Transition Time

We said goodbye to Sandy Level yesterday. It really doesn't feel real yet. We've been there for the past six and a half years and it just seems so weird knowing our time there has come to an end. I'm not sure when reality will set in, but when it does I hope I'm ready for it.

We also said goodbye to my granny yesterday. I won't get to see her again before we leave. That was sad too. She is my rock. My granny is everything to me and I can't imagine life without her. She has always been there for me and I can tell her absoltely anything and know that she genuinely cares for me.

I think Joshua may be starting to feel some of the transition. He has woken up the past two nights and came into our bedroom to sleep the rest of the night. I think the yard sale on Saturday really got his attention. We are just going to spend a "normal" night at home tonight (no packing, no nothing related to moving) and hopefully that will help him.

Well, I'm off to get somemore work done. I'll be in touch later!

1 Peter 5:7

"Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you."

New Email Address

I had to change my email address since we're moving, so here is my new one:

cwlivelaughlove@aol.com

off to dream land...

We had a great yard sale today. Got rid of lots of stuff!! YEA!!! I'm totally exhausted now though so it's off to bed for me and it's only 8:30pm.... man, am I getting old or what? :)

Tomorrow is our last day at Sandy Level. It's going to be a tough morning so please say a special prayer for us. I am also going to see my granny tomorrow and it will be the last time I see her before we leave for Texas.

I'll write more tomorrow. I'm so tired I can hardly hold my eyes open.

9 days to go

Well, the count down has started. We have 9 days before we pull out of South Carolina! I can't believe it. The reality of everything is really starting to set in. We are having a moving sale tomorrow... so if any of you are in town you should come!! :) 7am-2pm

I can't even begin to say how excited I am about this new opportunity. Of course we are sad and hate saying goodbye to so many wonderful friends and family members. But the thing that excites me the most and I think I've said it before, is that my God.. my HUGE, AWESOME GOD is ordaining each and every step towards this move. I know that He is in it. Ever since I was 11 years old I knew that my life would always be totally sold out for Him and I've never thought twice about living any other way. I only want to be in the center of His Plan for my life. I've got chills all over me right now just thinking of how He is going to use me, Rodney and Joshua to show His love to others. I want to be a firm, real example to all those around me that I belong to Christ and that life without Him is meaningless! Living my life for Christ gives me so much purpose and meaning. I can't imagine not having Him at the center of everything I do.

I'm listening to the song, "The Stand" by Hillsong United and each word of it just describes my heart's desire. I want my "ARMS HIGH AND HEART ABANDONED to Christ alone. MY SOUL, LORD, TO YOU SURRENDERED. ALL I AM IS YOURS!"

YEA GOD!! You're Awesome!

Saying Goodbye

Saying Goodbye is definitely not one of my strong suits. Today, I had to say goodbye to my dad. I won't see him again before we leave for Texas. Even though I don't get to see him a lot now anyway, it's still hard leaving because at least I knew he was close by before. Now, I'll be in Texas and can't just drive over to see him. So, that was a tough and very emotional time.

And tonight, I'll be saying goodbye to my little doggie, Belle. A lady contacted us wanting to adopt her so we will meet her tonight around 6pm to leave Belle with her.

In midst of all these goodbyes that have to be said between now and next Saturday I have got to remind myself to keep relying on God to get me through this. I have never wanted anything more in my life except to be right smack in the middle of God's plan for my life. And, Texas is where He is leading.

Psalm 46:10, "Be still and know that I am God."

Texas Bound - November 16th

Well, I got a call from Southwestern Seminary and they have offered me a job. WOW>>> WOW>>> WOW

I never would have thought back in July, when we received the news that Rodney was being asked to resign as youth minister at sandy level that this is where I would be now. For so many months I was so devastated and just plain angry. But, God has opened so many new doors for us and if you ask me He's just starting to "SHOW OFF" a little. (LOL, just kidding) I'm so excited and through this whole thing I'm falling more and more in love with my Savior!! He is truly amazing.

Rodney will be able to attend school absolutely free since I got this job. God is truly blessing us and has turned what started out as an awful situation into something wonderful.

