Thursday, December 27, 2007

Childress Update

Hey everyone! The past few days have been a blur with everything going on with Joe and Lori. Here are the lastest updates from today. God is sustaining that little girl and her mommy and daddy.
There are some praises today! Jessie is holding steady. They took her urinary catheter out this morning, which is typical to avoid infection. The blood cultures look good-so no infection!!!! Her blood gases look good-so she is getting proper oxygen!!! And her BP is holding steady and they said this was miraculous!!!!!! Thank you Lord! Your prayers are working friends!! God is listening and answering! The pain is still a major concern. They can't seem to get it under control. So they still can't move her and now they have to change diapers. They can't do any testing to see if the surgery worked either. Lori asked that we please pray for these two things specifically. THAT the pain would be taken care of and that she won't have to have the other surgery. Lori said it was very difficult to see her. She was able to put up all the scriptures that you sent. So thank you!!
Lori called a little bit ago and she was on her way home from seeing Jessie. There are some more praises!!! Apparently the update that I gave you earlier today was what she was told last night. So it seems that they have gotten Jessie's pain under control! This is such a relief for Joe and Lori as you can imagine! They did an x-ray of her lungs today and the right upper lobe looked hazy. So they think fluid may be collecting there. So another thing to pray for. Pneumonia develops very easily with this.
Thank you all for praying along with us! God is listening and He answers our prayers:)

Tuesday, December 25, 2007

Update on the Childress'

Merry Christmas everyone. I hope you held your little ones tight today.

I was able to talk to Lori last night and Laura this morning. Friends, they are so devastated. There aren't words for what Joe and Lori are feeling right now. They can't even think or pray. They are counting on us for that. They are still in shock yet it is really sinking in.

Jessie was able to have the surgery last night and here is the email from Laura this morning:

Thanks so much for praying. Lori just called with an update - Jesse made it through the night, praise God! Lori shared with me she is counting on our prayers for Jesse and to bear their burden. They are very distressed and exhausted. Lori is torn between getting used to caring for Addie's needs and her apnea monitor, caring for Macy and wanting to be with Jesse now. Since Jesse will be immobilized by the medically induced coma and ventilator this week, the doctors are encouraging Joe and Lori to get as much rest as possible because things may get very critical again when they try to get her off the ventilator. So, please be praying God will give them supernatural strength & refreshment, and that His nearness would be their good. I know you all are praying for Jesse's healing and recovery as well. Thank you again!!! We want to serve them well, but are limited by the cautions they have received by the NICU to avoid germs. We would like to arrange meals three days a week for them. They will have a cooler on the porch for the meals to be placed into, but we are asking everyone to just leave the dinners in the cooler without coming inside or visiting with Lori. As much as she would like the fellowship and encouragement, she understandably doesn't want to risk Addie catching a virus. Please send notes with scriptures and prayers for them! Lindsey will be contacting you again about meals, and you can email her if you are able to serve them on a Monday/Wednesday/Friday. I know many of you have made multiple meals over the last several months, and I want to thank you!!!! I'll link a map to their home w/ their address to send cards to. Please use the map to bring their dinners to their home so we don't need to call them for directions.http://maps.google.com/maps?li=rwp&q=3503+Arklow+Rd,+Charlotte,+NC+28269
I know many of you are saddened by what has happened. It's a paradox to be celebrating Christmas with our happy children while they are suffering so isn't it? Lori and I talked about what a comfort it is to have friends just walking through trials with you, even if they can't fix anything or help in substantial ways. Just knowing we truly, deeply care and are praying means everything to them. And God is at work - always for His glory, always for His good. And His glory IS our good. With love,Laura

So friends, please continue to pray. Michelle and I will be fasting this week, so I will let you all know when so you can participate if you want to.
May God receive all the glory,
Lindsay

Monday, December 24, 2007

Merry Christmas


Jeremy, Gracie, Piper, Reilly, and I would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas. May celebrating the Birth of our Savior fill you with hope and joy tomorrow. We love you all!

