I have so rarely come across a book that I don't like. I recently did, however, when I received "An Army of Ordinary People" (by Felicity Dale) from Tyndale Books. I was so excited about reading the book as it was supposed to be about people "being the church" wherever you are. What a great, although not new, idea! I really enjoy and am encouraged by stories about people simply being Christ-like in their lives, even when no one is watching.
I did not find these uplifting stories in "An Army of Ordinary People." Instead, I found a lot of information that is simply wrong. I think scripture was twisted and misused throughout the book. The book was a collection of stories about people "being the church." In addition to all of the stories starting to sound alike, they seemed to be presenting the idea that the church itself is not important. Dale often pointed out that if two or more are gathered in Jesus' name, they are in fact a church. After 4 or 5 chapters, I felt like the book was written in order to show people why they should leave the church. While Dale said the church itself is okay, it was obviously not what she thought was best.
To say the least, I was disappointed in this book. I would not recommend it. On to the next book on my list...
I think I'm going to read some C.S. Lewis--can't go wrong there!
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Makenna's prayers
Lately, Makenna has become quite the little prayer warrior. I am so proud of her and sweet heart. In the past few weeks, some of her prayers have been:
"Dear God, thank you for our family. Thank you for our teachers at church that tell us about Jesus. Some kids don't have a family or a church to tell them about Jesus, so we have to tell them."
"Dear God, thank you for our family and for our church that tells us about Jesus, and for Bro. Dane (our pastor), because you have to have a preacher."
"Dear God, thank you for giving us food so we don't die."
"Dear God, I hope Ayda is quiet so I can get to sleep tonight."
And then there are those run-on prayers such as, "Dear God, thank you for the day today. Thank you for the sunshine. I hope it doesn't rain tomorrow because I want to swim in the pool. I wanted to swim yesterday, but Mommy said it was too cold. She said maybe we can go tomorrow, but not in the morning, because the water has to get warm....." etc. :)
The girl just says it like it is--no holding back. What is so sweet, though, is how she sees God. She has learned, at only 5-years-old, that God is a friend who she can talk to about anything. Sometimes her prayers are her list of "hope fors," while sometimes they're just a run-down of what she did that day. It's easy for her to talk to God, though. I hope that she never loses that feeling of comfort and ease when she prays. She just has talks with God...and often makes me laugh in the process.
"Dear God, thank you for our family. Thank you for our teachers at church that tell us about Jesus. Some kids don't have a family or a church to tell them about Jesus, so we have to tell them."
"Dear God, thank you for our family and for our church that tells us about Jesus, and for Bro. Dane (our pastor), because you have to have a preacher."
"Dear God, thank you for giving us food so we don't die."
"Dear God, I hope Ayda is quiet so I can get to sleep tonight."
And then there are those run-on prayers such as, "Dear God, thank you for the day today. Thank you for the sunshine. I hope it doesn't rain tomorrow because I want to swim in the pool. I wanted to swim yesterday, but Mommy said it was too cold. She said maybe we can go tomorrow, but not in the morning, because the water has to get warm....." etc. :)
The girl just says it like it is--no holding back. What is so sweet, though, is how she sees God. She has learned, at only 5-years-old, that God is a friend who she can talk to about anything. Sometimes her prayers are her list of "hope fors," while sometimes they're just a run-down of what she did that day. It's easy for her to talk to God, though. I hope that she never loses that feeling of comfort and ease when she prays. She just has talks with God...and often makes me laugh in the process.
Family Funnies
A sure sign that my kids have been watching too much t.v.--
I was unloading the dishwasher yesterday and Wyatt was standing beside me. All of a sudden, he started singing, "Who's that lady? Sexy lady" (you know, the swiffer commercial?) Of course, in cute little 4-year-old language, it was, "Who's that wady? Sessy wady." :)
That kid cracks me up!
I was unloading the dishwasher yesterday and Wyatt was standing beside me. All of a sudden, he started singing, "Who's that lady? Sexy lady" (you know, the swiffer commercial?) Of course, in cute little 4-year-old language, it was, "Who's that wady? Sessy wady." :)
That kid cracks me up!
Friday, April 2, 2010
Book Review: Facing Your Giants
I recently read Facing Your Giants by Max Lucado and realized how I've missed Lucado. I used to read every Max Lucado book I could get my hands on, but had eventually quit because his books tend to all sound alike after a while. Having been a while since I've read anything by him, this book was a breath of fresh air. Oh how I've missed his ability to tell a story like few can! I was hooked from the very first chapter.
