Cardboard Testimonies

So we had quite a service last week and the best way for me to tell you about it is to let you see it.

If you don't have time to watch all of the service, at least let the video load and pause it...wait a couple of minutes and move the slider to where it takes you 22:00 into the video.

So here it is:

I hope you enjoy.

Our associate pastor Mark is singing at the beginning and his wife was with us that day from her home at the nursing home. She has Huntington's disease....the camera pans her into the shot while he is singing. Amazing family of God...

Everything I have learned, I learned from a child...

I have learned so much since having children that I thought I already knew. My children constantly challenge me in my faith and in my knowledge, not to mention my explanation skills.

Since Sam was 3 he has wondered about Heaven and how to get there because he was so close to his great grandma when she died in 2004. When she passed we told him that great grandma was in Heaven watching down on us and most likely playing checkers with Jesus (my mom told him this one) and he quickly spoke up and said.."No she isn't, she is in that box!" My heart sunk and I had to try and explain to him how even though she was in the coffin, her heart and mind were with Jesus. This was of course followed by more questions like, "How do I get to Heaven" Remember...3 year old here!. I had to do my own searching to find the answers for him...I didn't want to be the one that gave him the wrong answer about eternity. He wanted to go see her now and often cried anytime someone mentioned her (he is still a little sensitive about it). He once told my mom that you take Route 7 and then 23 and then you are there...his directions for Heaven.

So today I had to teach Josh the same sort of lesson....As we were driving down the street we passed a cemetery and he said "Is that how you get to Heaven...you have to go there first?" Uh...no...Uh...Yes...I told him that after we die we become invisible and we go to see Jesus. So he said...so is Heaven in the dirt?! (don't laugh he was serious!)

Luckily the questions stopped there but he always says...I miss great grammy and gramps (his name for my dad). He only has pictures to remind him of grammy but I think he always understood Samuel's grief and thought it should be his too.

I am sure the older they get the harder the questions and the more I am going to have to study to answer them. So say a prayer for me...

I stumbled on this article by way of someone else's blog and thought it was so good, I thought I would share. It is written by Anne Jackson who serves on staff at Cross Point Church in Nashville, Tennessee. Her book, Mad Church Disease , will be available in February 2009. Anne’s articles have been published in a variety of print and online magazines, and her blog, FlowerDust.net , is ranked as one of the top blogs in Christian Leadership. She is an advocate for Compassion International, a down-to-earth communicator, and an all around dreamer. Anne has an unwavering passion to see the Church grow, thrive, and fulfill its purpose. Anne and her husband Chris live in Nashville where they are still exploring their comfort food options.

The Waitress is Watching

By Anne Jackson

Evidently, this little freestanding building was the place Nashville’s best comfort food called home. Tucked away in a residential area with limited and awkward parking, my husband Chris and I decided, after several recommendations from friends, to explore what this cozy little café had to offer. We moved to Nashville at the end of June, and finding delectable hole-in-the-wall restaurants is one of our favorite hobbies.

A waitress with frizzy blonde hair appeared. She seemed older than her fifty years, with deep wrinkles and a posture of a woman who has spent most of her life carrying food to hungry customers. Her southern accent was thick as she took our order. When she returned with our rolls and butter, she grinned as she asked us a question that caught us completely off guard.

“Do y’all mind if I ask y’all how long y’all’ve been married?”

We looked at each other a little surprised, but I turned and answered her.

“We just passed our five year anniversary a few days ago.”

Her smile got bigger as she told us she assumed we were newlyweds. “It’s just the way y’all look at each other and act. I just thought you hadn’t been married very long. You seem so in love.”

Surprised, we thanked her as she turned to wait on another customer.

“That was weird,” I told Chris. “But I guess that’s a good thing, huh?”

He agreed, and we returned to our baked squash and fried okra.

I couldn’t help but think more about what the waitress asked us about. Now, I’m certainly not one to claim I have a perfect marriage. Chris and I have had our fair share of issues and problems and fights. We are definitely past that newlywed phase and our guards are down, tempting us to take each other for granted and let our selfish nature win over serving each other.

The thing that struck me most was the unexpectedness of the conversation. Here we were, in a small unassuming restaurant, simply having dinner.

But someone was watching.

Over the last couple of months, I’ve been meditating on a familiar verse.

The apostle Paul wrote to Timothy in 1 Timothy 4:12,

“Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.”

As leaders in ministry, especially those of us who are younger, it’s easy to feel like the influence we have isn’t as powerful as someone who has a fancy title, a wider audience, or even a larger paycheck. Especially when your position is considered low in the ministry food chain, you often wonder what kind of impact you’re having.

Jesus had every right in the world to demand honor and fame in his ministry. Yet, Philippians 2 tells us that he “did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing.”

We desperately want to be affirmed and encouraged in our attempts for God. But we have to remember – it’s not about us. It’s not about the impact our ministry can have or our reputation as a leader or seeing our name on all the right blogrolls.

The spotlight is something our human nature craves. And regardless of if our name is ever in lights, someone is always watching.

It’s your supervisor. Your pastor. Your spouse. Your child. Your volunteer team. Your church members. The waitress at the restaurant.

