Mom Purse

I was going through the contents of my purse the other day and pulled out the old stand-bys such as my phone, sunglasses, wallet, pen, keys, etc.  Then came out the church dolls, the calculator, floss, lotion, kid's book, Kindle, and other assorted items.  Josh said, after my complaining that I can't find anything because of all the stuff in there, "Well, you have a mom purse."


yeah, that's true.  My purse is a catch-all.  Sippy cups, toys, books, scraps of paper, trash, it all gets piled into my purse.  But I also carry things for the girls.  Entertainment  when we're in a waiting room or driving.  Things to make them feel better when sad.  It's the bag of tricks.  It's my job to have at my disposal anything the girls might need at any moment and my purse is my magical bag to make it happen.  It's where the trash gets put when there is no trash can.  It is a catch-all.


I was reflecting on my "mom purse" this morning.  My girls have me and my mom purse when they need it.  And I have God and His Word.  When I'm sad, happy, hurt, angry ... God's Word has something in it to help me through my trial.  It has words of encouragement.  Words of affirmation.  And words of admonishment when I need it (which is far more often than I care to admit).  I can't imagine what God's purse looks like.  How big it must be to provide all His children when the band-aids and tissues, books and coloring sheets, toys and trinkets.  Where he stores our candy wrappers and emotional garbage. 


Some days my mom purse is inadequate.  I don't have tissues when Audrey has a runny nose.  Or I run out of band-aids when she has an owie.  But God's purse always is fully stocked with all the love, encouragement, joy, affirmation, hugs, and kisses.  He is always ready for whatever we need.  We just need to ask Him.

Pop Culture Reflection ...

So I saw this somewhat funny/satirical article posted and read it and was annoyed.  But couldn't put a finger on why.  Then my annoyance went to insulted and offended, but still couldn't put it into words.  It took me a little bit, but I finally figured it out:

Who’s to say that God didn’t intervene in the tornado, or other things that were listed.  We don’t know how God chose to act in each situation – maybe a single baby was saved; someone stayed late at work to finish something up and didn’t get in the tornado’s path; a family had just enough time to get to shelter; etc. 

Look at Job.  Job couldn’t hear the conversations that God and Satan were having.  He just knew that his family was gone, he was sick, his possessions were gone, etc.  But God was there the entire time.  God was protecting Job by talking with Satan first.  By giving Satan boundaries. 

Tebow is praising God and thanking God and recognizing that his athletic ability isn’t his own.  And while God may not have a part in a win or a touchdown, God did give Tebow the talent and he’s giving credit where credit is due.  Tebow is one man doing what God commanded His people to do, to go forth and multiply, baptizing nations.  To spread the word.  To not be ashamed of the gospel.  Tebow has done nothing wrong in his outspoken faith, and I'm constantly offended at the display the media has made of him.  

Hats off to you, Tim Tebow, for being more graceful and gracious and forgiving than I could be in your shoes.  Thank you for being the example of praising God for your gifts and turning the other cheek.

Inattentional Deafness

Just read this today:

We’ve all had the experience of being so engrossed in something (a book, an e-mail, an episode of “Dexter”) that we simply don’t hear our partner trying to remind us that the trash needs to go out. But when our children do the same, who else secretly believes they’re doing it on purpose?

They’re not (and neither are you). Researchers in the Department of Developmental Psychology at Oxford set study participants to focusing on a task while wearing headphones playing white noise. Part way through the task, the researchers interrupted the white noise with an audible tone. When performing a more-difficult task (distinguishing which of two arms of a cross was longer), nearly 80 percent of the study participants said they never heard a thing.

This “inattentional deafness disorder” actually had nothing to do with the pleasure involved in the distracting activity. It was the “high visual lode condition” of taking a lot in through a different channel that rendered the research subjects temporarily deaf. It’s not Harry Potter that’s the problem; it’s the intense visual and mental interaction necessary to read the words on the page.

http://parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/12/05/inattentional-deafness-disorder/

 I think we've all experienced it.  Every time we try to ask our husbands their opinion on something while engrossed in a football/baseball/soccer/nascar/golf game on TV. I especially encounter it when the teenager daughter is watching her shows.  She literally has no idea anything else in the world is going on.

