Happy Independence Day!!

You see, the more I see how far off I am from what God wants me to be, the more dissatisfaction I feel. I now feel like it can only get better from here (at least I hope so) because I have been introduced to a new mentality.

You see, I am on a journey up a mountainside that ultimately leads to Heaven. I have no idea how far up the mountain I am, but I know I am not at the bottom. I know this for a fact because I am constantly looking down at all the places I have been.

When I take a wrong step, I am so busy looking at the footprint that I just left, that I am likely to miss where to take my next step to resume my hike up the mountain. In fact, I am very likely to make a circle around that single footprint trying to erase it, never realizing that I am making even more misplaced step.

The problem here is that I am focusing on myself. My thoughts are constantly, “Oh, I messed up…..again!” And let me tell you, I am a pro at messing up! But what I keep forgetting to consider is that God is used to dealing with professionals, and He happens to be a pro at forgiving.

Unfortunately, if you are looking down the mountain instead of up at the glorious Heavenly Father, who is the ultimate example, you forget what you are striving to be. You forget that the focus of life should not be “me, me me” but “God, God, God.”

Now I am working to change my focus from how awful I am to how awesome God is. And let me tell you, any God that can change me for the better is a pretty awesome God. That’s a tough job!

Are you making the same mistake I am? Are you looking down at all your mistakes, forgetting that you must look up the mountain to God in order to accomplish the things He has planned for you? It’s not too late to change your focus! Just give it a try and LOTS of prayer and dependence on God!

This is my submission to Robert Hruzek’s “What I Learned From a Mountain Top” group writing project.

Today at the pharmacy, I noticed a mom with her newborn. The straps of the baby’s infant carseat were loose enough that he could have come out of the seat in an auto accident. I had a strong urge to go over and talk to her and see if she would let me help her with the straps.

Let me point out here that I am not the type of person to walk up to a total stranger and ask them if I can help them with their baby. At least I didn’t used to be.

I got my nerve up to do it when the baby cried and she took him out of his car seat. Now I didn’t have to ask her to take the baby out.

When I walked up to her and started talking, she immediatly let me know that she did not speak English. I pulled on the strap of the empty car seat and motioned that they were loose and asked if I could fix it for her. She nodded.

After several adjustments and asking her to put the baby in to let me test the length, I was finished. I had to touch the baby’s arms to test the strap length, and that was the scariest part. I treated that tiny baby like he was made of porcelain because I was a total stranger to the mom and did not want to concern her in any way.

Fortunately she did not seem to be concerned, and the baby did not cry while I was testing the straps. There was risk involved, but to me, it was a risk well worth it! Now I can rest assured that her tiny helpless newborn will be as safe as possible in he car seat.

So, tell me. Do you think my actions were too risky? Did I do the right thing? Your input would be greatly appreciated.

Best book

Inspired by God

Beautiful

Living

Eternal

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
- Philippians 4:8

I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.
- Philippians 4:11

Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.
- 1 Corinthians 10:31

But godliness with contentment is great gain.
- 1 Timothy 6:6

This year I have pictures to show how quickly spring happened here in Rhode island. I took some pictures of the tree outside our house exactly 2 weeks ago. Here is what the tree looked like.

I took pictures again today, and the tree looks like this.

Isn’t God absolutely amazing?

Because of this, I always type out a letter, with detailed instructions on how to take care of the children – probably more detailed than necessary. But what really eased my fears even more than my very detailed letter was the realization that my children always have the same caretaker. God is the one watching over them and can do a much better job of protecting them than I can!

For the last 2 or 3 weeks, I have been seeing a lot of Psalm 127. You know what I mean. God puts the same scripture before you over and over until you finally say, “Wait a minute. Are You trying to tell me something here?”

Psalm 127 says:

1 Unless the Lord builds the house,
They labor in vain who build it;
Unless the Lord guards the city,
The watchman stays awake in vain.

2 It is vain for you to rise up early,
To sit up late,
To eat the bread of sorrows;
For so He gives His beloved sleep.

3 Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
The fruit of the womb is a reward.

4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,
So are the children of one’s youth.

5 Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them;
They shall not be ashamed,
But shall speak with their enemies in the gate.