You are setting an example, whether you know it or not.

Oswald Chambers wrote,

“The people who influence us the most are not those who detain us with their continual talk, but those who live their lives like the stars in the sky and "the lilies of the field"— simply and unaffectedly. Those are the lives that mold and shape us.

If you want to be of use to God, maintain the proper relationship with Jesus Christ by staying focused on Him, and He will make use of you every minute you live— yet you will be unaware, on the conscious level of your life, that you are being used of Him.”

It’s not about us. It’s about Him…and how we can reflect His love and truth to the world around us. It’s about living in His grace and extending it to others. We have to constantly remain in communion with Christ. Then and only then will the pure, unadulterated love of God show through us.

And we won’t even realize it.

Just Hold On...

So many times I’ve questioned certain circumstances
Or things I could not understand
Many times in trials, weakness blurs my vision
And my frustrations get so out of hand
It’s then I am reminded I’ve never been forsaken
I’ve never had to stand the test alone
As I look at all the victories, the Spirit rises up in me
It’s through the fire my weakness is made strong
And He never promised the cross would not get heavy and the hill would not be hard to climb
He never offered victory without fighting but He said help would always come in time
Just remember when you’re standing in the valley of decision and the adversary says give in
Just hold on, our Lord will show up and He will take you through the fire again

I know within myself that I would surely perish
But if I trust the hand of God, He’ll shield the flames again
He never promised the cross would not get heavy and the hill would not be hard to climb
Just hold on, our Lord will show up and He will take you through the fire again.

This song came on tonight on my CD player as I driving back from dropping the kids off at my mom's. Lately I have been letting the little stuff cloud my mind and really bother me and I start to question myself and those around me. Silly stuff really...but when this song came on it reminded me that He doesn't promise a cake walk of life but one of support and comfort in the tough times and that there will be some. Just what I needed to hear. Then the next song on the Cd was "Breathe On Me"...it was like a nice fitting follow up song to how I was feeling. And I am highlighting some of my favorite lines...and ones that just hit home for me.

In humble adoration
I kneel your throne
In brokenness I seek your face alone Above you there’s no other Who’s able to restore my soul Come and make me whole

Breathe on me
Power of god come in and change me
You are all i need
Holy spirit breathe on me

I’m ready to surrender
To give you all my life
No matter what the cost or sacrifice
Reveal to me your calling
Cleanse me from my prideful ways Use me now i pray

Breathe on me
Power of god come in and change me
You are all i need
Holy spirit breathe on me

I will say of the lord
He is my strong tower
My rock and my fortress in whom i trust
In times of the storm and in tribulation
He is my help and my salvation
Breath of god, restore my soul

It was like I was having my own personal moment with God there in my car...To end my singing and songs for the trip home was...Holy is the Lord God Almighty...the earth is filled with his glory...and then I saw this in the sky...



AMAZING!!!

Forgiveness is not an emotion, it's a decision.

Forgiveness is not an emotion, it's a decision. Randall Worley

Forgiveness does not change the past, but it does enlarge the future. Paul Boese

To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you. Lewis B. Smedes

Without forgiveness life is governed by... an endless cycle of resentment and retaliation. Roberto Assagioli


This sermon is a little hard to summarize but I will do my best... The pastor started out the sermon with an illustration. He had a park bench sitting on the stage and told us the following story...
There was this guy walking a rather large dog on a leash to a convenience store one day. My image of the dog was that of a mastiff based on the pastor's description...anyway...this man tied his dog up to this park bench (which was anchored in the cement) and went inside for something to drink. The dog was doing fine until something startled it and it starting pulling on the bench. Within a few seconds the large dog rips the bench out of the cement and is now pulling running across the parking lot toward a busy street with the bench attached to its leash. The dog gets to the street and almost head butts a car but stops just before but the bench keeps moving on around and hits the car. This startles the dog and he takes off running again but stopping again before hitting another car but as before the bench keeps on traveling and hits the second car. At that moment the store owner and the dog's master come out and the master calls for his dog who calms down at the voice of his master. The dog retreats to his master and is unleashed from the bench and the store owner tosses this now mangled piece of bench in the dumpster. The bench in this illustration is our hurt feelings and bitterness for something that has happened in our lives that we are dragging around with us and it is destroying things around us. We have to be unleashed by our Master and the power of forgiveness. We have to quit letting the bench or the people who occupy the bench control us. "Who is on your bench?" Who do you hold resentment or bitterness toward that has hurt you but that you need to forgive? Forgiveness is not for the person who hurt you but for you. A biblical reference to this same type of story comes in Matthew 18:21-25

21Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?"

22Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.

23"Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. 25Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.

26"The servant fell on his knees before him. 'Be patient with me,' he begged, 'and I will pay back everything.' 27The servant's master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.

28"But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. 'Pay back what you owe me!' he demanded.

29"His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.'

30"But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.

32"Then the master called the servant in. 'You wicked servant,' he said, 'I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?' 34In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.

35"This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart."

