How to Get the Most Out of Church

I have to start by saying that the title of this post is way off base.  The point of going to church isn't for us to get an emotional lift, but the fact remains that if you go for the wrong reason, you will miss out on what God prepared for you. If you go with a consumer mentality, you will be looking for a church that gives you more of what you want.  (Here's a tip, if you want to go to one of God's churches, the leadership will be more concerned with what God wants than what you want.)

So without any further ado, here are some things to keep in mind the next time you step into church that will help you to optimize your experience.
*note;  In all of these remarks, I am talking about a well balanced church with a pastor who loves God's Word and is faithful to the doctrines of the Bible.

1. Remember your pastor doesn't deserve your faithfulness.
Gasp.  I know that sounds terrible, but stay with me.  The Bible says (Heb. 10:25) Christians should not forsake the assembly.  It also says that some have the custom of doing just that, but Christians should, instead, assemble more and more as the day comes that Christ will return for us.  The Bible also says (Matt. 18:20) that Christ is present in a very special way anytime the church comes together. (More on that later.)  If you go to church because you think your pastor deserves that kind of faithfulness, there will come a day when you notice that he is, in fact, not Christ Himself.  He is human.  He does, occasionally, sin.  And you will not want to come to church.  When you do, you will sit there and think, "Why am I here listening to this sinner bloviate for an hour?"  It isn't worth it!

We don't attend church for the sake of our pastor.  I have had six wonderful pastors in my life, and will say that each one was a holy man of God. Regardless, sometimes I was misjudged or misunderstood.  (Not that often, really, but we can obsess over one bad day and destroy all the joy God has for us in His church.)  If we go to church because we love Christ, leadership being human will not discourage us.

2.  Church is for broken people, and you are one of them.
When God's Word is preached, and the Holy Spirit moves without hindrance, something wonderful happens.  We see ourselves without the self-righteous veil that we often place over our motives and actions.  While needful, this can be super uncomfortable.  One of the most common responses we make, is to misdirect the conviction of the Word of God by saying the pastor has it out for you.  I remember once when I was about 10 that a church member brought his brother to church, and after church his brother was furious, convinced that the pastor (my father) had been told everything about his life, and had prepared everything just for him.  My dad didn't even know the church member had a brother. I have noticed that this is a go-to response for many people, so it must be part of human nature to deflect feelings of guilt by making accusations against the messenger. (Yes, it is, I catch myself doing it from time to time.)
Go to church expecting God to work on purifying you, your heart, your motives.  If you don't, you will wind up sitting there thinking, "Why am I here listening to this guy who hates me bloviate for an hour?" That's a lie, friend.  Chances are, if you have pastors like I have had, you have a pastor you weeps over your name in prayer in the watches of the night, and it hurts him and his family deeply when people assume they hate them.

3.  Ask not what your church can do for you...
  Instead of saying, "This church is not friendly.", BE friendly and fill the need you notice.  I've heard people complain about their church like it's some organization they have nothing to do with. It's not the local grocery store, my friend, it's the Body of Christ, of which you are a member. If it's your church, and you feel left out or lonely, don't blame everyone else.  Do something about it!  You might be the one God has planned to make a difference, but if you react in a selfish way, you will wind up sitting there thinking, "Why do I even go to this church? No one cares about me!"  Get involved, and instead of criticizing failings, make the difference yourself.  (Note:  I am not talking about doctrinal problems or problems with open sin that is not dealt with.  I assume you are not going to one of those churches, and if you are, find another church.)

4.  Go to church expecting to have an experience with Christ. 
Jesus said He would be present in a special way when His church met in His name.  In Revelation 1, we have a wonderful description of Him, and He is walking in the middle of the candlesticks representing churches, watching them.  In Eph. 5 we are given a vision of Christ as loving husband to the church.  His church is special to Him, and you being there is important to Him. I can't stress this enough.  When you scorn the church, or just go because you have to, you are disrespecting something that is of great price to our Savior.  

