TIS WILL BE A CHRISTMAS TO REMEMBER THIS YEAR...

Surprises. I love them and hate them at the same time. The best part is being on the side of the one giving the surprise, and Christmas as a parent gives perfect opportunities for that.

Three new critters will be welcomed to our farm this winter, and will hopefully bring some smiles to some sweet faces. Kiana wanted nothing but a bunny this Christmas, so after some looking and phone calls, we found another 4H family who sells babies. She had 2 left... how could we take just one? Even though it wasn't on his list, Joel is getting the second one. He needs something other than a chicken to snuggle... :) I think he'll like her.

I think the best part though, will be to see the look on Myah's face when she wakes up and sees a new horse in the pasture (if we can pull it off, that is -- a horse is not an easy gift to hide!) We have been looking ever since Noodles died and praying for the right one to come along. We found this one through our friend, Aaron. She is a beautiful paint mare. We are getting her on a trial basis, as it's been a while since she's been ridden, so we need to try her out and see if she'll work for our family. She has the sweetest temperment, though, and I instantly liked her when we went to look at her.

The plan is to bring the kids to our friends' house here in town while Evan and I go pick her up the afternoon of Christmas Eve. We will bring her home, and then head to their house for dinner, coming back after dark, so Myah can't see her.... until Christmas morning! I can't wait!

"DON'T EXPECT A PERFECT REPENTENCE"

Anyone who read my previous post on Matthew 7 or watched either You Tube video regarding that, no matter what your thoughts were on that, please take the few minutes to watch this. Paul Washer talks to the person who says, "I have repented and I have believed, but it's not working!"

Terri's Antelope Hunt 2009
(Posted by Evan, Terri's not braggin', I am)

MICHIGAN TRIP

We recently took a trip back to our homestate of MI for Evan's grandmother's funeral. We decided we were leaving on a Saturday and left the next day, so it was a quick decision. We only had one week total, including travel time, but the time we had with family was wonderful. Here is a little glimpse of our time there.

(Right: Kiana holding Papa Kirk's rabbit. We hope to get her one of her own for Christmas, since that is all she has on her list!)


We had one day to relax at Evan's parents house, which is where these first few photos were taken. Aden loved the little tricycle. We took a walk to Grandma's house and land that had just passed away. The weather was beautiful that day.













The beautiful crew of kids lined up on the couch at our friends' house after the funeral.

The following day we relaxed at my parents house. Many of my relatives dropped in to see us. It was so good to relax and not go anywhere, give Aden good naps for a day, and see some people that we miss dearly living so far away.

Our family with my Grandparents on my dad's side.

Myah watching the snow begin to fall outside Grandma's kitchen window. It ALWAYS snows when we travel to MI in Dec.!

4 Generation photo with my mom and my grandma

Aden with Uncle Tim. We felt bad we couldn't see the rest of his family, but they were sick and didn't want to pass it to us. We missed you guys!

Evan and kids with his grandpa (on his mom's side) Kids were exhausted at this point (especially little girl on the right, who was rather uncooperative ....)

We ended the trip before the long drive home with a night in Chicago with Evan's family to celebrate his parents 40th wedding anniversary. We spent a day at Shedd's Aquarium, celebrated Christmas in the hotel, and had a nice dinner together. It was a wonderful way to end our week back.

Joel with Sears Tower in background

Evan's parents

Kids with cousin Derrell

THIS GOES ALONG WITH MY PREVIOUS POST

I think these men explain Matthew 7 better than I ever could. They ask if anybody cares. I do care. That's why I'm posting this. Again, I'm asking, if you watch this, watch all the way through it, else you might walk away with the idea that they support a "works-based" salvation, which they definitely do not. This is very obvious at the end. Be sure to pause the music at the bottom before watching...

A WARNING FROM MATTHEW 7

If you begin to read this, please read to the end.

The Lord has had me in Matthew chapter 7 for some time now. The kids and I are studying through Matthew this year, and we just finished chapter 7. I have also recently been listening to some good teaching on this chapter. Evan has been studying here, and a recent YouTube video mentioned this passage as well that was sent our way. I love it when God does that because I know that He's really trying to speak to me when I get bombarded from so many directions.

In some ways, I hesitate to write this post, even though I'm not even sure where it's going to take me yet. I had a dream last night, however, and upon praying about it, had this laid on my heart pretty strongly. I am aware that people may call me judgemental for this, and that is okay. At the end of the day, even if the rest of the world is mad at me, if Christ is pleased, that's all that matters. And when I have a burning in my heart, knowing He has called me to speak forth truth that He has recently shown me, and I don't do it, I am disobeying. What He does with this truth in your hearts, is completely up to Him, and I praise Him for that. What He has done with this truth in my own heart is my responsibility, and I praise Him for the work he has done and pray He will contine to do in my own heart.


The section in Matthew that has been impressed on me as of late is chapter 7:13-23. I'm going to break it down.