How many of us have fallen on our knees to be forgiven by God? How many times has he forgiven us? In this story we are a lot like the servant who receives forgiveness but does not offer forgiveness in return. God is like the King in the story who cancels all of the debt and sets us free. Some wallow in their hurt. The pastor outlined the barriers that get in the way of unleashing forgiveness in our lives.

1. Self-deception = "I am OK", "It wasn't that bad", "I wasn't affected that much" or the "that was then this is now" speeches

2. Self-defense = "I will get them back" or revenge type speeches but we need to believe that God will handle justice better than we ever could.

3. Self Image = up on our high horse...we see absolutely no blame in the situation when it might have been partially our fault.

4. Self protection = avoid contact with the person who hurt you, Hard to utter the words "I was wrong to be so bitter, I forgive you"

Ignoring the problem and continuing to hold on to the bitterness and resentment will keep you leashed to that bench forever. "Be Still" the Master will call your name and help you through this if you just forgive.

Colossians 3:13

13Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

The pastor ended his sermon on a personal note and shared a little bit of his background and a path of forgiveness he had to take.
While sitting on the bench on stage he shared this:
As a boy he was in presence of a father who showed any displeasure by hitting or slapping you. He once hit the pastor down a flight of 20 steps into the basement and another time knocked him unconscious. When his mother married his dad she had already had a daughter who was 7 at the time. When the pastor's sister turned 12-13 his dad began raping her to the point she was sent to the hospital with bleeding. This was back a few years when things like this were not discussed. At age 16 he went to his father's auto body shop to find out why his dad was working late and discovered his dad's office door closed. When it was finally opened, his mom's sister emerged followed by his father. The pastor talked about how much he hated his father at that moment and forever. He said 20 years later when he was into his ministry he got the call that his father was not doing well and that he need to come to the hospital...is knee jerk reaction was to say...just call me when he is dead. Then the Holy Spirit laid on his heart that he preached about forgiveness...now was his time to let his dad know he forgave him. So off he went to the hospital. He got there but his dad never regained consciousness. He felt let down by the Holy Spirit...he had drove to let his dad know that he forgave him and he didn't get a chance. He said the Holy Spirit spoke to him again and said it is not important to tell him but to know in your heart that you forgave him was what was important. It doesn't minimize what happened or make you love him but it set you free, you aren't dragging him around anymore.

On a personal note: This sermon hit home to me...I too had held on the bitterness for years...I used to wish someone else was my dad. I never claimed him as my dad...I resented him for years for never wanting a relationship with us. When he got sick...it made me realize I could forgive him and I had that chance to make peace with him. It was a lot of years wasted hating him and holding on to bitterness...it was eating away at me and I didn't even know it. If I had said to my dad "I forgive you" he would have said for what? I needed to forgive him for me...so I could move on and feel free.

Sorry so long...I tried to summarize but sometimes it is just too hard.

This video and song I thought were a good ending to this blog.

Don't you blog anymore?!?!

I hear this over and over and I guess I just got lazy or didn't have a lot to share. I do still go to church and there have been several sermons that I thought I would write about but I get distracted by life and put it on the back burner. Well...today you are in for a treat...2 sermons wrapped into one.

A couple of weeks ago the sermon was titled "The next 30 years". It was about whether we are going to stay on the path we are on...trying to achieve more money, a better job, a picturesque marriage. Deciding between being successful or being significant. We need to be willing to answer the call of God on our lives and not look to the person beside us and say...send them instead. He quoted Leonard Sweet with "Leaders are not made or created but called". We need to make a significant impact on the people around us. Being successful is great but wouldn't it be better to be significant. We can start today so that the next 30 years will be the best years of our life. (a little Tim McGraw lyric basis)

This weeks' sermon probably deserves a blog entry all to itself because of the impact it had on our church and congregation. The service started when our associate pastor, Mark, our choir director, Jerry and another member from the choir, Kim, sang "Crucified with Christ"...it should be playing on the blog right now, so turn up your volume.

As I look back on what I thought was living
I'm amazed at the price I choose to pay
And to think I ignored what really mattered
Cause I thought the sacrifice would be too great
But when I finally reached the point of giving in
I found the cross was calling even then
And even though it took dying to survive
I've never felt so much alive.

CHORUS:

For I am crucified with Christ and yet I live
Not I but Christ that lives within me
His Cross will never ask for more than I can give
For its not my strength but His
There's no greater sacrifice
For I am crucified with Christ and yet I live

VERSE 2:

As I hear the Savior call for daily dying
I will bow beneath the weight of Calvary
Let my hands surrender to His piercing purpose
That holds be to the cross but sets me free
I will glory in the power of the cross
The things I thought were gain I count as loss
And with His suffering I identify
And by His resurrection power I am alive

(CHORUS)

BRIDGE:

And I will offer all I have
So that His cross is not in vain
For I found to live is Christ
And to die is truly gain