Please Pray

Hey Everyone. I realize many people probably aren't checking blogs on Christmas Eve, but if you are please pray. Joe and Lori Childress' baby girl is fighting for her life right now. Jessie, the smaller twin went in this morning for a very routine surgery, a 10 minute one to get a feeding tube inserted. Then she was going to get to come home on Thursday. When they went in for surgery they perforated her esophagus. They spent several hours working on her and she was without oxygen for a while. They have been trying to stabilize her all day. She needs another major surgery to fix the tear. They have called in three surgeons to do it. In the meantime her lungs have been filling up with fluid which is causing infection. very bad! So they can't even do the surgery until she is stable enough. The surgery is very complicated and MAJOR. They have to open up her chest to get to the area they need to fix. It is supposed to take about 4 hours.
As you can imagine, Joe and Lori are devastated. They are at Jessie's side now. Please pray for their baby girl and them as well. This is obviously the hardest roadblock they have hit, although they have hit many. They are such faithful prayer warriors and I know Lori spent all afternoon on her knees.
Our God is sufficient and He will be glorified!
Thank you for caring and praying for them.

Sunday, December 23, 2007

The Pictures are In!

Back row-Abbie (sis),My Dad, My Mom, Meemaw (Dad's Mom), Mimi (Mom's mom)
Second Row-Jeremy, Gracie,Piper, Me, Lauren (sis), Tristen (niece), Chris (bro in law)
oh and baby Bella- in Lauren's belly:)


My family has wanted to get pictures done with all four generations for a few years. But we've been procrastinating! So I told mom I was going to call Jason right then. Here are the results! Jason, you ROCK!!!!

I have been trying to add them for a few days. There is a slideshow below and to the side. Thank you for letting me share them with you!

Check out my Slide Show!

Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Busy Baking


Well this is a nice picture, but she ended up eating ALL that green icing
Gracie, Jackson, and Lucas
Um, yeah. There is a cookie under there

The girls have been busy the past two days baking. First it was our annual baking day at Nanny's and then today was our preschool party where we baked again.

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Pray for my girlies

Hey all, Can I ask you to pray for my little girlies? They both had double ear infections three weeks ago and I took them in for rechecks today. Actually I was just taking Piper cause her ears usually don't clear up the first round of antibiotics. And sure enough, she still has one infected ear. And my sweet Dr offered to check Gracie's ears too and I said, "I think she's fine but sure you can check," and sure enough she still has one infected ear too. So now they are on high powered antibiotics again:( I imagine this one will tear their little stomachs up since the last one did.
Thankfully they are doing pretty well. You wouldn't know there was anything wrong. Piper is restless at night and had a little fever this morning, that's why I decided today was the day to take her in:) But I would appreciate prayers for their ears to heal this time. Thank you faithful friends!

Monday, December 17, 2007

Honor

Well, it has continued to be crazy around here so I haven't been able to blog as much. So this is rather late in coming, I have wanted to honor these ladies for a few weeks.
I posted a help please email a few weeks ago for a dear friend Lori. She had 30 week old twin girls who are in the NICU and was in need of breast milk for them. She wasn't making enough herself and it costs $8 an ounce to buy it from the milk bank!!! That's $350 a day! So I just asked for this odd thing, "Can anyone donate any milk to these babies?" Well God always answers and this was no exception. Jessica Moore, Holly Morales, and Erika Dahl graciously agreed to pump for Lori!!!!! I mean, they quickly responded to my email! Jess called me and we had some tears over how God was moving women to care for another family in this way. I am so humbled by their sacrifice. These three ladies are nursing their own babies and then pumping for Jessie and Addie. This is certainly no walk in the park people! All you women are saying Amen about now:) What a gift! They are sustaining life for another woman's children:) Each week they bring their milk to me at church frozen. How kind of them! So I just wanted you all to be encouraged as you see God meet needs like this! And thank these women if you see them for their care for the Childress family. THANK YOU SERVANTS OF THE LORD!!! Love you all:)
Oh and Addie is home from the hospital!!! She came home on Saturday! Please pray for Joe, Lori and Macy as they adjust. Addie requires alot of care. Lots of meds and a 24 hour heart monitor. It is taking almost two hours to do one cycle of feeding, pumping, and giving meds and that's only for one baby! Then throw Macy into the mix as she is getting used to her baby sister.
Jessie will come home as soon as she learns how to eat enough out of the bottle. She has a cleft palate and they have had trouble finding a bottle she will take and then getting her to eat enough. Pray that she can get home soon!

Friday, December 14, 2007

Update

Gracie Girl
What your mom posts when you won't smile!
Oops!

