Saturday, May 3, 2008
Saturday Morning
Well, so far our weekend has been wonderful! Joshua has become a PRO on his new big boy bike. We've had that bike for like a month and he would not touch it and then all of a sudden he got up this morning and wanted to ride it. And, he's great at it. Enjoy the pictues of our Saturday Morning!
Friday, May 2, 2008
"Hey Dude"
Joshua has a new phrase that he likes to say. It's "hey dude." We went through the drivethru at Chic-fil-a tonight and Joshua had his window down so when we pulled up to get our food Joshua yells out the window "HEY DUDE!" We went to Target after that and he's was saying "HEY DUDE" to everybody he saw. Oh my word, that child is so funny!
Well, I just thought I'd share that little bit of cute joshua information with you. Have a great weekend!
Well, I just thought I'd share that little bit of cute joshua information with you. Have a great weekend!
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Is it the weekend yet?
I vote that we just go ahead and skip Friday and get the weekend started now!! :) It's been a long, busy, busy week at work this week. (but, i'm totally not complaining.. because I love my job) :) I'm just ready for the weekend. But, since it's not here yet I'll just make my fun to do list:
1. Have a water gun fight with Joshua
2. Go to the RAC and get some exercise
3. Take a bike ride with Rodney and Joshua
4. Go to Church
5. Play outside with Joshua as much as possible
6. Take a nap when Joshua does on Saturday
7. Take another nap when Joshua does on Sunday
8. Rest, rest, rest, rest
9. There is more, but I'm tired and ready to go to bed. :)
Well, I'm off to bed so I can get up and go to work tomorrow and get to the weekend as fast as possible.
1. Have a water gun fight with Joshua
2. Go to the RAC and get some exercise
3. Take a bike ride with Rodney and Joshua
4. Go to Church
5. Play outside with Joshua as much as possible
6. Take a nap when Joshua does on Saturday
7. Take another nap when Joshua does on Sunday
8. Rest, rest, rest, rest
9. There is more, but I'm tired and ready to go to bed. :)
Well, I'm off to bed so I can get up and go to work tomorrow and get to the weekend as fast as possible.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
negative people & counting your blessings
Why do people have to be so negative? It seems like everytime I turn around lately someone is being negative and not even trying to see the good in anything. Call me crazy if you want, but I refuse to get bogged down in the negative. I'm going to do my best to find the best... the positive in everything. Yes, there are situations and circumstances in my life that for lack of a better word "suck". But, I will not allow myself to only focus on those things. Life is too short to dwell only on the negative. Look around at the blessings God has poured out on us. I'm reminded of the old hymn, "Count Your Blessings".
Verse 1
When upon life's billows You are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged Thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings Name them one by one,
And it will surprise you What the Lord hath done.
Chorus:
Count your blessings Name them one by one.
Count your blessings See what God hath done.
Count your blessings Name them one by one.
Count your many blessings See what God hath done.
Verse 2
Are you ever burdened With a load of care,
Does the cross seem heavy You are called to bear.
Count your many blessings Every doubt will fly,
And you will be singing As the days go by.
Verse 3
When you look at others With their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised You His wealth untold.
Count your many blessings Money cannot buy,
Your reward in heaven Nor your home on high.
Verse 4
So amid the conflict Whether great or small,
Do not be discouraged God is over all.
Count your many blessings Angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you To your journey's end.
Words by Johnson Oatman, Jr., 1856-1922
Music by Edwin O. Excell, 1851-1921
It's an old hymn but such a powerful message that I think we can use a good dose of every now and then.
Sorry, I'm just on a writing fix here lately and anything and everything that comes to mind I just have to get out before I lose it. :)It feels so good to be out of my "writers block". I'm getting back in the swing of things, praise the Lord!
Verse 1
When upon life's billows You are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged Thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings Name them one by one,
And it will surprise you What the Lord hath done.
Chorus:
Count your blessings Name them one by one.
Count your blessings See what God hath done.
Count your blessings Name them one by one.
Count your many blessings See what God hath done.
Verse 2
Are you ever burdened With a load of care,
Does the cross seem heavy You are called to bear.
Count your many blessings Every doubt will fly,
And you will be singing As the days go by.
Verse 3
When you look at others With their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised You His wealth untold.
Count your many blessings Money cannot buy,
Your reward in heaven Nor your home on high.
Verse 4
So amid the conflict Whether great or small,
Do not be discouraged God is over all.
Count your many blessings Angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you To your journey's end.
Words by Johnson Oatman, Jr., 1856-1922
Music by Edwin O. Excell, 1851-1921
It's an old hymn but such a powerful message that I think we can use a good dose of every now and then.
Sorry, I'm just on a writing fix here lately and anything and everything that comes to mind I just have to get out before I lose it. :)It feels so good to be out of my "writers block". I'm getting back in the swing of things, praise the Lord!
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
A Little Williams Update
Well, the semester is almost over. Rodney has a week and a half left and our first semester in seminary is OVER! :) It's definitely been a whirlwind of a semester with just moving here and getting into the routine of me working and Rodney going to school full time and spending as much time as possible with Joshua. But, by the grace of God we've made it and things are getting better and better. Rodney is ending up the semester with A's and B's in all his classes. He's done so well and I'm so proud of him. Joshua continues to do wonderful as well. He is soooo funny. I just can't stress that enough. He has a great sense of humor and can always find a way to make us laugh. I'm still loving my job at the seminary. I work with some great people and couldn't ask for a better working environment.