He spoke about not being deceived by the "churches" of today who are preaching misconceptions, border-line sermons, "feel good" religion. We need to stand firm in what we believe so that no misconception, nagging or mocking of our faith can sway us. Even if that means being a fanatic for Christ. He pulled the scripture from Judges 16:18 and the story of Samson who let Delilah nag him until he told her is secret and turned his back on God and his command for him. We all have been in situations where the pressure to fit in or we have been swayed by people who claim to be Christians yet they live as if they are not. They live the unholy lives because it is easier...you fit in better, people like you and you can "do" more but for what gain? It is much harder to take a stand for what you believe, to live a holy life as we are called to do in Leviticus 11:43-45. He referenced 2 Corinthians 11:3-4, 19-20.
3 But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent's cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ. 4 For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough.
How easy is it for us to want to find the easy religion, the one the best suits our lives. A weak religion where there is no longer any mention of living a holy life, that you can be a "buddy" with God, where you play a role in a movie or play...just playing to be playing and skirting on the border of the world that we are to be set apart from and the holy life we are supposed to be living. Or do we want a strong religion, grounded in the principles of the bible where it is not easy but a hard road but made easier daily by God's strength, and intimate relationship with Christ, where we are willing to stand up against the ridicule and mocking of others, where we aren't afraid to say it things are wrong when they are wrong. The nice thing about God is that today can be that day, the day you start standing up for him in a way that you never have before, stand out in a crowd, be a fanatic. Be like Samson in Judges 16:22 and start letting your hair grow back...get closer to God. Don't let guilt feelings over sin keep you from your only means to restoration. The service ended with the following chorus:

Draw me close to You
Never let me go
I lay it all down again
To hear You say that I’m Your friend

You are my desire
No one else will do
’Cause nothing else could ever take Your place
To feel the warmth of Your embrace
Help me find the way
Bring me back to You

You’re all I want
You’re all I’ve ever needed
You’re all I want
Help me know You are near

You Know me better than I know myself

That was the topic of the sermon today. The pastor talked about the 3 people that we are:

1. The person we really are
2. The person we want to be
3. The person we will become

God sees us from the inside out. The following verses from Psalms 139 sum up what it means to be really seen by God. David in this Psalms ends it with the prayer at the end...Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life. How many of us can say we would pray that prayer...Test me and know my anxious thoughts. I think the pastor hit another homerun on this one for making me think. I can't hide my inner most thoughts, anxious or otherwise from God. He knows it all.

From Psalms 139
1 O Lord, you have examined my heart
and know everything about me.
2 You know when I sit down or stand up.
You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.
3 You see me when I travel
and when I rest at home.
You know everything I do.
4 You know what I am going to say
even before I say it, Lord.
5 You go before me and follow me.
You place your hand of blessing on my head.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too great for me to understand!

7 I can never escape from your Spirit!
I can never get away from your presence!
8 If I go up to heaven, you are there;
if I go down to the grave,^[a] you are there.
9 If I ride the wings of the morning,
if I dwell by the farthest oceans,
10 even there your hand will guide me,
and your strength will support me.
11 I could ask the darkness to hide me
and the light around me to become night—
12 but even in darkness I cannot hide from you.
To you the night shines as bright as day.
Darkness and light are the same to you.

13 You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body
and knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! (My personal favorite)
Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.
15 You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,
as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.
16 You saw me before I was born.
Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out
before a single day had passed.

17 How precious are your thoughts about me,^[b] O God.
They cannot be numbered!
18 I can’t even count them;
they outnumber the grains of sand!
And when I wake up,
you are still with me!

19 O God, if only you would destroy the wicked!
Get out of my life, you murderers!
20 They blaspheme you;
your enemies misuse your name.
21 O Lord, shouldn’t I hate those who hate you?
Shouldn’t I despise those who oppose you?
22 Yes, I hate them with total hatred,
for your enemies are my enemies.

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 Point out anything in me that offends you,
and lead me along the path of everlasting life.

He showed a really neat video at the end of the service that I have found the link to:
http://www.ignitermedia.com/products/iv/singles/2/Are-You-Amazed

Sometimes the link doesn't work but I can't upload the video without having copyright issues. You can purchase it for personal use from that link.

New Pictures of the Boys...

I just got my pictures from Walmart and thought I would share. I will write more later. I don't know why some are larger than others.

Even if I could but should I?

That was the sermon from 2 weeks ago that I promised to write about. It was a good one and one that clears up a ton of questions for me personally and it will also help me in answering questions from friends. Again the pastor brought out all of the questions we sometimes ask about our walk with Christ (in no particular order). Can you play playing cards, go to movies, smoke or go to bars with a few friends and still make it to heaven? What if you can? Should you? Maybe there is a gray area on the do's and don'ts of life but when we are faced with the indecision we need to ask ourselves, even if I can, should I? Will this particular act really help glorify God the way that he deserves. The time to make the decisions about which way we want to go has to happen now. No more wavering and no more procrastinating. He used

Luke 9:62 (MSG)
Jesus said, "No procrastination. No backward looks. You can't put God's kingdom off till tomorrow. Seize the day."

and he used

Joshua 24:15 (NLT) But if you refuse to serve the Lord, then choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.”
or even better...
Matthew 7:21
“Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter.