Pray for us, because this job offer was for an immediate position. They want me there this month. We've gone through every possible scenerio and feel like leaving on the 16th, even though we will miss Thanksgiving with our families, is the best way to go. And, also just pray that we will be able to really focus and get everything ready to move.

TEXAS BOUND!!! Thank you, Jesus!

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!!

Quietness

Nothing beats a Saturday afternoon when my precious little 2 year old is up in his room taking a nap and my handsome hubby is laying on the couch napping. All I can hear is the USC football game in the background, my dishwasher and my dryer. With everything taken care of I can take a couple of hours all to myself and simply do whatever I want. With the busyness of our life here lately this is definitely a luxury I don't get everyday.

Me and Rodney have been praying and both feel very confirmed in the area of our future. We have decided that Rodney should go to Seminary and pursue his counseling degree. He is so gifted in this area and there is no doubt that this is a huge gift God has blessed him with. We've been checking out all the seminaries and the only one that offers the kind of counseling program we are looking for is in Texas. So, yes we will more than likely be moving to Fort Worth, Texas in January. Rodney has turned in all his admission stuff so we're waiting to hear from the seminary for acceptance.

When thinking about this move of course I have some worries but more than all my worry I have an overwhelming excitement that is surpasses all my doubts. I am so excited about how God is going to use this time in our life. I know that God has something huge for us and in order to receive the ministry he's calling us to this has to be our next step. There is a chance I'll enroll in the Fall of 2008 to pursue my masters in women's ministry. But, I want to be able to get there and get everything settled and get Rodney started before I enroll.

In the midst of all the stresses and fears we've had over the past couple of months God is beginning to shine light on where we are suppose to be and little by little He is revealing His vision for our life. Please continue to pray for us. Pray that we will remained focused on Christ and allow Him to lead us.

My Passion

We watched a video at church sunday night about a girl named Kim Jones. Kim was killed by a gunman who entered her church during a see you at the pole celebration in 1999. Kim's story and her passion was so huge. Seeing how she truly served and loved the Lord stopped me dead in my tracks. Everytime you would see her in the video she had a huge smile on her face. You could tell she had the joy of the Lord all over her. She lived her life here on earth but so many of her friends said her heart was always in heaven. When speaking about her relationship with the Lord one of her friends said that Kim didn't pray just to get answers from God, she prayed simply because she wanted to be with Him and she didn't read her bible to gain more knowledge, she read it so she could be with Jesus, in His presence. They said any time a worship service was going on Kim was always there. She never missed an opportunity to worship and serve our awesome God.

While watching the video I could hear the Lord whispering to my heart, "that used to be you, Courtney." Wow! It really did. I can remember back to my high school days where all I wanted was to be at church or doing something to serve God. And, then when the Lord placed a call into ministry on my life I couldn't wait to get started. That passion carried me through so much and looking back I see how the joy of the Lord was all over me. I was the girl that everyone knew would be at church if something was going on.

I've come a long way since then. I'm not sure at what point it happened but slowly over the past couple of years my joy has begun to disappear. I've gone to church because I had to not because I was excited to go. It has felt more like a chore to me and that smile I used to always have is gone as well.

Watching this video on sunday has really stopped me and got me to thinking about my walk with Christ. I do love Him and I want to serve Him with my whole heart. That's truly what my life is all about. I've just got some things to work out and I've got some things I need to let go of with God's help. I've seen the need for this "cleaning out" in my life but now that God has totally confronted me with it I see that I truly do want to change and become my joyful self again and I want to let go of all those things that are holding me back. I know with the help of my Savior, my Father... my Daddy I can be revived and renewed into the person He has called me to be.

YEAH BABY

The painting is officially done!!! :)

We have finished painting all the rooms that needed it to get our house on the market. Rodney is calling our realtor tomorrow and hopefully... keep your fingers crossed... the house will be on the market by the end of the week. I've boxed up tons of stuff this weekend also. So, that's great. I can't believe we've got it all done. I'm so stinkin TIRED... but excited to be moving forward. My sister in law came over this weekend with her family and helped us so much. Oh my word, I'm so thankful for them. Now, I need to go to work tomorrow so I can rest. (LOL)

Keep praying for us though. Rodney has his resume out and is getting some responses so that's totally awesome. Just pray that we will really seek the face of God and allow him to lead us wherever He's calling. It's so easy to get wrapped up in the here and now and I don't want to miss God and His perfect will in this whole situation.

