October Joy

It is Sunday afternoon and I am at Radinas in aggieville with Leah.

 Went to church this morning and had an awesome Sunday school lesson with the TRU group then a great service and sermon by Dave Romero.  It was called Be Still and Know I Am God.  What I got out of it most was to get in an unforced rhythm of grace with God.  I want to be more conscious of God and listen to His leading all throughout the day, to see others as He sees them, to respond to the needs of others.  All I need to do is to stay in rhythm with Him and accept His grace to do this.  It was very inspiring.

I have to take a time out and mention the conversations around me in this coffeeshop.  There is a small group of young people nearby who are planning a film shoot.  There is a lady behind me talking about voice training for a choir.  There are some ladies also behind me doing a Bible study.  Another table is talking about people they hate.  Humm...

Last night we went to the wedding celebration of Josh and McKenzie Garcia, the son of Mary who is in our small group.  We always love spending time with these people.  

Yesterday Leah and I went to Topeka.  We spent some time with my mom in law, Julie, and met Ian and Season at Chipotle.  I wish id taken a picture of them.  They are such precious people.  It was so good to spend time with them.  Ironically, in walked Larry and Joanna who don't even live in Topeka!  

Leah and I then went to the soccer fields and watched Scott coach his U10 girls.  So fun to watch and they did really well!

I enjoy having Leah home.  

Friday was a work day and I had meetings most of the day.  I got done some of the things I needed to, but not all.  Oh well!  This week was also school safety week so we had a reverse evacuation, severe weather drill, enhanced fire drill complete with smoke, a lock down drill, evacuation drill where we walk the entire school to a church five blocks away, and a lock down drill.  

Also this week, I took Adelle to a movie event called Surge put on by acquire the Fire.  We ran into a former student of mine, Tedi, and she was thrilled to see us.  She was totally into the music and message.  At the end, Adelle lifted her hand and prayed to accept Christ as her Saviour.  She said she's done it before but it was still very cool.  

They have their eyes closed due to the flash in the dark theater.  

I love weekends

I do love weekends.  

Friday nights I am exhausted but relaxed and looking forward the the weekend ahead.  I always take a nap after work then have a snack and go work out at 5:30.  Step class plus some weights.  Good stuff.  Then I order our Chipotle and go get it and bring it home.  If its nice, we eat on the back deck.  Then we just chill.  This Friday night we watched a movie about a guy in the fifties who wanted to prove that Polynesians were settled by Peruvians so he and a group of guys built a raft and put it in the ocean and drifted all the way across.  It was cool.  I never make it very late on Friday night before turning in.

Saturday mornings I get up after sleeping as late as possible which is now around 9 am.  I take my time with my morning devotions and prayer journal.  Then I make my to do lists and plan the weekly meals and make my grocery list.  I love doing that!  The best part of weekends is filling the pantry and fridge, cleaning to make everything shiny, fill the gas tank, getting the stinky laundry all clean and folded and put away, doing my nails, pick up new library books, and just take care of all the little things that have bugged me but I've ignored all week.  I also like spending time with Scott.  And Adelle.  Adelle likes helping me grocery shop and run errands.  

Last night we had some friends, Fedra and Jose and daughter Maya over for homemade enchiladas that I bought from an old friend.  We met Fedra and Jose at the gym.  They've been in my step classes for years and we've wanted to have them over for a long time.  We had a nice dinner and drank chocolate wine, yum.  We turned on the dance kinect game and danced until we were sweaty.

On Sundays, we've been getting up earlier than usual to go to Connection Hour at 9:45 because our TRU group has been meeting to "learn" how to be evangelical in our relationships and intentional,as we prepare to launch small groups and a church.  

This afternoon I wrote a hands blog for Leah's blog, A Clover and a Bee, and then repotted a begonia plant to bring inside and made a flower thing for the front door.

The rest of the afternoon I want to talk to the kids and the parents on the phone and read my latest book.

Then Sunday evenings we meet from 6:30 to 8:30 with our small group of friends who've become very precious to us, the Funks, Turners, Ridders, and Quintanars.  We have been meeting together studying the Bible and sharing our hearts for years now.  These are the people who help us carry our burdens, who know the most about us, who hold us accountable and who love us unconditionally (and we do this for them, also).  

I hope your weekends are as amazing as mine.  

These Hands

These hands are 51 years old.

They bathe and dress and put on my makeup early every morning.

They drink coffee, eat breakfast and write verses and prayers to change my heart and feed my soul.

These hands fist bump kids in the middle school hallways and take notes at endless meetings.

But these hands reach out to troubled teens and pray with women recovering from the sex industry.

These hands pet my soft dog, play with my iPad and turn hundreds of pages of books to help me relax.

They clean, grocery shop, fold laundry and decorate this beautiful home we are blessed with.

They fist pump to loud music in the car with my Little Sister, Adelle every Saturday.

They rub my husbands back.

They lift weights to make me strong and healthy.

They call my grown kids and aging parents and drive to see them for precious visits.

These hands join with God's people in prayer for the hurting and broken, hoping to share the love we've experienced with the world.