I've always believed that it wasn't intentional ignoring, now I'm happy to know that it's truly not.  I always make a point to wait for a commercial or page turn or some sort of break in activity.  Then ask for undivided attention; pause the game/movie/etc, put the book down and look at me.  Then repeat what I've said.  This ensures that it was indeed heard and there are no excuses to not do it.

With the toddler I often have to pause it myself to get her attention, but the process is the same.

Black Friday

I did something this year that I've never officially done before.  I went Black Friday shopping.  I have mixed feelings about Black Friday shopping, but thought I'd give it a shot at least once before poo-pooing it for life.  The stores opening at midnight was what pushed me over the edge to go this year.  I'm not one for getting up at 3 am to shop, but I'll stay up a little later.


We opted for Target.  And we had a strategy.  And we were in and out of there in just about an hour.  Which is pretty good for a normal shopping trip.  We did so good at Target, we just had to go to Old Navy too.  Yeah.  That was a mistake.  Old Navy isn't designed the handle the number of customers that Target gets regularly.  And I bet there were almost as many people at Old Navy as there was at Target.  Old Navy was so full that they were literally at capacity and could only let people in as others left.


It was really odd going into Target and seeing dozens of TVs out on the floor.  40"+ LCD TVs for less than $500.  And SLR cameras.  And game systems.  It was an interesting sight.  


Target was brilliant.  They had all their "2-Day Sale" items in big specially marked cardboard displays all over the store.  They handed out maps to where things were located (because I don't normally shop for DVDs in the girls clothes).  The line to check out was insanely long.  You know, the people you stand in line with outside the store the same people you have to stand in line with inside the store when you want to pay.  They taped off a makeshift queue line that weaved in and out of cosmetics and toiletries.  


It was BRILLIANT!  You finish getting all the must have deals of the day and wait in line for 20 minutes and see all the household items that you need to have ... soap, lotion, medicines, etc.  And while you're at it, why not pick up that toy that someone before you left behind.  We had a short conversation with our cashier.  I say short not because we didn't have things to talk about, but because she was so super speedy that we didn't have time for a lengthy one.  As expected, the most experienced cashiers were staffed starting at midnight.


Old Navy.  Imagine shopping at Old Navy on a normal busy Saturday.  You have to wait in line about 20 minutes, and maybe wait 5-10 minutes to try on clothes.  The clothes are messed up and you have a hard time finding your size.  It's crowded.  But you make due.  Now take that same speed and sense of urgency and mentality and multiply it by 1000.  That was the Old Navy experience.  They just aren't equipped to handle the number of customers that come out for an event like this and I won't do that again.  We were in line to check out for over an hour.  And I didn't get anything that I could not have purchased later today or this weekend.  And since everyone went shopping at midnight (thank you Wal-Mart for starting this new trend last year), the Friday day shopping should be a dream ... unless you like the mall.  Yeah ... I'm not going there.


And here's what I learned ........ the Door Buster deals of the 90s and even early 00s are no more.  You remember, you get to K-Mart at 5 am and you get that extra 20% off the TV or movies you wanted.  Or there's a limited number of that "must have" toy and if you don't get in line at 3 am you won't get the toy.  Now, at least at Target and Old Navy, the sales last all weekend or the coupons are good all month.


We did not encounter anyone mean and vicious.  We didn't have to fight over any one item.  There were plenty stocked of everything.  It's a bit odd to see 46" TVs sitting in the makeup aisle at Target.   


I spent only the money I was given to spend and I got some great things.  I got some things I've been meaning to get for awhile.  I got some things I would not have purchased otherwise.  I got some things for me and I got some things as gifts.


I did not get anything that I could not live without.
And there were no sales that were so good they were worth losing that much sleep over.
I did have fun.


I wonder how many Black Friday shoppers are really shopping for Christmas presents and how many are shopping for themselves, or for the rush of getting a good deal.


I'd love to go as a photographer and just get shots of the chaos.  Organized chaos in some places, but chaos nonetheless.

Marriage book of Evidence

So I read a blog the other day that really just rubbed me the wrong way. I fully believe that it was in tongue-and-cheek style and was not meant as seriously as I am going to present it.

The writer said that she wanted a marriage book of evidence to use as proof. When she and her husband were frantically looking for something and it turned out he had lost it, she wanted to record this and both sign it as evidence in the future that he was the one who lost it, not her.

And while this was meant as a light hearted comment, and I normally hold this writer in very high regard when it comes to certain topics, I just couldn't accept this as a healthy thing.