But, Elisabeth.... I'm keeping my fingers crossed.. ;) You know what I'm talking about. ;)

Nighty Night my precious friends. I'm BEAT and it's totally time for BED..

Mommy Time

I'm sitting in my living room relaxing and oh my word, it feels so awesome to just kick my feet up and do nothing. Joshua is playing with his "choo choo" and Rodney is on his way home from visiting some church members at the hospital. It's not very often I get a little quiet time like this. Since I get Fridays off at work my weekend gets to start early and they are always totally busy. So, I took advantage of a little down time today and took Joshua to Leapin Lizards. It's a really cool children's play place. They have all the big inflatable bouncers and just lots of cool stuff... all indoors. :) And, all the mommies get to just kick back on the comfy couches and watch the kids play. I don't get to go there much, but when I do it always reminds me of how much each of us mommies need each other. We need times to just sit and spill our guts about being mommies. Don't get me wrong. I totally love being a mommy and would not trade it for anything, but every once in a while it's nice to know other mommies struggle with the same things I do. :) Once you get to just pour everything out to someone else who really understands it helps relieve all we have bottled up and gives us the motivation to keep going.

Thanks Mommies!!!

LEGO straight to the eye

OOWWIEEE!!! Oh my word, I never knew my eye could hurt the way it has been the last 3 days. I went to put Joshua to bed Monday night and when I bent down to give him a goodnight kiss he reached up and was trying to hand me the lego he had in his hand and that thing went straight in my eye. Poor little Joshua felt awful for hurting mommy. I told him mommy was fine and just endured the pain long enough to get him in bed so he wouldn't worry about mommy and then I went to my room and cried and tried to get my left eye open. I ended up going to the eye doctor the next morning and they said the lego had actually cut my eye so they numbed it up for me and gave me some medicine to put on it. But, they pretty much said this is just one of those things that will be uncomfortable and hurt until it heals up. This is the first time I've actually been able to sit down at the computer and type. Before the light was way too bright for me to try and look at and my left eye was so blury I couldn't see a thing. And up until about 6pm tonight it felt like something was just stuck in my eye and I couldn't get it out. Thank goodness that pain has seemed to stop for now. We'll see how long that last when I have to put more drops in it before bed. My left eye is still still very blury. I'm pretty much typing with my left eye closed so if something sounds weird that's probably why. I go back to the doctor in the morning so they can take the contact lense patch out of my eye and hopefully that will take some of this bluriness away.

Mary Mary - Shackles (Praise You)

Prison Picnic

I had the opportunity to go to the Women's Prison here in Columbia this past Saturday. Where I work we do an annual picnic for the inmates. We take things like fried chicken, fresh veggies, and lots of desserts... stuff they don't get the priviledge of having on a consistent basis.

Oh, I have to tell you the very deepest part of my soul was touched and forever changed as I came in contact with each of these precious women. Yes, their stories are much different from mine just from the kind of things they have done but PRAISE GOD their future can be as secure as mine as the Lord of Lord's holds them in the palm of his hands. He has not turned his back on them and will never, ever give up on them. I went into the lock up area where they keep some of the ladies that they have had discipline issues with and they also keep new women that have just come into the system. The only way you can talk with them is through the door of their cell. We went from cell to cell talking and praying with each of the women there. Talking with them, and just seeing the pain in their eyes totally broke me. Many of them are so young and scared to death. Yes, they know why they are there and they know they've done wrong. But, you know one thing I learned is that even though they've done some horrible things... they are human and are truly hurting over their present circumstances. They want to be different. They want to change. However, our society is so harse to them and in no way takes the time to encourage them to be different and change. Our society automatically slaps a label on them and considers them lost causes for eternity. Oh, may the God of Gods change our hearts and attitudes towards them. May we look upon them with eyes of compassion and hope. I spoke with one lady who has 5 children and she told me, "there is no more hope for me, but just pray that my children will chose a different path than I did." It broke my heart to hear her speak with such hopelessness.

