HisServant

I love how God sends us the right words at the right times :) As I found myself starting to feel much anxiety about the many "things" I needed to work on tonight, I was encouraged as I read this tonight and wanted to share it with all of you!

For those of you who don't know already, our little family of five has decided to help plant a church in our area. Walking in to our first one-on-one meeting with the pastor and his wife, I had absolutely NO desire for our life to head in this direction. Brooks, on the other hand, felt this was God's answer to much prayer. As I prepared for this meeting, I "told" God that he was gonna have to show me, without a doubt, if this was where we were supposed to go. I knew Brooks felt with all his heart that this was where He was leading us, but I couldn't figure out how or why He would be calling me there. Brooks plays guitar and drums so I knew exactly where he would fit in....me, on the other hand, what did I have to offer?

During our meeting, Pastor Jeremy proceeded to tell me that they were in desperate need of someone to oversee the children's ministry...and he had been told that I may be someone to consider. What?!? Why me? Surely not becuase I majored in Early Childhood Education or becuase I used to be a lead teacher at a Preschool. Never mind the fact that I oversaw the PreK room at our current church or that I coordinated the Prek VBS at our church as well. Why in the world would God want ME to take this position?!?!

Well, obviously, I felt the "kick in the butt" from God letting me know that this WAS His plan for us. So now, as I sit working on scheduling and other "stuff" that goes along with being a children's ministry coordinator, I find myself getting very discouraged and anxious. Is this REALLY where God wants me to be?

As I took a break and proceeded to check my personal email, I found this in my inbox. Coinsidence? Hmmm....I think not!


Service

"This service that you have performed is not only supplying the needs of God's people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God." ~ 2 Corinthians 9:12 (NIV)

Service is a form of work, and work is a form of praise. This important word, in its various forms, appears in the NIV Bible over 1,100 times.

Some of us work in the military service, public service, civil service, customer service, church services, even at service stations. 1 Corinthians 12:5 tells us that there are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. To serve God's way means to do so from a generous heart of love. And to divinely serve, we must first understand the nature and character of a willing servant:

John 12:26 says, "Whoever serves Me must follow Me; and where I am, My servant also will be . . ." A servant partners intimately with God.

Matthew 20:26 says, ". . . whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant." A servant is humble.

Luke 12:35 says, "Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning." A servant is prepared and vigilant.



Matthew 20:28 says, "just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many." A servant sacrifices lovingly.

God rewards His faithful and loving servants with an inheritance (Is. 65:9). He protects them and vindicates them (Is. 54:17). He redeems them (Ps. 34:22). He recognizes them (1Cor. 16:18). He promotes them (Matt. 24:45, Jh. 15:15, Phil. 2:9). And He gives them righteousness and peace (Rom. 14:17-18).

The Bible speaks of how rare servant leadership has been in Biblical times and continues to be today in Luke 22:26 (see NIV note) as defined in 1 Peter 5:2—to be willing, eager examples, not lording their authority over those whom God has entrusted in their care. Those of us who have worked under difficult bosses understand what this means.

God cultivated a servant's heart in me during my many years of working as a flight attendant, where seniority reigned, and I was presented with plenty of opportunities to serve hundreds of people a day. This was a very humbling job assignment that involved picking up trash, aiding sick passengers and serving food and drink, frequently on little sleep in cramped, hot spaces. Even though I would often jokingly say that it was my indentured servant job—meaning that I worked to travel—I knew in my heart that God had me there to work in me and through me.

Luke 22:26-27 puts it in perspective: ". . . the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as the one who serves."

Indeed, true divine service is both a noble and humble action. It involves doing that which the Father instructs us to do with faithfulness and wholeheartedness (1Sam. 12:24), praise and obedience (Ps. 103:2).

