Living in His Sonshine

• Jun. 14, 2007
Just checking In

Time certainly flies! Wow I cannot believe the last time I made an entry here was October 2006!

It is amazing all the things that revolve and get us involved in Life!

Maybe I will take some time later to update this journal--that will take a bit to cover 8 mths--maybe cliff notes are in order!

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• Oct. 16, 2006
Just catching up!

Just catching up!

I am amazed at the speed of time as it passes in our house!

It was August the last time I sat down to write or journal here!

Life has been 'busy' and blessed!

School began for us August 17th.

In September, we had an awesome family vacation to Williamsburg, Virginia and Washington, D.C.! It was a warm, beautiful fall time with each other! And an exciting visit to the nation's capital. We had the opportunity to tour the White House. The girls LOVED that!

I began the Beth Moore study of Daniel in September. It has been so revealing and current to our lives; not only as a parent, but also as a child of the living God!

As we try to live in this world, not be of it, nor be influenced by it!

God has impressed me so much of the 'Babylon' mentality all around us!

I guess there will be more later on!

Lisa

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• Aug. 1, 2006
My Prince Will Come...

A few days ago I heard a Focus on the Family program with Sheri Rose Shepherd.

Today I began reading her book

My Prince Will Come-Getting Ready for My Lord's Return

It is awesome! I just had to share this!

For those who know me, I have always loved the idea of being

a princess of the King and a bride waiting for her Prince.

The introduction in this book wonderfully describes that whole idea!

I can not wait to get further in this book!

Our Prince Will Come…

And I. . . saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven. It was a glorious sight, beautiful as a bride at her wedding.

R e v e l at ion 2 1 : 2 , T L B

The bride-to-be stood motionless, staring in the mirror for what seemed like an eternity. She had worked hard to prepare for this moment. Her hair and makeup were works of art, and her dress was stunning. Never before had she felt so perfectly beautiful. But something was still missing.

Something had gone terribly wrong.

Where were her bridesmaids? Where were her guests? Had she not made it clear to everyone that this day was coming? The most glorious day of all time? She glanced over at the open guest book beside her—blank. The gift table—empty. . . except for a stack of unopened letters. Were those the wedding invitations she should have sent out? No, they couldn’t be. She was sure she had mailed them weeks ago and crossed that item off her list.

The bride fumbled through the pile. Every letter was

addressed to her, and each had been sent from the same

person—her Betrothed. Of course she recognized His

handwriting. She had read His letters before—long ago—

but life had kept her so busy that there really hadn’t been

any time to read His letters. There will be plenty of time to get to know my husband after the wedding, she had thought.

The bride sifted through the pile, looking for something

without really knowing what. Tears of disappointment

blurred her vision, but she stopped at a particular letter. Her

eyes brightened as she read the familiar phrase her Prince

had written on the envelope: “I can’t wait to see you, My dearest

princess! I love you!” A sense of eagerness overcame her, and she began to open the envelope. But just then she heard the

sound of the most beautiful music she had ever heard. The

wedding march had begun!

She dropped the letter and ran toward the large double doors that opened into the sanctuary. She could fill the sweet presence of her Prince in the empty hall. Where were her friends? Her family? Hadn’t they gotten their invitations? Maybe they were too busy to come? She wrestled with these unanswered questions as

she slowly walked down the aisle of the large and gloriously

decorated sanctuary. Her eyes danced about as she

absorbed the indescribable beauty of her surroundings.

Then, suddenly, everything around her seemed to blur as

she caught sight of Him.

He looked so tender and loving standing there at the

end of the aisle, patiently waiting for His bride to approach.

There were no bridesmaids or groomsmen, only her

Groom and what appeared to be stacks and stacks of wedding

presents. She had heard that her Prince had prepared

many gifts for His bride, but this was truly overwhelming.

She always knew her emotions would run wild on

her wedding day, but nothing had prepared her for the

intense flood that filled and overflowed her heart. As she

approached her Groom—her Prince—she felt her heart

race and her face flush with shame and embarrassment.