Let's lift these precious women up to God praying that each and every one of them will know they are not forgotten... but that they are LOVED and TREASURED above all else to the God of gods and the Lord of lords!!! PRAISE HIM!! I couldn't help but think of the song, "shackles" while I was writing this blog. Watch the video above and get up and do some of praise dancing of your own!!! YES LORD!!

Yes, I'm still Here

My post have been so on and off again. I feel like I just don't have any time to write anymore.

Joshua was sick this weekend, running a high fever and all so I was busy keeping him comfortable and hydrated while painting and packing. Sounds like fun, huh? Life is so busy right now and I am just ready to get out of this whirlwind and have some calm for a while.

Other than that, we are doing really good. Just doing a lot of praying and practicing our faith right now. :) But, God is good. He is really upholding us and keeping our spirits high during this difficult time. We have our moments when all the stress builds up and we just loose it, but it's really not that often... thank goodness. And, it's mostly me loosing it. :)

You know, this will probably sound silly but when I get stressed out to the max I just look at Joshua and see how he just takes one day at a time and just goes with the flow. I know why Jesus tells us to be like the children.

Thanks for all your prayers and encouragment. I love ya'll!!!

Courtney Update

Hey Everybody! You have no idea how much your love and concern for us right now has blessed and encouraged me. We are doing ok. Yesterday was my last day teaching the middle school sunday school class, so that was difficult. I've taught sunday school in the youth department for the past 6 years and I'm not quite sure what to do with myself on sunday mornings since we still have to go to church there until Nov. 11. Which is another issue I'm totally confused about all the way around.

I am doing better and know that God is in Control!! And, thanks for all the reminders letting me know that. You know how it is when you are in the middle of a huge storm.. you just tend to forget God is in Control and need those little reminders along the way.

My relationship with God is really growing so much stronger during this time. I find myself just clinging to His Word and His promises for my life constantly. He is my rock and my safe place right now and I just love Him so much for being here with me.

Pray for Rodney. He is having back problems and will have to go see a back surgeon at the end of September. He's in a lot of pain by the end of the day so just pray for him as he is dealing with this pain and the stress from having to find a job. He is such wonderul, awesome husband and I just hate that he has all of this on him at once.

Hanging On

Please pray for us tomorrow. We have a realtor coming to look at our house tomorrow afternoon. I am totally not looking forward to this for the simple fact of I'm not ready to let go of my home. I hate having to do this, but we have no choice. With Rodney's pay ending in November there is no way with all our other bills that we can keep the house. So, please please pray for us. This is so hard!! Anytime I think of moving it brings back bad memories from my childhood and I really don't want all that stuff resurfacing.

My Little Swimmer

Joshua has begun to swim on his own!! I can't believe it. We have him wear his floaty bathing suit (pictured above) when he is in the water and he used to hang on to us and would not dare let go. But, we were in the pool Monday night and he decided he had enough of having to hold on to us and he let go and started kicking and moving all around the pool himself. He was so stinkin cute! We've been in the pool every night this week so far and he is doing great. He loves to turn around in circles and swim to the sides. I'm so proud of him. He just amazes me everyday at all the new stuff he is trying! I love being a mommy!!!!

HELP LORD, HELP

Lord, we’ve got a lot going on right now. So much that I just have no clue where to even begin with it all. I am simply at a complete loss as to what, when, where, why and how. I haven’t been in this sort of position before and I honestly don’t want to be here now. But, I am.

But, understanding and fully believing that my life is in your hands I have to trust that you know what you are doing. I was reading in one of my devotional books that, “your strength is not dependant on you or the size of your faith. It is dependant on the size of your God. He is your strength.” If I’ve ever needed you, it’s right now. I’ve got to have you as my strength during this whole process or I’m not going to make it. My focus, emotions, understanding and just everything about me is so messed up right now. I have no clue which way to turn and I know that in order to make the decisions that need to be made during the next couple of months I’ve got to rely on you. I’ve got to know that you are in control.

