Do you See Him?

By: Max Lucado
God Came Near


It's Christmas night.
The midnight hour chimed and I should be asleep, but I'm awake. I'm kept awake by one stunning thought. The world was different this week. It was temporarily transformed.
The magical dust of Christmas glittered on the cheeks of humanity ever so briefly, reminding us of what is worth having and what we are intended to be. We forgot our compulsion with winning, wooing, and warring. We put away our ladders and ledgers, we hung up our stopwatches and weapons. We stepped off our race tracks and roller coasters and looked outward toward the star of Bethlehem.
It's the season to be jolly because, more than any other time, we think of him. More than in any other season, his name is on our lips.
For a few precious hours, he is beheld. Christ is Lord. Those who pass the year without seeing him, suddenly see him. People who have been accustomed to using his name in vain, pause to us it in praise.
All of a sudden he's everywhere.
In the grin of the policeman as he drives the paddy wagon full of presents to the orphanage.
In the emotion of the father who is too thankful to finish the dinner table prayer.
He's in the tears of the mother as she welcomes home her son from overseas.
He's in the heart of the man who spent Christmas morning on skid row giving away cold baloney sandwiches and warm wishes.
Emmanuel. He is with us. God came near.
It's Christmas night. In a few hours the cleanup will begin--the lights will come down, trees will be thrown out. Size 36 will be exchanged for size 40, eggnog will be on sale for half price. Soon life will be normal again. December's generosity will become January's payments and the magic will begin to fade.
But for the moment, the magic is still in the air. Maybe that's why I'm still awake. I want to savor the spirit just a bit more. I want to pray that those who beheld him today will look for him next August. And I can't help but linger on one fanciful thought: If he can do so much with such timid prayers lamely offered in December, how much more could he do if we thought of him every day?



The gift is not from man to God. It is from God to man.



We pray each of you has a Blessed and Wonderful Christmas!
-Nick and Reyna

Just a little something.....

to get you in the Christmas spirit.

A Few More Things....

I forgot in my earlier post to remind you all of the changes in service times for Sunday. There will only be a 9:00am and a 10:50am.

Also, Kristi is showing her jewelry this Sunday from 1-3 at my house. (I hope you all got the invitations) Hope you girls can make it!

Blessed with great friends

I am continually reminded of how blessed we are to be part of such an amazing group of people. I love the fact that everyone in our group is so loving, genuine, and down to earth. It is truly a blessing to have you guys as friends. I am excited to see what God has in store for the future of our group and our friendships.

-Kristi

Life Group--This Sunday

Hey everyone. I hope each of you is having a blessed week. We will be getting together this sunday for regular life group. At our home...5:00pm.

can't wait to see you all,
reyna

Christmas Party Part 2

Here are some of the pictures I took. I hope we didn't scare Brooke, Craig, Eric and Ranae too badly with all our crazy kids, but it was lots of fun!

Gettin' the grub

a few peaceful moments before the craziness began

I don't know how Carson managed to snooze in our house with all the festivities

(or just downright pandemonium)

Brooke (smiling for the camera) & Craig (watching the Cowboys' game)

Rosalynn modeling the latest reflective fashions

Poor Nick. He didn't get near the awesome gift the he did last year (Did everyone see the camo deer/reindeer or whatever that was supposed to be hat that he was so proud of from last year?)

Our rugrats had fun unwrapping their gifts

My husband is shameless.

Christmas Party

Last night was so much fun, thanks to Marco and Kathy for a fun filled evening. Be sure to put some of your pics on here too!



Do we know how to put on a spread or what?!



The kiddie table



chillin






"girl talk"



Opening gifts






Sweeties!

Thanksgiving

So it's a little late, but I here's my first post!

I just want to say I’m thankful for this group
Nick and Reyna – keeping us all in the loop
You make the effort to go the extra mile
Open your heart and home with a warm smile

Marco and Kathy – always finding a way to give
Every day showing us all how to live
Fixing my sink or making a website
You guys are always shining God’s light

Webb and Kristi – are great examples for us
All that comes with a baby, I never heard a fuss
Creating youth events or hanging out at jail
You keep on working for Christ and never fail

Will and Rosalyn – we’re here because of you
Reaching out to strangers, that’s not easy to do
Facing struggles, you don’t blink an eye
It’ll be tough next year but we’ll be by your side

Tate and Abbey – are just what this group needs
They have a great house and lots of chicken feed
I know that they are following after Christ’s love
Being apart’s tough but you’re following the will from above

