The Lord is Faithful

We need to remember.....no matter what we go through in life....the good, the bad, the ugly......we have a faithful Lord and Savior that will never let us down! The Lord has always been there for me no matter what circumstance I have found myself in...He is always there to comfort and give His peace and joy! I have gone through many trials over the past few years but through each and every one of them..my Lord has been my best friend...my help in time of need! If you are reading this...it's not by accident....you might be lonely or confused...or you might be feeling just fine and feeling the joy of the Lord in your life! The true joy of the Lord doesn't come when everything is going our way....or we are getting everything we want in life....

The true joy of the Lord comes even while we are going through circumstances that are beyond our control....it may be the most difficult time of your life.....The Lord Jesus Christ is a faithful God....a loving God....He is a gentleman....

If you ever need a friend...you can call on Jesus...and He will come and meet you where you are....He's just waiting to hear from all of us....not just when we need something...or things are challenging...but even when everything seems to be easy and going our way.....

"Oh taste and see that the Lord is good"!! There is nothing like Him!!!

Well it's been quite awhile since I've written in my blog. The Lord has done so many wonderful and amazingly beautiful new things in my life over the past few months!! I stand in awe of His awesome presence! Even though I have had to endure some personal trials in my life.....I have felt as though I have been on the mountain top for quite sometime. One may wonder how a person can be both in the valley and on the mountain top all at the same time? I never thought this possible until now! I have learned in my 20+ years of walking closely with Jesus Christ a whole lot of things.....

1 Peter 1:6-8

In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory~

It is possible to be in both places at the exact time if we just turn our eyes toward Jesus and keep our minds filled with His word and our hearts filled with a song of worship unto Him!!! I notice in my life that when I get overwhelmed, etc...that I have briefly taken my eyes off of the lover of my soul...my Savior, my bestfriend! He is always there waiting....just waiting for us to come to Him.....in our busy world of confusion and chaos. Even though I have faced various trials.....I have learned and am reminded daily to keep my eyes turned to the one true giver of life.....my best friend, Jesus Christ.

It's been forever!

Wow! I have been so busy savoring each and every second with my beautiful family.....that I haven't taken the time to blog!! I have missed it though ;-) Homeschooling is going great......and the house is coming along just as planned. God has been so good to us.....so very faithful as always! My dear hubby and I started martial arts last night.....absolutely crazy.....nutso! We teamed up together and I have to say there was definately pain involved...LOL! I think the pain was accidental but it was a lot of fun for the whole family! Our four oldest are taking it also.....and are all in the same class...except our oldest daughter is in our adult class(she teamed up with a 14yr old boy, an orange belt). We had many, many laughs last night and I'm sure there will be many more to come! I am glad to be back to my blog! I am excited to share all of the exciting adventures our family has been going on and the adventures to come!

Today I am savoring every detail of each of my six little monkeys! Listening to my little monkey Hannah Zoe as she calls out to her precious little robo hamster, that she named herself...."Cutie Pie"! She is so proud of her furry little pet ;-) Gracie loving on her precious ferret "Chewy"......telling him that he has two little friends in Heaven....as if he is going to die soon or something. She still tells people that she has three ferrets....but that two of them are "up there" as she points to the sky! Emma goes up to her bunny "Lola" calling out her name each morning...."Yoya, Yoya"....so precious! Joshua feeding and watering his bearded dragon "Yoshi" all by himself and loving on his lizard as he reads his Star Wars books each morning.....too cute! And of course Faith and Hope asking me what the plans are for the day....so they can go pick out the perfect outfit to wear!! Wow! They sure grow up so fast.....and I praise God I can just sit with my little ones each and every day and stop what I am doing, just to savor the beautiful gifts the Lord has given me in each of my precious children!! There is nothing like being a mommy......and absolutely nothing like being a mommy of a family of six children! I just feel so honored......blessed.....privileged to be married to my dear hubby and to have six amazing children!

What a day~

After four amazing days of weathering the heat and 87 degrees temp in our house, we are excited to announce that we now have air conditioning! What a huge blessing it is! Today was great! My mom came over and we had a good visit......despite the heat! I finally got my living room finished.....and it looks so good ;-) We had fun eating pizza with Grandma and Grandpa and then watching the awesome clouds roll in ;-) I found out some news about a special person in my life and I am interceding for them like crazy! I don't think i have ever prayed so hard......they need God's intervention in a major way! I believe in end the Lord's will is going to be done.......I just have such a heaviness on my heart for them and their situation! Oh Lord, I prayer for them right now......I pray for favor in the situation they are facing!

Oh and on a much lighter note......my dearest friend is having her first baby tomorrow morning.....how exciting! I will be there from the beginning til the end.......and I can't wait to see her face the first time she lays eyes on her precious little angel ;-) Children are such a gift from God......I'd better get to doing what I need to do........interceding for that special person in my life that needs it so badly~

Where the rubber meets the road!