5.  Prepare yourself and your family for success.
Your stuff:  You don't need to be scrabbling under the kid's bed on Sunday morning in your church clothes, desperately searching for matching socks or someone's shoe.  Bless the heart of those people whose stuff is always where it's supposed to be, but if you are like me, and your kids struggle to make sure their shoes go where they belong, and they struggle to get their socks into the laundry hamper to be washed, please hear me.  Satan will use that little bit of disorganization to full advantage on Sunday morning to create havoc before you arrive to church, frazzled to your last nerve.  Make a checklist if you have to and do the under the bed scrabbling on Saturday night when you are in your pjs and ponytail, not nylons and hairspray. (Both perform poorly when worn under the bed.)(Don't ask me how I know this.) Get it all out and ironed from the shoes to the hair ribbons.  You will sleep better.  Promise.
Your heart:  Prepare your heart with an invitation before you go out to the car.  You know what the invitation is for right?  You ask God what He wants to change, and submit yourself to His will.  If you know He wants a commitment, you make it, not waiting till you are "ready".  Do this before you go!  I am willing to bet that you will have fewer conflicts and discontent with your church.
Your family:  They need to be rested, and so do you.  Get them and yourself into bed at a decent time, and be ware of life-draining conflicts on Sunday morning.  Remember Satan wants you to miss church, but if he can't get you to do that, he will try to get conflicts going.  Try to encourage your kids to be more patient with each other, and keep the tone light and joyful.  Music can help!

Finally, be thankful for your church.  We often focus on the negative, and we are critical by nature.  This can destroy our spiritual life by cutting off the fount of blessing between the church and church member.  We should never sit in the pew wondering why we bothered to come.  There is a good reason; obedience and love of our Lord.  There is a reason for Him to show up as well! He loves  this assembly full of broken, needy people who have been washed and are in the process of being formed into His likeness. See you in church!

Sunday Night Wipe Out, the Unseen Battle

After the doors are locked, the pastor goes home, he walks through the door and colapses in his chair.
He stares blankly at the wall, his mind working, busy still, going over every encounter, every word, every face.
He remembers hardness when he preached against sin, knowing some are fighting a losing battle against temptation.
He remembers brokeness in some whose lives are filled with pain they've only told him.  He hurts with them.
He feels joy at the liberty he had to preach the gospel, and a deep sense of thankfulness for everyone who responded to it.  He thinks about them.
 Where he senses disunity he is especially concerned, thinking through the dangers of gossip and the damage that it causes.
On his heart is each person in his flock.  If he's been shepherding for long, he knows that some who smiled and shook his hand today could try to hurt him and his family another day.  He prays to keep loving them when that happens.

Why am I going over this?  I'm bringing a burden many church members have no idea about.  Many do not have any idea about the battle that takes place after the lights are turned off and everyone is safely home.  But a battle is taking place!

Satan has a plan for this man who slumps, exhausted in his easy chair.  He wants him to quit.  He wants him to give up the fight against temptation.  He wants him embittered, hopeless, and dispirited.  And most of all, he wants him to just quit, give up, walk away from the ministry forever.

To accomplish this, he prepares lies that, if believed, will tear the faith from your pastor's life, and with it, all his hope and fervor for Christ.  Your pastor knows these lies are of the devil, but at this moment, he is spent.  He has poured out his heart from the moment his knees hit the carpet of his prayer closet in the morning to the moment he said goodbye to the last saint as they went out the door.  His heart is weary, and his mind is weary, and his spirit is weary.  There are few times more vulnerable for a pastor than this moment.  And at this moment, Satan starts to pour his lies out into his mind.  Suddenly he feels like a failure, like his work is pointless, like it makes no difference. He is hit hard with temptation to worry about the people, the church, his family, and finances.  I can't stress this enough.  I've seen it, and I know.  I've been in a pastor's family since I was five, and I have many family members working in the ministry.  This happens to every pastor. Some feel more pressure than others, but the fact remains that Satan will hit God's servants when they are tired, every chance he can get.

Would you do something?  Would you fight the battle with him, and take some time after church on Sunday night to pray for your pastor and his family?  If you pray for him at any time of the week, and you desire to uphold him like Aaron and Hur held up the arms of Moses, uphold him in prayer on Sunday night after church! 

Unexpected Blessings

Even in the possession of a stubborn brown thumb that has faithfully seen every green thing in my life to it's untimely grave, I have had this hankering to plant and grow things for as long as I can remember.  I want herbs and salad items I can grow for myself and enjoy chemical-free and worry free. Since we move a lot, I wanted to start with pots and planters, so I've been working with seeds for a while, trying to coax foodstuffs out of my little garden.  I've had some success with basil, and that's about it.  Here is a picture of my tomato plants in pots. The empty pots were other vegetables that died.  If you know anything about plants, you will note that these plants are also dying, slowly.  I'm going to let them live as long as I can, but I need to remix the soil so the roots have room to breath, to give the plants a better chance to thrive.

