The P B and J

Noah made his first peanut butter and jelly sandwich. We documented the momentous occasion.......

He looks like a bird.....

Ewa.....

This is Noah's little friend. Her name is Ewa ("eh-wah"). She and her family are from Nigeria. They live next door, and she and Noah usually play together every night, either on her swingset or in our driveway with bikes and toys. They wear themselves out and relax in the hammock I found at a church yard sale for $5.00. I think Ewa is just adorable. She will cross the hedges between our yards, stand there with her hand on her hip and yell "No-ahhhh!", calling for him until he comes outside to play. Sometimes she has her bear under her arm and is all the more cute cute cute. This family are wonderful neighbors, they are so humble and kind. Ewa's mom is a mother/baby nurse and took care of Isaac his first night outside the womb. They always ask about the baby and enjoy watching him grow. I'm blessed to live beside such sweet people and am very thankful Noah has a little playmate.

God's on the beach.....

Tonight before dinner, Noah put the cat out and got scratched on the leg in the process (by a spoiled cat who hates to go outside). Twenty minutes later, while we were at the table eating, he looked at his leg and noticed the scratch. Here was our converstation:

Noah: "God must be at the beach, just hanging out."

Me: "What?"

Noah: "Yea, that's where He is, at the beach. That's why He's not here healing my scratch".

I'll have to remember that when "God's not here" for me, too! On the other hand, I'm always up for a trip to the beach......

Splish Splash......

It's Joshua and Caleb all over again!

New Isaac Pics

Called to Love

I continue to ponder thoughts about discipleship taking place through relationships, and how I have experienced giving and receiving the blessing of God's love though the people God has brought into my life.....

When my father died, one of my most tender and healing moments was crying in the arms of my friend Jason. He and his wife Laura are dear friends of ours, and we met them at a coffee shop after leaving the funeral home. When Jason asked me how I was doing, the tears came and he pulled me close. I sobbed in his arms while he held me. The touch was appropriate and our spouses were right there beside us. God's comfort washed over my broken heart right there in a male friend's arms in the the middle of a public place.

Here's another example. I have a friend named K., whose husband committed suicide after she filed for divorce. K. was in my small group and after the bible study, Heather and I prayed for her. We held her hands, and Joshua quietly played worship music on his guitar. We were all kneeling down on the floor during the prayer, and as God touched her, she began to cry. Healing washed over her pain and her little son patted her leg where the tears fell. It was tender and beautful, a peaceful moment during a very dark time.

My point is, Jason's arms and that prayer time on my family room floor were God's provisions for healing and love. God flowed His love through people, not programs. The healing and comfort that K. and I needed came in a very simple way, through flesh and blood people willing to love. Neither experience took place in a church building, or through a class, a book, or grief counseling (although it could happen that way). The relationships were already in place when the crisis hit, and the lovers simply yielded to being a vessel of God's love.

God is a lover. He is love. I know God has called me to be a lover, too. He has put passion in my heart and I have to be faithful to it. That means being willing to connect with other people and having the courage to let people in. It means fighting to keep the flame alive when, as a prophet once told me, you are surrounded by fire fighters all your life trying to put it out.

It's still here, God. My heart is still tender. My flame is still alive. I will love. I will hug my family. I will kiss my friends. I will bond as you lead. I want Your love to flow through my life.

Nuts

While grocery shopping yesterday, I bought two cans of mixed peanuts, almonds, and cashews. They were on sale, buy one get one free. Bo and I like these high protien, good carb snacks. I'll nibble on them here and there through the day but Bo will devour the whole can in one sitting. So, to keep it fair I gave him a can and me a can. I labeled his, and every time I open the cabinet I laugh. It reads:

Dad's nuts.

Pictures

I've been experimenting with a photo editing program, using pics Heather took of me and Isaac when he was three months old. What 'cha think?

Where brethren in unity dwell.....

I'm curious if anyone else is hearing the Spirit of God speaking to the church about relationships.

