The title of this post is also the name of the Priscilla Shirer study that I began in January of this year. This 6 week study is still not complete. Talk about a life Interrupted...
Our bible study group meets in my home on Monday nights. I can easily say that this is my favorite night of the week. Spending time in God's word with this amazing group of women is something that feeds me in a way that nothing else does. We laugh together, we cry together, and we share our deepest lows and highest highs with one another. Our youngest group member is in her early 20's and our oldest is in her early 60's. It is awesome. But as a group and as individuals we have been tested during this study in ways I could have never imagined. Since January we have had many weeks missed for many reasons (big ones) and it has just further brought home the point made in this study...regardless what gets in the way of us completing our mission or our directive from God, at the end of the day, he will take us right back to the starting point and have us finish the task. And friends, I have every intention of continuing on the road that God has set out for me but if I am to be honest, this last month has been hard. It has been hard in a way I haven't experienced before. Maybe because it is so much at once.
The second week of February my Mother-in -Love became ill. Luckily she is now recovering well and is doing MUCH better. No further details needed because that is not my story to tell but I am just thankful for God's provision for her and His hand in her situation. It was so clear that he held her in and through all of it.
In the midst of that, we also became aware of some medical issues that my Dad has. They are big and scary and not yet "fixed" as it is an ongoing process. I am having to trust God in a big way. And I am and will continue praying hard through this. I have always felt especially blessed to have the father I do. He is not my biological father. (My biological father is deceased). But he raised me. He loved me when I was unlovable. He has supported me. He is one of my favorite people in the whole world. I could not love him more. I am so worried about him but I am working very hard to turn that over to God.
The most devastating thing to occur in the last month was the tragic loss of my friend, and our church's children's minister, Camille Coats. I have wanted to write about this for the last 4 weeks but have been unable to do so because quite frankly, I am still overwhelmed with emotion. There is not a day that goes by that I do not cry at some point during the day as I am reminded of Camille. Or I think of something to tell her about the children's ministry. Or we do something with the kids at church like Palm Sunday or the annual Easter Egg Hunt and all I can think about is how much she would have enjoyed it and how well she would have pulled off the event.
Camille was one of those people of whom it can easily be said "To know her is to love her". She was so filled with joy and a true love for the Lord. I had the unique opportunity to meet Camille and show her around on her first visit to our church. On that very first visit , when I took her upstairs in our children's building, she immediately started engaging with the kids that were there for Awana that night and even got down on the floor and started helping some of them work on their bible verses.
That was the thing about Camille, she never met a stranger and everyone was drawn to her. Later that same night I sat on the committee that interviewed Camille. Going into the interview I worried that she might be too young to take on such a large job. But following my time with her that night and the interview, I left that room and I remember telling our associate pastor that I thought she was exactly what we needed. It just felt right.
I think what hurts the most about the loss of Camille is that I don't know if SHE knew how loved she was by all of us. She was still finding her way in ministry at our church. But what she didn't realize is that even though she was younger than many of us in years, she was so much more mature than most of us in her walk with God. She radiated a love for Jesus that was undeniable. She did more for the kingdom of God in her short time on Earth than many who have been here three times as long. And if her life has taught us anything it is that life is precious and we need to not waste a minute of it worrying about earthly things. We need to fix our eyes on Jesus and put our focus on growing His kingdom while we are here. Just as Camille did.
I am not alone in my grief over this great loss. I know that. I cannot imagine the grief her family must feel. I pray for them and her boyfriend Brad and his family daily. Will you please join me in that?
As a church we plan to do many things in the future to honor Camille...both big and small. we will make sure that her memory stays alive in the memory of the children she loved so much. I know those of us that loved her will never forget her.
Tuesday, April 7, 2015
Monday, January 5, 2015
Goodbye Christmas Break!
It is with a heavy heart that I will send my kids back to school tomorrow. They drive me crazy 80% of the time, but they are also so much fun and they fill the house with so much noise and life that when they are at school, it is just SO quiet around here. I am very blessed to work from my home office but some days the quiet can take it's toll.
We have tried to make the most of the time the kids had out of school. Marc took the entire week of Christmas off work. We did a lot of relaxing, playing video games, going out to eat, and a couple of little trips. The kid's favorite trip by far was the jaunt we made to Six Flags a few days after Christmas. We purchased annual passes as a family Christmas gift this year and the fine print told us that if we processed these passes in the park by December 28th then we would be upgraded to a Gold pass that would included an annual pass to Whitewater. We certainly weren't passing that up!
