{better than all the rest?}

July 10, 2013

I've kind of been struggling {maybe that's too harsh of a word}~
I've been feeling pangs of....
No, that's not it.
I've been bothered by feelings of judgement.
Not necessarily directed towards me.
Judgement of others by CHRISTIANS.
And God has been showing me some things.
So, here's what...

I guess it's easy to think that something or someone who is
not like us,
Or even opposite of what we are,
Is not normal or perhaps even out and out wrong for that matter.
But you know what.
We are all different for a reason.
God made us that way.
We don't need any other explanation or justification.
We are, each one of us, beautifully flawed.
On purpose.
By a Holy Creator who wants to show
His perfect LOVE for us through
our weakness and imperfection
as a means to show just how holy and perfect He is.
The end.

As Christians, we tend to get pious & sanctimonious.
We are better than everyone else.
We do this and we are careful to refrain from that.
The this's & that's which have been defined by religion.
Last time I checked,
religion is a moral code created by {flawed} man.

Religion can be beneficial.
I will not say that it's evil or completely wrong.
I gain much from my religious affiliation.
You just have to be careful with it.
Every religion has it's own set of rules~
It's very own this's & that's.
Religion is not the final word.
The final word is The Bible.

Listen, if God intended for us to follow the rules to get to Heaven
{and isn't that the goal of life, anyway? To get to Heaven?}
He would have not needed to send Jesus Christ to hang on that tree.
Period.

So, the good news is...
We are all saved by grace.
Not because we follow the rules or not.
Yes, there is certainly a moral code we should all live by~
As Christians and as humans, too.
But just because I do something you think it best not to do
Or maybe I refrain from things that you see are important,
It does not mean that you are the better Christian.
It just simply means that we are in different places in our walk with Christ.
Nothing more. Nothing less.

We are called to hate the sin and love the sinner.
So let's all be careful and try to judge less & love more.

If I have made you feel inferior to me.
Ever.
If I have done things or said things that hurt you
or made you feel like you are less of a Christian
{or human} than I am,
PLEASE
accept this as my sincere apology.
My intention is not to make anyone feel badly about themselves.
We are all trying our very best to get through this life.
None of us walk the same path,
Or carry the same burdens,
Nor are we equally equipped.
{With the exception of accessibility to God our Father}

Instead of gossiping {which is a sin} about how this one does this
Or looking down on that one because he does that,
We should be in prayer for God's truth to be revealed.
You don't know someone else's heart.
Only God does.
And not only does He know our hearts,
He know them intimately.
Each one of us is so important to Him that our very hairs are numbered!
Okay. Think about it.
What does the bathroom floor look like when you sweep?
Dust bunnies.
Toilet paper fragments.
{Come on. You know I'm right. Those little tiny pieces that try to escape "work".}
And hair.
Our hair falls out constantly. And it's replaced.
We're constantly growing in new hair.
And they're all counted.
Seems like a lot of trouble.
But not for our Father.
We are so important to Him
that he counts and recounts every single strand.
Yours. Mine. His. Hers.
If God can love sinners that much,
Why can't we?
You may very well be the only glimpse of Christ's love that someone ever sees.
Make it count.

"For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye." Matthew 7:2-5

"Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him." 1John 4:8-9

{i'm gonna miss this}

July 3, 2013

June has already quietly slipped away.
It was full.
And fast.
And good.

And here I am.
Staring July in the face.
Willing time to slow.
Just a bit.

I've got grand plans for July.
I want to soak her in.
Every moment.
I want to accomplish all the things that school eats up
throughout the year.
And I want my kids to remember the days of summer
with fondness and nostalgia.
I want to be present in the memories of these precious, sacred days.

I want to be renewed.
I want to be filled up with so much of God
that there is little room for anything else.
I want a Christ-filled life to become so ingrained into my soul
that it's a habit more than a choice.
I am purposing to live out my life trusting God's plan.
Often times it's easier to trust
that God will bless you with the desire's of your heart
but not so easy to actually trust
that God's plan may not look at all like your plan does.
We're working on that in this season of opportunity & uncertainty.

My kids are growing up before my eyes.
They are becoming evident of life beyond Mom & Dad.
They are starting to think of life as their own-
apart from everyone else.
It's happening so quickly that
I can hardly believe it.
Lord knows how many more summers
they will actually want to spend
hanging out with me.
I've got a lot to accomplish in this short time.
I need to balance work with fun.
Pools are begging for swimmers.
Closets need to get cleaned.
Tans need to be darkened.
School needs to be planned.
I want to eat dinner outside after an afternoon spent playing.
My hope is to seize every opportunity to be spontaneous.
So bring on the snow cones!
The blue-er the better.

"The Lord of hosts has sworn: As I have planned, so shall it be, and as I have purposed, so shall it stand," Isaiah 14:24

{routine}

June 5, 2013

Here we are.
A few weeks into our summer break.
Still struggling to find a comfortable fit.
Rearranging time.
Trying to nestle into the days.
Searching for the balance between
responsibility & recreation.
Learning to bathe in freedom
without drowning in laziness.