Mat 7:13 "Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.
Mat 7:14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.

One thing that really struck me is that when I look at the context of this passage, Jesus is talking to those who call themselves believers. They are following Him around, listening to His teachings. The people on the wide and easy path are not only the ones we may see as being obvious "sinners" in this world, like the murderers, rapists, prostitutes, hollywood people, etc. He is talking to "church" people. There are few of those who call themselves believers that actually find the narrow gate and live the difficult way that leads to heaven. That is a scary thought.

Mat 7:15 "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
Mat 7:16 You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
Mat 7:17 So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit.
Mat 7:18 A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit.
Mat 7:19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
Mat 7:20 Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.

From this passage, I see that we are to be purposeful about looking for fruits in all the teachers we listen to and in people who call themselves believers. I fear there are so many teachers out there today who are described in this passage. We are called to examine fruits. It's not hard to walk up to an apple tree and see that it's bursting forth with healthy apples and not rotten apples. It is the same for knowing other believers in general. Is there bountiful fruit, or diseased fruit? If their isn't good fruit, the whole tree will be thrown into the fire.

Mat 7:21 "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
Mat 7:22 On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?'
Mat 7:23 And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.'

So, how do we know the difference between a true believer and one who just says it, but isn't? The question we are to ask is, does the person (do I?) do the will of my Father in heaven? People who do all sorts of works in the name of Christ will be turned away in heaven. So, I ask you, as I have asked myself and continue to ask myself, not only do I declare Christ, but does HE KNOW ME? Many people who pray a prayer look at that day as their salvation and hold soley to that for their assurance of salvation, but live their lives however they choose, not at all according to Scripture. They look no different than the rest of the world, except that they go to church on Sundays, and maybe pray before they eat and try to live a good life. That does not save a person, nor does it give proof of a person's salvation! When God truly does a regenerating work in a person's heart, there are fruits to show for it. Their desire is for their whole life to reflect Jesus. Their desire is to bring glory to Jesus in everything they do. Jesus will be precious to each and every believer. Believers show love to one another in all circumstances, even when there is disagreement among them. Believers keep His commandments and hate sin. They are greatly offended when the Lord's name is taken in vane. They cannot watch movies full of foul language and immorality because their own hearts won't allow them to do so. They hate the things of this world, and want nothing to do with it. A true believer holds all things in light of Scripture, and is willing to humble themselves and admit when something they previously believed does not line up with Scripture and turn from those beliefs. They crave knowing truth and study the Scriptures to find it. The things of this world will grow strangely dim, and a true believer is okay with that because this world is not our home. I have asked and will continue to ask myself these questions, and now I ask you. Is this true in your life, or are you at least heading in this direction? We are not instantly perfect at our salvation and all true believers are in the process of sanctification, but we definitely show that we are heading in the direction of pleasing Jesus and reflecting Him more every day. There is proof that the Holy Spirit is at work in our lives. Keep in mind, it is not these things that save us, but it is these things that give us assurance of our salvation. Heaven is at stake. As Nate says in the YouTube video above, Many people go to hell who NEVER thought they'd be there. I just don't want anyone who reads this to be one of them.

So, if you're not sure of your salvation, what do you do? Cry out to Him. Throw yourself onto Jesus and cling only to Him. Give Him your hopes and dreams, your passions and desires and lay them at the foot of the cross. That is what true surrender looks like. That is all we have to offer him. Repent and believe. Truly repent and continue repenting every day of your life. Believe, and continue to believe every day of your life. Cling to the Word of God and study it with your whole heart. Live every day doing the will of your Father in heaven.

THE WORD OF GOD -- from Psalm 119

Why is the Word of God more important than anything else?

Why should we hold all things in its light?

Why should we meditate on it every spare moment we can and place it above all else? (including other reading material)

The Psalmist in Psalm 119, talks about "meditating on, keeping your, and teach me your ... statutes" over 18 times in that one chapter, and that doesn't include the times he refers to keeping "the Word", "precepts", or "testimonies" instead of the word "statutes", which is many times more. If we want to "be blameless according to His statues" (vs. 80), we need the WORD OF GOD, and we need to study it! (I'm talking to myself here, too!)

*******************************************

This entire list is taken from Psalm 119, (and don't forget to read the paragraph at the end of the list because it makes it all come together!)

