helping them enjoy the Christmas season. Young and old, male and female, all laughing and singing and visiting together...all rejoicing that Jesus came to save us.

I took this before all the seats were filled,

but the room ended up packed

with young people sitting on the floor

and some of us standing in the back.

I LOVED that so many of the residents came to join the party.

Interacting after the service:

Mmmmm...yummy cookies and punch

Little ones who brought many smiles
with their antics through the evening:

Aunt Sharon even got a massage out of the deal :-)

My kiddos and I drove around town for awhile after we left, looking at lights and chatting together about the evening with our elderly friends. God gave us all a delightful evening. I hope our elderly friends had as good of a time as we did. Thank you, Father.

Can a Christmas Tree Talk?

2010-12-17T07:43:00.000-08:00

Last week we, like so many other people, decorated our Christmas tree. Over the years, we have accumulated a diversity of ornaments that give the tree a rather eclectic appearance once they're hung. Now if all I saw was how it looked to the eye, I admit it may bother my sense of symmetry and cohesion and order, but I see more...I see stories. Beautiful stories!

Each year, the kids receive a special ornament from their grandparents, along with a note telling why that one was chosen. They know these stories, and the love behind them, and it is so fun to watch them pull their ornaments out one by one and recount its particular memory as they hang it.

Paul "beating" our small family drum ornament

Each year we also add matching family ornaments, one for each of our stockings...a tradition that looks to the future when they'll have families of their own, Lord willing. We wanted them to have some ornaments to take with them when they leave our home; ornaments that will remind them of the strong bonds of family and how God has worked in our lives. These ornaments all have stories too.

MJ holding an ornament from England,

a gift and reminder of relatives that live there.

A number of our ornaments have been hand-crafted by the kids or by friends, or given to us as gifts...these too represent stories of love and friendship and so many other wonderful things. I used to think decorating the tree was just something to get done during the holiday season. Add this arena to the list of things I've changed my mind on over the years. Now I am SO GLAD God gives us this time together, remembering, laughing, and sharing our lives. We make special holiday drinks that usually involve chocolate and/or caramel and whipped cream and coffee. Christmas music plays in the background, inviting us to sing along.

"hmmm...what's this one?" - Bekah tells the story!

What a grace-filled morning!

Thank You, Father for giving us time,

for giving us stories of love and grace and friendship,

for giving us Your Son who made it possible for us to be reconciled to You!

From our family to yours,

Merry Christmas!

Multilingual

2010-12-11T05:22:00.000-08:00

Even if you've never read Dr. Gary Chapman's book (like me, though maybe one day I will), you've likely heard of "The Five Love Languages."

Dr. Gary Chapman contends from his years of experience in counseling: "Of the countless ways we can show love to one another, five key categories, or five love languages, proved to be universal and comprehensive—everyone has a love language, and we all identify primarily with one of the five love languages: Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, Receiving Gifts, Acts of Service, and Physical Touch."

I wonder what language Dr. Chapman would say is the one I identify primarily with. And I wonder if his premise "we ALL identify primarily with one of the five" is correct. Maybe we're all suppose to grow at expressing love in a myriad of ways. Whenever the topic of 5 Love Languages comes up, I tell my husband he married the full package deal. I want it all. And I like to give it all. So does he. Maybe if I read the book I'd be able to identify my ONE language, but for now I am just plain thankful I am married to someone who is multilingual in the languages of love.

I am NOT an engineer

2010-12-10T05:18:00.000-08:00

You can add "engineer" to the list of things I am not. I am not an astronaut, check. I am not a mechanic, check. And this year confirmed it by way of double witness, I am not an engineer, check.

Last year we attempted to make a gingerbread house from scratch. We had a jolly good time and you can read about it here if you like. The fact is though, our house would have been condemned by an inspector immediately due to a more than saggy roof and other unstable conditions. Our wee family decided on the spot to try making a village of smaller houses next year, which is now this year, and here is how it went:

Previous to pictures being taken, we made dough

and designed our houses-to-be by creating cardboard cut-outs.

Then we began the two day adventure of making the pieces.

Here is Paul showing us how to roll out the dough.

The three kiddos took turns rolling out dough and then cutting the various pieces.

The next day our friend Hannah came to be part of the fun.