Poor scrawny things.  I sometimes wonder if I should put them out of their misery.
Now I want you to look at this:

This roma tomato plant grew up on accident, because someone left a tomato under the steps.  It's a monster!  All I've done is water when there is no rain and tie up the branches when they sprawl out, and they continue to do so, producing abundantly, without permission.  Isn't that odd?  Why would plants that grow up and die after hours of labor, and a wild plant spring up and outshine them all with little care?

I don't know.  This area is fertile, the soil ready, and waiting for someone to do something, anything with it.

It's a constant reminder to me, every time I go out my door, that I can have dreams and cultivate them, I can work hard in the field God has placed me, make plans and pursue them.  Sometimes God just does something outside my expectations.  Sometimes He changes plans.  Sometimes He just showers out a blessing that, in the end, really doesn't matter much to anything but my own heart.  On my best days, I get things wrong, but God can do what He wants.  I will stubbornly continue to work with my pots, but I'll also thankfully be enjoying this unexpected fruit along the way!

When God Stops You In Your Tracks

Here is the second "lost post"!  It's so encouraging to review the things God has done, remembering His greatness.  He is good!

He did it again!  Two weeks in a row, God messed up our little plans.  Last week, I went with my husband.  We stopped at our friend's house, and my husband went on to visit the gentleman who had received Christ the week before, and another contact he had made.  When he had only driven down the street, the van started to stall.  Now one thing you do not want to happen if you can prevent it at all, is to be stuck in traffic in Mexico City with a broken down car.  Our van is pretty reliable, and this was highly unusual.  He returned to the house and we all looked at each other thinking, "Now what are we gonna do?"  We asked the family we were with if they had any nearby friends or family we could talk too.

After a few moments consideration, the wife told us she knew her sister had a friend she had been witnessing to, so she called her sister, who lived just around the corner.  Five minutes later, the sister and a couple from her block showed up at the door.  When asked what they came for, they responded frankly, "We came to find out about salvation!"   Soon they, too, were asking God to save them from their sins. The husband had been struggling with a weak heart.  He had suffered several heart attacks, undergone open-heart surgery more than once, and wanted to know how to make peace with God.  He was so happy after receiving Christ!

Oh, by the way, the van?  Started right up and drove us home afterwards with no problems at all!  Ryan said he expects the vehicle he's using to fail every time he goes to do something for the Lord, and all he has to do is wait around for God to bring one of His lost sheep.

We are supposed to go to the mountains, highways and byways looking for sheep, but we should never be blind to God throwing a wrench in our plans so that we can find one of those sheep in the middle of a problem.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

When God Messes Up Your Plans

 I went back looking over the old posts on my blog, and I found a couple that I never posted.  It seems a good time to update them and give them a go.  These two things happened back to back, while we were preparing to come to this area, looking for a house.  We found the change of plans were not hindrances at all, but God intervening in the lives of people who urgently needed Him.  While we tried to follow up on both of these people, we could not, but we know they have found salvation through God's work in our lives.

What's going to happen tomorrow?  As a woman, I like to have these things laid out before me as clearly as possible, and as a child of God, I usually don't get what I want!  In fact, God has a tenancy to scramble our plans.  Every. Single. Time.

What do we do?  Just keep looking for ways to serve!  When something comes your way, you can say it was God's plan, not yours.

We are starting to head out to Mexico City, in the area of Xochimilco, (pronounce that SO-chee-MIL-co) to look for a new area to start a church.    Two weeks ago, Ryan headed out with a friend who grew up near this area, and started toward the new area.  That's when God changed the plans.  The brakes failed.  After making it safely off the road, our friend went to get the part he needed to replace and everyone else waited with the car.

