A Little Spring Update for the Blog

Tomorrow is the first day of spring! Yay! Even though the highs for the next week aren't even going to make it out of the 60s (but I'm hoping that's wrong), I thought a little spring update for my little blog would be nice! I love the flower wallpaper and the more springy colors. It makes me happy looking at it!

More to come from my little blog soon, well soon is relative to a woman caring for 3 small ones during the day with no real access to the computer. I'll get around to more posts when I can!

I have been meditating lately on some verses from Colossians, so i will leave you with those today...

Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Colossians 3:12-17

So many wonderful things to think on in those verses. Putting off of the old self and putting on the new self, kind of like spring. The old winter is passing away and the new life of spring is coming. Thankful for that.  Blessings to you all!

Believing that it is all from His hand,

~Heather

Thankful

5 months have passed since I last updated this lovely little blog. Sighh....I wish I had more time to blog. I really enjoy it. Bringing all my crazy thoughts together and putting them into one cohesive post is just wonderful. I don't have access to the computer most days, because my hubs is working with our friend doing their financial thing. They are really excited about how things are going, which makes me really thankful! We have sensed God's grace so much over the time we have been here, so again, I am really thankful!


Our little house is out in the country where the nearest store is a Dollar General (which is becoming a go to!). We are not far from Walmart and other shopping places, but we are a little farther away than we were in Wake Forest. With that fact, most days we don't really go anywhere. We enjoy our little house, our fantastic yard (my favorite part of our place!), do our school time thing, and just hang out. Being pretty much 24/7 with my 3 little darlings is such a blessing, but it is also quite challenging at times. Yes they are HIGH energy, loud (kid, I'm standing right next to you. You don't have to yell!), demanding of attention and instruction, etc...etc.... Lately, however, the biggest challenge I have faced has been my sin.

I think I have said it on here before, but my kids are my little sanctifying machines. Parenting is hard, beautiful and so worth every minute, but hard. Parenting shows me how sinful I am. I see my selfishness, my lack of patience, my quick temper, my absolute need to be in control when I am interacting with my 3 on a daily basis. None of these characteristics are qualities of Christ, of whom I am an ambassador, a representative of. Being mindful and aware of my sin is a grace given to me by God. The awareness of my sin makes me SO thankful for the Savior who died in my place for those sins that so easily entangle me. The Gospel is just what I need during the day, every hour of the day (every moment!). I am forgiven. Period. Praise the Lord!

But, I am not to just fall on my forgiveness and be ok with the fact that I am sinful. The apostle Paul in Ephesians 2 tells us that our salvation was a gift of God, and then he goes on to say that Christ has good works prepared for us that we should walk in them. One of the good works that I am to walk in right now is being a minister of the Gospel of Jesus to 3 precious unbelieving children whom the Lord saw fit to bless me with. I want to be a good mom to them. I want them to see Jesus in me. But all I see sometimes is my sinfulness. I am thankful for the opportunity to apologize and share the gospel with them through my sin, but I need to see some victory over it too. I am thankful that I have been given everything I need for life and godliness in Christ, and with Him I can have victory over my sin. I know I'm not going to be a perfect mommy, but I know that I am going to try my hardest and fight my sin so they can see Jesus. And, when I fail, I get to show them Jesus anyway through apologizing and sharing the gospel. A win/win I suppose.   : )

Now, I leave you with some new pics of my sweet ones. Enjoy the cuteness! (How can I not just love them perfectly all the time?!?)

My little guy. Those eyes are killing me!

My big girl!

He's 3 now. How did that happen??

I had to share this of the small one! He's so cute! Please forgive the poor quality of this photo. Did you know there are still some people in this world without a smart phone. Yep, I'm one of them!

A tiger and a princess came to help me with breakfast!  : )

Oh this kid! Love love love!

Karis and I  on a mommy daughter day. I need those more often! 

I'm thankful that these little years, the challenges and the victories, are certainly all from His hand,

~Heather

Closing Day (Thank You Daddy!)

Well friends, it looks like it is finally happening! After over 10 weeks of being in SC, but without a home of our own, we are finally closing on our new house TOMORROW! We are so thankful and oh so excited to get settled and become official SC residents. Now we can get library cards, and SC license plates, and have lower taxes! Woot woot! I am so glad to be in a home before my big 3-0 birthday this Friday (more thoughts to come on that fact soon!). I am just so happy, and excited, and thankful! I want to thank our sweet, wonderful, gracious, hospitable friends, the Styles, for hosting us these past weeks. Your basement has been a wonderful home for us, and I will really miss being here! Thank you so much friends!

The biggest thanks goes out to my daddy. My sweet, wonderful, generous daddy made this day happen. In midst of moving from NC and being in this time of transition, my dad stepped up, has taken a leap of faith, and co-signed the loan with us. His trust and faith in us is so apparent, and so appreciated! Again, tomorrow would not be happening without his and my step-mom's generosity. After countless forms, lots of Fed-Ex trips, and tons of phone calls, we are all done daddy! (though they now know the number of hairs on your head!) Thank you for being inconvenienced for our good, and all the while being nothing less than 100% supportive and willing to do whatever needed to be done! I don't think we can say thank you enough, but thank you (thank you, thank you, thank you!).

