Saturday, June 27, 2009

Pray For A Friend

I would like to ask all those who read here to pray for a friend of mine who was seriously injured today. She fell down a long flight of concrete stairs and was helicopter-ed to a hospital. She is suffering from a cracked skull, brain hemoragging, and five broken ribs. She has two young girls and her 9 year old is actually the one who found her at the bottom of the stairs bleeding from both ears.

We know that we serve a God who is a God of miraculous healing and mighty things. Please pray for her healing, as well as comfort for her girls and husband at this time.

God bless you all tonight... Hug your families a little extra.

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Back On My Soap Box!



Do you remember a few months ago when I wrote about parents and their kids regarding the LACK OF parenting?

Do you remember how angry I was?

Well, maybe you don't remember that part since I did a pretty good job of keeping my cool while writing (I think).

I'm pretty sure that I warned you ahead of time that it wouldn't be the last time I blogged about this topic. It is a topic that weighs heavy on my heart and like it or not... it DOES affect me! Some might think it doesn't. They might say... "Why waste your time and energy on something that is not yours to worry about?" Well... I have some perfect examples of how this IS a worrysome epidemic. Here goes...

Yesterday I took my boys to a splash park. Great fun! Lots of water. Lots of sun. Swarms of kids! Apparently, I wasn't the only one who came up with this idea yesterday. We were just there last week and there was only a handful of others, so we were quite surprised by the many there yesterday. Anyhow, the boys were apprehensive about getting in because of all the other kids. They stood back and watched for awhile. What they observed was a bunch of rude, pushy kids doing nothing but DEMANDING to get their way. They made these demands on other kids AND on their parents! The boys finally got in as nap time quickly made itself known on the clock. Almost robotically, all the moms and dads started TRYING to get their kids out.

It was quite a show.

They would ask nicely, "Johnny, please come out now. It's time to go home."

Nothing. Not even a glance.

"Johnny... Pleeeeeeease."

Still nothing.

The moms would actually head into the water themselves and they actually looked FRIGHTENED to take their child by the hand and pull them out! It wasn't like just one or two did this... they ALL did!! You could almost read their minds. It was like they were saying, "Please, if you come out without throwing a fit and slugging me, you'll get a reward."

Then, it came.

One of the kids DID throw a fit! She started throwing things at others and she literally looked like a little time bomb exploding. When that show was over, the mother of that child made her child apologize to one of the other kids. Then... without skipping a beat, she said... "Okay, let's go get some ice cream before we head home."

WHAT?????

Do you see my pain?



I watched the news before heading to bed last night. I don't usually, but I was feeling restless. Nothing like a little dose of reality to make you feel sleepy, right? Anyhow, there was a story last night about a FOURTEEN year old girl who asked her NINETEEN year old boyfriend to kill her mom. He did. Why? Well, I guess the mother wasn't crazy about her fourteen year old daughter dating a nineteen year old man. Go figure. So... in order to "have her way" the girl decides to just get rid of the problem. Done!

Don't parents see that it DOES matter how we raise our children? It DOES matter when children aren't disciplined fairly. It DOES affect them, and it DOES affect others. We're going to have a HUGE population of crazy teens to twenty somethings walking the planet in a few years that blow things up, murder, steal... WHATEVER... all in the name of getting their way!

Here's the good (extra sweet) part. For Father's Day we took J to lunch at this place called Johnny Garlic's. It's AWESOME and it truly is a man's restaurant. J feasted on his first bison steak. It was delectable! The food was fabulous, and the service was top notch. We had enjoyed our meal completely and were getting ready to pay our bill when our server came to us with this HUGE slab of mud pie. J and I looked at each other with confusion. We hadn't ordered any dessert. Our server must have seen our confusion immediately because he went on to say that dessert was on the house BECAUSE OF OUR KIDS! He was amazed by their behavior and manners. He said that they never see that and what an amazing statement our three boys made to their entire staff that day. WOW... do compliments get any better than that???

So... it DOES affect me. Sometimes it affects me in a positive way....

Like in the form of mint chip mud pie with a big ol' mound of fresh whipped cream on top (shared with my four favorite men, of course).

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Happy Father's Day!

This post is for my most loyal reader.

To the one who never tires of saying "I love you".

The man who has reminded me of what forgiveness really means.

He's a person that's respected by those who know him well.

I've seen many changes throughout his life, some harder than others, but God's hand has always been there.

His smile and laughter can capture an entire room FULL of people!

His presence has been missing in my life for a few years now, but he's coming home in just a couple of weeks.