Tough Times

Everything is official now and reality is starting to set in. Rodney resigned from the youth ministry at Sandy Level yesterday. It feels so weird knowing we won't be there anymore. The youth are all shocked and some are pretty angry about the whole situation. I wish there was something more I could do for them, but I'm not even sure how to deal with all of this myself. I keep telling myself that God is in control! And, even though it sounds simple, it's really what's getting me through this so far. I have no idea what our future holds. This is not something we saw coming so it's hard to know what to do or where to go.

Please remember us in your prayers. I think our next step is to get our house on the market and try to sale it. We need to begin eliminating some dept since Rodney's pay stops in November. Also, pray that we won't give up and that we will daily remember God is in this! We want His will for our lives, wherever that may be.

New Covenant Ministry / Point #1

I'm starting a new study in the book of 2 Corinthians. I'm looking at 2 Cor. 2:14-7:1. In this portion of Scripture it is outlining New Covenant Ministry. It gives 8 different points to new covenant ministry and I'm taking them one by one and studying the points in depth.

# 1: New Covenant Ministry is Triumphant (2:14-17)

My First Reaction to these verses:
THANK goodness God is On My Side!!! Thanks be to God that it is Him who leads us and equips us to be witnesses. Paul asked the question, “who is sufficient for these things?” And then says, “we are not.” We cannot do this on our own. We must rely upon the power of Christ working in and through us. But, we must not only rely on Him; we must live our faith out with sincerity, being truly committed to the call of Christ. (2 Cor. 2:17)

I believe this is saying that yes, we had life before. We were living, breathing beings. But, as a believer we have been brought into a new life, a life that will last forever. Without Christ we would not have the life “sufficient” enough for doing the purposes and will of God. But, with Christ we are sufficient. It states it this way in 2 Corinthians 3:6, saying that, “God has made us competent to be ministers.” The definition of competent is, ‘having suitable or sufficient skill, knowledge, experience for some purpose, fit, capable.’ Meaning, now we’ve been brought into this relationship with Christ and we now understand what “real life” is all about.

We have just enough knowledge, experience that we need to live the Christian life victoriously right now. Yes, there are more experiences to come and more circumstances that will arise, but we can always trust that we are competent ministers because WHO we have in us makes us sufficient.

I absolutely love that this is the first point to new covenant ministry. It means to me that no matter what the other points are, no matter how hard things might get, I'll always be triumphant in Christ. My life will be successful in Christ Jesus because it is Him living in and through me.

2 year old + Restaurant = Total Disaster

I tell ya what I'm not taking Joshua back out to a restaurant until he is 30!!! I try to give him credit and think he'll do ok, but it always ends up in disaster. He ends up screaming, getting out of his chair, running around, or something. My sister in law's birthday is today and her husband was throwing a surprise party for her so we were all there and when we sat down to eat Joshua was just awful. So, I got up and tried to calm him down but he was having none of that. So, we came home.

Oh well... guess it's good ol' homecookin for a while. Because I'm definitely not doing that again for a long long time. :)

wheewwww... just had to get that off my chest! : )

Reliance upon God

PSALM 56

Verse 8: "You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle."

This is a huge comfort to me right now. Knowing that God cares enough to catch my tears and hold them in his hand. In my Bible notes it says that sometimes, in the ancient East, mourners would catch their tears in bottles and place them at the tombs of their loved ones. I really believe God mourns with us, cries with us, and his heart breaks when our heart breaks. He is our Father and when a father sees his child hurting, he hurts too. I picture my Heavenly Father comforting me and reassuring me and at the same time telling the ones trying to come up against me to leave me alone. Enough is enough! Why is it that people like to attack you for no specific reason? They just think it's ok to hurt you because you're not the way they want you to be.