Through this crazy, transition time semester God has been good and faithful to us. He has confirmed His call on our lives over and over through everything He's done for us. I know without a doubt that we are where God wants us and to be honest there is no better place I'd rather be than right in the middle of His plan for our life.
I had such a proud mommy moment the other night that I just have to share with you. Joshua was playing with his cars and trucks the other day and like he usually does with them, the cars and trucks were talking to each other. (Joshua has a great imagination) Well, as I was listening this is the conversation I heard between the car and truck. :)
Truck: "It's time for church"
Car: "otay, let's go have fun at fun church"
Truck: "We learn about Jesus"
Car: "otay"
My heart just melted. Just the pure fact that my 3 year old son is talking about church and Jesus lets me know that he is getting it and even though he's so young he is beginning to understand what church is. I heard him tell someone the other day that church was God's house. I just praise the Lord for this. I want nothing more for my son than for him to follow God's plan for his life. Joshua is so very special and I know God has great plans for him. Joshua's prayers have been developing into more than one or two sentences lately. He'll just go on and on thanking God for all kinds of things. It's so precious to listen to him talk to God.
Well, that's just a little update on what's going on with the 3 of us. It's not much, but we are happy, healthy and blessed so that's all that matters. :)
Through this crazy, transition time semester God has been good and faithful to us. He has confirmed His call on our lives over and over through everything He's done for us. I know without a doubt that we are where God wants us and to be honest there is no better place I'd rather be than right in the middle of His plan for our life.
I had such a proud mommy moment the other night that I just have to share with you. Joshua was playing with his cars and trucks the other day and like he usually does with them, the cars and trucks were talking to each other. (Joshua has a great imagination) Well, as I was listening this is the conversation I heard between the car and truck. :)
Truck: "It's time for church"
Car: "otay, let's go have fun at fun church"
Truck: "We learn about Jesus"
Car: "otay"
My heart just melted. Just the pure fact that my 3 year old son is talking about church and Jesus lets me know that he is getting it and even though he's so young he is beginning to understand what church is. I heard him tell someone the other day that church was God's house. I just praise the Lord for this. I want nothing more for my son than for him to follow God's plan for his life. Joshua is so very special and I know God has great plans for him. Joshua's prayers have been developing into more than one or two sentences lately. He'll just go on and on thanking God for all kinds of things. It's so precious to listen to him talk to God.
Well, that's just a little update on what's going on with the 3 of us. It's not much, but we are happy, healthy and blessed so that's all that matters. :)
food for thought....
I was journaling a little bit this afternoon and wanted to share a little bit of what I wrote. It sort of picks up in the middle of what I was journaling about but I think you will still get the point of what I was writing:
"As I'm writing I can't help but think how awesome it is to have a friend like God. I know He is so much more than that, but I truly value His friendship. I can be completely, 100% honest with Him and He never thinks differently of me. Even if in my honesty I'm dead wrong, He still listens and understands. There are not many people we can talk to like that and them not start judging us right off. When I am hurting or just need to talk the last thing I want to have to worry about is the person I'm talking to judging me. And, with God I never have to worry about that. He is a true, perfect friend."
I don't know about you but that really, really encourages me.
"As I'm writing I can't help but think how awesome it is to have a friend like God. I know He is so much more than that, but I truly value His friendship. I can be completely, 100% honest with Him and He never thinks differently of me. Even if in my honesty I'm dead wrong, He still listens and understands. There are not many people we can talk to like that and them not start judging us right off. When I am hurting or just need to talk the last thing I want to have to worry about is the person I'm talking to judging me. And, with God I never have to worry about that. He is a true, perfect friend."
I don't know about you but that really, really encourages me.
Friday, April 25, 2008
A Courtney Revelation....
Prayer has been something it seems everyone around me is talking about lately. I either hear it in a sermon, in a song, or read about it in a devotional. But, no matter what it's been finding a way to be brought to my attention everyday for the last couple of weeks. So, I was thinking this morning. "You think God's trying to talk to me about prayer a little bit, since He keeps bringing it to my attention?" Well, duh Courtney... it's about time you get it. :) I told ya'll I can be pretty slow sometimes. :)
I've been pretty dry in my spiritual life the last couple of weeks. I've read my Bible but nothing has really jumped out at me like it usually does. So, as I was sitting here this morning thinking about what in the world the problem could be I remembered all those messages on prayer that God had brought to my attention. Usually I have no problems grasping messages from God's word or coming up with something to share about Christ. And, I think the dryness I'm experiencing right now is because of the lack of priority I've been giving my prayer time with God. Prayer is such a refreshing, uplifting time for me and for some odd reason I just have not engaged in it these past couple of weeks. Prayer for me is like taking a big gulp of ice cold water and just feeling it refresh your whole body as you swallow it. It gives me an unexplainable energy. I picked up a book I've been wanting to read about prayer and came across a section of it that shows just how important prayer is and why when we live our day to day lives without prayer we become stressed, have no energy or ambition.
"It boils down to this: if you are willing to invite God to involve himself in your daily challenges, you will experience his prevailing power - in your home, in your relationships, in the marketplace, in the schools, in the church, wherever it is most needed. That power may come in the form of wisdom - an idea you desperately need and can't come up with yourself. It may come in the form of courage greater than you could ever muster. It may come in the form of confidence or perseverance, uncommon staying power, a changed attitude toward a spouse or a child or a parent, changed circumstances, maybe even outright miracles. However it comes, God's prevailing power is released in the lives of people who pray." (from the book, too busy not to pray by Bill Hybels)
Amen and Amen!!! Just sitting here realizing that this is what I've been missing revives me and refreshes me beyond explanation.