Dad, your love and guidance throughout my life has never gone un-noticed. Although I've missed you in these years that you haven't lived nearby, I know we have BOTH grown up a lot. I am looking forward to spending time together. I'm looking forward to sharing life again. The boys are looking forward to having their "Papa" back. Thank you for all that you have taught me and ways in which you have shown your love for me.

Happy Father's Day!

I love you ~

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

12


That's right... you read it correctly... My oldest is now TWELVE years old! Today is a beautiful day, and today is Luke's birthday. So, as I've made a habit of doing, I will reflect here on this past year of his life.

This year has been a year of growth for Lucas. He has grown in every way possible. Mostly though, his heart has grown. He is becoming such a man... right before my eyes. He's becoming a young man to be proud of and admire. As I watch from afar as he interacts with his friends I notice how these boys look up to him. They love the encouragement that Luke always has to offer. There have even been many occasions when Lucas has offered encouragement to others who haven't been so kind to him. Lucas tries to remain positive in most situations. That's a character trait that I wish I could say came from me, but it didn't.

His favorite position to play in baseball has become catcher. I was surprised by this at first because you have to wear all this gear while playing that position. It doesn't look comfortable and Luke has always been HUGE on comfort! It didn't take me long to figure out that he loves it so much because he gets to direct the team. He loves to go out and give the pitcher that extra pat on the shoulder with a good ol' "You can do this". It actually makes me tear up sometimes. He's a fantastic ball player, but I still think that my favorite thing about watching him play is witnessing where his heart is in the game.

He continues to be a BIG help around here too. He's the ultimate peace maker... and that comes in REALLY handy with a couple of younger brothers who make squabbling a hobby. Luke achieved the goal of getting his own dog this year and with that came a LOT of responsibility. He has taken on this responsibility and done well. With this experience has come a new understanding of "parenting". Between watching him with his brothers and his dog, it's easy for me to see that Luke will make a great dad someday.

My prayer for Lucas this year is this:

God, you know this boy from the inside out. You formed him and you know in what direction his life will go. I thank you for this son of mine. I thank you for his sweet heart and what a privilege it is to witness him grow. I thank you for protecting him both day and night... in all his many activities. As he continues to grow from the inside out, I pray that you continue to be the light that he looks to for direction. I pray that Lucas always knows that You are his ultimate provider, protector and lover of his soul. I pray that he grows closer to you with each new year. I ask that you guide him in handling life's situations. I also ask that you guide ME in mothering him. That I will know when to hold back and let him learn on his own, with your help. This boy is precious to me, but I know he's even MORE precious to You. Amen ~

Happy birthday my sweet 12 year old!

****** Update ******

Although he most likely won't accept this time around, I just received a phone call from our league president informing me that Lucas was voted on to the All-Star team this year. This is his third year in a row being voted on. Congratulations Luke! I'm proud of that accomplishment... even if you decide not to play in the tournament this year. :0)

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Lullaby

Last night we had the absolute most spectacular lightning storm I have EVER witnessed!! It was stunning... AMAZING!!! It actually didn't look like lightning in the sky... it looked like one gigantic strobe light. It kept coming and coming for over an hour. The storm literally passed right over our roof top. J and I went from watching it on the front deck to watching it from the back deck. As I sat there on the deck, I was completely taken aback by God's works. I was reminded in a very real way of how big and mighty He is.

The boys were wiped out last night. They went to bed (on their own) early and missed out on most of the storm. At one point, Jason and I both felt a little guilty for letting them sleep through it. As a mom, I also felt a little empty. You see, when they were little, a storm like that would have made them sit straight up in their beds and yell for help. They would have been glued to my sides. I would have held them close and sang... and then prayed them back to sleep. Last night I didn't get to do any of that. Last night they slept soundly until almost the very end of the storm when a loud crash finally woke two of them up. They came out and marveled at what they were seeing, then they went back to sleep. They felt safe. They knew it was just a storm, and it would be over soon.

All of this got me thinking...

Isn't this where God wants me to be? He wants to comfort me and bring peace to my heart. He wants to sing me to sleep when I feel a storm brewing in my heart. Ultimately though, He wants me to feel safe. He wants me to just KNOW that it's a storm that will be over soon, so I should just rest through it. He longs to hold me in His arms, yet He feels pleasure when I'm able to have confidence in His abilities. He desires for me to find comfort through Him without even a second thought.

My boys are growing up. It's a bittersweet process. I long to sing them a lullaby while I have them safely snuggled up on my lap.... BUT I find such joy in seeing them become men of God. It brings me such satisfaction when they are in life's storms and they figure things out. They can rest. How awesome is it that I get to witness this in them?

I am riding out life's storms...

Feeling lessons learned from these three precious boys...

Seeing the mightiness in God's most powerful hands...

Hearing the lullabies of a Father who adores me.