I'll tell you something right now though, I'm getting just about sick of it and am getting to the point where I want to fight back. I wonder if that's not why David says at the very beginning of Psalm 56 and 57, "Be gracious to me, O God; Be merciful to me, O God". I think David might be saying, ok Lord, I'm ready to take these people out on my own BUT please be gracious and merciful to me as I have these thoughts and help me to remember You are in control. It's so easy to want to take things into your own control, but you know what, I'm not going to do that in this situation. I'm going to let God deal with these people. I'm going to let him fix this situation. The only thing I need to focus on right now is keeping myself and my attitude in such a way that will bring honor and glory to Christ when all is said and done.

Praise you in this Storm (live)

The Storm Is Coming

Have you ever stood off and watched a storm approach?? It's a really neat thing as you sit there and watch the clouds move closer and closer bringing the rain, wind, lightening, thunder, etc, while right where you are standing it's calm and dry. Yes, you know the storm is coming... you can see it.. the wind is starting to blow a little harder and you can feel the mist from the hard rain heading your way. I feel like I'm standing on the edge of the storm in my life right now. It hasn't hit full force yet, but it's inevitable, I'm going to get wet really soon. I can't disclose what's happening just yet but I'm writing this pleading with you to please pray for me. The days ahead are going to be very stormy and I hate storms. I don't do well with them at all. Pray that I will remember I'm not alone in the storm, that God is with me and will not leave me no matter how hard things seem.

Something Familiar

Anytime we are away from home Joshua likes for me or Rodney to sleep with him. I got to thinking about that last night when I was laying in bed and here is what I thought.

When we are in familiar territory we feel safe and secure and don’t really need any affirmation in that respect because we just know it’s there. However, as soon as something changes, whether it be a circumstance we find ourselves in or a change in our surroundings we become insecure almost immediately. We want something familiar to give us our security back.

You know, God is our something familiar. Everywhere we go and no matter how many changes we go through he’s always there. He doesn’t change. He invites us into the security that only he can offer, so that no matter what we may face we can do so knowing that nothing can ever overtake us because we are children of the King of kings.

Joshua Moments

BEDTIME STORIES
Me and Joshua were laying in bed this morning and he had woke up before I did, so all of a sudden I felt something tickling my nose. I opened my eyes and he was taking the corner of his blankey and rubbing it against my nose saying, "sleep momma". When he gets tired or ready for bed Joshua always grabs his blankey and sucks his thumb and holds the corner of the blankey up to his nose and rubs it. So, I guess he thought since I was still sleeping this morning I needed the blankey.

Joshua never has trouble sleeping in his own bed at home, but whenever we are away from home he always wants me to sleep with him. I'm actually kindof enjoying it because I'm getting to experience all this silly stuff he's doing. The other night we were laying there and he started poking my head with his finger, I asked him what he wanted and he said, "mommy, booboo, Kiss". He had a little booboo on his finger and he just had to have it kissed before he could go to sleep. :) I tell ya he is a HOOT!!! I love it when we first get into bed and he looks over at me with his cute "serious" face and says "night night momma... go sleep". I tried to get out of bed one night because I couldn't sleep and as soon as I stood up he sat straight up in the bed and looked at me and said, "momma" and then he patted my pillow telling me to get back in bed.

ADVENTURE STORY
We were outside last night and he was playing with my niece and nephew and they found a lizard so they caught it and put it in their little bug cage. Well, Joshua got the idea that the lizard needs to eat so he started making everybody find little bugs for the lizard to eat. He would not stop until his mission was accomplished. We found some bugs, and a frog in the process that Joshua chased around the backyard until it finally got away from him. :) We gave the lizard his bugs and Joshua sat and was just amazed at watching the lizard eat.

I'm so blessed with such a wonderful son! I can't even begin to explain the love I have for him. He's my little miracle!!! I love exploring with him and watching him. He has a very strong determination that blows my mind. Just like with the bugs last night, he wasn't stopping until that lizard had just enough bugs to eat.

That's my little man for ya!!

I Miss My Man

It's Day 2 without my husband!! booohoooooo I miss my man so stinkin much. I talked to him about an hour ago. Him and the team were doing fine. The Nicaragua government turns the power out in certain areas at night to save on energy so Rodney said it was very dark, but they have some generators where they are staying so they will have lights soon. :) I wrote him a letter for everyday he's gone so he's enjoying opening those up each day. I put pictures of Joshua in each envelope too. So, I know he's going to enjoy that.

