The one about time off.

I am so blessed with a wonderful husband. He is truly an outstanding human being. 10.5 years of marriage and still I feel amazed that God choose us to be together. I am so proud of him...I will attempt to list out all of the things he does just to see if your mind goes on overload for a moment.

He is a pastor (if you have ever been a pastor or in the ministry at a small church, you know what this entails.) He is also the youth pastor and due to having to lay off our church administrator, he is also taking on those responsibilities. He is leading the renovations and helping remodel our church. He is in his final year of obtaining his Masters in Biblical Counseling. By the end of March he will have his NANC certification and by December he will have written an entire thesis. He is also a dad and husband and successfully does both of those things and all they entail very well. A lot of people don't understand that if you do ministry right, it can be draining and requires a lot of emotional and mental energy that people who are not in ministry could never possibly understand. In ministry, life isn't about living the american dream, its about serving others and putting their needs above our own. People don't understand how busy we are. On top of all of the things he does, I am the children's ministry director and have my hand in so many other things. So you could imagine how much our family as a whole does and takes on for this ministry. We are very busy and get very little down time. He never complains, and as hard as I try to be like Christ, I am NOT that Godly. My husband is pretty darn near close to perfect!!! Did I mention that I am sooooo proud of him? He is my hero!!!

Last month we were flown back to TX to preach at the church we started our ministry in. He was asked to preach a series on Family. Of course he did amazing!!!! Along with that trip, it allowed us an opportunity to go visit family that we hadn't seen in a while. We were so grateful that the church did that for us, so we could be with our families for Thanksgiving. We love seeing our families and value the time we have with them. As wonderful as it is to visit family, and trust me I'm not being ungrateful, but that does not really give Bubba and I the down time to disconnect and refresh ourselves like we need every now and then. That "vacation" was part work and the rest draining. We traveled most of the time and Bliss and Trin were troopers the entire way....its not easy for them either. TX is very large and our family is spread out across it. We never know when we will be back again, so each time we come in, we try to see everyone because its hard for everyone else to come see us. We have to squeeze every ounce of time we have and try to see everyone in a very small time frame. That means waking up at 5am to be on the road most mornings. This leaves us on the road for most of our travels. 9 hours in a car in just one day is not the most exciting way to spend your vacation when you are already fried and burned out from the duties that life and ministry hand you. We love our family, which is why we try so hard to meet them all but it is exhausting to come back from a "vacation" in TX.

So we asked if we could borrow some of our vacation time for next year. We absolutely LOVE this place in Wisconsin Dells called Chula Vista. Its a water park, but is very adult friendly. A massive hot tub and all inclusive food and drinks and a room for two nights=heaven for us! We just sleep, eat, and watch movies the entire time. It's exactly what we need to help get our minds off of anything and everything. We got a great deal and the church gives us a little budget for some down time with eat other once a year. Although I feel like we need it more frequently because ministry is so draining, I am so grateful to the church for that. What a wonderful benefit! God really takes care of us and I am so thankful to our church for allowing us to take this time off.

Here is a picture of what I am enjoying right now as I write this blog...




I hope you all Have a Merry Christmas!!! I know we will...and we will be nice and refreshed for the new year!!!

The one about Trusting and Fearing

I was asked this question...
Explain what is meant by "You fear what you trust and you trust what you fear."

It took me a while to answer and I really had to dig deep on this one. The question was harder than I thought it would be. For me trust always involves an element of the unknown which includes a lack of control on my part. This is scary and comforting all at the same time. Being in awe of Christ , whom I cannot see with my eyes, brings me more peace and comfort than anything in this world. He is my creator and he created me with a desire to trust him and fear him and this leaves me in awe of him!!!

The one about My Crazy Yesterday...

So yesterday was really strange. Do you ever have any "out of the norm" kind of days? I DON'T...not usually. Usually its either really good, normal, or really bad. Its never a mix. But yesterday....

It started out really great!!! Infact, my week started out really great! On Sunday a friend at church handed me a $50 gift card to go have my hair done. Her daughter does hair, so she had no use for it and she gave it to little ole me! What a blessing she is to my heart and she is from the south, so she could literally be my grandma! Love her! On top of that I won a $40 gift card to a Salon in the same building at a silent Auction for $10 so the free bucks were really perking me up considering things have been tight lately. Im' not complaining or fishing for freebies, it's just where we are in life and its a reality and makes my life interesting.