Well.....when it rains...it definately pours at our house ;-0) Oh yes! We have had things pretty easy lately......or shall I say things have gone pretty smooth for us lately! I guess it is time to have a change of pace....LOL! Okay.....for the past two days we have had NO air conditioning!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is staying between 84 and 87 degrees in our house around the clock! We can't open windows since we don't have screens on most windows and our precious kitty cat might get out! Well the babies might try to escape to a much cooler place!!!!!

My headache is not getting better with all of this heat.......and I have found myself getting a little grumpy at times! I was reminded yesterday by a very special person in my life, my mom, that these are the times to lean on Jesus the most! I need to be an example of His peace to my kids and husband........even though I am a little stressed about the heat in our home! I tell my children that we need to TRUST IN THE LORD......Proverbs 3:5-6, and it is at these exact moments that the "RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD"! Do I trust in God only when things are easy and smooth....or do I trust in Him when nothing seems to be going my way......and I feel like I am going to lose it completely!?!?

I had a good talk with my children and explained to them that it is at times like this that we really get to experience the peace of the Lord.....that we really learn to trust in what the Word of God says! The true peace of God comes when nothing is going your way.......and lately that is exactly what's been happening ;-) God is Faithful all of the time and He is to be trusted with our lives. I have been in control of my life before and I see where it got me...LOL! So on this beautiful night/morning....as I sit here literally sweating to death.....I am reminded of just how sweet my savior is.....I know that I will wake up tomorrow and accomplish whatever the Lord has for me to do ;-) I want His agenda and not my own......hopefully that entails getting my AC fixed real soon ;-)

A Proud Auntie!

My heart melted when I saw this precious little angel......my precious niece, Olivia! She is the most adorable little thing! I wish I could see her more than I do....she lives so far away and it hurts that I can't be with her all the time. She recently celebrated her 1st birthday on April 10th! We were privileged to be able to celebrate it with her......here are a few pics from that special day ;-) There are no words that I can use to express how proud I am of my brother and the father he is to Olivia! I am the proudest sister and auntie in the world!

The devotion below is from David Wilkerson's website. It really ministered to me this morning. These words are exactly what I need to hear today. I am going through something that is extremely difficult right now. Even though I know the Lord and trust in Him.......I still needed to hear these words from David Wilkerson. These words are so encouraging........just what I needed(just what the doctor ordered ;-) I see the light at the end of the tunnel.....I really do! I can't wait to until I walk through it...very very soon!!

God doesn’t want your home, your car, your furniture, your savings, your possessions. All he wants is your faith—your strong belief in his Word. And that may be the one thing that other, more spiritual-appearing people lack. You may look at another person as being more spiritual than you. But that person may actually be struggling hard to keep up an appearance of righteousness. Yet, as God looks at you, he declares, “There is a righteous man or woman.” Why? You’ve admitted your helplessness to become righteous. And you’ve trusted in the Lord to give you his righteousness.
Paul tells us we are accounted as righteous in God’s eyes for the same reason Abraham was. “Therefore it was imputed to [Abraham] for righteousness. Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; but for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead” (Romans 4:22–24).
You may claim, “I believe this. I have faith in the God who resurrected Jesus.” Yet, the question for you is, do you believe the Lord can resurrect your troubled marriage? Do you believe he can bring to life a spiritually dead relative? Do you believe he can raise you up out of the pit of a debilitating habit? Do you believe he can erase your cursed past and restore to you all the years the cankerworm has eaten?
When everything looks hopeless—when you are in an impossible situation, with no resources, and no hope before you—do you believe God will be your Jehovah Jirah, seeing to your need? Do you believe he’s committed to keeping his promises to you—and that if even one of his words fails, the heavens would melt and the universe collapse?

Our Precious Miracle!

Awe......my precious little Gracie ;-) The joy this beautiful gift from God brings to me cannot be explained with words. Gracie has her MRI's starting the first week of May.......she has multiple ones due to the extent of her condition. Please keep her in your prayers.....she needs them. Due to the fact that she is a severe asthmatic and the danger involved, they have had to cancel her MRI's a few times already. We are praying and know that the MRI's will happen in God's perfect timing! We serve an awesome Faithful Lord and I praise Him for all of the beautiful things He has given me! When I watched Gracie running and jumping in her gym class last week....my eyes filled with tears ;-0) How precious it is to watch your child doing the exact things that the doctors thought she might never do! What a miracle from God........I look forward to all of the wonderful miracles the Lord is going to perform throughout Gracie's beautiful life!

