Reflections on Hosea

I recently read the book of Hosea...possibly for the first time. Just wanted to jot down my thoughts, as a rememberance of the Lord's GREAT love for me...and you.

God will "allure" us and "speak tenderly" to us. He promised to be with us forever, and He promises righteousness and justice; He promisies love and compassion and faithfulness.

Nothing we do is hidden from our Lord. He sees it all--and it breaks His heart. Our unfaithfulness, our lies, our betrayal. He is grieved by our pride, our "intent on pursuing idols" and our attempts to do everything on our own. All He wants is for us to acknowledge Him and show mercy. To turn to Him and cry out to Him with our needs and wants. To ask for His consent and approval on decisions.

God is the "Holy One among us". Although anger is stirred in Him, he shows restraint. His compassion and love outweigh His wrath. He is jealous and wants to be first place in our lives.

He wants us to remain humble. When He blesses us--we need to maintain purity. In our pride, we forget God. We become puffed up with our stuff and what we have achieved--completely forgetting that ALL of that is a gift from Him.

God's free and lavish gift of love is unending. He wants us close to Him--so He can love us deeply.

I want that. I crave that love...and He is offering it to ME.

Wow.

Best Yet

Best Mother's Day Ever!

John and the kids really spoiled me!

McKenna told me Saturday night that I should stay in bed when I woke up and she would bring me coffee. :)

John got up with the kids and at about 7:30 I felt someone standing over me. I opened my eyes and there was Kenna. She smiled and said, "Happy Mother's Day. Go to the bathroom and go potty and brush your teeth and then get back in bed." I cracked up...and readily obeyed. Then John and the kids brought me coffee in bed. McKenna helped with all of my sugar and helped stir it.

Then John brought me breakfast in bed! Apple cinnamon macadamia nut pancakes (a mix fresh from Hawaii per Danny)...yum! Of course, McKenna had to help me eat it. :)

Then, McKenna informed me it was time for me to take my shower. So I did. And I got dressed and did my hair and makeup without any distractions--amazing!

After my shower, I started getting dressed, but McKenna told me I had to get BACK in bed and open my presents. So, I obliged.

I got a beautiful picture frame with 3 black & white photos of my adorable children. Then a BIG huge box with a bunch of individually wrapped gifts. The girls helped me open... a necklace and earrings, 3 outfits and 2 pairs of shoes!!!!! Whoa. John has NEVER bought me clothes or shoes before.** And they were all super cute. I was overwhelmed and surprised and quite delighted!

We had a great morning at church...I got to teach McKenna and Brooklyn's little class. So fun! Had a great and relaxing afternoon. And then all of John's family came over for dinner. John and his brother cooked and made a wonderful meal! Chicken Piccata with linguine, fresh bread and salad. He even went so far as to make a coconut cream pie for dessert (from scratch) which is his mom's favorite pie.

IMPRESSIVE. I told him he has set the standard high and I will be looking forward to Mother's Day every year!!!

I felt so special and loved and appreciated. :) Thank you, honey!!!!


**When I asked John if he got help on shopping, he admitted that he had. He called Phil Teague (who is a GREAT shopper for his wife) and asked how to do it. These were his instructions: "Go to a mall and go in a store you think/know your wife likes. Walk all around the store looking at manequins. Find 2 or 3 manequins who have clothes on that you like and then find those outfits on the racks. Do not stray from the manequin outfits or try to put something together yourself." Isn't that great advice for any man who is intimidated by shopping at the mall?! Way to go Phil!!!

Happy Mother's Day!

My dad got me a great card for Mother's Day.

It reads, "Do you have difficulty falling asleep? Do you get less than 6 hours sleep per night? Do you wake up feeling exhausted? Then you might be experiencing....motherhood."

Inside, my dad wrote these words to me,"The tough times, and yes I know there are tough times, will fade in your memory...really. The sacrifice of yourself will pay handsome dividends in the future. That's when your children will rise and call you blessed."

And that's what it is, isn't it? A scarifice of YOURSELF. Not just your time, your energy, your desires, etc. It is ALL of you, ALL of the time. You never stop thinking about your children. Even when you get to take a break away from them or indulge yourself in a nap...they are still on the forefront of your mind. The list of things to do (usually FOR your kids) is constantly running through your head.

And I still wouldn't trade it for anything.

I am so blessed to be a mommy to McKenna, Brooklyn & Josiah. I adore them. I love their little faces (snot, dirt and all) and am thrilled with their little lives.

For those of you reading, please take a moment to pray for all the mommies out there who have lost a child in the last year. Lori Coble & Adrienne Graves immediately come to mind. All of our military moms who lost children in combat recently. The moms who lost students at Virginia Tech. And I'm sure each of you know someone as well. Pray for them as this will be one of the hardest days of their lives.