I haven't been writing as much lately. I guess we have been really busy? Life has seemed like a whirlwind! So I thought I would just update you all. Like the stuff I should have written on the Christmas card but didn't think up till it was already done:)

So here goes,

Gracie- she is just so precious to us. Almost every night after we put her to bed, Jeremy and I look at each other and say just that, she is so precious. She helps me so much. With Piper, Reilly, around the house. She is just so sweet and caring. She loves to be right there with me, whatever I am doing. I sure do cherish that. She loves to do crafts and bake. This week she decided to potty train Piper:) She has been putting her on the potty alot and actually got her to pee pee in it once. I'm not sure I'm ready for this, so we'll just see what happens. She is starting to ask questions about educational things, like what each letter is. She has cared nothing about this the whole year. That's been fun.

Piper, Piper, Piper-what a trip! This kid is full force all the time. Almost two, so in to everything:) She is really struggling with some bad ezcema. Hopefully we will have that under control soon. She is starting to put words together for sentences. Thank you Lord! It makes life much simpler when they can tell you what they need. It is so cute to hear her little words. I don't really like correcting the "uh huh" with "yes ma'am" cause the "uh huh" is sooooo cute. I know, I know. She loves for mommy to hold her still. And that's fine with me. She is not into getting her picture taken anymore:( So don't expect anymore cheesin out of her:) There is much training that needs to take place, gotta buckle down! Love this adorable little one. She is really changing quickly.

Jeremy is knee deep in work. Actually his full time job is a little slow, thank goodness. The side jobs are in full swing. Today they came out and staked off the footprints for a few of the houses. Yeah!! We are so excited to get started. Please pray for all J has on his plate. He does such a great job managing it all. But it is a ton to juggle. I don't see how he does it all.

I am still battling the migraines. But I have faith they are going to get better. There have been two weeks this past month that I only had one. That is improvement. My kinesiologist says to give it two more months and we should really have some progress. So I am hopeful.

We are excited about the church plant and feel a strong call to stay at CrossWay. We can't wait to see what God is going to do in us and through us. We hope He uses us mightily in our church. I really appreciated Mickey's message on Sunday. Wow what pastors we have! I love their perspective and how they are helping us walk through this.

We have been thoroughly enjoying this awesome weather. I don't mind that it's almost Christmas and 80 degrees. Fine with me! I just imagine that is what it would be like if I were in Hawaii for Christmas.
My sister Abbie is going to Appalachian to get her masters in education. She just graduated from Gardner-Webb.
Reilly, our dog, is a keeper! The girls don't know yet that she is ours. Jeremy is making them wait till Christmas to find out. I am trying to adjust still to all the hair. And having another body in the house:) She is so sweet and an excellent dog. God was so kind to give her to us!
I want to buckle down this week and get some Christmas stuff done with the girls. Baking, gingerbread house, nativity,... still have to bake at Nanny's, whew I am going to be busy! But it will be great fun:)

That's all for now!

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

12 Days of Christmas

I was doing research for my preschool lesson last night and I came across this about the song The 12 Days of Christmas...
It originated during the middle ages when Catholics were persecuted for their faith. They came up with this song to teach Children about God.
True love refers to God, me refers to the baptized, and the partridge in the pear tree refers to Jesus!!
2 turtle doves- The old and new testaments
3 French horns- Faith, Hope, and Charity
4 Calling Birds- the four gospels
5 Golden rings- The first five books of the Old Testament, the Pentateuch, which gives the history if mans fall from grace
6 Geese-a-laying- the six days of creation
7 Swans a-swimming- the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, the 7 sacraments
8 Maids a- milking- the eight beatitudes
9 Ladies Dancing- the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit
10 Lords a-leaping- the ten commandments
11 Pipers Piping- the eleven faithful apostles
12 Drummers Drumming- the twelve points of doctrine in the Apostle's Creed


Hmmm, guess I'll think differently of this song from now on:) Have any of you heard this?

Saturday, December 8, 2007

A Little Game

I was supposed to do this for Juli a few weeks ago.. Since today is her birthday!! I'll do it today!

