How would you respond to this statement?

"We should pursue our holiness, not happiness."



Now, I know my audience here and how you probably feel about that statement (at least most of you), but how would you respond to someone who says this, yet lives out a real delight in God in their life?

Josh and I have encountered this said several times over the last few weeks and are just praying for wisdom in how to humbly respond.

I would love to hear what you would say.





"All men seek happiness. This is without exception. This is the motive of every action of every man, even those who hang themselves." --Blaise Pascal

i heart norah

Yesterday marked a much anticipated day for me. I have been waiting for this for some time now. Here's the announcement from the horse's mouth:

"On January 30, 2007, Norah will release her third and most personal album yet. Not Too Late -- a collection of 13 original songs, all of which were either written or co-written by Norah herself. Featuring the sweet and soulful lead single "Thinking About You"...."

Listen to "Thinking About You" here.


And while you're listening, let me explain. I was turned on to her music while in college (I opened and closed Jackson's Java to her) and her songs quickly became landmarks in my relationship with Josh. Her version of "The Nearness of You" was our first dance at our wedding....and many sweet living room dances following. In fact, pretty much anytime we're celebrating us or Josh just wants to create a romantic atmosphere at home for me, he pops Norah in. There's something about her thick, soulful voice and easy music that just gets me. I love it and even though this new album looks like it will sound identical to her first two, I'm glad. I could just soak it up. I hope more and more people will buy her albums and then maybe she'll record more often....seriously, the world is just a more relaxed place with her music in it.


Speaking of relaxation and romance....what do you and your sweetie do for Valentine's Day???

I am currently brainstorming ideas for our love day and since we're on a budget these days, I'd love some ideas. Anything, really. Crafts, menus, recipes, outings, things that worked well in the past, etc. I really enjoy sentimental ideas like making cards and I usually feel like I have good ideas until the pressure is on and then I draw a blank.

If you're in the same boat as me, here are a couple of interesting websites I found today that may help as well:

--a word of caution: these contain quite a few links with ideas for "married" activities as well.

http://holidays.lovingyou.com/valentine/

http://www.mydearvalentine.com/valentine/idea-tips/

Drama princess

I love reading blogs that quote cute things little ones have said, and since my little one can't talk yet I'll share a funny moment I had last night with my sister Doria and her daughter Trinity. Let me preface it by saying that Doria has been known to be very dramatic and Trinity (4 yrs old) has inherited that trait and then some. She is also going through a HUGE princess phase.


Doria was standing in the kitchen when we hear a sweet little voice say,

"Your Highness, I'm stursty"

"Oh yeah, that's what she's been calling me these days. The other day she said, 'Oh Your Highness, I love your hair!' and she also now refers to us as 'Mother and Father'."


Other recent quotes from Trinity are (in a very sincere tone):


"Oh, thank you, thank you! I praise you! Thank you!"

"Oh Mother, I just want to make you happy!"

"Mommy say, 'I'm not mad.'"

Prodigal Party (which one?)

A very dear friend and I were having a lively debate last night that has me really thinking and a bit confused. She, being Democrat (but not straight ticket), and confused me who has historically voted Republican (but not straight ticket) were discussing which moral issues should take priority when Christians vote. The obvious main moral issues are the sanctity of marriage and abortion and one that is often overlooked but still extremely important is the issue of caring for the poor and needy. While I'm sad that we have to choose (often the lesser of two evils) how are we to go about making this choice Biblically. My pastor gave a powerful sermon last week on abortion and the sanctity that God has placed on life. My heart couldn't nod in agreement any harder. I also am passionately convinced of God's great wisdom in the order He has set into place concerning marriage between a man and a woman. But what about the poor? What about health care for our children? Did not Jesus heavily emphasize and live out a call to give to the poor and care for those around us in need? Is this not what He spent the majority of his ministry doing besides teaching? Is this only the church's responsibility? Or do we have a responsibility to voice our concern for the poor on our ballots?

I ask these questions because I simply don't know the answer....and maybe I'm asking the wrong questions. Maybe I've missed the point. What I am sure of is that the "spiritual" line between the two political parties is greatly thinning. The differences seem to be harder to discern with the increasing amount of religious fog surrounding the candidates. Christians are a huge target for both parties and they're demanding that we decide which moral issues we will get behind more.

