My Little Dragon

My little dragon!!! He's so stinkin cute!! :) He loves his costume this year. He wanted to be the dragon from Shrek so this is the closet dragon costume we found to look like the one from the movie. I think we got pretty darn close.

Don't pay attention to my house though, it's a MESS! We're packing and getting ready to sale the house so it's crazy around there right now.

Be Still Courtney....

I was listening to the song "Still" by Hillsong (which is on my playlist below, if you want to hear it) and the Lord so gently spoke to me and said, "Be still, Courtney, and know that I am your God." In the midst of all we've been facing that's the one thing I've needed to do is just be still and remember God is in control of everything going on and He is going to use it for His ultimate glory. As I looked at Psalm 46:10 the Lord really directed me to the second part of the verse which says, "I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth." This I know for sure, God will be exalted through every circumstance/situation that comes my way. It may not make sense right away, but there is a peace that comes in knowing that the end result of even the most horrible of situations will bring Glory to God! Isn't that why we have life... to bring Glory to Christ in all we say and do? I just praise Him that He is working in my life and drawing me closer and closer to Himself.

Personality

I was looking at one of my friends blogs and saw this test so I thought I would pass it on. It is very accurate... at least for me it is. Feel free to check it out.



If you would like to take the test click here, http://www.careerdirectonline.org/personalityID/

Belle

Prayer Request:

With us moving to Texas we can't take our precious little Belle with us. The Seminary housing doesn't allow pets so we need to find a good home for her. She is a full blooded Jack Russell Terrior and is 7 years old. If you could please pray that a good home will be provided for her I would greatly appreciate it.

Home Sweet Home

We are back home now. YEA!!!! We've been staying with my in-laws until Rodney felt like he could take the ride home. It was so nice to sleep in my bed last night. Joshua was even happy to be back home and get to sleep in his bed. I went in to check on him before I went to bed last night and he rolled over, looked up at me and told me, "NO mommy." He was enjoying having his bed all to himself and apparently didn't want me sleeping with him. He's such a stinker. :) We've had to share a bed at my in-laws and I think we both have had enough of that for a while.

I took Rodney for his follow up appointment today and he's doing really good. He just has to take it easy and not do anything strenuous for a while.

Other than all this we're doing good. Just trying to take one day at a time. With all we've had going on since July I think I'm finally getting it. I don't know why it takes me so long to catch on to what God is trying to teach me. He must think I'm a nut case sometimes. ;) But, at least I'm His nut case and He loves me regardless.

Many are the plans... BUT

Proverbs 19:21
"Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails."

It is so neat and freeing when we lay all our plans aside and allow the Lord to take complete control. In the course of just 2 days now God has just overwhelmed me with His goodness. Rodney got his official acceptance letter from Southwestern Seminary and today I had a phone interview with a lady from Southwestern for a job. She told me the department head that looked at my resume was really impressed with my background experience and wants to pursue me for the admin. position. With this job, Rodney will be able to attend Seminary for free.!!!! Isn't our God awesome? I can't wait to see what He has in store for us in the days ahead. I am totally focused and ready for whatever His plans and purposes are to prevail above everything else.

Reminiscing

I was looking through some pictures today and ran across some of my little Joshua when he was a teeny tiny little baby. I just started thinking about how precious those days were when I would sit and look at his tiny little self in my arms. I would sing to him, talk to him and pray blessings over his precious life. Now, he is a rambunctious 2 year old. However, around 8:00 every night that precious little boy crawls up into my lap with his blankie and just cuddles with me. There is something about being a mommy that just fills me up and more times than not my cup runneth over with pure joy and love for my little one. I never thought I'd feel what most mommies do since we were not able to have our own biological child. But, I was wrong. Joshua is my baby! Our great and awesome God picked this precious little boy out for me and Rodney and knew that he was a perfect match.

Home and doing good

Rodney is home and doing good. His surgery went very well yesterday and the doctor says he will be just fine. He's still in a lot of pain from the surgery, but that is to be expected. We're just keeping him on schedule with his pain meds and letting him get lots of rest.