More rolling and cutting

candles burning

Christmas music in the background

lots of laughter and visiting

After baking the pieces, they needed to be trimmed.

We called these pieces our "crunchings and munchings."

Anyone who has read the Prydain Chronicles will understand.

If you haven't read them, they are a wonderful read-aloud series.

And because it has been brought to my attention recently

that I NEVER

post pictures of just me,

here is one MJ took to remedy that situation.

Yesterday morning we constructed the houses and let them set in our cold garage to stiffen up. And last night, we set them up on the kitchen table...

Armed with many different kinds of candy for decorating,

we were ready to begin.

So far, so good.

Having a good time together.

Looking pretty...

we even had little snow men

(made from yogurt covered peanuts and raisins)

The photos may be a little bit misleading. Truth be known, we had saggy roof problems again this year on three out of five houses. We rolled with the punches and got creative and just kept going. The music still played. The candles still burned. The laughter increased (which is way better than if tears would have started to be shed). All in all we had a grand time. But it is plain to us all that I am not an engineer. At least not yet. Hmmmm...what should we try differently next year?

Proverbs 24:16 "For a righteous man may fall seven times and rise again, but the wicked shall fall by calamity."

"Sweet" jewelry giveaway

2010-12-09T05:37:00.000-08:00

Susannah, over at Life is Too Short Not to Wear Red Shoes, is doing a fun giveaway. She'll be giving away a couple pieces of "sweet" jewelry. This one is my favorite:

She'll be closing it next Monday, December 13th, at 11:59 PM so hop on over to her blog and check it out for more details asap.

St. Nicholas Day

2010-12-07T06:10:00.000-08:00

A few nights ago, a friend and I were driving home after a birthday party we had gone to together and we were chatting about how there are so many things we have changed our minds on over the years. Santa fits in that category for me. I used to be anti-Santa anything and everything. It's true. I thought he represented and could only represent materialism and that he was a distraction from any thoughts of Christ a person could have in a season when celebrating Christ's coming was what the season was all about.

The friend Melodie, whose birthday we celebrated, was key in shifting my mind's view on good ole St. Nick. My children were key also because it became very apparent after my oldest was about 2 years old that we had to do SOMETHING with Santa...what were we going to teach our kids? They were being bombarded in the public arena with questions like "what do you want Santa to bring you for Christmas?" We knew we abhorred the practice of telling children Santa lived in the North Pole and drove a sleigh and slid down chimneys to deliver gifts to good little boys and girls only to have them find out years later we'd been lying to them. I haven't changed my mind on that point.

We stumbled upon a little book titled Santa Are You for Real? by Harold Myra that we've come to really enjoy and it is now tradition to read it together every year, as well as incorporating other resources we've come to find along the way. About 6 or 7 years ago, Melodie invited us over for a gingerbread cookie decorating party and introduced us to the practice of celebrating St. Nicholas Day (which is Dec. 6th). After some discussion and further thought, our family began to celebrate in a similar fashion the following year.

Santa doesn't have to represent materialism and be a distraction after all. Our Father really sent Jesus and He came (amazing!), and through His life and sacrifice we have been brought near, given new life in Christ, and been made true children of God (astounding!). In heaven, a crowd of witnesses cheers us on in this life, rooting for us to run the race of faith with endurance, assuring us any price we are called to pay is worth seeing Jesus face to face. And though Saint Nicholas isn't mentioned in the Scriptures like Abraham or Moses or David or the saints of the New Testament, he was still a man whose life was made new by God and as he cheers us on, we can learn from him. He was orphaned early and instead of being bitter, he rejoiced in his Savior. Instead of being self-absorbed with the wealth he was left with, he was a cheerful giver. He lived a faith-filled life of service for the glory of our God. We can look to his life and see how Jesus was made known through the grace given to him...and we can be cheered on to make Him known in our lives through grace-empowered, faith-filled service for His glory.

We have loved the fruit of this practice. The joy of the season is spread out as we open stalkings on December 6th. Our children are equipped to be winsome for Christ when asked about Santa in the stores. We have found that the example of the real jolly ole St. Nicholas has not distracted, but aided our focus upon Christ. And the contrast between the real man and how he is represented today helps us consider the fallen nature of mankind and our need for our Savior.

We hope you and yours had a lovely St. Nicholas Day (Dec. 6th).

We did.

Thanks for stopping by.