1. Jesus or Santa- Jesus of course, but we do have santa stuff here at our house
2. Egg nog or hot chocolate- Hot chocolate
3. White lights or colored ones- White all the way. It's soooo classic!
4. Do you hang mistletoe- nope
5. Do you hang a wreath- yes on my front and side doors
6. Do you hang garland- yes, outside on the porch
7. When do you put up your decor- The Sat after Thanksgiving
8. What's your favorite holiday dish- we started doing filets, potatoes, and salad on Christmas, all of which I love
9. What's your favorite memory as a child- I used to read the Polar Express to my sisters and then we would all sleep in the same bed. And we would get up super early.
10. When did you find out Santa wasn't real- WHAT??? I still believe....
11. Do you open gifts on Christmas Eve- No
12. How do you decorate your tree- It is mostly silver and red- balls and ornaments. Then ornaments we have been given through the years.
13. Snow- love it or hate it- Love it.
14. Can you ice skate- Yes
15. Do you remember your favorite gift- I have very fond memories of many Christmases but a piano, nintendo, and the pearl ring Jeremy got me the year Gracie was born top the list
16. What is the most important thing about this holiday to you?- Spending time with our families and making sure that my girls know about Jesus and why He came
17. Favorite holiday dessert- anything chocolate
18. Favorite holiday tradition- Baking at moms with my sisters and daughters and niece
19.What tops your tree- A globe with Mary, Joseph, and Baby Jesus inside
20. Do you prefer giving or receiving- I love giving but I can't lie, I love opening presents too
21. Favorite Christmas Song- Mary Did you Know
22. Do you like Candy Canes- a little
23. Are they gone by Christmas- if the girls know about them:)
24. Do you think Christmas is too commercialized?-Absolutely. Have you all heard about the push to say Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas and sell family trees instead of Christmas trees? ABSURD!!! At Lowe's the sign actually says family trees.

Whew! Anybody wanna play along?

Thursday, December 6, 2007

My Favorite Christmas Song

I got tagged this week to tell you my favorite Christmas song. Jessica and I share the same one! It's Mary Did you Know. When I was in highschool we had a live nativity at our church every year and I was Mary. When this song was played I immediately thought about what it would be like to be Mary, carrying the beloved baby Jesus. My aunt is an incredible singer and she too would sing it every year at church. Now that I have my own two precious little ones I think even more about what Mary must have felt carrying my Savior. What a task, what trust she had.
So if you are ever around me and this song is on, cover your ears. I always belt it out, and I can't sing a lick:)

Mary Did you Know?
Mary did you know, that your baby boy would one day walk on water
Did you know, that your baby boy would save our sons and daughters
Did you know that your baby boy would come to make you new
That this child that you delivered would soon deliver you

Mary did you know that your baby boy would give sight to a blind man
Did you know that your baby boy would calm a storm with his hand
Did you know that your baby boy has walked where angels trod
And when you kiss your little baby you have kissed the face of God

Mary did you know
The blind will see
The deaf will hear
And the dead will live again
The lame will leap again
The dumb will speak
The praises of the lamb

Mary did you know
That your baby boy is Lord of all creation
Did you know that your baby boy would one day rule the nations
Did you know that your baby boy is heaven's perfect lamb
This sleeping child you're holding
Is the GREAT I AM

This song in essence, is what Christmas means to me.
What is your favorite Christmas song?

Tuesday, December 4, 2007

Sin and Grace

During worship at Care Group on Sunday night one of the men shared something from Spurgeon. It went something like this... Our sin is very serious but God's grace is abundant. He compared our sin to a grain of sand and God's grace to the ocean!!! How awesome that my sin is like a little speck but God's grace is as vast as the whole ocean. I hope this encourages all of you today.

Saturday, December 1, 2007

Gracie's Birthday Party

Nanny and Piper
Presents galore, Faith and Rhiannon
Some of the gang:) Ellie, Faith, Jackson, Gracie, Logan, Rhiannon, Pipey
Da boys
Finish it off with Pinata time!


We had so much fun today celebrating Gracie girl's birthday! We love to make a big deal out of their birthdays. Each year the Lord gives us with our children is such a gift we DON'T deserve! I was telling Gracie the other day I couldn't believe she was going to be four and I was saying it sadly. She said, "Mommy, you may not complain." Well at least she is listening to something I am trying to teach her! What a blessing each day is with my Gracie!

Gracie's Birthday Party

Gracie's buddy Logan
First, you get a tattoo like the Doodlebops have on their hand
Then you make your pledge flag for the Doodlebop pledge
After the pledge, it's cake time! They all sang to Gracie with their microphones:)
Sisterly love! and Logan!