And attitude matters. Philippians 2:5 tells us that our "attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus," which is one of humility. Romans 14:17-18 tells us that when we live righteously, peacefully and joyfully, we are "pleasing to God and approved by men." This is a key to getting along with others. Proverbs 14:35 says, "A king delights in a wise servant." Now here is a precept for getting promoted.

In John 15:15, Jesus calls His servants His "friends" because true servants of Christ are also His true friends in that they are so intimately involved with Him that they know His business. They are His inner circle or "inner court."

Can we say that we honestly know Christ's business? Are we part of His inner court? Do we intimately partner with Him to do Kingdom work? Are we His wise and humble servants? May we invite Him to have more of our heart, to guide us in doing and being more like Him so that we can soar in true service to His glory.

AFewOfMyFavoriteThings

Hope you enjoy looking at these Christmas pics as much as I enjoyed taking them with my new Christmas present :) Yep, that's right...I got a Canon Rebel DSLR!!! I love it!!!

...ToBuy!

Well, I went ahead and bought the Christmas present! And no Kali, it wasn't a Cricket...although I think I really "need" one of those too! ;) You are on the right track, it does have to do with scrapbooking :) I think I will, however, choose to wait until tomorrow to show you all what exactly it is :) ....Sorry Kali, since I think you're the only one who actually follows this :(

We have another Christmas tomorrow so I'll wait to post all the pictures after that :)

I hope everyone had/is having a wonderful Christmas with family!

ToBuyOrNotToBuy?!?!

My wonderful hubby has already given me the OK to buy my Christmas present. He actually gave me the "go ahead" about three weeks ago. It's something that I have been wanting for a very long time...so it's not an "impulse want" by any means. And several friends and family members have agreed that it is something that I would use and defenetly get my money out of. Christmas is only 1 day away!!!!...and I've been holding out to see if I can score an awesome deal. I got online a couple hours ago, and it's on sale....1 day only!...and it's quite an amazing deal! So what's the problem? ....Brooks is sleeping (obviously, since it's 3:30 in the am) and I just need his reassurance that I really do "need" this item and that it really is worth the investment I am about to agree to.

Oh man, it's so much easier to say it's exactly what you want, until you're given persmission to buy it. Now I just don't know if I can bring myself to spend the money!?!?

LearingToAppreciate!

.....I just smiled, intsead of getting angry. I just said "Thank You", instead of "What was he thinking?!". I just realized that he loves me and really wants to help me out.

So, you're probally wondering what the big deal is about? Well, sadly in MY eyes it usually is a big deal. I went to make Breck's bed and realized that her sheet was on upside down....that's weird, I know how to put the sheets on the right way?!? That's when I remembered.... I didn't put them on last time, Brooks did!...that expains it!!!

Normally, I would have been annoyed and would have completey remade the whole bed so that everything was "correct". This morning, however, I was reminded that Brooks loves me :) He didn't put them on the "wrong" way on purpose. He put them on that way because he wanted to surprise me and help me out when I was too tired to do it myself....and it wasn't "wrong" to him.

Just in case you read this Brooks....Thank You for making Breck's bed. Thank You for loving me. I love you too!

Christmas&CandyCanes

Here are some pictures from our day. Sorry that they are out of order and not strategically placed throughout my post. For some reason, my computer has decided to get an attitude and not let me rearrange anything. I'm glad it was a good day...or this could put me in a bad mood :)

Everyone seems to be done with the flu bug that decided to visit our home. Kaicee and Breck both stayed home from school today since it had not been 24 hrs since their last episode. We had a great, relaxing day! After LONG baths, we all got dressed...in clean pj's of course, and spent more quality time together than we had in a long time! We read books, attempted to finish a leftover sticker book from vacation, and were just plain lazy!!!

After supper tonight, we made a countdown calendar for Christmas. We all had so much fun and it turned out great! The girls love to do crafts, so they were super excited...and I've learned to mellow out a bit and relax. The girls took turns doing their part they do best...Breck cutting and stickers, Kaicee numbers and spelling. We all pitched in when it came to putting the candy on :) Something so simple, yet we had so much fun!