Eric and Reana – you guys came along at the perfect time
Even if you’re at the mall trying to commit a crime
Ya, so we’re the only ones without kids
We’re watching them and eventually just do what they all did

White Flowers

Hello everyone! I hope all of you have had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. Ours was unexpected and difficult, but we're doing fine. It was nice to see SO many family and friends although under tragic circumstances. The praise is that my Granddaddy lived a long, joyful, beautiful and full life. I want to thank each of you for thinking about and praying for us over the past week. It was very thoughtful of you guys to send a flower arrangement to the funeral and just again confirmed what an amazing group of friends we have. I was told you guys had sent a flower arrangement, but I didn't know which one was yours. Last night my mother called to say that they were sitting down and going through all of the cards from the flowers and they found one that was addressed from "More than Sunday." She asked if I remembered the arrangement of all white flowers because that was the one from you guys. I then realized that I was standing close to the arrangement made of all white flowers during the graveside service. It was the arrangement I pulled a flower from to say a prayer over and place on the casket of my granddaddy. I could say that it was an awesome coincidence, but I believe it was a kiss from God, because it really touched my heart. Thank you guys for everything.

Kathy

Wonderful!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hey everyone. I hope you are having a great holiday week. This is just a reminder that we will not be meeting this Sunday for Life Group. We will be in contact for the Christmas party we will have on Dec. 7th.

Here are some prayer requests for the week:

Marco and Kathy---peace over Kathy's family for the loss of her granddaddy
Eric and Ranae--safe travels for family coming to Abilene
Craig and Brooke--safe travels for family coming to Abilene
Nick and Reyna--safe travels for family coming to Abilene
Will and Ros--safety while in TN.
Webb and Kristi---Webb's mother's health
Abbye and Tate---Tate's safety while away from home this Holiday and Abbye for safety while Tate is away

**Please let me know if there is anything else I have forgotten.

**Also, Don't forget to attend the 9:40 service this Sunday to see Ranae baptised.

Choices

Today's sermon was great, & so was LifeGroup. I was looking at the notes & discussion questions, & 2 of them really made me think. #5 is, "What are some important decisions you either are thankful you made or regret?" In 2001 I made a decision to leave Eastern New Mexico University. It was hard & I had lots of reasons not to. I was there on a football scholarship, had some great teammates & friends, & was 1 year from graduation. However, I was buried deep in sin, & knew I had to do something to help myself. I didn't know it at the time, but God was pouring out so much grace & love for me. His plans are always perfect & good. My mother invited me back into her home, despite of all I had done. I went to McMurry, played football again & graduated. I turned my will & life over to Jesus Christ, and became a new creation. I've been blessed by countless people. I was given a great job, fell in love with a Proverbs 31 woman & married her, and we have a beautiful baby boy. I don't deserve any of this, but God is so good. Everyday we make a lot of choices. Most of them we don't even realize. I learned to trust God, & chose Him in 2002. He chose me long before I was even born. Question #6 is, "Have any of the choices you've made to follow God produced regrets?" This one just makes me smile. There's been times when I'm fearful, doubtful, or flat-out disobiedient, but God is good, & He knows the plans. Jeremiah 29:11


-Webb

Baptism

Hey everyone!

Hope you are all having a wonderful week. We missed you all on Sunday, but it was nice to spend time with Eric's dad and step-mom too.
I was just writing to let everyone know that I am going to be baptized on the Sunday after Thanksgiving at the 9:40 service, there will be no 8:10 service that week since it is the weekend of the Thanksgiving holiday. My parents will be in town from PA and they are so excited to be able to be there for it and to meet everyone in our life group.
Being baptized is something I've wanted to do for a long time. I grew up in a Christian home and was saved when I was 6 or 7 years old. There were several times when I was younger when I asked my parents if I could get baptized, but they wanted me to wait until I was older and could really understand the significance of that decision. Yet when I was a teenager during my high school years I wasn't really at a place in my walk with the Lord where I wanted to get baptized. It wasn't until college when I rededicated my life to the Lord and made the decision as an adult to be a true follower of Christ. At that time I was ready to be baptized and make that statement of my faith, but the church I attended during college rarely if ever did baptisms. So now that we are at Beltway and baptism is such a huge part of what our church stands for, it is the perfect timing. I know some of you might be out of town for the weekend because of the holiday, but if not it would be awesome to have you all there!