Gracie's Birthday Party

Daddy wanted to make Gracie's cake. So here they all are mixin!
He waited on his mom to start the icing!
Yes, he made it with no molds! He cut that schoolbus out all by himself!
The finished product

Gracie turns four tomorrow!!

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

It's Beginning to look alot like Christmas!




This is our nativity. Love it!
Lisa asked why Gracie wasn't in the pics from the tree farm ,here's why. She wasn't at all into have her picture taken:")
Yes, we decorate as soon as possible after Thanksgiving. I love having a tree up with beautiful lights. I leave them on all day! Nothing is better than doing devotions beside it!

So here are the pics of everyone decorating the tree. And Piper continues to redecorate it every chance she gets. I am a little behind on posting them. We've been enjoying it since Sunday.

Monday, November 26, 2007

Reilly




oops, added it again at the top

Well, we have a new addition to our family, we think. We are trying out Reilly this week. She is a super sweet lab mix. We got her from a foster family, her original family needed to get rid of her when they had their second child. But they loved her tons, she is well trained and has a great temperament. As you can see, Pipey is riding her! I think everyone is already love with her. I am the deciding factor, can I handle the hair?

Our Tree



Hmmm, which one?
Yes, it's perfect!



Do you smell that? It's our beautiful tree! We went to get it in the mountains on Saturday. It has become a tradition to go up as soon as possible after Thanksgiving! to get our tree. Jeremy isn't too fond of it, but he humors me. Thanks honey! He thinks you should just go to Lowes. Which we have done for many years. But I love going up there and picking it and watching them cut it down. And the girls enjoyed it. Making memories!

Saturday, November 24, 2007

Thankful For....

I finished up my study on Ruth this past week. I think that is what I will focus on for what I am thankful for... I wish that I could have written to you everyday as I read it, it was so incredible, but time just doesn't allow for that.
Naomi has decided to go back to Israel, the covenant community and has urged Orpah and Ruth to stay with their people so they will be taken care of. Orpah decides to take her advice and misses out on a living relationship with God-the only thing that truly matters. But not Ruth, she says "Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. For where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried. May the Lord do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you." So powerful. Ruth was trusting God to meet her as she laid down her life for Naomi!
Once they are back in Israel, they have to have food. So Ruth goes out to glean for them. This is very dangerous. She is a Moabite and a woman with noone to protect her. But Boaz takes notice of her and tells his workers to leave stuff behind for her to glean. Thank you Lord! She takes home a TON of food, about 80 lbs. And Boaz told her to stay in his fields so she would be protected.
Ruth goes home with all this food and Naomi starts to see God's kindness. Remember, she is very bitter and not very repentant for her past sins. She begans to realize that God is not out to get her and that He will provide her needs. She tells Ruth that Boaz is one of their redeemers. A kinsman who back then-would buy back relatives who fell into debt. Boaz did not have a legal obligation to them though, but He saw the bigger picture.
But this points us to an even greater redeemer, Our Redeemer! "Boaz was the means that God used in a small way to show Naomi his goodness. Her bitterness, which had hardened and deepened under what she saw as the lashes of God's judgement, at last began to melt when brought face to face with an undeniable experience of His goodness and grace. She began to recognize that, contrary to what she had earlier thought, the Lord had not stopped showing his covenant faithfulness to her and Ruth."
Mr Duguid goes on to explain that there was a clock ticking in the book of Ruth-the clock of redemption. Naomi and Ruth returned to Bethlehem just in time for the barley harvest, then seven weeks later was Pentecost! These ladies are experiencing the first fruits of God's deliverance but not the fullness of it yet. "For us, too, a clock is ticking. We who have received the first fruits of our salvation await its fullness. Often, we are so preoccupied with the challenges of surviving from one day to the next that we are inclined to forget the clock's relentless beat. When we do think about it, our redemption seems slow in coming. Yet we ought not to forget that in God's perfect time, our present groaning will give away to shouts of joy(yeah!!), as we receive our full adoption as the sons and daughters of God. Quieting out hearts and focusing our attention on the reality and certainty of the inheritance that is stored up for us in heaven will feed our hope and encourage us to persevere patiently until the sands of God's time run out."
So I am so very grateful for my Redeemer! What a costly work He has done for us! This year has been filled with trials in our house yet we have seen our Redeemer's faithfulness. For He is good and worthy of our praise!! He is using all things for our good and His glory. We wouldn't want it any other way!

