Three days...three words

Freedom!  We watched the part of the rally in Warren, MI the other night.  It is maddening to me that people think the President we have now is better than this man who can speak coherently for an hour and 45 minutes about facts and figures and people.  I am at a loss when I think how far our country has shifted in two years...but then again we are told in God's Word that the days will wax worse and worse as sin grabs hold of people's lives and thinking is distorted. 

Faith!  We pulled into church on Sunday morning and the view was just pretty.  How refreshing it is to be reminded of God's faithfulness on the mountaintops and even in the valleys.

Food!  Friends of our family experienced an accident that injured father and son to the point they needed surgery and are still in the hospital.  How do you help?  You pray...but then you do what God puts on your heart!  Being reminded this week to be the hands and feet of Jesus when He prompts me!

 

A Sunday Evening Recap

As we sat together last night before bed, Ted asked Teddy, "What did you learn in Sunday School today?"  This is a regular question that is usually asked at our Sunday dinner table.  "UM...well, we just reviewed the story of Abraham...I didn't learn anything." he replied.

Alisa and Ashlynn skipped into the room...finally...after getting ready for bed.

"Alisa, what did you learn in Sunday School?  You are in the same class as Teddy...did you learn the same as he did?" Dad asked.

She learned "all about Abraham and Sarah...and then they...and...they gave food to these men who were really angels...and then...and then Lot and his wife left the city...and Lot's wife turned...and do you know what she did?  She turned and looked back...and became a pillar of salt.  Would salt really be able to stay as a pillar or would it just turn to a pile?  The picture showed it was a whitish pillar.  Someone asked our teacher that and she said that was a good question...."

We both smiled...and sort of giggled...but not out loud.

"Ashlynn, what did you learn?" Dad asked.  "Dad, you know, you were the one who taught the lesson today.  You told us about apathy...or is it ape-athy?  We aren't to be lazy Christians." she answered.

We are always blessed when we listen to our children during these times.  Well, sometimes...we are concerned...inserting a big smile here!  But most often blessed...and even convicted!

As you think back over the services you placed your family in yesterday...there should be much to think and talk about!  God's Word has the answers for daily life...but how much time do we spend learning and talking about those answers?

What did you fill your family members' minds with yesterday?  Is it worth talking about?

"I have a story to tell you about Easter...but it has nothing to do with bunnies, eggs, and baskets!"

We have been bombarded with advertisements for special dresses/suits and accessories, baskets and accompanying paraphenalia, special sales on hams and lilies, community egg hunts, and all sorts of other expectations surrounding this Sunday. 

I took a mental inventory.  We're set...we dress like that every week for church.  God deserves our best...always.  We will spend the day in God's house.  We will have dinner with Papa and Grandma and eat cheesecake for dessert.  The girls picked out chocolate treats for the men in our life.  I still do fun things.

But...I sit here still wondering...what is the big deal!?! 

As one of God's children, everyday that we have breath should be lived in submission to the work that was completed on the cross and triumphed over the grave!

Why the big show this Sunday? 

What about every other Sunday of the year? 

What about every day of the week? 

I wonder who we think we are impressing by all the extra "ta-da" we are putting into this Sunday.

Do we forget that God looks on the heart?

I am confused and tired by all the fussing. 

It didn't matter last week...why now?

What are we teaching our children by our actions?  Are we confusing them by "all of a sudden" making how they dress this week for church a big deal?  Are you causing them to stumble by "all of a sudden" making church top priority this week?  What is your motivation?  What is your purpose? 

If I am an adult...and I am confused...I am sure our children are!

I saw the looks on the faces of several children this week as we shared

the true Easter story during Kid's Club.

We have forgotten the price that was paid on the cross. 

We have forgotten the power of the resurrection. 

We have forgotten the promise of Heaven.

But...we remembered the bunnies, eggs, baskets, and fancy clothes!

And the little children around us...are confused...

because the adults in their lives

either

don't know the truth or practice the truth.

I asked the question...

"When will I quit getting a lump in my throat any/every time that Alisa says she doesn't feel well?"  There was no answer, just a recognition of the differences between mom and dad.
Alisa and I are home today.  She has had a high fever yesterday and today.  It comes down with ibuprofen.  Her head hurts.  She slept restlessly last night.  Hopefully the extra rest will make a difference for her today.  Sickness is still being passed around these parts...I need to just take a deep breath and remember that!

Ever have a day...

where you have a constant lump in your throat?  And makes your stomach feel like a knot?  Which gives you a pain in your head?  And makes your eyes smart?

A simple reward for enduring Black Friday

What a day for employers and employees in the retail world!  Black Friday.  What a racket!  Yet...each year the entire...or most of the...country falls for it.  Ted left the house at 2:30am and didn't return until 5:20pm due to the Black Friday push.  Crowds of people lined up in the cold, dark, early morning hours.  It makes me ask...why would anyone do that?!  There is nothing I want or need to get or give that is worth that.  I realize some people are thrilled by it.  Hundreds of people rearranged their schedules and made special arrangements to make Black Friday a priority of their Thanksgiving weekend. 