Lucado tackles the many different "giants" we face in life: disappointment, hatred, loneliness, bitterness, and grief just to name a few. He uses the life of David as a backdrop to the book. The low points in David's life are experienced by so many of us today. In fact, for each episode of David's life, Lucado uses a modern-day example of people who have experienced the same thing. The lesson to be learned is that no matter what, God can bring us through the "slumps" of our lives. As Lucado puts it, "Giants. We must face them. Yet we need not face them alone."
The chapter that spoke the most to me was about forgiveness. This theme actually ran throughout many of the chapters, but Lucado sums up the whole point of forgiveness when he writes, "Forgiveness is choosing to see your offender with different eyes." We are to see both situations and people through the eyes of God. Not an easy task!
Facing Your Giants was both an encouragement to me and a lesson on how to rely on God no matter what the circumstances. I highly recommend it!
Lucado tackles the many different "giants" we face in life: disappointment, hatred, loneliness, bitterness, and grief just to name a few. He uses the life of David as a backdrop to the book. The low points in David's life are experienced by so many of us today. In fact, for each episode of David's life, Lucado uses a modern-day example of people who have experienced the same thing. The lesson to be learned is that no matter what, God can bring us through the "slumps" of our lives. As Lucado puts it, "Giants. We must face them. Yet we need not face them alone."
The chapter that spoke the most to me was about forgiveness. This theme actually ran throughout many of the chapters, but Lucado sums up the whole point of forgiveness when he writes, "Forgiveness is choosing to see your offender with different eyes." We are to see both situations and people through the eyes of God. Not an easy task!
Facing Your Giants was both an encouragement to me and a lesson on how to rely on God no matter what the circumstances. I highly recommend it!
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Family Funnies
Tonight we went to Family Christian Store and the kids were actually really good. Of course, when we got up to the register to pay, Wyatt knocked over a whole shelf of books, while Makenna almost knocked over a CD display. Things started getting a little chaotic and of course I saw a clearance table, so we had to go back to shop some more. Our time of shopping with Wyatt was up. He was touching everything and I was so afraid he was going to break something. He started getting whiny and got into trouble. I had Ed take Wyatt and Ayda to the van to prevent any more problems while I paid (for the second time!).
So, tonight, when I put the kids to bed, I prayed with Makenna. I prayed, "Dear God, thank you for our family. Thank you for our Grandma who stayed with us all day today. And thank you for Makenna being such a good girl tonight at the store." Makenna then prayed, "Dear God, thank you for our whole family. I didn't want to get in trouble, that's why I didn't act like Wyatt in the store tonight." She's such a funny little girl!
So, tonight, when I put the kids to bed, I prayed with Makenna. I prayed, "Dear God, thank you for our family. Thank you for our Grandma who stayed with us all day today. And thank you for Makenna being such a good girl tonight at the store." Makenna then prayed, "Dear God, thank you for our whole family. I didn't want to get in trouble, that's why I didn't act like Wyatt in the store tonight." She's such a funny little girl!
Monday, February 8, 2010
She sings!
Yesterday in Sunday School, my kids were learning about the 12 disciples. Makenna told her teachers that she knows a song about them and she proceeded to sing it for them. They asked her if she'd sing it in front of the church that night. Anyone who knows Makenna knows that she is terribly shy and never wants the attention on her. Imagine my surprise when she actually did it! Her teacher sat up on the stage with her as she held the microphone and sang! It's a little difficult to understand some parts (she's not finished with speech therapy yet!), but it's so precious. The words are as follows:
There were twelve disciples Jesus called to help him:
Simon Peter, Andrew, James, his brother John,
Philip, Thomas, Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus,
Thaddeus, Simon, Judas, and Bartholomew.
That would be a lot for any 5-year-old to say! Anyway, here's Makenna singing "The 12 Disciples"
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Our Journey Begins!
The time has finally come. Tonight is the first night of the training Ed and I will go through to become foster parents and possibly adoptive parents! We will be training throughout the month of February and will hopefully have a child (or children) in our home by this spring. We're so excited about it. I wanted to share just a little bit of our story and how we got to this point. I hope that, by reading our story, other families will see the need for foster parents and will get involved.
My mom said it well last when she said, "When you are obedient to God's call, He equips you to do what He called you to do." I am still amazed at the changes in my attitude and desires lately. It was just a few months ago that God put foster parenting and/or adoption on my heart. My answer was always the same: "We don't have the money for any more kids. We like our life just the way it is." Over the following few weeks, however, I was surrounded by foster parenting. I would hear a conversation at the mall, I'd hear people on t.v. talk about being raised in foster homes, I started coming across blogs by people who foster/adopt kids, etc. It was everywhere! It almost became comical to me. I would be watching a show and someone would say in passing that they were raised in a foster home. I would look at Ed to see if he noticed it too. This was not going to go away!