The Word is important to keep me from sinning. (vs. 11)
The Word gives strength. (vs. 28)
When we fear Him, the Word is established to us. (vs. 38)
Salvation comes according to the Word. (vs. 41)
We have hope in the Word. (vs. 49, 74, 81, 114, 147)
The Word gives us life. (vs. 50)
We are dealt with from the Lord according to the Word. (vs. 65)
The Word is our delight. (vs. 77)
The Word is settled in heaven forever. (vs. 89(
The Word is sweet to our taste, sweeter than honey to our mouth. (vs. 103)
The Word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. (vs. 105)
The Word revives us. (vs. 107, 154)
The Word upholds us that we may live. (vs. 116)
The Word is righteous. (vs. 123)
The Word gives light and understanding to the simple. (vs. 130)
The Word directs our steps. (vs. 133)
The Word is pure and we can love it. (vs. 140)
The Word is truth. (vs. 142)
We should meditate on the Word through night watches. (vs. 148)
We should stand in awe of the Word. (vs. 161)
We should rejoice at the Word and see the Word as a treasure. (vs. 162)
Those who love it have great peace. (vs. 165)
The Word brings understanding. (vs. 169)
The Word brings deliverance. (vs. 170)
The Word should be our delight. (vs. 174)

Remember John 1:1 -- "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." Who is the Word?? JESUS! Yes! Put His name in place of "The Word" in each of those phrases.... it is Jesus who is all those things to us. And the only way to KNOW JESUS is through the Word of God, which has been given to us!

"The entirety of your Word is truth and every one of your righteous judgements endures forever." Psalm 119:160

"Rivers of water run down from my eyes because men do not keep your law." Psalm 119:136

"You reject those who stray from Your statues." Psalm 119:118

I am heartbroken over the lazyness in my own life when it comes to studying this amazing gift God has given us. Lord, help me to see the Word of God as the treasure that it is, truly a gift from you! "Turn away my eyes from looking at worthless things" (vs. 37) and turn my eyes to You. Teach me your statutes. I want to meditate on your statutes. I long to be blameless according to your statutes.

CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS

I got this e-mail today, and laughed my head off. I thought I'd share it here. I have no idea whose story this is, but I hope it brings a smile to your face! Be sure to read the caption that goes with the photo below!

Good news is that I truly outdid myself this year with my Christmas decorations. The bad news is that I had to take him down after two days. I had more people come screaming up to my house than ever. Great stories. But two things made me take it down.

First, the cops advised me that it would cause traffic accidents as they almost wrecked when they drove by. Second, a 55 year old lady grabbed the 75 pound ladder, almost killed herself putting it against my house and didn't realize that it was fake until she climbed to the top (she was not happy). By the way, she was one of the many people who attempted to do that. My yard couldn’t take it either. I have more than a few tire tracks where people literally drove up my yard.

EVAN'S NIGHT...IN HIS OWN WORDS

Went to pick up Joel at friends house, found out he lost one lens out of his glasses. Found lens after tearing couch apart, which homeowners had done already, twice. Took kids to go get Christmas tree, place where we were going to buy tree is closed. Went to IGA, got Christmas tree, tie rod end broke on truck in IGA parking lot. Left truck. Got ride home from IGA. Tried to find Christmas tree stand. Tore apart bunkhouse, feed shed and lean too. Could not find it. Found dead chicken that got stuck in a tube instead. Went to Pamida to buy new tree stand, they sold out yesterday. Got home and discovered Gunner had tore his ear open and proceeded to bleed all over the place, and shake his head violently so that blood covers house, windows, clothes, deck, etc.... Get bleeding to stop and Gunner then proceeds to shake head violently to cause bleeding again.... all over deck, siding, window, clothes, etc..... Try looking for Christmas tree stand in basement, proceed to knock over box full of glass jars which break on concrete floor. Go back out to look for Christmas tree stand in bunkhouse, feed shed, lean too. Did not find it there. Went back into basement, cleaned up broken glass and proceeded to look for stand. Found stand buried in back corner of "storage area". Set up tree in found stand. Tree frozen, kids can't decorate until it thaws..... Went back out to find Gunner bleeding all over everything again. By this time he has lost enough blood that he does not shake head violently, proceeded to wrap ear with guaze. Split some firewood for the wood burner, found a splitting maul that is not mine leaning against the fence by horse tank. Wood splits nice when it is -15 degrees. Now Gunner is scratching on the door.... truck is still in IGA parking lot, if no one has stolen it...

THE ONE TRUE GOD

We started going through this book with our kids last night. It's a great study on the attributes of God, and is built solely on Scripture. Just thought I'd pass along this resource!

THE NARROW PATH/BIBLICAL MANHOOD

Here is yet another amazing teaching by Paul Washer, once again about the narrow path. Even if you've listened to him before and weren't sure what you thought, try this one... And yes, I realize he is not the only good Bible teacher out there, but he is one of the main teachers who God is using in my life at this time. Evan and I have listened to a lot of his stuff, and seriously are challenged every single time we do.

This one, titled, "What it takes to be a man", we listened to on our way home from MI just a few days ago. It isn't JUST for men, though there is some good solid teachings for men. It includes some good stuff for women, and also Biblical approaches to dating, which is helpful for every parent. It spends some solid time talking about training up boys to be men, so if you have sons, I think you'll be blessed.

I could list so many more, (remember, we just took a long road trip!), but I'll leave you with these for now. If you do listen, let me know what you think!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO EVERYONE!!