Pictures of Renee Grace

This is Rodney and Renee Grace last summer (2006).

This was Renee Grace's bed. It's so neat to see how the Nicaraguan culture is. I got to go during the summer of 2004. It's really an eye opening trip.We really don't realize how good we've got it here in America.

Renee Grace was just a couple days old when this picture was taken. The lady holding her took care of her until Renee passed away. See the "sooo lost" post to find out more about Renee Grace.

safe and sound

Rodney and the mission team have landed safely in Nicaragua. YEA!! It always makes me so nervous when he has to fly. He called and said everybody is doing great and that they were going to get some rest. I'm at my in-laws house for the next 10 days while he is away. So far, it's been really good. Joshua is doing very well and sleeping all night... so YEA for me. I get to rest too.

I'm so excited to hear about what they are going to be doing. Rodney is suppose to call as much as possible. I tell ya, I sure do miss my man already!! :( It's going to be a long 10 days.

soooo lost

Well, my hubby is leaving in an hour to meet the group at the church leaving for Nicaragua. He'll be on a plane at 6am in the morning heading out of the country. I'm so excited for what God is going to do through this team as they are ministering to the people in Nica. But, I also know this year will be a bittersweet time for Rodney. Two years ago we were getting ready to adopt a precious baby girl born there. She was so beautiful. We started the process and soon found out she was very sick, so sick that the US would not allow us to adopt her. We tried all we could to get her here. But, nothing worked. We had even been given the awesome privlege to name her. Her legal name was Renee Grace Williams. When Rodney visits this time he will visit Renee Grace's grave. She would have been 2 years old January 1 of 2007. She had a condition called hydracephalis (i'm sure that's not spelled right). This basically means she had water on her brain, and that half of her brain did not develop correctly. Because the shunts did not work when they didn't surgery to remove the water from her brain, her head just kept swelling and getting larger. From all the pressure building she was slowing dying. I can't even begin to explain the feelings of loss that I experienced. I felt like my own flesh and blood had been ripped to pieces as I had to sit back and be totally helpless through this whole situation. I do praise God that she is completely healed and happy now... but part of me still longs for my little girl.

If you get a chance just say a prayer for Rodney as he visits her grave. I know it's going to be really tough on him. He had actually been able to go to Nicaragua before and had held her and met her personally. I've only known her through pictures and phone calls.

STARBUCKS.. my new best friend

I've reached a milestone in my life. I experienced my very first STARBUCKS today. I have to say, it was quite emotional and spiritual all in one.

I've never had a coffee taste before, but for some reason here lately I've really wanted coffee. So, I gave it a try today. And, I'm IN LOVE!!!

TGIF

IT'S FRIDAY!! Thank goodness! We are heading over to Nana and Papa's today. Joshua is so excited. He loves going over there. He gets to swim in their inground pool, or his little kiddie pool, or the HOT TUB (my favorite). He automatically turns into a fish everytime we go over there. And, it's always so relaxing to be over there with them. I just love them so much and am so lucky to have such great in-laws.

I was reading my devotion this morning and it's so neat how God always gives us exactly what we need, for such a time as this. I read from Romans 8:26, "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express." I'm definitely in a season of my life that I really don't know how or what to pray for. I'm not sure what to be asking God for other than his will for my life. So, this verse brings great comfort. I know that the Spirit of God understands my circumstances and is asking God for exactly what I need.

I love how Beth Moore pictures this in her Whispers of Hope devotional. She says, "Imagine this poignant scene. The child of God musters her last bit of strength to collapse before the throne of God. Words do not come - just groanings. They are not her groanings, though they emerge from so deep within, she thinks they are hers. The Spirit of God searches her heart, gathers her pain, and lifts it to the Father of all comfort. The Spirit of God, knowing both the depth of her agony and the will of the Father, can bring forth glory from even this. He insists that the Father usher overflowing comfort. He urges the child to let the Father have his way. He prays for things she could not bear to pray - that she lacks the courage to pray. He prays for glory."