I love these days.
The ones where we don't have the
pressures of school work.
The ones where we can answer the call
of the pool, or play dates.
{It feels weird to still call them play dates.
My kids would certainly protest to that.}

But I still need the order of routine.
My kids thrive in it.
They depend on it-
whether they know it or not.
It's where life feels familiar.
And happy.
With just enough assortment
to stave off boredom.

Summer.
Aside from the heat similar to the fires of hell
I love you.
I will give myself to you in sweet abandon.
Okay. I'll have a list.
You can't mess with tradition, can you?
But, for the most part, it's abandon.
As long as the chores get done still.
But right after the chores are done, complete, total abandon.

SUMMER BUCKET LIST 2013

• Karli & Aubree's dance revue
• fly to Dallas 
• get a smoking hot tan
• satisfy my snow ball craving
• family VACATION
• lose at least 5 pounds
• do something I've never done before
• mini-vacation to my parents' {second} house 
• squeeze in as many play dates as possible
• get some school work done with Aubree 
• have as much fun as possible
• purpose to show more of Jesus & less of me

"For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." Ephesians 2:10

"You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven." Matthew 5:14-16

my life.

May 22, 2013

Wow. It's been over a month since I've written here.
I've thought about writing MANY MANY times, but life has had other plans.
I miss it. Writing. Sharing my heart.
But, sometimes, other things take precedence.

It's been a year full of activity so far.
And I LOVE it.
Every second of it.
It's like I always say, "If I didn't have everything to do, then I'd have nothing to do."
I'd rather be busy than bored any old day.

We've celebrated several birthdays so far this year.
This guy turned "41".

He was the "Ghost of CHRISTmas Past" for our Tacky CHRISTmas Party.

This guy turned "12".

Love those snuggly moments I have with him. They are entirely too few and far between.

This girl turned "14".

She's just as pretty on the inside as she is on the outside.

This guy is about to turn "10" in a couple of weeks.

He's undergone a "makeover" recently.

I had the best Mother's Day a couple weeks ago. It was all about ME and I spent a very nice RELAXING day with my favorite people!

My girls have been hard at work practicing for their dance revue, which will be on Father's Day. I cannot tell you how proud I am of them. Karli has improved SO much this year. Her efforts have really paid off and it shows not only in her skill, but in her confidence as well.

And, I am proud to announce that we officially have a HIGH SCHOOLER in the house!
Where has the time gone? It seems like only yesterday I was dropping her off at Kindergarten.

Drake is finishing up the last of his school as I type this.
By this afternoon, he will officially be a 7th grader!

Brant will be starting 4th grade in the fall.
But that is not what I am most impressed with about him.
I could have cried when I saw this:

Brant has dyslexia and has struggled to learn to read efficiently.

Yes. You are seeing correctly. He is actually reading a book independently! We have worked SO hard this year and I tell ya, I could not be more proud of him.

Aubree will join the ranks of the full time home schoolers in this house this fall as well. I've not decided if she will be considered a Kindergartener {because we worked through the Kindergarten book this past year} or a 1st grader. By age she would be going to grade K, but I think she may be ready for bigger things. I plan to complete the Reading Lesson with her this summer. I will use Singapore Math and Learn at Home Grade 1 for the rest of her curriculum in the fall.

The older kids will all continue {Brant will use it for the first time} to use Switched on Schoolhouse. We love it. It works very well for our family.

We will also be taking our first FAMILY vacation in four long years!!! You cannot possibly imagine how incredibly excited I am about this. We toyed with several different options. In the end, based on everyone's age height {Disney got ruled out on this criteria}, and ridiculous aversion to flying {okay, only ONE of us suffers from this and Freddie he will remain nameless} and the fact that I just could not imagine my family on a cruise ship, together, at the same time, we are going to go somewhere that I have actually never been to {which my kids are amazed by because, in their minds, I have been everywhere}. We are going to Panama City Beach, FL. I found a resort with tons of activities for the kids. I cannot wait!

Karli will be taking her very first plane ride this summer. We are going to Mike Beaty's Model & Talent EXPO. We've been raising money all year doing things like this:

And this:

She's been working hard and praying for God's will in preparation for this incredible opportunity.

In addition to all of that, this year has also seen things like this:

And this:

A little appendicitis scare.

And this:

Oooh, and this:

I'm FINALLY remodeling my bedroom! It's girly and rustic at  the same time. A perfect blend of Freddie & I.

As you can see, we've been squeezing every drop we can out of this life. I am so blessed to be able to share it with some of the most amazing people on the planet. I am so excited about summer. We're working on getting the pool ready and looking forward to NO SCHOOL! Hopefully, I'll have a little more time to sit down and share my life and heart with you here more often.

"The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully." 2Corinthians 9:6