I finally took that first step and talked to Ed about the possibility of doing foster care. To my surprise, he didn't object! What was going on here? Was this the same man who said a few years ago, "Do you really think we can afford 3 kids?" You can imagine my surprise when he was just open to this! Since then, though, I have been even more surprised by the change in me. After spending about 1.5 hours in an informational meeting about foster care, there was no turning back. I can honestly say that I walked out of that meeting and have not one time thought about the money factor. Not once! It's not a concern for me at all.
My concern, from that night on, has been for these children that are getting tossed around and all too often lost in the system. I realized that we, as Christians, have been missing the boat. I'm including myself in this group too. We have been too content and too self-centered. We like having our little family just the way we planned it. I know because I was there! I have always wanted 3 kids, I had my 3 kids, and that was it. I like my life! I see now that it's not just about me. So many kids need homes and families, and too many of us have wonderful christian homes to offer, but we don't want our lives inconvenienced.
I found out a startling statistic at the meeting I attended. The "cut-off" age for children waiting to be adopted in the state of Indiana is eight. Now, that doesn't mean that you can't adopt a child over the age of eight. It means that if a child isn't adopted by the time he is 8 years old, the chances of him being adopted are slim to none. Eight years old! They're still so young! They also pointed out that the state so badly wants these children adopted that they will pay money to the adoptive family every day until he/she is 18 (sometimes 20) years old! How sad that no one is there to help.
Another troubling thing I noticed is that there are so many people who ARE passionate about helping these kids. Gay and lesbian couples are fighting tooth and nail for the right to adopt these children. Why are we, as Christians, not as passionate as these people to save these children? We have so much to offer them, and yet we don't.
I'm so excited to get started in this process. So much has taken place already. Even during the one hour I spent at my informational meeting, change took place. The meeting began by the case worker asking who was there for the purpose of adopting and everyone raised their hand except for me. I was interested strictly in fostering. By the time I got home, I was talking to Ed about adoption. Fast forward a few days ahead and we were talking about the possibility of getting a 15 passenger van (instead of a minivan) because we can take more children in that way!
I just can't wait for what God has in store for our family. I just asked Ed last night if he ever thinks about what our family will look like 5, 10, or even 20 years from now. Oh the changes that could take place! It's exciting! Please pray for our family as we venture into this new area.
I saw this quote on another blog and thought it was very fitting and worth sharing:
"Children will come in and out of our home, but they will never leave our hearts. My first prayer is that we can be a part of saving families. That is what the children need most. If a family cannot be saved, I pray that we can become a new family. Some will stay and some will go. The right ones always stay."
My mom said it well last when she said, "When you are obedient to God's call, He equips you to do what He called you to do." I am still amazed at the changes in my attitude and desires lately. It was just a few months ago that God put foster parenting and/or adoption on my heart. My answer was always the same: "We don't have the money for any more kids. We like our life just the way it is." Over the following few weeks, however, I was surrounded by foster parenting. I would hear a conversation at the mall, I'd hear people on t.v. talk about being raised in foster homes, I started coming across blogs by people who foster/adopt kids, etc. It was everywhere! It almost became comical to me. I would be watching a show and someone would say in passing that they were raised in a foster home. I would look at Ed to see if he noticed it too. This was not going to go away!
I finally took that first step and talked to Ed about the possibility of doing foster care. To my surprise, he didn't object! What was going on here? Was this the same man who said a few years ago, "Do you really think we can afford 3 kids?" You can imagine my surprise when he was just open to this! Since then, though, I have been even more surprised by the change in me. After spending about 1.5 hours in an informational meeting about foster care, there was no turning back. I can honestly say that I walked out of that meeting and have not one time thought about the money factor. Not once! It's not a concern for me at all.
My concern, from that night on, has been for these children that are getting tossed around and all too often lost in the system. I realized that we, as Christians, have been missing the boat. I'm including myself in this group too. We have been too content and too self-centered. We like having our little family just the way we planned it. I know because I was there! I have always wanted 3 kids, I had my 3 kids, and that was it. I like my life! I see now that it's not just about me. So many kids need homes and families, and too many of us have wonderful christian homes to offer, but we don't want our lives inconvenienced.
I found out a startling statistic at the meeting I attended. The "cut-off" age for children waiting to be adopted in the state of Indiana is eight. Now, that doesn't mean that you can't adopt a child over the age of eight. It means that if a child isn't adopted by the time he is 8 years old, the chances of him being adopted are slim to none. Eight years old! They're still so young! They also pointed out that the state so badly wants these children adopted that they will pay money to the adoptive family every day until he/she is 18 (sometimes 20) years old! How sad that no one is there to help.