My attitude has just been horrible the past couple of weeks towards everybody and I know it's because I've not been spending time alone with God to get that refreshment that I need each and every day from Him. Knowing how ugly I can be without Christ just makes me wonder again how people can live without Him? If someone doesn't have a relationship with Christ, what makes them want to get up everyday and face the daily struggles and circumstances that come our way. I know that if it wasn't for God I would have given up a long time ago. He keeps me going. He's the reason I get up every morning, because I know that He will sustain me and give me the energy and power to make it through everything that comes my way.
He alone is faithful!
I've been pretty dry in my spiritual life the last couple of weeks. I've read my Bible but nothing has really jumped out at me like it usually does. So, as I was sitting here this morning thinking about what in the world the problem could be I remembered all those messages on prayer that God had brought to my attention. Usually I have no problems grasping messages from God's word or coming up with something to share about Christ. And, I think the dryness I'm experiencing right now is because of the lack of priority I've been giving my prayer time with God. Prayer is such a refreshing, uplifting time for me and for some odd reason I just have not engaged in it these past couple of weeks. Prayer for me is like taking a big gulp of ice cold water and just feeling it refresh your whole body as you swallow it. It gives me an unexplainable energy. I picked up a book I've been wanting to read about prayer and came across a section of it that shows just how important prayer is and why when we live our day to day lives without prayer we become stressed, have no energy or ambition.
"It boils down to this: if you are willing to invite God to involve himself in your daily challenges, you will experience his prevailing power - in your home, in your relationships, in the marketplace, in the schools, in the church, wherever it is most needed. That power may come in the form of wisdom - an idea you desperately need and can't come up with yourself. It may come in the form of courage greater than you could ever muster. It may come in the form of confidence or perseverance, uncommon staying power, a changed attitude toward a spouse or a child or a parent, changed circumstances, maybe even outright miracles. However it comes, God's prevailing power is released in the lives of people who pray." (from the book, too busy not to pray by Bill Hybels)
Amen and Amen!!! Just sitting here realizing that this is what I've been missing revives me and refreshes me beyond explanation.
My attitude has just been horrible the past couple of weeks towards everybody and I know it's because I've not been spending time alone with God to get that refreshment that I need each and every day from Him. Knowing how ugly I can be without Christ just makes me wonder again how people can live without Him? If someone doesn't have a relationship with Christ, what makes them want to get up everyday and face the daily struggles and circumstances that come our way. I know that if it wasn't for God I would have given up a long time ago. He keeps me going. He's the reason I get up every morning, because I know that He will sustain me and give me the energy and power to make it through everything that comes my way.
He alone is faithful!
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
blogaway
I'm sitting here trying to THINK of something to blog and absolutely nothing is coming to my mind tonight. :) So, I guess this is all you get. (hahaha)
Saturday, April 19, 2008
S.O.L.D
Well, we are officially not homeowners anymore. The couple that bought our house closed on Thursday! And, we've got our payoff check in the BANK, baby! :) It feels so good to have that all done and have that stress lifted off of us. Now, we just need to pay off some other bills and we will be in a lot better shape financially.
So, that's just some great news from us. It's Saturday and I'm not doing ANYTHING today. I just want to have a nice relaxing day before Monday gets back around.
So, that's just some great news from us. It's Saturday and I'm not doing ANYTHING today. I just want to have a nice relaxing day before Monday gets back around.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Dumb ta da Dumb MEEEEEEEE
Ok, so my husband said that I HAVE to blog about my dumbness because he's been telling me and telling me that I was going to do this and I DID!
When we get home in the afternoons I unlock the door and usually leave the door open with my keys hanging in the key slot thingy until everybody gets in and then I take my keys out and shut the door. Well, last night I did what Rodney had been telling me I was going to do but thought YEAH right... not me. We woke up this morning, was getting ready to leave and I could not find my keys anywhere. So, I decided well, I'll just have to do without them and get Jessica to let me in my office. I opened the door and to my surprise there were my keys hanging in the door. OH MY WORD!! I can't believe they were still there first of all and I can't believe I DID THAT! I mean, we are talking about Mrs. Scardie Pants here that always makes sure the doors are locked like 5 times before I go to bed every night. The next thing I thought was I hope my car is still here. And, it was. Thank God, nothing bad happened.
So, the moral behind this story is that for this time: My hubby was right. But, notice I did say that FOR THIS TIME... that's not always the case. :) :)
Love ya Rodney!! :)
When we get home in the afternoons I unlock the door and usually leave the door open with my keys hanging in the key slot thingy until everybody gets in and then I take my keys out and shut the door. Well, last night I did what Rodney had been telling me I was going to do but thought YEAH right... not me. We woke up this morning, was getting ready to leave and I could not find my keys anywhere. So, I decided well, I'll just have to do without them and get Jessica to let me in my office. I opened the door and to my surprise there were my keys hanging in the door. OH MY WORD!! I can't believe they were still there first of all and I can't believe I DID THAT! I mean, we are talking about Mrs. Scardie Pants here that always makes sure the doors are locked like 5 times before I go to bed every night. The next thing I thought was I hope my car is still here. And, it was. Thank God, nothing bad happened.