He spoke about being santified, set apart, not like everyone else. It is not our job to "blend" in. As it says in 1 Thes. 4:3(a)

It is God's will that you should be sanctified

These last verses sum it all up, it is found in 1 Corinthians 6:12 (MSG)

Just because something is technically legal doesn't mean that it's spiritually appropriate. If I went around doing whatever I thought I could get by with, I'd be a slave to my whims

Galatians 2:19-21

What actually took place is this: I tried keeping rules and working my head off to please God, and it didn't work. So I quit being a "law man" so that I could be God's man. Christ's life showed me how, and enabled me to do it. I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not "mine," but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that.

Is it not clear to you that to go back to that old rule-keeping, peer-pleasing religion would be an abandonment of everything personal and free in my relationship with God? I refuse to do that, to repudiate God's grace. If a living relationship with God could come by rule-keeping, then Christ died unnecessarily.

That is my summary. Have a great day!

NO MORE AFRICA...

I know...I know...It has been awhile since I blogged and I realized how long when I thought about all that has happened since my last blog. So here it goes...It might take a couple of blogs to catch everyone up.
One of the first things that happened is Samuel had his school play. Now I might not normally blog about it but he had some interesting things to say. First I asked him for over a week leading up to the program if he had any part and he assured me he was just part of the choir. So my surprise came when he stepped up to the mic in the first song and sang "Rudolf the Red nose reindeer" not by himself but still, I was stunned and I was sitting on the wrong side of the room to get a good picture. Unlike last year, he actually sang. When I asked him why he sang this year and not last, he informed me that last year we embarrassed him because we were sitting too close. So I guess sitting on the opposite side of the auditorium worked better for him. So in my slide show you will see some of that night. Then not much else happened until Christmas and if you read my mom's blog you will know that we all spent Christmas day at her house but what she didn't mention was that she gave our family a great weekend at Fort Rapids Indoor water park as our gift for the 22nd-24th. We all decided...my kids don't need another toy and they enjoyed the water park better than I thought they would. It was nice to see Josh go off on his own and go down a water slide. He found one in particular that he claimed as his own and a few kids that were also enjoying it would get a strange look from him when they used "his" slide. Sam, the always serious child, enjoyed his time but it was hard to capture a smile. He told me he really doesn't like to smile so he tries his best NOT to smile. After the water park we were off to my mom's for the night and to wait for Santa. We made cookies for Santa. Santa showed up as soon as the kids were in bed and it was nice to set everything up. Josh is a huge fan of Patrick from Spongebob and Sam likes Spongebob, sometimes Sam and Josh playing as if they are the characters in their room...too funny. Anyway. "Santa" bought them a large pillow of each and beside Patrick we put all of the toys from Santa that were for Josh and then beside Spongebob we put all of Samuel's gifts and there was no question as to which side of the Santa gifts were theirs. Josh would have been fine with just his Santa toys but we had bought several toys for each which meant several packages to open. Josh did not do well with this. He would have rather played hungry hippo (one of his first packages) all day than to open another package. But we all had a great time. Samuel got everything he wanted and a few he didn't know he wanted until he saw it. He asked for Star Wars figures and his uncle Tom came through with not only several figures but also the fighter (I am sure there is a more technical name). He has played with it the most and he is very protective of it. He has conceded to let Josh play with CP3O. So that is my blog for tonight. I might write more about this past weekend including the pastor's sermon...it was a good one.

More of Africa...

So I feel like I didn't really get to show you all I wanted about Africa. It was an awesome experience that we could have never done without the financial support of so many that handed us $50 here or there. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU. I also know that we had a ton of people praying for us while we were gone. I mostly appreciate this while we were air born. I must say that was the scariest part of the trip for me. I have never really been scared to fly but I was figuring...a lot can go wrong in 19 hrs. What I didn't know at the time was that as soon as we were on campus the "Rev" (missionary) told us that we need to be careful walking on campus that they have had king cobras. GREAT! He said to be aware of the signs, first they will see you before you see them, then they will hood up and spit at you which could blind you temporary if it lands in your eyes, then they will strike and up to 6 feet away...so be careful. WHAT!?!? So every time I left my chalet, I walked and looked. So if the snake story wasn't bad enough, he told us several stories of crime. He said that at night you don't stop at lights or your car can get hijacked at gunpoint. Good thing he didn't tell us this story as we arrived in Jo'berg because we were traveling at night. I thought we were traveling awful fast. Since being home and really reflecting on the trip I stick with my first blog about perspective. It makes me really appreciate what I have here in America. Anyway...back to sharing the trip...I have upload a few videos that I secretly took during the church services. What an experience. Enjoy. ****If the videos are dark...try opening Youtube website and viewing them from there. Just click on the words youtube in the bottom right hand corner of the video.

Give me that old time religion...


He has done great things...


Group Prayer...They prayed in our language but what a powerful thing to hear them pray to our shared God in their native language. (I wish I would have gotten this recorded)


I surrender all...This is how they ended this service with us.


This was TOO FUNNY...American Nazarenes DANCING!!!!



Here are some sermons that were preached by the students at NTC (Nazarene Theological College) (These are 6 and 11 minutes)

Relaxed and Renewed...