So yesterday begins a little strange at about 2 am when something, a deer I think, hits the side of our house so hard that our windows rattled. Bubba actually jumped up and grabbed the gun, which is always my first move and instinct, but he did it this time and that was pretty rare. His natural instinct when there could potentially be danger includs snoring louder to ward off threats. Not this time...He thought someone might have been breaking into our shed, (which would be really rare out here) but we now think a deer slipped on the rocky slope next to our house or something. Turns out no big deal.

So now we are in what is called Monday. I got to go get my hair done, after dropping Bliss off at school. This was planned before the gift card was given, so I didn't have to use the gift card on my hair I get to save it to go get the really cool expensive products.:)

As an added note, getting my hair done is a blessing for me because I am the type of person who refuses/can't pay $200 to go have my hair done. I usually try to do it myself, but there is only so much you can do to your own hair. So in the last almost three years, it has only been cut twice and fried a couple of times. I love doing people's hair and love even more doing it for them for free. It's a ministry to me and It's fun helping women feel pretty! I would love to go to cosmetology school and get more training, but for now, I will continue to use people as my guinea pigs. So I have been praying for the Lord to send me someone who I can exchange hair services with and can train me a little. SO low and behold if God hasn't answered that prayer. I have a new friend and guess what she does....Yay me...Yay God! SO I got to have a morning to myself while my hubby watched Trinity so I could go be pampered.

After that I went to the bank to close an old checking account. The banker walked away and came and handed me $37 cash and said here are your funds. I didn't know I had money in that account?!? What a special treat!!! So I called my hubby and said...guess what...I am $37 richer and I can help you pay some bills with it, or even better I can go get Bliss from school and take her on that Mommy daughter date we have been wanting to go on! (Psh...like he had a choice!) ;) So I go get Bliss from School and we head to none other than the mall to go get our toenails done. WAHOOO! You should have heard her scream when I told her we were going to go on a Mommy and Me date!

Before we stop there we had a whopping $15 in gift cards to target and it was burning a hole in my purse. I was saving it for such an occasion and considering the fact that I was in terrible need for some clothes and finally the girls were okay on their supply, we went shopping FOR MOMMY!!! :) I was able to purchase a skirt, shirt, bra, and flip flops for $1.07 out of my pocket...praise Jesus! I love when things like that happen!

So we are now at the mall eating our favorite pretzels and getting Arabella's first pedicure. It was also my first pedicure in aprox 5 years so it felt as if it were my first too. Can you sense the excitement? Bliss was so cute...she kept giggling at random because it tickled and she didn't want to embarrass herself because there was a cute little Asian boy sitting across the room. We had a lovely time and our nails look adorable!









As we are leaving the salon at aprox 6:30 pm and heading down the mall for a joyful little stroll and window shopping I get a phone call from Bubba freaking out telling me that Trinity was playing outside and had been bitten by a mole. A WHAT? A MOLE?!?! She was bleeding pretty bad, and he didn't know what to do. So he killed the mole and bagged it up and had been soaking her hand in peroxide for 10 minutes. Now considering the fact that I had never seen a mole before, I was a little freaked out. I was picturing this huge critter. I head home and called everyone in the world possible trying to figure out what we should do and if we should be concerned about rabies or some kind of crazy infection but apparently this has never happened in the history of Janesville, so no one could give me suggestions.(By the way, never rely on google when your child is bitten by a small rodent...they will have you believing that you will end up with rabies, rat fever, the plague and that you will be dead in less than 7 days all the mean while your fingers start falling off one by one! Rediculous seriously!) It was like a bad Halloween Movie at our home last night.

The Pedi told me to call the Vet office, the Vet office told me to call the Health Dept, the Health Dept transferred me to cops....the who? the cops? Really! Are you going to cuff the dead mole rat at lock it in a jail cell and post it for bail? I don't think the cops were humored by my curiosity!

So I am home now and I walk through the door to see this dead varment sitting on my counter in a tiny plastic ziplock bag. It's stinkin smaller than a mouse...I mean tiny yall! You know there are zippy bags that fit sandwiches and zippy bags that fit small snacks...it could have fit in a small snack zippy it was that tiny! So ugly though and I certainly would not want to be bitten by its four tiny devilish teeth.