Since we used peppermint candies on our calendar, we finished the night off by reading "The Candymaker's Gift" before heading off to bed. It tells the legend of the candycane...what a wonderful children's book.

Hard Candy:

Reminds us that Jesus is like a "rock", strong and dependable.

(Psalm 31:3)

Peppermint Flavor:

Is like the gift of spices from the wise men.

(Matthew 2:11)

White Candy:

Stands for Jesus as the holy, sinless Son of God.

(1 John 1:7)

Cane:

Is like a staff used by shepherds in caring for sheep.

Jesus is our "Good Shepherd."

(John 10:1-18, 27-30)

The Letter J:

Is for the Name of Jesus, our Savior.

(Matthew 1:21)

The Color Red:

Is for God's love that sent Jesus, and

for Jesus' love in giving His life for us on the cross.

(John 3:16 & Revelation 1:5)

The Stripes:

Remind us of Jesus' suffering-His crown of throrns,

the wounds in His hands and feet, and

the cross on which He died.

(John 19:1-30)

Thank you, Jesus, for a wonderful and refreshing day today!

TimeFlies...

Well, it's been awhile since my last post. Dont' really have too much to say...or don't feel like writing too much, might be a better way to put it. More later, but for now...we took the girls to see Mickey Mouse last week! We had a great time and have lots of funny stories to share! We got back late Friday evening and put the girls straight to bed in their clothes since they had fallen asleep in the car. Brooks let me sleep in Saturday, and I woke up to the wonderful news that Taylor had thrown up in her bed during the night! At least she waited til we got home! As I sit and write this, it is late Monday night...and I am very tired of cleaning up vomit! Taylor was sick all day Saturday and Sunday. Breck started complaining of a tummy ache Sunday night. Kaicee was sent home from school today with a tummy ache. Between the three of them, I think I've had my share of vomit for the next ten years! Oh, how I hope I can sneak by without letting this slow me down! I promise, a happier post next time!

AmINormal?!?!

Is there anyone else out there who sometimes feels like it may NEVER be possible to be completely "caught up" with everything that's going on in your life?! Right now, I am feeling an overwhelming sense of this...and I am struggling with finding the ambition to do something about it.

PumpkinPatchParable

The farmer grew many different things in his fields. He grew tall green corn and big red tomatoes...long yellow squash and little green peas. People eat that stuff for dinner.

"I am the true vine, my Father is the gardener." John 15:1

The farmer especially loved to grow pumkins. In June, the farmer planted him pumkin seeds, just like he did every summer. The seeds disappeared into the ground in nead rows and grew there in the dark, all through the Forth of July.

"This is what the story means: The seed is God's teaching." Luke 8:11

From each seed, a tiny green shoot slowly poked its way out of the soil. Soon, long green vines stretched across the ground. Their leaves opened wide to catch the August sun. From those vines, tiny buds sprouted into little pumpkins. The pumkins began to grow. How different they looked! Some were tall and lean. Some were short and round. Some had lumps and bumps. They were all pumpkins.

"My hand made all things. All things are here becuase I made them," says the Lord." Isaiah 66:2

October came at last. Every night grew dark earlier than the night before, and the farmer knew it was harvest time. His workers brought in the ripe pumpkins. Which one would the farmer choose?

"Open your eyes. Look at the fields that are ready for harvesting now." John 4:35The farmer picked up one large pumkin, taking great care. Pumkins are tough on the outside but break into smitherines if dropped. He washed off all the dirt, holding on tight.

"Get up, be baptized, and wash your sins away." Acts 22:16

Next came the messy part. The pumpkin was filled with seeds and slimy pulp. The farmer had a special plan for his chosen pumpkin, so the seeds adn slime would have to go.