Before long a tired-looking man came walking along with several bags on one arm, and a tired looking toddler on the other.  He said, "I'd like to sell you some cookies.  We were in a car accident, and my wife and two of our children were killed.  Will you buy some cookies?"  They bought some cookies, and he turned to go. One of the group attempted to offer some words of solace, telling him that God had a plan for his life. He stopped, and said, "I've been praying and asking Him to show me His plan!  It's been so hard, I just want to know Him." My husband asked him if he would like to know what the Bible has to say about eternal life, and he eagerly assented.  Soon, he was sincerely asking for the forgiveness of his sins.   His name is Christian, and he has a mountain of challenges ahead of him.  He told Ryan that he had been fighting depression, lost his job, and was looking for God through his pain.  He has also walked ten miles that day, out of his usual course.  My husband told him that he wasn't the only one whose plans changed that day.  God receives the glory for this salvation!

  Ryan wanted to buy more cookies, and he tried to give them as a gift, because he was so thankful for being given the gospel.

God is in control.  If we are obedient to His will, He might change our plans, but we need to let Him work through the change.

Modesty Rebound; Boing!

I'm amazed by how much confusion has been blowing around Christian circles in regards to modesty.   I've read lots of different articles posted to social media criticizing legalistic notions.  These posts have made me take a long look at my own traditions, and also at these trends in the community of believers who call themselves by the name of Christ.

One thing I've noticed is what I call "rebounding opinions".  Joe or Jane Christian decides that someone else has a problem with something they do.  So they take a defensive position against this error, as far from it as they can.  Boing!  The other person is offended.  They react by making their own bounce in the opposite direction. Boing! Others take sides, and soon you have a regular Church battleground where everyone thinks they are fighting the good fight of faith, but no one actually consulted their Bible or their prayer closet in forming their opinion. In fact, the deciding factor is often hurt feelings. All of these people are hurting the name of Christ, and they are usually hurting His Church as well.

My brethren, or sisteren,  these things ought not so to be!  God's Word, and His Spirit are enough to guide us into the truth. These will never guide us to attack or despise another Christian.  If you feel intense negative feelings in regard to the topic of modesty, where ever you plant your flag, I plead with you to recognize that those feelings must be dealt with biblically before you can be objective about how God wants you to honor Him.

I would be more than happy to cast off a tradition that is unbiblical, unwise, and harmful.  I will have to be convinced through scripture, though.  Someone being rude with a standard does not mean the standard is bad; it means someone reacted in the flesh and used their separation from the world to boost their pride.  This is what the Pharisees did, and we know Jesus took a dim view of it.  But He said things like, "...these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone...."*

Here are some statements I believe miss the point, leaving undone some spiritual essentials:

1.  Modesty isn't about how much of your body you cover with clothes.  It's about your heart being humble.  Actually, this statement is true.  The problem is that it is usually followed by the idea that, because modesty isn't only about the outer covering, therefore the covering doesn't matter very much.  A reference to God's admonition to Samuel that man looks on the outward appearance, but God looks on the heart is common.  Step, step, leap!  (That's a reference to logic flow.)  I feel a bit silly saying this, being obvious, but it's a huge leap in logic to conclude that, because God is more concerned with heart, He doesn't care about what man looks at.  Jesus wasn't advocating for people to drink out of cups that were clean on the inside and dirty on the outside. It's just to say that if we only care about what man looks at, we are ignoring our relationship with God.

Let's talk about the word, "modesty".  A quick search gives us a good definition:  1. the quality of being modest; freedom from vanity, boastfulness, etc. 2. regard for decency of behavior, speech, dress, etc. 3. simplicity; moderation.

When the Bible talks about being modest, it is a message to women.  (I Tim. 2) Men are also admonished to be humble and meek, so they count too, but women are told specifically to adorn themselves modestly.** You might say that this includes not showing off one's riches.  Some have said this has nothing to do with showing off one's body, but is talking about wealth.  Don't you think that is pushing it a little?  Of course it includes showing off one's wealth.  It also includes showing off.  Women shouldn't show off in their dress.  Period.  Body, wealth, and all.

Seriously, people!  Rebellious little kids try to restrict their parents' admonitions to get away with more of what they want all the time!  Any wise parent knows that if they play the game of words with their kids they will lose.  "Clean your room" becomes, "Go into your room and pick up every single thing that is not where it belongs and put it exactly where it belongs, and that does not mean to stuff it all under your bed, or shove it into your draws and then say that this is where it belongs, because it is not where it belongs, but put them in the exact place where I want them to be, and where I put them when I put things away, because if you try to find a new home for them, they will not be where they belong and your room will not be clean."  (deep, slow, cleansing breath) God doesn't play those games.  He said what He said, and you want to please Him, or you don't.  If you don't, you will find some way to interpret the Bible to mean something else, and no amount of detailed descriptions will be enough.  If you doubt this, see what the Pharisees did with Leviticus. (They butchered the spirit of the law and focused on the details.  There are two extremes that do the exact same thing to God's Word.)   See also, non sequitur argument.

