We recently had some new pictures of the boys taken. I think they turned out amazingly well! Couldn't help but post a few of them...they are too cute not to share!
Saturday, October 15, 2005
Cutie Patooties!
We recently had some new pictures of the boys taken. I think they turned out amazingly well! Couldn't help but post a few of them...they are too cute not to share!
Tuesday, October 04, 2005
Life is Fleeting
Psalm 39:4 "Lord...let me know how fleeting my life is!"
Or in the NASB: "Lord, make me to know my end and what is the extent of my days; Let me know how transient I am."
A couple of weeks ago we received a call from a friend asking us to pray for Monica Worstell. She explained that she was in the hospital fighting for her life. Monica was a classmate in college and is my age. She and Matt have 1 year old twins. The same week we heard the news that Jenifer Danielson's sister Aricka had passed away. I am not sure of her age, but know she must have been in her early twenties. Last week we got the news that a friend here in Petersburg has breast cancer. She is only 35 and has 4 children ranging from 8 months to 11. Of course we have great hope in all of these situations because of Jesus Christ, but I am human and so each piece of news was very hard to hear.
Today, as I prayed for each of these families and reflected on each situation, I began to wonder what God had to teach me through them. Then I began to read Scripture..."let me know how fleeting life is...how transient I am." Because I am young, I must admit, I feel invincible. I have a long, healthy life ahead of me, right? I can get comfortable here, because I'm going to be around for awhile. There will be another day to take care of God's business...another day to share the love of Jesus...another day to get myself right with God. Maybe so, but maybe not--life is fragile and fleeting.
This is what God is doing for me right now...the lesson He is teaching me. I find that when God wants me to learn a lesson, He has to use every medium available for me to hear Him. And so, recently, in many ways, He's been whispering to me, "this is temporary...your life is fleeting...make it count."
Or in the NASB: "Lord, make me to know my end and what is the extent of my days; Let me know how transient I am."
A couple of weeks ago we received a call from a friend asking us to pray for Monica Worstell. She explained that she was in the hospital fighting for her life. Monica was a classmate in college and is my age. She and Matt have 1 year old twins. The same week we heard the news that Jenifer Danielson's sister Aricka had passed away. I am not sure of her age, but know she must have been in her early twenties. Last week we got the news that a friend here in Petersburg has breast cancer. She is only 35 and has 4 children ranging from 8 months to 11. Of course we have great hope in all of these situations because of Jesus Christ, but I am human and so each piece of news was very hard to hear.
Today, as I prayed for each of these families and reflected on each situation, I began to wonder what God had to teach me through them. Then I began to read Scripture..."let me know how fleeting life is...how transient I am." Because I am young, I must admit, I feel invincible. I have a long, healthy life ahead of me, right? I can get comfortable here, because I'm going to be around for awhile. There will be another day to take care of God's business...another day to share the love of Jesus...another day to get myself right with God. Maybe so, but maybe not--life is fragile and fleeting.
This is what God is doing for me right now...the lesson He is teaching me. I find that when God wants me to learn a lesson, He has to use every medium available for me to hear Him. And so, recently, in many ways, He's been whispering to me, "this is temporary...your life is fleeting...make it count."
Monday, September 26, 2005
Autumn
I love the seasons. I'm not sure I could enjoy living in a place that was all one climate...that is unless it was autumn all year round. Obviously, this isn't possible since its a transitional season, but in my utopia, it would be October all year round! As Autumn begins to show its face, I am reminded of all the things I love about this season...the temperature, the color pallete, the football games, pumpkin flavored EVERYTHING...need I continue? This time of year makes me giddy! Thank you God for knowing we needed the seasons and for giving us beauty in the transition from Summer to Winter.
I love my husband. I REALLY love him. And I HATE seeing him in pain. Finally, after four years, he is going to have surgery to repair the ruptured disc in his back. The surgery is only 9 days away and it can't come quickly enough. It will be wonderful for him to sleep well again and to go through an entire day without taking a dose of Advil!
My kids are adorable. We had pictures taken today and they turned out wonderfully! Now comes the hard part...waiting to get the pictures back. I paid an extra $5 to be able to access the photos online. After coming home in hopes of checking them out, I read the fine print..."visit the smile station online in 10-14 business days." You're kidding me, right? My pictures will be back in a week, but I have to wait 10-14 business days to see them online? What a rip! Delayed gratification...its good for me I guess.
Go outside and enjoy the beginning of autumn. Breathe the crisp air, look for the beginnings of colorful leaves, praise God for this beautiful time of year!
I love my husband. I REALLY love him. And I HATE seeing him in pain. Finally, after four years, he is going to have surgery to repair the ruptured disc in his back. The surgery is only 9 days away and it can't come quickly enough. It will be wonderful for him to sleep well again and to go through an entire day without taking a dose of Advil!
My kids are adorable. We had pictures taken today and they turned out wonderfully! Now comes the hard part...waiting to get the pictures back. I paid an extra $5 to be able to access the photos online. After coming home in hopes of checking them out, I read the fine print..."visit the smile station online in 10-14 business days." You're kidding me, right? My pictures will be back in a week, but I have to wait 10-14 business days to see them online? What a rip! Delayed gratification...its good for me I guess.