Verse 1 is the main one that has really taught me a lesson. To me, this verse is saying that no job is worth doing if God is not in it. That means I should constantly make sure that the way I am  parenting my children is pleasing to God. If it is not, it is all in vain! And who wants anything they have done to be in vain, especially the raising of their children?!

Parenting may not be an issue for you, but whatever the issue, do yourself a favor and give it to God. Give him that something that you are afraid won’t work out quite right. Or you might even have to give him that something that you are certain you have completely under control all by yourself. Give it to God and let him make good use of all the work you put into it!

1Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, 2fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. 3Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. 4Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.

5Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, 6who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, 7but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. 8And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. 9Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, 10that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

12Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; 13for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.14Do all things without complaining and disputing, 15that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain.17Yes, and if I am being poured out as a drink offering on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. 18For the same reason you also be glad and rejoice with me.

The name of the movie is Facing the Giants. Do yourself a favor and watch it as soon as possible. It is well worth your time!

You see, our good friends are celebrating their 10th anniversary this year and decided to go on a Caribbean cruise as part of their celebration. We happily agreed to babysit their four children while they were gone.

So, for a little over a week, we are responsible for 9 children. And you know what? I am absolutely loving it!

One of the coolest parts is that we just got a 15 passenger van to get our family around with room to fit anyone else who might need a ride to church. Because of our extra 4 passengers tonight, we had a full load in our van for the first time ever!

It is a good thing I am enjoying all this excitement, too, because I have a feeling God has a lot of excitement in store for me in the near future. I’m not sure what, but I believe He has called me to a very busy life. That is, um, aside from the already busy life I lead with 5 children! But like I said, I’m loving it!

Live like I mean it
Only looking to you
Voraciously seeking
Eternity with you

This post is my contribution to the “What I Learned From” group writing project at Middle Zone Musings.

The Roe v. Wade decision held that a woman, with her doctor, could choose abortion in earlier months of pregnancy without restriction, and with restrictions in later months, based on the right to privacy.

I know that I have a diverse group of readers, and some of you may be thinking, “Not abortion again. Do I really need to read this?” Stick around, so that, when I ask you if you did your homework, you can raise your hand.

I have come across a site that explains things in a way I have never heard.  Abort73.com* is an organization that

exists to demonstrate the simple truth that unborn human beings are fully qualified to be recognized as persons under the law and be protected from any assault that might befall them.

The video below can be found on their site, so you get a choice. Are you going to watch it here or there? Regardless of where you choose to watch, please help get the word out about abort73.com.

*This site contains some pictures that might turn your stomach, but only if you click on the “pictures that demonstrate” link.

Now that I am older and and have taken Koine Greek for two years, I am able to say with satisfaction that Xmas does not take the Christ out of Christmas

In Greek the symbal for the “ch”  sound is “chi,” which happens to look like an “x.” The Greek word for Christ is “Xristos,” which sounds like “Christos.” So technically the shortened “Xmas” does not take the Christ out of Christmas.

Forget gifts on their birthday and holidays. They get gifts from plenty of people on those days, and if you are consistently making sure they know how special they are to you, they are probably not going to be upset if you don’t get them something on “that special day.” (Seth Godin’s mom would agree on this point). However, I am sure at least some of them would appreciate a card (especially if you make it yourself) and/or a phone call on that day. Then you can give the money you saved by shopping out of season and spending it on the best gift ever.

According to The Advent Conspiracy, it would take $10 billion to supply the whole world with safe drinking water. Sound like a lot? It actually sounds like a very small amount when compared with the $450 billion Americans spend each year on Christmas purchases!

I did the math. $10 billion is only 2.2% of $450 billion. Do you think you could spend 2.2% less on Christmas purchases this year and give it to a worthy cause? That means buying $9.78 gifts instead of $10 ones; $19.56 gifts instead of $20 ones; $48.90 instead of $50 ones. It means giving less than a quarter for every $10 you spend on Christmas!

It would be easy to make this a family or group project. You can make up a chart for your family and/or church designating $.25 for every $2 spent for Christmas presents. It would be so easy to get children motivated to help out children in other countries. Just take the first step. Reach out to those who so desperately need it.