"Create in me a pure heart, God." Psalm 51:10

He slowly slid in his knife and cut all the way around the top of the pumpkin. Gently, he pulled the stem, and it came off like a lid.
"God's word is alive and working. It is sharper than a sword sharpened on both sides. It cuts all the way into us...And God's word judges the thoughts and feelings in our hearts." Hebrews 4:12

The farmer looked inside. Squishy, stringy pulp waited for him...yuck!

"I am the Lord, and I can look into a person's heart." Jeremiah 17:10

The farmer carved a triangle for each eye. Pumpkins have eyes that don'e blink or turn away. They see everything!

"The eye is a light for the body. If your eyes are good, then your whole body will be full of light." Matthew 6:22

He neatly made a little square for the nose, and then he carved a big, w-i-d-e smile.

"Happiness makes a person smile." Proverbs 15:13

The farmer put a small candle inside his pumpkin and touched the wick with a flame. How that pumkin glowed!

"God once said, "Let the light shine out of the darkness!" And this is the same God who made his light shine in our hearts." 2 Corinthians 4:6

The pumkin on the porch shone brightly for everyone to see. When people saw the smiling pumpkin, they all smiled back!

"In the same way, you should be the light for other people. Live so that they will see the good things you do. Live so that they will praise your Father in heaven." Matthew 5:16

All the neighbors knew that, once again, the farmer had turned a simple pumpkin into a simply glorious sight. In the same way, God the Father offers His children the chance to be made new, full of joy an full of light, shining like the stars in a dark world.

"If anyone belongs to Christ, then he is made new. The old things have gone; everything is made new!" 2 Corinthians 5:17

"The Pumpkin Patch Parable"

by Liz Curtis Higgs

ATripToTheER!!!

Here we are...waiting for the DR to come back in. Does she really look like she needs to be at the ER?!?!

Well, the answer to that question would be "yes"......about 2 minutes prior to this picture.

Let me start at the begining.....
Breck, Taylor, and I decided to walk over to the school and have lunch with Kaicee. On the way home, we were all racing each other and being silly. Breck was winning, so I decided to pick Taylor up....by her hands....and swing her around in an attempt to catch up. That's were the problem was! In an innocent attempt to have fun with my girls, I dislocated her arm!!!!

This is not the first time this has happened. The morning of her 1st birthday party was also spent in the ER for the same reason....only that time we weren't sure exactly how it had happened. The Dr told us that "nurse maid elbow" is very common in little kids. It usually happens when they are picked up by their wrist instead of under their arms. However, sometimes at a young age, they can dislocate the arm by simply rolling over wrong in their crib. The first time we went, Taylor had actually put it back into place on her own by the time we got to the ER...also very common.

Well, this time....mommy was the bad guy! Since she has had this happen once already, her chances of it happening again are greater. I decided to lay her down for her nap and see how she felt when she woke up, thinking that maybe she was just overly tired and I had just pulled a bit too hard. When she woke up from her nap still crying and refusing to move her arm, I decided to call our family doctor. They advised us to go to the ER in case we had to have xrays. So, we loaded up and headed to the ER. On the way, she seemed to cheer up a bit and even started to move it a little once we were there. The Dr came in, held onto her elbow and gently twisted her wrist....viola! We had a new, happy little girl!

After popping it back into place, we had to stay for a few minutes to make sure she was using it ok. She was instantly walking around and trying to get in to everything! Good thing we packed some books!

FamilyPics

Here is a sneak peek at our family pictures we had taken a couple weeks ago. I don't have the cd yet, so this is all I've got at this point :) Enjoy!

PumpkinPatch

Our trip to Kercher's started out like this:

Our three little cuties, sitting for a perfect fall picture.

Then we headed over to the "measuring stick" prop...sorry, I don't have any better name for it than that :( Every year that we go to Kercher's for pumpkins, we take the girls' pictures beside this prop.

Our little Taytor-bug!

Little Miss Brecky-ton!

