A Writers Block

My son has inspired me. I’m sure that’s an astounding thought for some of you who know him but he has. He came down the stairs last night asking, “Mommy, do you like my stamps?” It took a minute for me to realize what he had done but only a split second to know that there would be quite a mess waiting for me upstairs. While Kayla had been playing on the computer, my son had taken my “PAID” stamp and posted it all over himself. “PAID September 04, 2007” it read. I was holding Sierra and immediately looked to Scott and said, “This one’s yours.” Then I turned around so I could burst into hysterical laughter, as quietly as possible, of course. Scott turned around, glanced at Colton, looked at me and then back again. I ran down the hallway for the camera and listened for what Scott would do. By now, Colton was wondering if it was such a good idea to show us his artwork. Scott and I, very coolly asked him to show us his stamps and took a picture. Neither of us were very composed by the time...

It's been a while since I've written and with good reason... pregnancy is not an easy thing for some of us. I look back on the last 9 months and wonder how I did it. I can only say that God was definitely a part of it!! This pregnancy was an emotional battle, right down to the delivery. Each day was a new hurdle, each night a new leg of the race. The words "one day at a time" took on new meaning. Even knowing the joy that I would feel once this child was here was not enough to get me to the finish line. God and his gifts to me, my husband and kids, kept me running. When we showed up at the hospital and I was too close to delivering to get pain relief I wanted to bail on the whole race. Obviously, that was not an option. God was good and gave me some wonderful coaches and an amazingly quick delivery (oh my...). Running the race (whatever that may be for you) may not be a choice. Actually running may take everything in you and then some to do. The finish line may seem ...

“If it seems a childish thing to do, do it in remembrance that you are a child.” Frederick Buechner I once thought this a fabulous quote until my son tested us on this the other day. Kayla and Colton share an upstairs bathroom which is rarely visited by my pregnant self. Drudging up the stairs is not one of my favorite things, especially when it means I have to confront the pigsty that is my children's domain. Needless to say, much can go on without being noticed for a while. Which was the case this past week. Kayla came in to find the cardboard TP tube in the toilet. "Dad, there's something in the toilet and I have to go really bad!" My first thought was... where is the toilet paper holder... ya know, the springy thing you put the roll on? Scott went up, fished out the cardboard, and we were back to normal... or so we thought. Three or four clogs later we were wondering what else our son had put into the toilet (there could be no other suspect or explanation). Plung...

Has God ever offended you? Has he ever caused you to question why he would choose to do something a certain way? Have you struggled to hold on to your faith because of what God did or did not do in your life? In order to be offended by someone I think you first have to have expectations of them or the situation. God asks us to believe in faith that what we ask will happen but there are those times when the answer is still no, not yet, or just a general negative. No explanation. Just a “no” the size of Texas in the face of cancer, bankruptcy, loss, pain, death, or your greatest fear. I was reading (in my Beth Moore study) about John the Baptist in Matthew 11. It is when he is in prison awaiting his execution and he sends some of his disciples to ask Jesus a question. John wanted to know if Jesus really was the one God sent for him to precede. I think John’s real question might have been, “Is there a chance that I misunderstood that you were the Messiah? Cuz, if I did then I know I won’t...

Today was one of those days... Friends came over and brightened my morning, the sun shined bright, and I was having fun. Then they went home and my son started the whining that we all love so much. It was Mommy this and Mommy that, my feet swelled up the size of watermelons, my lips are so chapped they cracked, the whining continues (mine now added to it), I didn't have one crucial item for the dinner I really wanted to make, and Sierra feels like she weighs 50 pounds. And now my office chair won't stay up. No, it's not because I'm the size of a walrus! It just won't stay up. I'm typing with my knees up to my boobs, which is very interesting when your pregnant, I must say! So the day seems kind of dim but I sat down resolved to see the bright spots in my day through all of the gloom I feel. I reflect and I can see that in the midst of it all my husband keeps checking on me to make sure I'm okay, he put up a door for my laundry room, and my daughter has been ...

My husband has been challenging, whether he knows it or not, to get my butt back into the word and my mind back on God. This weekend he had me help him memorize the passage in Ephesians 4 about the Armor of God. Once again, this was another passage I’ve read a lot and even memorized at one point. I love how scripture never says the same thing to me when I’m open to what God wants me to hear. So the armor consists of the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, feet fitted with readiness from the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, the sword of the spirit, and prayer. I’ve heard a lot of detailed steps and explanations for each item but just reading it can give you quite a picture of what’s needed to stand in the face of evil. The imagery is so cool! The one that stood out this time was the shield of faith. Here’s how the verse reads: “In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil ...

“Praise the Lord, O my soul; all of my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits – who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” Psalm 103:1-5 There was a guy in my college choir who exemplified this passage. He had an amazing gift of music and charisma that you just couldn’t miss. Shoot, you couldn’t help but join in! While he was with us, his father became very ill but each time you asked him about it his answer was the same. “He’s doing well and I’m praisin’ God.” Even after his father passed on he would say, “I’m just praisin’ God.” I could see the pain in his face but that was far overshadowed by the praise he was determined to give his Creator. The Psalms are full of passages that begin with the agony that the author is feeling and end with the resolv...

"...I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day." 2 Timothy 1:12 I read this the other day and something new popped out at me. Do you see it? It's a huge challenge to me. For that day... . Each day? It just seemed crazy that it was so simple and yet I overlook that idea constantly. I know God takes care of things for me. I know he guards my kids and husband. I know he's the one I have put my trust in for anything and everything that comes to my mind (however, psycho and hormonal it may be right now). I know he can do things better than I can ever even conspire to do them. But have I given him my day's dilemmas? My frustrations? Worries? Tasks? Family? The list is daunting some days. But like a mom leaving her child at the daycare center, I have to entrust him to take care of whatever I give over. I'm one who also doesn't like to bother God with my silly little things so this is almost lik...