The Quiet Teacher

When you are going through something hard and wonder where God is, remember the teacher is always quiet during a test. ~ Facebook post!



Yes, this little ditty was posted to a friend's status recently. However, it prompted me to pray and think about the truth in this simple statement. Like a roaring ocean, we stand at the place where the waves crash hearing the boom of God's great creation. Yet, if we dive in, sinking below the surface, there is a hush, a quiet.

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

I can't help but wonder if this is God's will when He is quiet. Remember, the Lord is not absent or removed, just quiet. His desire is for us to dive beneath the surface, seek Him more fully and perhaps, rest in His contentment to be quiet.

"Love the Lord your God, listen to His voice, and hold fast to Him."
Deuteronomy 30:20

Sometimes when our lives present with the most noise, the greatest chaos, it is those times, we wait expectantly, hoping for a loud, thunderous resolution to whatever issue is taking us to our knees. Sometimes, it will require our patience, knowing that the Lord numbers our steps carefully and protects us accordingly. If He is silent, it is in our best interest.

“I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope” Psalm 130: 5

As a behavior therapist, often the louder a student becomes, the quieter I become. The student will eventually meet my voice with their own, changing the dynamic of the interaction and the intimacy of the conversation. As we become content to connect with God quietly, we increase the intimacy of our relationship and dive below the surface of our typical intermingling with our precious Lord. Like the classroom, the children ask question upon question...the teacher guides and sometimes reminds the students, "It's okay, you already know this...I have prepared you." God loves us so much that He has prepared us, His quiet is in love.

Next time an issue is pressing and your repeated pleas yield little conversation, keep close the heartfelt faith that God loves us enough that He has prepared us and that He may be quiet but is never far away. He is always right there.

Baby Love

In honor of Valentine's Day, this is my post for Titus 2 In Action...true love, real love...not candy or jewelry or flowers...I am blessed to know what real love feels like.

"Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is born of God and knows God. But anyone who does not love does not know God ~ for God is love. God showed how much he loved us by sending his only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love. It is not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his son as a sacrifice to take away our sins." 1 John 4:7-10




It was a simple sticky note.
Yellow.
Stuck to my Bible on my nightstand. And it said,

"I'm not your baby anymore. But I still love you, mama."

I rubbed it gently between my fingers fighting my hot cheeks and imminent tears, as I grappled with the reality that my sweet kindergartener was beginning to show her independence and ability. I thought back to earlier in the day when I lovingly and with great affection answered my youngest with the words, "Yes, baby." Obviously, my gently used moniker for our little one left her feeling less than great. Compelled to tell me the truth, she left the note to make her point. How often does God point out the truth, painful as it is...always ending with, BUT I STILL LOVE YOU. A precious message and life lesson I received from my tender child that day.

This child...a child whom love escaped for quite a time. Living in an orphanage the first eleven months of her life, thrust into a new home, new world, new family. Not yet ready to love with full abandon, she eased her way into committment and attachment. Slowly, like a flower opening petal by petal, she grew and emerged, blossoming into the loving girl I now see. I adored her before I ever knew her; she had reason to doubt love. She has taught me daily about God's love...in the threshold of parenting, we can most closely feel that unconditional love God has shown us in the love we hold for our children. It is possibly one of the finest representations of that original love that we can find. He loved us before we loved Him. It is the simple truth.

As a toddler, our daughter held onto raw emotions, causing us to seek deeper, stronger, more passionately God's truths and how to parent her without shattering her beautiful spirit. The first time she uttered the words, "I love you Mama", she held my face in her little hands. She was two and a half and we were visiting my older daughter's school as they rehearsed for the winter concert. Literally, a choir of angels sang as she melted into my own frame. I have to believe that my rejoicing resembles that of the Lord's each time a new son or daughter receive Him lovingly into their hearts. Oh how He must dance!

May it be that in gladness, sadness, truthfulness, and life, we can accept God's instruction and guidance all the while knowing BUT HE STILL LOVES US.

"God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners." Romans 5:8

Merry Christmas!

Some December highlights to begin this post...

For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6

As we entered the Christmas season and I worked with our school's enrichment classes, I was priviledged to share with them some of the eternal truths set forth by the birth of one small baby in the most unlikely of places. The children's enthusiasm and their curiosity blessed me as we reconnected with these precious events. We have heard the story so many times, that sometimes in our worldliness, certainly not purposely, but often mistakenly, we overlook pieces simply because we know it so well.