Introducing our newest member of our family of (16) sixteen!!!! Meet "LOLA", our precious 4 wk old baby Dwarf Holland Lop bunny ;-). She is the sweetest little thing.....she loves to be held and cuddled in her blankies. The kids love sitting around on the ground while Lola hops onto their laps and around them very slowly.....she is too tiny to jump onto me and their daddy's laps ;-) The kids just laugh and laugh when Lola licks them constantly....too cute! What a sweet and thoughtful gift from Daddy........thank you honey!

Child-Like FAITH!

Oh I almost forgot to mention......I enjoyed this Easter especially since I have SIX kids believing in the Easter bunny! We had a beautiful morning.....the kids couldn't wait to see what the Bunny left them! My 3 yr old Hannah Zoe jumped out of my bed saying "Is he here?"..."Is the Easter bunny here mommy......is he here?" How precious! I told her that he came to our house and left her some goodies.......then got a big kiss from her!!!! The FAITH is takes to believe in God is the same FAITH it takes to believe in fairytales as children....Santa and the Easter bunny ;-) It's that childlike FAITH that we have and wish never went away! The joy I had as a child waiting for Santa, the Easter bunny , etc. nothing like it...right? Wrong! The JOY of waiting on Jesus is far more greater!

Well I got side tracked a little bit.....back to the beginning!

I picture the Lord looking down on us with excitement.....with our child-like faith....we believe in something we don't see!

The way our children wait with expectancy on the Easter bunny or Santa.....this is the way we should be waiting on God! Each day waking up with excitement of the new things God has in store for us.....new gifts that He wants to give us! It all boils down to FAITH.....that simple child-like FAITH! Hope I never lose mine!

A beautiful Easter morning!

This Easter has new meaning for our family! Our oldest children have a beautiful walk with the Lord and have a deep understanding of what really happened thousands of years ago today. They understand that Jesus gave His life for them and that He is alive again sitting at the right hand of God the Father. They understand the concept of us dying to ourselves in order for Jesus to live through and in us. They want God's will for their lives and seek Him daily!

There is no greater thing for me as a mommy than watching my children worship the Lord and weep before Him ;-) It is such a beautiful, beautiful thing........

My younger children have asked Jesus into their hearts and understand as much as their little hearts and minds can comprehend. They learn by what they SEE and not by what they HEAR!

My desire as their mommy is to live my life as an example of a Godly woman.....seeking the Lord daily for His will, on my knees worshiping and interceding for my family and friends and dying to my flesh......and daily reading my Bible!

On this beautiful rainy Easter day, I pray many people come to really understand the meaning of Easter! More people attend church on Easter Sunday than any other day of the year! This is great on one hand but very very sad on the other! Majority of those people are lost people that do not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Satan believes in Jesus, he knows that Jesus died on the Cross and rose from the dead. Satan knows that God created the Universe.....that Jesus heals people, etc. and this means nothing.....Satan isn't going to Heaven!!!!

I pray that more people come to know Jesus and have a personal relationship with Him....there is nothing like it! It will change your life forever.....you will never be alone again.....your needs will be met.....your heart will be completely changed! You can't have a relationship with Christ and live like you have been living.....it will transform your life if you really know Him! It has transformed mine....I am not the same.....and I will never again go back to living or being the person I once was! I give God all the glory for the beautiful life He has given me....because of the death and resurrection of His only begotten son! Thank you Lord!

Special Moments

Silly Gracie ;-)

Sweet Hannah Zoe;-)

One of the many joys of being a mommy is being able to just sit and watch my babies play, run around, sing, etc! They grow up so fast and I enjoy savoring every single moment I get with my children. I look forward to coloring Easter eggs with them today......and talking with them about Jesus and the Cross! It warmed my heart yesterday when my precious Gracie said "mom, today is the day that Jesus died on the Cross for us"! "Did you know that mom?" Well my heart skipped a beat when I heard her say that......

As spirit-filled Christians we have obviously taught our children the true meaning of Easter.....but when you hear your little ones speak with such emotion about Jesus and His dying on the Cross....it brings such an unspeakable joy! My dear little Hannah Zoe came to me yesterday and said "mom, I have to wake up two more times and then it's Easter, and that's the day Jesus came from the dead!" Oh my.....the way she said that and then repeated herself to every person she saw out in public yesterday was just awesome!!! I praise the Lord for helping my husband and I to teach our kids and raise them in the way of the Lord....what a huge blessing and privilege it is!