We cannot wait to get our home settled (and decorated for fall!), host friends and family, and enjoy this wonderful blessing! We will get some pictures up as soon as we can!

Believing it is all from His hand,

~Heather

God is so Good

I am so thankful for all the kind words about my last post. Sometimes things are hard, and life can seem just awful (especially when a lot of things come all at once!). We are never promised an easy road in this life, but we are promised that God will work all things together for our good! And, what a good God we have! He has done great things!

Every night as we lay the kids down for bed we sing a few songs, and one of those is the little chorus, "God is so Good."

God is so good, God is so good.

God is so good, He's so good to me.

My last post was a little whiny in nature, and I am so thankful that I have a God who will listen and be patient with me when my flesh is weak and I need to just vent! Boy, is that convicting to me when my kids whine. God responds to me and my whining with perfect patience, and wow! My response to my kids is not with anything close to perfect patience! Most times, it has nothing to do with patience at all! But, I digress...

Though there are a lot of things going on my life right now that are less than desirable, I have so much to be thankful for! God has done such great things in my life, and I want to be sure to focus on those things as well, if not more, than the other side. Trials shape us, form us, and sanctify us. Trying to focus on how good God is and what He has done and will do for us helps us walk with faith through every season of our lives (good and bad).

Here are some of the good things that God is doing now...

1. Blake sort of has a job! (He is just not working right now) He was hired to be an adjunct professor at a university nearby. I am so proud of him and I know he will do a great job with this! (I 100% believe my husband would be stellar at ANY job given the opportunity to learn and work. He is just that awesome!) He was hired later in the semester, so he will have to wait until the spring semester to pick up some classes. I am thankful for this provision!

2. Momma got a good report today! PRAISE THE LORD!

3. We should be closing on our new house in the next few days! So thankful for the Lord's provision with this home, and really looking forward to settling in and being a SC resident!

4. I'm still alive and kickin'! 30 is only a week and a half away, and I'm okay with that!

Sometimes it is easier to look at all that is "wrong" in our lives, but with eyes of faith we can strive to see all the good and the good God that is there. And, we can be thankful. In the words of those wise and wonderful veggie tales characters, "A thankful heart is a happy heart!" I am thankful for all that God has done, and thankful that He is so good to me!

~Believing that it is all from His hand,

Heather

Are We There Yet?

One perk of where we are staying right now is cable tv! This is something that we have not had for about 4 years, and I am loving it! I am even loving commercials! Crazy, I know. There have been commercials that have made me laugh out loud, commercials that have made me cry, and commercials that have made me think about my life. One such commercial I just saw.

This commercial (not even sure what it was advertising exactly) showed clips of all kinds of children saying, "Are we there yet?" How many times have we said that on trips, or heard that from the little ones in the back seat? Are we there yet...are we there yet...are we there yet???

The past few weeks have been a little challenging for me. I have felt a heaviness unlike I have felt in a long time. My momma may be pretty sick. My husband has yet to find a job. There is uncertainty about our future living situation. I am about to turn 30 (and I don't know if I am handling it all that well). There are so many things that are in a limbo state, so many things that are uncertain (well, 30 is certain if the Lord allows me to live for 18 more days!). As I watched that little commercial tonight I realized that I am just like one of those kids, crying out, well, more like whining, "Are we there yet God?" I am struggling to have patience. I am struggling to believe that He is in control and knows exactly where we are going and how long it will take us to get there. My "are we there yet" thoughts are dangerously close to becoming, "Have you forgotten about us?"

I have had some wonderful friends remind me of truth during this time, and please keep it coming! God is certainly in control over every single moment (the marvelous to the mundane), but when I have to put feet to this belief I become this little child who just wants to cry out, "Ughhh....ARE WE THERE YET? DO I HAVE TO KEEP DEALING WITH UNKNOWNS? WHY WON'T YOU JUST GO AHEAD AND REVEAL YOUR PLAN ALREADY! THIS IS HARD!" I don't think I know best, not at all. I don't want to have control. I like being a child of God's and following the good shepherd. I just don't like having to endure and wait on Him! (Ohhh...sinful sinful self!)

The best place for me right now is the gospel. Jesus, for the joy set before Him, endured the cross, despised it's shame, and then was seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven. Jesus did not like the cross. It was hard! It was painful! But, He endured knowing what was to come. He, the good shepherd, laid down His life for His sheep so that we could be with Him for eternity. He trusted the Father's plan, whatever it looked like, and knew the joy that was before Him. And now, the punishment for my sin, the death that I deserved, was taken away at the cross. There is now no condemnation, but Christ's perfection is credited to my account. Scandalous, and beautiful!