Well that was the plan for this past weekend. I went on the ladies retreat with the church. We went to Sugarcreek aka. Amish country. I do feel renewed but extremely tired. We had a WONDERFUL time and we had an awesome speaker, Tammy Lashey of Calling Levi. She spoke about God's plan for our lives and how we often live in the "woe is me" world. It is like we set up camp where the enemy is and then we get discouraged when the enemy attacks. She said DON'T put up with it and don't let your sister in Christ live in the enemy camp either. Become fighters against the devil (aka. the jerk). The thing that stuck out the most to me was when she was talking about her son, who has a rare blood disorder, and she was pleading with God for an answer to why "she" was going through this. She said God spoke to her heart and said...this is the plan I have for your son and his life. All too often I find myself wondering why things happened to my dad the way they did and it wasn't about me. It was God's plan for my dad's life. I was reminded of something that I read in the Hummel blog about that question of why. Why me? Why them? Why? But if God were to answer the why before anything happened would we still be willing to say yes? I mean if I knew that my dad's passing would bring me closer to God, would I have said yes God you can take him or would I have begged Him that I would try harder or that I should be the one. God's plan for each of our lives is something that only He can only see. I wondered if he cleared his plan for Jesus with Mary. Did he say...Mary, my plan for Jesus is that he will die on a cross after being beaten so that the world could be saved, I doubt it. I am sure in the days leading up to and immediately following she wondered, "why?" So as I sit here tonight I am reminded of a verse that the pastor used...John 16:33
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." He doesn't promise an easy road but he reassures us that there is hope in the midst of our trouble.

I am ending tonight with a few pictures from the ladies retreat (some came out better than others) AND a video of Tammy singing. My stomach is still recovering from all of the laughing and my ears are recovering from my poor use of the sound system.

Once in a lifetime...

That is the statement I have used the most in the last 2 weeks. We just returned from SOUTH AFRICA!!! I said several times to Wayne...Can you believe we are in AFRICA?!? It was absolutely wonderful and amazing. Someone asked me this morning at church if I could describe it in one word and I said amazing but I was thinking perspective. I know a strange word but it is a honest summary. It put everything into perspective for me. I met the most amazing people who love God and who have this overwhelming desire to get anyone and EVERYONE saved. They believe in reaching people by going out to the people and not waiting for the people to come to them. I think sometimes the church (church as a whole) builds the building in hopes that they will come...(Field of dreams mentality). These people are also the happiest people I have met and they have little or no material things. I was shocked when the "Rev" (Chuck Lockard, the missionary leader there) said that the ladies in the kitchen make about 100 Rand a month. A MONTH! I know you are thinking what is a Rand...well it 6.5 to 1 of the dollar so 100 Rand is about 17.50. OUCH~~ They do live on the campus and they get their food there but all of their clothes, kid's clothes and all their personal items have to come out of that money. After hearing it I was at the grocery store and saw that the paper plates were 16 rand and I started thinking...what a waste. We as Americans are so spoiled, we buy tons of things we don't need and we are always saying if I had a little more of this or that...then I would be happy. The people of South Africa don't have that desire...they are HAPPY because they are saved and sanctified and loved by God and they will tell anyone who will listen. We also had an opportunity to go to a baby sanctuary (orphanage). Most of the babies there are HIV positive and abandoned by their moms before they are even named. The lady that started this orphanage currently has 12 kids in her care, more every week. This was probably the hardest part of the trip for most of us. These kids are abandoned on a daily basis or their parents have both died of AIDS. Rev said that in 2010 South Africa's HIV crisis will peak and the amount of children left without parents will be at its all time high. But as the Rev's wife, Ann Marie said...at least the mothers didn't abort the babies or dump them somewhere. I will let the pictures do the talking about the kids....they were adorable....I LOVED Boyki...The boy with the glasses.
We also had the privilege of going on a safari and we were truly blessed. The guide was so impressed that we got to see as many animals as we did. He said it was the best he had seen in the 6 years he had been giving tours. We saw elephants, female lions (who chase a warthog), giraffes, zebras, and ONE TOTALLY AWESOME male lion. He walked down over the hill while we are looking at the giraffes out the other side of our safari truck.

So...Needless to say we were busy and we managed to do a TON of work while were there. We spent 9 + days working on 2 cottages for the faculty which needed updating and cleaned and scrubbed and painted and remodeled and.......... They turned out wonderful and they are now ready to move into. We also helped them turn an old bar (the Nazarene Theological College land used to be an exclusive resort) into a book store. Everyone worked really well together. Sign me up to go again....

Well...I am going to bed...enjoy the pictures. I might put more out later.

The much awaited...

That is right...I am back. Well at least for tonight. I have been scolded by a few for the lack of posts of late. I have been BUSY. Since blogging last, I made a quick trip to Dallas (Left on Friday morning, came back Monday). AND I DROVE with TWO KIDS by MYSELF. It actually went really well...the kids were angels most of the time. I had to see my brother and his family before baby Lauren graduated from high school. It might have been a little impulsive and a bit crazy but it was fun. I will attach pictures of our trip...the kids played together with each other like they see each other every day or maybe that is why they got along so well...they don't see each other everyday, who knows. Kaitlyn and Sam as the older kids worked together to tell Tyler and Josh what to do and Tyler and Josh, both determined 3 year olds...decided not to listen.