It hit her suddenly like a stabbing jolt of reality: He had

done everything to prepare this day for her. He had done

everything to woo her, to bless her, to capture her heart,

to rescue her. . . and she had done nothing! She had nothing

to offer Him. No gifts. No guests. She had labored

and sweated over all the wrong things and for all the

wrong reasons. The depth of her shame was so intense

that she grabbed the hem of her gown and turned, ready

to run away. It was then that her eyes met His.

There she saw something in His gaze that was more

intense than her shame, more powerful than her guilt. That

“something” was greater than anything she had ever felt

before. She turned back toward Him and slowly continued

down the aisle. Then it happened. Not all at once, but gradually.

As she walked. . . as she approached her Prince. . . as she

stared into His tender eyes. . . her shame began to melt away.

Closer. Closer still. Now she could see it: The look on His

face was one of pure love, the kind of love that says, “You are

Mine, My princess, and nothing can keep us apart.”

As the bride-to-be stepped up to stand next to her

Groom, every negative emotion loosed its grip on her and

departed forever. Every pain that had burrowed its way into

her soul disappeared for good. The Prince extended His

hand and took hers. As they stood there face-to-face, she

realized that her life was finally complete and her joy more

full than she had ever dreamed possible. The Prince smiled

and gently wiped away the tears from her cheek. He then

embraced His new bride and said, “You will never cry again,

My love. Welcome home.”

If you know Jesus as your Savior, then He is your

Prince, you are His princess, and this story is about your

glorious day. However, the end of this story and the fruits

of that day are, to some degree, up to you, His bride-to-be.

By God’s grace, will you be ready to meet Him face-to-face

on that majestic day of His return? Are you ready for your

Prince? Does the way you live your life today reflect that

you are His? Do you need to take the time to fall in love

once again with the One who gave His life for you? Are you

ready to discover your “happily ever after”? Do you need

Him to reveal Himself to you in a very real and personal

way? Is it your heart’s desire to live a passionate, Christcentered

life? Do you need Him to set you free to live in the

complete freedom He has already won for you?

If your answer to any or all of the above questions is yes,

then I invite you to take a seat and read about the greatest

love story ever told—written for you—and discover how

you can prepare yourself for your Prince!

Love,

Your sister princess in Christ,

Sheri Rose

“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined

what God has prepared for those who love Him.”

1 C o r i n t h i a n s 2 : 9, n lt

Here is Sheri's website where you too can download this sample of the book!

http://hisprincess.com

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• Jul. 31, 2006
Just catching up!

Well, it has been over 2 weeks since I have taken the time to sit at the computer for any period of time!! So I will just catch up on our activities and my jumbled thoughts this morning!

We survived the 2 day yard sale and went stratight into medical mode!

Rebecca had her tonsils and adenoids removed July 20th.

Thank you so much for your prayers, calls and emails for Rebecca.

Her surgery was a success!! Praise the Lord!

(everything they removed was of the XXL size!! She will certainly be feeling better all around once she is healed!)

She was still quite nervous about the whole IV thing.

But when we got there everyone was SO wonderful and nice to her. Well they were nice to all the kids and the parents!! It made an awkward situation so much easier to handle!

God indeed planted so many wonderful people in our path today--Rebecca was so much more at ease because they patiently took the time to talk to her, reassure her, joke with her and explained everything before it happened.

She even got to take her teddy into surgery with her!

Plus the head of the surgical staff is gal I know from scrapbook retreats!!

We did have a scare just this past Friday night. She had sneezed several times during the afternoon and 'broken loose' the areas that were healing. She began bleeding alot. Quite messy! As a recommended precaution we did seek medical help at a pediatric care clinic--open till midnight. It was looking fine! But as we were about to leave she stood up and almost passed out!

Looking back it probably was from the loss of blood, no substantial food for a period of time (low blood sugar) and nerves. The pediatrician recommended we go to the ER! So we did. However, after waiting for 3 hours--there was only 1 doctor on duty!

It looked like it would be at night/morning. Rebecca was MUCH better, no bleeding for 5 hours by then. She was hungry, very tired and crying to go home. So we left!

Praise the Lord she has been just fine for the past 3 days and finally starting to eat more solid foods, 10 days after surgery!