Go outside and enjoy the beginning of autumn. Breathe the crisp air, look for the beginnings of colorful leaves, praise God for this beautiful time of year!
Friday, August 05, 2005
Complaint
Today I received an anonymous "complaint." The nameless blogger wrote "I notice you don't have any pictures of your husband on here. What's up with that?" My response? Take a look at June's archives. There is a photo there of my husband and me. But just to appease this unidentified critic, I will post this picture again. (Since having children there are few pictures of the adults in our family. This picture is a rare one!)
I am in the midst of potty-training. For some, this may not seem like a bit deal but around here its been a daunting task. God blessed me with a strong-willed child. Need I say more?
Just began my third Nicholas Sparks book. The last (The Messenger) took me a whopping 1 day to read. I am hoping to spread this one out a little longer.
That's all for now...
Saturday, July 23, 2005
New Haircut!
Check out Grant's new do! With the hot weather and his hatred for getting his hair washed, we thought this was the perfect style for him. I posted a pic of him with longer hair and a picture from this morning with his "buzzed" look. What do you think? Do you like the old or new style better?
Wednesday, July 20, 2005
Punk Rock Christians?
My good buddy Caleb suggested a new discussion topic. Here is his comment in case you didn't read it...
What about punk rockers. I watched a new segment on Fox News about Punk Rock Christians. There was a young preacher of a church on the south side of Manhatten New York City. He was all tattooed, pierced, wore black clothes, loved to skate, and love punk rock music. They showed shots of his church worshipping and mentioned how it has grown. Then they interviewed a "Conservative" preacher in Colorado that said "they play punk rock music in their services. That is beyond peril to me." He said that born-again Christian will want to dress like Christians....WHAT DO "REAL" CHRISTIANS LOOK LIKE? The punk rock kid made a great point, he said if by wearing a suit and tie for church is like the early Christians, then we are far from that. The early church didn't wear suit and ties....they didn't have them!
Interesting topic--and not one I was very informed about. So I did a little research and came up with some interesting information. The punk rock scene is not just about music. Check out this website to see one band's view on the punk rock scene...http://www.terrorgruppe.com/church/punk_engl.html
If this guy is correct in what he says, to call yourself a "punk rocker" and a "Christian" in the same breath would be an oxymoron. (This site is typical of what I found when searching.)I find it very dangerous to try to identify yourself with two groups who are so vastly different--punk rockers and Christians. The punk rock scene is anti-establishment, rebellious and a bit dark. However, if these "punk rock Christians" are just followers of Jesus who enjoy expressing themselves with a certain style of music, hair, dress, etc... I see nothing wrong with that. I guess it just depends on how far you take it.
Can't wait to hear what you all have to say!!!
What about punk rockers. I watched a new segment on Fox News about Punk Rock Christians. There was a young preacher of a church on the south side of Manhatten New York City. He was all tattooed, pierced, wore black clothes, loved to skate, and love punk rock music. They showed shots of his church worshipping and mentioned how it has grown. Then they interviewed a "Conservative" preacher in Colorado that said "they play punk rock music in their services. That is beyond peril to me." He said that born-again Christian will want to dress like Christians....WHAT DO "REAL" CHRISTIANS LOOK LIKE? The punk rock kid made a great point, he said if by wearing a suit and tie for church is like the early Christians, then we are far from that. The early church didn't wear suit and ties....they didn't have them!
Interesting topic--and not one I was very informed about. So I did a little research and came up with some interesting information. The punk rock scene is not just about music. Check out this website to see one band's view on the punk rock scene...http://www.terrorgruppe.com/church/punk_engl.html
If this guy is correct in what he says, to call yourself a "punk rocker" and a "Christian" in the same breath would be an oxymoron. (This site is typical of what I found when searching.)I find it very dangerous to try to identify yourself with two groups who are so vastly different--punk rockers and Christians. The punk rock scene is anti-establishment, rebellious and a bit dark. However, if these "punk rock Christians" are just followers of Jesus who enjoy expressing themselves with a certain style of music, hair, dress, etc... I see nothing wrong with that. I guess it just depends on how far you take it.
Can't wait to hear what you all have to say!!!
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
A final word...
A final comment on the gambling issue...Even if we set stewardship aside and didn't use that as an argument against it, gambling is still dangerous and, in my mind, wrong. None of us really know if we have addictive personalities until we put ourselves into a position to be mastered by something. Gambling is highly addictive. In fact I heard on the radio the other day that gambling is the fastest growing addiction in teens today. Someone may go into the gambling scene intending to do it as entertainment but gambling can quickly become an addiction. Just as those with addictive tendencies have trouble after only trying a few drinks, they also have trouble controlling themselves after a few tries on the slot machine. Once again, I do not see a need to ride the line between right and wrong. Why would we put ourselves in this kind of position for the sake of "entertainment." Gambling is destroying lives as we speak--families are going bankrupt, divorce papers are being filed, etc... I do not want to use my money to support something that has been so distructive in the lives of others. Funny thing is, I never felt passionate about this subject until Julie brought it up for discussion. Now I feel VERY passionate about it and have a strong conviction. Thanks Julie for the GREAT topic!