Other than that little trip...I have been busy with my liquidation business. I have finally decided to put all of my efforts into making this a part-time job. I opened a store on Ebay called "Returns Back to You". Take a peek. Right now my inventory is all that I am going in have for awhile because I want all of the auctions over by the time we leave for Africa...which by the way is the other thing I have busy with. We leave for Africa in 22 days and counting. Which brings me to my final thing...I am still going to church...I think some have thought that I quit going because of my lack of sermon note blogs. But you are in for a double treat...Here is this week's sermon notes and this one happens to go along with several other blogs this week.

Sermon: "Can you handle the stress test?"

Proverbs 4:23 Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.

Guard our hearts not shelter our hearts. That is the message that comes from that verse for me. A healthy heart does not come from sitting and doing nothing. A healthy strong heart comes from being stressed and then letting it rest, then being stressed and then letting it rest. If we want a healthy heart we need to be prepared to be stressed and know that it is in God's plan that we are stressed and before long he will give us rest. It is how we handle the stress tests in life that determine if we have a healthy heart. Just as with our physical heart...the problem with a heart doesn't appear until all other tests have been run and the doctor has you jump on that treadmill and then your heart shows its weakness in that stressful time. This is much like our spiritual hearts. When we get stressed, it is then that our weaknesses show through. It is then that people see the desires of our heart. If in a stressful situation we turn from God then we weren't as in love with God as we thought. If in a stressful situation we do things that are displeasing to God then we don't rely on God as much as we might have appeared to have in our unstressed out times. Matthew 5:8 says Blessed are the PURE in heart for they will will see God. We would all love to avoid any thing that my stress our heart or challenge our shaky hearts. We don't want anyone to see our hearts under stress. God knows our heart and the intentions of our heart.
Jeremiah 29:13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. If we really give our whole heart to God then we will handle the stress tests of life with a breeze even if we don't understand why this or that stress happens to be in our lives to handle.

Take You through the Fire

This week has been a renewal of spirit for much of our church as well as trying time for some members in the "church" of Christ. We had the opportunity to help out the community this week and it was not only rewarding for the people we helped but also for the 700+ that signed up to help. Our church did a restoration weekend with the theme of "Don't just GO to church, BE the church" and the verse that was used was
Matthew 5:16
In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

On Sunday we didn't have the traditional worship service but it a service where the spirit of the Lord showed up. People were standing and applauding, shouting and if we had kept singing...we may have had a few runners. One of the songs that we sang was "Through the Fire" and it was not only inspiring for those who heard it but it touched me personally as I have been reading about the trials of the Bucks and the Hummels and watched as those families know what it means to be in the fire. God never promised that we wouldn't be in the fire as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego found themselves but he promised that he will SHOW UP and take us through the fire. I included a video of the Crabb family doing this song with the Brooklyn Tabernacle choir. (it may take a few times running it to hear the whole song...but worth the time)



The service ended with "Who can satisfy my soul", here are the lyrics...

Chorus:
There is a Fountain Who is a King,
Victorous Warrior and Lord of everything,
My Rock, my Shelter, my very own
Blessed Redeemer, Who reigns upon the throne.

Verse:
Who can satisfy my soul like You?
Who on earth could comfort me and love me like You do?
Who could ever be more faithful, true?
I will trust in You, I will trust in You, my God!

So if you read my mom's blog you know that we had a very busy weekend. I was in charge of your family reunion this year for the Grate Family, mainly because NO ONE likes to do it and I thought that I would plan something for the younger generation. So after being elected as president last year, I went searching the internet for the perfect spot...I found it Hocking Hills Family Fun Center, mini-golf, sand volleyball, go-karts, and canoeing for all. It couldn't get much better. So I called and got our names on the books cause I figured they were probably booked for months in advance...luckily they had an opening. So then as the time approached I made out 70+ invitation with the address for the Family Fun Center from their very well put together website and sent them out. I called about a week later to confirm our reservation for the shelter house and found out that the address on the website was for their canoe livery and corporate office. WHAT? I thought the canoe livery was at the fun center. NO...it was six miles away and the address on all of my invitation where off by six miles. I told the lady that I spoke with about my disappointment in their website giving the wrong information to which she said...well it is only six miles away. Like if anyone had shown up they would have piled out of cars only to have to pile back in and drive to the "FUN CENTER" which was situated on a lovely hill that required a monster truck to climb. It went straight up. So as I drove up the hill to our lovely fun center... I about had a heart attack...YIKES...The place hadn't been used in 10 years or more!!! See the pictures below.

These are the brochure pictures of the FAMILY FUN CENTER...