...and I nearly cried as Little Miss Kaicee walked up and stood beside her....can my baby really be getting this big?!? I still remember the first time we took Kaicee to pick pumpkins...I think I have about 100 pictures from the event :) It feels like yesterday I was bribing her to stand still so I could get her picture. Just look at her now!

Then there's mommy. Kaicee insisted that she take my picture too...and I'm sure she would have insisted on taking daddy's too, only he was holding our place in line for the hay ride.

After our little photo shoot, we climbed on the hay wagon and headed back to the pumpkin patch...which was extrememly picked over! I don't think we've ever waited this long to get our pumpkins!

And here are the winners! We let them each choose their favorite. We may have tried to pursuade them a bit, but in the end....they each got what THEY wanted :)

Daddy and his little girls!

Our family!

IsThatAMullet?!?

Well, not quite! But it looks just about as scary!

I guess I'll start with this picture. I have finally made it to my goal to donate my hair to Locks of Love. I've done this before, although I've always stopped at 8" because I just couldn't stand it anymore. Well, this time I made it to the full 10"....but for some reason I've had a hard time taking the step to get it cut.

I'm not sure exactly why...but I have.

Yesterday, on the way home from MOTT's, I decided it was time to take the plunge! I tex'd my friend, Mindi, who normally cuts my hair...the ONLY person I trust to do this! She didn't have any openings...boo!!! I knew if I didn't follow through with it NOW, I'd chicken out again by next week. So, I called upon another friend who cuts hair...someone who has never cut my hair before...eek! Angie had a cancelation, but I had to be there in an hour....with my hair washed and ready!

I packed lunches for my girls (well, two of MY girls and my extra little cutie I babysit for) so I wouldn't be late...and so they had something to do while I got it cut :)

Time for the "chop-chop"!!!...

Do you see the lady in the background?...no one in the beauty shop could bellieve I was doing this. My friend, Heather (her sister did the chopping) came up to witnees the experience :) All she could say was "OH!....OH MY!" I love her!!!

Everyone was so surprised because after she cut off the 10" ponytail......

.....she cut off another 4-6" everywhere......

.....leaving me with only about 2" on hair on my head.....

....and here, my friends, is the style I've been dreaming about for the past three months!

BibleQuizzing

Kaicee had her first quiz meet of the season today and did a good job! After the meet, we went with some great friends out to Hacienda for lunch and then to the dollar theater to watch "Up". It was Taylor's first time at a theater and she did great...she actually fell asleep about half way through! What a fun day!

GoodNight,SleepTight

Every night when I tuck the girls in bed, before leaving the room, I always tell them, "Good night, sleep tight, don't let the bed bugs bite!" It was something my mom always told me and I've just kept the tradition going:) If I happen to walk out of their room without saying it, one of them will almost always say it to me.

A couple of nights ago, I said this to Breck and Taylor as I was walking out of their room. Breck simply replied, "They won't. I'll keep an eye on them!" I love her!

EpicChurch

For those of you who don't know already, my family is on the lauch team for a new church in South Mishawaka. Brooks is playing guitar in the worship band and I am the children's coordinator. It has been a fun journey so far and we are soo exctied to see what God has planned for us in the months to come!

We have spent several Sunday's visiting other churches to get a feel for what it's like to be a vistor...what are things we need to make sure we don't foget about when we launch? It's amazing some of the things you forget about when you get comfortable at your church and get used to the "Sunday morning routine". Our eyes have been opened to many things that we would have overlooked had we not taken the time to become "the vistor" again. We have also used this as a chance to get ideas from other churches on things we want to see happen at our church...and some things we don't.

Our team has decided to do a 2 stage launch. This means we will have a "soft launch" that will mostly be for our team and any friends who want to know more about Epic. We will meet in an existing church for this stage and be able to utilize their facility and supplies. This past Sunday, October 11th was that day!!! We officially launched our church and everything went well! We have an amazing team who works well together and genuinely cares for the community we are trying to reach! Here is a link to our blog... Epic Church ...where you can see pictures of our first service and stay up to date with our progress!

