Aging Biblically

Hey family and friends!

It has been quite a while since we blogged. I think that it is a combination of going on vacation and Kait going back to work. We hope to get back in the swing of things soon. I saw this video yesterday on what it means to age Biblically and wanted to pass it on. Let's not waste our lives.

Every good and every perfect gift

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change." James 1:17

I've been studying the book of James with a sweet friend in my neighborhood. We've been challenged and encouraged by this small book, dripping with promises and exhortations in regards to living daily life in the Lord. One promise I want to keep in the forefront of my mind is the one written above. Oh, how my mindset would change if I truly believed that every good thing is from God and that he grants me small blessings all day every day. Small or great, He blesses us with His perfect gifts, whether through difficult seasons or situations or a joyful time. Our Father of lights knows us intricately, knows what brings us joy, and knows exactly what we need. "And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19 Here are some gifts the Lord has given to us recently...

Getting to introduce Bruce to his great-grandmother!

Look, no hands! Bruce loves to stand and we have fun teaching him how to balance :)

Receiving a precious note of encouragement in the mail from a long-distance friend.

Gathering together with sisters in Christ to encourage and pray for my Sister-in-Law, Michaela, the morning of her wedding.

An unplanned, weekday visit from Bruce's Grammy!

Finding my two favorites snoozing on the couch together.

Appreciating that our 85 lb. dog still loves to snuggle :)

We got a surprise package of onesies in the mail with Bruce's name embroidered on them in different colors!

"Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make  joyful noise to him with songs of praise!" Psalm 95:2

A Good Reminder

I came across this article while I was on my lunch break, and it served as a little reminder to keep the main thing (the Gospel aka Jesus paid it all) the main thing. It is so easy to lose sight of the promises of Scripture, but we must battle against this struggle daily because it is worth it in the end!

The following is an excerpt from one of my favorite bloggers Tim Challies (http://www.challies.com/christian-living/i-chose-to-sin)

"I’ve often returned to Jerry Bridge’s description of how he goes about the practice of preaching the gospel to himself. It is just one way of reminding himself of truth, of reminding himself of who he is in Christ. It never loses its power, because it is the power of God. Here is how he does this:

Since the gospel is only for sinners, I begin each day with the realization that despite my being a saint, I still sin every day in thought, word, deed, and motive. If I am aware of any subtle, or not so subtle, sins in my life, I acknowledge those to God. Even if my conscience is not indicting me for conscious sins, I still acknowledge to God that I have not even come close to loving Him with all my being or loving my neighbor as myself. I repent of those sins, and then I apply specific Scriptures that assure me of God’s forgiveness to those sins I have just confessed.

I then generalize the Scripture’s promises of God’s forgiveness to all my life and say to God words to the effect that my only hope of a right standing with Him that day is Jesus’ blood shed for my sins, and His righteous life lived on my behalf. This reliance on the twofold work of Christ for me is beautifully captured by Edward Mote in his hymn “The Solid Rock” with his words, “My hope is built on nothing less, than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.” Almost every day, I find myself going to those words in addition to reflecting on the promises of forgiveness in the Bible.

What Scriptures do I use to preach the gospel to myself? Here are just a few I choose from each day:
As far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. (Psalm 103:12)

“I, I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.” (Isaiah 43:25)

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone one to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. (Isaiah 53:6)

Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin. (Romans 4:7-8)

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (Romans 8:1)

There are many others, including Psalm 130:3-4; Isaiah 1:18; Isaiah 38:17; Micah 7:19; Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 2:13-14; Hebrews 8:12; and 10:17-18.

Whatever Scriptures we use to assure us of God’s forgiveness, we must realize that whether the passage explicitly states it or not, the only basis for God’s forgiveness is the blood of Christ shed on the cross for us. As the writer of Hebrews said, “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins (9:22), and the context makes it clear that it is Christ’s blood that provides the objective basis on which God forgives our sins.

 Happy Friday!

Our Peaceful Patio

We recently gave our back patio a makeover - hung flowers, potted plants, spread some mulch, ...etc. It was a fun project to work on together (my parents and sister helped too!) and we're so thankful for the extra living space. It's like we have one more room in our house.

Zach and I love sitting out here on pretty evenings. We'll play our favorite game, Bananagrams, or eat dinner. Sometimes we just do some leisure reading or talk a while. The most special part about the patio is that it's so peaceful. The flowers and plants,  the pretty chair pillows, the chirping birds and greenery provide the perfect ambiance for a calm evening. We especially love to entertain guests back here. 

We love to eat dinner out here. The atmosphere is absolutely perfect! Aren't the colors so welcoming?

My dad helped me paint this shabby table my favorite color (robin's egg blue). Notice the Bonnie's Plant Farm box? That's our compost and we acquired it for free! I love the look: a cute AND purposeful garden accessory :)

Zach bought me a sewing machine a month or so ago, but its been sitting just looking pretty since then. I've been sew excited :) to learn how to use the machine. I went to my friend Amanda's house last week and she taught me the basics. I'm so thankful! I sewed one pillow under her tutelage and the other at home. It felt good to work with my hands.  "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might..." Ecclesiastes 9:10

I love the end result, too!

