How Sweet It Is!

How sweet is this picture? I took this precious photo when the littlest was snoozing in her "kajamas" and the pearls, which she wears every day (not on her feet) were a.dor.a.ble. Love my babies, all three of them! :)

Be Still ...

There are days when all seems overwhelming and unrelenting and seriously, I'm not convinced I can manage it all. Then peace that passes all understanding, that feels so surreal at times, takes over and I remember that I don't have to manage it all. All I have to do is trust God. He is in charge, not me. He has the perfect plans and He absolutely will bring them to fruition if I will just will myself to sit back, get out of His way, and trust Him.

All He Says I Am ...

This picture absolutely took my breath away. The sweet children these hands belong to are living in Africa at Touch A Life. They have been rescued from slavery and child trafficking and all manners of evil and are now living in freedom and learning how much their Heavenly Daddy loves them. Seriously, God is A-MA-ZING! What He is doing to change the lives of these kiddo's is simply ... no words for how great it is. And, we have been priveleged to help through my sweet friend, Kimberli Brackett. It is no small thing to be a conduit for God in loving on His people. And, when one chooses to be a part of His plan, there is no question Who all the glory goes to, God! Why? Because He rocks!

 

The great truth of this photo are the words that are written on these precious hands ... set apart, chosen, beloved, blessed, loved, no flaws, beautiful, rescued, masterpiece ... and the list goes on and all those words God writes on my hand and on yours and what's more, He has my name and your name written on the palm of His hands.

 

"See I have written your name on my hand." Isaiah 49:16a (NCV)

 

"Behold, I have indelibly imprinted (tattooed a picture of) you on the palm of each of My hands ..." Isaiah 49:16a (AMP)

 

That is my identity. That is your identity in Christ. That is who we are and Whose we are and when we believe in and love and follow Jesus, nothing and no one can take that away.

And God ...

There is much going on here. There is a spiritual battle going on all.the.time and how can we ignore it and name it by earthly names. And, in the midst of waiting, there is anger and truth and wanting to quit and feeling like throwing my hands up and Abraham's faith and waiting on God and the noise. The chatter. The constant speaking and static and ick that goes on in my head and it's a battle. And, there is truth. God's truth. God's promises. God's Word. It never changes. He never lies. He does what He says He will. And ... He STILL speaks. Absolutely. And, the more crazy I feel saying it, the more truthful it is. I have stood in complete earthly crazy before. And, God ... He NEVER fails. So, I get just quiet enough to hear Him whisper. And, that is where peace, truth, love, joy and rest lie. Yes, friends, He still speaks ... And, I love Him all the more.

*Picture borrowed from Marissa.

2013

This Year ...

I will be fiercely true to the me that God created.
I WILL NOT LAY DOWN in the unrelenting war against my heart.
I will walk in my own story more than any other person's story.
I will attack with ferocity the execution of the vision for my life.
I will do all I know to remain unguarded, while still guarding my heart.
I will love with courage, and not shrink in passivity.
I will learn to be truly vulnerable in my relationships.
I will laugh more and I will sabbath my soul. - Bob Hamp

I'm not sure I could've said it any better. I want to be closer than I've ever been to the Lover of my Soul. I want to be a better wife, mother, daughter, daughter-in-law, friend, sister, aunt, and servant than I was last year or have ever been. I want to stand in God's amazing grace and love and have it splash off of me and onto others who don't know Him or who need to know Him in ways they never have before. And, to continue to experience the joy of walking forward as a family into what God has planned for us. And, I know, with God's help, that is exactly what we will do! Here's to 2013!

Bible In 90 Days: We Did It!!!

Yes folks, we finished! I am proud of our little family. We read the Bible OUT LOUD from Genesis to Revelation in 90 days: September 9, 2012 through December 18, 2012!

It required much discipline, changed attitudes at times, redirection, an act of our will some times, and an online person reading it out loud to us some times, but we accomplished what we set out to do. And, oh, the learning that happened and the loving Jesus that happened and the Word of God read OUT LOUD in our home for an hour to an hour and a half every.single.day that happened! Well-worth the effort!

We learned, again, that God's Word IS living and active. There are things in stories we've heard that we didn't remember or never recalled learning. There are things in the Bible we didn't remember reading before, ever. God whispered sometimes and roared others. And, we prayed together every day. What an incredible gift and blessing!

Would I recommend it to you? ABSOLUTELY! It is well-worth the commitment and the time and the discipline to do it.

What next you ask? Glad you did. After prayerful consideration, we have decided that January 1, we will read the Bible together as a family over the year using the One Year Bible (a little Old Testament, a little New Testament, a little Psalms and a little Proverbs every day) and memorize 10 Bible verses a month as a family. Fun! Excited! Love it! Thank you, Lord!

Country Girls

We always love the trip to Grannie and Paw-paw's house in the country for a multitude of reasons. Here are a few ...

Helping pick up wire left over from the deer fence that was built.

Picking up sticks!

Watching Grannie walk through wire and wondering ...

... perhaps I could do it, too!

Four-wheeling.

Discovering many cool things in the pole barn!

See? Very cool!

Shoveling and collecting rocks.

Hugging "big bear."

A girls gets exhausted there's so much to do!

Walkie talkie-ing. Is that a word?

Cooking.

 

And, heading out to hunt while blowing a kiss to your wife! :)