A GLIMPSE OF HUNTING SEASON

Riding to deer camp

Kiana in camo

My friend Jamie and I... not sure what I'd do without her!

Aden walking around camp

Evan's mulie buck

The Uncanned Condensed Soup

(from Whole Foods For the Whole Family)

Due to a request for this recipe, I decided to post it here so more people can use it! Enjoy!

3 T. butter
3 T. flour
1/4 t. salt
dash of pepper
1 1/4 C. milk or broth

Melt butter in saucepan. Stir in flour and seasonings. Cook over medium heat until bubbly, stirring frequently. Add milk slowly, stirring with wire whisk to prevent lumps. Cook until thick. May add any sauteed veggies or liquid combinations you choose or substitute stock for milk or oil for butter. Yield: 1 Cup (This is so much better than store bought soups!)

Tomato: Use tomato juice for liquid. Add dash of garlic and onion powder, basil and oregano

Mushroom/Celery/Chive: Saute 1/4 C. chopped mushrooms, celery or chives and 1 T. minced onion in butter before adding flour

Cheese: Add 1/2 C. shredded cheese after the liquid. Stir until melted.

Chicken: Substitute chicken broth for half or all of the liquid. Add 1/4 t. poultry seasoning or sage.

"NOW" written by Karen S. McGary

The time is here for the church to wake up! No more complacency, no more apathetic lukewarm excuses! We must come before the Lord with desperate hearts! We must throw aside everything that entangles and every sin that holds us back and fall on our faces before our King. We must let the Holy Spirit turn up ground that has never seen the light. We cannot care any longer what others think of us. We cannot let fear rob us of what God Almighty longs to do in our lives and through our church! Arise church! Wake up! Do you want Him completely? Or do you want just a safe measure of Him? How can we have tasted of all His goodness and not give ourselves over to Him with reckless abandon!? What can the world offer us but heartache and deception; fleeting pleasures that wrap us in defeat? The Lord gives us life! Life abundant, forgiveness and truth! The church for too long has been sleeping and now that the last days are upon us we must wake up before it is too late! Know Him now! Surrender completely now! Serve Him with hearts brimming with love and adoration! Worship Him because He is worthy! Enter into prayer. Fast and seek Him wholeheartedly! Listen and cry out! The world wars for your soul but greater is He that is in you than he who is in the world! Do you believe that church?! We always want to make it someone elses fault: "well, they aren't seeking the Lord with passion" or "that person isn't opening up and letting the Spirit move." Is the Lord asking you to be the first? Is He asking you to lay your life down? Radical faith is our desperate need right now. Faith that is bold enough to throw caution to the wind and obey His voice.

TACO CASSEROLE

4 cups cooked brown rice
5 cups cooked pinto beans (I cut back on beans and added 1 lb. ground meat)
16 oz. frozen corn
1 1/2 qt. canned diced tomatoes, processed in blender (didn't do the blender thing)
1 Tbsp. chili powder
1 tsp. salt
15 oz. can olives, sliced
1/2 tsp. onion powder
grated cheese

Mix and simmer all ingredients (except cheese) for 5 min. Put a scoop of mixture in the bottom of a casserole dish. Spread a layer of tortillas on top of the mixture. Spread another layer of mixture, layer with cheese, and then top with tortillas. End with mixture and top with lots of cheese. Bake at 350* for 20 minutes.

This can easily be cut in half for a smaller crowd. This made a huge casserole! Could probably put 1/2 in freezer and get two meals out of each batch for our big family.

SIMPLE THOUGHTS ON REPENTENCE

Growing up, I always had it in my head that to repent of my sin, I had to sit down, tell God I was sorry and pray for Him to forgive me and not do it again. There is huge merit in this, and I am attempting to teach my own children to do this. What I didn't also realize is that there are some things I have repented of, but never really put a whole lot of mental effort to, except that I knew it was something I shouldn't do anymore. Let me explain. To repent means to turn the other way -- 180 degrees. Frequently in the gospels, Jesus tells people to "Go and sin no more." He is telling them to repent. He doesn't say, go and pray about your sin and then stop sinning. In a nutshell, that's what repentence is -- going and sinning no more! Sometimes I believe that may mean spending time weeping before the Lord over it, and other times, just to stop doing it. Either way, the 180 degree turn is the repentence, not the prayer. So many times, a person will say they are sorry, cry to God for forgiveness, and then two days later, be back in the same sin. They never repented. True repentence means to turn and not go back. No, we will not be perfect, and we may slip, but we will be moving in the direction of becoming more Christ-like and making huge strides in that direction.

MYAH'S BIRTHDAY

It came and went, and I have not had a chance to share pictures yet. She turned 9 this year. Can't believe we'll hit double digits next year already. She had two of her local friends over for a sleepover this year. I loved the giggles all night long.