Thousands of people die yearly because of unsafe drinking water. Let’s give hope to those who could die next year and the year after that! Let’s give a quarter for every $10 spent this Christmas. Go to adventconspiracy.com for more details. If you would like to skip a few steps, click directly on this link to donate.

A few days ago, I had the opportunity to be that person who remembered while Christian acquaintances were struggling. Unfortunately I passed up that opportunity.

It was 15 children ranging in age from 7 months to 12 years plus about 1-10 adults. This may sound like a fairy tale, but we had been dropped off by boat on a secluded beach. It is a great place to take your family or friends swimming because there is no one else around.

After we had been there about an hour, we started feeling rain drops. Shortly after that, we started hearing thunder, and eventually the lightning began. So, we pulled all the kids out of the water and wrapped them up to keep them warm. (In RI, when it gets cloudy on the beach, it also gets cold). We tried to call our boat man to have him pick us up, but we could not get him on the phone.

So, we sat crowded on a single blanket on the ground with everyone huddled together complaining about our situation. I would like to say that I spoke up to encourage everyone, and that we had a wonderful worshipful experience, despite the fact that we were wet and sitting on the beach vulnerable to the storm around us. Unfortunately, I cannot say that.

I thought about the fact that God would protect us from the storm. While God does not want us to do something dumb like sitting around on a wet beach in a thunderstorm expecting Him to deliver us from our own stupidity, He will protect us when we are stuck out in a situation that is beyond our control. He will not let anything happen to us until He is ready for it to happen.

If I had said all these things, the situation could have been totally different. We could have prayed for protection together as a group and then sang worshipful songs to God while stranded on a secluded beach in a thunderstorm!

I am very ashamed of myself for not speaking up. In fact, I am so ashamed that I don’t know how to put it into words.

The only way I know to get something positive from my fear of speaking up is to (hopefully) keep my readers from making the same mistake I did. When God lays something on your heart, listen and obey. It may make you feel dumb, it may sound stupid to your ears, and yes, your bold declaration could be rejected, but there is also a good chance that you can be an inspiration or a witness to others. It is worth the rejection of 10 people just to get one acceptance. Besides, who would you rather please: people or God?

This new ad really upset a lot of moms who wear their babies. I believe those moms had reason to be upset, and I am glad they spoke out and eventually convinced McNeal Consumer healthcare to take down the advertisement for Motrin (their product).

My goal today is not to bash Motrin any more. Instead, it is about the amazing influence of twitter and personal blogs.

I came across a twitter search today named #motrinmoms. Motrinmoms was a response from twittering and blogging moms across America, who are against the ad by Motrin. There were thousands of responses from Moms!

I was amazed at the response. Something happened that many Americans did not agree with, and through twitter and blogs, those Americans had the power to convince Motrin not only to remove the ad from their site, but to also remove it from all printed sources! What an impact!! Do you get the full meaning of that?

As an American and as a child of God, I am not happy about some of the things going on in America. I am sure Christians across America are not happy about some things in our country, whether it be the content on television and internet or laws that are passed.

Correct me if I am wrong, but it appears that if Christians and moral people across America stood up and spoke out for or against those things they want to change, there is a possibility that they would be heard and that there there could be a lasting impression.

Of course the trick is to be prepared to spread what is going on. If someone twitters for a change you agree with or blogs against something that you also are against, twitter about it too! Blog about it. Don’t think you are being redundant by twittering or blogging about something that has already been addressed. You have a different audience! Get the word out to them that you are ready to stand up for what you believe in!! Maybe they’ll do the same!

I have mentioned it before, but I will say it again just in case some of you don’t know. I am a Christian. I do not agree with several things that are going on in our beloved nation (because they are not scriptural), and I am ready to speak out about it. What good does it do to sit back and complain about it to my friends and then go on with life like I don’t care? I have recently learned that it does no good whatsoever!

I am ready to speak up to both those who agree with me and those who don’t and lovingly say, “I don’t like it!” I don’t hate those who push the things I disagree with. I just want to lift up my voice to declare my thoughts, jus like they did, while I still have the right to speak up.

