What is your Passion? July 28, 2008

Our family went to Elberton, GA for the 4th of July and it was a wonderful time of relaxation. We were able to be on our own schedule. I love to fish and I caught a 16 3/4 inch Bass ( I will try to get a picture of it on here). when I am in that kind of atmosphere I just feel so close to God…I Feel like He is right there speaking to me all the time. I love the outdoors…I have stated before that I am not a roughing it kind of person. I love the beach but I also love just being outside in the sun on a lake. Just don’t ask me to camp out or anything once I get dirty for more than a few hours I am ready to go in and get a shower…I not a girlie girl but when I have had enough I have had enough and I am ready to get back to civilization and read a good book or have some real food. Weekends like the one we just had just refuel me. The time with my family away from everything…no phones no T.V. Just time with family, God and nature I love it!

One of the things we were able to do was take a tour of the National Wild Turkey Federation it was very interesting…my sister in law’s dad is now the CEO of the company. We were treated like royalty while we were there and also learned quite a bit about the organization. Our son Aaron was in heaven this kind of thing is right up his alley. This child loves hunting and fishing like few other kids his age. He has been going and doing this outdoor stuff since he was old enough to hold a fishing pole in his hands. My dad would take him with him out to “the farm” and they would spend many hours together just in the outdoors. I remember when Aaron was only three years old he would have a fishing pole in the house and “fish” in the bathtub for hours day after day…he never got tired of not catching any. He would just keep casting and reeling. He started hunting at a young age also my dad loved it and Aaron just took right after him.

As a parent it is a wonderful feeling to see our children doing things they are passionate about…I pray often that my children will have passion for things in this life! I want them of course to be passionate for God first but I also pray that they will have something that is a God given drive something that will stir them. I believe that these things in our lives…the things we love to do or the things we feel strongly about are sometimes what help us in our walk with Christ. I feel that just as I love to see my own children passionate about something I believe the Heavenly Father loves for us to have passion for Him first but also for the things He created. We must always make sure that things line up with the Word and that Jesus is on the throne and not anything else.

I believe if we don’t have something that stirs us or moves us in our lives then we are truly missing part of what we are created for. What are you passionate about? Do you have something that stirs you inside? We are all different your thing may be helping people or saving women from the despair of abortion or even studying history…the list is endless.

Sunday’s Challenges July 2, 2008

I just have to say that we have some awesome people on our creative team and our technical team. This past Sunday was off the charts…our service was GREAT! If you were just out in the congregation you might never have known it but these two teams had many hurdles to overcome this last week. These guys spend countless hours planning and meeting and working to make sure that everything goes just right…all the skits are timed and have a purpose all the videos and special music are to be played at a special time and even the person speaking has cues to watch and listen for. When things don’t go as planned it throws everything…this past week was one of those times, but those two teams handled themselves like champs! They got in there and worked together to make things flow like they were supposed to and even when things did not go as planned…like people laughing when it was designed to be serious or the lights going off too soon or the skit not happening on cue. Even with all of those challenges the service was still a huge success and no one was non the wiser.

It is exciting to be in a church that you can have someone else speak and really look forward to hearing them…not be wishing the whole time that the pastor was speaking. We have some very gifted people here who are excellent communicators and I am looking forward to hearing from them more often! How Blessed we are in many areas!