The day we went was perfect. I have never seen Six Flags so deserted. Several times we just stayed on rides and rode them a second time simply because there was no one else waiting. It was awesome. The boys (and Marc and I) are really looking forward to using these memberships a lot this coming summer! (Below is a picture from Six Flags Christmas in the Park...it was beautiful!)
Anyway, it is now time to dive back into school (for the kids and Marc) and schedules and sports, etc. it has been nice to have nowhere we "had" to be for the last two weeks other than optional fun holiday activities. However, I am so excited to get back to my weekly bible study group. I miss those women. We will start back on January 26th at my house and we are doing the Priscilla Shirer study titled "Jonah" this time (if anyone reading this is interested in joining us just let me know!)
As a church, we are starting 2015 doing a study called "40 Days In The Word" by Rick Warren. It has a daily reading plan that takes you through the bible in chronological order, which I love. I am looking forward to doing this as a whole church. We have done this several times now with other studies and it is such a neat thing to come together like that. This week of reading is taking us through the book of Job. Wow. When you haven't read something in a while, you forget how powerful it is. The book of Job is definitely powerful. I remember when my best friend went through the lowest point in her life thus far, someone pointed her to this book of the bible. She credits this book for being what renewed her relationship with God. It is just such a powerful book. To read what Job went through, for no reason at all, how he handled it, etc. I would venture to say that you can't read through it without putting yourself in Job's shoes and asking yourself "what would I do". Very humbling. If you haven't spent some time with Job in a while, go and visit with him again.
As a church family we covet your prayers right now for our Sr. Pastor David Warren who has been diagnosed with Acute Leukemia. He is a fighter and has an amazing support system but I know he appreciates every prayer being said for him.
A lot of people make resolutions in a new year to better themselves physically, mentally, spiritually. If you are one of these people and you are looking for a church home, please let me know. I would love to invite you to come and visit our church anytime. I will be happy to come and get you and take you to lunch too. Just let me know!
We have tried to make the most of the time the kids had out of school. Marc took the entire week of Christmas off work. We did a lot of relaxing, playing video games, going out to eat, and a couple of little trips. The kid's favorite trip by far was the jaunt we made to Six Flags a few days after Christmas. We purchased annual passes as a family Christmas gift this year and the fine print told us that if we processed these passes in the park by December 28th then we would be upgraded to a Gold pass that would included an annual pass to Whitewater. We certainly weren't passing that up!
The day we went was perfect. I have never seen Six Flags so deserted. Several times we just stayed on rides and rode them a second time simply because there was no one else waiting. It was awesome. The boys (and Marc and I) are really looking forward to using these memberships a lot this coming summer! (Below is a picture from Six Flags Christmas in the Park...it was beautiful!)
Anyway, it is now time to dive back into school (for the kids and Marc) and schedules and sports, etc. it has been nice to have nowhere we "had" to be for the last two weeks other than optional fun holiday activities. However, I am so excited to get back to my weekly bible study group. I miss those women. We will start back on January 26th at my house and we are doing the Priscilla Shirer study titled "Jonah" this time (if anyone reading this is interested in joining us just let me know!)
As a church, we are starting 2015 doing a study called "40 Days In The Word" by Rick Warren. It has a daily reading plan that takes you through the bible in chronological order, which I love. I am looking forward to doing this as a whole church. We have done this several times now with other studies and it is such a neat thing to come together like that. This week of reading is taking us through the book of Job. Wow. When you haven't read something in a while, you forget how powerful it is. The book of Job is definitely powerful. I remember when my best friend went through the lowest point in her life thus far, someone pointed her to this book of the bible. She credits this book for being what renewed her relationship with God. It is just such a powerful book. To read what Job went through, for no reason at all, how he handled it, etc. I would venture to say that you can't read through it without putting yourself in Job's shoes and asking yourself "what would I do". Very humbling. If you haven't spent some time with Job in a while, go and visit with him again.
As a church family we covet your prayers right now for our Sr. Pastor David Warren who has been diagnosed with Acute Leukemia. He is a fighter and has an amazing support system but I know he appreciates every prayer being said for him.
A lot of people make resolutions in a new year to better themselves physically, mentally, spiritually. If you are one of these people and you are looking for a church home, please let me know. I would love to invite you to come and visit our church anytime. I will be happy to come and get you and take you to lunch too. Just let me know!
Thursday, January 1, 2015
Happy New Year!
Well, here goes my 3rd or 4th attempt at blogging. I have had a few blogs for family since 2005 when my oldest son was born. Those blogs were started with the main goal of sharing pictures and updates about the kids.