Friday, November 23, 2007

Black Friday

That's ALOT of packages!
Hope you all had a Happy Thanksgiving! We were in Angier with Jeremy's parents. Great visit:)
So today is one of my favorite days of the year. It's the day I get to use my spiritual gift-Shopping!! Yes I love this day, it has become a family tradition for all the girls to take the day to shop for Christmas. The past few years even some of my friends have joined in (and might I add they used to gawk at me and tell me how crazy I was for getting up so early.I guess if you can't beat her, join her?)
So at the ripe hour of 3:30 Lisa and I began standing in line at Kohl's. yes, am. Tracie and Becky soon followed. It was freezing but we all made it. The deals were great and I got almost ALL of my Christmas shopping done today. After we left Kohl's we headed to Target then to IHOP. Then Lisa and I headed to the mall to top it all off. We ran into most of my family at some point during the day. They have decided they are too old or too tired to join me in the wee hours anymore:)
Whew! I am pooped. Was it worth it? YES indeed! I chose to write about shopping instead of Thanksgiving since I don't have many brain cells left right now. Do they regenerate overnight? So tomorrow I will post about what I am thankful for. For there is so much!

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Abbie


I had the best time today! My mom, dad, and I were able to go to my sister Abbie's school where she is student teaching. Her precious teacher invited us up and had a surprise party for her since she is almost done with her student teaching. They had food and cake to celebrate. The best part was watching those little second graders be impacted by the teaching of my dear sister. They loved her and so did the teachers! What a blessing! While the kids were waiting to get their food, they each told their favorite thing about Ab. One little boy said his favorite thing was the way she asked them if they understood what she taught them. If they understood she had them put their thumb up, if they don't, thumb down. He also said she really worked hard to help them learn. At one point they all came up and gave her a group hug! It was the sweetest! One little girl said, "You don't look like your sister, but you talk like her!" I know, the accent is thick and very real:)

Her teacher is just a doll. The Lord was so very kind to place her in that very classroom. Thank you Ms McBrayer!

And Abbie, you will be the BEST teacher ever! We are so proud of you and seeing you use the gift God has given you to touch children brings great joy to our hearts! We love you!

Monday, November 19, 2007

Ruth

I have been studying Ruth the past couple of days. It is part of the commentary that I was reading on Esther by Iain Duguid. And once again, it is fantastic! Ruth is one of my favorite books of the Bible. But, once again I have learned so much more about it than I previously knew. First of all Naomi and Elimelech decided to leave the promised land and their God due to the trials there-famine, etc... In doing so they disobeyed God and Elimelech, Mahlon, and Chilion all died. Leaving Ruth with her two daughter-in-laws in a foreign land, and they were Moabites (sons weren't supposed to marry anyone from Moab)! Talk about consequences-losing your husband and sons because they chose not to trust God and remain with their people. So here's Naomi, Ruth, and Orpah with noone to care for them, no way to get daily bread. Naomi decides to ponder going back to Israel, where her family was. Israel had repented and there was food in the land again. Maybe someone would take her in? Here is what Mr Duguid says,"Such a positive outcome was certainly not inevitable. Naomi, along with her husband and children, had set out on a road of disobedience, and they had experienced the reality of God's judgement. Elimelech, Mahlon, and Chilion were all dead as a result. There was no hope of repentance and return for them. Yet God in his grace had not left her family completely without survivors. A remnant remained, giving hope that there might be a future after all. God's judgement on sin is reliable, for His word is faithful, but even more consistent is God's desire to restore wandering sinners to himself. GRACE IS ALWAYS GOD'S LAST WORD (emphasis mine)." Then he goes on to say "God's grace transcends our rebellion, and not only leaves the door open for us to retrace our steps, but stirs our hearts to see our folly and the welcoming arms that await our return. So the Spirit of God stirred in Naomi's heart to leave the land of rebellion, swallow her wounded pride, and start out at last on the long road home." There's so much more....

Friday, November 16, 2007

Last Night


Last night was a special night for our family. We have a tradition, when we find out the sex of our baby we all go to dinner together to find out what it is. So last night it was Lauren and Chris' turn to share what baby #2 is going to be. We have to wait until everyone is seated at the table and by this point, my dad is usually about to go crazy:) Then we go around the table and everyone shares what they think it is. Soooo, any guesses?




