Happy 4th of July From Our Family to Yours!

“The real democratic idea is, not that every man shall be on a level with every other, but that every one shall have liberty, without hindrance, to be what God made him” Henry Ward Beecher


Wishing you all a day filled with barbecued hot dogs, homemade ice cream and fireworks! This picture is one of my favorites of my kids when they were little.

Praying for our country today in a spirit of gratefulness and thankfulness. And sending up special prayers for those who are celebrating on foreign soil. Being an American is a blessed gift I did NOTHING to deserve. Just another reason to appreciate God's gift of grace in my life.

Remember friends, "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord." Psalm 33:12

Take a Moment to Remember and Say a Prayer

“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.” Psalm 33:12

As a teenager, waking up first to get in the shower was important. I had to beat my two sisters because I needed as much time as I could to get that "big 80's hair". Each morning when I would shuffle to the bathroom half asleep, I would see my father sitting at our kitchen table.

In the early morning silence, he would be reading his Bible while finishing his cup of coffee. With my eyes half open, I would kiss him good-bye. Lunch pail in hand, my Dad would walk out the front door, hang his American flag and head off to work. Day in and day out, this was his routine.

Each and every morning, my father flew that flag.

One gloomy winter day, as my father was hanging his flag, our neighbor Sid came over. Marching across the street with purpose, he held a small booklet titled Flag Rules and Regulations firmly in hand. Sid made sure to give my Dad an earful when he saw in this steady drizzle, Dad had not taken down our American flag.

“George.” He said, pointing at his booklet. “According to these rules here, you aren’t supposed to be flying the American flag in the rain.” Without a pause in the conversation, my father politely replied. “Sid, I fought for that flag in the rain, so I am going to fly that flag in the rain.”

Friends, today is Memorial Day. A day to remember those currently serving, and many who have given the ultimate sacrifice. Go up to a Veteran and say, “Thank You.” Better yet, teach your children to walk up to someone in uniform and say , “Thank You.”

Take a moment to offer up a prayer for all of the men and women who have fought in the rain for you.

I'm Thankful For This...

This song below by the David Crowder band has become one of my favorites. Our church has an amazing worship team and when they play this song I am moved to tears every time.

Listening to the lyrics in this song makes me really stop and think about how miraculous it was that God came down to earth to restore my relationship with Him. I am ashamed to admit that I have great difficulty walking accross a room to make amends with someone who has hurt me. (I am working on this.)

With Thanksgiving right around the corner and Christmas not far behind it, I can't help but be overly grateful for a God who came down to earth...for me.

Oh The Glory Of It All!!!

Blessed are the Flexible

Pneumonia has a way of getting your attention. After my sister Jennifer was released from the ER late Thursday evening, her mother in law Geneva who has been staying with their family was admitted to the same hospital Friday morning, with the very same diagnosis...pneumonia. Geneva had one added concern though, her x-rays showed a spot on her lung that they want to check with more testing. Please keep her in your prayers.

Our plans to leave for a family snow trip Friday morning came to a screeching halt. Celebrating my birthday in Lake Tahoe and sledding with the kids would be an impossibility to do with a care free heart. I couldn't leave my sister being so sick. I wanted to be there in case she needed me or if she headed back in to the hospital.

When we shared the news with our children on Friday morning, our youngest two cried. They had all gone to bed so excited to wake up the next morning and leave for their big trip. I was very disappointed too. During our devotion, I shared with them that I knew God had something for them this weekend. That He is a loving God and they should have hope. I told them to keep their eyes open and to watch and see what He would do.

Less than five hours later my father and stepmother called to invite us all out to dinner and to ask if they could keep the children overnite. The kids were thrilled to have a sleepover with their grandparents. They loved on the kids and filled them up with goodies and a trip to the movies to see the 'Chipmunk Movie'. I was so grateful to the Lord!

Of course God didn't stop at blessing the children. Paul and I found out late last night that Lee Strobel, the author of 'The Case for Christ' book series is going to be speaking at a church close by. We are loading up the car this morning and even picking up my sister's oldest girls and taking them along to hear him speak. How cool is that?!?

Oh, and the cabin of our dear family friend, that we were going to stay at...it is available next weekend.

GOD IS SO GOOD!

My Thankful Heart

“Enter His gates with thanksgiving And His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name. For the Lord is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting and His faithfulness to all generations.” Psalm 100:4-5 This scripture is so beautiful. My words fall so very short in expressing how they make me feel. Being a faithful word gal, I looked up ‘thanksgiving’ in my 1828 Webster dictionary,

Thanksgiving, n. The act of rendering thanks for expressing gratitude for favors or mercies. 2. A public celebration of divine goodness; also a day set apart for religious services, especially (I just love this.) to acknowledge the goodness of God, either in any remarkable deliverance from calamities or danger, or in the ordinary dispensation of his bounties.

I have so much to be thankful for I couldn’t begin to list them all here. I just keep thinking about how when our little ones first learn to say thank you, how precious those words are to me. I am not talking about the ‘Thanks mom’ I get when I take care of my family’s needs. I am talking about the heartfelt, ‘Thank you mom’ that I get from children whose words are tender while at the same time their arms are reaching out to hug me.

We will be asked this week what we are thankful for. Before we get caught up in the Macy’s parade, football games, way too much turkey and stuffin, take some alone time for just you and God. Reach out to Him and thank Him with your heart.


**This picture above was taken quite a few Thanksgivings ago. It is one of my favorites of our children. What am I thankful for…for a God who loved me enough to send His son to die for me. For a God who is so good and loving that everything I am and long to be is only possible because of Him. For a God who even in the trials and heartaches of my life has shown me the blossoms and sweet fragrance of His grace. Just look at the picture above and see four of my most precious blooms. How can I not be Thankful?**