My Hannah Zoe just told me as I was getting things ready for my kids to color Easter eggs..."mommy, tomorrow Jesus is gonna be alive!!!!!" Wow.....she is excited about Jesus and the fact that He is gonna be alive tomorrow! She doesn't grasp at her young age of 3 that Jesus is alive everyday and that we are His vessels to live through! One day she will understand and and I await that special day that her little brain realizes the life Jesus has given her ;-)

Today we will be celebrating the love of my life's birthday! I praise God for creating him just for me ;-) I can't imagine my life without this amazing man of God.....He ministers to me and our children every single day.....he gives of himself freely and always puts others before himself! He goes to work everyday and works his tail off to provide for his family.....I could go on and on about my amazing husband......he deserves the world on this special day ;-) I love you Chad Everett, you are the most amazing man I have ever met and I am honored....so proud to be your wife! You are my best friend, my lover, my soulmate, my man created for me by the Lord! On this beautiful day....I praise the Lord for giving me the best gift in the world......YOU! I love you my love ;-)

New Life~

Life is sooooo sweet! God is so incredibly awesome! I am in love with the Lord.....He is my all in all! I praise Him for the beautiful life He has given me.....because without Him I am nothing.....and I would not have the perfect marriage to an awesome man of God without the Lord's doing! I wouldn't be the mother to the most amazing children in the entire world! I wouldn't be able to Homeschool my babies....and enjoy every minute of it ;-) I could go on and on but my point is that the Lord gives us every good thing in our life.....the Bible says that "every good and perfect gift comes from God".......Oh how FAITHFUL my Lord and Savior is......I don't deserve what He has done for me at Calvary but am so grateful for His ultimate gift......New Life!

Obedience is better than Sacrifice!

The Bible says to go to your brother or sister and tell them...talk to them if you have a problem concerning them! You don't bad mouth them.....talk behind their back.....or let anger set in! When you hold things inside that you are feeling......it causes you to harbor bitterness towards that person,....not good! The Bible directs us to make it right with that person.....ask them to forgive you.....even if you think you didn't do anything to hurt them.....sometimes we have to ask for forgiveness anyways ;-) Oh yes....you have pride...right!? Let go of that self pride......and do whatever the Lord puts on your heart to do or say! I unintentionally offended this girl.....well I thought nothing of it.....I was "none the wiser".....you might say! She acted a little strange the last time we talked and well that was how I remembered it! Well the Lord put her on my heart to call her....and I couldn't for the life of me remember her phone numbers.....it had been years since we had talked...right! In my prayer time I felt the Lord tell me to call her....hahahahah....I had no phone number.....and remembered that she did kind of act a little weird the last time I saw her, etc. Well I prayed and told the Lord that if He wanted me to call her then He would have to just give me her phone number......right? How would he do that? I didn't have it written down anywhere that I knew of.....hmmmmm? Well having walked with the Lord since I was a young girl....I knew just how faithful He could be or actually ALWAYS IS! Ha ha ha ha ha......okay, I am laughing outloud right now as I type this....LOL! A few weeks after I felt the Lord put this on my heart......I prayed again......not really wanting the girls phone number..right?? NOPE! NO WAY!!!!! Why did I really need to call her.....she was weird right.....yeah.....she had a problem.....LOL! Well no sooner did I say "okay, Lord....if you want me to call this girl....just give me the number.....I will call her.....don't know why but I will call her"!!!!! I had butterflies in my stomach...and well He did it! Yes! The Lord brought her phone number to my mind! Oh because the Lord loves me so very much.....He decided to give me both of her phone numbers...LOL!!!!! I now was able to recite both her cell phone number and home number!!! Oh...I was just so thankful to God for His faithfulness to me....hahahahahahaha....like always He didn't let me down..Well while dialing her phone number.....the Lord brought to my mind what really happened with this girl.....she was upset at me....quite upset at me....she actually got angry with me about something that I couldn't help.....I was unable to go to her child's party because I had a newborn baby and her birthday party was at the lake with mosquitos everywhere.....and I had just had a C-section......my husband was working.....and I would be driving a week after my major surgery and taking all of my kids with me (5 at the time). So I felt that I had a pretty good excuse to not go.....I wasn't allowed to drive anyways...right!!!!! Well she wasn't happy with me.....it was important to her that I show up at her party.....afterall it was her childs b-day! Well she actually said some profane words and I ended up telling her bye and hanging up the phone as quickly as possible! I wasn't about to listen to that kind of talk.....especially since my children and hubby were listening to our conversation ;=) Well okay back to the call the Lord told me to make! Well the Lord let me know that I actually had a slight bitterness settling in my heart towards this girl.....I had forgotten about that...right? Was I calling her for myself, for her or both of us???? I called her and she acted shocked to hear my voice......I told her that I felt the Lord tell me to call her......and that I wanted to ask her to forgive me if I did anything to offend her......I told her that I didn't want to be a hindrence in her walk with the Lord in any way at all. I told her that we absolutely cannot grown in our walk with the Lord if we are having bitterness in our hearts towards anyone.....etc. I told her that I didn't want to be a hindrence for her.......well it all worked out in the end. We never talked again.....she might think I am crazy.....I felt I did no wrong but the Lord told me to make the phone call for a reason.....I had a great lesson in obedience that day.......I seem to have a lot of those lessons......God is always telling me to do something...LOL! The Bible says that "obedience is better than sacrifice".........I praise the Lord for telling me to call that girl....I know it meant something to her even though she didn't tell me so. Calling her meant more to me in the end than I realized...it brought me to a new place in my Christian walk. One of the most important things it did for me is show me how much God loves all of His children.....and He wants us to be obedient even when it seems ridiculous to us....Oh and even though I died a painful death that day.......I still have to die many many many more every single day......it never ends....LOL! I love you Lord....and I praise you for your faithfulness to your children!!!!!