We've all heard our President quote scripture from the Oval office and profess his faith. His father too. But now there's Obama showing up in the pews....and even Hillary. And while it's easy to jump to my own judgements and opinions about where they may or may not stand personally, the issues remain the same.....and both sides are calling on Christians to make their choice.

So, what do you think? How do you go about deciding on these huge issues from a Biblical perspective?

I would love to hear your answers.

Here's a very interesting article in this month's WORLD magazine on the subject (if you have a subscription).

the Colts.....my final answer

I admit that before today I knew pretty much nothing about the the Colts or the Bears, however, I decided that I really want to enjoy the Superbowl this year despite our beloved Panthers not being (or deserving) any part of it. I had heard a lot of the hype surrounding the fact that the two coaches are the first African-American coaches to go to the Superbowl.....HUGE. And in all that hype that both are Believers....even better. After reading about the tragedy of Colt's head coach Tony Dungy's son and his faith in God's goodness in the midst of tragedy, I was convinced. What a man!!!

Read for yourself here.

My Meme (what does that mean, by the way?)

I got tagged....yeah!!! Thanks, Melanie! The funny thing is that I'm sitting in our office where ALL of our books are kept and there are several piles on the desk. Hmmm..... Ok, the two nearest (one on the right and one on the left) are the Bible and the Second Book of Practical Studies for Clarinet by Nilo W. Hovey. I think I will choose the Bible and the next closest which is Foundations of Education by Ornstein/Levine. Here you go:

"And the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land, who returned and made all the congregation grumble against him by bringing up a bad report about the land--the men who brought up a bad report of the land--died by plague before the Lord. Of those men who went to spy out the land, only Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh remained alive. When Moses told these words to all the people of Israel, the people mourned greatly." (Numbers 14:36-39)

"Social promotion policies, which promoted children in public schools to higher grades to keep them with their age cohort, even if they had not mastered grade-appropriate skills and subjects, had eroded academic standards. These policies, neo-essentialists charged, had lowered academic standards and produced a notable decline in scores on standardized tests such as the SAT and ACT. In addition, some neo-essentialists were concerned that a morality permissive environment in the schools had weakened civic values of industriousness, responsibility and patriotism."

(don't look at me....it's Josh's book)

That was fun. Ok, I tag....Kristin T., Stacey and Michelle.

Here's what you do:

1. Grab the book closest to you open to page 123
2. Go down to the fourth sentence
3. Post the text of the following 3 sentences on your blog
4. Name the author and book title
5. Tag 3 people to do the same

Fret not yourself

Through tears and panic I read the sweetest verse the other day. Luke 12:32...

"Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom"

I honestly don't know if I've ever read that before, though I've read Luke several times. It's one of those things where God reveals a verse to you like it's the first time and your heart really gets it. Anxiety has definitely been the unwanted guest in my heart lately....mainly due to a rash. Inflammatory Breast Cancer is in my family and I've noticed a rash that's come and gone pretty much since I've had Isaiah. I never thought much about it because it almost covered my whole body at one point and then went away. This one area is the last to leave and it was when I researched the symptoms of IBC that I freaked out. At the time, if felt like I had several symptoms and I was convinced I had breast cancer.

This is something I've battled for awhile now. Not just the fear of cancer but being convinced that I will have it eventually. I have no idea where this all started...probably too much reading and definitely too much idle thinking. I feared the diagnosis, treatment, more fear, prognosis, leaving Isaiah and Josh and anything else Satan brought to mind. All of this built up fear came to a head this past weekend. I have been battling a cold that feels like it's gone straight to the reasoning part of my brain. I was completely handicap. No matter how many scriptures and promises I read or how much I talked through it or prayed through it, this intense fear did not let up. I cried off and on all weekend out of sheer panic and had constant headaches. It would let up some then hit me hard again. Despite missing church because I didn't feel good (probably the worst decision) we had a very busy Sunday planned with my sister-in-law's birthday and a good family friend flying in from Norway for Christmas. I just couldn't wait to get to my in-law's house where hundreds of distractions would greet me. I didn't want to think anymore. On the way there it hit again...probably the hardest and as I was reading promises again. I truly felt like I couldn't control it and it wouldn't stop. I was crying and having trouble breathing, but in the midst I had the clearest thought from the Lord. "This is much more about what's going on in your mind than your body." I told to Josh to please pray for me and as he did it just completely lifted and peace came for the first time all weekend.