So, the moral behind this story is that for this time: My hubby was right. But, notice I did say that FOR THIS TIME... that's not always the case. :) :)
Love ya Rodney!! :)
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Hello World
A couple of days ago I posted a post about my future ministry plans. Well, the other night I was checking my "my space" account and saw that I had a message from my uncle's wife. Now, normally that wouldn't be a weird/crazy thing, but I had been thinking about getting in touch with her that whole day and asking about some opportunities her church might have for me to speak. In her message she was telling me that she has a women's ministry in her church and that she is suppose to plan something in October of this year and asked if I would come and speak at their women's retreat. WOWIE... WOWIE.... You can't tell me that wasn't a God thing. I am so excited about this confirmation from the Lord. I can't even begin to explain how excited I am about this opportunity. It's going to be sooooo awesome. And, I know that the Lord is going to continue opening doors for me to speak and I just can't wait to see what all He has in store for me.
YEA GOD!!! He's so cool, isn't He? :)
YEA GOD!!! He's so cool, isn't He? :)
Friday, April 11, 2008
Crazy Storms/Funny Stories
Things are great here in Texas. At least, they are now anyway. :) We had a horrible storm come through early Thursday morning. I mean, dude, I've never experienced a storm quite like this one. Texas storms are definitely nothing like S.C. storms. :) Rodney had actually gotten up and got Joshua out of his bed and got me up and told us to go downstairs because there were tornado warnings out all around us. The power was knocked out so we were in the dark and just had some candles lit so we could see around the house. So, from about 3 in the morning until 4 we were downstairs listening to our weather radio and watching out for tornado's. :) Joshua was running back and forth looking out the windows because he just thought it was so cool. Everytime it would thunder Joshua would act it out and go "BOOM BOOM BOOM" like he was the thunder. He is so funny. Thankfully, the storm fizzled out around 4 and we were able to go back to bed but I couldn't sleep good because the power was out and I couldn't turn my fan on. :( I was hoping by morning the power would be back on, but it wasn't so I had to go work without washing my hair. Oh my word, that was awful. I felt so dirty all day. So, that night I went to a friends house and took a shower. (haha) I just couldn't stand it anymore. We went to bed last night, STILL NO POWER. I was getting so frustrated. Then, by the grace of God, at 1:30 this morning to my wonderful delight, my FAN came on. Oh, it was music to my ears. I flipped the switch on right before I went to bed last night so that just in case the power came on I could hear it. And, oh it was a wonderful surprise when it did. I was laying there in bed and as soon as I heard it, I said, "YES." Rodney was like what's going on, is something wrong? Then I replied, "no, nothings wrong! Everything great now that my fan is on." He was like, oh my, I can't believe you woke me up to tell me that. :) I get excited over the little things in life as you can tell. :)
Another funny story. Last night since we still didn't have power we went to Walmart and bought some little battery powered lanterns which Joshua thought was just the greatest thing since sliced bread (well, he doesn't like bread.. so we'll say since mack trucks, haha). So, when we got home we got the batteries put in and Joshua proceeded to put the lanterns in the living room for us. Well, he decided that since we had lanterns that we didn't need "real plug in lamps" anymore so he unplugged my end table lamp, picked the thing up and took it out on the back porch. Me and Rodney asked him why he did that and his words exactly were, "this don't work, we no need this lamp anymore." I thought I would just fall over when he said that. It's AMAZING what goes through his little mind. It just seriously leaves me speechless sometimes.
Well, I thought I'd give you all a little update. I'll be in touch later this weekend. :)
Another funny story. Last night since we still didn't have power we went to Walmart and bought some little battery powered lanterns which Joshua thought was just the greatest thing since sliced bread (well, he doesn't like bread.. so we'll say since mack trucks, haha). So, when we got home we got the batteries put in and Joshua proceeded to put the lanterns in the living room for us. Well, he decided that since we had lanterns that we didn't need "real plug in lamps" anymore so he unplugged my end table lamp, picked the thing up and took it out on the back porch. Me and Rodney asked him why he did that and his words exactly were, "this don't work, we no need this lamp anymore." I thought I would just fall over when he said that. It's AMAZING what goes through his little mind. It just seriously leaves me speechless sometimes.
Well, I thought I'd give you all a little update. I'll be in touch later this weekend. :)
Monday, April 7, 2008
A Lesson in Humility
1 Corinthians 1:10-17
The Corinthians are arguing about which leader is the right one to follow. And, Paul quickly reminds them who their focus should be on. I love how he just puts it out there and says - hey "was Paul crucified for you?" hmmmm... let's think about that - NO! Paul lets them know he is simply a servant of God and he is not trying to "collect a following for himself" but his life's calling is to "collect a following for Christ."
There are so many lessons to learn from these verses. But, the one that sticks out to me is the example of Paul's humility. Paul had an incredible calling on his life and he was a powerful communicator. However, the reoccuring theme of Paul's life is his humility and complete devotion to his God. He always gave 100% glory to Christ.
This is huge! This is a lesson that I have to daily remind myself of. Yet, Paul had it down. I think Paul had his own personal struggles but I do believe that it may have always been very natural for him to give glory to Christ in his humility. I'm not sure that this would have been a big struggle for Paul.
"Lord, develop in me this kind of natural humility. Help me remember that anything good in me is because of your grace and how great you are."
The Corinthians are arguing about which leader is the right one to follow. And, Paul quickly reminds them who their focus should be on. I love how he just puts it out there and says - hey "was Paul crucified for you?" hmmmm... let's think about that - NO! Paul lets them know he is simply a servant of God and he is not trying to "collect a following for himself" but his life's calling is to "collect a following for Christ."