Please pray for us as we continue on this exciting journey God has called us to!

LazyMorning

Maybe it has something to do with the fact that my head did not hit the pillow until 4 am...or maybe I am just being plain lazy this morning, but I have no ambition to do anything. I'm still lounging around in my sweats after having taken Breck and Cade (the neighbor) to PreK...yep, that's right. I, in all my glory, took the kids to PreK this morning...hair all messy, didn't even take the time to redo my ponytail from a good nights sleep. Didn't brush my teeth. Didn't take time to take my slippers off and put my shoes on. I looked lovely to say the least! Good thing Breck and Cade enjoy walking in by themselves and are "big enough" to do it!

Well, I guess I should go get a litlle run in, as well as a shower and brush those furry teeth before it's time to go back and pick up those cute little boogers!...they aren't allowed to walk OUT by themselves and I really don't think anyone wants to smell me by that time of day!

Here's to a great day! Hope you all have one!...a great day that is!

Cowgirls

I found two of the cutest little cowgirls strollin' around my house this weekend...

Breck was invited to a "Fall" birthday party and decided to go as a cowgirl.

Kaicee was invited to a "Western" birthday party.

Both girls were super excited about getting to dress up like cowgirls!

ToDoList:

1. I really need to get working on some paper work for Epic (more on that later). I'm kind of getting tired of seeing our printer sitting on the living room floor.

2. Three large baskets full of laundry...folded and put away...check!

3. Trace the girls feet so I can buy them some new shoes at the resale!....check!

4. Wash and put away two days worth of dirty dishes...check!

5. Pack the girls' bags so they can spend the night with grandma Egolf, grandma Grimm, and aunt Shirley out in aunt Shirley's log cabin!...check!

6. Eat lunch with my cuties at "The New Martin's" and sit upstairs!...check!

7. Bribe those same little cuties with cookies to keep them in the cart while I get groceries :)...check!

8. Put groceries away...check!

....now I'm off to the children's resale!...woohoo!

BusyBusyBusy!

I have so many ideas of things I want to post...and pictures to go with them. If I could only find the time to post them!

Logan's&SilverHawks

Grandma Egolf called us on Thursday so see if we wanted FREE tickets to the SilverHawks game on Sunday....sure we did! We did not realize that Sunday's are always "family" day...which means all the kids get a coupon for a FREE hot dog and small soft drink.





















Since we didn't realize the girls would get hot dogs and pop at the game, we went to their favorite restaurant for lunch....Logan's! yummy! Of course, their favorite part about going here is not only the unlimited peanuts but the fun that comes with throwing them on the floor!

Between all the peanuts and the delicious rolls, I wonder if you would really have to order a meal? So much food, but oh, so yummy!

Kaicee wanted daddy to take a silly picture of her chowing down her delicious roll!

Breck defenetley enjoyed the peanuts more than anything! After she ate some of her lunch, she pushed it aside and went back to the peanuts :)

ND students were at the game raising money for Riley's Children's Hospital and were giving away pins and tatoo's, so we had to partake! Taylor was pretty excited about getting a tatoo like her big sisters!

Daddy and his girls...Breck and Kaicee. Of course, Taylor was glued to my lap :)

Seriously mom, do we really need ANOTHER picture?!?

....YEP :)

Taylor enjoying her hot dog and pop....yes, we really did allow them to get these even though we ate lunch! Needless to say, they didn't eat a whole lot of supper!

"Swoop"! The girls loved watching the mascot.

Kaicee was very tired by the time the game was finished! She impressed me with how much she actually followed the game and knew what was going on....I didn't even pay attention that close :)

At the conclusion of the game, everyone was allowed to go down to the field and run the bases. The girls thought this a blast!

What a fun day!...thanks grandma!