The throne of David continues......

In 2 Samuel 7:16, God promises David that his kingdom will continue forever. I am honored, as many of you are, to be a part of continuing the line of David in this century. As a minister of worship dance, I do my part in maintaining the Davidic ministry of dance. It is a blessing and a joy to serve the Lord this way. God is worthy of every expression of praise and worship.

"David danced before the Lord

with all his might...." 2 Sam. 6:14

The sins of the father

My favorite bible character is King David. I can't wait to meet him in heaven. If we can go back in time there, I want to witness his entrance into Jersusalem, ushering the Ark of the Covenant back into Israel with exuberant dancing. Actually, I don't merely want to witness this event, I want to participate in it! If David doesn't mind a partner, I'm his girl.

Anyway, I've been studying David's flee from Saul for weeks (I Samuel 18-31). David was Saul's armor-bearer, his servant, his "son". He served Saul with faithfulness and integrity until (in one day) everything changed. Saul wanted to kill David. David was exiled from the palace, separated from his family and friends, and forced into the wilderness to fight for his life. Saul's army came after him three times, with 3,000 soldiers against one godly man. David had to deal with trying to stay alive, understanding the anger and rejection from his spiritual father, and keeping faith in God's promises to Him. What impresses me the most about David's response to Saul is his ability to forgive in spite of the abuse. He refused to kill Saul (twice) when he had the opportunity, and when his own men encouraged him to. When Saul was eventually killed by the Philistines, David did not rejoice. He mourned and wept and fasted. He killed the messenger that bragged about taking Saul's life, saying "Where you not afraid to kill the Lord's anointed one?" (2 Samuel 1:14). He honored the men that buried Saul and Jonathan, and wrote a funeral song for them which describes them as "beloved" and "gracious". The capacity to forgive like this can only come from the power of God. Here is a modern day example of forgiving the sins of the father....

I was honored to mentor some dear women in dance ministry a few years ago and met a sweet woman I'll call Miriam. As we got to know each other, she shared her testimony with me. As a child she had been sexually abused by her father and her uncle on a regular basis. As she grew into a teenager, this abuse resulted in promiscuity, prostitution, multiple abortions, and a hatred toward men. As an adult, after all this trauma and abuse, God healed her and she was able her to forgive her father. She forgave him so completely that her relationship with him was restored. Can you imagine the life-changing, supernatural power that had to be there for this to occur? Well, it did. They spent time together, developed a friendship, and she even cared for him (as in a nurse, as in bathed him) when he was old and dying. The same power that God gives us at salvation is available to us to forgive. Miriam did it. David did it. We all can.

Noah David, still my baby

My sweet darling Noah. He is still my baby. I feel a little selfish, I have three mama's boys. Speaking of which, I took Noah and Caleb to the pool yesterday and while there met a family with three sons the exact same ages as mine. Wow, what are the odds? Noah played with their four year old, Andrew, and showed him how to hold his breath to go under the water. Noah impresses lifeguards and moms with his swimming ability. He learned to swim underwater at age two. I took him to a lady in town that teaches toddlers to swim and after two weeks and $100 he was jumping off the diving board and swimming the length of the pool (see pics). At the beginning of every summer he has to re-visit his fear of going under the water, but quickly overcomes and splashes about like a Noah-fish.

Where Is God?

More excerpts from "Dancin' Toward The Dawn". In the chapter "Where Is God?", Tim says......

"Our God remains a hidden God,

but in prayer we discover

that we have what we seek."

-Brennan Manning

Many of us are drowning in our own emptiness, not realizing that this is a very invitation to be filled by an ever-present God, a God who loves us more than we will ever understand or experience. But a loneliness which is not fully embraced and experienced will break you and haunt you. Trying to avoid it only makes it more powerful. Loneliness makes us feel that things are all wrong, when they may be all right. Through conversation (prayer) and presence (solitude) we can turn loneliness into something powerful. Loneliness is not a time of abandonment....it just feels that way. It's actually a time of encounter at new levels with the only One who can fill that empty place in our hearts.

"Delight yourselves in the Lord, yes, find your joy in Him

at all times. Have a reputation for being reasonable,

and never forget the nearness of your Lord. Don't worry

over anything whatever; whenever you pray tell God

every detail of your needs in thankful prayer,

and the peace of God, which surpasses human

understanding, will keep constant guard over

your hearts and minds as they rest in Christ Jesus.