Mama

It's official.  I have opened every app on my iPad today.  

Yesterday after work, I drove to Leavenworth as Mom had surgery.  Dave took her to the hospital and waited all day.  He thinks I have the hard part.  Lol.  They'd just gotten home when I got here.  Mom had her bladder lifted under light sedation.  She did real well.  She went to sleep at 7 last night.  So I farted around, made myself some dinner, watched the voice, settled in.  Her cat had a huge owie on his neck and smelled like a corpse.  I've never actually smelled a corpse.  I finally went to bed in my little middle bedroom at 10 and read til sleep.

Mom got up several times in the night and I finally willed myself to wake up and get her a pain pill.  We slept then til 8.

Fixed mama some breakfast, had some coffee then I went for a run! I ran quite a way before I walked.  Got back and showered then caught the cat with a towel and put it in a cat carrier and took the silly thing to the vet.  It complained the whole way. Made a Wally World run then back to the house.  I did some work stuff, painted both our nails, had an early lunch, sat on the deck in the beautiful cool sunshine for awhile, played on the iPad, and read.  We hung out back on Mom's bed together while she rested and I fell asleep:).  Picked up the cat at the vet and I drove by my childhood house and grade school on the way.  Memory lane.  Ate some pizza for dinner and made mama some pumpkin muffins, then watched the voice and played on the iPad some more.  I went for a walk in the early evening.  Soon we'll watch Chicago Fire.  

If I was home, I'd have worked today and gone to the gym but at home would have done pretty much the same stuff.  With Rex.  And Scott.  

Home tomorrow.

Relaxing Weekend

I spent the weekend relaxing, finally over this sinus infection, I think.  I had a three day weekend after conference week. I spent Friday getting my yearly mammogram and a first bone density scan, then ran a few errands and did some cleaning.  Scott added topsoil and overseeded the whole lawn, nearly killing himself in the process.  I went to step class then we had Stacy over for dinner. Ryan also slept over as he did a ride along with the fire department on Saturday, though we barely saw him.  

Saturday I slept in then picked up Adelle for the weekly grocery trip.  The weather was amazing!  In the afternoon, we got poor sore Scott and Rex and went for a walk along the linear trail.

  It was quite enjoyable.  They were both in rare form.  Every time Scott fake farts Adelle screeches, "Scott!  No fake farting!"  The two have a camaraderie that is fun to witness.  We stopped by the library then Orange Leaf for some froyo. Saturday evening I ran to old stadium and did some stairs then ran home.

Today we got up a bit earlier for us and went to Connection Hour to plan and prepare for TRU.  This is the church branch that will start East of town.  It's sort of a church plant but different.  We will be involved in missions work getting it up and running.  It should be interesting.  Went to church then spent the remainder of the afternoon on the back deck.  The weather was absolutely perfect.  I rested, read,,watched some hgtv, watered the lawn and then face timed with my beautiful Leah!

More

This afternoon I picked up Adelle and we went to the grocery store.  I found the most perfect flower to put in the livingroom!  I'd been looking for a green and purple,arrangement to put in there the height the decorator suggested.  It's a live orchid! 

On the way to take Adelle home, we saw two college boys running shirtless.  She turned to watch them and said, "they shouldn't be allowed to do that!"  I said, do you know what that is called?  Eye candy!"  She thought that was hilarious.

This afternoon I talked to Joel on the phone, had. Glorious nap, then went to our small group Bible study with our dear friends.

It's been a pretty good day.

Homestead Sunday

Got up to beautiful weather today, Sunday, after sleeping for eleven hours.  Went to pick up Theresa who was ready to go.  She was nervous, tearful on and off.  We sat together and Kristen joined her.  Sandy and Deana came in and sat in front of us and we were eventually joined by Christiana's whole family, her parents, and all five of her kids.  Christiana sat by Deana with Deb to her right.  The girls were nervous yet expectant.  They hope so much that their stories will help others.  Just before worship started, Alexis and her husband came to sit behind us.

Deb spoke for a bit between each of the girls' videotaped testimonies.  I am so familiar with their stories yet we cried like babies all the way through each one holding tightly onto each  other.  I felt so proud of them for their courage, their strength, their vulnerability to tell their stories, and the message of faith and hope that shined through each one.  To see Christiana's teen daughters hear her testimony, and see her Dad there....was indescribable.  Deb had Sandy stand for awhile and also me.  When each girl got done with their turn, the whole congregation erupted in applause, which just made us cry harder.  They have each worked so hard to get where they are today.  It's like they've had layer after layer ripped off.  Transformation is such emotionally hard work.  

At the end, Dave just went up to the pulpit and started singing acapella, My chains are gone, I've been set free, my God my Saviour, has ransomed me.  And like a flood, His mercies rain, amazing love, amazing grace.  We prayed, then the offering was a series of verses while the song, Beautiful Things played.  It goes, You make beautiful things, You make beautiful things out of dust.  You make beautiful things, You make beautiful things out of us.  One of the verses was ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” (Revelation 21:4, 5 NIV)

I feel so honored and blessed to be used by God to help these girls along their journeys.