I discovered a new hobby!

I have always had amazing gardens but it had nothing to do with me. In our first home, my wonderful inlaws bought and planted a beautiful garden for us to enjoy. It costs them time, money, love, and backaches. In our new home, the majority of the garden was already planted and since we've been here a year, it's gotten even more beautiful as the bushes have grown and filled out. So I decided this year I wanted to add a few flowers to purk up my garden. My father-in-law always says he didn't have a " green thumb" in gardening until he tried it. He started off knowing nothing and through trial and error has learned a lot and really enjoys it. I gave it a try and now I'm hooked! Every morning I wake up thinking about it. I go out there everyday to pull up the weeds and water it. I started off thinking I'd just need a few things and now I have a list of things to improve my entire backyard! The hard part is being patient enough to wait until it fits into our budget. I ran out of mulch half-way through and it's killing me!

Open Your Heart

Two weeks ago I had a "girls only" night at our weekly youth service. It went great! We had the most amount of girls we'd had in a very long time and many of them were ministered to by Jesus. I opened up with a hilarious story. I wish I could share it but you had to be there to hear it - it's top secret! We talked about the pain of our past. We all have pain in our past, but sometimes we don't want to face it because it hurts too bad. Consequently, we deny it to ourselves and others or we allow ourselves to go numb. I asked 3 questions that might help you examin your own heart. The answer to these questions will help you determine if you have been in denial or haven't faced the real pain that is living and growing in your heart. Left unchecked, the pain will fester and grow, causing you to live in shame and guilt that will control your life. Do some honest soul searching in answer to these questions: 1. What do you feel guilty about? 2. Who or what do you resent? 3. What do you fear? Ask the Holy Spirit to help you face the pain. Open your heart to let His healing rain come in and bring cleansing. If it's too painful, seek out someone you trust to help you in this life changing process. Let Jesus do what only He can do to bring deep healing and mending. Then be bold and step confidently into the destiny you were born for!!!

Psalm 23

The funeral service for my dad was beautiful. His exuberance and passion for life was seen by all, even those who did not have the privilege of knowing him. I'll admit I am hurt and feeling a lot of pain, but I know that Jesus is here. He sees me, inside and out. He will heal me and may use my healing to show others his healing love and power. He washes over me and cleanses me. Psalm 23 "The Lord is my shepherd; I have everything I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; He leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to His name. Even when I walk through the darkest valley of death, I will not be afraid, for You are close beside me. Your rod and Your staff protect and comfort me. You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies. You welcome me as a guest, anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings. Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in in the house of the Lord forever."

The Passing

God-given life is a wonderful gift. One door may close, but another opens. It is sometimes termed "The Passing." After fighting cancer for almost a year, the fight, for my dad, is over. While it appears God didn't heal him, I cannot forget the miracle of new life God did give him over 10 years ago when he knelt down in the dirt in that new chuch he helped to build for the newly saved Mexican people. It has been a privilege and an honor to watch Jesus transform my dad's life from the inside out. Dad, I love you and will miss you dearly.

The Real Meaning of Easter: Jesus or Candy?

The day before Easter I was eating breakfast at the kitchen table with my second son, Judah. He was quietly coloring so I took the opportunity to talk to him about Easter. There also happened to be a picture in the paper on the table of a local school performing the death of Jesus. I used this as my prop. Here was the conversation: Mommy (pointing to the picture): "Judah, who's this?" Judah: "Die on the cross." Mommy: "That's right, and who died on the cross?" Judah: "CJ" (I have no idea who that is) Mommy: "No...Jesus." Judah: "Oh." Mommy: "And why did Jesus die on the cross?" Judah (looking up and straight into my eyes): "Can I have candy?" So we are about halfway there! My secondary goal was that my family looked adorable at our church service which, in my opinion, definately happened thanks to my good friend Angelle Marix. My boys were in their button-up gingham shirts with matching vests and khakis while Aaron and I matched in color. I think we may have been one of the best dressed families there! I hope to get you those pictures soon. It was a lot of work. I'm so proud! What was your Easter like this year?

Chores

I sweep my kitchen, on average, about five times a day. I love the way my bare feet feel on soft tile. My pet peeve is crumbs on my bare feet. So I constanly sweep. About a week ago I discovered a slight problem. After I swept everything into a neat little pile, I noticed some little black things crawling away from the pile. I thought, "That's not supposed to happen." As I looked closer, I saw ANTS! The other thing I hate in a kitchen is ants. Since then, I've been a little psycho about the crumbs. Today, I was literally crawling around on my hands and knees sweeping up every crumb I could possibly find with a hand held broom (ok so maybe I'm a little OCD)! Isaiah thought it was a game and kept jumping on me. After dragging him around the kitchen with me while he was cracking up, I thought, "Hey, chores CAN be fun!" Maybe my problem is worse than I think! What chores do you like doing? Please write. I love comments! And I'm working on getting pictures up so you can visualize the craziness!!!

Sewage Nightmare

After reading the title you probably think our toilets overflowed into the whole house. Worse. Today I was two doors down visiting my neighbor so my boys could play with her dog. Since we were talking outside, I parked Isaiah's stroller behind her car, which happened to be in front of her house. Consequently, that put Isaiah right in front of the ditch. If you're from Louisiana, you know exactly what I'm talking about. Here in Reserve, most people have ditches in front of their homes. As I'm talking to my friend, I see her face and her body go immediately into "freak-out" mode. I looked over and there is Isaiah, locked in his stroller, going face first into the ditch! Yep, it happened. My first real life threatening experience with Isaiah. We quickly jumped in to pull him and his stroller out. Besides being drenched and smelling like poo, he was completely fine and even surprisingly calm. The most upsetting part for him was the bath he had to take afterwards!

Unbelieveable

That's the word I think of when I taste Aaron Brown's cooking! He is a college age guy on our youth leadership team who came over last night to cook for us. It was just like "Take Home Chef." He went to Whole Foods before he came over, picked up everything he'd need, and came over to cook it. He even cooked dessert while we were eating our entree! The food was so delicious. I think he could cater and I definitely think he could open up a restaurant. He desires to be in full time ministry, so maybe one day he'll combine the two. Wouldn't you love to watch a cooking show while the cook preaches the Word? Talk about being full!!  You would be able to fill your tummy and your Spirit at the same time! It would be one of a kind! The whole experience was so refreshing and I slept like a baby all night!

Hope

Do you know that little mouse that runs on his little wheel in his little cage? He runs so fast like he's trying so hard to get somewhere, all the while actually going nowhere. Sometimes I feel so weak and weary. I wake up early, run on my wheel all day long, and by the time I get to bed, I feel like I've gotten nowhere. Thankfully God looks at the heart. In Isaiah 40, after God sets himself up as THE MAN, he says in verse 29 that "He gives stregnth to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their stregnth. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." We all feel weak and weary at some point in our Christian walk. We may even stumble and fall. But the moment we hope in the Lord, our weakness turns into power and our wearyness turns into stregnth!