It's a GIRL!!!! Yes, more of the same:) Let's see, that makes 9 girls-5 granddaughters and 4 great grands on both sides of my family. There is one boy, poor cousin Jared, all alone:(

We are excited though! What would we do with a boy anyway? And Tristen will get a sister. There's nothing like those:)

She is healthy. Lauren does have a low lying placenta so they will check that again in a few months through ultrasound. If it begins to cover the cervix she will end up with a C-section.

So baby girl is due the end of April! Can't wait!!!

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Laminin

At the Chris Tomlin concert, there was a speaker, Louie Giglio. I have never heard of him before, he is outstanding!! He is a dear friend of Chris' and they travel together. Louie always gives a message at the concert. So this year's theme is How Great is our God. So that is what his message was on. Let me tell you, it was incredible. He said his goal was to have everyone leave there realizing that God is way bigger than we thought before we came in. Well he definitely accomplished that!! I was going to tell you about the message but this guy did such a good job on his blog that you should read his. Please do it, it is soooo amazing How great our God is. It won't take but a minute. If you only have a second, scroll down to where he talks about laminin. And then post and tell me what you think. I was blown away at how truly great my God is. That He takes time for piddly ole me. Here's the linkhttp://global51.com/2007/03/laminin.html
Amazing Huh???

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

How Great is our God


That's Him-Chris!

They were singing "Oh Happy Day..when Jesus washed my sins away.." One of my favorite parts:)



The splendor of the king

Clothed in majesty

Let all the earth rejoice, all the earth rejoice

He wraps Himself in light

And darkness tries to hide

And trembles at His voice, and trembles at His voice


HOW GREAT IS OUR GOD

SING WITH ME

HOW GREAT IS OUR GOD

ALL WILL SEE HOW GREAT, HOW GREAT

IS OUR GOD


Age to age He stands

And time is in His hands

Beginning and the end, beginning and the end

The Godhead, three in One,

Father, Spirit, Son,

The Lion and the Lamb, the Lion and the Lamb


NAME ABOVE ALL NAMES

WORTHY OF ALL PRAISE

MY HEART WILL SING HOW GREAT IS OUR GOD!!!



Last night, we have the privilege of going to the Chris Tomlin concert. It was fantastic!! I felt like I was in worship for 3 whole hours! And we had 5th row seats! Anyway, Chris has an awesome voice, very gifted by the Lord. And the concert was sooooo focused on God, not on the band. If they come back, I highly recommend that you go. We had a blast! Scurlocks went too!

Sunday, November 11, 2007

Esther

Do you ever study something in the Bible to learn that what you have believed your whole life was wrong? Well that just happened to me! I have been studying Esther with a commentary by Iain M. Duguid. It is sooo good. All my life I believed that Esther was a very Godly woman who depended on the Lord daily. She depended on Him so much that she asked all the Jewish people to fast for her before she went in to King Ahasuerus to plead for their lives.
Well, not exactly. I think Esther was a Godly woman but she made many compromises that were damaging to her faith. In order to be queen she had to conceal her identity as a Jew, living a lie for five years until she had to reveal herself in order to save all the Jews from being annihilated! Even more than that, she married a pagan (King A.) and totally immersed herself in the world! Being part of the pagan kingdom totally cut her off from her people, God's people.
God is not mentioned one time in the book of Esther!! Can you believe that? Of course He is there on every page, guiding history. But they never give Him any credit!
Yet, Here is the good part! God used Esther mightily to save His people! He could have picked someone else. But He chose her, a sinner just like you and me. A woman who did all the things we listed above. But He allowed her to change history forever, to save His beloved people! I love these kinds of stories in the Bible. When God takes the ordinary girls and gives them extraordinary tasks!

Saturday, November 10, 2007

Invincible

OR NOT... Well I have succumbed to the plague of the Gibson house. Yes I am not as invincible as I thought. Bummer. So the sickness continues. This stinks!! I am feeling a little better today. But on the bright side, I have the house all to myself today. Jeremy is at the men's meeting at church and the girls are at the Doodlebops with La La and Nanny (Mom you are my hero). Mom went in my place since I am sick. I am really sad to miss the girls having all that fun. Lauren will take great pics for me though.
And I had to miss the ladies meeting last night. So very sad about that one. Hope you all took good notes so you can fill me in:)
Well I should go make good use of my time!

