31 Days of Life: Day 8

We said "See you soon" to a precious brother in Christ today. This precious man of God had lived a long and blessed life, and it was a sweet sadness as several gathered to celebrate a life well lived. The music, testimonies, and preaching were each wonderful in a very touching way. The legacy he leaves behind will continue to resonate for God's glory for many, many years to come.

As we stood at the graveside and participated in the 'Celebration of Life', Brandon and I both noticed one person in particular. She stood quietly tucked behind several family and friends at the graveside service, and there were no special public mentions of her throughout the day. She didn't give a speech on stage or draw attention to herself in any way. But, we were watching, and she spoke volumes to us.

This dear friend we quietly observed called this precious man, who is now with Jesus, Grandad. We know she has cared for him in countless ways during the last several years of his life, and she has been on the front-line in numerous aspects as Grandad's health has waned in recent years. We've seen the gentle sadness she's carried while knowing the end was near. While she's never been one to want or seek attention, she sure had ours today. To be able to love and serve the way she has while never wanting glory for herself is a true inspiration to us. Dear friend of ours, we thank you for your loving, selfless example. May God be glorified through the way you shine for Him.

31 Days of Life: Day 7

Tonight I leave you with a song that's been singing in my heart today. Our church choir sang it this morning, and I was reminded of how much I love it. I need to hear it...to be reminded that no matter how good or how bad our days go, we are still creatures made beautiful only by the grace of a brutal work done on our behalf.

I hope that you'll enjoy this version of Gungor's "Beautiful Things."

31 Days of Life: Day 6

We are so blessed on this day to welcome our new friends and co-laborers in the Gospel to Roswell! On the wings of 2 U-haul trucks and many prayers, the new worship pastor and his family landed this afternoon. It was a great evening as several people gathered to help unload boxes and furniture into their new place.

There is just something so rich about coming together to help one another in these times of need. At one point there were so many kiddos running around; I was certain they were multiplying  ;-) Turns out, several boys from a few houses down were so excited to have new neighbors that they were carrying boxes in from the truck, too! Wow! Talk about a great welcome to town! I loved it. Then, I saw one our great buddies mowing their lawn for them. It was such a blessing to see everyone serving each other out of kindness.

Surely, God created us for community: to love and serve others for His glory and not our own... never-mind the aching backs. Count it all joy!

31 Days: Day 5

It seems hard to believe that we are already 5 days into October! We lead such busy lives, and sometimes I wish it would slow down just a bit. I think the key to this is: learning to say no. Pastor Matt says that one of the biggest challenges to Christians these days is saying 'no' to good things. While I can't really think of any major things to say "no" to right now, I do want to start praying over the little things that eat away at our time and bring added busyness into our days. We've had a full day today, and we are all looking forward to Saturday! The weather is supposed to be unseasonably cool tomorrow. Yay! Fall!

Since I'm ready to bring this day to a close, I'll leave you with a sweet memory of something our precious girls did today. After having our trampoline out of commission for nearly 6 months, Brandon and the girls hung a replacement net on it yesterday. Since they fixed it at sunset, they weren't able to get much jumping done. So, first thing this morning after getting out of bed, they quickly dressed in jackets and "sock" gloves over their night gowns. Then, they came to Daddy asking if they could PLEASE go jump?! He proceeded to tell them, "We have a very busy day ahead of us and need to get ready asap!! So, no, you may not go jump. Sure!"

I wish we had a picture to share of it, but they were freezing and didn't stay out for long. Those 2 girls are the main reason I want to slow down - to make sure that we are saying "Sure!" to God things and not being weighted down by the busyness of 'good' things.