When I was in Atlanta at Christian City Church, the Pastor described the mission of his church as "connect-driven". He said that the church was committed to connecting with God and to connecting with each other. He spoke about discipleship best taking place in relationships, and the church was designed to encourage that. They had a website for the church members, to promote social networking, and help people meet and get to know each other. There were different small groups with various interests to join. There were groups for single moms, homeschooling families, cyclists, organic eaters, and those who like Chuck Norris. One of the groups had just come back from a motorcycle trip, and the members would post and chat about their day on the group's web page. I'm thinking, "This is so simple. How is the church missing this?"

Then last Sunday our family visited a church that a family friend pastors. He talked about the same thing. About how the early church was connected to each other.... they met together, they ate together, they worshipped together. The church of Acts was bonded with each other and directly involved with each other's lives. When one had a need it was easily met because the connection was already there. Pastor said, "we don't need to be unprepared for times of crisis...."

I completely agree with this, but I feel like it's a challenge in the body of Christ. I've seen and experienced a lot of relational abuse and neglect in the church the past few years. Seems like connecting, bonding, sharing your heart and your life with other believers is not a driving force. Someone in church leadership recently said, "I'm sorry, we're just to busy doing ministry to have time for you" (my paraphrase, but same message). Numbers, programs, strategies, and agendas have taken priority over the more vulnerable and sensitive areas of ministry that I'm driven toward. This makes me feel like "I don't' fit" in many ways, but I know I'm not alone.

Could it be that because connection is so powerful, and because God does His work though people, that it's so under attack?

More later......

Happy Third of July

We celebrated Independence Day on the 3rd instead of the 4th. We went to the marine base firework show Thursday, met up with Heather and Trevor and their kids, and had a blast. The kids played on giant inflatables, a rock wall, and a bungee trampoline. When keeping up with eight children got to be enough, we put them all on a blanket and played with Isaac's toys while he crawled around in a diaper. I'd brought a football and the boys enjoyed playing until the crowd thickened enough that people were getting hit in the head by wild throws. I love watching kids play football. It's like a magnet. Other kids see and join in. You start out with two boys tossing the ball and after a few minutes you've got a pile of kids playing a real game. Joshua passed to a young boy several times to make sure he wasn't left out. Finally it got dark and the fireworks began. They were awesome, close, and LOUD. We all oohed and aahed. Isaac stared at them the whole time. Noah had an attitude and said he did not want to watch the fireworks. He said he wanted to go sit in the port-a-potty so he couldn't see them, and cover his ears so he couldn't hear them, but when the show began he changed his tune and really had fun :) When it was over we said goodbye to Heather, spoke with friends we hadn't seen in a long time, and headed toward the front gate. This took a long time because 4,000 people had to be corralled like cattle in between barricades. We bottlenecked to get through fence gates one at a time. We walked awhile from there, since we had to park in Egypt, and when we finally made it to the car we discovered the cars that had made it out of the base were at a stand-still on the road. So, we decided to wait til traffic thinned out. We tailgated in the parking lot. I pulled out the snacks we had in the cooler, and the kids played football and frisbee, this time trying to avoid hitting the other cars who had the same idea to sit awhile. I fed Isaac in the beach chair and watched my husband and sons run and play. The queen on her throne with the new prince, being entertained by the king and the heirs. We had a blast. Friends, family, fireworks, food. Fun fun fun. The best July 3rd we've ever had.

Brother Love

Noah the little gentleman

Charity was over tonight for Charity Night. (If you are confused, Charity is Joshua's girlfriend, and she comes over on Tuesdays, it's her night). When I told Noah she was coming, he said, "I think Charity is so beautiful". After dinner I started to tell her about Noah's sweet comment when he interrupted "no no no". "Oh", I said, "okay, I won't say it, I don't want to embarrass you". He smiled and giggled and I started to change the subject. He pipes up, "okay, you can embarrass me". So, I tell her Noah said she was beautiful, and from the other room I hear Joshua yell "Hey!.....". His little brother was putting the moves on his woman. We clean up the dinner dishes and I hear Noah in the other room, continuing to woo the love of Joshua's life.

"I will protect you in case you slip".

"I'll catch you if you start to fall down".

"Well, I don't know, maybe you're heavy".

The kid is just too direct to be romantic. Plenty of time to work on that though!