I don't know what is going to happen in the days to come. Maybe things will get easier. Maybe they won't. Maybe God's plan will be revealed with absolute certainty, but, maybe it won't. What I do know is that God will work all things together for my good and His glory (no matter what may come). I know that He will provide everything I need according to His glorious riches in Jesus (so I can face whatever comes my way). And I know that I have a good shepherd that loves me and laid down His life for me (so I have hope). My joy cannot be shaken and my hope cannot be taken away due to my circumstances because it is grounded on something that can never ever be taken away. Jesus! I am His and He is mine! That is where I will seek to rest in midst of this uncertain time. And, I am quite thankful that even when my faith wavers, He is ever steady in the storm!

There will always be things that come up in this life. There will be new difficulties to face, new trials to bear, new uncertainties around every corner. I am sure we will all have plenty of moments in this life when we ask God the question of "Are we there yet?" And, I am also sure that it won't be answered in the affirmative until we reach heaven. Until then, I will bring my feeble, faint heart before the Lord, and pray for faith to trust Him always.

Hear my cry, O God,

listen to my prayer;

from the end of the earth I call to you

when my heart is faint.

Lead me to the rock

that is higher than I,

for you have been my refuge,

a strong tower against the enemy.

Let me dwell in your tent forever!

Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings! 

Psalm 61:1-4 

 Believing that it is all from His hand,

~Heather

More than we can ask or think...

I am in awe again of how the Lord is working on behalf of our little group who is hoping to serve the Lord together in South Carolina. Our friends, Jeremy and Natalie, put their house up for sale in Wake Forest in early August, and a little over 2 weeks later, they are under contract and preparing to move! And, to top it off, they were offered more money than they were asking! Eric and Ashley's house is under contract too, and they are looking to be down here soon as well!

The families that were hoping to be down here by the end of the year are either here, or on their way! All of us that planned on selling our homes went under contract within a month of putting it on the market! God is in control, and God is moving on our behalf for sure! I am more and more sure of our move and excited to see what the Lord has in store for us here in South Carolina! I am convinced that Lord is doing something great and that His hand is clearly leading and guiding us.

I am so thankful!


Believing that it is all from His hand,

~Heather

We Moved! And, So Did The Lord!

After a year or more of praying, months of planning, weeks of packing, and several hours of driving, we have officially moved and started our life in the Greenville, SC area! It still has not sunk in that we are not just visiting, but I am sure after a little time this place will not only be home but will also feel like home too. We are out in a more rural area, and the trees and country setting are just beautiful! I was driving around on some back roads and thought, "Oh, I think I love it here!" (This coming from someone who cried like crazy leaving my sweet little town of Wake Forest just the day before!) I truly believe that God has knitted this time together and is (in every way) in control. One way that this fact is so clear is what we experienced on Sunday.

The plan we have in moving down this way is to be involved with a small church for a time while we get settled and get to know the community. We want to seek wisdom from the Lord during this time in whether we are to plant a church in this area or be involved in church revitalization. We were in contact with a small church, Living Grace Baptist Church, before we moved and felt like this would be the congregation we would join with for a time. It is a small, rural church comprised of sweet people who have embraced Jesus as their Lord. In a letter written in the beginning of this year, the pastor, Rod Wilton, describes the congregation as "a tiny beacon of light flying the banner of 'Christ is Lord.'" He also calls them a "faithful and loving body of believers." In our first interaction with them, I wholeheartedly agree! Also within this letter were a few prayer requests (the letter was written to folks at a conference that went on early this year).

David Crowder sings a line in one of his songs that says, "sometimes you're closer than my skin," and a few of Pastor Wilton's prayer requests made me feel just like this. Here they are...

"1. Numerical Growth- We have no interest in numbers per-say, but we need encouragement. We truly rest in God's good providence, but we need to be strengthened and we pray, "Lord, send us a couple of families who are mature believers who will serve you faithfully as soldiers of the Cross!" We pray this way knowing that there are mitigating circumstances such as our rural location, and a culturally complex community.

2. New Pastoral Leadership- ...Our three elders agree that a younger man is needed to take this work into the future. There is a great challenge ahead, but a solid foundation had been laid and there is opportunity for making an impact..."


As my sweet friend from college and I would often say....FREAK OUT! I mean, our heart has been to reach out and minister in a more rural context, there are 3 families here now and 3 more on the way, and the men are desiring to either start a church or revitalize. This may be the place that Lord has for us long term, but regardless, this is where He has us now, and I am thankful. I am more confident of this move just about every day and I am thankful for this small little glimpse of seeing His hand moving us and working through the prayers of His people.

Pray for us. We want to follow the Lord and be a light for Him. We want to impact this area for the glory of the Lord. Pray that we will trust Him through every step of the way. Thank you so much! We are excited to see the way He is already moving, and excited to see what He will do in the future!

Believing that it is all from His hand, 

~Heather