DO YOU NEED ENCOURAGEMENT TODAY?

I know I did. This was taken from an article written by Elizabeth Smith, wife of HSLDA President Mike Smith in regards to homeschooling high school age kids. Though I don't quite fit into that category (yet), it blessed me immensely in my situation today. I hope it does you as well. God wants to "show Himself strong" on your behalf today!

For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect [at peace with or loyal] toward him..
II Chronicles 16:9 KJV


It is hard for me to wrap my mind around the concept that He is going back and forth over the whole world, continually scanning the earth, seeking us out and searching for those of us who are completely loyal to him. To me it means God is pursuing us with a desire to walk with us everyday. He says He does this because he wants to "show" His strength in the things we face day in and day out. He knows our frailties and the limitations of our human condition. And because He is a loving God, it gives Him pleasure to meet our needs in this way.

Saint Paul knew how to tap into God's strength for his life. In II Corinthians 12:10 he says, "Therefore I take pleasure in my infirmities.forChrist's sake: for when I am weak, then I am strong." KJV

The necessary ingredient we need for God to release His strength in our lives is humility. All we need to do is acknowledge our own need our weakness. Our willingness to humble ourselves and admit that we can't do it without Him is all He asks.

Wouldn't it be a little insulting to the Lord for Him to make us this offer and for us to disregard it? Hasn't He proved Himself by sending His own Son to earth to give His life to satisfy God's requirement that our sins be covered by Jesus' blood sacrifice? What more could God do to prove His love for us? It is through God's sheer power, or strength, that He raised His Son from the dead and won the final victory over sin and death. It is this very strength that is made available to us when He offers "to show Himself strong" on our behalf.

~ Elizabeth Smith

Christmas, Puppies, Home Improvement & More!

CHRISTMAS: We had a wonderful day at home for Christmas this year. The past two days we've played more "Horseopoly" than I ever thought I would (and she still isn't sick of it!) :) We spent the afternoon sledding behind the 4-wheeler in the hay field. I just never realize how OLD I'm getting until I do something like that. We had friends for dinner last night. The guys just chatted while the girls and the kids played games. We continued our tradition of spending the day celebrating Jesus' birthday. Everyone enjoyed the birthday cake.

We also managed to make gingerbread houses this year. These were the two that actually survived. If you're interested in the recipe I used to make these, let me know. I definitely think it's easier than graham crackers!

Does he look scared of his monkey or what??? It was very special celebrating Christmas with Aden this year -- his first Christmas.

Barns, horses & farm animals... there is no better present for my kids! Evan made the fences himself!

PUPPIES: I just had to post some more recent pictures of the growing puppies. They are 3 weeks old tomorrow. Including the one we're keeping, we have 4 spoken for. There are still some left if anyone is interested!

HOME IMPROVEMENT: Our schoolroom/office and entry are finally getting the mud done! Paint is next, and I'm SO excited!!!! It's so nice when Evan has a few days at home!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

May the true joy of knowing Jesus be yours this Christmas season! Love from our home to yours!

QUILT PROGRESS!!

We made our deadline! No pictures this time, but my quilt is on its way to Iowa where it will be machine quilted! YEAH!! My only job left is the binding! It ended up being so big that we had to buy king size batting for it. I couldn't believe how quickly we got these done. It was a rather simple pattern with large pieces, so I'm sure that helped. I will definitely post pictures of the finished product. The bears are the cutest! I have already started cutting out my next quilt, which I plan to hand quilt, so it will probably take me much longer. I'm addicted...

UPDATE & MISC. PICTURES

So, instead of going to bed early like I said I would do tonight, and instead of working on my quilt, and instead of getting my Christmas cards ready, I decided to update you all on what we've been up to.

It was quite the exciting weekend around here. Way too busy to experience every weekend, but it was sure fun! Around 4:30 Saturday morning, Mossy started having her puppies. She ended up having 9 total after surprising us twice when we thought she was done. She had 5 blacks, 4 chocolates, 4 of which were females and 5 males. We are going to keep a chocolate male, though it will be very hard to part with the rest of them!

Around 8:00 am that same morning, Evan took Myah and Joel to the "pig guy" where we picked up our pork that we we had butchered last week and picked out two new piglets -- "Biscuit" and "Oreo". They are tiny little things, that are just now being weaned from their mama.

Around 11:00 that same day, we left for Red Lodge to get our Christmas tree. We met two other families there, and had a great time. We didn't win the award for finding the best tree, but it definitely is one of the better ones that we've had in the past few years. We also enjoyed the Christmas stroll there. When we got back quite late, Evan wanted me to see the piglets because I hadn't gotten out there yet to see them. When we went out there, they were GONE! So, sometime around 11:30, we were wandering around looking for two little piglets with flashlights. After a long time, Evan found them in our neighbors horse shed. We could only catch one that night, but got the second one the next morning.

