HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

Today my precious Caleb turns 9!!! :) His birthday is always the day when I diligently seek the Lord in what He would have me pray over and focus on with Caleb throughout the next twelve months... for He is the only One Who knows exactly what Caleb's needs will be during this time. Thanking the Lord for Caleb-

HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MY DEAR SON!!!

Weekend Happenings...

Without faith it is impossible to please Him; for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him (Heb. 11:6).

It seems like just yesterday when I heard those two precious words... "HE'S beautiful!" And I knew we had our Caleb... This weekend we celebrate his 9th birthday (his actual b-day is next Tuesday). It will be a fun time for him and his friends and family that will come and celebrate with him, and yet a little bittersweet for me... As he gets older I find I seek the Lord's wisdom more and more in just how to shepherd his heart... we're hitting the 'tween' years, which are quickly becoming almost as dreaded by parents as the 'teen' years (though I don't feel that way and hope I never do). Anyway, I'm so thankful to God for this precious gift! Children truly are a heritage from the Lord. "Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are they. Blessed is the man whose house is full of them."

My dear in-laws come in from Wisconsin this afternoon to spend the weekend with us... we are very excited because they are coming in early and staying until Monday! YAY!! :) My dear sister-in-law and nephew are coming up from Detroit on Saturday, though we're not sure if she's staying until Sunday or not. There's always contention there as she's not a believer, and, in fact, is quite antagonistic towards Christianity and Christians. My heart aches for her, her husband and our nephew for the empty life they lead filling their void with crazy working hours and lots of material stuff... so I keep praying for them that the Lord will reveal to them the true source of their emptiness. Saturday finds us celebrating Caleb's birthday with friends and family, and Sunday worshiping the Lord with our church family... a glorious weekend indeed filled with many blessings.

May your weekend be just as blessed as ours will...

Aaaahhhh Finally Normal...

Finally we're getting back to 'normal' around here... Well as normal as it ever gets, I guess.

If having a child who sings at the top of his lungs every time he's in a public bathroom (or at home or in the shower); making a musical out of the most mundane of tasks; homeschooling; using a Southern, English, Scottish, Australian or Spanish (I just can't quite get the hang of German or French accents) accent with every story you read your children are all normal things, well then I guess we're normal...

But seriously, I am ever so glad to have had this past weekend to be able to stay home with my children and have nowhere to go and nothing pressing to do or get done. It's been since October that I've really felt refreshed after a weekend and not rushed for anything. I really miss the days when we didn't have quite so much to do... I wish I would have appreciated them more at the time (I sure do appreciate them now!)

The lesson of this particular season of my life is summed up in one simple (or not so simple) word: Longsuffering. You know, that patient endurance the Lord trains us in using not so wonderful situations. So, I am waiting on Him, patiently enduring this season and allowing Him to further conform me to His likeness...

I just hope it doesn't take too long... :)

Jesus or Christianity?

They can seem to be one in the same... if you are a follower of Jesus you are a committed Christian. If you are a committed Christian chances are you are involved in a local church, a relevant Bible study, some type of ministry, and various 'do-good for others' activities. The question is... Why? What is your motivation for doing all these great things (they are all good things that we need to be involved in as Christians)? I was replaying in my mind something that happened over the weekend that made me wonder why it is that for all the good and great and righteous things we as Christians (and me as a Christian) do, why is it that non-Christians often act more 'Christian-like' that Christians do? As I was pondering this the Lord laid on my heart the following question:

"Do you love Me, or do you love Christianity?"

WHOA!!! Stop the presses!!! Aren't they the same thing? Well, we all know the answer to that.** The truth of the matter is that I love Jesus... but I've lost sight of that and begun to put too much importance on 'being a Christian' and doing all the things a good Christian woman should be doing. Do you struggle with that? My heart longs for the day when I am so completely consumed with Him and His ways that my normal response to situations is exactly what Jesus would do...

Are you pursuing church or are you pursuing the Kingdom? When Jesus heard this, he said, "Healthy people don't need a doctor - sick people do." Then he added, "Now go and learn the meaning of this Scripture: "I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices. For I have come ...to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners." Matt. 9:12-13

Lord, hear the cry of my heart...that I would be a woman that truly loves you with all her heart, all her soul, all her mind, and all her strength...

** the answer is 'no' if you didn't already know that

This Year...