Myah is an amazing child, whose dream is to someday train horses and be a missionary. Her favorite thing to do is train her baby goat, ride horses, anything with art, and read, read, READ! She's a farm-girl through and through, loves every kind of animal that God created, loves to run, milk goats, and play with her calf. When she's not outside, she's usually curled up in one of her favorite spots reading a book. God has truly blessed us with Myah in our family, and we know that He has big plans for her. We are excited to see what He has in store every day for her! (The photo above is a recent painting she did of mountain goats. We just sent it in for a contest. She named it "King of the Mountain".)


My prayer for you, my daughter, is that you will serve God with all that is within you, seek to know His will every day He blesses you with, become passionate about KNOWING HIM and His Word, and become an amazing prayer warrior that God uses to change this world. I love you so much!

The girls painted on aprons for a craft project. Myah painted Noodles, one week before He died. Noodles was her first horse.

Her cake request was chocolate cherry with mint frosting. It was yummy!

Brittney, Joel, Kiana, Faith & Myah.

ISAIAH 43

Karen passed this on earlier this week, and I FINALLY got a chance to sit and read it. It was so good, I had to share some of it. It was all good, but I did pick through it a little to condense just a bit. This is from David Guzik's commentary on Isaiah 43:1-7. In light of the past couple of weeks, this has been powerful to me personally!



Reasons not to fear.


1. (1) Fear not, knowing you belong to the Lord.


But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine.”


a. Says the Lord, who created you . . . and He who formed you: God speaks to His people as their Creator. God has a special and unique claim upon us because He is our Creator. When men forget or reject God as Creator, they fail in the most basic obligation they have to God.


b. Fear not: This is a command, accompanied by promises. By outward circumstances, the people of Judah had reason to be afraid of Babylon’s army and exile. God points them past the present circumstances to both this command and promise.


c. For I have redeemed you: Not only did Israel have obligation to God as their Creator, by also as their Redeemer. He is the one who bought them out of literal exile and spiritual slavery.

d. I have called you by your name; You are mine: God twice owns His people. He has right of ownership both as Creator and Redeemer. His ownership is personal, because He says I have called you by your name. His ownership is certain, because He seals it by saying You are mine.


i. Knowing we belong to the Lord is a wonderful answer to fear. We can know that He holds us, protects us, guards us, and cares for us. We can know that He would not have created, redeemed, and called us unless He intended to finish His work in us. How can we be afraid when we know this God is for us, is looking out for our interests?


2. (2-7) Fear not, knowing the Lord is with you.


When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I gave Egypt for your ransom, Ethiopia and Seba in your place. Since you were precious in My sight, you have been honored, and I have loved you; therefore I will give men for you, and people for your life. Fear not, for I am with you; I will bring your descendants from the east, and gather you from the west; I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ and to the south, ‘Do not keep them back!’ Bring My sons from afar, and My daughters from the ends of the earth; everyone who is called by My name, whom I have created for My glory; I have formed him, yes, I have made him.


a. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you: Through any potential obstacle, God will be with us. Deep waters? I will be with you. Must you walk through the fire? Then you shall not be burned. When God is with us, He is for us, and who can be against us?


i. Israel had and would have their trials, but we have ours also. Trials are inevitable; it doesn’t say if you pass through the waters, it says when you pass through the waters. The text doesn’t say, “When you walk on a luxurious padded carpet, I will be with you.” It says God will be with us in the toughest of circumstances. Trials are varied; sometimes we face waters, sometimes rivers, and sometimes fire. Floods overwhelm, fires consume.



b. But God helping us, we can walk through the fire. We don’t have to panic, we don’t have to fear, and we don’t have to run as if we didn’t trust God. He can so strengthen us in our trials that we can walk through the fire!

i. “Walking is the pace at which you go when you are not in a hurry, when you are not concerned or alarmed. When you are not burdened or anxious, then you walk. ‘He that believeth shall not make haste’ (Isaiah 29:16).” (Redpath)

c. Since you were precious in My sight: God here describes the motivation for His work of redemption. He loves us! We are precious in His sight! This is an Old Testament example of the truth in John 3:16: For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son.

d. Fear not, for I am with you; I will bring your descendants from the east: God’s presence and blessing with Israel would also be demonstrated by unleashing the shackles of their exile. They could have hope for the future because they knew they were called by the name of the Lord, and they were created for His glory.

i. Whom I have created for My glory means that God not only has created us, but that He has created us for a purpose. If we have no Creator, then we are purposeless; but God has created us and He did it for a purpose, creating us for His glory. This means that when we are glorifying God, we are fulfilling the purpose we were created for, and will therefore be the most happy and fulfilled.

GOD'S HELP AND GRACE

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 2 Corinthians 12:9-10

God gave me these verses last week, and this morning, I had the Psalm 121 song running through my head. You can listen to it here. (I wish I knew how to post youtube videos!)