Sunday, we were too exhausted, so we stayed home. It had been two nights with very little sleep, so we had a day of rest at home. One of the things we did accomplish on Sunday was getting our family pictures taken. We decided to take the 4-wheeler down to the river and take them there. If you ever wondered how many people you can fit on a 4-wheeler at one time, we discovered you can fairly comfortably seat 6 people! :) It was a beautiful day, but you'll have to wait to get your Christmas card to see the best picture!

PUPPIES, PIGLETS, PINE TREES & PICTURES!

Life has been so FULL lately of fun and exciting things! I can't wait to share, so stay tuned for more details! (If I can ever find the time!!!)

A GREAT VERSE -- 2 Peter 1:3

His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue.

Makes me ask...how well do I KNOW Him???

RANDOM ADEN PICTURES

(I am trying to keep his baby album as full as his siblings'!)

QUILT PICTURES!

Here are some pictures of our progress. Quilting is quite the major operation with 5 kids trying to "help". :) We thought we were finished with the top piece tonight until we put one of the quilts on my bed and decided we needed to make it just a little bit wider. So, now we are planning some more how we can do that and still keep it looking the way we want it to. We are also in a bit of a time crunch as Rachel is bringing these home with her for Christmas to do the actual quilting on her mom's new quilting machine.

Cutting, cutting, cutting!

Planning -- this is one of my favorite parts!



Sewing...

Sewing...

Sewing while holding babies...

Isn't he cute???

The top piece is almost finished.

DEER CAMP 2008

Myah and Evan made some memories together.

A successful hunt!

Myah helping to drag the deer out.

ARE YAHWEH AND ALLAH THE SAME GOD?

Click here for the answer.

A FUN NEW RECIPE -- I really think you'll like these!

Hoot 'n Annie Pancakes

1/2 stick of butter melted in 9X13 pan while oven is preheating to 425.

Beat:
6 eggs
1 c. milk
1/4-1/2 tsp. salt
vanilla

Add & Beat:
1 c. flour

Bake 15-20 min. Serve with syrup or honey!

(Thanks to my friend Rachel for this recipe!)

MY FIRST QUILT

Here is the pattern for the quilt that I am starting. We are altering it a bit in order to make it bigger. My friend Rachel really has done all the grunt work for me, so much thanks goes to her! I never could do this without her! We're both making one, and I'm really looking forward to doing it together. It's the only way I'll ever successfully complete it. So, here we go!

FAMILY CAMP 2008

Our church has an annual Family Camp every fall on Labor Day weekend. This year, Evan had the privilege of being one of the speakers who shared that weekend. I would highly recommend listening to all of the messages. You can hear them all here. Our weekend was a study of the book of 1Thessalonians. Evan spoke on Chapter 3. There is also a huge selection of pictures to view. I just wanted to share some of the fun we had that weekend.

A HEAVY HEART...A PERFECT SOLUTION

Not sure why, but several people asked me what was bothering me today. I must have really had a "look" about me or something. I really couldn't tell them any one specific thing, but kind of concluded that I just sort of have a "heavy heart" today. Evan & Myah left for their hunting trip, and I spent some time with a close friend this evening from our church. As I started rambling a bit in response to this question, I sort of concluded that I simply have a lot on my mind right now.

When you're a parent, it seems your mind is constantly going to each child in many different areas. Thoughts of spending quality time with each one, discipline issues, school (in our case), heart issues (being the most important in my eyes) seem to clutter my mind on a daily basis -- then you mulitiply that times 4 and my brain is already hurting.

My heart is heavy for the lost -- people who don't know Jesus, or people who say they do, but spend their time living for themselves. If you can't tell from much of my blogging lately, I'm feeling called to speak truth and be bold about it. I spend a lot of my free time, (or housework time) listening to various teachings, meditating on something I read or am memorizing in God's Word and I just ache for people who are living their lives focused on the wrong things. I ache for people I know to really love Jesus personally. I feel like I fit into that category for so many years, and God has given me a new zeal for Him and His Word and I just want to shout about it. I don't ever want to go back to where I was before. I want to make the most of every day I have to make a difference for the kingdom of God.... because so many people are perishing....

My heart is heavy about post-election stuff. I can't say I was all that surprised about the outcome. I knew Mr. Obama would win. As a result, I worry about my homeschool freedoms slowly being sucked away. I worry about all the little babies that will suffer pain and not have a chance at life because of new laws promised to be made. Literally, I get sick to my stomach just thinking about it. I just can't believe people can even think that that's okay. Where are the morals in this country? I have been realizing that God is in the process of separating the goats from the sheep in our churches today. I so badly want to make sure everyone I know is a sheep. There is a "true church". A beautiful bride for Christ.

These are just a couple of the things heavy on my heart today....