Speaking of Pharisees, here's another one:
2.  People who have strict standards are Pharisees who are judging me all the time.  Again, this could be true, but it might not be.  If you assume that someone is judgmental based on what they are wearing, aren't you being judgmental?  Hm?  I have some close friends who have different standards than I do, some of them much stricter than I, but it would be unchristlike to judge them.  I've also found many who have taught me and inspired me to make changes in my life, based on their wise deportment.  I don't always change things, but it's never bad to objectively look at your life and ask God if He wants to make any changes.  See also, ad hominem  argument.

3.  Men are responsible for their own hearts and minds before God, so a woman has no responsibility in the way she dresses.  This one usually comes with a description of a very out-of-balance church, and someone's deeply hurt feelings because of unfairness.  Ok, feelings aside, let's be honest about fashion.  It objectifies women more than men for a reason.  That reason is nothing less than perversity.  Why does a man's summer fashion involve loose-fitting, comfortable clothing, but a woman's summer fashion involves tight garments with much more skin exposed to the damaging rays of the sun? Men who wear peek-a-boo holes in their garments and translucient, or skin tight clothing are not trying to attract the attention of women.  I'm not saying that a man is perverse by nature, but in our culture, perversity objectifies what men want, and it's obvious by just looking at styles and listening to what worldly people say about them. A Christian who wants to please God will not wear styles that objectify her.

The truth of that statement, that a man is responsible to God for his thoughts, should not change how we view ourselves as women.  I am repulsed by the expectation that I need to show my sexual nature to the world in order to be a complete woman, and I will set markers in my life that will not change with with fashions in order to avoid doing so.  Those, I call standards.  They do not increase my personal value, but they do show how I value myself.

I see this statement as a red herring.  Yes, God will receive an account from Christian men for their thoughts.  What does that have to do with women obeying God's direction to be modest?  Why would a Christian woman dress provocatively and despise a man who struggles with his thought life?  Is that the spirit of Christ? To disregard a weaker brother who struggles with his thought life is like a wealthy person bragging about and flaunting his goods in front of the poor, and blaming them if one falls into covetousness.  This is where the word "modest" really comes into play.  Will you push your assets into the notice of others, or will you honor what God blessed you with by using it with meekness and control, respecting others and yourself?  (Of course a perverse man will think perverse thoughts no matter what you are wearing, but that's a diversion from the point.)

Finally, much is said about liberty.  I love my liberty in Christ.  No one tells me what to do, outside of God's basic line of authority, and we are all subject to scriptures.  This is incredibly freeing to a Christian who has felt judged, and it is humbling to the Pharisee who takes unwarranted responsibility over the lives of others.  Therefore, pastors don't get to dictate what their members wear outside of church functions.  If a pastor feels like he needs to do that, he should look for that line of authority in the Bible.  (He won't find it.)  Such a person is out of balance.

Regardless, I do not need to determine how I live my life by rebounding away from such people.  If I do, I'm going to end up doing something harmful to the body of Christ and His testimony!  I have to find how I live and how I think in the Bible, if I want to have the mind of Christ.  He put His liberty aside and humbled Himself to serve others.  I am honored to do the same.
*Mat_23:23  Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
**1Ti 2:9,10  In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array;  But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.

Prayerletter, May 2013

May 2013

Dear Pastor,

                We thank God for His blessing and care of us this past month, and for the faithful prayer and support from our family of churches that care for us.  We appreciate your prayer for these requests, and consider it an honor to represent Christ for you in Xochimilco, Mexico City.

                May was Family Month, and we focused on encouraging families and teaching the Bible in regards to the family.  Our church was invited to a family conference at Antioch Baptist Church in the Federal District of Mexico City, and a good portion of our church attended every service.  It was a help to each of our families, including mine!  We are seeing some of our families making good decisions in regards to serving and honoring God.  We were also blessed to see old friends there, because this church hosted us nearly ten years ago on our survey trip to Mexico City, and the missionary who established the church had flown in to preach with his family.  We were delighted to see Bro. Roberto Ramos and his wonderful family again!