There are so many lessons to learn from these verses. But, the one that sticks out to me is the example of Paul's humility. Paul had an incredible calling on his life and he was a powerful communicator. However, the reoccuring theme of Paul's life is his humility and complete devotion to his God. He always gave 100% glory to Christ.
This is huge! This is a lesson that I have to daily remind myself of. Yet, Paul had it down. I think Paul had his own personal struggles but I do believe that it may have always been very natural for him to give glory to Christ in his humility. I'm not sure that this would have been a big struggle for Paul.
"Lord, develop in me this kind of natural humility. Help me remember that anything good in me is because of your grace and how great you are."
Sunday, April 6, 2008
Future Ministry Plans
Well, let's just say that the whole goal of me writing some sort of "letter" everyday for the month of April isn't really going to happen. Life is so darn busy and by the end of the day I just can't muster up the strength to "think". :)(see April 1 blog to find out what in the world I'm talking about.)
I am going to pick up from my last blog though and share a few things with ya'll.
If you really know me you know that for quite some time now (like 10 years) I've been moving towards the goal of becoming a women's motivational/teacher; speaker. Well, after waiting 10 years for this to move beyond teaching Sunday School, small group bible studies, being a camp counselor and stuff like that (which I loved every minute of), I think I'm finally at a point of where I'm ready to expand this into a public speaking venue. I'm partly sharing this with all you because it will hold me accountable to move forward and pursue this and partly because this is my heart and this is who I am and I'm tired and not doing anything about it. At the very center of who Christ has created me to be I'm a teacher/speaker. This is something I'm totally confident in through Christ and it's something that He has instilled and me and won't leave me alone about. :) If you ever want to know how Christ is calling you to something, let me just tell you; if it's something that keeps running and running and running through your mind, is constantly on your heart and something that He just won't leave you alone about then you can be pretty sure that He's trying to get your attention in regards to whatever it is He keeps bringing up. For the past 10 years I've known without a doubt that Christ was calling me into this sort of ministry, but it hasn't been until recently that I've felt like it was time to actually move forward with it. God has used the past 10 years of my life to teach me and mature me for this time. I am so thrilled about what this is going to mean for me and my family.
My first goal is to have my very first speaking engagement be in my hometown of Lancaster, S.C. This would be so awesome. I want the first time that I actually lead a women's retreat weekend for it to be at "home" so my granny and my momma can be there. They mean the world to me and I can't imagine them not being there. And, since Lancaster is so close to the rest of my family they can be there too. :)
Another reason I'm sharing this here is because I'm going to need lots of prayers. :) Through my relationship with Christ I am beyond confident that it is Him who is calling me and I know that through Him I will be equipped for every good work that He is calling me to. I wish I could put into words the confidence that Christ has so peacefully put on my heart about this. My relationship with Christ has carried me so far and through so many things and to be able to take these things and share them with other women is so exciting. But, what it really comes down to is that I want women to begin experiencing the amazing love of Christ that he offers to each and every one of us every second of every day. His love, His peace, His joy that He alone can give us will totally revolutionize our lives if we let it.
I am going to pick up from my last blog though and share a few things with ya'll.
If you really know me you know that for quite some time now (like 10 years) I've been moving towards the goal of becoming a women's motivational/teacher; speaker. Well, after waiting 10 years for this to move beyond teaching Sunday School, small group bible studies, being a camp counselor and stuff like that (which I loved every minute of), I think I'm finally at a point of where I'm ready to expand this into a public speaking venue. I'm partly sharing this with all you because it will hold me accountable to move forward and pursue this and partly because this is my heart and this is who I am and I'm tired and not doing anything about it. At the very center of who Christ has created me to be I'm a teacher/speaker. This is something I'm totally confident in through Christ and it's something that He has instilled and me and won't leave me alone about. :) If you ever want to know how Christ is calling you to something, let me just tell you; if it's something that keeps running and running and running through your mind, is constantly on your heart and something that He just won't leave you alone about then you can be pretty sure that He's trying to get your attention in regards to whatever it is He keeps bringing up. For the past 10 years I've known without a doubt that Christ was calling me into this sort of ministry, but it hasn't been until recently that I've felt like it was time to actually move forward with it. God has used the past 10 years of my life to teach me and mature me for this time. I am so thrilled about what this is going to mean for me and my family.
My first goal is to have my very first speaking engagement be in my hometown of Lancaster, S.C. This would be so awesome. I want the first time that I actually lead a women's retreat weekend for it to be at "home" so my granny and my momma can be there. They mean the world to me and I can't imagine them not being there. And, since Lancaster is so close to the rest of my family they can be there too. :)
Another reason I'm sharing this here is because I'm going to need lots of prayers. :) Through my relationship with Christ I am beyond confident that it is Him who is calling me and I know that through Him I will be equipped for every good work that He is calling me to. I wish I could put into words the confidence that Christ has so peacefully put on my heart about this. My relationship with Christ has carried me so far and through so many things and to be able to take these things and share them with other women is so exciting. But, what it really comes down to is that I want women to begin experiencing the amazing love of Christ that he offers to each and every one of us every second of every day. His love, His peace, His joy that He alone can give us will totally revolutionize our lives if we let it.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Romans 8:28-39
Dear Family, Friends, and Yes, MYSELF:
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many believers. And those he prediestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
WHAT, THEN, SHALL WE SAY IN RESPONSE TO THIS? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did NOT spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all-how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died-more than that, who was raised to life-is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: for your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered. No, IN ALL THESE THINGS WE ARE MORE THAN CONQUERORS THROUGH HIM WHO LOVED US. For I am CONVINCED that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
OK.. so I'm totally inspired by the Holy Spirit of my awesome God through these verses. You may as well get ready... because there is a lot more coming from me about these verses. But, my LETTER for you tonight is from the Love Letter that Christ himself has left to us through his WORD: The Bible! The verses above is a letter that Christ himself took the time to have written down for me and you. Learn from them, believe them, trust them and LIVE THEM out daily!
more to come......