.... so I will pray. God is in control. He allowed Barack Obama to be the next leader of this country. God has greater plans for my children than I could ever imagine. He loves every single one of those tiny babies who will be aborted and will take them home to Him. He has not called me to a spirit of fear, but a sound mind. I am not suppose to worry about anything, but pray about everything. I praise God that He is in control. No matter what storms may come, I put my trust in Him, and I lay all my fears at His feet. I pray you are a sheep, willing to walk the narrow path and make a difference in this dark world that we live in. That is what we are called to do. Nothing else matters. So join me. Be bold for Jesus. Be a light in this dark world. Look different than the world. I'm starting to feel like people look at me as being "weird" and nothing could make me happier. I want to live my life 100% for Jesus Christ.

ARE YOU A TRUE CHILD OF GOD?

http://www.christian-best-music-videos.org/Christian_video_26.php

FUN WITH A GUN!

This weekend, we had some fun shooting at pumpkins. It was my first time shooting a hand gun. I'd feel much safer camping and hiking in bear country having one of these around. We have always carried bear spray, which they say is better, but I'm not so sure. Though Myah isn't old enough to hunt herself, she will be heading out to her first "deer camp" with Evan. They will sleep in a big wall tent with a wood stove and eat like royalty! They are both pretty excited!

A Question to ask yourself....

IS JESUS PRECIOUS TO YOU?

If you struggle to answer this question, then seek His face. Tell Him you want Him to be precious to you. One way to know that we are His is if we can honestly answer this question in a positive way. Your heart will desire to seek Him and please Him in every area of your life. Our country, our communities, and our churches are filled with people professing to be evangelical Christians, but still look like the world in how they live. If Jesus is precious to you, you will not look like the world. My thoughts again go to this... we are called to walk the narrow road.

(put into my own words, these are a couple of thoughts taken from a communion message given this past Sunday by Evan...)

"PRO-LIFE"

This post is in response to the idea that the term pro-life refers not only to abortion, but also to social agendas as well. I am aware of this new way of thinking, though I greatly disagree with this idea. Poverty, war, and healthcare issues are important, but shouldn't be put on the same level as abortion.

Read this letter from Julie's blog. Though it's not obvious, I do think this letter addresses this issue as well. It all boils down to following God's Word and voting as a Christ-follower first, above everything else.

FALL EVENING

I just went out with my camera and the kids and took a few shots. Enjoy!

Aden 3-1/2 months

The girls with our new cat "Casey"

ADEN JUDAH'S DEDICATION

I love how our pastor has chosen to do baby dedications at our church. He always puts a lot of thought into each one and makes it very personal for each baby. Aden was the only one being dedicated this past Sunday and I wanted to share a bit of what Pastor Wayne shared.

He always starts by giving examples of child dedication in Scripture -- Mary & Joseph bringing Jesus, Hannah brought Samuel to Eli, and the example of Jesus blessing the little children. In his words, "We believe that baptism is such an important step in the life of a believer and that is why we dedicate and not baptize our children. Believing that when children mature and accept the Lord as their personal Lord and Savior, they then should be baptized as a symbolic act of their love and devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ."

The tradition at Calvary Chapel is to look at the meaning of the name of the child because in Scripture names frequently had meaning and spoke to the character of the individual. Pastor Wayne then finds verses that go along with the names and it is his prayer that these will become life long verses.

Aden is Irish and means "Fiery" or "Little Fire"

Judah is Jewish and means "praise" or "celebrated"

The Scripture that PW talked about was in Revelation 5 when John saw in the right hand of the One who sat on the throne a scroll that had seven seals. Then he saw a strong angel who proclaimed with a loud voice asking who was worthy to take the scroll and open the seven seals. No one could be found and so John wept because there was no one worthy. Then one of the elders said to John in verse 5, "Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals."

Pastor Wayne's thoughts...

"As I thought about this and the meaning of the two names, the word that stood out to me was the word, "prevailed". Aden, fiery, suggested to me passion. Judah, praise, prevailing -- passionate in praise, prevailing were the thoughts that came to my mind. So putting that all together, my prayer for this little guy is that his life will be marked by passionate, prevailing praise. It is my prayer that at an early age Aden Judah will have a divine encounter with the Lord that will indeed set the course of his life to love and serve God with all his heart all the days of his life."

We also received flowers. A red carnation represents fatherhood and the bloodline; a white carnation representing motherhood -- virtue and character; and a budding rose represents a new life that is unfolding in fragrance and beauty to the world.

Unfortunately my photos from his dedication were all very blurry. But I hope this helps those of you who wish you could have been there to get a glimpse of his special day.

MYAH IS 8!

Myah had her 8th birthday last Friday. We had a simple celebration with our family and her good friend, Faith, who spent the night. Enjoy a few pictures of her special day!

Working on paint by numbers together

Faith gave Myah a paint by number for her birthday, with horses of course!