Words just can’t describe how wonderfully full our weekend at Liberty was! We were more than ready to see our girls—gosh we miss them so much! We met for pizza and wings then checked into the Airbnb to catch up some before going to Mister Goodies for ice cream. Just us five, which I loved.
The next morning started slow, and I was able to wash a load of clothes for each of my girls. They were grateful for that! Ruby stayed the night with us, so we had a little bit of time alone. She’s growing and maturing and is just a lovely young lady that I enjoy talking with.
We met Molly and her gang at the ROT, which is the cafeteria. We all sat together and Molly went around led the table telling about each person. Lots of funny stories came out during this time too.
Then we went bowling! And then got smoothie bowls and then had a little break before hibachi dinner and more ice cream at Rookies!
These girls were sooooo sweet. I absolutely loved meeting each one of them and hearing where they’re from, what their major is, and more funny stories. They are just awesome young ladies!
We enjoyed church Sunday morning with many of the same friends. It was such an encouraging morning! From the music to the sermon and being surrounded on my row with my family and the girls’ friends…my heart was full! But we had to leave them and that is always a little hard to do. But I’m so happy they’re at Liberty and thriving!
I’m extra grateful for this man. He is so generous and loving. To me and to our kids. And to their friends. He has a heart of gold and is wise beyond his years. I love every minute I get with him—even if we both were beyond exhausted and felt every bit of 46 years old. These kids we hung out with were the same age we were when we met. 💗 so thankful God brought our paths together. He is just the best.
This morning four ladies gathered here in my living room for week two of our study of I John 1,2&3.
After having some snacks and getting our coffee, we moved to the living room where we talked through some of the questions we answered during the week. I loved hearing some of their thoughts and ideas around what we studied in our homework. Most notably was our discussion around confession of sins to God and to one another. If God already knows our sins, what’s the big deal in confessing them? That conversation transitioned into our fellowship with others and what hinders us from moving beyond surface friendship especially within the church. Such rich conversation!
I remembered a silly analogy, but a helpful one around this topic. Suppose it’s a sin to eat chocolate ice cream, but vanilla is perfectly acceptable. Now I love vanilla and always have. It’s by far my favorite. I’m not even tempted to have chocolate. So when Susy-Q gets chocolate ice cream every other week, I am quick to judge her. “Why can’t she just pick vanilla? It’s clearly the right choice. It’s obviously the better choice. I don’t even know what she sees in chocolate ice cream. It’s a shame really how she has no control.”
All the while, I have never even once been tempted by chocolate ice cream. My compassion for her is at zero. And that is the true shame.
This could apply to any sin. Could it be that the particular sin I’m so sickened by that YOU are involved in is not a problem for me or a temptation for me because of the type of family I was raised in, which was not my own doing at all. And why is it that when I sin, I am quick to give myself all the benefits of the doubt because I seem to think I’m more deserving of patience or grace because my sins aren’t that bad or aren’t too “out there.”
I can move towards more genuine and deep friendships if I’m willing to listen with humility and graciousness when someone shares something their struggling with. And I can share more freely if I realize how much God loves me and forgives me and cleanses me. We need each other! Sometimes we need to go first; other times we need to be the safe place for someone to confess and ask for prayer. But we can be guaranteed shallow friendships if no one is willing to be vulnerable. It takes all of us showing up filled with the Spirit and aware of our own need for God’s Grace and forgiveness in order for true fellowship to happen.
Jen Wilkin’s teaching was so good. She mentioned the scene in Elf where Buddy the Elf hears about Santa coming to the mall, and he yells, “SANTA!!!!! I know him!!!!!” And John is writing to a group of churches in Ephesus filled with people who did not meet Jesus face to face or hear His teachings with their win ears, so he is telling them, “JESUS is eternal life. I KNOW HIM!!!! I saw Him. I touched Him. I heard Him. And I’m gonna tell you all about Him.” I was challenged to examine if and how I am being a witness to Christ in this broken world. And how can I be an advocate for others through prayer? Who needs me to pray for them and am I serious about those prayers?
Another nugget that was so good was about light. John wrote using the contrast between light and darkness and clearly states that in Jesus there is no darkness at all. Jen spoke of a paver in her garden that got flipped over and what was under that paver was lots of icky creatures that had been hiding in the dark. Light exposes. And light also helps things to grow. Am I letting the light of God’s Word and His spirit guide me and shine on my heart anything that needs to be exposed? And am I seeing growth in my life as a result of walking with Jesus? I should!