I am convinced that there is something uniquely powerful about having someone else intercede for you that didn't happen when I was just praying for myself. As Josh prayed against Satan's attack on my mind the fear and panic just left. I don't know if I had a panic attack or not, but it is abundantly clear that God is teaching me to put my trust in Him....and even more that He is able to cause my heart to trust Him when I clearly can't on my own. I was completely unable.

Through the whole journey, the verses I read sank deep in my heart calling it to once again stop trying to save itself....."Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life." It's easy to call your life "rubbish" when things are fine, but at the very thought that things weren't fine my heart tightened it's grip like a little girl clutching the toy she didn't want to surrender and shouting "mine!" I'm not sure this ever gets any easier. I am sure that my heart desperately needed to go through it and will again over and over.

Update Friday morning 11:00am:

I am just returning from the doctor's office where a very kind woman looked me over and basically just said that it looked like an ordinary rash or skin irritation that may or may not be caused by yeast (who knew?) and gave me a prescription for a cream. I told her my family history and she offered an ultrasound later if I was still worried, but didn't see any need for it now. She did however tell me that the "mini pill" I have been on is known to cause anxiety and depression as well as weight gain. I nearly cried right there from relief. I just had no idea what was going on with my body. This confirms my previous feelings about birth control and makes future decisions much easier.

Thank you for this journey, Lord. Forgive me for not trusting You. You are the God of my mind, body and heart and have proven over and over to be for me....all of me. Thank you for your grace and kindness. Help me to continue to treasure you above health, family, the future and all the unknowns You will call me to. You are good.

My "brush" at the mall

I woke up with a great plan of beating the crowds to Concord Mills to pick up a few things. I didn't quite get there as early as I wanted but at 10:30am it still wasn't bad yet so I was able to run into Bed, Bath and Beyond to get what I needed without too much trouble.

Now, since I've been at home I've had a morning ritual of having my coffee with Rachael Ray and Martha Stewart, and someone had told me last night that Martha would be at Books A Million today signing her new housekeeping handbook. The book is like $50.00 or something and to be honest, Martha really gets on my nerves and seems to be quite full of herself on TV but I really like what she does so I just endure her.

Well, I thought that if I could buy the book and get her to sign it I could sell in on Ebay and make a little off of it (I know, I know). When I got to Books a Million needless to say there was a line winding through the ailes to the back of the store...definitely not worth it. But, her chair and TV cameras were set up by the front window so I stood outside trying to decide if a picture of her on my cell phone was worth it.

I had just finished discussing this with my friend Laura and was fidgeting with my phone when I heard, "And Martha, you're going to go right this way." I looked up to realize that she, a very tall woman, a very tall man and a tiny, little cop were directly beside me and I was completely in their way! I literally hopped out of the way to not get walked on. She had come in through an exit door that I was standing right beside, but I thought she would come through the back of Books A Million. Her handlers were escorting her to the store and weren't stopping for me....rather they were just looking at me like, "Uh, move." So I got a picture of the side of her head (not recognizable) and this adorable Hispanic woman came up to me and loudly asked me as Martha was walking by in earshot, "Who is here?!?" I point and say, "That's her right there." "Who?" "Martha" "Martha who?" "Martha Stewart" "Oh, I don't know." She was truly the highlight.

If Martha had walked in 5 seconds earlier she would have heard me talking about how much she annoys me and how not worth waiting for this picture was. But, despite my pride I have to admit, when it comes to a celebrity I get just as giddy and excited as most of the general public....then try to act like I don't care.

My impression? She's much taller and thinner than she appears on TV (of course) and she wears an incredible amount of makeup (of course).

Oh, and be sure to look for my thighs on channel 9 news. I was standing behind Martha looking through the window while they were interviewing her (she was sitting) and it didn't occur to me that the camera was rolling. Oh boy!