Another troubling thing I noticed is that there are so many people who ARE passionate about helping these kids. Gay and lesbian couples are fighting tooth and nail for the right to adopt these children. Why are we, as Christians, not as passionate as these people to save these children? We have so much to offer them, and yet we don't.
I'm so excited to get started in this process. So much has taken place already. Even during the one hour I spent at my informational meeting, change took place. The meeting began by the case worker asking who was there for the purpose of adopting and everyone raised their hand except for me. I was interested strictly in fostering. By the time I got home, I was talking to Ed about adoption. Fast forward a few days ahead and we were talking about the possibility of getting a 15 passenger van (instead of a minivan) because we can take more children in that way!
I just can't wait for what God has in store for our family. I just asked Ed last night if he ever thinks about what our family will look like 5, 10, or even 20 years from now. Oh the changes that could take place! It's exciting! Please pray for our family as we venture into this new area.
I saw this quote on another blog and thought it was very fitting and worth sharing:
"Children will come in and out of our home, but they will never leave our hearts. My first prayer is that we can be a part of saving families. That is what the children need most. If a family cannot be saved, I pray that we can become a new family. Some will stay and some will go. The right ones always stay."
Monday, February 1, 2010
In Just 4 Days
Wow, what a weekend we've had here. It all started Friday night when we finally got the girls' bunk beds together. They were so excited! We had Grandma and Papaw come over to check out the new room, we stayed up late, the whole nine. They had been waiting for these beds for months and now they had them. Here's the pic:
Then, when it was time for Ed and I to go to bed (around 11:30), I just couldn't do it. I couldn't leave my 1 year old in the room with a ladder leading to a bed 6 feet off the ground. I kept imagining her climbing up in the middle of the night and falling. It scared me so much that by midnight, I had taken the mattress off the toddler bed and moved it into our room. Ayda slept on a mattress on our floor for the rest of the night.
The next morning, the first thing we did was make the bunk beds two twin beds (both on the floor). It made for tight quarters, but I was still excited about how cute everything was. Here's what the room looked like 12 hours into this journey:
Now, fast forward 48 hours to this morning. I heard the kids playing nicely in the girls' room and was enjoying some quiet time. I heard a loud BANG and said, "Is everyone ok?" No answer. This time, I went in there while I asked, "Is everyone ok?" I found the 3 kids standing in shock, not sure what to do and I found this:
Yep, that would be our brand new bed---broken! Makenna has only admitted to standing on the bed, so I'm not sure exactly how this happened. To look at the positive side of this, though, I'm glad we had separated the beds. The bed that broke was the one that was on the top! Maybe it was more than just my fear of Ayda climbing that made me unable to go to sleep with bunk beds in the room. Maybe it was God giving me an uneasy feeling about them for this very reason. I'm glad I listened!
Now, off to do some bed shopping....
Friday, January 29, 2010
Project 365
I saw about this project on another blog, and it sounded like a great idea. Project 365 is a great way to document a year in your life. You take one picture each day for an entire year. You can write a little or a lot about each picture. By the end of the, you will have a scrapbook that shows what was going on every day of that year. How neat! I got started a couple of weeks into January, so I'll be missing a few days at the beginning, but so far I've been keeping up with it! I'm excited to see the final project. I'm certainly not a crafty person, but I will learn as I go.
What I have noticed so far is that this project makes me stop and enjoy the everyday things more. I usually only broke out the ol' camera for things like birthday parties, holidays, trips, etc. Now I keep my camera with me at all times. It has made me document what I always knew--that memories are in the day to day life. I've had moments previously in which I was watching the kids eating breakfast and would take a picture because I didn't want to forget the picture in front of me. This has just made me do that more often. There are so many memories being made here every day. Now I'll have them all together in a book!
What I have noticed so far is that this project makes me stop and enjoy the everyday things more. I usually only broke out the ol' camera for things like birthday parties, holidays, trips, etc. Now I keep my camera with me at all times. It has made me document what I always knew--that memories are in the day to day life. I've had moments previously in which I was watching the kids eating breakfast and would take a picture because I didn't want to forget the picture in front of me. This has just made me do that more often. There are so many memories being made here every day. Now I'll have them all together in a book!
Monday, January 25, 2010
When Momma's on Facebook....
...Ayda finds a way to entertain herself. I saw her go into the bathroom and thought she was getting a kleenex since she was saying, "nose!" About 2-3 minutes later, I wondered why she hadn't come back out. I went to check on her and found my little angel doing this:
Yep, that's lotion all over my mirror. She was having a great time, though! I let her "fingerpaint" on my mirror for a few minutes, but not to worry--I gave her the obligatory, "Let's don't do that again" line. :)