- Ranae

Let's Give Thanks

We pray each of you is having a very blessed week. This Sunday we will have regular Life Group and will be meeting at our house at 5:00. With Thanksgiving only being a week away we are going to make this week about "giving thanks". Please be prepared to not only voice what you are thankful for but also to bring something that shows what you are thankful for. (I am leaving that to each of your creative minds to come up with something.)

**Also please bring your favorite snack for Sunday night and Nick and I will provide the drinks and paper goods.

Pics from Fall Bash

Hey guys we had so much fun tonight! Here are some pics I took from this evening. Feel free to add your as well! We missed you Eric and Ranae!






The Murphy's



The Girls



Will and Bella playing football



Kathy and Ros



Brooke and Craig



Tate serenading us.



The corn trough was a BIG hit!


Thank you Tate and Abbye for letting us come enjoy the evening with you guys. Your home is beautiful and it was a wonderful time with good friends!

Thank You

It's been an extremely busy week. I'm sorry to just now get this posted, but I want to thank you guys so much for praying for my "walk" and then coming on Sunday evening for the closing ceremony. I had an AMAZING weekend, and there are no words that adequately describe it. Just know that it was life-changing and AMAZING, just as God's grace is amazing. I cannot express how appreciative I am that Reyna and Kristi sponsored me. I felt their love and prayers all weekend, and it really touches my heart that Marco and I have a group of friends that can be at our home at a moments notice to pray over us. It is so powerful to know that so many people care about you and are praying for you. You guys are all an answered prayer (seriously), and I know God has put each of us together in this LIFE group. I can't imagine having a better group of friends and brothers and sisters in Christ to navigate through life with.

Update on Marco: We still really don't know much at this point. He still has some issues and problems that haven't been addressed or understood with the tests he has had so far. He is scheduled for a consultation with a specialty doctor on Wednesday. From there they will decide how to proceed, and schedule the other tests and things that he needs.

Fall Bash at the Ellison's

Hey everyone. This week Life Group will be held at Tate and Abbye's Ranch. Check your e-mail for the e-vite and to sign up for food. (also check your e-mail for the map out there)
We hope you all are having a great week!

-Reyna

Veterans Day

Thank you to all of you who serve us SO bravely!

Prayer Requests

**Abbye had a root canal not long ago and the dentist "left" something inside her and she is now in a lot of pain. The dentist will not give her anything for pain and she thinks she is going to have to pay for it to be corrected. She and her dad are going to talk to the office manager tomorrow to see what can be done. Please pray that these people are willing to work with her and that she does not spend another dime to get this fixed.

**Marco's CT scan results should be in by Tuesday or Wednesday of this week...please continue that they find NOTHING!!

Change of Plans

We have decided to CANCEL Life Group tonight so everyone can go pick up Kathy from her walk. We are leaving our house at 3:00 this afternoon and may not be back until around 6:30 this evening. Thanks and sorry for the late notice everyone!
-Reyna

Do you see her???.......

The girl in the middle??? Yeah...Kristi and I just dropped her off for her "Walk to Emmaus" Look very closely at her because on Sunday she will not come back the SAME!!!



















Please Pray for Kathy as she is experiencing the amazing Power of Christ on her journey. Pray she would have peace about being away from Marco and Noah and pray that the Lord will show her amazing things this weekend.

Life Group---this week 11/9

Hey everyone. Change of plans! We are going to meet the 16th at Tate and Abbye's (I promise!) because there are going to be many of us who can't be there this week. This Sunday we will be meeting at our house...5:00 for Life Group as usual.

Here are the prayer needs for the week:
Tate---safety while away
Abbye--safety while Tate is away and PEACE!
Marco--CT scan on Friday
Kathy--walk to emmaus this weekend!!!
Craig and Brooke--traveling out of town this weekend
Will--safety while out of town
Roz--safety while Will is gone


**Let me know if there is anything I am forgetting. Have a GREAT rest of the week!-Reyna

Please Pray

Marco has been having stomach issues lately and has visited the doctor about it. The doctor sent him to get a sonogram on Monday to see what was going on. The doctor called today and said they found "something" in his abdomen and want to do a CT scan on Friday to see what is going on. This is really freaking me out especially since I'm going on my "walk" this weekend and won't be able to talk to Marco about it on Friday. Of course, I immediately thought of all the horrible things it could be. It's never a good thing when the doctor says he found "something" and wants to take a closer look. Please pray for Marco. Pray that whatever it is, it's not something serious. Pray for God to have mercy on him and to heal whatever is going on inside of him.