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many believers. And those he prediestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
WHAT, THEN, SHALL WE SAY IN RESPONSE TO THIS? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did NOT spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all-how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died-more than that, who was raised to life-is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: for your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered. No, IN ALL THESE THINGS WE ARE MORE THAN CONQUERORS THROUGH HIM WHO LOVED US. For I am CONVINCED that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
OK.. so I'm totally inspired by the Holy Spirit of my awesome God through these verses. You may as well get ready... because there is a lot more coming from me about these verses. But, my LETTER for you tonight is from the Love Letter that Christ himself has left to us through his WORD: The Bible! The verses above is a letter that Christ himself took the time to have written down for me and you. Learn from them, believe them, trust them and LIVE THEM out daily!
more to come......
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Today's Letter Inspiration
(read my previous blog if you haven't yet to figure out why I'm on this letter kick)
Letter for today... M ... I took this in the McDonalds drive thru. I just liked how the "M" looked. :)
I would write an actual letter, but I've had a long day and my brain is not really in a functioning mood so I'm going to just be silly instead. :)
My "M" quotes:
"Monday's Make Me Moody"
"Money, Money, Money"
"My Maker Moves Mountains" (Praise the Lord)
"My Man Makes Me Merry" (hehe)
Oh well.. that's all i can think of. I'll do better with the "letters" theme tomorrow. :)
nighty night
Letter for today... M ... I took this in the McDonalds drive thru. I just liked how the "M" looked. :)
I would write an actual letter, but I've had a long day and my brain is not really in a functioning mood so I'm going to just be silly instead. :)
My "M" quotes:
"Monday's Make Me Moody"
"Money, Money, Money"
"My Maker Moves Mountains" (Praise the Lord)
"My Man Makes Me Merry" (hehe)
Oh well.. that's all i can think of. I'll do better with the "letters" theme tomorrow. :)
nighty night
NaBloPoMo April 2008
I needed some new inspiration for my blog. I know you can't believe it, but sometimes I just run out of things to say.. (haha) So, I've joined this "National Blog Posting Month" thing that gives you different themes for each month. April's theme is letters. So, I'm going to be creative and do some different things with this. The goal is to post something everyday that has to do with this theme. So, we'll see how it goes. :)Hopefully, this will be fun for all of us.
By the end of tonight, I'll do my first "letters" blog. :) But, for now I'm going HOME.. :)
Monday, March 31, 2008
Thursday, March 27, 2008
oh clumsy me
I managed to land myself a very nasty sprained/bruised ankle. How, you might ask...well, here you go. We keep our bikes stored in our house and we decided since it was so pretty last night that we wanted to get our bikes out and go for a ride. Rodney and Joshua already had there's and were waiting on me. But, as I stepped outside to carry my bike down the back steps (which, I've done tons of times with no problem) I lost my balance and BOOM from the top step I landed side ways on my left foot. OOWWWIIIEEEEE!! As soon as I hit the ground I grabbed my left foot and literally felt it swell up... that was weird. Joshua saw the whole thing happen and ran over to me and said, "you otay mommy, you fall down?" I told him yes, mommy fell down. He walked over to the bike which had fallen with me and said, "no hurt my mommy bike!" As bad as I was hurting I had to chuckle at that. He says the darndest things sometimes. :) So, then he came back over to me and said, "i help you up mommy", so he walked behind me put his hands under my arms like he was going to lift me but of course it didn't work. So, his crazy little self walks around in front of me, puts his face up close to mine and says, "too big mommy. I can't help." Oh my word.. not only am I about to die from the pain in my foot but now my 3 year old slams me with the "too big" comment. (even though I know he didn't mean anything mean by saying it, it was just too funny for that situation)
So, eventually I got up, took some medicine and took myself to bed. I figured I would just wait and see how it felt in the morning. I got up this morning and boy, did it ever still hurt. So, I knew that sometime today I'd have to go to the doctor but I didn't want to miss chapel at work today because my new boss was preaching and I wanted to hear him. So, I went after chapel and found out from the doctor that I've got a pretty nasty strain and that my front is bruised from the inside out and the doctor said that the bruise I have is pretty deep so it's going to take a good bit of time to heal. So, now I get to wear this wrap up thing on my foot and just wait. Which, is already driving me crazy and it's only been one day. I've gotten so use to going and doing my exercising and I just LOVE walking in the mornings because it just helps wake me up and get me going and now I can't. :(
I'll close with another funny comment by Joshua. After I left the doctor me and Rodney went to pick him up from school and he noticed my foot all bandaged up and was asking me about it. When we got home I wanted to go upstairs to change my clothes and Joshua being the little cutie that he is runs over to the stairs and says very seriously, "don't fall down steps mommy" Oh my word.... what a nut! I have no idea where he gets that little sarcastic humor from.. (hahahaha) :)
