"Change is not a threat, but an adventure"

We're on the wondrous journey to the UNKNOWN! We don't know where it's going to take us but you better believe we're going to have faith & trust that it's where we need to be! We know that there will be open doors for us of countless opportunities to share His love...but where that leads? We have the slightest idea...but again I reemphasize us TRUSTING!

  Below is a recount of our day with Nehemiah yesterday...I'm going to start keeping track of our "adventures" and what we're learning from them in hopes that you may be encouraged. I hope that you understand I'm not afraid to share my heart and the things God speaks to us and shares with us. It's our goal to be transparent and continue to be an open book!

ADVENTURE #1

   Nehemiah started school and he loves it! He's excited about learning and even more he's eager to teach his sister what he learns. We have seen a dramatic change in our big boy since beginning school. We pray for him every day and every night for God to constantly increase his absorption of knowledge and for him to be a beacon of light in his classroom. We would ask that you join us in praying for our children. TJ and I love the area that God has placed us in but not everyone in our town is accepting of us being here. We can take the awkward stares and the condescending tone in conversation but I, as a mothering lioness, refuse to see my babies subjected to people's misunderstandings of who we are. Yesterday at the dinner table my heart just about broke! We were all engaged in our typical conversation with Nehemiah. "How was your day at school?" "What did you learn today?" "What things would you like to work on tonight?" While answering he pauses and emphatically says, "Mommy, I need to turn white." I immediately looked to TJ as to how to respond to this. We were both shocked because we really weren't prepared for this question just yet...not with our three year old! I turned to him and I grabbed his hand and asked him "Sweetie, why do you want to turn white?" And he looks me in my eyes and says "Mommy, I'm too brown." Ah! I smiled and I looked him in his eyes and said "Baby you are beautifully brown! Our skin tone makes us unique and there's nothing to be ashamed about. Mommy and Daddy love your skin color...but we LOVE YOU more, okay?" "Okay mommy!" he agrees, "well, can I turn orange? That's my favorite color!" I erupted in laughter!

   I love the innocence of little children. He's exploring and discovering so much about himself. And now TJ and I have to reinforce how God sees him and what we see in him to help him cultivate a positive perspective of his true identity! This is the first step to our new adventure in life...fully understanding our children's purpose and being able to effectively communitcate this truth to them!

Burning ones...

We've been listening to a lot of the music produced by the group "Jesus Culture" lately. This particular song "Burning Ones" has been blaring through my heart today. As I'm singing it within my heart this is what I believe needs to be communicated please bear with the flow of this as it's a compilation of a lot of things I've been processing for a while now!



Let me first begin with yesterday's church service. At our church we have an "open communion" table. I love having this because we have the opportunity to take of His sacred communion every single sunday we attend! We look forward to this time and so do our babies. Now there may be some who disagree with this concept and you're free to do and believe whatever you like, but in our family we include our kids in communion. We believe that it's impertative to teach our children now of how important loving God and knowing God is NOW not LATER! We practice this truth at home with our babies and they love it! Nehemiah looks forward to church and Moriyah can't wait to get there to worship...mainly because we are adamant about this at home...it's our lifestyle!

 

During worship Nehemiah was sitting in my lap and he looks in my eyes and tells me, "Mommy, it's time for communion!" I looked at him and responded "Ok, son. Let's go." I think too often we discredit children and their capabilities. Jesus tells us we must become like "children" if we want to enter His Kingdom. We take this literally! We have to have child like faith! We try our best to present opportunities for our children to learn of God, His love and His truth. *And we've learned this from some of the best people in our lives right now* We can't just write kids off and say they don't know anything...sometimes they know more than us!

All that to say when we made it to the communion table my heart broke! I was brought gently to my knees and Nehemiah and Moriyah followed suit. Christ beckons to our hearts and woos us gently back to Himself. See, church to me is so much more than what people are making it out to be. We have an opportunity to fellowship with the Body and that's what it should be about. Coming together, with one common goal, with one heart, with one voice worshipping the GREAT I AM with all out reckless abandonment. Our hearts burn for the Living and True God...we yearn to be in His presence! And we yearn for EVERYONE to experience this
truth!

We looked up the original meaning for 'church' and we found out some really interesting stuff. Church wasn't meant to just be a building or where your membership is...it was meant as an assembly of people coming together to meet about common ideals, beliefs, religion, etc. We could have "church" in our house, at walmart, at Chili's ANYWHERE when we get together with other people because we're coming together for one common thing! We would all be in unity!

UNITY!! That's key! The church today, in my personal opinion, is in shambles because we can't grasp this concept! We're all out striving to have our "own thing" instead of coming together and really STANDING together for the "equipping of the saints" and the "edification of the body." We must ask ourselves what is God's design for His Body? not the church! It's about the Body! We have MANY MEMBERs IN ONE BODY!? Right? Shouldn't this be our motivation? If we have many members in one body, shouldn't we be working together for the good of His Kingdom and not striving for our own personal gain? Jesus should be our focal point, and Him alone! With Him as our foundation we are then able to share His truth with all we come into contact with. Sharing doesn't necessarily have to be in words. We can share with a simple smile, an embrace or a kind gesture.

I'm going to say this and close. Think on this: in John 15 Jesus talks to us about His fruit...and us bearing His fruit so the Father may be glorified. People will come to know Jesus more each day if we truly adopt this principle. Abide in Jesus and allow Jesus to abide in you. We are His lights shinining brightly in the world for all to see. Now if we're not bearing any fruit then we need to check what we're doing and if we're really allowing the Spirit of God to transform every part of who we are. We can bring people closer to God by bearing His fruit. People will ultimately see Him living in us when we allow Him to be fully manifest in our lives. And with this we can add more and more to His Kingdom!

"I ANSWERED YOU..."

While in our quiet time tonight, when the kids are in bed and the house is for a moment in time SILENT, I was led to these particular scriptures. I pray that whoever may take the time to read this will be encouraged and reminded of the faithfulness of God!

"Restore us, O God of hosts,

Cause your face to shine,

And we shall be saved" ~Psalm 80:3, 7, 19

"You called in trouble and I delivered you;

I answered you in the secret place of thunder" ~Psalm 81:7

The phrase italicized JUMPED off the page!

I ANSWERED YOU IN THE SECRET PLACE OF THUNDER!!

WOW!

This is beyond profound. One of the revealed mysteries of His word. I believe we get so focused on "answered prayer" being so obvious and blunt that we forget that God speaks constantly. The problem rests in our ability to hear him clearly. God is faithful to respond to our cry, to our prayers, to our requests. Even in the most tumultuous moments in our lives, God is faithful and His affections are set on hearing and responding to His children's call! Life can be a little rocky at times, and the storms of our lives may rage on a DAILY basis yet in still there rests in between the crackling and rolling thunder, a stillness, a quiet confidence and secure strength that God is God.

Papa! I praise You! For You are God, You reign supreme...beyond our storms, beyond our circumstances! You are greater, you are stronger...God you are higher than any other. For even in the thunder of our storms Your still small voice beckons to the depths of our spirit, calling us, captivating us and inspiring us to come...close!

~ AMEN ~