To all of my mommy friends---have a blessed day! You are a blessing to my life and I receive so much encouragement, faith, love and inspiration from each of you.

Edsel Maddox

This is a picture of Josiah with Edsel and Jerry Maddox that was taken back in October when we were out for a visit. (They are Deb's parents who live in Colorado Springs.)

Edsel has been in the hospital for 11 weeks battling cancer and other ailments. The doctors report yesterday said that at this point he would be bedridden, unable to talk or eat on his own for the rest of his life. He had made a living will that very clearly stated that he did not want to live like that.

So Jerry, Deb and her brothers made the very difficult decision to honor his wishes today and took him off of the respirator. They are asking for prayers that Edsel would go quickly..."minutes and hours rather than days." (**As of Wednesday morning, at 10:30 he is still with us. Jerry and Deb stayed up all night with him. Oftentimes singing and praying with him, giving him permission to go.**) (***Edsel passed away, Thursday, May 10th in the evening....peacefully. While we are sad at this loss, we are also celebrating his new life in heaven.***)

Edsel has walked closely with the Lord his entire life and I can only imagine the joy he will experience as he gets to meet Jesus face to face.

Please lift up Deb, Jerry and other family members as they grieve the loss of this precious, kind, generous, loving and honorable man.

Joy

Ok, feeling the need to balance out the previous post. :)

I'm super excited about several things right now.

1. My best friend from college, Sarah, and her husband Nick are in Ethiopia this very moment adopting a little boy!!! This is just about the greatest thing that could happen to ALL involved. Words cannot describe my joy.

2. 5 of our neighbors are being baptized TOMORROW! Mark & Maria, Andrew & Shelly, and Renee are all making a public commitment to Christ tomorrow afternoon. JOY!!!!!!! (Oh and there will definitely be tears....)

3. We were able to capture the "Chestnut Story" on dvd last Sunday. A local church hired a professional videographer to record what God has been doing on our street over the last year. The church wants to use the example of neighbors reaching neighbors through home groups. So much joy!

God is good....all the time.

Emotional Freak

That's how I feel right now.

Let's face it....I am just a sensitive girl. Everything touches me...deeply.

And sometimes that really bugs!

There are days where I can set it aside, but most of the time it can overwhelm me.

I've been crying about everything. Frustrated with the sadness in the world. And in my own life.

I'm sad that a 16 year old boy in our church has a crazy aggressive cancer. He has already lost an arm to it and now it is back and wrapped around his lungs and his heart.

I'm sad that yesterday that two sisters in Orange County (3 & 4) were killed in a car accident....because a semi wasn't watching the road in stop and go traffic and stopped too late. (I'm really sad that I even watched the news last night!!!)

I'm sad that my grandma's brain is slowly deteriorating. That her conversations are filled with confusion and her ability to reason is slipping away.

But, despite it all, I KNOW that God is in control. I KNOW that nothing happens without Him knowing it. I KNOW that He loves me and loves each of these lives more than I can fathom. I KNOW that I can find peace only in Him....and I do KNOW His peace. There is nothing like it.

Sometimes I just wonder why He made me this way. Why my heart loves so much and so deep....even toward perfect strangers. What am I supposed to do with this? How do I use this for His glory? I feel like the tears aren't enough. How do I put my tears into action? (Does that even make sense?)

I just kept thinking this morning, "life is weird." We each have this short time on this earth. It is so important to know our purpose and to follow after it. I know I am here to love God and to love others....but in what capacity?

I feel like God is calling me out of the "isolation" of motherhood and into something more. But I don't know what yet. Not to abandon this first calling....that one is for life. :) But to expand upon it.

For those of you who know me well, I welcome your thoughts and input. Pray for me. If you see more out of this emotional chaos than what I currently see, please tell me!

Updated House Pics

Our friend, Paul, went out and took a few more pictures of our house. It's coming right along!

There is a driveway, and finished front and a lot of the interior is complete. Very exciting.

Just click on this link to view: new house pictures

Enjoy!

Official Dates

Well, we got some concrete dates for our move. Everyone has been asking.....

We will have our final walk through on May 29 and the house will close and be ours on June 5.

It is hard to believe that this house we envisioned is nearly complete and ready for our wild little family!

John and I will drive out the Jeep on Memorial Day (long drive!). Then we will do the walk through on Tuesday morning and fly back that afternoon.

Our FABULOUS realtor is letting us stay with her and leave the Jeep in her garage until we come back.

Our move dates are still somewhat tentative. But, it looks like we'll pack up a truck and send it out June 19th. John and Danny will drive the minivan out and meet the moving truck. They will unload the truck and set up key furniture, like beds and such. They will also install blinds in the windows, light fixtures and do any other "little" projects around the house.

The kids and I will stay at my mom's house while they are gone and then we will all fly out June 25 or 26. (Not sure yet....)

So that's all I know for now!