Under the Same Roof June 27, 2008

What is it about being a Mother that just makes you want all your children under the same roof? My mom used to say to me after I married and we lived away “you just don’t understand how good it feels to know that all your children are home and sleeping under the same roof?” I must admit now that even though my children are all still living at home, I know what she means… over the last three weeks at least one of our children has been gone at all times either to visit a friend in Florida for a  week or to a Kids camp. Well, today Aaron is coming home and finally we will be a Family unit again! Now you have to understand how things work in our house…we always have kids spending the night or one of ours is spending the night off and this is the life we lead. Rodney and I love to have our home open we were both raised with parents who loved to entertain and knew what it meant to pour into the lives of teenagers…so this is just normal to the both of us. All of this said I don’t take for granted the family times that we have as just US…I look forward to them and after these last few weeks I am really needing that time with my family. I can only compare this to when my kids where babies and other people had been holding them and I felt an overwhelming desire to snatch them back and never let anyone else hold them again…I would just from time to time need that closeness with them and could not help that feeling of just needing to get away from everyone and everything with my baby. Maybe only a mother knows what I am talking about but I think that this is sometimes what God feels for us when have been distant from Him…this is the kind of jealous feeling I think He might get for us. That longing to just hold us and look close into our face to make sure everything is still O.K. To just steal away with us and reconnect those family ties. Parenting is a wonderful experience it has given me so many experiences and has helped me to identify with my Lord in so many ways.

Just Some Ramblings. June 18, 2008

All three of our children are gone to a kids camp this week. At first I was excited but then reality set in…we still had to get up and go to work every morning we still had the same responsibilities of overseeing a church. People kept saying things like ” you guys are going to have it made” and ” what are you going to do with all the free time you will have?” Well truth be known three kids and all…it isn’t  just them that takes up our time or keeps us scrambling around all the time it is all the other things we commit ourselves to along with raising them. This is the first time I can remember that they have all been gone away from us at one time, other than us going away for a night or two and I must admit I miss them! These wonderful blessings that The Lord has given us are the light of my life here on this earth other than my wonderful and sexy Husband…Yes I did mean to say that! I know that if everything else is gone my relationship with them…with my husband and children will be for all eternity and I fully intend to invest all that I have into those four precious things then into the Ministry that God has given me such a passion for. I know I am rambling but that is what I sometimes do…this week has given me time to make sure things are in perspective and I said that this Blog would be me giving you my thoughts!

The Right Kind of Bragging June 13, 2008

I just have to say this I am not bragging…well I guess I am but not in a way to make others jealous just in a way of saying how blessed we are here at Crossway. We had our “Extended Staff meeting” last night and I was so impressed by the Lord…we have by no means ARRIVED  but we have  such a committed group of people! These guys are truly with us  and last night there was such and openness  and a warmth…I just know that this is just the beginning for us because we are seeing such an increase across the board with our teams and our volunteers. I know that on Many occasions satan has tried to make us give up by making us think we were all alone in this thing but we have hung on…and finally I think we are at a place were that lie will not work any more! I just sense an excitement in the air and there seems to be a new energy level in the house. I believe it is the BREATH of the Holy Spirit giving His people what we need to accomplish His work for this hour not just for Crossway but in the Body of Christ everywhere!

I Did It! June 12, 2008

Well I did it I went to Ichetucknee. I wavered back and forth up until the morning we left but the decision maker for me was the fact that I would get to spend time with my immediate family and my church family. Although it was not my favorite place to be I will confess I enjoyed myself we had some good laughs.

Rodney and I try to train our children that in family you must give and take and that there are times when we all have to do things we would rather not just to spend some quality time together…and I realized that in this instance it was defiantly my turn and I can only hope that I set the example that will have eternal effects for my family.

To Go or Not to Go June 6, 2008

Alright here it is…the youth at our church are going tubing down Ichetucknee springs. There are about forty five or so people from our church going including my family… I really do not want to go! Everybody keeps telling me I need to overcome my fear. I keep telling everyone it isn’t that I am afraid! Here is the story When I was a little girl my entire family grandparents, aunts uncles ,cousins the whole shoot and shabang went camping there and we went tubing…only back then you had to tube the whole thing there was no getting out half way. It stormed on us the entire time…thunder and lightening it was awful we could not stop and get out because there was nothing but trees to get under and that was more dangerous. All I remember was being scared and cold. Then out of nowhere came this snake swimming right at me I fell out of my tube trying to get away. The rest of the day I rode in my dad’s lap. I just remember being cold and wanting to go home.