1 Corinthians tells us that marriage keeps no record of wrongs. OK, not marriage directly, but love. And since marriage is founded on love, marriage keeps no record of wrongs.

1 Corinthians 13:5 "...it keeps no record of wrongs."

So even a lighthearted book of evidence to laugh at is a record of wrongs. Who knows when remembering a silly thing that was lost will come back to cause pain, anguish and sorrow at a later date.

I don't want a book of evidence, except the one with our family photos. A book of evidence of our love and our success as a family. Evidence of God's work in our lives.

A*C*T*S*

Years ago, in Sunday School, I learned a fairly common model of prayer.  


ACTS

• Adoration
• Confession
• Thanksgiving 
• Supplication

I still try to use it today for my morning prayers.  But I struggle with one thing.  Well, a few things, really.  But one that's really bothering me lately.


I sit down to pray at 5:30 in the morning when I finish my daily bible reading.  I find that I have a hard time confessing my sins when I'm sitting to pray.  Maybe it's because it's 5:30 in the morning and I just can't remember what sins I committed the day before.  I've been praying that God would show me my sins so that I can work on them.  And He has been.  And I have been. But still, at 5:30 when I sit to pray, I just can't list off my shopping list of sins and confess them.


I much prefer to confess my sins when they immediately become apparent to me.  I shout in anger at my husband.  I let a bad word out of my mouth when getting cut off by the driver in front of me.  Or when God reveals a big sin to me, I spend some time in reflection and prayer about that.


But on a daily basis, to have my sins at the tip of my tongue, that's just not me.


Scripture tells us that God hears our prayers after we confess our sins (forgive me for not having the reference here ...).  So if I'm not confessing my sins every morning when I sit to pray for my family and my day and all the other prayer requests around me, is God not hearing my prayers????


A couple other thoughts on the ACTS prayer model.
I find that I spend the day in constant reflection and prayer.  Either minor requests all day long:


"Lord, please remove this pain."
"Lord, be with Logan as he undergoes this treatment."
"Lord give me the strength to endure yet another day of work."


You get the idea.


I also find that I thank God when I see His blessings bestowed upon me.  


"Thank you Lord for the rain."
"Thank you Lord for my daughter's laughter."


Just quick one-liner prayers sent up to God.


I tend to adore God in the same way, but I think not quite as frequently as my thanksgivings and requests.


Is this what Paul means in 1 Thessalonians 5:17?


So this prayer model I learned years ago......
Do I use it?  Yeah.  I keep it as a guide of the things I need to address when I pray.  I try to touch on all 4 aspects in all my prayers throughout the day. Do I touch on all 4 every time I sit and pray?  No.  It's helpful, however, at 5:30 in the morning, to have a guide to follow so I can focus.  5:30 is early!!!


Thoughts?  Comments?

Hebrews 3:13

I read the following passage yesterday morning in my quiet time and was struck by it.  I've read it before, even memorized it in college.  But yesterday it made me stop in my tracks.

13 But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness.

How am I currently encouraging those around me?  Specifically, how am I encouraging my husband?  And how can I encourage him more/better?  


It's not uncommon to get irritated, annoyed, etc at a spouse's little quirks.  To be frustrated at the same ol' flaw.  To say, "How can you still do this even though you know it annoys me so much?"  But why not turn that irritation into encouragement.  Encouragement is so much more productive than irritation and nagging.


So I ask you ... are you encouraging those around you?  If not, why not?  If you are, can you encourage more?  Can you replace the nagging with encouragement?  Can you eliminate the frustration and substitute with prayer?


Just a quick thought for today.............

Enlisting the Power of Prayer

I'm going to enlist the power of a praying blog world.


We've been pretty quiet about it, but now that it's real and set in motion, I feel like I can let it out there.  I was afraid before that I would jinx any possibility of a different outcome by mentioning it, but I think that's not going to be the case.


A few weeks ago, Josh was informed that he will be transitioned from an hourly employee to a salaried one.  While this has it's benefits, Josh was able to work a significant amount of overtime as an hourly employee.  Being salaried, we will no longer be able to get that extra income.  As you can imagine, the last few weeks have been scary in our house.  And tense.  And things being said that weren't meant, or perceived in ways not intended.