By the way Trinity got bit because the dogs were taunting it and she thought it was Mickey Mouse and kept saying over and over "Mickey Mouse bit me!" I had to explain that it was not Mickey Mouse it was a mole that Piper and Lola made angry, so it wasn't the mole's fault...try explaining that to a three year old.

So unsure of what to do and wondering if my child was contracting rabies at that very moment. I take Trin to Urgent Care. So I am at urgent care and paying $30 for some antibiotic cream and a bandaid, yet still begging for something to prevent infection "Just in case" and Bubba calls and says the police officer is on her way to see you at the doctors office and you can't leave until she gets there because she has to contain the rodent. Are you kidding me? So we fill out the blasted "Bite Report" and she hands the bagged shrew or rodent or whatever the devil it was to me and "says well come to find out there is nothing we can do and you will have to take the rodent to the Department of Natural Resources to have it tested. We are not allowed to take an animal if it is wild. You will have to put it in your freezer tonight." Oh man! No words!

So I head to walmart with the dead varment, along with with my hopefully not rabid daughter, and a long awaited and begged for penicillin prescription. The the time is now 8:45 and Urgent Care and Walmart are on opposite ends of town. Wal-Mart pharmacy closes at 9:00. So I haul it to walmart and praise the Lord I make it in time to get the prescription. While we are there Trinity has another separate rather large wound from cutting her foot on the playground at church on Sunday that starts dripping blood everywere. Did I already use the term Halloween Movie because I felt like I was the leading actress!?!

So we get yet another bandage (expect this one was free) and head home. (Although while I was still in Walmart, I did think to myself that if I got in a car accident on the way home, it would have been the most classic ending to my night. Creepy I know, but that's the way my brain thinks.)

When I laid down for bed I realized I forgot to get bandaids and then I dozed off to sleep...I don't think I have ever had a better nights rest in my life.

This morning I woke up cool and collected and to be honest not worried at all about anything, except just a little bothered that there is a dead rodent in my freezer and I really don't want it there.

Now that we are past the worst, here is how the next 2 minutes go in conversation with Bubba...
B: Oh I forgot to tell you, a Social worker came by our house yesterday.
C: A WHAT?
B: A Social Worker. They just wanted to make sure we were fit parents.
C: Haha, yeah right! Funny!
B: No really!
C: What?
B: Apparently, we forgot to tell them that we enrolled Bliss in Oakhill instead of Van Buren Public School.
C: So what did you tell them?
B: I told them that she had been going to Van Buren since school started.
C: LOL...what did she say. Did she find your joke comical?
B: Nope, she just said she was going to call Oakhill and make sure Bliss was enrolled there. Like I would lie about that.
C: Oh my goodness!

So there you have it my Crazy yesterday...almost...we took the rodent by the Dept of Natural Resources and they are only open a few hours on Mondays and Wednesdays...they were closed by the time we got there.

I have to keep that thing in my freezer for two more days! UGH!

The one about Healing...

I have a friend who starts her blogs with "The one about..." and I love it so I am stealing it. Now I don't have to spend more time thinking about a title than I do writing my blog.

So I bought a journal today and I am hoping to start writing down my deep and personal thoughts and feelings each night before bed. It seems like there are so many things going on with my life right now and I think it would really be good get them on paper before I read my Bible so that I don't have to keep asking myself, "Haven't I already struggled with this before???"


I also reactivated my facebook account and I feel pretty good about it. My dad got an account and I also have a very dear friend who is moving who is on it daily and I feel like there are just too many people I need to start interacting with again.

Something that's been on my heart is that people are hard and tough and surprising. I am learning that there are some people who I thought I knew, that I really don't. Now I know how Christ feels everyday when we only want a relationship with Him when it's convenient for us. The difference is that His heart is not sinful and mine is...I don't come out of it as pretty as He does!!!

The Lord is teaching me grace, and restraint, and healing right now. I am learning who I am Christ more everyday.

Don't you hate when your slinky gets tangled?

We went to the dollar store today and each girl picked out a little toy under $1. Trinity chose a slinky and Arabella chose a Barbie. Let me tell you that Trinity played with that slinky the entire time that we were in that store. It kept her occupied and she treasured it, no one could take that thing away from her.