The truth is I am not afraid! I have been since then but I told you before I like the beach give me some white sand or a pool and a lounge chair and I am right there! I am not to keen on dark water with plant growth instead of white sand and snakes instead of seagulls. I still have not made up my mind about going… there are times I will sacrifice to be with my family and friends and this may be one of them. You see I do not get many free days at home by my self and I would love to take this day and just have a whole day to myself so I am torn. What ever I decide I am sure there will be plenty of fun and laughter going on down the Ichetuknee tomorrow.

Summer is here! May 29, 2008

Well It is summer time again. I must admit this is my favorite time of year. I love summer for many reasons here are just a few. The beach is my favorite place on earth give me a good book a lawn chair and I could sit for hours on end. I love the freedom from having to worry about a schedule with my children if we want to stay up late and watch a movie or go fishing we can…fishing that is another thing I love to fish it is so relaxing to me to just sit and fish. Summer just represents spending time with my family and that is something I love to do. I enjoy being outside and watching the birds and the butterflies in our yard…the smell of the confederate Jasmine and the Honeysuckle are wonderful. I don’t take for granted the times I am able to sit outside and watch my children swim and hear them laugh and do silly things together. I love the warm weather I am not someone who likes cold weather so summer is my season. I just come alive during this time of year even spiritually…it is like something awakens in my spirit and I feel more alive. Summer is here and I intend to enjoy every minute of it!

ProChoice:Choosing to Mother May 13, 2008

We had an awesome Mothers Day at Crossway Church . We were able to hear from four of our mothers and hear somethings about there lives that most people never knew. I was so thankful that these women of God allowed themselves to be so vulnerable and let me share the intimate details of their past in order that other mothers might learn and allow the Holy Spirit in to minister in their lives…to know that we all have to make a Choice to mother even when life is hard. We have to Choose to mother even when things are not going the way we thought they should or the way we prayed that they would. Sometimes it is that drive to mother that may bring us out of the pits of despair even make us realize we must live when we really don’t want to! Deuteronomy 30:19 Says ” Now Choose life so that you and your children may live.. We found out Sunday, we have a wealth of Godly women among us to mentor our young mothers and not so young mothers…women who have been there and know what it is like to not want to go on or know what it is like to have to parent their children even when things are not as they should be! The Bible says “We can do all things through Christ who Strengthens us. So even when we have made wrong Choices we can turn our lives around and the lives of our children through prayer and yes maybe we will have times of things not being like we want or the way they should have been but that does not mean we just stop mothering…We get up every day and we make a Choice to be the BEST mother we can with the circumstances we are in at the time. We get ourselves a church Family, we get grounded in the Word of God, we make positive confessions with our mouth, we find a woman of God and we make ourselves accountable to her…and we will have Children who will “Rise up and call you Blessed” Proverbs 31:28

It Has Been A While April 16, 2008

Well It has certainly been a while since I wrote last. There is no way I can catch you up on everything. Our family has been extremely busy I will give the highlights…we did just return from Disney and it was Wonderful, soccer season is winding down and we are getting ready for Prom!

The last few Sundays we have been in a series on Metamorphosis and this past Sunday we did a couple of “Makeovers” it was Awesome! I must tell you I thoroughly enjoyed the time I was able to spend with Tammy. I had never spent quality time alone with her and I was able to because of this series. This really reminded me how important it is that we take the time to get to know people I mean really get to know them. I see people on Sunday but I don’t get to have real conversations about what is going on in each others lives…I have known Tammy for over a year now but I knew nothing about her personally and after just one afternoon together I learned more than I have in many many Sundays together.  Another thing is that Tammy and I are very different in several ways but that is what should stretch us and help us to grow in our relationships with others and the Lord. After this time with this amazing lady I just have to say She is one terrific person that everyone at Crossway Church should take the time to get to know! I must admit this has really opened my eyes and I am going to make more of a commitment to get to know more people and to know them better.

This is the Family of God in action! We have to learn to embrace the diversity, get out of our comfort zones and build real relationships with the people that He has in our Church family.

I just want to say we Have the most AWESOME Church around and it just gets better and better! Thanks for all that you do!