I have learned to be content,

whatever the circumstances may be."

Phil. 4:4-7,12

The Wilderness

This is the book I've been reading. It talks about the blessing of "wilderness experiences". Here are some of the author's thoughts....

Wilderness experiences are biblical. Abraham, Moses, Joshua, David, Elijah, Jesus and Paul experienced them. The wilderness -whether external or interal- is always a time of radical dependance upon God, a time of preparation for a promise, and a place of great adventure. It has a gift hidden within. We can enjoy the inner wilderness; we don't need to avoid the painful experiences in life. Surrendering to them means feeling new feelings, experiencing God, making real contact, and letting your heart be thrashed and rearranged if necessary.

I like this writer's perspective. He writes from experience which makes his words more valid. He was an avid outdoorsmen until he suffered a rock climbing accident, which led to years of chronic pain, stress, divorce and his own spiritual wilderness. We will all experience times of crisis and wilderness; I want to know there is a treasure at the end of it!

"There is no shortcut to wholeness: if you

want to reach the Promised Land you must

first go through the wilderness."

-Clifton Burke

Baby is growing!!!

Here is my ultrasound from yesterday. My tee-tiny baby has grown arms and legs! This view is of the butt and legs. See the sweet little foot? The baby was moving around, and the legs were kicking (dare I say "dancing"?) away in my womb. The technician got this shot in mid-kick.

The measurements say I am twelve weeks and two days, due Decmber 3rd.

Bless this child.......

My dear friend Heather, blessing my pregnancy. She was with me when the line turned pink, and we rejoiced with dancing and squealing and scared her baby. Heather has a beautiful and powerful gift of prayer; I have her pray for me all the time. She has three boys like I do (I was blessed to attend and photograph the birth of the third), and we have artistic gifts in common, too....dance, writing, photography. She has been a huge support to me, not only during my pregnancy, but in my life overall. What a blessing to have faithful friends!

"When Job prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes. In fact, the Lord gave him twice as much as before!" Job 42:10

Meet my baby....

This is a first look at my ittie bittie tee-tiny baby, at eight weeks. There isn't much to make out at this point. The arms and legs were still forming and there was still a "tail". Lovely. You can probably see the head, though, on the left. The baby was wiggling around during the ultrasound. As you fellow mommies know, seeing your little one with your own eyes bonds you with your baby and makes the pregnancy experience more real.

Hello, beautiful baby. Can't wait to see you again.

Life Cycle

I think you'll have to click on this video to view it....couldn't upload it directly to my blog. It illustrates the thoughts I've had since yesterday.

A kind man from the car rental company gave me a ride to the body shop to pick up my car (another story for another day....). He asked if I was from Albany, what I did, etc and we shared conversation about living in Albany. He told me that he was raised and educated in Albany but planned to move away until a horrible car accident curtailed his plans. He was hit by another driver and was injured so badly he was in the hospital for 2 1/2 weeks. He was unconscious when the jaws of life extracted him from his vehicle and woke up in the hospital with a broken hip, leg, foot, etc, wondering what had happened. I am thankful that I have never had an experience like this, but maybe some of you have. You're going through life, minding your own business, driving your little car down the road and out of the blue BAAAAMMMMM and you're whole life is changed. Your plans change, your health changes, your finances change. Or maybe it's not related to car accident at all...... you get a phone call from your doctor, your job is eliminated, you find drugs in your kid's room, your husband leaves. All these horrible tragedies are things people live with every day. I'm reminded that the ONLY thing in life that is totally secure and unchanging is God. His love never fails. Our worlds can fall to pieces around our feet but God will never leave us or forsake us.

I've also been pondering how this car rental guy must see life from an entirely different perspective now. He could have died. He probably sees a value to everyday living that many of us overlook. Life is short. There are no guarantees. Tomorrow is just a vapor and all we have is today.

From my journal:
God, teach me how to live my life on purpose. I don't want to get to the end of my life on earth and realize I wasted time on worthless things. Prompt me to come to you about things You have already paid for. Give me wisdom to know how to direct my time, my energies, my gifts. Get my attention when you bring opportunities my way but I'm too distracted to realize. I don't want to ponder folly; put your thoughts in my life. I want to live each day to the fullest, and for Your glory.