So......I know I have said it many times before...but today I was reminded again for the 8,000th time.....LOL......that the Lord answers our prayers the way He wants to....which is usually not the way we thought He should have answered them! His timing is always perfect, but differs greatly from ours many times ;-) There is nothing in this world more comforting than knowing that the Lord loves me just the way I am.....and that He has a plan for my life! We serve an awesome God.....who loves us more than we could ever imagine! It's such a beautiful thing when we come to the place in our lives that we realize who the Lord is and who we are not!

Snowball~

Our precious little rat "Snowball" went to be with the Lord.......he was the sweetest rat in the world! He became ill without us even knowing it......he hid it well! He brought so much joy to our oldest daughter........and I thank God for that! I believe our pets go to Heaven,.,....the Bible tells us that God knows even when a bird falls from the sky.....The Lord cares about every creature......so we know our precious Snowball is in the best place in the world!

Counting My Blessings~

I have recently begun counting my blessings....

I have always been so very thankful to the Lord for all of the wondrous things He does in my life, but I now count them.....that's right...I said count them! I write each one of then down! There are actually too many to write down or even count but I try ;-) When I started doing this I was going through a crazy time.....I had a lot going on in my life and decided to stop and think about all of the beautiful things the Lord does in my life everyday! I knew it would change my attitude to focus on all of my answered prayers, etc! God always answers our prayers....every one of them...but He doesn't always answer them the way we think He will or even should sometimes ;-)

Okay, I started writing them down........first of all;

1. I got to sleep in my hubby's arms.

2. I woke up this morning and I was breathing(some never wake up).

3. I stepped out of bed and was able to walk out of my room(some can't walk).

4. I was able to drink an awesome cup of coffee...I can swallow(some can't swallow)

5. I have my husband home with me all week!

6. I got to read the Bible with my husband!

7. I got to hold my babies this morning!

8. I received kisses from my babies & hubby!

9. I gave kisses to my hubby & babies!

10.I got to feed my family this morning!

11. I got to hear my Gracie spell words this morning out loud!

12. I got to see the joy on my son's face while he held his bearded dragon!

13. I got to watch my Emma eat and enjoy her organic pop-tart!

14. I got licked by favorite dog..Buttercup(my yellow lab).

15. My Hannah's ear ache is doing better after I prayed for her.

16. I am watching my hubby read his Bible....

17. I have an HONEST, GIVING, LOVING, UNSELFISH, GODLY man of God as my husband!

18. I got to have an awesome prayer time with my husband this morning!

19. My husband prayer for me today!!!!!

20. My husband has been giving me kisses all morning!

21. I am married to my best friend!

22. My husband loves me like Christ loves the church!

23. I am able to type this blog today.

24. I am a child of the Living God!

25. Jesus died on the cross for me ( and all others).

26. Jesus healed my physical conditions.

27. My children's asthma is doing better.

28.We are able to feed our family and cloth them.

29. We have an awesome vehicle!

30. We are completely DEBT FREE!!!!

31. Our home is our "dream home"!!!!!!!

32. We are privileged to Home school our children!

33. We are blessed with an awesome church!

34. My kids love the Lord and want to have God's will for their lives!!

35. We are getting new flooring put in our home.....as a gift from someone special....what a surprise!!!

36. My husband and I are equally yoked ( read your Bible)!!

37. I have the most respectful children in the world!

38. My kids are obedient, loving and extremely happy!

39. My kids love school!

40. I have the privilege of cooking for my family daily!

41. I have the privilege of going to the gym everyday!

42. I am seeing major results from all my hard work at the gym ;-)

43. I have been blessed with SIX beautiful children!

44. My Gracie can walk...despite her special leg!

45. I am listening to my guinea pigs squeak right now.,..cute!

46. I'm a photographer!

47. My husband has a good job...that the Lord uses him to minister to the lost daily at!!!

I am crying right now....because I could go on and on and on and on........I have so many more that are coming to my mind....my goodness (more tears)!!!! WOW.....what a beautiful life the Lord gives His children! The funny thing is that I don't deserve for even one second the awesome blessing of the Lord!!! It makes such a difference in my life when I just stop and say them out loud or even write them down! You should try it if you haven't.......

If you haven't gone through hard times in your life....you will!

There will come a day that you are overwhelmed, etc......don't wait until that time to count your blessings......thank the Lord now for His merciful gifts! I will continue throughout the day.....thanking my Lord and Savior for His wondrous works!