We are now on the road to recovery!! God is good! She is no longer taking the pain medication and she is completely 'sick and tired' of popsicles, ice cream and frozen yogurt!

How can that be??

Sarah was a champ and did help her sister alot. It lasted longer than I thought!

She was especially helpful when her request was included in the daily run to get an ICEE for her sister!

Chuck has had quite a bit of difficulty in mobility the past 2 weeks--the heat is such a huge factor for people with MS. He has been attending a weekly aqua aerobic class for people with MS--it is so good for him but that just added to his 'wilted feeling' and fatigue. It seems so contradictory but "any movement" for folks with mobility issues is good in the long run!

Since Chuck and Rebecca were not feeling up to par, we missed church last weekend. I really felt alone and lonely missing that fellowship and connection.

Plus, my girlfriends had a movie, dessert and coffee night this past week.

I had to miss it!

So that added to my sadness!

But I did get to go this weekend!!!!! I really needed to be there! My tank was empty and my bones and spirit were dry!

We have spent our days just doing some fun things; jigsaw puzzles, games of all kinds, reading and some sewing.

I worked on organizing the schoolroom, shelves, desks and sorting through all the papers! Our recently ordered workbooks came Thursday, Sarah sat down immediately and did 3 pages of math!!!! The next day she was working on her penmanship! Praise God for her enthusiasm--please make it last!! Rebecca even pick up hers and started to do a few pages.

Both of them are excited to get back to the 'normal' routine!

We will have a slightly different routine this "school year".

We will officially begin school August 15th because I will be again teaching again one day a week at Cornerstone Academy. The girls love the fact they get to go with me and participate in the classes too. We have been involved with Cornerstone for 5 years now! I have truly enjoyed teaching partime and subbing at a Christian school that incorporates homeschoolers in their programs 1-2 days a week.

So I have been organizing our calendar, schedule and planning for our classes as well as brushing up on American History for the class I will teach!

The girls and I will also participate in a couple of 'co-op classes' built around our weekly dance classes. I will lead 1or 2 of those classes-it may be history, bible study, art or science--I do not know yet! We will decide this week!

It seems like I have not done anything for 2 weeks other than be home, but that has been good! God has gifted me to be an administrator/organizer so I put it to good use the past couple of weeks!

Now I just need to lay all those plans at His feet and seek His will to do those most important tasks for His glory and recognize the ones that I need to let go!

Right now I hear my 'handmaids' calling, the washer and dryer are in need of being

emptied and filled again, as well as the dishwasher! Here I come girls!

The rest of the day needs attending to also!

This the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it!

And as the song says "Ain't gonna let no rock out praise me!"

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• Jul. 16, 2006
What can you see?

Random thoughts:

I went to bed very tired at 10:30 but have yet to get to sleep. It is now 1:15 am; my brain is racing and my heart is praying over all the events of the past couple of days!

Our yard sale, at my aunt and uncle's house on Friday and Saturday, was much more of a success than I could have imagined! And God made me a very interesting 'heavenly appointment' not on my schedule! Friday was actually the best sale day! But Saturday was alot more fun! The kids had a great time meeting other kids in the neighborhood, selling bottled waters (it was 95 degrees and very humid!), brownies, lemonade and penny lollipops! There were six neighbors who also put out their treasures of ALL KINDS! We took turns walking around to meet them and buy some things!

There was an older couple who really enjoyed visiting with everyone, a young couple with preschool kids-cleaning out "the stuff", the young fellow across the street along with his girlfriend (probably soon to be fiance!), two young couples with new babies selling a few things in order to get new baby things!, the family-four doors down (he is a police officer) was having fun just meeting all folks walking by, and the young family of three who just moved-in a couple of weeks ago; both are teachers and the husband was recently diagnosed with MS (Just like my sweet hubby!).

Molly walked up, seeking out her new neighbors. (What a better way to meet folks than at their yardsale! You can really 'see' and tell alot about people from the things they have to sell!)