I will lif tup my eyes to the hills -- from whence comes my help? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade at your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul. The Lord shall preserve you going out and your coming in from this time forth, and even forevermore. Psalm 121

The battle has been heating up. The enemy is not turning his head away from what we are trying to do for the Lord with attempting to teach our children the things of the Lord, and also on Thursday nights. We are not dumb to think that my car accident, broken water lines, sick children (had it not been for the albuteral inhaler, we may have been in the ER with Kiana again this weekend!), and now our seven year old horse getting a rare infection and dying in less than a week, comes from anywhere but the enemy. But we will not be discouraged! God is allowing these things in our lives to build character, and He is not leaving us to fight the battle by ourselves. "My help comes from the Lord, maker of heaven and earth!" "His grace is sufficient and His power is made perfect in our weakness!" Praise Him!



We may feel in over our heads on Thursday nights, but we are not alone, and that is right where Christ wants us -- totally dependant upon Him. We feel weak, but His strength is greater! The One who created everything goes through those doors with us. He is the One who must do the work. We are just not to get discouraged and we are to plug along. We are also learning so much through this experience. We can have confidence because of the One who gives it, and must be willing to not focus on meaningless or worldly things, but we must be willing to die in the battle of fighting for the Lord.

Praise Him that we don't have to do it alone!

So the enemy better watch out! We have the King of kings on our side! He may be trying to distract us with stuff going on all around us -- insurance companies, setbacks on building the barn, and even touching where it hurts, but the more he fights, the stronger we fight back. We are standing at the gates of hell trying to share the gospel to this very dark community. We were naive to think it was going to be any easier than it has been.

Please keep us in your prayers! Pray for safety and health for our family, and for perseverance for us as well! God bless you for fighting with us!

I'M THINKING GOD IS TRYING TO TELL ME SOMETHING HERE....

For the THIRD time since this morning (and it's not even 3:00pm yet) I have come face to face in different areas with this verse.

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 2 Corinthians 12:9-10

I first wrote it in a comment on someone's blog as an encouragement early this morning, after reading it yesterday. Then, a friend posted it on Facebook. Then, I visited a blog that I rarely drop by due to lack of time, and there it was again in my face. When God does something three times in a matter of hours, I have learned in the past to take note.

Praise God! I love how He speaks! Now, I'm going to spend some time studying this passage.

WILL YOU ENLIST?

After last night, Evan and I were both convicted that we need to be better armed before going into battle, especially in the area of prayer. We need to pray more and we need to fast for our Thursday night studies. We both felt completely over our heads last night, but praise God, He didn't leave us hanging by ourselves. We do need to have better advanced communications with our Commander in Chief, however.

I think we are only beginning to scratch the surface of understanding what we are up against. Evil. Pure evil. But, praise God, the battle is not ours, but His, and greater yet, we already know the outcome! What a privilige it is to be used to fight in the battle with Him, but no one said it was going to be an easy battle.

To give you a glimpse.... a young man we'll call "Jesse". He came in completely stoned last night. His brother is dying in the hospital, and "Jesse" was angry. For the first half of the night, he did nothing but scribble satanic symbols on our worship music and interrupt with completely disrupting questions that pertained to nothing of the Lord. He talked about fights, even killing someone if his brother dies. His neck was full of hickies that he bragged about being from someone other than his wife.

Praise God, He stepped in. Thank you to those who WERE praying! It was amazing to watch Evan go from uncertain as to how to handle the situation to very boldly speaking truth into this man at the end of the evening. The boldness and the words were not from Evan, but the Holy Spirit, and that was obvious. "Jesse" heard the truth plain and clear last night. At this point, he has rejected it, but after his first visit 4 weeks ago, I never thought we'd see him again, and here he was. I don't doubt that he'll be back. God wants to take his heart of stone, and turn it to a heart of flesh. Please pray for him!

Another man, we'll call "Ray". He sat very peacefully on the couch all evening, listening. I seriously thought God was doing a work on his heart. The end of the night, as we were walking out the door, he starts talking about how there is one God, but everyone can just see him differently. We listened for a time, and Evan stepped in and said that there is One True God, and that's the God of the Bible. It was very obvious this man was fashioning a god in the image he wanted him to be. We have to be SO VERY CAREFUL of this! Even as Christians, we can so easily do this if we sway away from the Word of God. He admitted he didn't believe in the God of our Bible. What a sad, stoney heart, but he was drawn to that study for a reason. Praise God! Now we pray.

I could go on and on and on with stories, just from last night. People need truth, not only in our town, but in your very neighborhood. The only way to make sure that we aren't creating our own god is by spending time in the Word of God. We have to be so careful! God is not who we want Him to be. He is who he is... but, I'm getting off topic here.....

We are in a battle, and its very fierce. We could see the demonic realm last night right in front of our faces. We need an army to surround us in this fight. Please, consider praying and/or fasting on Thursday nights for this study. I realize you are all involed in various things that require prayer, etc., but I KNOW that God wants to move mountains in this tiny shelter of this small rural town in Montana. God loves these people. He hates their sin and their addictions, but He wants to see them set free from them, and the only way that will happen is through prayer. Please enlist with us! We need you to help fight this battle. It's a lot tougher than we first thought, but praise God, that greater is He who is in us, than he who is in the world. He can conquer all these demons! It's His battle! But, we need to be ready!