I John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”❤️
My statement for the week that Jen asks us to fill out is:
“Knowing that God is faithful and forgiving shows me that I am selfish and a justifier of my sin when I should be a confessor and repenter of my sins.”
This week I want to pray and ask God to help me be more grateful for His sacrifice of Jesus on the cross for my sins and not use His grace as an easy out to give in to my flesh. Jesus died for me to have access to God, and He continues to be my Advocate. That’s amazing truth to think about; it should cause me to live differently.
This was a little all over the place but I wanted to get down my thoughts before moving on to week 3.😊😊
If you need to know the worst case scenario or you need a list of all that needs improvement or ways life isn’t going so great or is just too hard, I am your girl. This is not a nugget of truth I’m proud of. I’m working on shifting my perspective to a more positive outlook instead of always being on the ready with a bullet list entitled, “Needs Improvement.”
So this week I decided to make a list of what I am doing that is good and right and helpful and on the right track. It helped!
1-I take my supplements. And not just one, but several—vitamin D, multivitamin,Adrenal Rebuilder, & Omega 3 daily and curcumin a few times a week.
2-I got help when I needed it for my low energy and poor sleep. That resulted in a thyroid medication, progesterone and testosterone. my hormones are happier than they’ve been in quite a while.
3- I drink enough water and even add electrolytes daily and creatine almost daily.
4-I strength train three times a week and it’s the highlight of those days. I’m getting stronger and stronger…hello 175 deadlift and 255 hip thrust, among other things. I actually like the gym! It’s the easiest part of my health journey these days. That’s a miracle.
5-I get at least 5,000 steps a day, but usually close to 10,000.
6-I get between 120-140 grams of protein every day.
7-I get extra collagen daily.
8-I switched to a very clean half caff coffee (Fabula).
9- I still wake up and have my time in The Word and prayer time every morning. I think I pray more in this season of my life than any other season before now.
10- I opened my home for a weekly Bible Study!
11-I tried a barre class all by myself today.
12-I am persevering and building endurance under a certain situation that I’d rather run away from.
I’m sure you could come up with your own list, and I challenge you to write it down. Be proud of yourself. Take note of what you’re doing right and good! You can make a “Needs Improvement” list another day. 😊
Today was the first week of Bible Study in my home! This hasn’t happened in way too long, and I’m so glad I finally decided to follow through and host again. We’re going through the Abide study by Jen Wilkin. We will be studying 1,2, and 3 John. Today was just the introduction, and yet I was so encouraged. As I was starting fresh coffee and getting some snacks put out, I heard the words to a song about the Word of God. “The Word was, the Word is, the Word will be forever and ever.” I looked up some verses about the everlasting quality of the Word of God. There were quite a few and it reminded me that I’m never wasting time learning and studying the word of God. I was reminded that two things last forever—the souls of men and the Word of God. So what better way to spend my Thursday mornings than studying the Word with a group of ladies?!? My heart was greatly encouraged today.
I’m looking forward to diving deeper into some of the themes Jen told us to look for—purity of the gospel, assurance of faith, historicity of Christ, what an ethical life looks like, hallmarks of love, what to do with false teaching, and obedience. 😊
Yes, it’s sad for the girls to be gone. Yes, I like having their two sweet faces and personalities under our roof. But it’s time to have them gone. It would be more strange if they wanted to stay here when it’s time to start using their own wings out in the world. So as much as I miss them and wish I knew a little bit more about their days and nights, I am learning to enjoy some of the positives.
For example, currently there’s a sense of peace that each kid is on mission somewhere being productive and learning. And having a lot of fun doing it. They’re taking steps toward adulthood and independence every single day. That makes me happy.
Another huge positive is a clean house. And no more dorm room piles in every corner. No more wondering whose laundry is in the washer. No more late night friends over playing card games and no more walking by rooms where a child is “just resting” at 1:30pm while they watch a show. That’s not real life, and it annoyed me when it happened.
So today I’m choosing to be happy for the positives of launching young adults.
The house cleaners come tomorrow, and they’re probably going to be amazed that this is the same house as the one they cleaned a few weeks ago!
I’m truly not sure how this happened so fast, but here we are with two of our kids in college! I’m so utterly exhausted at the moment that I don’t know where I am emotionally in regards to this. A four day nap would help me, but I don’t think that is going to happen.
We sent Mack off to his first day of Junior year, and then we hit the road with a plethora of stuff in tow.
We unloaded Ruby’s stuff on day one. It was a breeze getting her all set up!