I'm grateful that summer hasn't even begun and we have months of warm weather to enjoy our peaceful patio.

 Thanks for reading and stop by anytime for a warm visit out back :)

Weekly Happenings - May

A few pictures of what our family has been up to these past couple weeks! Enjoy :)

I bet not many people can say they have baby poop in their bible. Bruce left a nice little gift in Psalm 3 last week!

Zach and I each go to bed with a very large glass of water. Can you guess whose is whose?

Bruce and I had lunch with Kim, my preceptor and friend from work. We had a lot of fun catching up with her!

Uncle Joey, Whitney and Sam came to visit last week. My dad happened to be in town for a conference the same day. We all enjoyed a nice dinner together and a trip to the new Whole Foods that opened in the North Hills.

Guy time is a regular occurrence in this house!

I never know what they're up to....

But I know they're up to something.... Emmitt's face gives it away!

Zach took me out to dinner when my Dad was in town. He watched Bruce and we went on our first date since the baby was born. It was a very nice evening!

Little did Dad know that Bruce would have a total 45 minute melt down a couple hours after we left. They had good bonding time though :)

Josh Hamilton - A Story of God's Grace

Family and friends,

I was looking through espn.com yesterday and came across this video of Josh Hamilton. He is the centerfielder for the Texas Rangers and is a born-again Christian. I read his autobiography in one sitting on a bus ride for a baseball trip to Florida during my senior year of college. He does not claim to be a perfect Christian, and he isn't one. He was captivated by drugs and alcohol for a long period of time and he is still prone to temptation (as evidenced by a recent relapse in February 2012). He does not make excuses for his failures but honestly owns up to them. His story is a testimony to God's grace, and I am encouraged deeply. It is not how you start, but how you finish as a Christian (2 Timothy 4:6-8).

Being a Christian doesn't automatically make life struggles go away, and I think that this common misperception has a stranglehold on many Christians (myself included). If I think back to a year ago, I see that I still struggle with the same sins that I struggled with then. It is easy to be discouraged with indwelling sin, but in these instances we must remember the promises of the gospel "And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6). Our God is gracious.

Here is the PTI Video:

Here is Josh's testimony in 5 minutes:

A good friend of ours sent us this article, and we wanted to pass it on! May it 1) warm your heart like it did for us and 2) help us to re-orient our views of children. They are a blessing, not a burden!

Are Children Worth the Cost?

• Barbara Curtis, Crosswalk.com Contributor
• Wednesday, May 02, 2012

"Are those all your kids?” 
Now that most of my 12 kids are grown and I’m no longer wandering grocery store aisles with five or six in tow, I don’t hear those words very often.

I miss them.  Miss the Make Way for Ducklings days when my sweet progeny trailed behind me like I mattered more than anything in the world.

With my oldest at 41, adjusting to this phase of motherhood has been going on for a while and I think I’ve gotten the hang of it.  Still, even with half a dozen at home I feel a lot like an Empty Nester.

How grateful I am to have had so many children!  How grateful I am to have shifted paradigms, put aside my ZPG (Zero Population Growth) philosophy and learned that children are a resource richer than any we can discover, mine or develop.  Worth every sacrifice of time, money and energy.  More valuable than anything else I could have produced on my own.  My only meaningful stake in the future.  My offering when I stand before my Heavenly Father, hoping to hear, “Well done, my good and faithful servant.”

But God gave me a little taste of that heaven last week.

Maddy (#9) and I decided at the last minute to surprise Big Sis Sophia (#7) at college to catch a recital she thought no one in her spinning-in-every-direction family could attend. I will never forget the expression of joy on her face as she threw her arms around her sister.

Later we treated ourselves to dinner, shopped for the starving student at Goodwill and Walmart, and went back to her room to watch a chick flick on her laptop.

Then Sophia took her two-mattress stack apart and laid them side by side so she and Maddy and I could share a somewhat shifty full-size bed on the floor.  Maddy fell asleep instantly but Sophia – who’s always been a more tentative sleeper – talked and talked and talked.  The moment was so beautiful I could scarcely breathe.  I was thanking God for the years of sacrifice – sleepless nights, dirty diapers and highchair cleanup, driving lessons, trials and triumphs – which had earned these mystical moments hearing the new discoveries made by a grown up son or daughter.

And then she said something I’ll never, ever forget.

"Mommy, I love you so much.  Thank you so much for having a big family.   I love my brothers and sisters so much.  I know you and Dad sacrificed a lot to have all of us, but I can't imagine life without all of them."
The world teaches us that children come with a cost.  But they don’t teach that they come with a reward.  The reward is the harmony created in a home centered on God and His purpose.

In all the years I’ve been listening, no mom has ever told me she wished she had had fewer children, but at least a hundred have told me they wish they’d had more.

Children too are a gift from the LORD, the fruit of the womb, a reward (Psalm 127:4).

Not a burden, a reward.

Barbara Curtis is an author and mother of 12 who blogs at MommyLife.net.