I've Written A Thousand Posts in My Head

Yet...

Those posts never get here.

I think maybe Blogger is broken.

Or I've had to significantly re-structure my time since going back to work.

Hmmmm.

Anywho, work is going really well. Love the kiddos I get to work with and how creative I get to be with them! Of course, I'm keeping busy with my own kiddos and church and Girl Scouts when I'm not at work. And the weekends are for catching up on cleaning and chilling! So...most of the writing will have to wait I think. Although I really miss it some days!

One of those days was yesterday when I got to sit in on an interview with a kid for one of our programs. He's pretty much got everything against him in life, and he's made some bad choices, but he's decided he MUST make a change. So he's been walking miles to GED classes every day and wants to be a police officer someday. He wants to get a good job so he can help his single mom struggle less. I got to be a part of telling him, "You're in! And if you do your part to get your GED and attend our training classes...you get your college paid for." The look of hope on his face! He couldn't put gratitude into words. It was a gift he didn't really deserve and a day of redemption of the best kind.

It made me think of Jesus. He is a gift I most definitely do not deserve, but a gift that I am so very grateful for that it's hard to express it accurately. So even though I sat in my business attire as a 30 year old professional of some sort, a teacher, a mom...and he sat in his parka and Packers stocking cap looking pretty sweaty and nervous for a punk kid...there was a thread of redemption that we shared.

So as we gather with friends and family and live the joyful highs and the stressed out lows of Christmas...may we be reminded that a little baby boy born in Bethlehem gave us true gifts of mercy...grace...and the hope of a redeemed future. Merry Christmas everybody!

Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord

Don't Hate Me Because I'm Awesome

Okay, I'm not really that awesome.

But I did get to have a really fun weekend. Which was awesome. So maybe some of the awesome rubbed off on me.

We packed up the kids and went to stay with my sister-in-law in the Nashville area for the weekend. We took the kiddos to a pumpkin patch and they had lots of fun with a hay maze, seeing farm animals, going on a hay ride and picking out pumpkins and such. The absolute highlight was probably playing in the big bins of corn. Yup. We know how to party.

Then, I got to go see Jim Gaffigan on Saturday at the historic Ryman theater in Nashville, Tennessee. And I got to get all prettied up and go on a real date with the Frankster. And be all downtown and cool and stuff in a big city. And somehow we ended up at a BW3's eating a lot of chicken wings and watching UFC fighting with a bunch of crazy Tennessee people...?? A random but lovely evening. Which is pretty much us at our best.

So in case you don't know who Jim Gaffigan is...and you really should, I give you....HOOOOOT POCKEEEET:

Seasons Change...God Doesn't

We have a big maple tree in our front yard. Every year around this time, the leaves turn to a brilliant yellow and then fall to the ground in a great golden piles. I love to jump in the piles...but raking them? Not my cup o' tea. ;)

As the leaf color hits its peak this year, I find that the season in my life is also changing. I will be starting a new job! Weighing the pros and cons to working full-time again (outside the home...the kids are a 24/7 job- ha!) was tough. But as childcare quickly fell into place and much encouragement came from friends and family...God seemed to say, "I've got a new challenge just for you, Beth..." I'm not sure I even got totally comfortable with my season of being at home or working part-time at the pre-school! But...God never promised us comfort, did he?

I'll be working with high school students in Vincennes, Indiana. I really, really love this age group and miss working with teenagers a lot. Pray for us as we make the transition as a family...things might get a little bumpy as we iron out the new normal! There's also a little funny feeling in my stomach that happens when you walk into something unfamiliar...what will it REALLY be like...so hopefully that will disappear soon. But I'm confident that God has some good stuff for me in the road ahead...to impact some lives at the crucial point of childhood meets adulthood...and to teach ME more than I can imagine right now.

And the blog? I hope to keep posting from time to time. I do try to keep up with the blogs and friends I have come to love so much in the past 15 months or so...but if I don't comment for awhile, I still love ya! :)

So...to recap: the me that was me when I started the blog...not me anymore. Again.
Ecclesiastes 3 comes to mind (good chapter!).

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:

a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,

a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,

a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,

a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,

a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,

a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

What does the worker gain from his toil? I have seen the burden God has laid on men. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.



P.S. In case I don't get the change to devote a real post to it...Happy 3 years to HealingPointe Community Church!

Before the Day

Couldn't have written a more fitting song for my heart this week!

Psalm 46:10
Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.



Before the Day- NewSong

Last night when I was sleeping
You were watching over me
While I dreamt about tomorrow
You knew my every need

Now another day is waiting
For me to make it through
And there's no way that I could face it without You

Before the day slips away
I want to stop and say
I love You I love You
Before the world rushes in again
I want to stop and say there's none above You
There's none above You
I'll just be still and know You are God
Be still and know You are God

There's something about the morning
The stillness of it all
It calms my heart to hear You
When You gently call

Here I am in Your presence
Where I long to be
Alone with You in the silence
Bring down Your love and Your mercy
Whisper softly to me

More From the Land of Wal-Mart

Did I mention that my 3 year old son is a Shoe Diva?

Yeah...