If We Only Knew.....

Well I have returned from pilates...and am now ready to enjoy my day as a sore mommie! Everyone teaches pilates differently...my friend teaches it beautifuly! The fact that I work out non-stop everyday didn't make a difference in that class...LOL! Okay, enough about working out today ;-) I am home with my beautiful family and ready for an awesome lunch!

Well my quiet time this morning was a little shorter than I would have liked it to be.......so I will make sure I set aside some time tonight for just me and the Lord! It can be challenging to do at times with homeschooling my babies and the fact that I love to be with them all the time! I am starting to wake up at the crack of dawn to make sure I get that quality time with the Lord that my heart longs for day and night. All I can think about lately is how FAITHFUL the Lord is too His children! How He loves us no matter what! I than think about how much I don't deserve Him and the awesome life He has given me! His mercies are new every morning.....if we only knew how many times He has bestowed mercy and grace upon us daily.....we would be in awe if we only knew!

A Look Ahead....

I am excited this morning.....my hubbys is on vacation ;-) I look forward to a beautiful week of family time, home remodeling, birthday parties, church, garage sales, donations to Goodwill, working out at the gym everyday & of course one of our favorites, Photography! I am heading out to my pilates class....a dear friend I have known for 15 years is teaching it....and she is also a personal trainer :-) I look forward to the rest of my day! I will share a little about my quiet time with the Lord when I return from my class.....we are expecting some rain.....can't wait!

A Beautiful Sunday...

Today was a beautiful day in the Lord!

We watched most of the church play softball for a few hours.......still not sure of the score, but hey it was relaxing! The kids had a blast on the jumping thing they had for them.....too much fun & constant screaming with lots of laughter!

Well my hubby and I are excited about all of the awesome things the Lord is revealing to us.....so many awesome things! It is amazing what you will hear when you truly listen to the Lord.....He is speaking but are we listening to Him or this world around us? The more I read my Bible and spend time with Jesus.......the more clear I hear the Lord! I want to hear the Lord over all the crazy things that go on in my everyday life....that is one of my prayers......and He will anwer!!!!

I have got to go to bed....yes it is early for me....but I'm exhausted! Good night and many blessings upon all who read! Goodnight Jesus...I love you ;-)

Dying to Self...

Oh the hurt of waking up early on a beautiful Sunday morning....I am exhausted...and for some reason Sundays are the only day of the week that are so hard for me to get up so early :-) Now as a Christian that has walked with the Lord for many, many years this comes as NO surprise! If it were a Tuesday or even a Saturday it might be difficult to get up but not like Sundays! These are the worst for me...my dear hubby comes to me with the sweetest, most gentle voice....and whispers "baby...it's time to get up for church...your coffee's ready"....so sweet and so kind but...man, I am tired.....can't I sleep just a minute more......maybe 15 minutes...that's all....no more! Well being as kind as my dear, sweet husband is.....he will let me sleep in another 15 minutes on top of the 15 minutes I requested! Well needless to say, that "AIN'T" good! Oh no! I jump up running like a crazy woman!!! My sweet husband was just being kind......he was wanting his wife to feel rested....just being his amazingly loving self.....so unselfish! Well I wake up and well......I will stop there...LOL!
Well this is not a typical Sunday morning...praise God..but it has happened a few times...and it causes me to recheck myself....my attitude...my words, etc!
I find that Satan will use anything he can to cause confusion....strife....division, etc. I am learning to discern those situations that could be open doors in our home!
My prayer today is "Lord break me in two......expose my heart....any unclean thing in it that would hinder my walk with You. I want to die to myself today....not walk in the flesh but in the Spirit....I want to walk in Communion with You, Lord....not this world!
I find that when it is hardest to sit down and read the word....intercede or get up early and go to church............these are the times you should do it most! We serve such an Awesome God, who seeks us out everyday....He is wanting our attention....He is just waiting there for us to talk with Him....how rude I have been so many times!!!! It breaks my heart to know that the God of the Universe is desiring to sit with me....and so many times I "get busy"! What a shame that is.....how can we have a marriage with our spouse and not talk with them for days....our marriage wouldn't last....
The Bible says that we are married to Christ.....we are His Bride! So why aren't we talking with Him constantly? We wait until we "need" Him.....we have financial problems.....our child becomes ill, etc. What a merciful God we serve.....the Grace He gives us....we don't deserve it for one second...not an ounce of it...but He gives it....oh and He pours it out on us...and we can't even spend 5 minutes a day with Him!!
"My heart yearns for you Lord"! I thank you for the mercy you have poured out on me and my family.....the grace you have given us! I bow at your feet today....break me...mold me...into the person you desire for me to be! I need more of you today.....I am weak and need your strength! I praise you and love you Jesus.....and I am sorry for the times I have given attention and time that is meant for you to other things! I don't deserve you but you so freely give yourself.......I am honored to be your child! Thank you Lord for this day ahead!