JOHN PIPER ON LOVE AND GLORIFYING GOD

“Love is doing what will enthrall the beloved with the greatest and longest joy. What will enthrall the beloved this way is the glory of God. Love means doing all we can, at whatever cost to ourselves, to help people be enthralled with the glory of God. When they are, they are satisfied and God is glorified. Therefore loving people and glorifying God are one.”

HUNTING SEASON IS UPON US....

Evan shot 3 Pheasants on Saturday in about 20 minutes! Myah helped to clean them. We had them for dinner tonight -- yum!!

And I shot this antelope buck today. (Couldn't have done it w/o Evan, though!) :) It was a fun weekend!

GOOD QUOTES

"Every Christian is either a missionary or an imposter." ~ Charles Spurgeon

"If sinners will be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our bodies. And if they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees, imploring them to stay. If hell must be filled, at least let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go there unwarned and unprayed for." ~ Charles Spurgeon


"NOT CALLED?"

"Not called!" did you say? "Not heard the call," I think you should say. Put your ear down to the Bible, and hear Him bid you go and pull sinners out of the fire of sin. Put your ear down to the burdened, agonized heart of humanity, and listen to its pitiful wail for help. God stand by the gates of hell, and hear the damned entreat you to go to their father's house and bid their brothers and sisters and servants and masters not to come there. Then look Christ in the face -- whose mercy you have professed to obey -- and tell Him whether you will join heart and soul and body and circumstances in the march to publish His mercy to the world."

~ William Booth

You Tube Video Worth Watching

Congressman Mike Rogers' opening statement on healthcare reform in Washington D.C... As my friend Lisa said, "Pray that his voice (and many others) will be heard!"

Watch it here.

GARDEN HARVEST

Well, the garden officially got hit hard with frost last night. All the plants were hit. Today, I harvested about 3 more watermelon, lots more cantelope (which still need to ripen -- and may not...), more tomatoes, including all the big green ones I could, a few last zucchini, and lots and lots of squash. The best part, however, was hitching up the trailer to the 4-wheeler, and gathering the pumpkin harvest. The kids had a blast, each picking out two of their own. I had planted a couple different types, and we ended up getting 3 of the gigantic ones, which worked out perfect for each of the older ones to claim one for their own. (Myah said she'd share with Aden...) In all, according to Joel, we have 33 pumpkins. I'm thinking next year, we may have to plant a field's worth and do a "you pick" pumpkin patch. I think that would be fun, but probably more work than I can handle. Enjoy the pics. It was a gorgeous day!!

MY BOYS

I downloaded the random pictures on my camera tonight, and it just so happened they were of the boys.

Joel with a birthday present

AJ, who hasn't given up his binkies yet :)

NO SWEETER NAME

I wanted to share the lyrics to the song playing because sometimes it really helps to read them while you listen. I also wanted to share why this song means a lot to me.

No sweeter name than the Name of Jesus,
No sweeter name have I ever known
No sweeter name than the name of Jesus.

You are the Life to my heart and my soul
You are the Light to the darkness around me
You are the Hope to the hopeless and broken
You are the only Truth and the Way

Jesus, Jesus

We have recently moved our Thursday night Bible study to the local shelter here in town. It has changed the whole look on our study. Last year, we met in our cozy living room with people who we got to know like family. We had coffee, tea and home made treats every week. It was very comfortable.

Since moving it to the shelter, it looks totally different. We have anywhere from 10-15 people come in off the streets, many of whom are intoxicated to some degree, some to the extreme. Due to state regulations, we provide Subway sandwiches (by donation -- thanks D & R!) and store bought cookies. We can't put our home-made touch on any of it. It's a bit of challenge for all of us. We never know who will come through the door. We never know what kinds of interruptions will come. But I can honestly say, I wouldn't go back to what we had for anything, at least not giving this up to do it! God has called us there, and has given our "core group" such a DEEP love for these people. Some of the most amazing times are after the study is over, when Tandra is sweetly playing her guitar and singing. We are able to go around and pray for those who are hurting. God always speaks to my own heart through the study. I am there to grow just as much as anyone, but a lot of my growing is coming out of my leaving my comfort zone. So often I am the one who walks away blessed. What truly amazes me is that people that I use to avoid on the streets, I now have a passion for. Only Christ could do that in my heart.

The song above, the one playing first on my playlist is true for me. His name is sweet to me. He is my light, my life, my hope. I LOVE the name Jesus. But not only is this true for me, but it's true for them. So often these people are treated poorly. They are ignored and looked down on, and that's when people are being "kind". The truth is, Jesus loves them JUST AS MUCH as He loves anyone else and wants to see them not only set free from their addictions, but more importantly than that, He wants them as His children. He wants to see them walk in freedom that comes only through Him.