I wonder...how much effort will be given by many of these same people regarding this Sunday?  Or next week in their jobs?  Was the money, that is to be set aside for God in tithes and offerings, spent in the name of a "good deal" and with the thought that "He understands how things are!"?  I wonder how much time and effort will be given to God this weekend in His house by those who call themselves Christians.  After all...it is one way to show thankfulness for all that He has done for us and given to us!  Where is our treasure being layed up?  Matthew 6:19-21

It was easy to talk about the concept of thankfulness as we prepared for Thursday...now...how will we apply it to our daily living...Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and the following days?   We are so affected by the schemes of this world's system.  We have bought into the whole Black Friday trap...and it has left us weak and broke and full of excuses for the one day this week that is the Lord's. 

After today's schedules, I wonder...if 9:30am is really too early for Sunday School...after all! 

Still befuddled by the statement that was made last night...

"If it is good enough for my kids, then I figured it must be good for me too."

  Isn't that backwards?  Or just really off track?  It just hits me wrong.

I am still trying to figure out how this thought process fits into God's Word.  I can't find any Scripture to back it up.  What has happened to the adults in our country?  We have no backbone.  We have no direction.  We have switched our focus from basing things on God's Word to what we can feel or imagine.  We focus so much attention on the love of God, that we forget about the holiness of God.
As a Dad and Mom who have been washed by the blood of Jesus Christ, it is not the responsibility of our children to lead us.  It is the responsibility of the father to lead and guide the home.  The mother and children are to follow their husband/father, as he follows Christ.  I realize that there are times when children get saved before their parents.  It is then their opportunity to be a testimony to those around them...family and friends. 
The book of Ephesians is very direct about God's authority structure for His people.  It is the right way.  It is at time the hard way because of our selfish hearts.  But it is the best way!  Proverbs and many other verses talk about how parents are to train their children.  Because of our lack of discernment and standards these days, we are not teaching our children to be discerning.  When we follow God's way, we think differently and it sets us apart.  That is where we run into problems...we don't want to be that peculiar people that God calls us to be!  I Peter 2:9  If we are going to be discerning, we must teach and understand the whole counsel of God...not just the parts that make us feel good...or don't cause any friction!  We have been called out of darkness...into His marvelous light.  It should show in how we lead our children...not in how they lead us!

Is it summer?

The calendar says it is...but the weather is proving otherwise! I am loving it! A warm sweatshirt and a cup of coffee on this cloudy, cool summer day...time to light a yummy smelling candle and curl up with a good book! Never mind...laundry just finished drying and my little buddy is hollering from his nap...well, it was good while it lasted!
The day still kind of puts me in the mood for autumn...mmmm...
another season...
another change...

TO SHARE OR NOT TO SHARE...THAT IS THE QUESTION!

How do you get ready for the first day of school?

"I don't want to go! I will stay home and go to work with Daddy!"
"I make sure my hair is perfectly arranged!"
"I think about all the fun I will have in my auntie's class!"
We invite Mom and Dad to the lake for the weekend and spend lots of time on the boat, eating, laughing, cuddling, and watching the kids...and seeing how much they have grown up and are changing! Then we come home, take showers, eat a snack, and go to bed by the appointed time of 8:00p.m., and everyone falls asleep...except Mommy...who decides to download the weekend pictures to make room for the first day of school pictures and contemplate the fact that 6:00a.m. is going to come awfully early!

Will the tooth fairy be able to find Ashlynn?

The "tooth fairy" has had "trouble" finding Ashlynn...lake, home, and now Grandma's! I am sure she will "catch up with her" tonight! Alisa "accused me" of forgetting because "I am the tooth fairy or Daddy is". I firmly pointed out that "I do not have wings and certainly your father does not have wings". A friend from church added, "There is nothing fairy about your Daddy...no way, no how!" We enjoyed a laugh and the look on Alisa's face!

What are Daddy and Teddy doing this afternoon?

Watching the Boone County Fair Tractor Pulls!

Coffee Break Treat...that never ends

I was given some starter...ya know, the only ones who know how to make it are the Amish kind...
and it is wonderfully yummy...but really, it is a job that will never end...anyone want some starter to feed? Off to put on our Saturday coffee and cut some cake for a visit with Grammy...

Today's Past, Present, and Future

We are filling up on Patch th Pirate these days! As Ted and I listen along, we are amazed at how many of the songs we remember! The old adage "Garbage in, garbage out" has been at the forefront of our thinking lately. It is our job to protect our children...as best we can...so when they are confronted with ungodly things, they can choose the right! The kids finally are enjoying the adventures of Patch and the gang! (We tried before and "it is too scary" or "why did they stop singing again?" They get the whole idea now!!!) An added blessing...it is quiet in the van unless they are singing along! We pray that God's truthes will be cemented with these wonderful characters and message! If you don't have them in your home...you are missing a big treat!
This is for Angie...since she told "our neighbors that we are a bunch of rednecks"...not really, but dear friend, it looks as though we have a start! All I see is how much yardwork there is for me, uh, no, the kids to do! See the rocks and sticks and toys...all them...not me!!!
Soon...we will be able to use the bathroom! Drywall, mud, door....progress is being made with Teddy's help! Next big job...sanding the mud and mudding again. We shall have to have a ribbon cutting ceremony for the boy's bathroom!