From My Babies....

I am reminded daily of God's grace, mercy and faithfulness......thanks to my children! The Godly wisdom I have gained through the simple words of each of them is amazing! I look forward to the sweet words I will hear from each one of my precious children tomorrow morning.....thank you Lord for ministering to me through each of them~ The peaceful look on my precious Hannah's face.....she tells me she dreams of Angels......doesn't get any sweeter than that! Goodnight!

Just Like Old Times....

Today was a beautiful day! I got to fellowship with some of the most amazing women I've ever known! One of my dearest friends baby shower........it was so special! It was like old times with her and her family.....it meant the world to me ;-) Now it is time for family time....then hopefully to bed at a good time....so we can get to church early in the morning! Then we get to enjoy my dear hubby's vacation this week.......our home remodeling is underway......painting....flooring, etc~ God has been so good to us.......He is so faithful!

The Death of a Christian....

Oh how I love the feeling of the wind on my face on a beautiful cool day!

Today is absolutely gorgeous outside....sunny, cool & just beautiful!

I have enjoyed my time with my babies this morning......they wanted to watch a Bible show and then we sang a few of their favorite songs!

I am going to a dear friends baby shower today......I am so excited for her.....it is her first baby and it's a little boy! I had always hope we could have been pregnant together but God had other plans in mind....LOL!

The Lord is so good to His children....always~

In my daily quiet time with the Lord I read in my Bible....and I enjoy reading David Wilkerson's Blog...devotions! They minister to me so much each morning.......He is an amazing man that hears the voice of God! Below is a devotional written by David Wilkerson~

TO DIE IS GAIN?
Paul said it: “To die is gain” (Philippians 1:21). That kind of talk is absolutely foreign to our modern spiritual vocabularies. We have become such life worshippers, that we have very little desire to depart to be with the Lord.Paul said, “I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better” (Philippians 1:23). Yet, for the sake of edifying the converts, he thought it best to “stay in the shell.” Or, as he put it, “live in the flesh.”Was Paul morbid? Did he have an unhealthy fixation with death? Did Paul show a lack of respect for the life God had blessed him with? Absolutely not! Paul lived life to the fullest. To him, life was a gift, and he had used it well to fight a good fight. He had overcome the fear of the “sting of death” and could now say, “It’s better to die and be with the Lord than to stay in the flesh.”Those who die in the Lord are the winners; we who remain are the losers. Death is not the ultimate healing: resurrection is! Death is the passage, and sometimes that passage can be painful. No matter how much pain and suffering wreak havoc on these bodies, it is not even worthy to be compared with the unspeakable glory that awaits those who endure the passage.Any message about death bothers us. We try to ignore even thinking about it. We suspect those who talk about it of being morbid. Occasionally we will talk about what heaven must be like, but most of the time the subject of death is taboo.How different the first Christians were! Paul spoke much about death. In fact, our resurrection from the dead is referred to in the New Testament as our “blessed hope.” But nowadays, death is considered an intruder that cuts us off from the good life we have been accustomed to. We have so cluttered our lives with material things that we are bogged down with life. The world has trapped us with materialism. We can no longer bear the thought of leaving our beautiful homes, our lovely things, our charming sweethearts. We seem to be thinking, “To die now would be too great a loss. I love the Lord, but I need time to enjoy my real estate. I’m married. I’ve yet to prove my oxen. I need more time.”Have you noticed there is very little talk, nowadays, about heaven or about leaving this old world behind? Instead, we are bombarded with messages on how to use our faith to acquire more things. What a stunted concept of God’s eternal purposes! No wonder so many Christians are frightened by the thought of death. The truth is, we are far from understanding Christ’s call to forsake the world and all its entanglements. He calls us to come and die, to die without building memorials to ourselves, to die without worrying how we should be remembered. Jesus left no autobiography, no headquarters complex, no university or Bible college. He left nothing to perpetuate his memory, but the bread and the wine.

I have learned through my walk with Christ that I must die to myself daily.....to truly die hurts but in the end it brings forth a life like no other!

My Life~

This morning began a little later than usual in our home.....sleepy children and a mommy who was up all hours of the night with a precious little angel. The unspeakable joys of being a mommy of a very large family are amazing......and too numerous to count! Our day usually begins with mommy having a yummy cup of coffee, preferably hazelnut! The little ones choose from a variety of fruits, oatmeal or other whole grain cereal.......whichever their little hearts desire~

In our home we always start out our day with Bible reading, prayer and intercession for others and time of worship! Some days it goes smoother than others....but for the most part....the kids look forward to our quiet time with the Lord!

My hubby and I are very relaxed...easy going....go with the flow kind of people...that helps keep peace in the home....true peace is from the Lord!