Since its adoption by the United Nations in 1989, the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) has become the most widely accepted international agreement in history, ratified by every nation of the world except for the United States and Somalia. All signatories pledge to protect children’s rights, foster their development, and uphold their best interests by re-writing their national laws to conform to the standards set forth in the treaty.

While all this may sound harmless and even commendable, the reality is that the Convention allows and even demands that national governments interfere in the decisions of individual families and parents. By invoking the “best interests of the child ,” policymakers and government agents have the authority to substitute their own decisions for those of the child or parent. In short, parents lose their rights to be parents, and become merely caregivers. The result, as parents across the globe are now discovering, is that the family is being steadily undermined, often with tragic and devastating results for the very children who are supposed to be protected.

Without research and/or understanding of what “The Rights of the Child” refers to, the idea sounds like a great one. Everyone wants their children to have rights. Unfortunately the idea that the United Nations is pushing allows parents to take care of the physical needs of their children but takes away any other influence that the parents may have on their children. The children are expected to learn what the UN approves of and nothing else (including morals)!

Parentalrights.org is taking it upon themselves to keep track of countries who have already accepted this proposal of the United Nations and post about it every 2 weeks. Please go to their site regularly or put their posts in your RSS feed. Also, go to the site of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights site and read the declaration for the Convention for the Rights of the Child. The second statement in Article 2 was most disturbing to me. It states that

States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that the child is protected against all forms of discrimination or punishment on the basis of the status, activities, expressed opinions, or beliefs of the child’s parents, legal guardians, or family members.

Read that again and think about it. Think hard about it. It says that parents have no influence on the thoughts, activities, opinions or beliefs of their children. Is that what you want for your children? It most definitely is not what I want for mine. According to “Imagine If…” by parental rights.org, the Unites States is only one of two countries that have not accepted this. If you disagree with the things written in “the Rights of the children” please do yourself and everyone around you a favor and do everything you can to discourage America’s agreement to it. You might want to start by signing a petition showing that you are against the interference of government on your right to parent your children. Then you might want to consider getting down on your knees and having a long talk with the Person most able to prevent this intrusion on our parental rights.

Update (1/3/09): I now know that this convention was signed by president Clinton but was stopped by congress. Now president Obama is planning to get it passed.  This is very urgent! Go here to do all you can to help.

Note: Although it was not my original intent when writing this post and it is a bit late, this post has a lot to do with the government. If Robert Hruzek at Middle Zone Musings is willing, please consider this my submission for this month’s “What I Learned From” project.

Take the next 20 minutes to watch 2 videos that you will never forget. If you are tempted to skip out on the videos, please just watch a few minutes, and if you are not interested in continuing, you can turn it off. Please watch the videos.

After you watch the videos, if you want to know more, consider reading the book Gianna by Jessica Shaver. It might be a book worth investing in and sharing or putting in your local library. Also, here are a few links that have more information on Gianna.

• Gianna at 19 years of age
• Gianna Jesson’s story (not sure about credibility of this site)
• Gianna’s website (the songs on this site are sung by Gianna too)
• Amy’s story (another abortion survivor)
• Other abortion survivors

Shopping

When I lived in Nashville, I shopped at Aldi’s, but when I moved to Rhode Island, I could not find one. Fortunately there was a similar store called Price Rite. Wal-Mart is usually my second choice for groceries. I have always wanted to do a price comparison between the two, but now I don’t have to. Someone else has done it for me. This comparison is between Aldi’s and Wal-Mart, but I am fairly certain that you would find almost identical results between Price Rite and Wal-Mart.

Quotable Quotes

Bethany: (after getting on a bus) “We sit in Fire Twuck.”

Peter: “You dripped a little terihocky sauce.”

Tabetha: “She’s got her curls toed.”

Candice: “Canna.” (Her name)

The Good News

Today Phillip understood the good news of Christ. Luke talked and prayed with him, and he asked Jesus into his heart! I am so glad!! Hallelujah! Praise the Lord!! I get to see my little boy in Heaven!

When Luke and I got married we discussed the issue of divorce and decided that we were together for life no matter what – no exception! And I believe it with all my heart. I am so glad we made that decision! Our kids will never have to go through the disappointment and heartbreak of discovering that their parents no longer want to be together.