Yesterday was a particularly bad day.  I said some things that made Josh feel, well, small.  It was not my intention at all to do that.  I would never purposely condescend my husband.  But I did.  And I couldn't figure out why I kept saying things that made him hurt so much.  


I talked with my mom some last night and went to bed in a prayerful state.  Grateful for my mom's ears and knowing that she, too, would be praying for us.  This morning she asked how I was doing.  This was my response.
______________________________________


I dunno.

We’re both scared.  Trying to prepare without controlling the situation.  It’s hard.

We talked a bit this morning and acknowledged that our tension is a result of being scared and unsure of what is going to happen.  Acknowledged that we aren’t trying to fight with each other, but we are both processing this differently and those ways are conflicting with each other.  I admitted that while this was HIS paycheck and HIS job and HIS situation, it’s both of our battle, but I’m not handling it well.  I am having a hard time sitting back and watch it happen and not be able to do anything about it.  Even if he could negotiate or get this policy overturned or whatever, it has to be HIM that does it, not me.  And that’s why I think we are struggling.  I want to do something, but can’t.  So I’m talking as if I’m giving marching orders to him and yet he feels stuck and can’t do anything about it.  I need to back off.

I read Titus 2 last night.  I don’t think it really was saying what I learned from it, or what God was showing me. 

Urge bondslaves to be subject to their own masters in everything, to be well-pleasing, not argumentative,

10  not pilfering, but showing all good faith so that they will adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in every respect.

The piece about being subject to masters.  This applies to work … being subject to what the boss or whomever says.  I may not agree with the non-existent policy that HR is trying to enforce, but she’s getting away with enforcing it and I think to respect Josh’s boss and HR, we need to just suck it up and deal with it.

Then chapter 3 goes on to say:

1 Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good,

2 to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men. 

Kind of drives the point home.

As much as I don’t like the situation we are in, ultimately we are in this situation because we allowed ourselves to get comfortable with his overtime pay.  And while he wasn’t cheating the system like HR is (in not so many words) accusing him of doing, we did get too used to having the overtime and now need to learn to live without it.  We need to really truly trust God for our finances.  Not sure what that looks like yet.  But it’s scary.  Just by the numbers, we don’t have enough to pay all of our bills.  And there isn’t a whole lot of room to trim back.  So it’ll be interesting to see how God works, if we can truly trust him and not control the situation.

Now this doesn’t mean we continue the way we’ve been living and wait for the magic check to appear in the mailbox every month.  We still need to do our part … trim the groceries, watch our utility usage, etc.  But we can’t sit and try to manipulate the numbers every month and decide to not pay bills or LOOK for magic checks.

You said that we were under attack.  While that may be, it could also be that we’re being taught something.  That we are being stretched and such.  That God is going to grow our character.  God is allowing this to happen, whether it’s an attack of the enemy or self-induced or whatever, God is letting this happen to us and we will come out OK.  We will learn something.  We will grow.  But boy the ride is going to suck.

I guess I should remember the words of James: “Consider it all joy when you encounter trials.”  This is going to be a trial.  This will be the worst financial situation I’ve found myself in.

But when I look at the BIG picture, I realize that this isn’t the worst it could be.  We don’t have a child with brain cancer.  We haven’t lost a loved one.  We both still have jobs.  We are both healthy.  We have a roof over our heads. 

God is bigger than this.
_________________________________________________

So I ask YOU, my blogworld friends, my praying friends, my non-praying friends, pray for us.  Pray that we will see God.  Pray that we will learn from this.  Pray that we will continue to seek God around every turn.  That we will not try to control the situation.


And if you are so inclined, pray for that magic check to appear.  Because that's never out of the realm of God's work.  ;)

Annie

After Ice Skating
Originally uploaded by Christsstar

Annie ......

Annie was my very best friend's little sister. She felt like my little sister at times. She is responsible for my one and only real nickname in life, 'Tine. She couldn't say my full name, so she said Tine. It stuck. The whole family calls me Tine to this day.

She had the biggest heart of anyone I knew. She loved Jesus. She loved everyone she met. She loved football. She loved showing off.

Annie was 3 (I think ... Sarah, can you confirm) when she was first diagnosed with Leukemia. On top of the Leukemia, Annie also had Down's Syndrome. The two conditions kept Annie in the hospital and doctor's offices for much of her life. But that didn't stop Annie from smiling and being her cheerful self.

Annie passed away in October of 2006 to Leukemia. She was 21.