Our Homeschooling seems to flow quite well now that we have begun our new curriculum! The kids complained that is was too difficult at the beginning and of course as their teacher I thought "Bingo, we've found the right stuff"! I love to challenge my kids....and our new work is definately a challenge ;-) I am currently Homeschooling 5 of my 6 kids daily.....my baby(18 months) is taught sign language and of listens to the alphabet, colors and numbers...but no math, reading and writing yet!

One of the beauties of Homeschooling is learning your childrens learning style.....strengths & weaknesses.....it's amazing what you learn about your children when you are with them morning, noon & night!

I use to pray for patience and well God gave me SIX amazing children all 1 1/2 to 2 yrs apart...close in age....called me to Homeschool them all throughout highschool and well, I am getting what I prayed for.....His patience is given daily to me and I praise Him for that!

I just love being a wife, mommy and teacher! I am also a professional photographer.....along with my awesome husband (a true man of God)! We live a fairly busy but relaxed life and praise God for it!

This morning has been great.....some of us are a little tired but hey the Lord has given us another day to spend together as a family......and I praise Him for that!

I am off to see what amazing things I will learn from my children today......a beautiful thing ;-)

The Wisdom of the Lord

Oh...to have the wisdom of the Lord...is such a beautiful thing! That is my desire today Lord.....to come to know you in a more intimate way than ever before! This morning has been so sweet....I have enjoyed my time with my Lord and Savior.....had quality prayer time with my babies and am about to begin a wonderful morning of Homeschooling ;-)

In my quiet time with the Lord today....I studied Matthew 6. So many things come to my mind when I read this awesome book of the Bible~

.................Treasures in Heaven 19"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
22"The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. 23But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!
24"No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.
Do Not Worry 25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

While reading this passage in the Bible...the fact that God tells us that he will supply all of our needs is very important! In Matthew we read that he makes sure the birds eat and have shelter in their nests.......we are far more important to Him.....this brings to my mind Philippians 4:19 And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

I have found in my journey, walk and relationship with Jesus Christ that not one of my families needs have ever gone without being met! If you don't have it and can't afford to get it then we need to seriously consider that it just might be a want.....! God has made a promise in His word that He will meet all of our NEEDS.....yes I said NEEDS NOT WANTS! Oh now don't get me wrong...the Lord also loves to bless us with those things that we WANT sometimes too......but when we become heavenly minded our wants and needs become better defined....and become in line with the Word of God.....

Thank you Lord for your many gifts....I praise you for who you are....;-)

Today is a beautiful day in the Lord! My hubby walking in the door from a quick jaunt to the local grocery store for some fruit and veggies.....precious! I am ready to read the Word of God and then go to the gym for a hard workout again! Then back home to finish homeschooling my babies.....my dear hubby will start schooling while I am at the gym....then after school we will go back to the gym again....kid's workout class is so exciting for them....fellowship and exercise! We are redoing our floors right now......spring cleaning and just cleaning out for donations....

Our days are quite busy but with things that we enjoy spending our time on....praise God for that! The Lord has blessed our photography~ http://www.emmagracephotography.com/ ~ in such a beautiful way! My dear hubby worked out with me last night.....and we had an awesome time together! I go to the gym everyday and feel so good....healthy! I am running/walking 4-5 miles a day and it feels awesome.....I praise the Lord for His blessings that He bestows upon me and my family everyday....He is Faithful always!!

What a wonderful day I had to day with my babies! Homeschooling was a blessing.....the park......just the joy on their faces when they saw the raccoon tracks in the mud~ Being a mommy of SIX definately has it's crazy moments but the joy and blessings out way any craziness! I thank you Lord for giving me such awesome gifts.......and for a perfect day with my children!

A Deeper Walk

Today was a beautiful day! The Lord has been revealing so many awesome things to me in my quiet time with Him! Being called to full-time ministry there is so much the Lord needs to do in me~ My prayer is that He will expose my heart and any unclean thing in it! I want to be where God wants me to be and not be lagging behind Him and his perfect will for my life. He calls some to a deeper walk....or shall I say stricter walk than others.....if you are in the ministry than you should know exactly the walk that I am talking about! It is a very different life than most of the people we know.......it is challenging at times! It means daily seeking the Lord's will and not your own.....not doing whatever you feel like doing but truly seeking God for His direction for your day! It is amazing.....the paths He will take you down when you give your day to Him! Everyday is such an adventure for me and my family........homeschooling 5 of my 6 babies is the most awesome thing in the world! They keep me busy a lot of the time.......but I love it and praise God for the blessing of having my children in my presence most of my day!!! I am in total awe of the Lord's Faithfulness to us........I know I don't deserve what He has given me....is giving me now and what He will be giving me in the future! I am just thankful that He loves me and that He has given me new life in Him!