Kathy

PRAISE!!!!

I have two praises to report:

1. Wyatt's EEG came back normal...Dr. doesn't think there is a thing wrong!

2. Nick and Kristi's dad went to the eye Dr. this morning and the Dr. thinks there is less scar tissue than last week there. He has been told to resume normal activities and to start opening his eye more.

PRAISE the LORD...we serve a mighty and wonderful Savior!

Quiet time when a 3 year old is around?

Every morning I get up a little earlier than my little ones should be getting up. I sneak out of bed, turn on the coffee, let my dog out to do his business, fix my coffee with the right amount of creamer, sit down with my prayer books and Bible ready to spend some quiet and much needed time with my Father. Usually my first prayer when I go to bed is "Lord, please let my children sleep through the night, and let them sleep late enough in the morning that I can spend time with you".

I think God has sense of humor. I can almost time when my 3 year old precious son will wake up, right as I say "Good morning Lord!" I can hear his sweet little voice screaming my name in his bedroom, "Mommy!!!!!!!! I want UP!!!!!!!!" I try not to sigh, roll my eyes or groan in frustration. After all, I am praying for patience, kindness and long suffering. I try to ignore him and pray my heartfelt, desperate prayers. Can the Lord hear me through the screams? Is He laughing? (I might be if it weren't me). Finally, I tell my 3 year old son he can get up and sit on the couch only if he is QUIET. Did I say 3 year old and quiet in the same sentence? Ha! I keep reminding him "Mommy is talking to Jesus", "Mommy needs to spend time with Jesus", "Mommy needs this time with Jesus so she can be happy". He says "I'll be quiet Mommy...... but I want yogurt!", and "Mommy, I want my colors!", "Mommy, whatcha doin?", "I need to go tee-tee!", "why is the sun still sleeping?", "why is the moon white?", " I tooted!!!!"......................

I ask for forgiveness as my eyes involuntarily roll into the back of my head, close my books and Bible and ask the Lord to give me huge amounts of grace. I'll have to be happy with my little tidbits of time with Him through the day.

I try to remind myself that this time with my children will pass all too quickly, and once it has passed, I will have all the quiet time I want in the mornings. So I pray that I find joy and humor in my interupted quiet times. But I find myself praying again that the Lord will wake me up even earlier (can I possibly get up any earlier...5:00 Lord?), so I can have maybe 5 minutes of "quiet time" with Him.

~Abbye

United We Stand

"United We Stand" is a City-Wide Prayer Event for the 2008 Election. Please join us as we pray for our nation and the Presidential Election.

Monday evening from 6:30-8:30 at New Hope Church...right next door to Logan's!

**Let me know if you guys can come and we can sit together.

Fall back

Hey everyone. Don't forget to set your clocks BACK an hour tonight!!! I would just hate to see some of you walk in the middle of the service tomorrow morning. :-)
Also, Don't forget it is commitment Sunday tomorrow!
-Reyna

Prayer Request--Update

We went to the Dr. today. Wyatt is going for an EEG tomorrow morning at 8:00. The actual test will be at 8:30. They will send the results to Cooks Children's Hospital and then we should know the results by next Tuesday. Our doctor really doesn't feel this is anything to be concerned about but he said if there was something there it is always better if we catch it early. Please continue to pray for Wyatt..pray there is nothing wrong and that the test goes well tomorrow.

Fall Fun Frenzy

Fall Fun Frenzy
Sunday, November 2, 5:30pm -- 8:30pm
Admission = 1 canned good item/person
Everyone is invited! No costumes please.


Competitive activities:
3-on-3 Basketball Tournament, Spades Tournament, a Chili Cook-off, and a Salsa Cook-off. To enter a competitive activity or for more information, contact Than Brown at 692-6540 or email nathanaelbrown@beltway.org.

Winners will be awarded the following prizes:

3-on-3 Basketball Tournament Winners: $25 Academy Gift Certificate for each team member.
Spades Tournament Winners: $25 Century Theater Gift Certificate for each team member.
Chili & Salsa Cook-off winners each receive a $100 Copper Creek Restaurant Gift Certificate.

Activities for everyone:
Music & Barn Dance, Inflatables, Carnival Games, Concession Stand to support Youth Ministry, Sand Volleyball, Ultimate Frisbee, Board Games, Card Games, and Prizes!