Today would be Annie's 25th birthday.

Happy Birthday Annie. Have a great party with Jesus today.

The Versatile Blogger Award....

My friend Katie, over at Texas Tigers, nominated me for the Versatile Blogger Award. How fun!!

So by being nominated, I must do the following.

Thank the person who nominated me.

So ... Thank you Katie. I didn't realize you read my blog. Now I don't feel so silly spamming yours with comments. BTW --- I totally LOVE your blog. And when I saw that Ali nominated you, I couldn't help but agree wholeheartedly. How funny that we follow the same people. I guess it's a small world, ain't it?


Katie is a mother of 2 and blogs about the time with her children. She posts great photos of all the adventures they go on. Her son is the same age as Audrey. I'm silently jealous of her photography skills and secretly try to take more photos when I see her pictures of all their doings.


I must post 7 things about myself.

1) I'm a wife, mother, step-mother, daughter, sister, and most importantly child of God. I love my baby girl more than anything in the world and every day with her is a HUGE blessing. My husband, Josh, is an amazing man who makes me smile and brings a great deal of joy to my life. His children are terrific kids who I absolutely adore. I am blessed to have them in my life.


2) I am a Colorado native. I love and miss Colorado dearly. I moved to California 7 years ago. There are parts of the bay area that I really like, and parts of California that I really enjoy (the ocean). But, unlike Tony Bennett, I left my heart in Colorado.


3) I work as a scientist at a company that manufactures point of care blood analyzers. I enjoy the idea of my job and think that we have a very interesting product with HUGE potential, but my true desire is to be a stay-at-home-mom. Nothing brings me more joy and pleasure than to spend time with my baby.




4) Music is my passion. I started playing music at age 5 when my parents signed me up for piano lessons. I started playing in band in 6th grade. To be honest, I did band simply because my sister did band and I wanted to be just like her. But I did really enjoy it and stuck with it through all of high school. Marching band was the highlight of high school for me. I marched baritone and tuba and thoroughly enjoyed it. I also picked up trombone in jazz band and that became MY instrument. My parents bought me a bass trombone for HS graduation and I have played it off and on since then. I played in college. I participated in the South Bay Trombone Choir for a couple years, and currently run their website. I also dabble a bit with the trombone at church and hope to play more. I would love to help out with the schools' band programs in any way possible, but recognize that it's not an option right now due to my super busy schedule.

5) I have a love/hate relationship with my hair. It's naturally wavy to curly, depending on the climate. When I got pregnant with Audrey, the hormones took out most of my curl and left me with wavy/frizzy hair. That's about where I'm at, 2 years later. I miss my curly hair. The ease and quickness of doing my hair. It's funkiness. But I now must resign myself to suffering through drying/straightening it, having so-so curls, or just bunching it up on the top of my head so it stays out of my face. Consequently, I've tried various short cuts to keep it out of my face and give me something new, but I can't find anything I really like. Nor am I dedicated enough to go get it cut as frequently as I should. I've recently discovered headbands. I'm in love with headbands. Cloth. They are awesome. Keeps my hair out of my face and doesn't cause headaches.


6) I wish I knew how to dance. I have rhythm, but not the ability to move to the music. I took swing dance lessons several years ago, but have forgotten most of what I learned. I would love to take ballroom dancing. I think it would be a blast. But again, my schedule is so busy, when would I do it? So I've settled for something quite a bit outside my comfort zone. Some ladies at work organized a little dance exercise class during lunch. I've been attending and am enjoying it. We're currently learning salsa. I feel like a total dork doing it and don't think I have the hip dexterity to do it right, but I'm having fun. And maybe next time I'm at at wedding I won't feel super foolish for wanting to dance but having no clue how.


7) I have recently ventured into the wonderful world of cloth diapering. Who woulda thought that a chunk of cotton used to catch waste material would be so much fun. But it really is. I think of cloth diapers as an accessory to Audrey's outfits. I wish we had lots of money to go crazy on buying cloth diapers. I'm settling for making them, and am enjoying that process as well. I'm hoping to sign up to be a diaperparties rep and help get the word out about cloth diapers. I think I know enough people with babies and hopefully know enough moms who also use cloth diapers that I could sell some and make a little bit of cash on the side. Not a whole lot, but some. Maybe enough for some spending money here and there.


