Pouting

I'm in a pouting sort of mood tonight. I was suppose to be attending a ladies retreat this weekend with the ladies of my church. Instead...home with a fever and sore throat that feels more like I've swallowed sand. YUCK!

I really wanted to go. It was going to be my last official fun thing to do as the pastor's wife with this great group of ladies. Does this seem odd? Leaving a church and still loving them? I know it's a little weird, but thankfully that's the way we are exiting.

Anyway, I am just as disappointed as a child who just discovered who Santa is. Wishing I could be with some incredible ladies.

Thankful Thursday

Check out Sonya's Blog over at Truth for the Journey to read more Thankful Thursday posts.

My Thankful Thursday Includes:

1. Thankful for our church family, who is understanding, kind and comforting during this time of resignation. They are an incredible body of believers. Check them out at GBF
2. Finding someone who can do the carpentry sprucing up in our house so we can get the "For Sale" sign up in the yard.

3. Children who roll with the punches.

4. New Pizza Place in town. Mama Mias! YUMMY!

5. God's faithfulness and peace during this transition time.

I would love to hear something you are thankful for today! Leave a comment below.

Following...

For all my non-Grace Bible Fellowship Friends, I need to fill you in. After a ton of prayer and another ton of tears, Bruce resigned his position as pastor of Grace Bible Fellowship this morning. The hardest and best thing we have ever done in our entire lives.

Let me explain. GBF was a great place for Bruce to work. It has allowed him to do what he does best. Love and encourage people and in that way help build the eternal kingdom of God. Small towns are a perfect fit for us. We love the hands on, hard work of small church ministry. Thing is...churches grow when you do ministry that way! And a small church doesn't stay small (praise God!). These last few months we have felt the tug of God on our hearts. And so, Bruce felt like it was time for us to move on and sit and see what God has next for us.

And so...here we sit. The announcement has been made, tears have been shed, hugs have been shared and words of encouragement have been spoken. A congregation has loved on us and now reality sets in.

As I was thinking of all the things that have happened over the last 2 1/2 years, my hope and prayer is that people I have had the priviledge of knowing would love Jesus more as a result of being with me. In the scheme of things it matters so little what people know of me...it's what they know of Jesus that is the most important thing in the world.

Next Sunday is our last Sunday with this body of believers...and friends. May God lead and guide their steps.

Wacky Hair Night at TeamKID

Tonight is Wacky Hair Night at TeamKID. The kids are pumped...in fact Savannah's been pretty much talking about it non-stop since last week. The worker's all have something crazy in mind...in fact I've heard wigs...hair color and more are all to be expected. I love it!

I think it's great that we are teaching this generation that being a Christian isn't boring. That we can have fun, live life with a good attitude and be excited about what God has in store for us. This isn't the church of the next generation....this is the church now. Many of these kids are beginning their walk with Christ and are learning the foundations that many of the adults I know don't even have yet. They are moldable, teachable and soaking things up at this age. What a gift God has given us (parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, teachers, preachers) to fill these kids up with love for God and His Word. I love that over and over in God's Word He used kids and teens. I think we all need a wake up call if we don't think these kids are God's instruments as much as we are...if not more...because they are ready...like a sponge to soak up the goodness of God and share it with others.

Didn't mean to be preachy today! Enjoy the pic of Savannah ready for TeamKID!

Mission News

Tonight is our quarterly board meeting for The Mission Gunter. www.missiongunter.com is our website if you want to check it out. Anyway, we are getting ready for a big appreciation dessert gathering next week, where we will share our plans for the new year. It's an exciting time for the Mission Gunter. We will also be welcoming a new board member to our team and for that, I am so greatful. Slowly the weight of this ministry is becoming evenly distributed amongst our board. It's a beautiful thing when you realize you don't have to go alone...other people catch the vision....something good is happening!

In our study of Nehemiah at church, I think that is how he must have felt. Willing to go alone, yes, but happy that God provided an outstanding team of people to work alongside him, even better! Naysayers, yes, but confident that the God who called him would be faithful to complete the good work, yes. When we started this ministry 1.5 years ago, I thought everyone I knew would be ready to jump on the band wagon. How sadly mistaken I was. There have been naysayers, there have been points of discouragement and their have been mountain top experiences. Thankfully God's been there for it all.

So, tonight we meet. Most people dread board meetings. Not me. I love them, they excite me, motivate me and fill me with hope. Hope that one small dose of love and care in our community will open doors for us to share Christ's love with those who live next door, across the street or down the road.

Sunday Summary

Today was an extraordinary day...so here is the play by play:

We invited three families over to our house for lunch today. So, in order to have lunch ready when we can home from church, I had to get up at 6am. I finished making the salad and chicken pot pie that I had put together yesterday and then got myself ready for church. Thing is...Tucker was wide awake with me! How does he do it...he requires so little sleep.