THIS IS WHAT WE GOT!
I never knew that you could MOW a sand volleyball court but they did. When we questioned where it was at, they said...we will send "LeRoy" out to mow it. GEEZ!!! Despite all of the miscommunication, we did have almost 50 people (but I did see a couple of cars come and go and it could have been family leaving, can't prove it). It all turned out wonderful. The next day, Sunday, we went to another family reunion, The Hersman reunion. This is the second year in a row that we have went since I was in high school. The reason is...the Grate reunion used to be on Sunday and well...it was always the one that we knew everyone at. The thing I enjoy the most about this reunion, other than the food, is the pictures. Some of you know that I am a bit obsessed with ancestry stuff and they have pictures from every reunion since 1963-present in photo albums. So this year I took my digital camera and snapped a few pictures of my great grandparents that I didn't have.

Other than all of the reunions...we made a trip to Indianapolis that same night and back in Ohio by Monday at 2 so Wayne could go to work. We are starting this business in a big way...more on that later. I am also in the process of planning the popcorn festival parade float for our church...all of this AND...the doctor told me last week that she thought I might have a brain aneurysm or AVM so I had to have an MRI on Friday or it could be a blocked artery in my neck so today I had an ultrasound on my neck. She also said it could be nothing. So far the MRI is clear and Tom will be happy to know that the doctor doesn't "see" anything there. I am waiting for the other test which is suppose to be read by Friday. WHO KNOWS!!! This all started because I have had this obnoxious swishing sound in my ear that is about to drive me crazy.
Sorry for such a long blog. I could write all night and still not get everyone caught up on what is going on .

I'm back....

Well sort of...I don't really have too much to write which is surprising considering I have so much going on right now. Since my last post Wayne and I spent a week painting my grandparents condo, we made 2 trip to Indianapolis, and we are in the midst of planning the Grate reunion. When I sit down at night I really don't feel like writing. So why today? I guess because my brother blogged, my cousin blogged and my mom blogged and I was about the only who hasn't in a while. I have had a really long day. Last night I went to 45 minutes of choir practice at 6:30 and then took off for Indianapolis for some stuff that I bought online at liquidation.com to sell on Ebay, stayed the night at a hotel that should have been named "Rambo Inn" instead of Ramada Inn, and then drove back this morning so Wayne could go to work by 2. Then at 2:30 we were off to the local pool so we could get some relief from the heat, it was great, there were several people there from the church. If you are wondering why I would drive all that way for a few things to sell, well it was more than a few things...it was 4 pallets of things. We went a couple of weeks ago for the same thing and were able to pick up 3 bikes, 1 tricycle, a LOT of camping stuff and we paid next to nothing for it and then we sold it and made all of our money back on the first item we posted so not only did we make money on this little adventure but we got to keep all of the camping stuff and 2 razor scooters. I am starting this little side business to raise money for our trip to Africa which leaves in less than 3 months.
I am really excited about this trip and all that God has planned for us but I am a little freaked out by the amount of time that I will be spending in the air, we leave on the 13th of October at 12:10 pm and arrive in Jo'berg S. Africa at 4:10 pm on the 14th. 28 hours later....Yikes...
But I can't wait to get working over there. Well...that is it for the day...I would write more but my desk chair is broken and I have to sit on my knees to type and I can't feel feet and the last time I did that, I think I broke a toe as I fell on the floor because I had no support under me. Maybe I can find a pallet with desk chairs...Off I go to search.

PS....the new song on here is for my mom.

HE IS 6!!!

That is right...my baby is 6. Time really does fly by. I am posting a few pictures of the day...so enjoy. I would write more but I am exhausted, we had almost 40 people here at our house. It was great to have so many people from church and I am excited to see them all grow up in the church together.

Tagged by Kelley

My cousin Kelley tagged me to tell 8 interesting facts about myself...

1. I have almost electrocuted myself twice, once with my mom’s car keys and once with a bobby pin. Which to most will explain everything…
2. I am a “prove it to me” person…see above…I don’t think I REALLY believed sticking something shiny in the outlet would hurt because I did it TWICE!
3. When I was younger the neighbor’s used to refer to me as “Daisy Duke” because I always wore short shorts and I was super skinny. In fact people used to make fun of me because I was “all skin and bones”. See what teasing does to a person.
4. I have reverse anorexia…I see myself as thin while the sizes I wear and the pictures of me tell a different story.
5. I am not as confident as I seem or as strong as everyone thinks I am. I feel like the personality I started in high school got out of control and people’s perception of me is not the real me but it is a hard thing to change.
6. I really want to become a chef. I love to cook. I have to thank Marsha and my grandma for this…Marsha made the best stuff when I was a kid and grandma always asked me to help but would then do all the work herself. I would like to use these skills to one day open a pizza/arcade.
7. I am a landlord…We own a duplex that we have been very fortunate to have great renters and it seems to have been a great investment.
8. Here is my last one…I love Ross the intern from the Tonight show...He is hilarious...very few things make me laugh out loud but he does.

Boy that was a lot of pressure…check back frequently because some of my eight things might get bumped from the list and get replaced with truly interesting items.

VBS

So this past week was VBS at our church and we had a few kids show up...OK a lot of kids. In fact I think they said that on Wednesday we had 255 kids plus the 80+ workers. I am posting a few pictures of the events which included my father-in-law coming on stilts and doing "Roper Rick".