Fear Not: Part 6

(If you missed the earlier posts in this series, here they are: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5.) We weaken fears with faith by talking to God and we weaken fears with faith by talking to ourselves, in other words, by thinking about what is true.  “Whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, worthy of praise-think about that.  Practice that and the God of peace will be with you.”  Do you see what the Apostle Paul getting at here? We weaken fears and anxieties by thinking, or talking to ourselves about what’s true. This kind of thinking is not some sort of "power of positive thinking". This isn’t just trying to make yourself feel better...

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Fear Not: Part 5

(If you missed the earlier posts in this series, click here for Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4.) What does it really mean to weaken fear by fighting for faith in God?  Let’s look together for a minute at some familiar verses, found in Philippians 4: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there...

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Fear Not: Part 4

(This continues the series where I'm re-posting a message that I shared with the women of our church.  If you missed the beginning, check out Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.) --------------- There’s an analogy here that’s helped me think about how trusting in who God really is can shape my fears. Imagine that you’re on a walk with your brother who just happens to be a heavyweight boxer. He’s got muscles popping out everywhere.  He’s won every boxing fight that he’s ever faced.  The dude can seriously fight. Now, let’s say you’re on a walk with your brother and a man suddenly approaches you and yells, “Hand over your purse!” In that moment, you’re in a really scary situation....

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Fear Not: Part 3

(This continues the series where I'm re-posting the message that I shared last year with the women of our church.  If you missed the beginning, you can read Part 1 and Part 2.) -------------- The reason that we’re called not to fear isn’t because scary things don’t happen (they do!) or because we can handle them on our own (we can’t).  The Israelites really were facing a very frightening situation that they simply could not handle on their own.  The reason that they were called not to fear, the reason we’re called not to fear is because of the truth of who God is.  This is how God wants us to weaken the influence of fear: by fighting for faith in Him. God...

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Fear Not: Part 2

(This post is part of a series where I'm re-posting a message that I shared last year with the ladies of our church.  To read Part 1, go here.) Over the years, I’ve come to accept that I’m not an expert in many things.   I've had to accept that for whatever reason, apart from the Lord’s help, I am just very very prone to fear what is frightening. Whether you’re a fear “expert” like me, or more casually aware of an occasional anxiety, we all are acquainted with fears.  In the midst of our fears and worries, something deep down within us wants to know...is it really possible to have lasting peace? If it is possible, how?   We’re going to spend some time in...

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Fear Not: Part 1

Last year around this time, I did a series about the topic of fear.  A year might have passed, but I still need reminded of this stuff so I'm going to re-post it in large part for myself.  If it happens to help anyone else, well, that's great too! --------------------------- Recently, I had the joy of sharing at a women's meeting for our church.  The topic was something that each of us, men and women alike, are all too familiar with: fear.  I thought I'd go ahead and post the message in bite sized chunks for those who weren't able to make it.   --------- Part 1 I’d like to start by telling you a story about a woman in this church.  You may or may not know...

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Thirsty-First Year

I was with my awesome grandma last weekend. As usual, I left thinking about just how much wisdom she has, how much life she's lived, how much we all love her, and how beautiful she truly is.  My mom, my aunt, my grandma and I sat around my grandma's kitchen in small town Iowa, talking about the craziness of growing older.  Grandma said something to the effect of, "Oh, I know!  Sometimes I look in the mirror and I think, 'Who is that old woman looking back at me?  That can't be me.  83?  No.  I don't feel a bit like 83.'" I smile now, thinking of how she shook her head, how she really just couldn't believe that so many years had gone by.  And it's so true,...

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The Letter

As a part of the matching grant that we're being awarded from Hand in Hand, they asked us to write up a letter explaining where we're at.  Here's what we wrote: Photo Credit: Misha Seger Dear Family and Friends, It is with huge smiles that we send this letter to you!  As many of you may already know, God has given us a desire to provide a “forever” family to a child through the process of adoption.  We love adoption because God loves adoption!  He has adopted us into His family, making us His children forever through Christ’s saving work (1 John 3:1).  And for us, adoption is just one way that we can spread His love and reflect it to a birthmom and a child in need....

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Fun Spring Activity

Looking for a fun, inexpensive, and easy spring activity to do with your kids?  We made some colored rice to play with the other day and it was a huge hit.  * Warning: when your kids play with rice it will likely end up everywhere but it's worth it!* Easy Colored Rice Recipe (kids can help with every step except the hot water): 1)  Put 2 cups of rice in a plastic bag. 2)  In a bowl, pour in 1 package of kool-aid and enough hot water to dissolve the kool-aid (about 1/4 a cup or less). 3)  Pour the kool-aid into the rice bag.  Seal, and mix it together with your hands. 4)  Pour the colored rice onto a wax paper lined cookie sheet or pan and use a spoon to even...

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Isn't There Another Way?

Last night my mind was running through all of the paperwork for adoption grants yet to be applied to, then to all of the paperwork yet to be filled out when we apply to agencies, then to all the paperwork that I don't even know about that will likely happen after being matched with a birthmom.  As I was mentally picturing all of these papers yet to be filled out and all of the papers that we've already done, well...I felt tired.  Then I thought, "Isn't there an easier way?" God instantly brought to mind Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, staring into the cup of God's wrath that awaited Him as He looked ahead to the cross.  And He pleaded, “My Father, if it be possible, let this...

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The Silly Pig

Owen's a high energy kind of guy.  He will definitely sit still for a couple minutes to draw, but usually the end result looks like a frantic scribbled eruption of color.  Then, he promptly rolls, folds, and/or rips it up.  The other day he'd been upstairs alone for way too long and everything was much too quiet so I went up to investigate.  I found him in my room on the floor, surrounded by markers and a piece of paper, grinning ear to ear. I was shocked when I saw that he had actually drawn a real picture!  His creation?  The silly pig.  He went into great detail explaining this picture to me.  My favorite parts are definitely the hearing aids and the...

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