Another pastor ordained to lead God's flock

Giving a message on the responsibility of the sending church

Just a couple of weeks later, I was privileged to participate in the ordination service of one of the men we worked with while establishing the church in Tizayuca.  Bro. Pedro Morales has served God faithfully for years, and now he is going on to pastor a church in Northern Mexico.  It has been an honor to serve with him and his wife, and see their dedication, faithfulness, and genuine love of God.

Praise God for spiritual victories along with the fun!

On the last Saturday of the month, we had a teen youth activity, a water fight.  There’s nothing like a good water war to get the adults wanting to participate in the youth program.  In fact, we had just as many adults as teenagers!  Before we began hostilities, I preached about our enemies as explained in the Bible and encouraged everyone to fight the good fight of faith.  Then, we had an epic battle.  The next day, one of the teen girls got saved after the morning service!  She knew she was lost, even though she had made a profession of faith when she was a young child.  Now she knows she’s on her way to Heaven!

Urgent Prayer Request:

Please pray for us as we are trying to raise the funds needed to travel to the border and renew our passports in Texas.  Gas, highway fees, passport fees, and supplies for the ministry and homeschool all add up to about $2000.  Please let us know if you feel God leading you to be a part of this need. 

It has been a wonderful privilege serving with these brethren.

We are eternally grateful for your prayer support, most of all.  Thank you, and God bless!

A Father's Heritage

Dad enjoys a new grandbaby's smile

Yesterday was Father's Day, and I called my dad, and told him how thankful I was for him.  He was a great dad to me, and my siblings.  I married a man who is a great dad, and so did my sister.  My brothers who are fathers are also great dads.  None of us have the same parenting style, although we all do our best to parent following the precepts of the Bible. I told my dad we had a good example of a man who taught us what a real man is.  A real man of God.  My dad didn't really know what I was talking about, because we both know he doesn't float on angel wings.  But I don't either, and I don't know anyone who does.

I just know that my husband and I have, nearly every month of our ministry, tried to counsel a woman weeping over the broken dreams of the man she chose, who turned out to be a selfish, spoiled man-child.  I've had my shoulder dampened by the tears of hurting women, and their hurting, often angry kids, because a man thinks he is the center of all things, and can't imagine that he has any obligation to the women he's used or the children he's fathered.  As we try to help these women pick up the shards of their girlish dreams, grow up, and take on the heavy burden of providing for their growing families by themselves, I am struck by a gratitude in me that gets stronger with every suffering woman we try to help. These kinds of men are everywhere.

Playing computer games with the girls

A real man sees these things as a no-brainer.  He can't imagine being able to live with himself without taking care of the basics.

• I thank God my dad has always loved us and is still faithful to and loves our mother.

• I thank God that he took care of us, that he prayed for us, that he sought our hearts, and that I know he still does pray faithfully for us.

• There were men who flattered me, flirted with me, and tried to buy me things, but they did not interest me in the least, because I had received enough wisdom from my dad about how a real man thinks, and how a godly man seeks out a wife.  I had also received plenty of loving attention from my dad, so I wasn't looking for that attention from someone else.  These girls get all that from a man, and it's as if their brain suddenly flies away.  They go after that attention like someone dying of thirst goes after a drop of water.

• I thank God that He led me to a man who would fast and pray, and make a decision to love me forever.

• I thank God my nephews and nieces are getting the same blessings from their dads, and so are my children.

David and his favorite buddy

Psa 16:6  The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.
It isn't good luck.  This verse was written by a man  who received a godly heritage from his father, grandfather, and great-grandparents. I pray that we pass on the blessing God gave us through our father to our children, and that they pass it on to theirs.  I hope my kids are able to look past our errors, and receive this wonderful blessing of the goodly heritage of God.

God truly blessed us!

Happy Birthday to my little freckled tiger lily!

Rebecca Joy

Please ignore clutter.  Here she is cleaning!

sharing a laugh

squinting in the sun

thoroughly enjoying herself

I Heart This Kid!

This morning this little man woke up with a bound and yelled, "It's Valentine's Day!"  He ran to the fridge and brought me a sandwich he had made the day before, wrapped in a paper napkin and tied with a clumsy bow.  Tucked inside was a note with two hearts drawn on it.  It was a little stale, but it was the best sandwich I ever had.