We live less than 2 miles from our church, but left the house at 7:15 to be there at 7:30. Seemed a little too early! Bruce decided to take the long way to church...(if you live in my town you know how rediculous that sounds) but on the way the song Your Love is Amazing was on the radio. It is one of the first songs Tucker ever sang...and he and Savannah were singing today at the top of their lungs. Anyway, we were still in the car and from the back seat Savannah said "Hey mom, we're not even at church and we are worshipping". I thought about it for a minute! Isn't that a cool concept for a kid to grasp. YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE AT CHURCH TO WORSHIP! Thank you God for speaking to me before my feet hit the church parking lot!

We are in the middle of the God of the City series and you can tell God is up to something. It's exciting, humbling and refreshing. My 4-5 year old class was great. We had a new little girl. One of my regulars was in rare form today...

I could tell she was uncomfortable. She was wiggly, squirmming, and had ants in her pants....or should I say tights. She is 5 and a sweetie! But 5 year olds don't always know what is appropriate to do in a class of boys and girls. I was teaching and we were all sitting around a round table. She was next to me. I turned to the opposite side of the table and was talking to the kids and when I turned back she was turned around (back to the table) with her dress up over her waiste trying to fix her tights that were bunched up in her underwear! I quickly fixed her dress and pretended like nothing happened...and remarkable the other kids didn't say a word. Kids are funny.

Our lunch with our friends went well. In fact I was able to share a dream I have for a community vegetable garden to service our town. It is great to see people catching the vision of The Mission and even wondering what they can do to help. Exciting times.

Our day closed by a rare Sunday Night service at church. We met to pray for ourselves and our city and ended with communion. It was a beautiful service.

Catching Up

It's been a busy few days. My mom came back to my house after spending a few days with her sister in Arlington. They had a great time together. We met up at the Cheesecake Factory on Sunday night for dinner and enjoyed a quick visit and a yummy meal.

Monday Mom and I spent the entire day out shopping. I've lived in my current house alomost 2 1/2 years and have spent next to nothing making it our own. I think it's looked ok but, Monday we went and I spent some time, money and a great deal of thought and consideration finding items that I think will help make our home more comfortable and decorative. I bought lamps, pictures, pottery, floral arrangements and a rug. All for $300. I am super-thrilled! This has been a long time coming! Today we have worked in my foyer, living and dining areas and they look so beautiful! Very inviting and comfortable for our guests and my family to enjoy.

I'm thankful for this special time we have had with mom. She is such a godly, loving lady. I have been blessed in my life to be her daughter. I have wonderful memories of my childhood with her and it motivates me to be a better mother because she was mine. She's a great grandmother too!

Tonight I went to Ladies Bible Study at our church. There were 17 ladies present. We are studying the book of Esther. It was awesome. God's Word comes alive when you study an entire book of the Bible at one time. Tinna did a great job leading the discussion and the interactive questions. It's a wonderful mystery to me the way God chose to speak to Isreal. I wonder if He is trying to get our attendtion in the world, and if we, like Isreal need a little wake-up call spiritually speaking. I loved the fact we had visitors and first time participants. It's going to be a great study.

Bruce's birthday is on Wednesday. I think we will probably do something. He's wanting some new clothes so I guess we will all contribute to the cause!

God of This City

Tomorrow is a big day at the church. Bruce has been working for months on a sermon series that will hopefully impact not just our church, but our community. He's taken special time away in retreat for 3 days to prepare his heart, hear God's voice, and try to understand what exactly God wants from GBF and us (the church) in general. Sometimes it's tough knowing what God wants and yet when we get still, quiet and humbled before our God, he speaks.

I'm in serious prayer for our church. I know what's coming. The enemy ain't gonna like it!

Praying for your church to have a great day tomorrow.

Manna Worldwide

By now, if you've read my blog for any period of time, you have figured out that God has placed a passion within me to be an instrument in meeting spiritual and physical needs of those less fortunate. Yesterday at church, Chuck and Carla Ward and their great girls were there to present Manna Worldwide, a ministry dedicated to do the same thing in other countries. They partner with missionaries and open feeding centers all over the world in order to nourish children's bodies and feed their soul with Jesus love. They are feeding over 7,000 children 2 meals a day! AWESOME!
Check out their site: www.mannaworldwide.com/

Talk About it Talk About it Talk About it

Last night was our Ladies Night Out at church. It was awesome!!!!! We did a cooking show type meeting. Tinna outdid herself with the decor...pumpkins, candles, bistro tables, fall leaves and more (she must have moved half her house to the church!) Anyway, Ms. Sue did a her rendition of June Cleaver and did the 1950's Good Housekeeping tips for making your man happy!!!! OH MY GOODNESS!!! It was as funny as the first time I heard her do it....she is FUNNY!