For the last 6 months or so I have felt an urging to start blogging again in an effort to share my faith, and my daily struggles in my walk with God. I was blessed to be able to join a mission team from my church that traveled to Mexico 6 months ago. On this trip our group of 36 (30 teenagers and 6 adults) built two homes for families in need. What an amazing experience. But for God. Since returning home all I have wanted to do was continue mission work. I think almost everyone feels this way after being a part of something so awesome. But what has finally registered for me is that there is plenty to be done right here at home. (That doesn't mean I will not be on that plane again this June because I will be!) But in the meantime, I have been looking for ways to reach more people right here at home. I am so thankful to be a part of a wonderful church that supports any ideas we come up with to do this. Our pastors recently started a Sunday Serve where our congregation is going into the community and completing mission projects around Opelika and Auburn. We are already seeing God work in the lives of some of those that have been served. Praise God! Myself and some others also started a Monday night women's bible study that meets in my living room weekly. My church provides childcare for free during the time we meet. There are no words to describe what a blessing this has been. I had previously been a part of a group that met on Thursday nights but had not been able to attend in months because of my boy's sports schedules (we always have practice Tuesday's and Thursday's). I missed that closeness that comes when a group of women join together to study God's word. It is amazing how close you become to these women that you do life with.
This leads me to the meaning behind the name of this blog. I felt the urging to start this in home bible study long before I approached the appropriate person at church about it. Just like Jonah, God was calling me to step out and do something that I really didn't feel prepared to do (or want to do right then) and I ran! I am Jonah. Aren't we all? I believe Jonah is one of my favorite people in the bible because I so clearly relate to him. Not only did he run from what God wanted him to do but once he did it, and God forgave the people of Nineveh, Jonah was mad! Why do they get to be forgiven when they have been so bad??? Haven't we all felt that way before? It may not be pretty but it is usually true.
My walk with God is the most important thing in my life but it is also the hardest. Because I am human. And I am a highly emotional person with a type AAA personality (that would be triple A for anyone wondering). I mess up ALL the time. I am sarcastic. With a big mouth.
So I hope to share here about my family and all of the funny things my kids and dogs get into, but mostly about my walk with Him. And maybe someone somewhere will read something that I have to say and it will help them. And that might be just as great as that trip to Mexico.
For the last 6 months or so I have felt an urging to start blogging again in an effort to share my faith, and my daily struggles in my walk with God. I was blessed to be able to join a mission team from my church that traveled to Mexico 6 months ago. On this trip our group of 36 (30 teenagers and 6 adults) built two homes for families in need. What an amazing experience. But for God. Since returning home all I have wanted to do was continue mission work. I think almost everyone feels this way after being a part of something so awesome. But what has finally registered for me is that there is plenty to be done right here at home. (That doesn't mean I will not be on that plane again this June because I will be!) But in the meantime, I have been looking for ways to reach more people right here at home. I am so thankful to be a part of a wonderful church that supports any ideas we come up with to do this. Our pastors recently started a Sunday Serve where our congregation is going into the community and completing mission projects around Opelika and Auburn. We are already seeing God work in the lives of some of those that have been served. Praise God! Myself and some others also started a Monday night women's bible study that meets in my living room weekly. My church provides childcare for free during the time we meet. There are no words to describe what a blessing this has been. I had previously been a part of a group that met on Thursday nights but had not been able to attend in months because of my boy's sports schedules (we always have practice Tuesday's and Thursday's). I missed that closeness that comes when a group of women join together to study God's word. It is amazing how close you become to these women that you do life with.
This leads me to the meaning behind the name of this blog. I felt the urging to start this in home bible study long before I approached the appropriate person at church about it. Just like Jonah, God was calling me to step out and do something that I really didn't feel prepared to do (or want to do right then) and I ran! I am Jonah. Aren't we all? I believe Jonah is one of my favorite people in the bible because I so clearly relate to him. Not only did he run from what God wanted him to do but once he did it, and God forgave the people of Nineveh, Jonah was mad! Why do they get to be forgiven when they have been so bad??? Haven't we all felt that way before? It may not be pretty but it is usually true.
My walk with God is the most important thing in my life but it is also the hardest. Because I am human. And I am a highly emotional person with a type AAA personality (that would be triple A for anyone wondering). I mess up ALL the time. I am sarcastic. With a big mouth.
So I hope to share here about my family and all of the funny things my kids and dogs get into, but mostly about my walk with Him. And maybe someone somewhere will read something that I have to say and it will help them. And that might be just as great as that trip to Mexico.
2014 was a year of much growth for me personally but our family suffered a lot of loss. I pray that 2015 will be a year of blessings for all of those that I love and that I will serve the Lord in the ways that He leads me.
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