Of course, the kids are not the only ones I am concerned about! It’s a great feeling for me too. I have no desire to have anything else whatsoever to do with divorce. And there is no feeling in the world like knowing that someone has willfully chosen to be committed to you no matter what. Maybe, just maybe, that is why God gave us a choice of whether or not to choose Him. There’s just nothing like being willfully chosen.

Peter has not liked having water in his eyes and/or ears since he was a baby. When he goes swimming, he comes out with a dry head because he would never choose to put his head under water. So, with that in mind, here is how our most recent baptism conversation went.

Peter: Mom, isn’t it almost the day for the baptism?

Me: Yes. Do you want to get baptized Sunday?

Peter: Yes! But Mom, do I really have to put my head under water?

Me (with demonstration): Yes. The pastor takes you under and then brings you right back up.

Peter: Was Jesus baptized?

Me: Yes

Peter: Does he want me to be baptized?

Me: I think that would make him very happy.

Peter: Well, if it will make Jesus happy, then I will do it.

The baptism was scheduled to be tomorrow, but since there are so many children in the church interested in being baptized, the pastor decided to do a class on Wednesday explaining what baptism is and why people get baptized. So, the baptism will be in 2 weeks. We are not sure if Peter will go through with it this time. We are not pushing him to do it before he is ready, but we do hope he will be baptized (and understand the meaning behind it) in the near future.

Matthew 18:20 says, “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. Does this count?

By the way, it is amazing how much the little girl looks like Bethany!

Monday the kids wanted to watch a movie and requested watching the book of Matthew because it was their uncle Matthew’s birthday (Happy Birthday, Matt!) and because Easter was the day before. Amazingly enough, they sat there, mesmerized, and watched the Bible for an hour and a half!! Even Bethany watched bits and pieces!

Peter: So we would have the chance to ask Him into our hearts.

About a fourth of the way there, I realized that Peter was a bit confused about where we were walking to. He pointed to a brick wall and excitedly said, “Hey! Is that the Great Wall of China?!” Apparently he thought we were walking to China and either thought we had walked a long way or that China was very close!! (The second assumption would make sense since we are meeting so many people from China and learning their language.)

By the way, our van is running and sitting in our driveway right now. And the most amazing part is that we drove this 24 hour van for a year and a half before we had a bit of trouble out of it! God is SO good to us!!! He even provided a mechanic through our pastor to help us get a good deal on getting it fixed! Thank you, Lord!

Why don’t you take a minute to thank God for at least one thing he has given you? You may find it hard to stop once you’ve started. Don’t worry. God is in no hurry to have you stop praising Him! You may even find a blessing or two in disguise!

When I was in high school, I rode the handicapped bus to and from school because my brother, Timothy, was in a wheelchair. I sat on the bus every day near a boy about 2 years younger than Timothy who had muscular dystrophy just like Timothy did. I knew the disease and knew it was terminal. While still in his early teens this little boy unexpectedly passed away due to his disease. It wasn’t until then that I realized that I had missed the opportunity to tell him about Jesus. I had at least a half hour ride each way to school every day. Why did I not step out of my shell to share something worth coming out of my shell for?

About ten years ago while on a mission trip to Colorado, I was assigned to a small church in a very small town. My missions partner and I led a children’s program in the park, which included a Bible lesson and a time of singing. One day I encountered a pre-teen girl there whom I had never met. I talked to her and felt the Spirit nudging me to share Him with her. But we parted without me saying a word to her about the Heavenly Father. I felt awful, and the awful feeling grew as the evening wore on. It was dusky when I got back where I was to sleep, so I decided to search for the girl the next day at the park. After searching for a long time and keeping my eyes open for her until I had to go home from the trip, I had to face the fact that I had missed the opportunity to speak to her about the most important Person ever!! The opportunity was not likely to come again.

