That's What I Love About Sunday

There are such multitudes of blessing in a close-knit fellowship. This is one of the reasons Sunday is my favorite day of the week.

The gorgeous view from the back of the church.

Sarah

Lydia's work...

After church, some of us usually play a game or two- this week it was wiffle ball and 4-square.

Sweet little Anna

Micah's practicing for Q.B.

Hmmm...mischief in his eyes?

Just ask these two girls who received a lovely gift of burdock in the hair....

Jess looking thoughtful.

Marisa- what a cutie!

Audrey learning guitar- she's incredible!

The always vibrantly attired Sarah!

Jess found a message in a plastic container hidden inside a tree.

It was a list of things to do before you die. 

One of the things I love about our church family is that we don't know when to stop fellowshipping!! Here Dad is entertaining the ladies with some sort of story.... if you know him you can only imagine!  

Sap peepers!!

A lovely photo of Rhonda and Jess.

"I wanna be Your hands, I wanna be Your feet...."

"Jack" and I

Beautiful Bosom Buddies, Hannah and Tasha

I so enjoy Sarah and her fun-loving personality!

Emmy-Lou looking stunning!

Oh no! Katie's been playing wiffle ball in her "stonkings"!

I love it!

The cemetery reminds us of our mortality and the definite end of this world,

the mountains remind us of eternity, the God that owns the earth and to set our thoughts on high things- on Heaven.

God is good! He provides within the walls of this little church growth, sweet, true fellowship, a love for truth and a Pastor who is not afraid to preach it, an ever present reminder of God's provision for us, and grace and love that He's poured out for us. And that's....

...what I love about Sunday.

Answers to Prayer

Quotes from George Mueller:

"I seek at the beginning to get my heart into such a state that it has no will of its own in regard to a given matter."

"Earthly friends may alter their minds regarding the work in which we are engaged; but if indeed we work for God, whoever may alter his mind regarding our service, He will not. Earthly friends may lose their ability to help us, however much they may desire to do so; but He remains throughout eternity the infinitely Rich One. Earthly friend might have their minds, after a time, diverted to other objects, and, as they cannot help everywhere, much as they may desire it, they may, though reluctantly, have to discontinue to help us; but He is able, in all directions, though the requirements were multiplied a million times, to supply all that can possibly be needed, and does it with delight, where His work is carried on and where He is confided in. Earthly friends may be removed by death, and thus we may lose their help, but He lives forever, He cannot die. "

If you haven't read anything by or about George Mueller, I highly recommend that you do so!

Warrior Instincts?

A couple of weekends ago I went to see a movie with my Aunt, Uncle and cousins. The movie itself was nothing special- I wouldn't recommend it. But it did give me a thought.
The main character was a boy who was dyslexic and had ADD. This gave him endless amounts of frustration. This boy later finds out in the movie that he wasn't ADD after all, rather he was just wired with battle instincts.
That got me thinking: God created men to be the providers and protectors, so is all of this ADD jargon really boys struggling with sitting for hours on end in a classroom when they were made to be more active? 

Just a thought.

Watch Out NFL

A Hollywood Romance

I think a lot of girls and young women today might have what I like to call Princess Syndrome. They've grown up idolizing and aspiring to be a Disney princess- with the poofy gowns, bejeweled tiaras, the lovely castles and, oh yeah, Mr. Perfect-Knight-in-Shining-Armor-Doesn't-Say-Anything- Wrong- Prince. To most people these little romance stories seem harmless (Hey- I can't deny I still enjoy Beauty and the Beast and The Sleeping Beauty). But there are some major issues in these children's fairy tales.

If we consistently watch these young, extremely physically beautiful women (yes, even though they are cartoons) who get almost everything they want, this is what we will expect for ourselves as we grow up. Our dreams and fantasies of our own future romances will start to mold themselves around these fictional stories. Even as adults we have our own version of the disney princess- our chick flicks and our old fashioned romances. I can say that honestly about myself, and believe me, I love my Jane Austen!
All of this saturation, even in smallish quantities, can cause us to expect God to write us our own Hollywood Romance complete with everything falling into place perfectly, Mr. Wonderful sweeping us off of our feet and no awkward moments. Because, after all, they always say the right things and do the right things in the movies, why not in real life too?

I've had married women tell me that married life is mostly work with a bit of romance here and there. These fantastical stories lead us to believe that marriage and relationships are 90% romantic and fun, with just a little bit of work or disappointment.
I'm sorry if I sound as if I'm spouting out a bunch of thoughts, but I've had this on my mind and I wanted to give my unmarried sisters in Christ a little warning. I'm not saying you should shun all romances, I'm just saying we should be very careful. Don't watch or read too much of it or you will find yourself expecting it. Even the seemingly perfect marriages and relationships have their multitudes of flaws and imperfections. Remember that God may chose to write your story differently than your friends and romance may play a smaller part than you expected. Marriage is a place wherein two sinners seek to exemplify Christ and the Church, therefore it's not always a bed of roses! Expect the real and believe that God has the best in mind for us and the Hollywood version may not be what is best for us.