In spite of my dreary entrance into 2010, with the Lord as my strength, I have resolved to do some things differently... so...
This year, I am going to play more with my children- without an agenda...
This year, I am going to seek the Lord each day- especially those days that are chock full of activity...
This year, I am not going to feel guilty over my failures, but will give them over to the One who can Heal all those broken pieces...
This year, I am going to read the Bible with the intention of knowing Him more intimately, not just to add to my personal "Christian to-do list"...
This year, I am going to seek the Lord in being a better wife in a couple of areas in which I am failing...
This year, I am going to take better care of myself spiritually, physically, and emotionally... and finally...
This year, I am going to learn to rest in the Lord...

The Truth Is...

It's January 4th... still the beginnings of a new year loom ahead... I know I should be looking ahead with much anticipation for all the great things the Lord has in store for us in 2010...
The truth is I'm not...
The truth is I'm just as weary as I was in October, November, and December...
The truth is that for no reason in particular, I am just a little sad...
The truth is that I crashed a long time ago and I don't know how to get back on track...
The truth is that I know all 'the right things' to do, but have little to no energy to actually do them...
The truth is that I am not half the person I desire to be and worry that my children will suffer for it...
The truth is that I wish I had someone to really talk to about it all...

The truth is that this year will be a great year and God will do amazing things in me, in our family, in our church, in our community, and in our country...

My husband and I have been married for 9 1/2 years now, and from the beginning of our romance we realized the importance of constantly working on our relationship. We knew that our marriage was (and is) like a garden, it needs constant tending or it will dry up and die... we DID NOT want that. In fact, when he proposed to me, and again on our wedding day, I very frankly told him, "You know our courtship doesn't end just because we're married... this is truly just the beginning of our life-long courtship..." I said it a little jokingly at the time, and he chuckled while looking adoringly at me- but we both knew it was true if our marriage was going to be truly great. And that's what we aspire to. Because of that, I do a lot of reading during the year as an encouragement to myself to focus on my part in our marriage, as well as seeking the Lord and His divine intervention in those areas where I fall short (trust me, the list is long).
The latest book I've been reading by author Emerson Eggerichs entitled, "The Lanaguage of Love and Respect," is an excellent follow-up to his previous book, "Love and Respect." Though I didn't read the original "Love and Respect," my husband and I worked through Eggerichs' DVD series of the same title with our small group Bible study. This was eye-opening for both of us - as we have on occasion disagreed on different matters, and ended in a frustrated heap with our heads reeling wondering, "what in the world just happened???"
"The Language of Love and Respect" is an excellent addition to any married couple's library. One of the greatest things about the book is that you don't have to read "Love and Respect" prior to this book, as Eggerich thoroughly covers the 'Love and Respect' basics before tackling more specific communication challenges couples typically face. There are tons of practical helps for women and men who literally don't know how to respond when their spouse says/does something that seems unloving or disrespectful. As with anything, the suggestions and helps in this book are not a 'cure-all' nor are they a formula for a marriage that is perfectly happy all the time... marriage takes work... but with the tools presented here, a heart and mind open to the Lord, and a willingness to living up to God's calling as a wife or husband, anyone can make a blah-marriage into a great one.
All in all, Emerson Eggerichs' "The Language of Love and Respect" is a great book for married couples in all stages of their marriages. From the honeymoon phase to the separated, being able to communicate WITH one another is a vital component in a healthy - and happy marriage... it has certainly made a difference in my marriage!

I wonder why...

I was reading a friend's blog a little earlier this evening... in it she recounted a couple of experiences she had- one of them being breaking her toe because her 6year old son had created a 'web' from her bed to her dresser with a transparent jumprope about one inch from the floor. Needless to say, she walked into her room to get something in the dark and fell and broke her toe... Now, this type of thing happens to her quite often, not necessarily the breaking of bones, but a collage of random unusual circumstances that makes life very challenging at times... I've never had experiences like she does- my life just isn't like that... so, I'm wondering why her and not me... the obvious answer is that God knows just what we can and cannot handle- and I certainly couldn't handle some of the things with my children that she does with hers (though her children are wonderful, they are very creative)... So, I wonder why her children do things like that, and mine don't... I wonder if I'm doing something wrong that my children don't express their creativity in a similar fashion...
I know my children are very creative and love adventure, but I certainly hope that I- nor anyone else in our home- would have any broken bones as a result of their creativity...