"Sick" day

I woke up at 5:00am yesterday morning to Josh running into our room from the computer, diving onto the bed and exclaiming, "I not go to school!" in his cute little boy voice. So that was that. Everything was already done. The sub was hired, plans were made and the day off was official. He did have a lot of work to do on his master's class but that didn't stop us from acting like it was any other Saturday. We layed around, had a big breakfast, played A LOT of Sudoku (addictive, don't start) and finally cranked up the Christmas music classics and put up the tree.

It really was a fun day, and even though he had to stay up late to get all his work done we fell asleep with the glow and sparkle of our first Christmas tree as a family of three.

Lanier Update

For those of you who haven't heard, beautiful Karis Faye Lanier peeked her head into the world (rather she was pushed, pulled and everything else) at 2:08pm this afternoon. She was a whopping 9 lbs 7 oz and 21 1/2 inches long....big girl!!! She has cute curly brown hair and blue-gray eyes....she's going to be a heartbreaker.

Stacey was such a trooper and is doing fine.....exhausted but fine. It was really cool to watch her just so naturally transition into being a nurturing, loving mom. She was definitely made for this. I'll let them give the detailed update with pictures, but I am a proud aunt and couldn't help but share.

Thank you, Jesus for a beautiful, healthy, strong niece and godly, elated, sleep deprived parents.

Check their blog for updates here.

The Nativity Story

Has anyone seen this movie??? I haven't and admit to having low expectations, but this morning I was reading on "girl talk" (a blog by Carolyn Mahaney and her daughters/in law) about their experience going to see it and it made me a bit curious. Here's an exerpt:


To borrow the words of Dr. Al Mohler from his review: “The movie faithfully presents the main thrust of the Christmas story. That is no small achievement. The movie, directed by Catherine Hardwicke, takes some liberties with the biblical accounts found in the gospels of Matthew and Luke. Nevertheless, the invented scenes and dialogue do not distract from the biblical storyline.”

The Nativity Story also proved to be very moving. It only took about thirty seconds before I was wiping my eyes. I found myself affected once again by the events surrounding my Savior’s birth. He entered this world with a glaring absence of celebration and fanfare: “And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.” (Luke 2:7) It’s a rare occasion when a movie provides such a sweet reminder.

Watch the trailor here.

First Christmas Practice

So I've decided that we will all wear reindeer antlers for our Christmas card this year (Josh is a little less than thrilled). I found these cute little head bands at the dollar store and thought how bad can it be...they were a buck! And Isaiah's light up!

I thought it might be good to get Isaiah used to the idea before we actually take the pictures and here's what I got. Hard to tell how he feels about it.

I probably should wait to tell Josh about the picture I saw of a family who had their kids all dress up in heavy coats, mittens and tobogans, and stick their tongues to a pole like Ralphie in The Christmas Story. I'll save that for next year.

Mr. Personality

Mornings with Isaiah are the best! Right after his first feeding of the day his little personality is in full swing.

We just recently pulled his exersaucer out of the box and gave it a whirl. He absolutely loves it! We have to stuff blankets all around him because he jumps so much and flings his little body everywhere when he gets excited. I laugh so hard at him! It's the best entertainment I can think of.

These are such treasured times and so far this is my favorite age (I hear great things about 6 mo though!). I tried to capture some of his adorable little traits and still only got a glimpse on camera but I wanted to share them anyway.

I have a short video clip of him playing in his exersaucer that I will post as soon as I figure out how.

Here's to my Little Man!

At the Zoo!

I volunteered to chaperone Josh's field trip to the Asheboro zoo last Wednesday. It was so much fun, and I have to admit, I had my reservations but Isaiah was so good and Josh's students loved him! We really enjoyed it, although not the best pictures. Isaiah pretty much slept through the whole thing which was probably best considering the anatomy lesson the other kids got from the monkeys!

Worth blogging twice in one day

I don't normally post twice in a day, but I just finished reading an article that challenged and, hopefully, changed me. I have to share it.

To aid you in your fight to be Christ-minded and not world-minded:


"Realize your outer nature is wasting away and inner nature must be renewed by setting your mind on things that are above.

Take radical steps to keep your mind pure.