One of our school principal's said it eloquently when he said, "It just doesn't make sense and perhaps that makes it all that much more special." Our journey of faith begins in that very stable, a barn. A stinky, messy barn... where greatness came into the world. And as I shared with the students, it was not for one of us...it was for ALL of us.

So, this day...I wish you a Merry Christmas. A blessed, joyful day of celebrating the birth of our Savior. I pray you know Him and if by chance you don't, or you have a loved one who does not, leave me a message with your email. I will respond back to you privately.

All I really want for Christmas is for others to know Him and be freed by His love and grace. I am a child of the Almighty and thankful each and everyday for the mercies He showers upon His flock.

Blessings to you ~ and a very Merry Christmas!

A Few of My Favorite Things!

I wish that time was everlasting and I could get here more often to post, but alas, time slips away and I find that our dear friend Face*book has sneakily stolen my mojo for blogging. Well, that and parenting and being a good wife and working and food shopping and activities...and doctor appointments and cleaning and planning and...oh, you know you are so there! :)

There is a huge blessing my lack of time. God has bestowed upon us many to love and much to do. So in this post, I will attempt to share some really great links and update you on our lil' family.

First things first...some friends, Lisa, Diana and Stefanie have combined their amazing pool of efforts (what a super talented trio of mamas this is!)for an awe-inspiring fundraiser to bless some fantastic organizations for causes near and dear to our hearts. Please, please visit their blogs often to be part of the Fill Their Stockings event.


Secondly, I am a huge fan of Wild Olive Tees. If you have never visited, you really must! One of my online friends is gearing up to bring home "Little 9" and
"Little 10"! Wild Olive is famous for designing precious tees to help benefit families becoming families :) They are committed to sharing scripture that conveniently enough, you can wear! This link will allow you to visit Love them Home to assist with Amie's fundraiser or you can link from her page to the Wild Olive site.

Third...yes, there is a third! Just ordered some new hair bling for my cutie pies and want to send a shout out to Kimberley, who is an awesome friend and a magnificent business woman! Sophia Jane Boutique is a great place to visit!


On the home front, the girls are keeping us on our toes. I struggle with the reality of how that time thing is working against us and growing them up before our very eyes!


Kindergarten happens to be one of Hannah's favorite things. When she isn't doing her newest love...HOMEWORK!... She is loving dance class and gymnastics. She has been a faithful member of the sidelines for all of Emily's activities, so it is fun to watch her emerge and find her own voice and passion.


Em has morphed into our music-ista! I think I very well may hear her flute in my sleep. Though she is ready to begin her second basketball season, her true loves come in the forms of singing, dancing and flouting :) As she sashays onto the court, we definitely have to remind her to keep her eye on the ball!


Me? I am blessed to be a mama first and foremost, I have a job I love, a Bible Study that helps me to smooth out all those rough edges, I am reading the Bible in a year, which is exhilarating (if you ever considered doing this...please, don't wait...it is lifechanging!) I have been a Bible believing Christian all my life, but it is amazing how disciplining oneself to read and study His Word everyday has monumental impact. We are so fortunate to have good friends and family to love on us. My nephew will graduate from University of Maryland this spring. We got to see him march in the marching band a few weeks back. It was, of course, the coldest, rainiest day of the season, but it could not dampen my spirits when a guard permitted me down to the band entrance so I could snap this great pic of our Andrew!


As I glance around, house not decorated yet, laundry waiting to be folded, stray mail askew on the counter and dishes needing to be cleaned, I count my blessings for the beautiful ways my life is filled with joy. I am humbled by the magnitude of what this month holds for us. I pray for you an Advent season filled with miraculous surprises and sweet treasures.

Hoping to be back soon... :)

Get Out Your Mustard Seed!

He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." Matthew 17:20


Emily loving on sweet Joshua James

Blessings to all of you who are praying for beautiful Joshua James...thank you! I wanted to provide a bit of an update. The short version is that Joshua is eating like a champion, completely loving his mommy and daddy and keeping them up at night. They have many doctor's appointments and much of their instruction will be "watch and wait". I am continuing to leave the details to the One who knows them all. But, please continue to pray and hold this precious family up.

Gerry and I have an easy, loving relationship. We were chatting today and another co-worker mentioned in those moments when the roller coaster dips deep into the bends and turns, we question our hearts...is my faith enough? Quite honestly, I think BECAUSE our faith is so deep, we know that God is capable of that which we cannot understand or comprehend.

I thought of the mustard seed my dad brought me when I was a little girl. He had gone to a Christian men's retreat and when he returned home, he handed to me a small package. Inside, was a lovely little necklace, a bubble with a tiny seed inside and inscribed with the words, "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed..."

