plans and the purpose that prevails

Five Favorites of a Mom

3:25 PM, Friday, May 8, 2009 .. 1 comments .. Link

1. Watching my 13 year old take his 15 month old sister in his arms and cuddle her and make her laugh.

2. Listening to my 12 year old tell her 3 year old brother a bedtime story and then snuggle beside him in his toddler bed.

3. Hearing the laughter of my 13 year old and 12 year old as they play in the pool during a downpour.

4. Seeing my 3 year old help his 15 month old sister fix her bathing suit top.

5. Watching all 4 children mob their dad with hugs and kisses when he arrives home after a long day.

Our family has a morning ritual of seeing my husband off to work. Whoever is awake (usually there are at least 3 of us up) will gather in the driveway and wave and yell as he drives down the street. He pauses at the corner, sticks his hand out the window and honks the horn. Our neighbor asked us one day why we have such a drawn out daily good bye, sometimes in our pjs. Love. Love for my husband and wanting him to know we miss him and will eagerly anticipate his return many hour later. We want him to know he matters to us.

On This Mother's Day weekend I am thanking God for my husband. He is part of the 4 blessings who call me Mom.

One year

6:03 PM, Friday, April 24, 2009 .. Posted in family .. 2 comments .. Link

A year ago we became official residents of the Lone Star State. J4 lamented her loss of friends and didn't think she'd ever make new ones. Tonight she is having her birthday party...she invited 8 of her friends. Growth of relationships takes time. I'm glad our daughter is learning to grow good ones.

Happy Birthday dear daughter!

I'll see you soon Debra

7:19 AM, Thursday, March 26, 2009 .. Posted in kindred spirits .. 0 comments .. Link

Jana and I went to the funeral home yesterday to see Debra Reid's family. She was found dead at home last Friday morning by one of her daughters. When I think of Debra I always see a smile and hear a kind word. We talked about Spanish and teens and girls and homeschooling. She was one of the first people at church who made me feel welcome when we moved to Texas a year ago. I miss her already.

Prayer turned to Praise

7:27 AM, Wednesday, March 25, 2009 .. Posted in family .. 0 comments .. Link

My husband took our 2 older children to a prayer class at church last night. I was thrilled to listen to them tell of what they learned when they returned home. As I reflected on the subject of prayer in relation to our family, I realized that in the past several years I have moved from praying for my husband to praising God for him. I discovered that all too often my prayers for him turned into a long list of what I wanted God to change in his life. I would say "amen" and be discouraged thinking of what a hard job God had ahead of Him. After a while I stopped praying for him at all because I would feel worse after praying than when I started. At some point in the last 7 years I began to rehearse in my mind or on paper, all the ways I loved my husband. I listed why I fell in love with him and all the ways he was a good dad and husband. In doing so I discovered that God was changing me, changing my perspective, making me into the wife my husband needed.

Our pastor preached a sermon last Sunday ( www.faithbridge.org ) about prayer and how when we tell God our problems, the problems tend to get bigger and bigger and God gets smaller and smaller; but if we magnify God as we pray, we see Him correctly and our problems aren't so overwhelming.

It is easy to be overwhelmed by all the trouble in our nation and the world in these times, but remembering God is sovereign and rehearsing His character puts everything in perspective. I am reminded He has a plan and He is with me. I am part of His story. That is true comfort.

Hurricane Ike

5:48 AM, Thursday, September 18, 2008 .. Posted in family .. 0 comments .. Link

Hello everyone! We are powered up and back online after 4 days in the dark. I want to thank you all for your prayers and let you know how God sheltered us through the storm and in the days following:

1. Peace. Friday night and into Saturday morning was when Ike roared through Texas. We spent the night in our master bathroom. Three kids were in a closet and I was just outside. Baby J weathered the storm underneath a vanity. We all slept soundly and no one was afraid. We lost power at 4am during the height of the storm.

2. Power. Our next door neighbor (who works with my husband) had a generator and on Saturday he plugged us in. As a result our refrigerator worked and I could charge the cell phones (even though service was very spotty), I also could turn on a fan or plug in the radio and conserve batteries.

3. People. Our neighbors on every side surrounded us with help and support, especially knowing Jack was out of town and I was alone with the kids. They helped us move things in to a sheltered area before the storm, invited us in for meals, gave us encouragement, shared a generator.

4. Preparation. I purchased all our supplies before the storm so I had no worries for running out of the basics. I am also amazed at how God had prepared for us, even before we moved in 4 months ago. We didn't know when we moved here that our next door neighbor ( Tommy with the generator) would be working with my husband. In purchasing a house with a gas stove I could continue to cook hot meals for our family when we lost power. The kids had been studying Psalm 91 in school even before IKE was a storm, I told them God was giving them a test in what they were learning. Friday morning Baby J sat on my lap bubbling with smiles as usual. J4 commented that she had no idea of what was coming. I told her "Baby J has complete confidence in us. She knows I will feed her, clothe her, and comfort her. Her eyes are fixed on me. That is how we are to be with God. We don't have to fear, knowing He is sovereign and holds us in His hand."

5. Palm branches. This was the only storm damage at our house. A 1/2 dozen palm branches had to be trimmed. I also had to do a minor adjustment to our gate. The basketball goal is a bit twisted, but other than those few things you would never know a Category 2 hurricane passed by.

There are still thousands suffering in our area who still have no power, or have lost loved ones. Please be praying for us as we are a lighthouse in the neighborhood to the new friends we made and to any who are in need that we come to know in the days ahead.

Thank you again for standing with us in prayer.

Grace and Peace,

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