Nominate 5 other bloggers


I'm saddened that many of the blogs I'd nominate have already been nominated or are inactive. But I know there are great blogs out there that just need this nomination.


So ...... I nominate


1) Maggie - The Cappuccino Life
2) Audriana - For Such a Time as This
3) Beckey - Zimmages
4) Michelle - Follow Your Bliss
5) Majellamom - Waiting for Charlie


Thank you all for reading. I am happy to know that someone out there reads my randomness.

Beware of Study Bibles - by Steve Burchett

However, every good gift from God can be abused. Of all the study tools, perhaps in our day the Study Bible is the resource that is most often misused. For example, many who have taught the Bible have felt the frustration when, instead of meditating on the passage of Scripture being taught, several in the group were busy reading and then sharing from the study notes at the bottom of the page!

I read this article this morning and could not agree any more with the author. I went through a period of time in college where I would read a verse, then read the study notes, then read the next verse, then look for notes, etc. I wasn't listening to what God was trying to teach me, I was reading what God taught someone else years ago.


I love study bibles. I think they have a great purpose. And I have at least 3 of them. But I finally realized that I wasn't really getting anything out of my bible reading and I needed something different. I went on a hunt for a bible that was just a bible. No study notes, no devotions. Just cross-references and maps and the Word of God. It took me awhile to find one, but I finally did. I've been using my Just a Bible Bible for about 7 years now and I LOVE it. I am amazed at how much God shows me when I'm not reading somebody else's interpretation of scripture.

Psalm 47

Such a great and powerful Psalm describing God's greatness and what should be our response.

Sing praises to God, sing praises.
Sing praises to our King, sing praises.
For God is the King of the earth;
Sing praises with a skillful psalm.

We're not to just speak praises. We are to sing them. Singing takes more heart, more courage, more air. It involves breathing deeply and lifting our chests. You put your whole self into singing. Not just word, but with soul. Singing is louder than speaking. It cuts through the normal noises. Its enjoyable to listen to. Our praises aren't to be done halfway, they are to be sung skillfully for He is King over ALL the earth!

Eternity Matters

Our current sermon series is titled, "The Final 24," and is focusing on Luke's account of Christ's 24 hours leading up to his crucifixion.  It has been very deep and thought-provoking.  When reading the passage on praying in the garden and how his sweat was like blood.  I was moved.  Just seeing these passages in a light that I haven't seen before.  Or maybe just a little deeper.  While we're reading this scripture I'm also playing The Passion of the Christ over and over again in my head.


We try to watch that movie every year during the Lenten and Easter season, but aren't always successful.  I hope we can this year.


This week's passage was Luke 23:1-25; when Jesus is on trial before the Sanhedrin, Pilate, Herod and Pilate again.  


Because the guilty verdict the religious leaders gave held no legal weight, they had to take Jesus to Pilate in order to have him sentenced.  They lied to Pilate, saying that Jesus said the people didn't have to pay taxes and that he claimed divine authority as only a King (Caesar) would have.  Pilate, however, saw no fault in Christ.  So he sent him to Herod.  Herod was looking for a magic show; wanting to be entertained.  Jesus refused to speak and be a part of Herod's game, so Herod mocked him and returned him to Pilate.  


Pilate tried to compromise and just have Jesus flogged, but the Pharisees would not oblige.  Pilate tried to release Jesus as part of their traditions to have a prisoner released during the passover.  But again, the Pharisees would not have any of that.  They wanted Christ dead and there was no convincing them otherwise.


Pilate finally gave in, but tried to convince himself that he was not committing this act, the Pharisees were.  He washed his hands of it.  This was done to prevent an uproar by the Pharisees and Jewish people.  There was much political turmoil and Pilate was trying to prevent losing his seat.


Jesus knew one thing through all of this.  What Pilate, Herod, the Pharisees, even the disciples did just didn't matter.  Only ETERNITY MATTERS.  Knowing that everything he was doing was for His and OUR eternity, He kept his mouth shut in front of Herod.  He did not argue to the Sanhedrin.  He didn't beg Pilate to stand up to the Pharisees.  He just did what God, His Father, was telling Him to do.


The full sermon can be heard here or found in itunes.  Search for Centerpointe Presbyterian Church in Pleasanton, CA.

Live It Out!

Graphic designed by Domestic Godliness.

14But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, 15and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Continue in what you were taught.