SUPER WIFE.... SUPER MOMMY

It's been a crazy, busy week. Rodney is down in his back and can barely walk without hurting, so he's totally out of comission. Which means, SUPER WIFE (tatatadaaaa) and SUPER MOMMY (tatatadaaaa) has had to come out. I am just so thankful that today is Thursday and I don't have to work tomorrow so I can have a looonnnggg weekend to do absolutely nothing. :) I don't know what Rodney is going to do if he isn't feeling better by next week. He is suppose to leave for a 1o day mission trip to Nicaragua next Wednesday. Now, of course I'd love it if he stays home because I hate being without him. :( But... I think this is just one thing satan is using to discourage Rodney and make him doubt whether or not he should go. I know that ultimately the Lord's will, will happen so we can rest assured in that.

Other than that we don't have much going on. Just working and staying caught up on everything else. Joshua is doing great, so that's always wonderful. He's starting to talk more and is saying a lot more words. I'm amazed at how much he's grown just in the past couple of months. He sure does make life fun. He's so cute at night, because he's got his routine down to a science. He takes a bubble bath, puts his lotion on (the boy loves putting lotion on), puts his jammies on, and then we go and dry his hair. He gets so excited when it's time to dry his hair, he just loves it. Then we go back downstairs and he gets like 5 or 6 books and wants to read every one of them before he goes to bed. So, he gets his blankie, climbs into my lap and we read... and read... and read.. But, you know I'm just cherishing every single moment I get with him. I'd sit and read 100 books with him if he wanted because I just want to enjoy this season of life to the fullest with him. There will come a day when he won't want to sit in my lap and read with me, so I'm not going to miss a night of it until then. :)

I think that's the problem with most parents. We rush our kids to grow up or we get frustrated because they want to do something that keeps us from what we wanted to do so we just brush them off, and we miss out on the small, yet most meaningful times with them.

Oh Lord, help us to slow down and spend time with our kids. They are gifts to us, from You. Remind us to cherish them and love them for the small amount of time we have them.

Where will my strength be found......

Proverbs 24:10 (esv)
"If you faint in the day of adversity; your strength is small."

Proverbs 24:10 (msg)
"If you fall to pieces in a crisis, there wasn't much to you in the first place."

I really got to thinking about this verse and you know if we automatically get down and depressed over every pain, every adversity, every bad circumstance that comes our way maybe there isn't much to us. As believers in Christ we have every reason to remain strong in the face of adversity. Our Savior did it for us... so, what's our problem? It seems as soon as something bad happens we immediately go into a"woe is me...everything bad happens to me" syndrome. I don't know about you, but I'm sick of this. I want to be able to stand in the face of my adversity and say, "this might be a horrible situation I'm in, but I refuse to give in to it and let it ruin me or bring me down." Let's learn how to tap into the might power of Christ strength so that we can stand strong when life starts throwing waves.

Burger King/McDonalds

Here's some pictures of Joshua playing at the Burger King play area. We stopped at alot of these so he could run around and play a little bit as we were traveling to TN for vacation. :) Needless to say, I don't want to see another Burger King/McDonalds for a LOOONNNGGG TIME!! :) At least he had fun though.

Vacation

We are back from vacation. We went to Gatlinburg, TN and had a really great time. I had found a really nice resort to stay at that had an awesome pool area. It had a regular pool, a lazy river, and the winner for me was the 1foot kiddie pool. Joshua had a BLAST in that thing (it's the one to the far right in the picture with the yellow thingy). I'll add more pictures later when I get them downloaded on the comptuer. It was just so nice to get away from the hustle and bustle of life.

The only crazy, scary thing that happened was that the tire blew on the car on the way up there. We were only 5 exits away from our hotel and BOOM, the stinkin tire blew. Oh my word, it scared me half to death. We were in the fast lane when it happened, so we had to manuver ourselves over 3 lanes of traffic to get to the side of the road. I have to say Rodney did a great job getting us off the road, and getting the tire changed.

Other than that, we had a blast and got lots of rest, which we totally needed. I will say, it's great to be home though!! :)

Whatever may come....

My Life Is In His Hands!! I know God will take care of me.