How do you spell disappointment?

L-O-C-K-E-D G-A-T-E at the lakehouse!

It was such a beautiful day yesterday...so after church we loaded into the van to take a drive and have lunch. The idea was to eat and go check out the lakehouse and walk by the lake...whose idea was that anyway?! We enjoyed being together and getting a running commentary from Teddy about everything that was outside his window! We ate lunch at one of the favorites...Culvers! We drove up to the lakehouse campground...only to find the gate locked...yeah, it was my idea...and the disappointment to the little travellers was more than they could bear...they all cried! (Being tired and in the process of getting sick/recovering from probably played a part!)

Yes...we have been counting the days till it is time to go to the lake and we were looking forward to a little glimpse of things to come...but before we do that again...we'll call first.

Another look at perspective!

The bowl is empty!!! For now!!!
Round four has hit...Ashlynn first...and we are waiting to see who else will go down and out.
I have to say that it is nice when sickness doesn't hit till 6:30 in the morning...I am more able to handle the clean-up process with a cheerful spirit and there isn't anything left in the body to make that big of a mess...unless of course the bowl isn't present...then there are blankets to wash and a chair arm to scrub!
I hate it when the kids are sick...you know it hurts and there is nothing to do but hold their hair back and keep a firm hold on the bowl!
I remember all the sick days I had...and Mom was always there with cool hands to feel the fevered head and cheek, hold the hair back from the face, wash the face with a warm cloth, spreading out a blanket on the couch and towel on the pillow, washing load after load of laundry...often in the middle of the night, offering 7up with ice in a cup, offering the bucket, cleaning up the ever-present germs, checking on and off to see that all is well, being busy but quiet so you could rest...but never to busy not to hear the faintest "not right sound", buttered toast being cut into little squares...all the little touches of a mother trying to ease the discomfort of being sick.
I am glad that I can be here at home for days such as this... making each child comfortable and helping them know how much I love them by the little Mom touches that my Mom taught me! You always need a Mom when you are sick...I know I still do...and I have the blessing of two Moms here in town...it is nice to be needed!

A treat from a friend...

I have the sweetest friend who knows how to be a blessing...she will still be my friend even though I am not right sometimes! I need to give credit to her too...she has the neatest crafty ideas and books and stamps and thoughtful little gifts...they are often used to inspire me!
Gone...yep, all gone! And I did share it with Ted...however, I ate most of it...he went for the nightly cookies and milk...bless him!!! This was to be a four serving box...with xxx calories per serving...yeah, well I enjoyed all xxxx calories minus the xx calories that Ted ate. Can I say...I don't even care!? I just won't have anything but healthy food today! Ha ha ah ah ha ha ha, yeah right! Next week, I will care and I will be sad...but not today...that's how women are! Sad, but true!

Through the cabinet glass...

As I sat this morning in the livingroom, my gaze was drawn to the Gram's china cabinet, now ours. Many of the things were given to me as gifts and some came from Mom and Gram. Pretty cups, saucers, candy dishes, candlesticks, pitchers, bowls...all sitting there...waiting to be used...used at one time or another...used for good purposes...used for the hostess' pleasure...washed and dried...and lovingly set aside...for now...till the hostess has another reason and purpose to bring them out. Like this life...

TGIF!!!

Today was a day that called for a little date in the midst of running some very important errands. Nothing can be sweeter than sitting across from a little guy with a buttery, chocolate-milky smile and listening to him say (around a mouthful of Panera toasted bagel), "MMM...this is really good, Mom!" Yes...it was...a cinnamon crunch bagel and cup of hazelnut coffee! It melted away the stress of the morning commute!
We saw three accidents and one lady almost pulled out into us and caused another accident...as she watched the clean-up of one! My apologies to my son for not restraining my tongue in the moment of utter fear. Idiot...is now in his vocabulary. Why is it that when I hit the steering wheel, the horn never sounds? I need to have my mechanic make it more sensitive! Why would you pull out into traffic not paying attention to the line of vehicles making their right of way?! Because her time was more valuable? Because accident scenes are so interesting that it would be fun to be in one?
I really wish I could have talked to her...she would have hit right where Teddy was sitting if I hadn't been watching and swerved...my cargo was more precious than her shiny, fancy car! Her time crunch! And her entertainment!
So...it was important to stop and enjoy the little moment with my son...and apologize for calling someone an idiot.

Perspective...

Always a sink full of dishes...dry or dirty...doesn't matter! There are people in my life who need/want to eat and it is my job...so this perspective...is job security! HA