We need a few more volunteers. If you would like to volunteer for a one-hour time slot to help with setup, cleanup, or any activities during the evening, please contact Josh Hardwick at 692-6540 or joshhardwick@beltway.org.

Prayer Requests

Hey everyone. I have two prayer requests to mention.

Nick and Kristi's dad went to the doctor this morning and they saw some scar tissue. With his in past surgeries it has been the building of scar tissue that has made his retina tear. Please pray that there will be no further building of scar tissue and that his eye will heal properly.


Secondly, Nick and I have some concerns about possible seizures in wyatt. We noticed them for the first time last wednesday and have seen them off and on since then. We are going to the doctor this thursday for the kids check ups and we will further discuss things with his doctor at that time. Please pray that nothing is wrong with our little guy. Wyatt is not in pain and does not even seem aware that anything could be wrong.

Thanks to each of you for being our prayer warriors.

As Promised--LifeHouse video

Scroll to bottom where playlist is and mute blog music so you can hear the song on the video.

Thanks!

Hey guys. I just wanted to say thanks for your prayers and support during my training! You guys are a blessing to our family!

-t

Prayer Request

I have a special prayer request I would like you guys to be praying about. My friend Deidra Porter, a kindergarten teacher at my school, has recently been diagnosed with breast cancer. She is 37 and has a 6 year old, this was a huge shock, but to make things even crazier she was 6 weeks pregnant. She has chosen to keep the baby of course, but is facing some very difficult things. She has had her surgery already and is starting chemo this week, she is so scared, for herself, her daughter, husband, and of course new baby. Please pray for them, for healing and protection for Baby P.
-Shellye

Thank you

I just want to thank each one of you for faithfully praying for my dad. God is so good and he has heard our prayers. I truely believe that God is the reason for the good report that we got today. It is so wonderful to have friends like you guys.

Prayer Update

Nick and Kristi's mom (Suzanne) just called and said they had just gotten back from the eye doctor. She was very excited when she told me that the doctor is very pleased with how Larry's eye looks. He said this is the first (out of 4) surgeries that he thought it had fixed the problem.
Thank you all so much for your prayers....God is good all the time and isn't it awesome that he hears our pleads!

Faith Like a Child

I just wanted to share something Truett said the other day. Tate and I pray with Truett often, and encourage Truett to pray for things he would like as well. He often prays for rain, protection for his friends and family, new toys he wants...

After he prays for what he wants, he always says "thank you Jesus". Not, "please Jesus", but "Thank You!" I love that he believes Jesus will answer his prayer, no questions asked. I find myself doing the opposite, often pleading with Jesus to give me what I pray for. What would my prayer life and faith be like if I thanked him for answering my prayer from the beginning? Of course the answer might not be like I pictured it, hoped for or expected, but I would much rather have His will in my life rather than mine.

Another sweet moment, day after I brought our new van home from Ft. Worth, we sat in it and played for a while. I said, Truett, Jesus answered your prayer! You prayed for a new car for our family, and He gave us one! He looked at me and said, "of course He did silly!"

Oh, to have faith like a child!

~Abbye

New Songs

Hey Everybody! Don't forget to send me a favorite song, and I'll add it to the playlist for our blog. See you this weekend.

:) Kathy

Life Group this week-10/26

Hey everyone. We will be meeting this week at Marco and Kathy's to discuss session 4. We will also celebrate Marco's birthday Sunday evening, Kathy is going to have dinner for us. YIPPEE!!! So we will have our discussion and then spend the rest of our time visiting and celebrating Marco's big day!

Here are some prayer needs for the week:

Will leaving for training for 3 weeks
Roz and Bella--safety while Will is away
Wyatt--health
Larry McMillon--(Nick and Kristi's dad) for continued healing
Marco's mom--safety while on mission trip
Tate--safety while away from Abbye and the kids
Abbye--safety and peace while Tate is away

We pray you each has a very blessed week.

-Reyna

Nick and Kristi's Dad

Nick just called me to say that his dad, Larry, had just come out of surgery. It went really well and they removed a lot of scar tissue from the previous surgeries. He will be staying over night in the hospital. Please continue to pray that more scar tissue will not develop and that vision will be restored. Also, pray for the pain.
Thank you so much to those of you who were able to make it to our home last night to pray for him. He sure did appreciate it and we are so thankful to have friends like you who are willing to give of your time so unselfishly. We are so blessed to have you all in our lives.
-Reyna

Answered Prayer

Hey everyone!