Scripture is INSPIRED by God. HE wrote it through man's hand.

Scripture is used for:

• Teaching - to instruct on something new
• Rebuking - to call out when something isn't right
• Correcting - to make right waht is currently wrong
• Training - teachign with application and intention of doing
• In righteousness - so that our lives line up with God's

"Correcting and training in righteousness" --> use THE WORD to fix the impurity and LIVE IT OUT!

We are not called to just know the word and learn from it, but to live it also.

Worship Matters --- Singing of the Gospel

I've started following a new blog called "Worship Matters," by Bob Kauflin.


I'm not a worship leader, I don't even play one on TV.  But I am in close contact with the worship band at church and am friends with the worship leader, have been on a worship team, and like to pretend I could lead worship if needed.  This blog has been really inspiring to me and my heart in the time of worship.  I really like what it has to say today about the cross and Gospel being the focus of our worship time, because it's the center of our salvation story.


I can't really say it any better than he did, so I'll just leave you with a taste of it.   Feel free to hop on over to Worship Matters and read the entry for yourself.  Really good, deep, meaningful stuff in there.

The gospel is not merely one of many possible themes we can touch on as we come to worship God. It is the central and foundational theme. All our worship originates and is brought into focus at the cross of Jesus Christ.

Glorying in Jesus Christ means glorying in his cross. That doesn’t mean looking at some icon or two pieces of wood nailed together. Nor does it imply that every song we sing has the word cross in it. It has little to do with church gatherings that are more like a funeral than a celebration.

The cross stands for all that was accomplished through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, the Son of God. It focuses on his substitutionary death at Calvary but includes everything that gave meaning to that act. His preexistent state in glory. His incarnation. His life of perfect obedience. His suffering. His resurrection. His ascension. His present intercession and reign in glory. His triumphant return.

Holy-Days

I spent time over the last week or so writing a Christmas letter, as I try to do every year. The letter, as usual, is very news-y and somewhat lengthy. I love writing the annual Christmas letter, updating my loved ones on my life and putting a nice cap on the year; summing it all up in one neat little package. It's a great way for me to look back on our year and to remember what we've done.

I add lots of photos to my letters too, because I just love photos. Going through the photos of the year is really fun; seeing all the shots I took and all the opportunities we had to take the photos.

Suddenly, today, I'm feeling a little on the ashamed side that I barely mentioned the meaning of Christmas and why we celebrate. Being the analytical and logical person that I am, I recognize that Christmas was originally a pagan celebration that Christians used to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior. However, in our society, Christmas is a Christian holiday.

The sermon today in church was about being Holy in the holidays. God makes us Holy, as He is Holy. Additionally, the word holiday comes from the term Holy-day. These are HOLY-days that we celebrate and we should celebrate them in such manner.

After today's sermon, I feel like I want to add to our Christmas letter that we as a family are enjoying the biblical basics in our household. We are celebrating ADVENT, the anticipation of Christs' birth. We are celebrating the BIRTH of our Lord. We are reminded of the humility of Mary and Joseph; the obedience they showed; the faithfulness to the calling God had for them. We remember the wise men and their great trek across the continent to worship the newborn King. We are thankful for the shepherds who were present that first night to welcome our King to this world. We awe at the thought of all of God's angels singing Praises, and being God's messengers of this GREAT and GLORIOUS event.

Revolve Tour

This weekend, I had the opportunity to go with Kymberly and Alex to the Revolve Tour. It's a conference for teenage girls addressing the things teenage girls care about ... relationships, boys, txting, etc.

There were dramas, mini-concerts, speakers, worship, food, screaming, praising God, and lots of fun.

There were things that I really enjoyed, and some great reminders of who we are in Christ. The theme was 4Real. Being real people in this age of internet and txting and cell phones. Not being afraid of who we are. Not wearing masks. Not hiding behind the computer. And of course, BOYS! Why do boys act they way they act. What's important to a boy. How should girls act around them. How to get along with them.

The bands were Group 1 Crew, Britt Nicole, and Stellar Kart. I really liked Stellar Kart.

There were 4 main speakers.

Blanca Reyas from Group 1 Crew talked about her life growing up. Her father was a drug addict and her parents divorced when she was 5. Her mom started dating a man who was abusive. She watched her mom get abused and she was angry and hurt and confused. Many years later her dad came home. He was clean and he was different. He had found God. Through him, she also found God.