Make God the gladness of all your joys.

See each person you meet as you will see them a hundred years from now.

Ponder that at every moment, even your happiest, there is misery and wailing in 10,000 places, some of them very near.

Remember Jesus’ warning about what chokes spiritual life: cares, riches and pleasures of life.

Be friends with spiritually minded people.

Read God-besotted, spiritually minded writers.

Ponder your life that will very soon be without a body.

Ask for spiritual-mindedness.

Go to the hospital to pray with a dying man.

Realize that millions of people in the other religions of the world are not looking for people with more American cultural coolness or techno savvy. They are looking for a “holy man,” a “man of God.”



This was taken from today's "Taste and See" article by John Piper. He wrote much more between each point so read it for yourself at www.desiringGod.org

Voting for Dummies

If you're like me you have tried to ignore all the mailings, commercials, news stories, debates, articles, etc until you became so sick and tired of all the mud slinging liars and cover-upers and realized "Hey, this guy could actually win!" For fear of having to endure these hand-shaking, baby-kissing, bash-you-over-the-head nice, politically nauseating commercials for the next year, I run to my computer and look up the easiest to follow voting guide (I, of course, threw mine away).

Ok, maybe it's just me. So even if you have been paying attention and forming educated views and opinions like a responsible citizen, this could still help you get ready for the polls on November 7th (it is the 7th, right?).

I was convicted of being indifferent and lazy on these issues that will effect us now, but also in a big way at the upcoming presidential election. This mid-term election IS a BIG DEAL.

Check out this easy NC voter's guide and please, go vote.

www.ncvotersguide.org


One more website of interest is www.christianvotes.com. It includes voting guides and a strong call on Christians especially to vote (even states not voting as sin).

A quote from the site:
"Each election year, Christians are offered the opportunity to make their voices heard. When the Christian votes, he or she is allowed the chance to set the moral tone for the future of local, state, and national leadership. It is critical that Christians fulfill their biblical obligation and take advantage of their right to vote."

Christmas traditions, please.

With our new budget and new baby this year, I am trying to get creative with gifts and would also like to start a few traditions that we can continue as Isaiah grows up and we have more children. I need ideas! I know many of you are a wealth of information in this area, so please share!

One idea for a tradition that I came across today was to write Isaiah a Christmas letter every year highlighting that year of his life...kinda like a month by month Christmas update that you send to family. It should be all about him and ways that he grew, special events that happened, things he learned, the anticipation of his birth (for this year), etc. The idea is to keep it a secret and give them to him in a keepsake box when he's 18 or starts middle school...some kind of milestone in his life.

If there has been a family tradition that you guys do or that you did growing up please share that with me. I would also love ideas on how to instill the true joy of celebrating Jesus' birth as well. Creative gift ideas for family are also very welcome (I may do a whole other blog on that!)

Hopefully, this will get the creative juices flowing!

Photo update

These first 3 all take place in about a 30 second time period....poor kid.

#4: Playing with Daddy

#5: Napping with Mommy

#6: Just hanging out on the floor at Nana's house (pretty smile!).

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Encouragment from my couch

So, I overslept this morning and didn't have enough time to get myself and Isaiah ready for church on time. Disappointing, but I took the opportunity to read today's reading out of Spurgeon's "Morning and Evening." So good.

"He will take what is mine and declare it to you." -- John 16:15

"There are times when all the promises and doctrines of the Bible are of no help unless a gracious hand applies them to us. We are thirsty but are too faint to crawl to the waterbrook. When a soldier is wounded in battle, it is of little use for him to know that there are those in the hospital who can bind up his wounds and medicines to ease all the pains that he now suffers: What he needs is to be carried there and have the remedies applied. It is the same with our souls, and to meet this need there is one, even the Spirit of Truth, who takes the things of Jesus and applies them to us.

Do not think that Christ has placed His joys on Heavenly shelves so we may climb up and retrieve them for ourselves; rather He draws near and sheds his peace abroad in our hearts. Christian, if you are tonight struggling under deep distress, your Father does not give you promises and then leave you to draw them up from the Word like buckets from a well. The promises He has written in the Word He will write afresh on your heart....So Jesus not only gives you the sweet wine of His promise, but He holds the golden cup to your lips and pours the lifeblood into your mouth. The poor, sick, worn out pilgrim is not merely strengthened to walk, but he is lifted up on eagle's wings.