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Migraines and Tagged-Again!

I went back to the neurologist today and thought I would update you. I have decided to take the daily preventative medicine. I am not thrilled about it, but I do have peace about the decision. The med has some bad side effects. However, the neurologist thinks if I take it at night some of them will be minimized. So, maybe I won't get them at all? We'll have to see. I've been having two migraines a week for about eight months now so I am hoping this will give my body a little break. I don't plan to be on it long, but we will see what happens. I trust that God is in control of the situation and He helps me through each and every headache and provides for my family:)
And that crazy Juli has tagged me again! So I am supposed to list 8 random things about myself...
1. I was born and raised here in Charlotte. (Like you can't tell that from my accent:))
2. Jeremy and I lived in the same dorm in college, a floor apart and he used to get my clothes out of the laundry for me and take them to his room so I would have to come in there and get them:)
3. I absolutely hate snakes. I am petrified of them.
4. Uhm... I like country music.
5. I am the oldest of three girls.
6. The house and land that we own now used to be owned by my friend's parents. Used to come here for sleepovers!
7. I would love to cut all my hair off, as short as possible. But my hubby doesn't like that idea.
8. My hubby likes to help me fulfill lifelong desires. He bought me a beautiful baby grand piano! That was definitely one of them:)

Okay, I tag Marge, Erika, Robin, Dawn, Dana, Shawna, Meghann

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

Food

I have a confession to make... I LOVE food! Way too much in fact. It is an idol in my life. Now I know you are thinking, "You Lindsay, come on. You are small." Yes, I am on the small side but that has nothing to do with it. I love to eat anything bad for me. French fries, chocolate, desserts, the list goes on and on. I don't eat alot at a time, which is why I'm not as big as a house, but I still need to eat healthier. Why, so that I can serve and glorify God to the best of my ability. What has prompted this? Well, I have eaten healthy in the past because of different health issues, most of them still exist. But I've never stuck with it and seen results. My body is really changing now and I am seeing the affects of my poor eating habits. Not just in my weight, yes I am 15 pounds heavier than I should be, (No I am not crazy nor making that up-it's really true. I am short people:) You will just have to trust me on this one.) but my thyroid levels and hormones are still out of whack. And I would love to see a decrease in the migraines! I also think it would help with the sugar cravings and fatigue.
Sooo, I started eating healthier yesterday. By God's grace I hope it sticks this time! I will keep you posted on how it goes. And if I see a difference I will let you all in on what I am doing. I have done lots of reasearch and have come up with a little plan. And my friend Anna has helped me too. Thank you!! This is really a lifestyle change, not a diet. I am telling you all so you can keep me accountable. When you see me out, note what I am eating. And don't be afraid to ask me about what you see. The temptations are great!

Monday, November 5, 2007

Sick and Tagged


Yes, we are still sick here at the Gibson house. I feel like we have the plague or something. Gracie is coughing her head off and sneezing, the end I think of this yucky virus. Piper is a little stuffy and has a runny nose. But worst of all, poor Jeremy is sick in bed. He has a terrible sore throat. My hubby never comes home sick, but he did today. I feel so bad for him. So far I have remained unscathed.

And I've been tagged by Juli. First for me too here in the blog world. That means I have to list 7 children's books and tag other bloggers. But Juli and Becky have gotten just about all the other bloggers I know. And girls, I don't know how to link other people's sites. help?? Unfortunately, my girls don't like for me to read to them, well Piper does a little, so my list is a little limited. Anyway, here is my list...

1. "Guess How Much I love You"

2. "I Already Know I Love You" by Billy Crystal

3. "Stellaluna"

4. "Big Thoughts for Little Thinkers, The Gospel" by Joey Allen

5. "Big Thoughts for Little Thinkers, The Bible" by Joey Allen

6. "Designed by God, so I Must Be Special" can't remember:)

7. "The Princess and the Kiss" by Jennie Bishop

oooh I did better than I thought.
Here you go girls, I tag...
Dana Tweed-anybody know? I can't remember since Becky took all her links off:) That's been hard Beck:)
I hope these linked right? Man, there are lots of us who blog! Thanks ladies!! You think if I tagged people who don't have blogs they would get busy?:)