Newlyweds

Yesterday, we renewed our vows... along with thousands of other couples at the Focus on the Family Marriage Simulcast--not extremely romantic, but powerful, nonetheless. When your husband cries while holding your hands in the pew, repeating after the Pastor on the screen simultaneously with other men all around, you know it meant something :)

We were impacted in a forever way by the speakers who proclaimed the truth about marriage.

Francis Chan, pastor and author of a book we're reading called Crazy Love, was intense and passionate--just what we prefer. He reminded us that marriage is a picture of Christ and His Bride and that focus must be first and foremost in our minds. The world and our issues in life and marriage that seem so large are a vapour compared to eternity. We must view our marriages as a means to advance God's kingdom. He said his mission in his marriage is to help his wife be able to hear the words when she stands before the Lord, "Well done, good and faithful servant."

Babe, I'm looking forward to what God has in store for us as we help build His kingdom together.

Photos by Meghan, 10 yrs. old

Humility

When we become less visible, move to the background, off of centre stage, His beautiful light is able to be seen, to penetrate, and to move to it's rightful place.

He'll Protect Us

Boys are designed differently; I'm learning this through experience. I love my boy's gentle, sweet manner and how he doesn't keep me racing... so far. However, one amazing thing I'm beginning to notice is this built-in protectiveness. On our vacation, we experienced a heavy storm so we put a movie on for the kids. In the film, two boys were angrily wrestling in a river over their families' properties. The "villain" boy had his father's shot-gun. Our girls sat wide-eyed and silent and I wondered if I should shelter them from the violence even though this children's movie had a very good lesson. It concerned me that they might be frightened and later have nightmares. But, while I was deciding what to do, Oliver, who was playing nearby, stood up and declared, "I HAVE to go into that movie and I HAVE TO HIT THAT GUY!" Wow! What a surprise. I'd never heard such words come from any of my three older daughters.

A few days later, we were walking across a street and I reminded everyone of the "buddy system" (especially intending for them to make sure the littlest was looked after). My three year-old son, grasped the hands of two of his big sisters and announced, "I have to hold your hands so I can take care of you guys."

Oliver, "Buddy", "Zippy", "Mr. Brown": No one can tell me God didn't create boys to naturally desire to protect. I'm so proud of how you're growing up to be just the little man He made you to be. I'm loving this boy-journey with you.

Things That Make Them Giggle

Clementine was a tired kitty. She laid back in Meghan's arms and yawned while I took her photo. The kids thought her mouth was just the funniest thing! There were giggles galore at our house today, all because of the inside of our cat's mouth. I love this stage in our family when the simplest and silliest things amuse us to the point of laughter and bonding :)

(Gift number 195! )

Brilliant

Sometimes Mommies think their children are brilliant. This morning was one of those times for me. Oliver quietly organized his cars in a lovely circle with the airplane in the centre. When a Mommy first sees a particular configuration or new action by her child, he is a little genius to her.

On to rocket science, my boy :)

Plan Your Character For 2010

It's February and I've been thinking a lot about long term planning... at least for the year 2010. Organizing and setting goals is something many of us automatically do when the new year arrives but have you ever thought about planning your character? God's Word teaches us to trust the Lord and He will order our steps, guide us and make our paths straight. I don't believe this means that God wants us to live each day by the "seat of our pants" and hope He controls it for us.

Consequently, I have been thinking a lot about how much better my life would be if I planned my character like I plan a day or a week or a year. There are various ways our character can be shaped. Sometimes it's through trials and sometimes it's through a change in our lives. Sometimes it's simply by growing older. But, can our character be shaped by planning our reactions, responses, and attitudes? Knowing what God's Word says about what He requires of us and which qualities benefit our lives, could we actually plan to behave in these ways? There are ways in which I consistently stumble and I've worked at abolishing these characteristics for quite awhile. As I was reading Scripture recently, I became aware that in His infinite wisdom God gave us a way to reject the thoughts and reactions that come to us in a moment of sadness, anger or decision. I've worked on taking my thoughts captive but now I'm trying to plan to do it before the thoughts arise! I'm planning my responses to people and situations, as much as I can without knowing the future. I'm trusting the Lord for His blessing in my obedience in these areas and for His direction when I encounter a surprise. If I'm acknowledging Him in all my ways, how much more will I be able to be spirit-controlled?

As I read about how my Creator's views me, I understand that He desires to shape me into someone who is successfully able to fight against the attitudes that plague me and ultimately ruin my character, not to mention, my life. I'm actually writing down my negative characteristics and thinking about which situations cause these to rear their ugly heads. Through prayer and commitment to bring these things captive, I believe my character will be shaped in 2010. This is intentional living from which I can only benefit and I'm looking forward to the better character He has in store for me!

How about you? Are there things in your character you'd like to see changed this year? Can you plan your reactions and attitudes to predictable situations by bringing these thought captive to the obedience of Christ? (2Corinthians 10:5)

She Blogs

How did she get this big? I just rocked her in my arms and laid her in her cradle last week, it seems.

I've bumped into her recently and turned in surprise to see this large person, not a wee thing, standing there in my baby's place. People told me that children grow up so quickly and I nodded politely and went on my merry way, living day to day, never dreaming they were right. One minute, I was kissing her scraped knee and the next minute, she was telling me, "it's quite unnecessary to add the word verification to your blog comments... it just wastes time for the reader".

Meg is a Blogger. She's better at it than I am because she takes the time to peruse all the settings and layouts. She understands how the functions work and she changes her background weekly. She loves to update her blog as part of her language arts time and has me check for spelling and grammar. Her site is private but I'll have you know, it's pretty fantastic. It reflects her heart. For a ten year-old, her insights and maturity amaze me. She's blossoming into a great girl and beginning to take her walk with God personally and seriously. My baby might be growing up but I'm thoroughly enjoying the journey with her.