The boys' reaction to hearing that God is adding to our family. Look at the sweet smiles! Joshua said "again?" like I'd just birthed Noah a few months ago. Speaking of Noah, Joshua and Caleb are so great with him. They are crazy about him, and I expect they will fall in love with the new baby, too. Someone said I was doing my teenage sons a favor, by teaching them how to care for babies before they leave home, marry, and have families of their own. Caleb has offered to tie my shoes when I need it (thanks, dear, but at this point could you just take out the trash?). Joshua is driving now so it's been great to have a chauffer when I'm a little queasy, and he and Bo take turns going out to pick up my latest cravings.

Jehovah our Healer

Meet our sweet friends, the Moodys. Jason, Laura, Harlie, and Paige. They are dear friends from Dothan. Bo has been working with Jason this week and yesterday the two of them went to our old church in Dothan. While there, the pastor and staff asked to pray for Bo. And I mean pray, as in thirty minutes of divinely inspired powerful ministry, resulting in healing, revelation, and encouragement. I am so thankful for this. This past year I have watched my husband selflessly pour out everything he had to bless and serve others, and now God has graciously poured back into him, using godly men sensitive to the Spirit of God. Jehovah God is our Provider, our Shepherd, our Peace, and right now we are experiencing Him as our Healer. He heals our bodies, our minds, our hearts. He repairs brokenness caused by others. He puts us back together when we are scattered in many pieces. He feeds our spirits what we so desperately need inside.

Thank You, Jehovah our Healer, for touching my husband yesterday. I am so thankful.

Guess What, Honey!!!!

Bo's reaction to becoming a father again at 40! Yes, he turned forty years old this January. What a span we will have. Joshua is sixteen (and is driving!), Caleb is fourteen, Noah is four. So let's see.....I'll have two teenagers, a pre-schooler and an infant. Two big ones and two little ones.

We found out I was pregnant on Easter Sunday. What a day to discover that we were going to have a new life of our own!

123 God Avenue

I am doing a Max Lucado bible study led by my sweet friend Stephanie. It's a workbook with daily lessons, and today Max taught on Acts 17:28, "In him we live and move and have our being". This means that God doesn't just want us with Him, but that He wants us to dwell in Him. Like He is our house, and we live inside. Have you ever thought of God this way? As a place to dwell? John 14:23 says "If people love me, they will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and and make our home with them." I love it. Thinking about God this way makes our relationship more personal. He is more that the Almighty Creator of heaven and earth, He is the place where I can live. It makes me feel secure and relaxed just picturing God totally surrounding me, His love and joy and provision filling every room. And since God is love and perfect love drives out fear, then there is perfect peace, too. I hope you know this kind of presence as well. God wants you under His roof now and always. He wants to be your mailing address, your home. No need to even pack your bags to move in.....God already has, and is, everything we need.

Positive!

Can you see the two lines????? God is blessing our family with a new baby, due December 8th. This is baby number four, and our "Albany blessing". We are thrilled to be welcoming an awesome, fresh from heaven Christmas gift this year!

Stay tuned for more photos. I'll be posting pics all week.

How will they know?

Does anyone remember back in the 80's (or was it the 70's?) when the church used to sing scripture verses set to music? Which by the way, is a wonderful way to memorize the Word. When I was in bible college, a roommate of mine would pull out her keyboard when we had lengthy verses to learn and we would put them to music. During the test you'd hear everyone humming out the tune and writing down the words.... Anyway, I've had this song in my head for days...."They will know we are Christians by our love, by our love.......". Searching the gospels for this verse, I found John 13:35. Jesus said "Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples". Yes, of course. If we are to be Christ-followers it only makes sense that we would bear the King's love. Interesting that the defining characteristic of Christ's church isn't service, money, numbers, attendance....although those things are good, but it's the love of God that sets us apart as His. Who in your life needs God's love revealed through you today?

Happy Birthday Caleb

My Sweet Baby Caleb turned fourteen today! He's spent the weekend visiting friends, going to the Fun Park, picking out his cake, watching movies. Today we celebrate you Caleb Christian!

Happy Birthday Sweet Boy!

Heartbeat

Welcome to my blog! This is where I will share thoughts from my heart, updates on my family, and maintain communication with you, my dear friends and family. I welcome your e-visits and comments!