She introduced herself to my aunt and uncle, expained she had just moved here from North Carolina, her husband will be working on his doctorate, they are both teachers and have an infant. Well, I started to walk on so they all could talk, but I noticed a red band on her arm that said HOPE-very familiar! I could not read the other side so I just asked her what her band was for--she said MS-her husband has it! So I reach over, gave her a gentle hug and pointed to Chuck. I said this is my husband, who also has MS. Her eyes lit up! I introduced them and she began to ask him questions about meds, therapy, Drs, etc. They talked quite awhile exchanged email addresses and phone numbers-she wanted to know if it was OK if her husband could call him. Of course it is!

It dawned on me later, how she may have been feeling; alone in a new town, without a Dr., maybe not even really knowing just where to start to look and wondering who else maybe walking in my shoes?!

The yard sale ended, there was the 'clean-up'. Thankfully a friend of my aunt and uncle came with his truck to take the 'leftovers' to his church's mission trip yard sale!! What a blessing! I only came home with some empty boxes, some curriculum, THE guitar (another story for another day), THE dollhouse and a few remaining things we were selling for a friend! It was a good day overall!

We rushed in to--SHOWER! and dress for church.

The girls and I went-Chuck was way too tired!!

The service tonight was another in the series about Jesus' parables, the Good Samaritan. It was a very good teaching time (Steve always does such a good job!) The one thing that truly impressed me was a video clip of a man beginning his day, with numerous interuptions, encounters and his crossing of other people's paths. His mutterings of frustrations at the kid on a bike who rides right behind him as he is backing out of the driveway, the congested traffic, finding a place to park, getting into the coffee shop to find a long line at the counter, etc. As he sits to wait for his latte, he is glancing around the crowded shop when suddenly a dark, sunglassed-man appears right in front on him! He hands him a glass case. The man takes it, studys it a second, then looks back to see-no one! The man is gone! He opens the case and puts on the glasses.

Suddenly, the room of people busy with their own agendas is enhanced; those same people now have 'bubbles' over them explaining their hidden issues, hurts, pains, fears, doubts, etc. All the hidden 'whys' they may act the way they do!

He becomes overwhelmed with all this information, everyone has something! He suddenly heads home to again see the kid on the bike, but now he also 'sees' the little boy is in need of someone who cares! So he calls out to him! Way cool!

The whole point of the video to me--is for us to see others as Jesus sees them, then as a 'Good Sam', DO something!

Instantly I thought of SONglasses--and that thought has raced through my mind the entire evening. I wear my sunglasses to keep out the glare of the His sun, but God wants me to wear 'SONglasses' to see others as He does!

So tomorrow I think I am going to write a few notes, make a phone call or two---one will be to Molly! Maybe she would like to have a latte sometime? Or she and her husband might like a sitter one night so they can have a dinner out?

I will just have to 'see' what I can 'see' with SONglasses on!

It is now 2:15, time for bed. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

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• Jul. 13, 2006
So how much is that?.....

Today we spent the day sorting, wiping-off, and pricing our yard sale items for Friday and Saturday!

The girls think they will be making hundreds of dollars selling their be'loved' toys, games, lemonade and brownies!!!

I hope they are not disappointed!

I am amazed at this covert section of society that scours yard sales!

Our ad in the paper clearly stated Fri and Sat--but probably a dozen cars of folks drove by and stopped today while we were trying to get ready!!

They must want bargains and want them now!

We did survive the setup (but very tired). I pray now for dry weather and happy people with money, wanting to buy our 10, 25, and 50 cent treasures!!!

Maybe we will be able to supersize a dinner out after this weekend is over!

Woo Hoo!

I NEED a shower and a good nights sleep.

I must prepare for those early arrivers who apparently have a secret desire to see me before I have my first cup of coffee in the morning!

It is not a pretty sight!

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!

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• Jul. 12, 2006
New Territory!

Welcome,

This is an entirely new adventure for me! Blogging!?

Like I have an abundance of free time to sit and write (type)!

I really think I would feel much more accomplished today if I took a few minutes for an afternoon POWER NAP!

We have been working on decluttering and cleaning out for the past two days in hopes of having an awesome yard sale Friday and Saturday! I am tired!!!

But I am trying something new and will see where this leads!

All thanks to my friend Deb!

Lisa

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