Then I shared all I know about baking bread...which took about 10 minutes. I made the White Amish Bread recipe from recipes.com. I had arrived early and had different loaves at different stages in the baking, rising process.

Then Charlotte shared an out of sight meatloaf, mashed potatoes and green bean recipes. Each had a very creole element and they were awesome!

The night ended with a decadent chocolate dessert that was deliciously rich!

The food was awesome and a relatively easy event to get multiple people involved. I really appreciated all the work and planning that went it to it. Plus...we went home with 5 new recipes and a boatload of new recipes.

Here's the link to the bread I made: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Amish-White-Bread/Detail.aspx Happy Baking!!!

The "New" Smell

Our church has recently moved into a "new to us" building. We have renovated the old elementary school in town and have gussied up the place. New paint, new wall decor, new carpet. It's got that new smell you find in new cars, on new babies, and that unfortunatly wears off way too soon. But we are enjoying it while it lasts. God is blessing us with individuals each week that need Jesus. Thankful and prayerfully we are sharing Jesus in an effective way, so they can know him as their forever friend.

School has started back and with that the adventure of keeping Tucker busy while I am trying to teach the 3 r's to Savannah. As long as Tucker is busy...everyone is happy. Savannah is doing good and Tucker is surviving. He's learning a few things along the way about atronauts, family and the alphabet!

Tucker has also proclaimed a few things lately. This morning the first thing he said to me when he woke up was "Mom, I eat my snot." Could I be any more proud!?!

Single's Night Out...tons of fun

We just returned home from our first ever Single's Night Out with the fantastic singles at our church. There were 7 adults who risked their lives at cosmic bowling and Manny's Mexican food! We had a great time. I admire these people. They truly are some of the hardest working, dedicated and responsible people I know. I looked around and saw 7 individuals who are moms, dads, professionals, church workers, friends, and leaders. It made me proud to share time with them. They aren't deadbeats, lazy or taking advantage of the system. They have responsibilities and they follow through. I was encouraged by them! I hope that I get to spend much more time with them in the future. I'm reminded that God has a different path for each of us...it's not better or worse because you are married or divorced or single or widowed...it's just different. God's plan for each of us is perfect and although we might not have picked the path we are on, He is in control and He knows what is best for us.

Go to the Source

GBF Women of Wisdom...today's bonus questions is: What are the benefits of memorizing scripture- look at Proverbs 2:1-5. Have you ever benefited from being able to recall a particular scripture during a difficult time. Write it down...then thank God for His Word!

Women Seeking Wisdom

Tonight was the beginning of our ladies Bible study. We are studying the book of Proverbs and praying believing that God will give us the wisdom we are asking for. For those women wishing to dig a little deeper this week in the study....here's your assignment for today.....Look up the words: scoffer, fool, and simple (as a noun). Use whatever you have...a dictionary, a thesaurus, Google them...get a better understanding of who Proverbs is talking about when it mentions these type people. Make a list of the character traits each of these have. Honestly examine your life and see if you need to make some heart improvements.

In other news, UPS delivered 9 of 14 boxes of art supplies for the Mission today. I haven't opened them yet....I have a slight addiction to office supplies so I am afraid I might get carried away if I rip the boxes open....better wait on Keelie (she appears to be more self - controlled). we had 28 or so sign up for SAM club yesterday at pre-registration! We had lots of parents volunteer to help so some of my fears are settling. It's amazing to see God's hand on every part of this ministry. Thank you Lord!

Yeowzaaaa!!!!!

Yesterday (Sunday) was quite a day! First of all, the worship through music at church was absolutely wonderful. Music has always been able to take me to a place of worship that nothing else can quite compare to. Our worship leader, Charlotte Scales, has a way of working scriptures, stories and Bible history all together and creating an environment that causes people to focus on the reason for our worship...Jesus Christ. It was great!
Then Bruce brought a message which included the announcement that we would be moving to the Gunter Elementary School for our services in September. This will solve all our space needs and it is just miraculous how God has worked it all out. We might feel a little like the children of Israel...moving from location to location...but it's ok...they eventually made it to the promised land!
After the first service a woman came up to me and ask me my name. I told her and she then said are you part of the Mission. I said yes, she then proceeded to tell me an amazing story of how God had restored her faith and family through groceries the Mission had left on her doorstep. It was such a confirmation that Keelie and I are doing exactly what God wants us to do in our community. I am so thankful for a God who knows when we need encouragement.
Tucker has completely recovered from his stomach bug, but now wants to be held all the time. This has resulted in numerous temper tantrums when holding him has been an impossibility...like when I am in the bathroom...or in the car....or cooking. He's so funny, when I tell him to wait just a second...he said...no! mommy hold me RIGHT NOW! (seems "right now" have become a couple of his favorite words!