Thursday, July 07, 2005
Up for Discussion...
A new topic has been suggested by one of my faithful blogging buddies, Julie. Here's what Julie wrote...
"what about gambling??? We got into a discussion about gambling tonight. Especially in the sense that "what if someone who gambled and one decided to give you that money as support would you take it?" Then we got into what is gambling?? Investing things into stock markets, oldies playing bingo, playing games at the fair, etc... anyone want to throw out some thoughts about that?"
Julie also shared her opinion which you can read as the last comment on the Monday, June 13th post.
I think in living by the principle of stewardship I would have a difficult time using money for gambling. I guess it is an issue of conscience for me. However, I am not always the best steward of my money so I guess I would need to take the log out of my own eye before I started pointing out specks to others. Let's hear your opinions!
"what about gambling??? We got into a discussion about gambling tonight. Especially in the sense that "what if someone who gambled and one decided to give you that money as support would you take it?" Then we got into what is gambling?? Investing things into stock markets, oldies playing bingo, playing games at the fair, etc... anyone want to throw out some thoughts about that?"
Julie also shared her opinion which you can read as the last comment on the Monday, June 13th post.
I think in living by the principle of stewardship I would have a difficult time using money for gambling. I guess it is an issue of conscience for me. However, I am not always the best steward of my money so I guess I would need to take the log out of my own eye before I started pointing out specks to others. Let's hear your opinions!
Monday, June 27, 2005
Crawling
Grant never crawled so when Ashton was 6 months old and still showed no signs of crawling we decided to do something about it! After talking to an occupational therapist from our church, we began doing upper body exersizes with Ashton using an exersize ball. After only 2 weeks of that he began to show dramatic improvement and now at 9 months he is beginning to crawl! I only wish someone would have been able to help us when Grant was this age. Because he never crawled his upper body strength is less than that of most kids his age. But we're working on that--lots of time at the park climbing on the equipment! Anyway, we are thankful that Colleen was able to help us with Ashton. Now I'm going to have to baby proof my house! I'll be down on all fours today checking out what Ashton can get to now that he's mobile!
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
Dad's Day Off
Tuesdays are my favorite day of the week--Stan's day off! We headed to Springfield today to pick up a few things and to have lunch. We decided to head out to Lincoln Memorial Gardens. It was a beautiful day so we had a mini photo shoot! Below are some pictures of our day. Check out stanandmisty.com to see more.
Sunday, June 19, 2005
It's Back!
The "hot topic" discussion has returned to my blog! My last post got 4 comments and counting...So I suppose I will continue to post hot topics along with journaling some of the happenings in my life. It's definitely encouraging to me and challenging as well to discuss these issues with all of you. I am finding that now, in my upper twenties (aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh, I don't like the sound of that!), that I am looking at things in a different light...re-examining some of my "opinions" that have always seemed like doctrine to me. I guess I'm just trying to look at things in light of scripture rather than basing my principles on what I was taught in sunday school. Seems like an easy concept I guess but its taken me this long to get it. A wise fellow blogger commented on my last post that God sees the heart first, before he sees the skin. I think some guy named Samuel also said that back in the OT but for some reason it really sunk in when I read that comment. So, thanks to all of you for challenging and edifying me. Keep the comments rolling!
Monday, June 13, 2005
Any opinions out there?
I've decided to give the debate idea one more try...
New topic--tatoos/piercings. Outside of the two holes in my ears I've never really had a desire for either...but not because of any moral/religious conviction. I think for the most part this is a generational argument. The older generation seeing piercings and tatoos as rebellious and destructive to the body. The younger generation seeing it as a form of expression. I have no problem with a piercing or tatoo...but I must admit there is a point at which I get uncomfortable. If I saw someone with one or two piercings and a few tatoos, no big deal. However, if I saw someone with MANY pierings and MANY tatoos I might get a little uncomfortable. Although I feel I am a very open person who loves to get to know people of all different kinds, I must admit I get a bit uncomfortable at the sight of an overly tatooed or pierced body. Why is that? And does the Bible say anything about this subject?
New topic--tatoos/piercings. Outside of the two holes in my ears I've never really had a desire for either...but not because of any moral/religious conviction. I think for the most part this is a generational argument. The older generation seeing piercings and tatoos as rebellious and destructive to the body. The younger generation seeing it as a form of expression. I have no problem with a piercing or tatoo...but I must admit there is a point at which I get uncomfortable. If I saw someone with one or two piercings and a few tatoos, no big deal. However, if I saw someone with MANY pierings and MANY tatoos I might get a little uncomfortable. Although I feel I am a very open person who loves to get to know people of all different kinds, I must admit I get a bit uncomfortable at the sight of an overly tatooed or pierced body. Why is that? And does the Bible say anything about this subject?
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