So, eventually I got up, took some medicine and took myself to bed. I figured I would just wait and see how it felt in the morning. I got up this morning and boy, did it ever still hurt. So, I knew that sometime today I'd have to go to the doctor but I didn't want to miss chapel at work today because my new boss was preaching and I wanted to hear him. So, I went after chapel and found out from the doctor that I've got a pretty nasty strain and that my front is bruised from the inside out and the doctor said that the bruise I have is pretty deep so it's going to take a good bit of time to heal. So, now I get to wear this wrap up thing on my foot and just wait. Which, is already driving me crazy and it's only been one day. I've gotten so use to going and doing my exercising and I just LOVE walking in the mornings because it just helps wake me up and get me going and now I can't. :(
I'll close with another funny comment by Joshua. After I left the doctor me and Rodney went to pick him up from school and he noticed my foot all bandaged up and was asking me about it. When we got home I wanted to go upstairs to change my clothes and Joshua being the little cutie that he is runs over to the stairs and says very seriously, "don't fall down steps mommy" Oh my word.... what a nut! I have no idea where he gets that little sarcastic humor from.. (hahahaha) :)
Monday, March 24, 2008
Back to Reality
Well, vacation is officially over. :( so sad! It's back to work and back to the same old routine for me. Although, I really do love my same old routine so it's really not that bad. :) Life is always an adventure with me anyway so it's definitely not boring. With an overly hyper 3 year old son and husband and crazy old me you know it's not boring. :)
Vacation was great! We spent 3 wonderful days in Galveston, Texas. It was so much fun. Joshua had a blast and was into absolutely everything. Just watching him and how excited he was made me have a great time. We visited an aquarium, a rain forest, went to some 3D movies, went to the beach, went swimming, played on the playground, jumped on the hotel beds (that was fun) and did whatever else we could think of. At the end of the 3 days there we were ready to head home and get some actual rest though. :) It's so weird that you go on vacation to get rested but it never really ends up that way. :) We spent Saturday and Sunday around the house and got caught up on our naps and relaxing then. Having my mother-in-law here with us just put icing on the cake. It was so nice having her here and be able to see her and talk to her face to face. I've missed the interaction with our families so much since we moved here. Just picking her up at the airport was so emotional for me, because I got to see a familiar face and know that we're not all alone here. Then, when we had to take her back to the airport to leave I thought me, Rodney and Joshua were going to just die. Joshua looked up at us and said, "no go nana. come back" Oh my word that just ripped us up. Rodney started crying and then seeing him and Joshua upset I just lost it. We did have a great week with her though. And, it was so nice spending that one on one time with her. I can't wait to head home to S.C. this summer and get to see everybody! I'm totally looking forward to that.
We had Easter dinner with 2 of our neighbors last night and that was so much fun. I go walking with 2 other ladies every morning and we decided that we would get our families together and have a big easter dinner since we were all away from family. It was great! We didn't leave until after 10pm last night. The guys were all playing video games, the kids were playing so good together and us ladies were just chatting away and loving every minute of it. :) We talked about how we should do this like every week... sort of like how families get together for Sunday dinner we should just create our own little tradition and spend sunday afternoons together each week. So, we're going to look into that and see how it goes. :)
Other than all that... we're hanging in there. Our house SOLD back in S.C. and the closing for that is next week! We are so excited about that. It's going to be so much better having that expense gone and being able to pay other stuff off with the finances we'll be getting back from the house. Things are just really starting to look up for us right now and I'm so glad because it's been a really tough past 4 months. It's nice to begin seeing some light at the end of the tunnel. :) My job is STILL WONDERFUL! Oh my word.. I just love it here and can't believe how fast I've caught on to what I need to do. It's definitely a blessing from God! :)
Well, I'll have some pictures of our vacation up by the end of the week. So, be looking out for those.
Vacation was great! We spent 3 wonderful days in Galveston, Texas. It was so much fun. Joshua had a blast and was into absolutely everything. Just watching him and how excited he was made me have a great time. We visited an aquarium, a rain forest, went to some 3D movies, went to the beach, went swimming, played on the playground, jumped on the hotel beds (that was fun) and did whatever else we could think of. At the end of the 3 days there we were ready to head home and get some actual rest though. :) It's so weird that you go on vacation to get rested but it never really ends up that way. :) We spent Saturday and Sunday around the house and got caught up on our naps and relaxing then. Having my mother-in-law here with us just put icing on the cake. It was so nice having her here and be able to see her and talk to her face to face. I've missed the interaction with our families so much since we moved here. Just picking her up at the airport was so emotional for me, because I got to see a familiar face and know that we're not all alone here. Then, when we had to take her back to the airport to leave I thought me, Rodney and Joshua were going to just die. Joshua looked up at us and said, "no go nana. come back" Oh my word that just ripped us up. Rodney started crying and then seeing him and Joshua upset I just lost it. We did have a great week with her though. And, it was so nice spending that one on one time with her. I can't wait to head home to S.C. this summer and get to see everybody! I'm totally looking forward to that.