One singer from the Revolve Tour Praise Band also spoke about her life growing up. Also from a divorced home, she went back and forth between the two households. She felt invisible in one house. She wore different masks all the time, just trying to find her place. She talked about how finding the "real" her and realizing that she is called Beloved by God.

Chad Eastham talked about boys and girls and relationships. Boys are waffles and girls are spaghetti. Boys like everything compartmentalized and in neat little boxes. You can't put more than one thing in each box. Girls are random and all over the place and you never know when you leave one noodle and go on to the next.

Jenna Lucado, was phenomenal. She addressed who we are in Christ and that when we know Jesus, we know ourselves. It's like looking in a mirror, because we are made in his image. The following are the notes that I took from her talk. I was blown away by what she had to say.

Heb 4:15-17

We don't have to be perfect for God to like us.
We Strive for perfection in physical appearance and performance - why?

Until we accept that God loves me for who I am I won't stop beating myself up over my mistakes.

I have a God "gets me"

God is a PERFECT dad.
His arms aren't too short to reach me

John 1:12
names are powerful
The names we call ourselves
Dumb, Not As ________,
the names we call ourselves affect our decisions What name do I call myself?
When we call ourselves hurtful names, we live a hurtful life

God does not call me defeated
Romans 8:37
"more than a conquerer"

"complete in Him"
Colossians 2:10

"Loved Perfectly"
Jeremiah 31:3

We have to be in a relationship with Him I. Order to believe thee names He gives

FOREVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jesus came when we were Broken! Gave us new names.

This was a great event and I highly recommend going to one in the future if you have the opportunity (and are a teenage girl or mom of a teen).

It felt a lot like a concert, but that's their goal. The only thing I would change is turning up the lights during the speakers so that we can take notes and/or refer to our bibles. It was also a way for all the speakers and bands to promote their books/albums. It's not as deep as a good small retreat, but definitely a taste of something for the girls. I would love to take this event and do a gender-specific series with the youth groups on the topics addressed. Get the books and go through them as a bible study. Really get down to the nitty-gritty with the teens and discuss the things that matter to them the most. Look at the subjects they talk about with their friends in a biblical perspective. In fact, I may just pitch the idea to our youth director.

The final word....

When in an argument or debate or heated discussion, it feels so satisfying to have the final word. It feels good to say, "I am right and you are wrong because of a, b, c and 1, 2, 3. And I will listen to you no more. Good-bye."

To our flesh, we feel like we've won. It's a statement saying that you will not be manipulated or told what to do or made to feel like a lesser person. And you've sent the other person a zinger and hopefully gotten the other person to shut his or her mouth. To think about what YOU had to say. What a satisfying feeling. What if the other person also wants the last word?

But is it really??? Maybe it's easier to just be done with it. Accept what the other person has said and not continue. Give in to the idea that there are different opinions and you are entitled to your own. There is no guilt for pushing needless buttons. No stress over the discussion continuing. No zingers sent back to you.

In our computer-centric society, it's so easy to send out all the harsh words and negative comments and not feel any regret or guilt over what has been said because "it's just the internet." Tone of voice and emotions don't translate easily through the internet the way they do via our mouths and ears.

When one has to have the last word, no last word is ever had.

But when you can just walk away from the discussion without saying anything more, you can show maturity and willingness to grow and learn and not always be right. The hardest part, however, is not saying, "I'm done talking about this, I will have no more. I'm going to be the bigger person and walk away," because that puts you down low again and shows you trying to have the last word, yet again.

Sept 7, 2008

One year ago today I felt different. Things just didn't feel right for me. So I went to the store and bought a $7 test and came home and received news that changed my life.

Little Miss Aud Ball Froggie Princess made her presence known to her family. We are so happy and blessed to have her with us. It's only been 3 1/2 months, but I already know this is the best thing I've ever done. I love watching her grow and develop and learn new things and reach new milestones in her development.

Life Lessons from the game of LIFE

Kym and I just played "Life."

Things I learned:

• You get $1000 just for having babies, you don't need to spend anything.
• Divorce isn't an option
• Houses only cost $40,000
• You lose less than you earn in the Stock Market
• Taxes are half my salary
• You move straight ahead in life, may be presented with two different choices, but never any more than that.
• Everyone gets married.
• Everyone has a rich uncle.