Glorious Gospel that provides everything for the helpless, that draws near to us when we cannot reach it ourselves -- it brings us grace before we seek grace! There is as much glory in the giving as in the gift. Happy people who have the Holy Spirit to bring Jesus to them!"

Provisions of Grace

Sorry it's been over a month since my last entry (if anyone is still checking in). I didn't expect to be this busy! Here's my best attempt to capture the journey this last month has been:

It's probably best described in three categories: Struggle, Faithfulness, and Growth. These have been challenging weeks for me....and very revealing ones. I'm not totally sure of the starting point, but somewhere in there Isaiah hit a growth spurt that left him crying ALL day and me about to lose my mind. It felt like it lasted forever. If he wasn't eating or sleeping he was screaming (this really isn't an exaggeration), and even then he was eating every two hours....including through the night. I was spoiled by his previous 5-7 hour stretches of sleep at night so this was extremely frustrating. He had been through growth spurts before, but none like this. As the days wore on I was feeling angry at him, exhausted and like I didn't want to be a mom anymore. I didn't even want to be around him. Josh had a hard time understanding that which made me feel even worse (and of course he didn't....he wasn't with him all day). On top of this we were hit with financial issues. We had basically gone through Josh's check half way through the month (he gets paid once a month) and were wondering how we were going to pay the rest of our bills. Now I get REALLY stressed about money....to the point that I nearly hyperventilate....I know, a little dramatic. I don't know why, but few things cause me more anxiety. I was wondering if we had done the right thing in me staying home and if I should start to look for a part time job. On top of this I had taken on entirely too much by committing myself to several people at the same time and was running around exhausted and delirious.

Sooo....all of this came to a head last Friday when we were supposed to go the Mts and pick apples (his parents had made it possible for us to go for a night). We had planned to leave that morning but didn't get out until late afternoon. I had a huge breakdown. Uncontrolable crying and sobbing all while trying to get everything off my chest to Josh. I felt totally helpless with no end in sight. I think this is where the turn around began (at least partially).

Josh was so sweet and just held me (and Isaiah) and let me cry while reminding me of God's promise to provide for us. He reminded me of what God had called me to as Isaiah's mom and that He was for our good in all that we were going through. He prayed through so many verses that my fearful heart desperately needed to hear....and still need to hear.

We left to go the mountains and had a wonderful, much needed time away. Although Isaiah wasn't fully out of his growth spurt he was much better, and this week he's been a different baby. He's content and happy most of the day and finally is back into his schedule and sleeping 6 hours at night. I love being a mom again! I felt like Isaiah and I needed the trip just as much as Josh and I did! It was really therapeutic just being in the fresh air and sunshine with the beautiful fall scenery all around us.

The financial struggle didn't stop once we got home, but we've seen some strong signs of God's provision and also learned some important lessons. We feel like God is bringing us through this partly to teach us greater responsibility and stewardship with our money. We're not big spenders, but neither of us have ever made a budget. We just freeze all spending when we're fearful. It's become VERY clear that God would have us learn to budget. It does my heart good to see a clear purpose for all this.

Another evidence of God's provision happened a few days ago. Josh had made extra money helping his brother paint and was carrying that cash with him. I told him we needed to deposit it to pay a bill, but when he counted it, it was considerably less than I thought (hense, need for a budget). I was so stressed I could barely breathe. I spent a lot of my time worrying about how to pay this bill, but when Josh pulled the cash out to count it again it was at least $30 more than he counted the day before. It was just enough to cover the bill! I don't know if money had gotten stuck together or if God had miraculously put the money in his wallet but I know that was God telling us that His promise holds true....He WILL meet our needs!

I still need this reminder....even today my heart was anxious when a friend called and just opened up about her own financial struggles and tendency to worry. She reminded me of the faithfulness of our God and His call on us as moms. She reminded me of how blessed we are to be home with our babies. God gave her exactly what I needed to hear and even as I write I see more and more ways God has been meeting my every need.


23Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.
--1 Thess. 5:23-24