Eric and I found a car! It's a 2005 Honda Civic in very good condition. We got a pretty good deal on it and it was in our price range. So thank you all for keeping us in your prayers, we definitely needed it with those sneaky car dealers! Haha.

Also, here is the recipe for the crab dip I made last Sunday:

1 pound jumbo lump crabmeat, free of shells
1 cup grated pepper jack cheese
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
1/4 cup green onions, minced (optional)
5-6 roasted garlic cloves or 2 cloves minced
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons fresh lemon or lime juice
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Combine all ingredients in casserole and stir until thoroughly mixed. Bake for 40 minutes. Serve hot with crackers or toast points.

Hope you all are having a wonderful week!

- Ranae

Tuesday Night

Nick has spoken to his dad and he will be at our house Tuesday night at 6:30pm. Please join us as we pray for healing and for his 4th eye surgery that will take place Wednesday morning. See you guys Tuesday night!!

Praise!!

I just found out this afternoon that I got the job I had interviewed for a few weeks ago! I will be an enrollment specialist for Big Brothers/Big Sisters. It is a huge answer to prayer since this is a job in my career field, and a lot of the social service agencies I went to in Abilene did not have any openings. So we are really excited, and I am glad to finally start working (too much free time can get old!) So now the last week in October I will have to go to North TX for a week of training.

We also have a prayer request. Now that I will be working, we will be looking for a 2nd car next week. Plus, we are paying the last of my student loans before we start to get charged interest in Nov. so we need to find a dependable vehicle in our price range.

-Ranae

24 for LIFE

Don't forget about the 24 hours of prayer for Life. It is at New Hope church starting tomorrow (Friday) night at 6:00pm and ending Saturday at 6:00pm. Please go at any time and pray for the lives that are destoyed through abortion...for the mothers, fathers and most of all the ones who can not speak for themselves.

-Reyna

This Sunday--10/19/08

Hey everyone. I pray each of you is having a splendid week. We will be watching the video for sessions 2-3 this week to catch up from last Sunday. (Eric and Ranae are bringing snacks) See everyone Sunday at 5:00.

Blessings,
Reyna

Jeremiah 29:11

This week God has revealed a message to me. I have heard it before, but He knows that I needed to be reminded. Through a couple of different circumstances, He has reminded me that my plan may not be the same as His. A while ago I prayed about these specific issues. I thought that I heard God's voice in which direction to go. Now I realize that either I was confusing my wants with His plan or maybe He intenionally brought me through this to show me that He had something else in store for us. I love it when God reveals something that seems so small and simple, but impacts me in such a huge way. God is so good. I am eager to continue to grow in Him.
-Kristi

For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11

Godly Parenting

I was so excited yesterday when I found (after MUCH searching) a long lost book called The Bible Promise Book. It is a very handy little book full of scripture divided into categories. I stumbled across a verse that meant so much to me as a parent.

Discipline your son, and he will give you peace; he will bring delight to your soul. Proverbs 29: 17

This verse speaks volumes to me. From working with small children, and having a degree in early childhood, I have known for many years how important it is to teach children rules and to give them boundaries and consequences. I see everyday in my classroom the effect of parents who don't give their children boundaries or teach them to respect other people. Children HAVE to have parents that guide them and teach them the appropriate ways to interact with the world around them. Part of our job as parents is to discipline our children when they do not follow these rules or stay within certain boundaries. Imagine what it would be like if there were never any consequences to our doing wrong . . . No prison for thieves and murderers, no late fees for late payments, no tickets for speeding. What would deter most people from doing these things without a consequence? Children are exactly that, children. We are the parents, and it is out of pure LOVE for our children that we give them boundaries and then consequences when they don't stay within them. I have known this as an educator, but seeing it in scripture, really delights my soul. God has given me boundaries out of love just as I do for Noah. I delight his soul when I do his will, just as Noah delights me and brings me peace as he learns the appropriate ways to interact with those around him.

Thank you God for my precious child. Thank you for giving me the strength to lovingly give him boundaries and rules so that he will grow into a loving, respectful, honorable man of God someday.

Kathy

Welcome!

Hey everyone. Welcome to our blog!!! We hope our group can use this site to keep everyone updated on prayer request, upcoming events and a place for you to share what God is doing in your life moment by moment. So start blogging!!