We got some GREAT news today!! Rodney got his acceptance letter from Southwestern Seminary!! So, we're officially moving to Texas!! It was so awesome to see him read the letter and see how excited he is about going. I just started crying.. I guess that's the woman thing to do. As soon as he finished reading his letter it had the housing application attached and he filled that thing out so fast. He looked at me and said, "ok, it's ready. go to the post office and overnight it." :)

Well, I'm going to go rest. I haven't slept well the past couple of nights. I can't stand knowing my hubby is hurting and I just get so restless because I feel like I need to be helping in some way to make him feel better.

Back Surgery

Rodney will be having back surgery tomorrow morning at 9:30am. He has a herniated disc in his back and has been in a lot of pain for a while now. So, we are just praying that the doctors will be able to take care of the problem and that Rodney will have a speedy recovery. We are going to stay with Rodney's parents as he recovers, so that will really help me a lot. I'm so thankful for them and how they are always there for us no matter what. I've been SO BLESSED with awesome in-laws.

I'd really appreciate your thoughts and prayers! Love ya'll!!!

PRAYER REQUEST

I was at church the other night talking with a lady about me and Rodney going to Seminary in January and she told me that her brother is actually a student there and is about to finish up his degree. She told me she was going to call him and let him know our situation and see if we could get in touch with him with any questions that we might have. Well, she came back to church the next night and said that she was telling her brother about me needing a job when we move there and she told him the kind of work I've done. He told that he knew of several admin jobs that are available that would allow me to actually work with the Seminary on their campus. So, he's agreed to get me all the contact names and numbers that I need and get me plugged in with the right people to talk about these job opportunities. OK, so here is the really exciting part. If this works out and I get a job with the Seminary my husband can go to school for free and it is possible that our housing would be free as well. I'm asking that you please pray very specifically that God will work this out and allow me to get a job working for the seminary so that Rodney's school can be paid for and so that we won't have to worry about housing expenses.

Finances is my biggest struggle with this whole move. To be totally honest, I'm TERRIFIED of how our financial situation looks right now. However, I know in my heart of hearts that God is moving us to Seminary. There is no doubt. And, I'm just praying that this job opportunity will work out and that God will be in control of this whole situation. I know He already is and I know that all these connections would not be happening had He not ordained each and every one of them.

Pray for us please! Pray that we will continue to seek Christ and His will for our lives and to fully trust that He will take care of each and every detail. I'm amazed and just totally taken back with how He has provided so far. Praise Him! WE SERVE AN AWESOME, MIGHTY, WONDERFUL GOD AND I LOVE HIM WITH MY WHOLE HEART!

Nice Surprise

I haven't been going to church on Wednesday nights just because I know we are leaving in a month and I felt I needed to start transitioning out. However, I decided to go last night and hang out with the youth group. Youth group goes from 6:30-8:30 and I only get to hang out with them for about an hour because Joshua's class is over at 7:30. So, from 7:30 to 8:30 I'm usually just hanging out with Josh and playing around the church. But, last night I got a wonderful surprise. Two girls who have graduated out of our ministry stopped by the church last night to talk and catch up with me. I haven't seen one of them in so long and for her to stop by meant so much. She had received the letter about Rodney's resignation and said that she was just so sad to see us go, but that she was also excited about what our future holds.

In the midst of all we are going through right now I really, really needed this. Having them stop by and share with me how much the youth ministry has meant in their own lives just encouraged me so much and made me feel proud of what we have done at sandy level. Although things are crazy and people are trying to really tear us down right now I can stand confirmed in Christ, knowing that I have made a difference for Him in our ministry time at sandy level.

God is so good!! He gives us hope in the midst of our pain. He lets us know everything is going to be ok.

This IS My King

His grace is sufficient
His compassions never fail
His love is never ending
His name is above all names
His mercy is endless
His promises are true
His Kingdom is real
His forgiveness is mine
His strength is unmatchable
His home is eternal
His cross is my crown
His word is my shield
His ways are always prosperous

PRAISE JESUS! He is wonderful, glorious, holy, victorious and righteous, He's a strong tower and my best friend. Alpha, Omega.. SOON COMING KING!!!

He is my everything!!