One of my pastor’s points Sunday was something that I have always struggled with. The tongue is a very strong weapon that can be used to harm others if we are not careful. I had also read James 3 earlier in the week. Evidently it did not go very far into my brain, or more importantly, into my heart. Tonight I got into an argument with a total stranger in the bathroom at Wal-Mart because my 3 year old looked under the bathroom stall door at her. She did not know he was so young at first and was extremely upset about it, but I could have eased her emotions by smiling and pointing out his age and the fact that he meant nothing by it (and was only looking under because I asked myself out loud if anyone was in that particular stall). Instead I matched her mood with my own, and was very rude to her (in front of my children, I might add).

As soon as she left the bathroom, I felt God say, “Tabetha, you knew better than that and should not have done it.” Too bad I didn’t listen a little sooner. I was so busy beating up on what I perceived to be my enemy to hear His voice! I ended up siding with the enemy (Satan), instead. I searched all over the store several times for her, but she was not to be found. I had, yet again, missed an opportunity. I sat the kids down right there in the store and told them that my behavioir had been wrong, that I had been a bad example, and that I had very possibly ruined my testimony for Christ to that woman.

As I shopped, I kept finding myself muttering, “I can’t believe I let this happen again.” I have cried and prayed multiple times, but you know what? That opportunity very likely will not come again. I blew it again – even with God’s reminders to watch my tongue earlier in the week!

While I know there are several lessons to be learned from these three instances, the most important one is probably this: Listen when God speaks to you or nudges you in a certain direction, especially when it involves sharing Him with others. Some opportunites only come once. In all three of these stories, someone missed out on an opportunity to hear about a loving God who could change his/her life for the better….because of me.

I hope you never find yourself in this situation. Maybe you can learn from my mistakes. If you ever do find yourself in a situation similar to the ones above, please do not forget that there is one thing that can still be done. Pray! Pray! Pray for that person! Even if God never uses me to reach the two remaining people mentioned above, He could still send someone else into their paths. “Oh, Lord, let it be so. I know I failed, but please don’t allow them to suffer such a severe punishment due to my disobedience! Help them to open their hearts to you.”

Blogged with Flock

You are in your car driving home. Thoughts wander to the game you want to see or the meal you want to eat, when suddenly a sound unlike any you’ve ever heard fills the air. The sound is high above you.

A trumpet?
A choir?
A choir of trumpets?
You don’t know, but you want to know.

So you pull over, get out of your car, and look up. As you do, you see you aren’t the only curious one. The roadside has become a parking lot. Car doors are open, and people are staring at the sky. Shoppers are racing out of the grocery store.

The Little League baseball game across the street has come to a halt. Players and parents are searching the clouds. And what they see, and what you see, has never before been seen.

As if the sky were a curtain, the drapes of the atmosphere part. A brilliant light spills onto the Earth. There are no shadows. None. From whence came the light begins to tumble a river of color spiking crystals of EVERY hue ever seen and a million more never seen. Riding on the flow is an endless fleet of angels. They pass through the curtains one myriad at a time, until they occupy every square inch of the sky.

North.
South.
East.
West.

Thousands of silvery wings rise and fall in unison, and over the sound of the trumpets, you can hear the cherubim and seraphim chanting, “Holy, holy, holy. ”

The final flank of angels is followed by twenty-four silver-bearded elders and a multitude of souls who join the angels in worship.

Presently the movement stops and the trumpets are silent, leaving only the triumphant triplet: “Holy, holy, holy.” Between each word is a pause. With each word, a profound reverence. You hear your voice join in the chorus.

Suddenly, the heavens are quiet. All is quiet. The angels turn. You turn. The entire world turns, and there He is:

Jesus

Through waves of light you see the silhouetted figure of Christ the King. He is atop a great stallion, and the stallion is atop a billowing cloud. He opens his mouth, and you are surrounded by his Declaration: “I am the Alpha and the Omega.”

The angels bow their heads. The elders remove their crowns. And before you is a figure so consuming that you know, instantly you know:

Nothing else matters. Forget stock markets and school reports; sales meetings and football games. Nothing is newsworthy. All that mattered, matters no more….

For Christ has come .

There was no author information on this story. If anyone knows who wrote it, I will gladly give credit where it is due.