Our faith is so much bigger than that mustard seed, but how comforting that if we have even that little bit of faith, mountains can be moved! I am anticipating the great things God is going to do in Joshua's life...get out your mustard seeds people and keep those prayers lifted high!

Joshua James

We cannot tell the exact moment a friendship is formed; as in filling a vessel drop by drop, there is at last a drop which makes it run over; so in a series of kindnesses, there is at last one that makes the heart run over.” ~ Author unknown

I cannot pinpoint the exact moment I knew our friendship was forever, but I do remember vividly a phone call that forever changed our story.

We were deep in the throes of preparing to travel for Hannah. We knew that there was potential for Rob to travel alone, so we prayed mightily for God to do something different. Gerry had been my dear friend for several years. She is a confidante, a sister in Christ and a sweet treasure to my days.

One evening, our phone rang and after careful consideration, Jim and Gerry felt God's calling to help our little family. With Gerry's blessing, Jim readied to travel to China, with my husband, a man he had met only once.

We knew immediately there would never be any way we could repay the debt of Jim embracing this journey and, at times, challenge.

__________________________________

Gerry and Jim and their children and spouses and grandchildren are family to us.

So,I am asking you to please pray. Pray for sweet Joshua James, Gerry and Jim's newest family member :)

Joshua James was born September 13 at 8 pounds 15 ounces. His beginning to his precious life has been a bit bumpy...God knows the details. Please pray for wisdom and discernment for doctors, nurses and medical practitioners who will see this beautiful boy during these early days of his life. Please pray for Brie and Josh, Joshua's parents (Gerry and Jim's daughter and son-in-law), pray for Gerry and Jim and Josh's parents, Tammy and Paul. Pray for aunts and uncles and cousins. As moms and dads go, even though this is their first child, Brie and Josh are rock stars...Brie had a very long labor and has leaned heavily on the Lord's strength to heal and transition beautifully into her role as mommy. Josh, a strong man of God, is taking excellent care of his wife and son...

Joshua James is loved beyond measure...Brie has given me permission to post this petition because she wants her amazing son covered in as much prayer as possible.

Please join me in adding Joshua James to your prayer journals, prayer ministries and personal prayers. He is a strong, beautiful child of the Almighty and we rejoice in his arrival! We adore you, sweet boy!

Update: Joshua James is home from the hospital!
Prayers for a seamless transition.

Locks of Love - Love those Locks

Picture snapped by Kate at Max & Mimi Photography this summer

Redheads, I have learned, have an interesting existence. Rarely do we head to the grocery store, a restaurant or a walk around the neighborhood without the telltale comment, "Oooh, I love your hair." Emily has learned to navigate these comments sometimes even ducking away from well meaning hands, anxious to touch her little head. She has learned to thank people graciously for their compliments, and she has learned how to answer probing questions with great integrity.

Her hair is somewhat of a trademark, a vital piece of what makes her "Em".

So many women, mature in years, approach Emily with a certain smile, wistful look or memory knocking heavily at the door of their heart. They carefully extend themselves to her, reaching for the fiery tresses and gently caress her soft locks reclaiming a piece of themselves, now lost in the white mass that has replaced their own crimson coiffe. For just a moment, they are nine or twelve or twenty two or even thirty five...and Em has learned to grant them this joy.

Perhaps, that is why the decision to cut her hair was difficult for her. She knew without doubt that she wanted to send her hair to Locks of Love in hopes of blessing a child suffering, however, when faced with the cape and the chair, she declined the first try, "I am just not ready." Perhaps, Like Samson, she felt her strength would be compromised lacking the length she became used to. I, too, struggled with the permanency of a shorter do. What if we missed it? How would we get that thick hair into a ponytail??? It seems like such a silly thing to be concerned with.

And it was. God's greatest lessons often come in the small things, the things we think are important or the unknown we fail to trust Him in. Emily learned a really great lesson as she stepped away from the scissors the first time and then prayed for the "right time". She woke one morning a few weeks later, "Today is it!"


This summer on the beach - BEFORE

In the chair!

Because her hair was SO long, and SO thick, they formed two ponytails

The new do coming to life...

The final product!

Emily sent a total of 13 and some inches to Locks of Love. They were able send both ponytails. I love that she made the committment to do this and I loved some of the valuable lessons she has learned during these three long years of growing it! We are crazy about her new shorter hairstyle and I will be honest, mornings are a whole lot happier now! :)