We had Easter dinner with 2 of our neighbors last night and that was so much fun. I go walking with 2 other ladies every morning and we decided that we would get our families together and have a big easter dinner since we were all away from family. It was great! We didn't leave until after 10pm last night. The guys were all playing video games, the kids were playing so good together and us ladies were just chatting away and loving every minute of it. :) We talked about how we should do this like every week... sort of like how families get together for Sunday dinner we should just create our own little tradition and spend sunday afternoons together each week. So, we're going to look into that and see how it goes. :)
Other than all that... we're hanging in there. Our house SOLD back in S.C. and the closing for that is next week! We are so excited about that. It's going to be so much better having that expense gone and being able to pay other stuff off with the finances we'll be getting back from the house. Things are just really starting to look up for us right now and I'm so glad because it's been a really tough past 4 months. It's nice to begin seeing some light at the end of the tunnel. :) My job is STILL WONDERFUL! Oh my word.. I just love it here and can't believe how fast I've caught on to what I need to do. It's definitely a blessing from God! :)
Well, I'll have some pictures of our vacation up by the end of the week. So, be looking out for those.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
very quick update
I'M ON VACATION AND TOMORROW IS MY BIRTHDAY!!!! (doesn't get much better than that) :)
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Monday, March 10, 2008
Contract on the House
We have got a contract on our house back in S.C. PRAISE THE LORD!!! I can't even begin to tell you how much stress this lifts off of me. I JUST WANT TO SCREAM AT THE TOP OF MY LUNGS, I'M SO HAPPY!! I could just go skip around the neighborhood singing that song I'm so happy... so happy... so happy........ The Lord has really just chosen to bless the socks off us here lately. I think the first couple of months of us being here the Lord really tested us to see just how strong our faith was and He is now rewarding us for staying strong and focused and not giving up. I won't lie, it's been a tough, tough thing to go through but it's true that "what doesn't kill us, only makes us stronger!" :) So, I'm becoming quite a strong person through all of this. :)
And, my new job is still just WONDERFUL!! I'm learning more and more everyday and getting comfortable in my role there. It's was pretty tough last week since it was my first week on my new job and I was battling that crazy flu bug all week. I made myself go to work though. I only have 2 weeks with the lady I'm replacing so I didn't want to miss any time I had with her. Just to let you know how bad I was feeling, I lost 6lbs in 4 days and my tummy still gets a little squeezy just thinking about food. But, I'm a whole lot better than I was last week.
And, my new job is still just WONDERFUL!! I'm learning more and more everyday and getting comfortable in my role there. It's was pretty tough last week since it was my first week on my new job and I was battling that crazy flu bug all week. I made myself go to work though. I only have 2 weeks with the lady I'm replacing so I didn't want to miss any time I had with her. Just to let you know how bad I was feeling, I lost 6lbs in 4 days and my tummy still gets a little squeezy just thinking about food. But, I'm a whole lot better than I was last week.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Snow Day
These pictures are a little late, but I wanted to show you some of the snow we got last Thursday. It was so beautiful and the flakes were HUGE. Joshua had a blast playing in it, but was quick to let us know when it was time to go in. He's so funny... he would get cold, so he would run in the house to get warm and then go right back out.. he's a mess! :)
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Work and other stuff
I've had such a busy week AND I LOVE IT!!! It's so weird and funny but I've missed being busy, especially with work. I get to work in the morning and I seriously don't stop until it's time to go home. I have had to remind myself to go to lunch this week because I'm so busy that I just don't think about it. My new job is absolutely wonderful though. I can't believe how fast I'm catching on to everything. I've prayed every morning before going to work that the Lord would just give me focus and understanding as I'm learning so many new things and He has definitely done that.
All the girls I worked with back in the library have been so sweet. We all went out to dinner Monday night and had a blast. The monthly library staff meeting was this past tuesday and it was the first one without me so they all took the agenda sheet and signed it with really cute messages on it. I really miss working with Emily, but we're keeping in touch when we can. And, hopefully we will be able to do lunch periodically.
That's really about all I have going on. I don't have time for anything else this week. I'm going to do some work after Joshua goes to bed tonight just so I can study my notes from work and get caught up on some other things. Oh, and this weekend I get to go on a women's retreat with one of my neighbors and I'm really looking forward to some time away with the girls. That should be fun. :)
Well, I'm off to spend more time with my son and my hubby! Talk to you soon!
All the girls I worked with back in the library have been so sweet. We all went out to dinner Monday night and had a blast. The monthly library staff meeting was this past tuesday and it was the first one without me so they all took the agenda sheet and signed it with really cute messages on it. I really miss working with Emily, but we're keeping in touch when we can. And, hopefully we will be able to do lunch periodically.
That's really about all I have going on. I don't have time for anything else this week. I'm going to do some work after Joshua goes to bed tonight just so I can study my notes from work and get caught up on some other things. Oh, and this weekend I get to go on a women's retreat with one of my neighbors and I'm really looking forward to some time away with the girls. That should be fun. :)
Well, I'm off to spend more time with my son and my hubby! Talk to you soon!
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Thank You Nana & Papa
Thank you for my new sports bedding, nana and papa!! I love it!!
Love you Lots!
Joshua
Love you Lots!
Joshua
Chuck E. Cheese
We took Joshua to Chuck E. Cheese on Saturday to celebrate his upcoming 3rd birthday! Tomorrow (3/3) is his actual birthday!! We went to Chuck E. Cheese with some of our neighbors and their kids. We all had a blast and Joshua had a really great time. We got in the car to go to church this morning and he said that he wanted to go back to Chuck E. Cheese, not church. :)
All partied out!! He's actually laying on the couch right now (6:20pm) and I can't get his little bootie up. It's going to be fun trying to get him to bed tonight. :)
All partied out!! He's actually laying on the couch right now (6:20pm) and I can't get his little bootie up. It's going to be fun trying to get him to bed tonight. :)
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