Blogged with Flock

To add on top of the stress, the electricity went out just as we were getting the kids in their pajamas. Let me help you understand the situation we were in. We were not moving until Sunday, but we had already put all our stuff on the truck except for blankets to sleep on. We had no candles, matches, etc.!! Fortunately, we had a box of stuff we weren’t planning to keep, and guess what!! There was a flashlight in it. With a tiny flashlight in the center of the room pointing at the ceiling, we all got ready for bed and put down blankets to sleep on. Within an hour we were all camped out on the floor in one room with the windows open (no AC). As I lay down to sleep, I saw the good things about the electricity going out. First, Luke and I each had 2 kids with us when the lights went off, so there was no chaos in the dark. Second, there was nothing to trip over in the darkness because it was all packed! Third, I was able to find a flashlight while I was not tripping over stuff . Fourth, and most important, I felt no stress over the van. It was like God was saying, “Tabetha, don’t worry about this. Don’t you know I have it all under control?”

The next morning, we went to church as usual and had lunch at church (They gave us a going away lunch! Wasn’t that nice?) Amazingly enough, we were able to find a van, check it out, and get a money order on Sunday, a day when such transactions are not easy!! We drove over to look at the van with money in hand, hoping we liked it. Fortrunately, my Dad is a mechanic and was able to tell us what to look for and test for in a used van. Thank you Daddy!!

When we looked at the van, we were amazed by the seller. This was the couple’s first time to sell a vehicle, and they had all the paperwork of everything they had ever had done on the van, included warranty paperwork, and showed us the neat built in carseats and other usage information on the van. They were wonderful!! Needless to say, we took the van. It made it the whole trip without a single complaint the whole way. We had it checked and tuned up when we got to Rhode Island, and all it needed was an oil change!! That has to be a first!!

It is great to know that God takes care of us! He has proved His faithfulness once again as we followed Hiim to Rhode Island!! He is AWESOME!!

You are beautiful beyond description
Too marvelous for words,
Too wonderful for comprehension
Like nothing ever seen or heard.

Who can grasp Your infinite wisdom
Who can fathom the depths of Your love
You are beautiful beyond description
Majesty enthroned above.

And I stand, I stand in awe of You.
I stand, I stand in awe of You.
Holy God to whom all praise is due,
I stand in awe of You!

Blogged with Flock

I always assumed that this story was aimed at people who needed Christ in their lives and were facing that death themselves. They need to listen to those who are trying to communicate a serious problem to them. About a week ago, I saw the story in a different light. I pictured myself as the man who was working furiously to warn others about the danger. Wouldn’t it be ridiculous if the man said things like these?

“They are too busy for me.”
“They are obviously in a hurry.”
“I might look foolish.”
“What if I don’t say it the right way?”
“What will they think?”
“I will tell them later.”
……Add any excuse here.

All these things seem like silly things to even think of when somebody is heading in a path that leads to (spiritual) death. The urgency of the message to be given overrides any available excuse! So what if they are in a hurry or we may be perceived as fools. We need to get out there and try with sincere faith and love regardless! There are lives to be saved!!!

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What really caught my attention was Smalley’s discussion of “Treasure hunting.” He says that in any negative situation, no matter how bad, there is some kind of treaser to be found. For example, Smalley’s son, Michael, was involved in a pretty rough automobile accident, and he had to go through a lot of pain to recover. Although, he wasn’t searching for treasure initially, he realized that after the accident, he could no longer see an accident without praying for those involved. He would not have considered doing that had he not been involved in an accident himself.

I have noticed that I, having lived with a brother who was in a wheelchair, am more likely to notice the needs of the handicapped. There are probably multiple examples of this in the lives of us all.

One more thing that should be mentioned, Smalley said that you may not notice the treasure immediately. It might take some time to see it. If you have suffered a trial and have not found treasure in it, it probably wouldn’t hurt to look back on that hard time, seeking to find treasure! It sure helps you to heal from the wound, emotionally! If any of you family members want to borrow the book, let me know! I’m almost finished with it!!

I have just barely scraped the surface of the good stuff to be found in this book. Beware though! In order to benefit from the book, you might be forced to take an honest look at yourself and admit to some shortcomings!! Hopefully this post has been helpful to someone out there! It feels good to me just to have written it down in my own words!! Have a great day!

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