Their hearts and souls are broken. He is their life!
They live in darkness, all around them. He is their light!
They often feel hopeless and broken. He is their hope!
He is the only Truth and the Way -- for all of us.

Where would any of us be without Jesus?

Please pray for these wonderful people, and continue to pray for us as we try to minister the Word of God to them, and know that no matter what you're facing, He is your Life, your Light and your Hope as well!

"UNCOMMON UNION" -- An amazing message on marriage

Just wanted to share this message by a Godly man in our church named Mark Johnson. The best I've ever heard on a Godly marriage. This is well worth the time.

PRAYER DROPLETS

After visiting Camille's blog, she linked this blog, both of which were a great blessing to me. She quoted "Passionate Housewives Desperate for God", a book which is now on my wish list. :)

Here is what she quoted:

“I believe that one of the heaviest burdens well-meaning Christians place upon the shoulders of mothers at home is the mandate of ‘quiet time’ ”. She goes on later to say, “Too many women are in bondage to the man-made myth that everyone should pray in one great big gush early each morning. But rather than praying a river at an appointed time every day, I would suggest a more reasonable and feasible option for a busy mother: pray in ‘droplets’ throughout the day. Not only is this achievable, it is biblical. We are instructed to ‘pray without ceasing’ (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18) and to let our souls follow close behind Him as His right hand holds us up (Psalm 68:8)."

I never thought about it as being "prayer droplets", but I love the image it gives, and oh how wonderful and practical it is!

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

HOMEMADE SOFT CLAY

This is the best recipe ever! Store in a ziplock, and you'll be amazed how long it keeps!

In a pan, mix:

1- 1 1/4 cups flour
1/4 cup salt
2 T. cream of tartar

Combine and add to the pan:

1 cup water
1 T. oil
a few drops food coloring

Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture stiffens and forms a ball. Spoon onto a lightly floured surface and knead 1-2 minutes. (Be careful, it will be hot.) Store in an air-tight plastic bag.

A HANDFUL OF MY FAVORITE HOMESCHOOL THINGS

For Instructions In Righteousness

I have had this book for a couple years now and have used it on and off. I picked it back up again this year and am once again amazed at the wealth of information in it. I have been trying to do a character lesson with my kids right after lunch once or twice a week, once the two youngest are down for naps. This past week, we talked about how God hates unkind speech. We made a list of what unkind speech looks like, looked up several of the verses given that talk about what God thinks of it, and today we looked up verses of the blessings that come when we resist the urge to use it. We made "apples of gold" badges, to be given out when I see someone using kind speech. I can honestly say, I have already seen a change in my children in this area. One in particular has been fighting the urge to talk back to me, something we have been really starting to struggle with (that was one of the things on our list!) and I can see improvement! Praise God! :)

Abacus

We were given one of these for a gift a few years back, and it has been used ever since. Math manipulatives are the best things ever invented. My only complaint is that sometimes they become dependent on them!







Wildmath.com has been a good website that we have used frequently this year already. Myah and Joel have to spend 10 minutes a day doing drills on addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. This website enables them to do it on their own and at their own level. It corrects their work and times how long it takes them to do it. Though it really isn't anything fancy, it does the job, and I've not heard any complaints from either of them. They just set their own timer and go!



My Father's World curriculum.
I have used this curriculum for 3 years in a row now, and LOVE it. Joel went through Kindergarten and First grade using it and I'm thrilled with where he's at, especially his reading level. He is now joining Myah in the 5 year cycle program that they have, so except for Math and Language Arts, I am teaching them the same thing. Kiana is starting Kindergarten with this program this year. Myah and Joel are taking a "trip around the world "this year visiting many different countries and cultures. Their first task was to apply for a passport. There is a lot of geography in our stuff this year, and the kids are having fun with it. I love how it ties a study of missionaries from the region in as well. This program has fit our family well, and a proceed of what we pay for it goes to help Bible translators.

CINNAMON ROLLS

For my Harvest Chapel family :)

DOUGH:
1 cup milk, warm
1/4 cup water, warm
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 egg
1 tsp. salt
4 cups bread flour
1/4 cup instant vanilla pudding mix
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp. active dry yeast

I actually mix this in my bread machine, but I'm sure it can be done by hand as well. When finished, roll into rectangular shape on floured surface.

FILLING:

Spread butter over rectangular shaped dough. Sprinkle with cinnamon/sugar mixture.

1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
(optional: raisins, nuts)

FROSTING:

4 oz. cream cheese, soft
1/4 cup butter, soft
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp. milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Once you have the filling on the dough, roll up jelly roll style. Use bread knife to make slices, about 1 - 1 1/2 inch thick. Place in greased pan. Cover and let rise in warm place until double. Bake in 350* oven for 18-20 minutes. Cool 5 min. before frosting.