When we got home T sat it down and walked away and A decided that it was fair game. She jumped on the opportunity and wisked it away to only just a few moments later come back to me and ask me to untangle it. She was careless and rough with it and became all jumbled up.

As she watched me struggle to try and get it fixed she said, "Wait Mommy...I'll be right back." She ran off and came back with the hair detangler that I use on the girls hair when it gets knots in it. She said "Here mommy, maybe this will work."


After reflecting on how funny this was, I was thinking about how Slinky's are so much like life. They have a pattern and a design to them and when they are working how we want them to work, they effortlessly take their journey with flow and positive movement. Until some obstacle comes along and its gets tangled.

All it takes is one careless person to hurt us or one bad event to stop us in our tracks. When we get tangled up and out of sync with God and we loose our effectiveness and the purpose of what we have set out to do.

All too often I have experienced this in my life. I get hurt and I withdraw myself therefore loosing my positive flow of motion. If only there were some magic spray that could fix things right away just like nothing ever happened. It's not until I can become untangled that I begin to change into being what I am supposed to be. I often forget that God allows those obstacles so that I can become more like Him. It's in those tangled and knotted moments that I am constantly given an opportunity to search for my Master and allow myself to be clay and God to be the Potter.

No matter how alone I feel in the entanglement of life, I will never truly be alone. God has promised me that! He is in control and he knows my heart.

Osama's Death

WOW! As I open up facebook and see all of the posts about how everyone is rejoicing in the death of this man, I am overwhelmed with sickness. Was this country not founded on God? Since when are we as CHRISTians not saddened by the loss of a man into eternal damnation of hell?

We are rejoicing in the same way that those who crucified Jesus on the cross did. You see the difference is that Jesus conquered death and beat hell. He is perfect and sinless and suffered unjustly. Osama was a horrible person and stood for evil. He deserves hell and has no way out...how is this a good thing again?

Ezekiel 18:23 "Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord GOD, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live?"

Proverbs 24:17 "Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles"

Am I happy that Osama is not longer a threat to America, Yes! I am happy that God is just and righteous and takes care of business, yes! I am not saddened that his followers have lost their evil leader. I am saddened that we as Christians are rejoicing that he is burning in hell.

Why would that make anyone happy????

Have we forgotten about the story or Saul/Paul? He killed people simply for believing in Jesus, yet when He came to know Jesus himself was one of the most successful and devoted followers of Jesus leading countless numbers of souls to Christ?

Have we not wronged others and desired forgiveness and reconciliation with Christ and others?

Osama was an evil man and stood for evil and did horrible things, but did Christ not take care of that sin on the cross as well? Why should we want for anyone to suffer the punishment of hell when Christ himself is not rejoicing?

Yes it was Osama's choice to live a life full of such destruction and terrorism. Yes he is the one who chose to be a martyr for his beliefs. Does that make it right for us to be happy? He chose this for himself, but we should not rejoice when people cause themself suffering. Where is the love of Christ in that?

Criticism

This has been a tough one for me lately. It's hard realizing that no matter how hard I try to seek approval, help others, or meet others needs, sometimes people seem to have their own opinion of what and who I am and that opinion sometimes varies greatly from my opinion of myself. Not that I think I'm amazing or great or anything, but I have a hard time accepting criticism. I don't like trying to help people and then realize that in the end, either I was wrong in my efforts,or others opinions of my efforts were misconstrued.

Accepting the fact that you aren't perfect in any situation is tough especially when you feel like you have really been doing the best you can. There is always room for improvement no matter how good you think you are. Criticism is important to maintain a healthy relationship with God. We are called as children of God to hold each other accountable to Godliness and we have to learn to not only be less sensitive when others confront our sin, but we have to learn to be willing to change. We need to change our way of thinking and stop defending ourselves when we feel attacked and realize the role we play. Infact the truth is, If we feel like we didn't really do anything to merit criticism, we probably aren't being honest with motives or ourselves - therefore resulting in a lack of humility.

Job 6:259(a) says, "How painful are honest words..."

I must learn to not be so hurt when others criticize me. Either in accurate honesty or in inaccuracy, I should allow it to sharpen me because even when they aren't completely right there is always something to learn and a huge dose of humility is waiting on the other side...and its a way better feeling than bitterness.