We checked into our air bnb and then went to dinner at one of Molly’s roommate’s house. They were so kind to have us over and feed us.
The next day was all about Molly! It was a little more work getting her all set up but we got it all done. And Molly liked it, which made me happy! I don’t see her spending much time in her room though.
Josh is the best. Just an amazing dad and made sure Molly had everything she needed. We love him so much!
I’m so excited for Molly in her first year. I know she will make good friends and have a blast all along the way. I think she is such a free spirit that being enrolled in a college and doing what so many others are doing can seem unappealing. But once she finds her groove there will be no stopping her from having a great time and learning so much. Living with people might also help her find her voice and get some practice with confrontation in a healthy way.
The new cafeteria is amazing! And the food was delicious. We even tried out the new ice cream machine!
I miss them already! And I already sent mail because someone forgot their laptop charger😵💫 but I snuck in some fun surprises too.
We are praying the girls walk in all the purposes God has for them. I pray they learn more about who God is and how He made them. I’m praying they obey God in each moment and also get glimpses of what obeying Him could look like in their future. I’m praying for strong Christian friends to surround them and also that they would be a light for Christ to those they interact with. This is a special season of their lives and they get to be in a very special place…together! I’m beyond grateful for the ways the Lord provides for our family. And sending two kids to Liberty is near the top of the list. Go Flames!🔥
What a fun week at Edisto! We celebrated the Fourth and enjoyed the sun, sand, food and time together.
I usually leave sad because I’m a brat I love the beach. It’s just so majestic and beautiful. And the warmth is amazing. So I’ve already booked a stay at Edisto for the girls’ college spring break! I can make it til March. And Josh says going to the beach even a few times a year is less expensive than buying a beach house. So that’s what we will do😎 well, at least once a year anyway.
We came home and unpacked and did some laundry. We scrounged for dinner and then took Mack to a parking lot to practice parking and three point turns since he will *hopefully* be getting his license very soon.
The thought of being done with teaching kids to drive makes me giddy. What a milestone that will be. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again—I’d rather potty train 500 toddlers than teach a teenager to drive.
We’re also happy to be reunited with Rolo!
Here’s to enjoying July and counting down the days to the next beach trip!☀️🌊☀️🌊☀️🌊
Josh and I went on a pre-vacation. You know, a reprieve before spending time with a larger group. And it was a game changer. We wanted some time alone. We wanted some family time. We got both, and I’m so thankful for our two night getaway. Charleston was lovely.
And we were reminded that we really love being together.
This homemade strawberry pop tart will be visiting me in my dreams. So yummy with coffee from Miller’s All Day.
One evening at dinner, we ran into a friend from junior college! Duncan was a fun guy that always made us laugh. It was so fun to see him and meet his wife.
We sat on a bench and talked for a bit after dinner. Then went to a coffee shop for coconut cake and coffee while a man played live music.
{This was written a year ago. I found it in my drafts and read it and realized it’s still true. So I hit the publish button}
I thought my hydrangeas were dead.
I assumed by the brown crunchy leaves that the confederate Jasmine, which is supposed to climb the fence,was going to lay in the dirt instead.
Some of my rose bushes looked to be withering away.
And then the rain came…followed by warmer temperatures. And almost overnight it seemed that the whole yard was green and healthy—there was growth and color and beauty.
God gives the seasons. It was all His idea! The physical ones we can observe are pretty clear as we live through them and observe all that each one brings. We feel the freezing temperatures and see the bare trees. We watch the Sun show up a little more powerfully and dead gives way to life. The summer brings more sun, and we make our way to beaches and watch the waves crash and feel the warm breeze. And then the beauty of fall and all the leaves changing and falling to the ground in near-perfect temperatures—in North Carolina at least.
Life also comes in seasons, though not as conveniently predictable as the physical ones.
In one household, under one roof, all four seasons are liable to be in full force.
Winter can sometimes last way too long.
The beauty, life, warmth and growth of Spring and Summer can be taken for granted—overlooked even—before it’s gone!
And fall leaves flowing to the ground can mean a letting go of something or someone we weren’t quite ready to let go of.
The Lord reminded me this morning to hold on to Him. No matter how much life feels like a winter season, He is the one who always brings refreshment. He gives life and growth in all seasons. Water for my thirsty soul comes from Him. He feeds me like He feeds the sparrows who aren’t worried or storing up in fear. Seasons change. Try to find the beauty in all of them.
And be grateful God isn’t like the seasons—changing and sometimes unpredictable. He is the Maker of the seasons. He tells them when to come and go. And He stays with us through them all.