He's quite particular about what goes on his feet. Wouldn't wear the cute flip flops that I bought for him this summer. The Spider Man shoes are too tight. The Crock knock-offs were acceptable until they broke after 3 weeks.

So what DOES he wear?

Second-hand shoes that were intended to be for his sister but were a bit small for her. They are red. They slip-on. They are girl's shoes. They are a size and a half too big. They are tennis shoes of a sort, yes, and you probably wouldn't know by glancing at them, but they are indeed girl's shoes. He LOVES them.

Today I went to the Wal-Mart(again) to buy shoes for the kids. Because ALL THREE kids desperately needed tennis shoes at the same time. What are the odds? Pretty good, I guess, if the object of the game is draining the parental wallet...

I found shoes for Annabelle (pink and sparkly!) and Jay Jay (Winnie the Pooh and extra wide!) in about 3 minutes. Then there was Joey. Ahhhhhh, Joey. This shoe was too tight. The same shoe a size bigger was too loose. That shoe was "ug-a-lee." If he had blond hair I would call him Goldilocks. I really thought he would cave when he knew that both of his siblings would be getting brand new shoes and he wouldn't, but he totally called my bluff. He was just fine with putting his red shoes back on, thank you very much, while giving me a mischievous grin. He shuffled out of the store with head held high and one red shoe promptly fell off as he climbed in the car.

I don't have history in prophecy or anything, but I think I'm going to have my hands full when he's a teenager...



***Thanks to my new friend Sarah Salter for the encouragement to make this idea a post!***

We Make a Pretty Good Team

This week I am not quite myself. After 8 years of marriage, funny how your spouse really DOES seem like your other half. The Frankster is off to some computer-y thing-y with his co-workers this week. Being a pretty independent woman and all...I'm okay with managing the kids by myself for awhile.

BUT...some of the things I miss the most:

I do not laugh nearly as much. And when I do, it's not quite as fun.

AND

I have become totally dependent on him when we lead worship together! Seriously, God knew what he was doing (Doesn't He always?) because we compliment each other so well and have led music so many times together that we pretty much share a brain every Sunday evening.(Cue mental image of Frankenbeth.)

Anywho, last night I had to lead by myself and I got a lot more nervous than I should have... Something about being alone up there and if I make a mistake, there it is for everyone to see! Which is ridiculous, since it was all of our friends and their kids at our little church, and they love me mistakes and all. And God never said he requires perfection for it to be worship and pleasing to Him! (Can I get an Amen, people?) But, there it is. After being in choirs and singing solos and being a part of worship teams for pretty much all of my 30 years...I. still. get. nervous. For no logical reason. Bleh.

So as things like this go with me, nerves got the best of me. I messed up. People had a hard time following the songs. Ahhh...it all went so well in my head during practice. By myself. Where it's just God and me and the piano! But the moment I started to settle down a bit out of nervous/hyper mode and actually worship...God just took over and made it a beautiful thing for Him. So why can't I do that from the get-go?

I haven't figured that one out yet, but I am thankful for the opportunity to stretch a little bit and grow! It's a good thing to have the rug of familiarity and comfort pulled out from beneath my feet. It's a good reminder how far I have to go and how dependent I need to be on God. And how great of a worship leader Frank has become! Really. I could not be more proud of him. Not only is he an excellent musician that brings out the best in the people that play with him...he really has developed a deeper love for God that is apparent during corporate worship.

We used to say when we first started dating that "we make a pretty good team." (Said in a very cheesy over-animated way with thumbs up, of course.) Back then it was a way of using humor to mask the slightly scary truth that we really and truly were good together...but it continues to hold true! I miss my teammate! But I'm sure we will have loads of fun catching up on his travels in computer geekdom when he returns.

P.S. The rest of the service last night was a kids' service. It was soooo fun! It was like going back to VBS, but I got to do it with my daughter. We need to do that more often! I dig church as a family.

You Never Know What'll Happen at the Wal-Mart

So...I just got home from the Wal-Mart. The Sullivan Wal-Mart may be the smallest Wal-Mart in existence, but I did manage to score some trash bags (I was totally out) and soda pop (how retro) because the 'rents (that's cool 90's teen mag speak for parents) are coming and I hate to offer them a choice of water or water to drink. :)

ANYWAY...

The kids were getting cranky and it was raining a little and I'm sure I had about 8 different thoughts rolling around in my brain...and when I got home I realized I forgot to put the sodas into my car! It had only been about 10 minutes or so since we left the store, so I called the store just on the slight chance that maybe my poor pop was still sitting lonely and wet at the bottom of the cart in the cart corral. After waiting on the phone approximately 863 minutes, I was informed that the Diet Pepsi I had bought had been rescued and could be picked up at my convenience. The Sierra Mist, however, was nowhere to be found.

There you have it, folks. If you're going to steal someone's soda pop, don't steal the crappy diet stuff. Go for the gold!


Be sure to visit my friend Wendy's blog and participate in her "Life is Funny" blog carnival. If I can do it...surely you can get off your lazy bum and do the same. :)

Happy weekend to you! May your Wal-Mart travels be filled glee and criminals who hate diet soda...